Uploaded January 2026 | Updated September 2026, 2 weeks ago
Cycling the world - Asia: 19 episode
I wake up in a grassy patch outside a small place called the Rose Market where I was allowed to camp. Straight away the road kicks up with a steep climb toward Shekhan and the Kurdish mountains roll endlessly under a brutal forty four degree heat. Along the way a man named Rani steps in just in time to scare off a pack of aggressive dogs and invites me to stop at his roadside shack. We share a melon and he tells me about walking all the way from Kurdistan to Greece.
Late in the afternoon I reach Lalish the holy city of the Yazidis but I am stopped at the checkpoint and denied entry for wearing shorts despite having my legs fully covered. Frustrated I continue to Shekhan where I spend the night in an empty apartment above a phone shop trying to buy a federal Iraq sim card. It is the hottest place I have ever slept a true sauna.
The next day I push on toward Mosul my only real chance to enter federal Iraq with a Kurdish visa. After some patience at the checkpoint I finally make it in. Mosul at last.
MY GEAR FULL LIST: kit.co/davidetravelli
SUPPORT my round the world bike expedition:
Donations: paypal.me/davidetravelli
Postcards' Club: alaska2patagonia.com/postcards-club
Follow me:
Blog: alaska2patagonia.com
Instagram: instagram.com/davidetravelli
Facebook: facebook.com/davidetravelli
Twitter: twitter.com/davidetravelli
#bikepacking #biketouring #bikelife
#bicycletouring #cycling
*Some links in this description are affiliate links and therefore when clicked, if you buy the service or product I may make a small commission off of that sale. My opinions on products and services remain unbiased.
Cycling the world - Asia: 19 episode
I wake up in a grassy patch outside a small place called the Rose Market where I was allowed to camp. Straight away the road kicks up with a steep climb toward Shekhan and the Kurdish mountains roll endlessly under a brutal forty four degree heat. Along the way a man named Rani steps in just in time to scare off a pack of aggressive dogs and invites me to stop at his roadside shack. We share a melon and he tells me about walking all the way from Kurdistan to Greece.
Late in the afternoon I reach Lalish the holy city of the Yazidis but I am stopped at the checkpoint and denied entry for wearing shorts despite having my legs fully covered. Frustrated I continue to Shekhan where I spend the night in an empty apartment above a phone shop trying to buy a federal Iraq sim card. It is the hottest place I have ever slept a true sauna.
The next day I push on toward Mosul my only real chance to enter federal Iraq with a Kurdish visa. After some patience at the checkpoint I finally make it in. Mosul at last.
MY GEAR FULL LIST: kit.co/davidetravelli
SUPPORT my round the world bike expedition:
Donations: paypal.me/davidetravelli
Postcards' Club: alaska2patagonia.com/postcards-club
Follow me:
Blog: alaska2patagonia.com
Instagram: instagram.com/davidetravelli
Facebook: facebook.com/davidetravelli
Twitter: twitter.com/davidetravelli
#bikepacking #biketouring #bikelife
#bicycletouring #cycling
*Some links in this description are affiliate links and therefore when clicked, if you buy the service or product I may make a small commission off of that sale. My opinions on products and services remain unbiased.
