dave and andrew's european expedition
self propellers
dave and andrew's european expedition
4700 km across Europe by foot, bicycle, kayak... anything that doesn’t burn fossil fuels. That’s the expedition Dave Allcorn and I, Andrew Bilz, intend to begin in January, 2010. We anticipate it will take us between five to six months.
Dave Allcorn is originally from England and recently fell in love with the incredibly vast wilderness of Northern Ontario, and even more importantly a Canadian woman, and is now a permanent resident of Canada. He has travelled all over the world, and especially Africa where he guided with a tourism company for two years. Currently he is guiding polar bear tours in Churchill, Manitoba for Frontiers North Adventures. This European expedition is Dave’s baby through and through, but when he asked me about wanting to join, it took me less than 24 hours to tell him I was absolutely on board.
I was born and raised in the Ottawa valley, a small town boy and grateful for it. I am currently working as a physiotherapist at the hospital in Sioux Lookout, a town of pop. 5000 located in North Western Ontario. This town seems to attract all sorts of interesting and bizarre characters, which explains how I met Dave here. I have also worked as a physiotherapist in the North Western Ontario towns of Nipigon and Atikokan, as well as Vernon, British Columbia, and have taken opportunity to travel in between jobs.
Dave and I share a strong passion for the idea of self-propelled transportation. I believe that my passion was developed partly through observing the beauty of North Western Ontario wilderness contrasted by the onslaught of gas-guzzling vehicles at ‘rush-hour’ in towns that takes 15 minutes to walk from one end to the other. To commute to work, the grocery store, friend’s houses, etc, I have used my feet, a bicycle, a unicycle, cross-country skis, snowshoes and a canoe. A few specific examples include cross-country skiing down the street in a snowstorm to pick up a movie in Nipigon, a regular paddle up river to work in Atikokan, snowshoeing across the lake for wing-night at the pub in Sioux Lookout and hunting partridge from a bicycle in all three towns (I should probably specify ‘outside of town’).
Last summer, between jobs in Atikokan and Sioux Lookout, I travelled around Nova Scotia and Newfoundland by mountain bike for over three months. It was an extremely challenging, rewarding, and life-changing experience, full of adventure and surprises, which is why I didn’t hesitate when Dave proposed another self-propelled travel plan.
Beginning in Athens, Greece we intend to work our way through former Yugoslavia, Italy, France, and then finally to Cape Finisterre, the Westerly most point in Spain. This expedition is largely for our own enjoyment, I’m not going to lie. We are really looking forward to experiencing the geography and the culture and company of local people at the pace that our feet, wheels and paddles will allow. Of equal importance however, we feel that this expedition is an excellent opportunity to encourage and inspire others to explore the option of self-propelled transportation. We will be doing this at a grassroots level, by example, presentations in communities, our blog, and any other method that may present itself (a short article maybe?).
There are at least six important benefits that make Dave and I so passionate about the option of giving motors a rest: 1) The environmental benefits of reducing fossil fuel emissions 2) The health benefits of decreasing air pollution 3) The health benefits of increasing physical activity (physical and mental health) 4) The health benefits of getting out there and interacting more directly and creatively with the natural world (emotional and spiritual health) 5) The social benefits of getting out of our fast moving vehicles and crossing paths with each other on the sidewalks 6) The financial benefits (saving on the cost of gas, vehicle wear and tear, and perhaps even a gym membership)
In summary, self-propelled transportation is good for us as individuals, for us as communities and for our world as a whole. And on the flip side, I won’t get into the harsher negative aspects of using motors, namely the statistics pertaining to death and injury caused by motor vehicle accidents. It’s not quite as deadly to hit a moose on a bicycle. Sometimes I wonder if perhaps the overuse of motor vehicles in our society is an addiction-type problem that is largely overlooked, because we are afraid of being inconvenienced if we begin to address it. Is it possible that we’ve taken the automobile for granted, and assume it as necessary for our survival, when it is actually a detriment to survival? Often what is seen as convenient on the surface is in fact the very thing that does us the most harm in the end...something to think about.
If you are interested in keeping tabs on our ins and outs and whereabouts on our European expedition, you can follow (or subscribe to) this blog...
Happy Trails,
Andrew and Dave.