NATALIA LARTITEGUI

"I absolutely love cycling because of the freedom it gives you; you become part of the environment and enjoy everything around you."

She was born at the turn of the century. A native of Bilbao, at 25 years old, she has a strong travel resume, first with calm and less adventurous trips, and since 2013, more ambitious family trips to India, Japan, China, Turkey… an experience that has fueled her spirit of adventure and exploration.

Since she was 18, the age at which she left the family nest, she decided to embark on her own life adventure. She traveled to the United States, then to Italy and France, combining studies and work.

“These years for me have been a process…” that have culminated in her current adventure: cycling across the African continent, from Morocco to South Africa.

It's not a fleeting whim or a sudden desire: "My first solo backpacking trip was to Portugal, then I did Austria, Germany; later I traveled through Eastern Europe: Montenegro, Bosnia, Albania, Serbia…"

If you can, I can too.

That experience led her to undertake her first major trip through the Middle East, Asia, and Latin America, which lasted twenty-one months. “I had been contemplating the idea of doing it by bike for years. I met several people who were also doing it by bike and realized that my goal wasn't crazy. Through social media, I saw that other women were doing it. And if they could, why couldn't I? So, I spent the last two months cycling through Chile.

Cycling integrates you into the environment

"I absolutely loved doing it by bike because of the freedom it gives you... you become part of the environment, you perceive and enjoy everything around you.
Years ago, I set out to do the entire Middle East and Asia, then Latin America, and finally Africa because it is perhaps the most intense or difficult continent. So, I spent sixteen months in Asia; then I traveled through Latin America until an injury forced me to abandon the trip.

Now Africa

It is an unknown place for me. What we have heard about Africa in recent years is mostly negative. It's true that those things exist, but there is so much more to it. I am driven by the desire to experience the good things firsthand. Hopefully, not the bad.

"Traveling through Africa is opening your mind to an unknown world. On a human level, people are generally very empathetic and welcoming. Their kindness and hospitality open your heart. It is very enriching."

After leaving Morocco, she cycles through Mauritania towards South Africa.

I don't like to follow a precise calendar. I prefer not to think about or set fixed dates due to personal and external pressure. I'm in contact with women who have done this route, from Morocco to South Africa along the West Coast. It has some difficulties, such as obtaining visas, but it's also important to note that from May to October in that region, it's the rainy season, with very heavy rains. If that's the case, another option would be to reach Ghana, fly east and travel through Ethiopia, Egypt, and then down to South Africa. I don't really have a fixed plan. It depends on many factors.

Uncertainty

Adventure can be part of everyone's daily life. Every adventure has a component of uncertainty. If I say I'm going to go from here to here, I have everything structured, like here, I buy there... the adventure disappears in a way. Not knowing what's going to happen turns the trip into an adventure.

No more risks for a woman than for a man

“Yesterday, someone reprimanded three male cyclists, who were about twenty or thirty kilometers ahead of me. It happened upon arrival at the destination: ‘How could you leave her alone…? She’s a woman…’ and they explained to him, ‘This girl travels alone, she comes from Spain, if she needs anything, she calls us, but she is perfectly capable on her own.’
Then, when we arrived at the house and he saw all of us together in the garden preparing our tents to sleep, he insisted that I sleep inside his house. I don’t judge that behavior because it doesn’t come from malice, but from the deeply ingrained general idea that women are weaker. Seeing you alone tends to make people want to protect you more.

Traveling alone by bike: dangers? Also benefits.

"Everyone talks about the risks of a woman traveling alone. I don't doubt that it entails some danger, but, in my experience, traveling alone as a woman has more benefits than dangers. What do I mean by benefits or advantages? People see the female gender as much more vulnerable, which in a way we are, and that generates more empathy and they tend to want to care for and protect you more because you are alone."

The hardest part: making the decision to 'do it'

The decision isn't improvised. For me, it was a long process, after many doubts, reading a lot of information and talking to many people.
People are afraid to tell others... family, friends, at work because generally they won't support you. They try to discourage you.
I didn't say anything to anyone until I bought the plane ticket to Iran. Then, with the tickets in hand, I announced: I'm going to travel to Iran. I don't want their opinions to influence my decision.

Impressions of cycling through Africa

Traveling through Africa is opening your mind to an unknown world. On a human level, people are generally very empathetic, very welcoming. Their kindness and hospitality open your heart. It is very enriching.

Logistics and food

At home, I usually eat super clean. But when you travel by bike, everything is more complicated, and you have to adapt to what's available. I left Spain with a sandwich, and on the road, what I cook is very basic. I don't carry much, but I do take some food in case my bike breaks down... Pasta, rice, tuna, cans of corn, sardines, mushrooms, cheese spreads, bread... I don't follow a diet or focus much on the calories I need; I've never done that at home, and here it would just add another complication to daily life.

I carry a stove and two gas canisters, one of them extra because they are not found everywhere. Since I entered the Sahara, opportunities to buy food are scarce.

"Should I suggest the idea of a long cycling trip to my family, friends, at work? I don't like to, because generally they won't support you; they try to discourage you."

LEARN MORE ABOUT HER JOURNEY