Traveling Europe
Katie “Flo” Crites began her long-distance hiking career on the Appalachian Trail in 2021 and completed her Triple Crown in 2023 at just 22 years old. Through her international Ironman races to mountaineering routes around the world she’s continued living that spirit of adventure. I was fortunate enough to hike with Flo on the Continental Divide Trail in 2022 and am very excited to share this blog post that covers her time bikepacking and hiking in Europe.
What did you hike/bike/travel to in Europe?
Before I begin, I went to Europe twice. Both trips were completely different vibes.
Trip One: The Accidental Bikepacking Experiment
The first trip was totally unplanned. I was training for my first full Ironman at the time, but I also didn’t want to miss another opportunity to spend a summer in Europe. So I thought, “Why not bikepack AND train at the same time?”
Spoiler: terrible training plan. Amazing trip.
I flew into Edinburgh, Scotland on the cheapest one-way ticket I could find. I’d run in the mornings, swim in whatever local pool I could find, and then spend the rest of the day biking with all my gear. I made my way South into England, planning to follow the entire coastline… except it rained literally every single day. By the time I reached Newcastle, my bike had basically given up on life. My shifter snapped, and I rode 70 miles stuck in one gear just trying to get to a bike shop, only for it to be closed. So I went to a bar, ordered a couple margaritas and a burger, and tried to figure out my life.
The bartender noticed my bike, asked if I was bikepacking, and turned out to be deeply into it. He ends up offering me a place to stay… and then the next day he literally quits his job and joins me on the trip. Wild, but totally on brand for him
We ferried from Newcastle to Amsterdam and rode south through the Netherlands, into France, and eventually into Spain. The whole thing felt like a thru-hiking community on wheels. Shared suffering, long simple days, and the kind of camaraderie that forms when everything is slightly going wrong.
The downside? It was terrible Ironman training. Endless Zone 1 miles don’t exactly make you fast and running before or after biking all day was… awful. I ended the trip in Alicante so I could get home and train properly for two solid months before my race. My friend continued all the way to Marbella which, ironically, is where I raced the Ironman 70.3 World Championships this past November. A full-circle moment.
Trip Two: The GR-11 (Pyrenees High Route Blend)
The second trip was a completely different adventure. My partner Everett (Jynx), who I met on the PCT, and I hiked the GR-11, a trail that crosses the entire Pyrenees from the Atlantic Ocean to the Mediterranean Sea. It was roughly 22 days of rugged mountains, big climbs, and some of the most dramatic landscapes I’ve ever walked through. We stitched together the classic GR-11 with sections of the Pyrenees High Route, choosing whichever route that looked more dramatic or interesting. It was the perfect mix of challenging, scenic, and wild hiking that I love.
Gear: Bikepacking vs. Thru-Hiking
Bike Setup
When I set out on the bike trip, I didn’t reinvent my whole set up, I basically adapted my normal thru-hiking gear to the bike. The biggest difference was the bags that carried my gear.
All my bags were custom made by Jynx so that was super sick! Everything fit my bike perfectly and was color coordinated.
Handlebar bag: This was my main bag on the bike. It opened completely, like a giant black hole and swallowed all the stuff I needed: snacks, my journal, and a surprising amount of miscellaneous crap that somehow always ended up in there.
Two front pouches on the handlebar bag: These were the kind hikers usually strap to the shoulder straps of their pack. They became perfect homes for my phone and GoPro.
Frame bag: This was a side-opening bag where I kept all my clothes; my running and swimming gear, my down jacket, and other warm layers.
Rear rack (strapped on with bungees): This last piece was Everett’s first ever backpack that he made a couple years ago when he started sewing gear. I strapped it on the rear rack with bungees. That thing carried my bulkier camp stuff: a Big Agnes Fly Creek tent, Enlightened Equipment sleeping bag, and my Nemo inflatable pad.
The whole system was designed so I could quickly pull everything off the bike whenever I went for a swim or ran into a store for groceries. I didn’t want to leave anything important sitting outside. It wasn’t perfect, the front bag was a pain to remount when it was heavy and the bungee cords weren’t my favorite long-term solution, but the overall concept felt solid.
Would I tweak it? Yes.
Would I trade it? No.
Hiking Setup (GR-11)
When it came time to switch back to hiking mode, most of my gear stayed exactly the same.
The biggest upgrade was my KS Ultralight framed pack. Frameless packs had absolutely destroyed my shoulders on past trails. I’ve searched but it’s been impossible to find a pack under 40L with a frame, so I had to go custom, in sake of my F’d up shoulders.
Sleep setup:
Enlightened Equipment bag
Gossamer Gear The One tent
Nemo Switchback foam pad
Other essentials:
Hilltop food bag
Nitecore power bank + headlamp
Gore-Tex rain jacket
Hoka Speedgoats
Water purification drops but I barely filtered water the whole time
Black Diamond trekking poles
Puffy, sleep layers, two pairs of socks
Miscellaneous: Hat, sunglasses, chapstick, pen, Field Notes journal, earplugs, AirPods, knife, sunscreen
Another big change was that I didn’t bring a Talenti jar or even a spoon. No cold soaking at all this time. I just lived off sandwiches and honestly, I didn’t miss cold food once.
Hiking vs. Cycling: What’s the Difference?
I get asked a lot the difference between hiking and cycling. At their core the two lifestyles are very similar. Both are long repetitive days where you’re grinding out miles for hours at a time. You eat constantly, mostly junk food (peanut butter M&Ms, sweetish fish, and sour candy), and you end up meeting the same type of people: a little weird, loves being unemployed, very driven, and just lovable people chasing some kind of finish line.
Like Raider says from his experience on the Tour Of The Continental Divide is that the mileage difference is massive.
You still have your start point and your end point and the daily rhythm feels surprisingly familiar, but on a bike, you can cover what would normally take three or four days of hiking… in a single day! Dropping 100 miles on a bike isn’t some huge deal. You carry way less food and when you hit towns constantly TOWN DAY becomes a lifestyle. I loved that part, and the excitement that comes with having access to lattes and pastries!
The other big difference is maintenance. On foot if something breaks you duct tape it or deal with it later. On a bike if something goes wrong you’re suddenly standing in the middle of nowhere realizing you have no idea how to fix whatever mechanical nightmare just happened. I suck at bike maintenance so that part kept things interesting. Aside from the speed and the mechanical chaos, the heart of both experiences feels the same: long miles, big goals, too much sugar, and the connection with others that’s hard to find in “real life”
Flo’s Hiking Background
My hiking adventures started during covid. After returning home from a year abroad in Australia I was more than itching to do another trip. My mom’s friend handed me a book about Grandma Gatewood, the first woman to thru-hike the Appalachian Trail. I had never even heard the phrase “thru-hiking.” She said maybe I’d enjoy this type of trip. After reading the book I couldn’t believe this is actually something you could do! I immediately dragged one of my friends out to do a section of the AT in 2020. We hiked a nine-day section and I quickly became obsessed. I spent hours on YouTube watching thru-hiking videos and devoured all of Heather “Anish” Anderson’s books (Thirst, Mud Rocks and Blazes, and Farther). The idea of completing the Triple Crown consumed my mind.
Seven months later, I was standing on Springer Mountain. I loved the trail so much that I dragged the experience out a full six months, hiking as slowly as possible because I didn’t want it to end. When I reached Katahdin in the fall of 2021, I went back home, lived in my mom’s basement, and saved every dollar I could to hike the Continental Divide Trail the following April. After finishing the CDT, I still had some money left, so I jumped on the chance to do my first international hike. I flew out to Nepal to hike the Three Passes Loop through the Everest region. I came home completely broke…but the moment I had enough saved again, I flew straight back to Nepal.
This second time I hiked the same loop with a friend I’d met on the CDT, Old Bag (along with Bonus and Seven whom Old Bag had hiked the PCT with in 2019), with the intent to climb Island Peak. It was a 20,000-foot mountain and that experience got me hooked on snow travel and mountaineering. I was originally planning on bikepacking after our month in Nepal, but the Pacific Crest Trail was projected to have a record-high snow year and I couldn’t resist getting more snow travel.
So I dropped everything and hiked the PCT.
Long story short it was three straight years. Three straight years of the Appalachian Trail, Continental Divide Trail, and Pacific Crest Trail. I reached my Triple Crown at just 22 years old. Since then, things have “slowed down” a bit. I’ve still kept moving, though. I went on to hike the Isolation Traverse in Washington (a mountaineering route), the Sierra High Route (with Old Bag!), and the Low to High Route from Death Valley to Mt. Whitney (with Old Bag, Short Stix, and Govy).
What’s your favorite Spot in Europe?
If I had to choose just one place in Europe that really stuck with me, I’d go with northern Spain on the eastern side. Again, when I was bikepacking through through that region the riding was unreal. There were long stretches of cliffs, tiny coastal towns, and winding roads while also having that mountain feel. I spent four days in Girona doing road cycling and instantly understood why every pro cyclist on Earth seems to live there. There were a lot of long loops in the mountains and out toward the ocean with big climbs and relatively quiet roads. Overall, the region is just sick! If someone told me I had to pick one place in Europe it would be northern Spain.
What cities/towns did you visit in Europe?
Scottland: Edinburgh
England: Newcastle, London.
Netherlands: Amsterdam,
Belgium: The Hague, bruges
France: lille, Paris
Spain: Barcelona, valencia, alicante, malaga, Marbella, Madrid, ronda
Norway: Kristansung, Oslo
Estonia: Tallinn
Did you run into any other hikers in Europe that you’d previously met on long trails?
Actually yes! I saw Heather “Anish” Anderson while she was hiking the high route in the Pyrenees. Jynx and I stopped and talked to her for a while. I’ve crossed paths with her twice now on a thru-hikes. The other one was on the Pacific Crest Trail when she set the Fastest Known Time for the Washington section of the PCT. I’ve read all her books twice through. She’s someone I really look up to. It was really cool to see her chilling in the Pyrenees the same times as us.
Best Day
I would say when I met Joe, the bartender, completely by chance. Hanging out with him, his coworkers, and regulars, meeting his mom, and spending a couple days planning the next stretch of the unknown made that part of the journey so much better. His community he built in his home town was refreshing to see.
There was one day that perfectly stitched together everything I love about hiking. Jynx and I woke early, perched on a ridge, just in time to catch one of the most stunning sunrises I’ve ever seen. Seven miles later, we reached a small town and treated ourselves to pastries and lattes at a cozy coffee shop. We hiked out to the beginning of the High Pyrenees where the landscape transformed completely from where we started in the morning. That night we slept by a huge empty lake savoring sandwiches with brie, fresh bread, and meat that we bought in town. I also remember just having really good conversation with Jynx and the people in town. Exactly why I hike.
Worst Moments
Bike: Belgium Crash
For the bike it was mostly mechanical nightmares. My derailleur was a constant headache. The worst moment came in Belgium. Riding on a along the bike path someone opened their car door right as I rode past. I slammed into it, and Joe ran into me right after. My derailleur was completely bent and useless for the rest of the trip. I didn’t have the money to fix it properly, so for the rest of the journey every bike shop visit was just a bandaid on the problem.
Hiking: The Wind
For the hiking it was the WIND! The last four days of the trail brought relentless gusts as high as 30 mph. Pitching a tent at night was impossible and sleep was nearly nonexistent with the wind being unbearably loud. Yet somehow, even with barely any sleep, I had the energy to hike each day. On day four, I remember thinking how crazy it was that my body and mind could keep going despite lack of sleep. That stretch reminded me a lot of Wild Turkey’s Fastest Known Time on the Ice Age Trail. Of course, it doesn’t come close to the scale of an FKT effort but it gave me a glimpse of what sleep deprivation truly feels like, and wow… it’s awful. Experiencing just a taste of that made me appreciate the people who chase FKTs even more than I already do. Pushing your body day after day, requires a kind of mental and physical strength that’s hard to even imagine until you’ve felt exhaustion, and I was only doing 30 mile days so I can’t imagine doing 50 mile days and on top of that way more than just 4 days. Exhaustion is humbling.
Any advice for those backpacking or cycling Europe?
If there’s one rule I’d give anyone heading to Europe on a backpacking or cycling trip, it’s simple: eat all the food and talk to as many people as possible. Everyone always says the French are the worst, but in my experience, they were some of the kindest, most generous people I’ve met. For those cycling there’s one more critical tip: learn how to fix your bike before you go. Trust me, it’ll save you a ton of headaches. Mechanical problems are inevitable, and knowing even basic repairs can make the difference between a minor hiccup and a multi-day nightmare.
Any shout outs?
Shout out to my homie OLD BAG for convincing me to do the Pacific Crest Trail after returning from the Nepal trip. It was the best year to hike it, also way higher snow year than 2019 ;) Shout out to my triple crown besties Creature (Kyle) and 70 pound hammer. We hiked the Triple Crown the same 3 years and Creature and I finished at the terminus on both the CDT and PCT together!
