End & Trip Summary

Thanks to all the effort on Tuesday, Wednesday morning just required me carrying my plastic-wrapped, homebuilt bike box from the airport to the terminal, checking it in without issue or judgment, and relaxing at Charles de Gaulle for a few hours. My calf-achilles issue subsided during the morning, and check-in went quite smoothly.

In Chicago, my homemade (hotel-made!) bike box arrived without any apparent issues, and after my Uber home, I removed my plastic-wrapped bike and found no signs of damage. The minor miracle of getting my bike home from Paris was complete!

Looking back, my entire trip was about as smooth as I could have expected.  The bike box packing and arrival in Heathrow, the daily bike rides through a mix of variable weather and hilly routes, and even the panicked packing in Paris all fit within what I imagined for the adventure! That tells me two things:

1) The effort of planning and carrying out a bike trip to Europe is becoming more manageable and, at risk of jinxing any future trips, routine. While this trip was maybe easier due to being solo (less prep, very little to buy up-front, less variability & risk, and easier to just bring my bike into my hotel room), the fact it was the second such trip made each step seem more natural. And in reality, the trip was more complicated than our family trip in spring, given the London & Paris arrivals, the rough storms & wind, the ferry, and the bike-packing at the end. As light as I was able to pack, my only mistake was packing too many clothes, since I ended up wearing only half of what I took.

2) More than anything, it demonstrated the viability of trips like this. It really does all work. With two trips under my belt, the only logistical issue in both cases was getting bike(s) back home. I’m not sure how to solve that in future trips (maybe trying to secure boxes in advance from a local bike shop, researching where to buy boxes, etc.. sounds easier than it is), but luckily that’s been the only hurdle.

Unlike our family trip in spring, this trip also benefited from a lot more training rides, including simulating the packing and weight on the bike. While I didn’t train on hills, I felt more in shape to handle the hills and wind, and pre-trip issues with my road bike were all solved. Luckily we’ve had no bike breakdowns (flats, broken spokes, chain issues), so that’s something to stay ready for.

Time will tell if my family and I have another Europe bike adventure in us. If it’s a family trip, staying in Netherlands and Belgium, or a flat river tour, is definitely the way to go, since the relatively small hills of my trip were rough on me with the extra weight and would’ve ruined a family trip. If it’s just me, packing even lighter and training on hills is all I’d do differently. Til next time!