Blog Archives
Good morning sunshine
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This gallery contains 4 photos.
Last Sunday I was waiting for winter on the mountain bike. This Sunday I was out early for the sunrise over snow. It was like a layer cake, snow below, a ground hugging layer of fine mist between and the … Continue reading
Ljubljana, capital of Slovenia. European Green Capital 2016, delightful city and cycling capital.
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This gallery contains 5 photos.
I visited Ljubljana for the first time in December and I was absolutely charmed by the city and its environment. This means it is the perfect 2016 opening post for Idonotdespair.com because the city has been awarded the status of … Continue reading
Still waiting for winter in Belgium
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This gallery contains 3 photos.
After the warmest December on record in Belgium it is suggested that winter may just be coming. But it is taking it’s time. The news, web sites and social media shows snow reaching Scotland and minus 14 temperatures in Scandinavia, … Continue reading
Favourite cycling photos of 2015
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This gallery contains 11 photos.
To complement the small selection of nice travel and home photos that I published two days ago I now compiled a similar selection of 2015 cycling shots. Many of the travel shots were also taken on bike rides around the … Continue reading
New Year’s Day Bike Ride 2016
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This gallery contains 5 photos.
The New Year’s Day ride has a special status for Idonotdespair. It is the anniversary of my first blog post here in 2012 and has generally provided me with excellent days out and a great start to the year. This … Continue reading
2015 – favourite photos of the year
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This gallery contains 17 photos.
Several of the bloggers I follow are summarising their year with a few of their favourite or most viewed posts. I thought I would do something a little simpler by picking out some of my favourite photos of the year, … Continue reading
Riding to the cyclocross and into the heart of a lost Flemish industry. A day at the Druivencross
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This gallery contains 5 photos.
Last weekend I took a short cycling trip over the Flemish border to the nearby town of Overijse to watch the elite cyclocross, referred to by the TV commentators as the “classico” because it has been run on the same … Continue reading
It’s not just about the bike lanes. A beautiful cycle touring day in Copenhagen.
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This gallery contains 24 photos.
As a cyclist it is so easy to be blown away by the waves of Copenhageners cycling to work and school along their wonderful bike lanes and forget to take a look at the city and its region. I haven’t … Continue reading
When life gives you lemons – make lemonade. When life gives you wind and rain and mud and a bike trail just round the corner …… go offroad.
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This gallery contains 6 photos.
When we went to the Ardennes for the weekend I seriously considered not taking our bikes. The forecast was wet and windy, the landscape promised excellent walking, the old dog doesn’t keep up with the bikes any more.………. But somehow … Continue reading
Weekend break in the Ardennes
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This gallery contains 14 photos.
The test of a good short break is when you are already planning to go back again before you have even made it home. That was certainly the case last weekend when we followed a Belgian trend by renting a … Continue reading
Gardens of Aywiers – Capturing the colours (and tastes) of autumn
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This gallery contains 16 photos.
Among the most popular events where we live are the twice yearly open days at the former Abbey of Aywiers at Couture St Germain, just a couple of kilometres down the valley from Lasne. Today the former abbey buildings are … Continue reading
To Burgas, Bulgaria for more cycling chat and exploration
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I do not despair’s exploration of the wide reaches of cycling continued in October with a trip to Burgas on Bulgaria’s Black Sea coast. I was there for a project meeting as part of ECF’s European Bike2work project. This meant … Continue reading
Let the pictures do the talking. Scenes from the Rugby World Cup Final 2015
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This gallery contains 29 photos.
As usual you can click on any image to see it full size or to scroll through the gallery.
A short look at Oslo’s cyclists.
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This gallery contains 5 photos.
When I was in Oslo in August I was of course very keen to get a flavour of local cycling, in particular because I had been told that cycling in Norway is quite distinct from the Danish and Swedish cultures … Continue reading
I Do Not Despair 