OR: Was there a time when you experienced fear?

Yes, tons of different times. One in particular comes to mind: I found this place on Warmshowers.org. It was this single man and he had good reviews but it still made me a little nervous. He was in Humboldt County, and that area... Ugh. I feel like when you’re moving on your bike, you’re moving at such a slow pace that you can feel the energy of different places so much more. And that area is creepy. It’s not just hippies growing weed anymore... it’s this weird energy between Humboldt and Mendocino now. So I was traveling through this place and it was so scary feeling, and I was going to this single man who was going to host me in this yurt, about seven miles out of town. I remember the spot where I lost internet reception, and then the spot where I lost phone reception, and I was still going up into the woods. And then his driveway was like a mile-long, super steep dirt road, and I was pushing my bike up it and just bawling. I was like, “Am I that stupid girl who’s going to this guy’s house?” It was just really freaky in that moment.

I got there and he was super nice, and I stayed with him in his yurt. But he said that my feelings about that area were totally valid, and there’s weird people around there.

OR: So... You were afraid and alone and crying on your bicycle and you kept going.

SB: And I kept going! (laughs) I didn’t really have another option!

OR: Is that why you kept going? Because you felt that you didn’t have another option?

SB: Yeah... I don’t even know why I kept going. I think I was scared to turn around. The town was creepy, and I hoped that the guy on Warmshowers would be better.

But, I met this one guy who was traveling by bicycle, and he was creepy. We were going in the same direction, which shouldn’t happen that often because I was going north and most people go south on that road if you’re on a bike. And he was really weird. He did this thing where he took the brakes off his bicycle, so he would only bike uphill and on flat areas, and then walk his bike downhill so I could get away from him pretty easily but he creeped me out a lot and i saw him multiple days.

OR: Sounds like a character from a movie!

SB: I know! My problem is I’m so nice to people when I first meet them, and then I’m like “Oh shit...”

OR: Do you feel like you learned some lessons about that on your trip, about being nice?

Definitely. I had more of a “guard” on towards the end of my trip. I was wearing my reflective vest every day towards the end, and I wasn’t talking to as many people. It was because I was tired, too, but especially after interacting with that one guy I didn’t feel like I needed to talk to everyone anymore. It’s nice to be nice to people, but it was a good lesson that I don’t have to be nice to everyone.

OR: Was there a time when other people expressed fear for you? When they didn’t approve of what you were doing?

SB: All the time. Especially in the beginning, before I even went on my trip. It’s interesting because I feel like when a man leaves for an adventure, the first thing that people say is “Have a great time!” and if a woman goes on an adventure, it’s like “Oh my gosh, be careful.” In the beginning everyone was like, “You’re not gonna do that, you’re crazy!” and then when they realized I was serious about it, they’re like “be careful, be careful.” It was really rare that I got a supportive, excited reaction.

OR: In light of that, how do you respond when you hear a young woman is about to go on her first big adventure?

SB: I get so excited! I try to see how I can help them, or if they need any gear... that totally save me when I was getting started. This woman Brittany App had gone from San Diego to Florida on a bike tour and was a bicycle mechanic... She helped me so much and made me feel really confident. She hadn’t done a solo tour, she’d gone with a friend, but she was so knowledgable and helpful I don’t know what I would’ve done without her! I met her right before I left. That was really cool.

OR: What’s special about solo travel?

SB: It’s so powerful to go on an adventure and really stand in your power as a woman. Society tells us to be scared all the time. It tells us that bad things are going to happen to us. If women were inspired, I think (solo travel) would happen a lot more. More people would be doing it.

Before I went on my solo tour, I was obsessed with female travelers. I watched that Tracks movie about a woman journeying alone through Australia, and another film about a girl who was 14 who sailed around the world by herself. Laura Decker. And I thought, “What?! If she can do it, I can do it.”