Miles from Nowhere: A Round the World Bicycle Adventure Paperback – January 31, 1985

This is such a great book that I read, give to someone else and order again and again. The photo of the cover is not the same and all the pictures, which really help are missing as well.It won't stop me from re-reading it, but it's not the same.

I read "Miles fro Nowhere" when it was published in the early 80s. An avid bicyclist I immediately decided that some day I too would embark on a distance biking adventure. But I set my sights a lot lower than Barbara Savage. I just wanted to cross the U.S. But there was no way I could immediately follow in the Savage's bike path. I had three children ages 1, 3, and 7.I recently re-read "Miles from Nowhere," downloaded onto my Kindle in preparation for fulfilling that dream to ride across the U.S. In 30 years it had lost none of its charm.What begins as a whim sends the Savages packing, selling, and discarding the trappings of contemporary American life in favor of two years spent riding in what was then the free world. They bought the panniers, the tent and cooking equipment, the touring bikes, the spare tires and other parts and followed a route of their own devising. They traveled north from California through Oregon and Washington then east across the Great Plains in Canada before dropping down to the States. From there they biked to Key West, flew to Europe and then biked in places many of us would consider unsafe, especially for women, these days including Egypt. They biked trough India and parts of Nepal as well as Thailand: places not generally considered safe especially for two people on bicycles. They are welcomed, warned, threatened, but never experience physical harm.When I first read the book the thing that interested me the most was Barbara's descriptions of the people they met along the way. The Savages made connections with so many interesting people, complete strangers who took them into their homes, and thus their lives. One of the things that most struck me about this was the degree of trust people had to have. Barbara and Larry had to believe they would be safe, and so did their hosts. I was especially enthralled by their descriptions of hospitality coming from their fellow Americans.When I reread "Miles from Nowhere" I still was enthralled with their encounters with other people and other cultures. But now I also paid closer attention to descriptions of bike problems along the way. Although my trip was a supported tour I still would need to know how to change a flat or identify problems with gears. Barbara's insight into their bikes' mechanical problems gave me an idea of what I might be in for even though I was on a supported tour with easy access to bike shops. Nevertheless reading about their problems reminded me of how important it would be for me to take good care of my bike.One of the things Barbara wrote about my fellow Americans that bothered me greatly was how biker unfriendly Florida was in the late 70s, even in places where there were dedicated bike paths. Within the last year I have done a "training ride" in southwest Florida almost exclusively on bike paths that were well cared for and clean. Crossing very rural parts of central Florida on the cross country ride there were only one or two places where people were not bicycle friendly. So if, after reading "Miles from Nowhere" you decide to avoid riding in Florida, fear not, it is now a very biker friendly state! And even if you are an armchair tourist you will find their descriptions of the places they visit and the people they meet well worth the read. Had I not read Miles from Nowhere I doubt if I would have ever created a biking adventure of my very own.

Interesting book to read with a historical reference. To think about all the things that have changed around the world since the Carter administration is a nice thought to hold on the side while reading about this couple's adventure.

Although the ride was quite an accomplishment and I am glad she took the time to write about it, her writing skills were often painfully amateurish. More than once I felt like i was reading a high school homework assignment. Some people may find that appealing and "down to earth". I persevered through the book in part because I am considering bike touring in some of the same places. Thankfully she did not try to pretend to be more of a writer than she was with for example gaudy metaphors like so many aspiring travel writers seem to be compelled to use.I have done some long distance bike touring and have ridden in some of the same places and I felt like she way over exaggerated the number of times they nearly froze to death or had some other near death experience. It sounded like she and her husband were aware of this and he teased her or gave her a hard time about it. For how fearful she generally appeared to be it is amazing she persevered to finish the trip. It does I suppose make it more of a thriller when you have near death experiences all the time or in her case worry that you are going to have a near death experience on a regular basis. Her writing did seem to improve toward the end of the book. I am sure if she hadn't tragically died shortly after returning home she would have ridden and written some more and would have continued to improve as a writer.From a bike touring perspective i have to agree with another reviewer that commented he felt they were poorly prepared for many aspects of the trip. You don't want to be over prepared or you may never attempt something like this and you will have less unprepared tales to tell but still....As an example of a bike touring book by a more skilled author with more interesting cultural insights try "Into Thick Air: Biking to the Bellybutton of Six Continents" by Jim Malusa. The series of rides he does don't compare to the Savage's round (some of) the world trip but the writing is much better - and funny. One of the reviews of that book gives Malusa a hard time for not attempting to do what the Savage's did and basically calls him a half a man and a sorry poser for having the audacity to even attempt a bike touring book that would compare to the "Miles from Nowhere" trip. I guess it depends on if you value what they did over what they were able to write about it.

A record of an American couples journey around the world by bicycle.Full of humour and without skipping the bad bits,this book has the ability to convey the reader with them as they cross several continents.Traveling in the late 70's, with the world in some turmoil means that not all countries could be visited, as well as the need to jump a few places, but still enjoyable for all that.

this was a great read, i loved this book it was so down to earth and real, none of this travelling with no problems at all, it had all the awfull things that would happen to you if you decided to just up and leave and travel the world on your bike and all the wonderfull that happen too! a terrible twist at the end though. I will be reading this book again and again.......

I really enjoyed this book. The account itself is interesting stuff and the way its written makes the story come to life

As a person who has crossed Canada on bike and am preparing for a world tour, I highly recommend the book. It is not badly written and certainly will forewarn you of some of the many challenges on a world tour.

One day I will follow their route. Thanks you for the book