I didn’t expect to do a llama (and other camelids) tour of the USA, but there you have it. Three of the five months I was traveling Round America with a Duck I spent at locations that had camelids. Ask me about shearing and spitting. I’m the person you want to talk to at the party lol.
I finished it up right here at home last weekend (in the rain!) at one of the most wish-listed AirBandBs in the world, the Alpaca Treehouse near East Atlanta Village (photo above taken by Rebecca there), which has llamas, alpacas and guanacos (the wild relative of the llama). I’ve loved seeing the agritourism entrepreneurialism across our country! See my compilation TikTok featuring camelids across America here. I’ll be pitching an article about all that, for sure.
So much more happened, of course, in the six months now since I left home. Here’s another compilation TikTok showing some of the buses and trains I took on the journey (along with my folding bike) (especially pertinent today because it’s #WorldCarFreeDay). The other TikTok shows some of the many strangers I met. I’m working on a few more compilations. Bike infrastructure. Cities. Local businesses. Art. Follow on TikTok. It’s a beautiful country filled with hope, at a time we need that more than ever. Lots and lots of articles to come.
FYI, all blog posts prior to the last one (with the reviews) are now set to private. The 50,000 words I wrote during my journey serve as my critical notes for the book on which I’m now working.
This multi-platform project may also include a how-to zine, an art exhibit, a book club guide, numerous articles (of course), and perhaps even a children’s book. Not sure I’ll continue offering llama tours, but it was super fun (and often very touching) when I did!
Don’t miss the BikeBloom upcycled bike tube earrings, of course, available RIGHT NOW at select REI locations as well as on Etsy at BikeBloom. As the tagline says, it’s a growing movement. I’m currently working on a batch from the flat tires during my journey (thanks a lot, goathead thorns!).
Oh, and if you want to join the growing movement of people (especially women and girls) on bikes, I got you covered with free classes and welcoming routes. I’ll add a few from my journey from some of my favorite places I rode such as New York City; Boulder; Los Angeles; Spanish Fork, Utah; and even Wichita, Kansas!
If you’d like me to chat with your book club now about this work-in-progress, feel free to reach out. One of my best experiences during the journey was Day 1 when I was the featured speaker at a book club in Chapel Hill, North Carolina. I often thought of those amazing women, especially at times I considered quitting. I didn’t want to end the story early and let them down!
Your book club may also enjoy my other books, Traveling at the Speed of Bike, Food for My Daughters and Bucket List — and, yes, of course, I’d love to answer questions.
Bucket List, in particular, inspires you to live your bucket list out loud without even leaving home! That immersive year-long experience definitely planted the seed for Round America with a Duck many years later. Plus, it’s funny. It’s a two-hour read (digital only — the others have print versions). Warning: it might change your life. It changed mine.
Stay tuned as I provide occasional updates here as appropriate. Hope to see you out there traveling at the speed of bike; growing food, knowledge and community; or living your bucket list.
This upcoming weekend is the return of Atlanta Streets Alive for the first time since the pandemic and then it will be MONTHLY. That’s progress.
I’ll bring my llama water bottle.
Discover more from Round America (and Ireland!) with a Duck
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