Bike'n eering

      While I ride, travel, and learn in Central Asia this summer, I'll be carrying warm gear for the high plateaus, where temperatures drop below 10 F even in summer. So why not climb some high walkups on the way to and from remote villages? I may not be Erden Eruc, a Turkish adventurer who's climbed Denali and ridden and rowed his way to a couple of seven summits. But in the greater ranges, a mountain bike allows access to trails and roads often limited to jeeps or donkeys. Sure, there are the folks at Ember Photography who bike and ski, and a few who bike and hike. But biking and mountaineering or trekking has yet to fully catch on in the adventure world. Might not be faster than a helicopter, but certainly faster than most pack animals, porters, and foot. And a lot cheaper, more reliable than jeeps, and helps with acclimatization along the way.
   
    I'm planning on trying out the concept off the Pamir highway on some 5-6,000 meter peaks and passes. Ride as far as possible over lunar landscapes to small villages or herders' camps near the Afghan border, then stash the bike, grab the pack that will be serving as a trailer bag, and start climbing easy snowfields and passes.

    This is somewhat of an experiment, as people occasionally stop on bike trips to hike but rarely spend multiple days off the bike or use the bike as a means of travel for overall purposes other than cycle-touring. The most noteworthy model is Goran Kropp's 1996 Sweden to Everest adventure, where he carried hundreds of pounds of gear from home to basecamp and back by bike. At Vantage, an area I used to frequent during the NW shoulder seasons for climbing, there is a plaque in his honor on "Air Guitar", where he zippered all his pro back in 2002. And I'm sure there are a few other examples of human-powered adventure to big peaks. But what about trips for the more casual, lower budget traveler. A mountain bike separates one from reliance on jeeps in remote areas, and allows flexibility required to make once-a-week international flights. All in all a good deal.