CYPRUS GRAVEL | NEW BIKEPACKING ROUTE C2C2C (subs available)

In the eastern basin of the Mediterranean Sea lies this island called Cyprus. According to Greek mythology it's along the 650 kilometer coastline where Aphrodite was born. Aphrodite, the beautiful goddess of love, emerged from the waters around Cyprus where she had just been created from the foam of the sea. And it's this same love, the love for the bicycle, that brought the guys from Fat Pigeon to this wonderful island. So we'll start from the east shore, then we go inland, go over the highest point of Cyprus and then end up on the west shore. And then after that we go south and end up in Paphos. It's early November, we're here in Cyprus and we're getting ready for some winter adventure riding. It always feels good to have the bike back in one piece and after a long long travel we're heading to the restaurant. What's the plan? A big plate full of energy for the next three days in the saddle. It's 5 a.m. We just want to get everything out of the day. We're here at Pervola and we're getting ready for a 350 kilometer bikepack in three days time. We'll be covering 8 000 meters of climbing. It will be taking us three days. The first like 50 kilometers of the day are relatively flat so for us that's the the perfect way to get the system warmed up. And then after those 50 kilometers along the coast we'll head into the mountains. Look at this man, the sunrise. This is why we ride. So we're now 17 k's in. And Jeffrey what did you just say? This is the best trip so far. I've been to America or Europe but riding the bike and with all of the gear and with these guys it's just so amazing. It's really just so amazing. So to catch the sunrise on day one we skipped breakfast. We needed to make a decision. Where do we get breakfast? But everything was closed except for one place in Maroni, the teacher's house. So the owner of the place he saw that we were looking for something to eat and then he just invited us for breakfast at his house. And up all the way to Arroz today. But man, these sceneries are just incredible. So Mike, the local agent from yesterday from Activate Cypress, he sent us to Calamaras Tavern. He said it was a very good place to have lunch. So we arrived here and it seemed closed but the door was open so we knocked and then this friendly lady said we were welcome for lunch. Thank you very much. The route so far has been perfect. The scenery is very surprising. It's like gravel and rocky but the paths are very wide so it's not like singletrack. Really you can just see very far and it looks very good. Then we went into the dark again. So we started off in the dark and we finished in the dark with a really really tough climb. But the vibes were good because we had one of the best days on the bike ever. But really happy to be here now. It was a tough day but it was a beautiful day. So for tomorrow we'll be riding to the west coast, to Pomos. And on the way we'll have the Kikos Monastery. We'll have a very nice mine. We have the highest point of the route, Mount Olympos. And yeah so we start with a lot of climbing but i think the second half of the route will be mainly downhill and a lot of gravel so really looking forward to it. But first a good night of sleep. So one of the things i find difficult to get used to besides all the beautiful places that we come to. Not a lot of people know that we actually get up almost always around half past four. Because like in this case 5.50 sunrise will start. But then we want to be in a beautiful spot. We never knew that Cyprus was so freaking awesome. So as you can see the gravel parts are just beautiful. Pots are great, food is great, people are so kind. The final stretch before Mount Olympos. We just left the main road. Clouds are forming all around us. And someone said that we're gasping for air. And it's a little bit true because we're at 2 000 meters. Which for us flat europeans from the Netherlands is quite high. But it's getting colder here. Nice and misty. Very excited to what we can see. If we can see something. So that's where we're heading. To the observatorium all the way up. So we've reached the highest point. And now we got all dressed up for a long and well deserved descent. Had a nice plate of spaghetti. It was really really big. But we fill it and get back on the road again. We did climb a lot today. About 2 000 meters. So i hope it stays 100 000. Yeah what's happening? So my cleat came loose. So my right foot was stuck on the bike. But luckily Luca has another screw. So i'm safe by the day. A brutal second stage with lots of climbing and endless gravel. We arrive in Pomos along the east coast. A cold coke and a warm moussaka provide all the nutritions we need for the third and final stage to Paphos. So we've been riding for two long days. We've been sleeping only a couple of hours per night. But yeah we need some a kickstart for the day. For the third day. So this route really is a beast of a route. We decided to do it in three days. And that's quite extreme. So we really do need some stuff to wake up properly. We got this house at the beach. So we decided to take the opportunity and dive into the sea to wake up. The sea is a lot warmer than the pool. So sea november in Cyprus. Stop. I'm just gonna jump for it. One, two, three, go! Let's do it in Cyprus. So the plan is, well the plan already started three hours ago. We did a beautiful sunrise dip. We had an amazing breakfast. Shakshuka, a lot of eggs. Maybe you can see it. Today is day three as you've heard before. 100 kilometers, 1000 meters of climbing. We're going to some beautiful forests. But we feel like it's going to be an easy day. But we took a lot of time in the morning. So I think we'll be back in dark again. But last day unfortunately already. But beautiful scenery, beautiful temperature. So looking forward to it. So proper route building needs a lot of research. So I've looked on the internet. I've looked on satellites. I've asked local legends for route tips. But also you need a lot of luck actually. So luck was on our side this time. Look at these roads man. It's just perfect. Riding along the coast. Sea view all the way. Man it has a bit of the Africa vibe. It has a bit of the middle eastern vibe. It has everything you know. Blood, sweat and tears. But this stuff is so rewarding. It's at some parts it's incredibly steep. But you get views like this. Pretty insane Cyprus. This place really stole our hearts. It's now one big descent to the hotel, to the beach. So really really looking forward to have a little beer. Have some Cyprus delights. So a really nice one to finally meet and discover Cyprus. Really surprised, really positive, fresh food, kind people, very diverse road. I love being outdoors so much that I decided to quit my profession. Stop with the pigeon and I became a goat man. I just bought 900 goats and they're already following me. So I guess they hired me. So as you can see riding through the river at night. Made it. So we just arrived in the hotel. How many delights? Elite. Elite now. Cheers on the next adventure. Really enjoyed our stay here. Really would love to be back here just to see other tracks because Noel made a route based on his knowledge of the island using all information he had. But just every gravel road was spot on and we saw so many more. So this island is definitely not finished for us yet. But really proud of the route that we've ridden and the production that we made with Ellis' team. For me it was quite tough sometimes. But the majority of the route was doable for me. So that surprised me a lot. November 2022 will forever be the month we discovered Cyprus. See you next time.