Popularity of Stat Attack 1: Debatable! That was published way back in June 2023… where did that time go? Anyway – here we are for an update on some random statistics and facts….
Date we left Lincolnshire: 10th April 2023 (Easter Monday)
Days since we left: 305 Days (as of today, 8th Feb 2024)
Different places slept: 227 (that’s a lot of moving around!)
Countries visited: 23
Distance cycled: 16,628km (10,332 miles)
Metres climbed: 153,997m (17.4x up Everest)
Longest tunnel: 5.4km (Kanpuzan Tunnel, Japan)
Longest bridge: 4.0km (Kurushima Bridge, Japan)
Worst tunnel: 1.2km at 12% (Kamikochi, Japan)
See a theme emerging here? These guys love their infrastructure!
Lowest temp slept in: +1degC (Kamikochi, Japan)
Lowest temp cycled in: -1degC (Queenstown, NZ)… and that was without windchill! I’d far rather have been in my down sleeping bag in our waterproof tent at that point.
Obviously the beers help!
Highest humidity: 95% in South Korea, and it stayed that way all day and all night. Disgusting to try and camp in that – especially when you’ve not been able to take a shower!
Highest point above sea level cycled to: 2450m (Mt Norikura, Japan)
Worst meal: Instant noodles with no water… the scouted out tap wasn’t connected, so we found ourselves sleeping at the top of a mountain pass with no water. I ate uncooked super noodles. Sarah ate her breakfast for dinner. Neither approach was that satisfactory.
Most beautiful campsite: We’ve had some stunners… and some shockers. But a very recent one on the shores of Lake Wakatipu on the South Island was amazing. No road access – so just full of cyclists, with the most incredible views. But I’ll save that for when Sarah blogs it!
Number of different visitors/devices accessing this blog: 8,042 – that’s a lot of people… thanks for reading!
Most popular blog post: It’s. A. Lot. – unsurprising really seeing as it’s one of the oldest! We used to put a link up on Twitter (X), Facebook, LinkedIn, etc… every time. We figured everyone who wants to know knows now, but maybe you didn’t know about the e-mail alert you can get each time one of us posts!
Comments on the blog: 740 – which includes us replying to a fair few of your lovely comments and questions
Sleeping mats broken: 3 (Matt x2, Sarah x1) – these Big Agnes mats are super comfy and super lightweight, but the glue binding them together keeps breaking… but so far they keep warranty replacing them!
Cheapest mat replacement: A dog bed (£5) – good enough for Matt to sleep on for three nights before the mat was replaced…
Branches of the Mammalian family seen in the wild: All three! Our branch (humans, cows, horses, etc), the Monotremes (lay eggs but produce milk – such as the platypus and echidna) and the Marsupials (kangaroos, wallabies, koalas) which birth a foetus and then incubate in the pouch. Amazing!
Spiders and snakes seen in Australia: We don’t talk about that
Roadkill seen in Australia: Again. I’ve seen and smelt enough to last a lifetime.
And I think I’ll close there… the weather is fierce on the South Coast of New Zealand at the moment (50kph winds today to cycle in), the internet is a bit dodgy and so far I haven’t broken this website (a miracle!) and whilst I tap this out on the picnic bench looking out over the bay, some tiny Hector’s Dolphins have started playing in the waves… I’ll take that as a cue to look up!
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