Last summer, Quentin Dethine took on the challenge of linking Andenne to Athens (around 3,000 km) alone by bike, in complete autonomy. This summer, he will go a step further since he plans to reach the Moroccan capital.
“I want to surpass myself even more and discover other places and even a new continent! I will travel through a part of France in particular, I will go through the west coast of Italy (Pisa, Rome, Naples, Palermo and the Sicily) then I will take the boat to Tunisia. I will cross Algeria to Oran to finally reach Morocco. he explains to us from Iceland where he is on a road trip like the good adventurer that he is. Finally I hope to be able to cross the Moroccan border because it seems complicated. I will find out on site and see if I should take the boat back to Spain and go back down via the Strait of Gibraltar. I’m not too worried!”
One hundred kilometers per day
It will be adaptation and coping, as he always has. With his years of scouting and the trips he shared with his dad, particularly in the mountains, he acquired a little experience and the common sense required for this type of solo journey. “I established my route using Google Maps, like many people. I supplemented it with what I found on traveler forums and groups, he adds. Of course the route is not yet finalized. There are places and routes that remain uncertain and that I still need to refine.”
For his hundred kilometers daily, he will bring good old road maps and use the GPS on his smartphone if necessary.
In his backpack, he will also take some clothes, dry and freeze-dried food for around twenty days as well as sleeping equipment. “I’m going to think about what will be most suitable: a tent, a hammock, a tarpaulin that I will hang on my bike to make a shelter… What is certain is that I will take up less space than the last summer, announces Quentin. The bike is already heavy so I want to try to be as light as possible. I will be equipped for the rain but I expect it to be warmer than my previous trip.”
This time, he would also like to experiment with other means of accommodation and sleep more with locals. “It’s a more invigorating place to spend a night and it has more flavor than in a hotel. But I don’t want to take advantage of people’s hospitality either. A little piece of garden is more than enough for me.”
Quentin does not know at this stage how much this journey will cost him but he has some savings, sufficient to remove any possible financial concerns.
Attacked by dogs
Quentin will lead a scout camp in July and will start this new adventure on August 2. “I’ll give myself a day to rest before the big departure!” He is counting on a month and a half to two months to complete his trip.
“It’s a time in life when we have a lot of time. I want to live 100% and try as many experiences as possible, he confides. I’m starting rheto in September and I’m definitely going to miss a few classes but I think that my school, the Sainte-Begge institute in Andenne, is understanding. Some teachers had heard from me during and after my first trip, and they thought it was great!”
On the way, he doesn’t plan to hang around. “I’m content with the landscapes that are on my route. I want to move forward, that’s part of the challenge! But obviously, it will be impossible not to stop in essential cities like Rome, Naples, Tunis or Algiers .”
And it is not the hard knocks or the unexpected that undermine his motivation and his optimism. On his way to Athens in 2023, Quentin was attacked by a pack of dogs in Croatia, suffered food poisoning that left him bedridden for 24 hours and had both his tires punctured. Despite everything, he held on.
“Far from everything, I had no choice to get up and continue! This is what is also close to my heart in this project: the fact of leaving my comfort zone, of being alone, of discover and get by, he continues. My parents are worried about me leaving but they support me. During my previous trip, I gave them news every day to reassure them.”
It’s a great personal challenge. Probably not the last. “I like the idea of traveling with my mobile home for two months!” To hell with heavy luggage, Quentin proves to us that we can travel very far with little and in an eco-friendly way.
