Cycle Touring Crete - Episode 2

Join Frank and Daphne as they continue their leisurely cycle tour of Crete.
They're a pair of not-so-young retirees on their first ever cycle tour, riding with full camping gear.
In this episode, they continue along the south coast from Tsoutsourous to Sougia, then north to Chania. Stick around for the raki party on their last day!
If you missed Episode 1 (when Frank lost a pannier), check it out at • Cycle Touring Crete an...
Music by various artists from KZbin Audio Library

[@whatthe6532]

Daphne you are a great story teller. I loved those sandy beaches.

[@daphnebehindbars]

Thank you! Yes Crete has some fabulous beaches - I would go back in a heartbeat!

[@GASGOWESASYIKSYAHDU]

Amazing view..scenery..thank you for sharing..

[@daphnebehindbars]

Glad you enjoyed it! Appreciate the comment!

[@cliveappleton5210]

Excellent video and narrative ; I enjoyed watching every minute ; well crafted thanks for sharing

[@daphnebehindbars]

Thanks Clive! Delighted that you enjoyed it!

[@gillianduffy8725]

You guys have 100% inspired out next cycle tour destination!! I just ordered the Crete Lonely Planet along with a map to get started. We're planning on October this year! We watch a LOT of cycle touring videos - I love the scenery, the commentary, and the details you included in both parts of your Crete adventure. Thanks! We're not planning on heading east this summer, but if you find yourself in Vancouver we'd love to buy you a beer!! :) Cheers!

[@daphnebehindbars]

Thank you so much Gillian! We might take you up on that offer if we head west! So great to hear you're planning your own Crete trip - I know you will love it

[@steveevans9991]

Hi Daphne, great videos! I cycled from London to Athens and then had a few spare weeks to enjoy Crete. Stayed in the same sandy campsite in Matala as you both! A great experience. I was only about a month behind you both as I did mine in 2018. Keep on rolling! May you always have a tailwind and a gradual incline downwards! Namaste!😍😛🚴🚴‍♂

[@daphnebehindbars]

Thanks for your comment Steve, and glad you enjoyed the videos! Interesting that we were on Crete close to the same time. Sounds like a great tour that you did in 2018. Wishing you many more great cycling adventures!

[@cougarcreek5039]

Thanks Daphne and Frank. Your videos of Crete are helping us plan our tour in May and June!! Maybe see you both in Canmore again. Cheers

[@daphnebehindbars]

Great! We're excited for you. You know where we are if you have any questions!

[@jamesfrazier9671]

GREAT VIDEOS! You did a better job than many other video makers. I suggest you do one on Haifa Israel and tour the Baha'i Gardens, that are famous

[@daphnebehindbars]

Thanks for the compliment James! Glad you enjoyed the videos.

[@Maxl14]

Hi Daphne, this is amazing! I only have 3 days to do a bikepacking trip with a roadbike, starting in Heraklion. Which part would you recommend, given your experience: The East (Lasithi Plateau, Agios Nikolao) or rather the center (around Rethimno)

[@daphnebehindbars]

Thanks! We didn't actually ride around Rethimno itself so we can't speak about that area. If you enjoy climbing, the ride from Heraklion to the Lasithi plateau certainly gets you off the main tourist route through quiet countryside and nice little villages. Once up on the Plateau you can visit the birthplace of Zeus ( we didn't go there but kinda wish we had). And the ride down from the plateau to Ag. Nicolas is very scenic. With just 3 days it would be hard to decide, but you can't go wrong anywhere once you get away from that main road that goes east/west along the north coast.

[@stickyprickle]

Wow, brilliant video, I’ve just returned from a weeks hiking in the south west of Crete. I had a hidden agenda too, to scope out a bike packing trip. I have found your video most helpful. Can I ask if you did any wild camping? I’ve read mixed reports on this. Most grateful.

[@daphnebehindbars]

Thank you Max for your lovely comment. Glad you watched the video and found it helpful. Crete is certainly a great place to hike from what we saw, and it's a wonderful place to bike pack/tour for anyone who doesn't mind a few hills! We can't say enough about how much we enjoyed Crete. We wild camped only a couple of times - both times amidst olive orchards. And I suppose you could consider our nights on the beach in Sougia to be "wild", but that was allowed and lots of other folks were there. Wild camping may not be officially permitted, but like in many places, if you do it discreetly and "leave no trace", I feel you can get away with it, and I would do it again. Feel free to get in touch again if you plan a trip and would like any more info!

[@tombiggi1024]

During your cycling ... where did you keep/store the bags/boxes for your bikes?

[@faircato6365]

Dear Daphne and Frank, thanks for uploading these videos! I know Crete quite well, but only by car and on foot/hiking in western Crete. Totally fell in love with the Sfakia - the area not the village.. So I always wondered how it is with the dogs in the villages while going through on a bike... Did you have any experience with this?

[@daphnebehindbars]

Thanks for your interest in this video! We really loved Crete, and the Sfakia area is particularly nice. I don't remember having any issues with dogs at all on Crete though.

[@faircato6365]

@@daphnebehindbars Thank you!

[@tombiggi1024]

You shipped your bikes and gear separately or along with you on the flight(s)?

[@daphnebehindbars]

Along with us on our flight

[@tombiggi1024]

I guess what I am really asking is how did you plan this trip - what resources influenced the decisions for your route?

[@daphnebehindbars]

We had a good old-fashioned paper map of Crete (ours happened to be National Geographic's Adventure Travel map) and we mostly we followed main roads while in the south part, which in October are fairly quiet. Sometimes we'd find a smaller alternative route. We used a travel guide to Crete (Lonely Planet, Kindle version to save carrying the heavy book) to read up on interesting places. I actually marked these places on our map and scribbled all over it for easy reference (which you can sometimes see on my map sections in the video!). We did not use any electronic navigation on that trip, although we referred to Maps.Me occassionally (maps downloaded in advance to be able to use offline).

[@LesCyclopreneurs]

Are you bikepacking again Daphné?

[@tombiggi1024]

How did you get from Tsoutsourous to Sougia, then to Chania? Do you have a route or Strava of that?

[@daphnebehindbars]

From Tsoutsourous, we rode the main road to Pirgos, then smaller road through Charakas, Agi Dekka, (side trip to Matala) Spili, Plakias, Sellia, Hora Sfakion, then ferry to Sougia. Main road from Sougia to Chania (very quiet in October, until you get close to Chania). Routes shown on map in video at the end of each day. Hope that answers your question. We loved southern Crete!