GUIDING IN CYCLO-HIKING

The following are the main ways to prepare your guidance for your hike. For each one, the advantages and disadvantages are indicated… it's up to you to choose…

THE DEPARTURE, THE ARRIVAL… BETWEEN THE TWO WE IMPROVISE

- With only the signposts as a guide… - With a road map to the 100,000^th or 200,000^th…
*Advantages*	*Disadvantages*
Can decide at the last minute No time spent in preparation Zero cost	Very high inaccuracy of maps at these scales. Requires going by road. Leads to route errors that increase the expected daily mileage.

LIKE THE WALKING TOUR

With topo map to the 25,000^th or 50,000^th and compass.
*Advantages*	*Disadvantages*
Quick to prepare Precise (highlighter on maps)	Lots of paper cards to take along (weight). We have to stop regularly to change the map (sometimes in the rain… the rain wets the paper…). We have to stop VERY often to check the road, and we go back… also backwards: A turn, a crossroads…, that must be where you have to change direction. We stop, look at the map… not too soon… it must be the next one. The next one, sure but suspicious anyway, we want to check the context of the map. We stop and look at the map… caramba, too late. This used to be a path hidden by bushes…

THE OLD-FASHIONED ROAD BOOK

- in 5.2 km at Right - in 0.8 km to the left…
*Advantages*	*Disadvantages*
Abstract	We have to find the precise road-book of HIS hike… not evident. We are out of sync or lost as soon as we miss the meter or we make a detour by a point of view or we are deviated.

CONSTRUCTION OF THE ROUTE ON COMPUTER, THEN GPS ON BIKE

- A curious glance at the GPS, you can see the cartography and our track - A beep of the GPS, we look at it, it presents a zoom with the shape of the next change of direction with a distance counter 50m, 40, 10… 0…hop it's good…
*Advantages*	*Disadvantages*
Ultra precise Allows you to alternate all types of roads, tracks and paths Permanent relaxation and pleasure.	Big prep work. Cost of GPS.

The first three solutions generate a lot of uncertainty.

For a stroll or a small (lightly loaded) bike ride it's fun. On the other hand, during a long (very busy) bike ride… it's tiring… if not tiring if there is also the relief (many errors, many U-turns).

For us the priority being the pleasure it is without hesitation that we chose the last solution mentioned. The only one in our eyes allowing a PLEASURE as whole and permanent.

It should be noted also that as we write in the page Facilitate Effort :

Many of our evening guests are surprised to learn how many kilometres we travel during the day, and to see our load in relation to the coolness in which they find us. Nearly all of them tell us that cyclists who pass by their homes usually arrive exhausted and exhausted from their day's pedaling.

We explained on this page that our effort management explained this difference.
We can add here, that this type of GPS tracking certainly participates in a significant way to this difference with our friends cyclists who use almost all the traditional methods mentioned above.

Of course we have invested… but we are delighted to be able to devote ourselves to the essential in all our cycle tours: pedalling while enjoying our surroundings… the pleasure, as they say, of welcoming you to the front steps of our site.

This is how we proceed… continued in the chapter Construct.

Update 04/01/2013