Tag: bicycle tour

Interview with an Explorer

Jyri Manninen | Kajura


Back in 2017, upon awakening on a cold and rainy morning, with the autumn season in Finland already in full swing, I was smacked with an undeniably powerful urge to ride a bicycle from my home in Turku to my second home in Portugal, a journey of over 4000km; but why?

About 2 years earlier, I’d reached the end of the most significant phase of my life, my 18 year long marriage. Now I’d woken up to the fact that I pretty much had no clue as to what I was supposed to do with the rest of my life. In hindsight, all the signs that this major fork in the road was fast approaching had already been there for several years. Perhaps they’d just been hiding in plain sight, but I’d just not noticed them. However, it was most likely that I’d simply not wanted, or been prepared, to see and accept the truth and reality of my situation. I guess that it had just been much easier to go through life as a functional depressive, giving the people around me the impression that I was doing ok; but I wasn’t. All I had succeeded in doing was to put all the associated painful, unaddressed issues on ice for a while. Well, no matter. The universe had eventually lost patience with me, and decided that it was high time for me to face the music.

To clarify a bit more, the initial catalyst for my recovery, back into the world of the living, had been the Camino Portuguese pilgrim trek from Porto, Portugal to Santiago de Compostela in Galicia, Spain, which I undertook during the Easter break earlier that year. In retrospect, that had been my opening cry for help, which had ripped open the doors of the freezer that my heart had become, and directed the divine heat at all that had been lifelessly stored within. It was literally an act of resurrection!

From that time on, until this present day, I have completed many more adventures of exploration and discovery, which have included 4 separate bicycle tours around Portugal, as well as two long distance hiking treks, the Camino Finisterre and the Via Algarviana. Now, once again, I found myself at a new crossroads, as I reach 7 years of nomadic monkhood. While there are certainly many adventures ahead, and which I will tell you about later; here first is a video where my long-time friend and Ghostrider, Mr. Pepe, interviews me about the last ride with my trusted travel companion Matilda, on our two week tour of the Northern Portugal Coastline and Peneda-Geres National Park, as well about some thoughts for the future.


So, what’s next? In many ways, I feel that I’ve finally re-entered society, but now much more on my own terms. With that in mind, my focus going forward is on learning how to better serve others, both individuals through my coaching practice, and communities through the concepts of spiritual construction. The initial plans include a return to Portugal, but this time to the Castelo Branco region of Central Portugal close to the border with Spain. More specifically, I plan to create my own personal camino adventures, which will traverse through amazing places, such as castles, ruins and historic small villages, all connected by trails through the wonderful nature of Portugal. Ultimately, my desire is to offer previously untapped avenues of inspiration and personal development for my coaching clients, as well as fellow explorers; in fact, for anyone who is willing to make the necessary physical, emotional and spiritual effort to discover new and better ways of living and being.

Valleys of sorrow,
the tears of the lost do keep.
Their paths out, I seek.

‘The Path Out’ by Jyri Manninen

The more the world continues to move ever faster into an existence based around digital networks and the influence of artificial intelligence, my intuition, that feeling deep down within my belly, is to go in the opposite direction, back towards a more analog way of life, which is focused around the development and enhancement of real, organic relationships between family, friends, neighbours, communities, as well as strangers, and where the awakening of human consciousness is placed right at the forefront.
Do you care to join me?

Be blessed,
Jyri

My Matilda

Jyri Manninen | Kajura

How quickly the time had passed from when we set out northward just 2 weeks ago, and now finding ourselves, as if in an instant, back at the doorstep of our origin. With just a nominal 35km to ride, it felt like we had all the time in the world to soak in the atmosphere of our home shire, as we passed through the last series of villages on our way back to the Atlantic coast and our starting point in Peniche.

Very soon after leaving Caldas, we would arrive at the famous medieval town of Óbidos, where I had actually lived for a while back in 2015. Despite the countless times that I’ve been here, it never fails to touch my heart. So much history, so many challenges, so many emotions, and each time that I’ve returned, it feels that I am, somehow, just that little bit more complete. Óbidos is also where the Life on the Run concept had arrived into my consciousness; and from which so many camino adventures, both walking and cycling, have been spawned. How blissfully nostalgic it felt to pass by the coworking space ‘Espaço Ó’, the incubator, and clarifier, of so many of the perspectives that would shape my direction and actions until this present day.

Before long, we’d reach the European surf mecca that is Baleal. With so much time in hand, we decided to roll over to Baleal island, via the connecting land bridge, to chill  and do some people watching from a beach side café … while enjoying a Sagres of course! What a spot it was for Matilda and I to spend our final moments reminiscing together before the remaining short spin to our finish line at the Largo coworking space, which is managed by Mr. Pepe, my friend and ghostrider, who was also the manager of that coworking space in Óbidos. Round and around we go!

Matilda and I.
As strangers we departed,
as friends, we arrived.

‘My Matilda’ by Jyri Manninen

Upon arriving at Largo, all seemed quiet, so we just plonked ourselves down at the adjacent, and very aptly named, Café Ponto Final, to already commence the physical recovery process, by enjoying yet some more elixir of the Gods, as we waited for Pepe to manifest himself. After four tours around Portugal, which, themselves, were the sequels to our original epic ride from Finland back in 2017, this was to be my final ride with Matilda, before her retirement. However, the story has only just begun, and I look forward to sharing this mission of unfolding awareness, which my brother-in-arms, Sir Aragorn, and I have anointed as the Road to Righteousville.

Be blessed,
Jyri

On the other side.

Jyri Manninen | Kajura

Having just completed the Via Algarviana camino trek just a few days ago, I was now already off on my next adventure, the 4th leg of the Life on the Run Tour de Portugal bicycle adventure. This would also be the final journey that I would share with Matilda before her retirement. It would be a 2 week long, approximately 1000km exploration of the northern coastline of Portugal and then the Peneda-Geres National Park, which is located over an area straddling the north-east border with Spain. The return trip would also include some amazing, historic places, but more about them in later posts.

As we departed from Peniche, we passed by the Statue of Our Lady of Good Voyage, the patroness for wishing safe trips for the fishermen of the Peniche peninsula. Well, we weren’t going fishing, but I imagined that she was wishing us a safe journey too. After a brief glimpse of Baleal beach, one of the most popular in Portugal for tourists, in particular for beginner surfers, it was time to head to Nazaré via São Martinho do Porto. The ride there was over very familiar terrain, as I had run and rode over it many times before, both while living in this area some 6 years ago, and then on subsequent visits. 


After Nazaré, the scenery ahead would all be completely new, except for the city of Figueira da Foz, where I had visited briefly on a day trip with my mum several years earlier. Figueira da Foz would, in fact, end up being our destination for this opening day, a very solid effort of 150km. We handled it surprisingly well, despite not having ridden together for over 2 years.

When you amply roam,
your limits, you will surpass.
The unknown awaits.

‘On the other side’ by Jyri Manninen


I had to remind myself that the point of this journey wasn’t to make it a purely physical performance challenge, and so I had to do my very best to pump the brakes a bit. It was much more important to enjoy the awesome scenery, as opposed to worrying about what our average speed and daily distances were going to be. Well, I guess it’s hard to not keep behaving as an athlete, even though my competitive days are now long behind me in the rear view mirror. I have to admit that I still haven’t quite found the right balance with this, but it’s most likely due to now only having a 2 week time window to ride, while having so many intriguing places that I still wanted to see. One day, though, I will head off on a trip without any time constraints, and then I can truly move with complete freedom, but that time is not yet nigh. However, In many ways, this long first day would end up being a rather good reminder of the strength of Matilda’s and my 6 year relationship, which had originally developed during our 55 day, 4200km ride from Finland to Portugal.

Our first major interim destination would be the village of Carreço, some 400km further up the coast, where that epic inaugural ride had, in fact, ended back in late 2017. I already wondered how I would feel finally connecting back to that major locus of change in my life. It felt like it would actually provide the opportunity, in a sense, to resume that original journey once again?

Be blessed,
Jyri