Cait and Erika Bike North America

Hi!! We are 2 sisters from Canada who have been travelling the world for the past year. In May, we will return to Canada and cycle from Toronto to our hometown Vancouver.

So far, we have been travelling on a shoestring - sleeping in airports, sharing meals, etc. - but for this endeavour (for the sake of our mother's mental health and our general survival) we require equipment that meets a certain safety standard, which is outside of our means.

We are passionate about this adventure for several reasons. Firstly, our trip has been environmentally taxing (international flights, bottled water, ziplock bags) and we want to offset that.

We have had amazing experiences abroad: trekking the Himalayas, working in an Indian hospice, teaching English in an Indonesian prison, hitch-hiking through Romania and freezing our nose hairs off in Kyrgyzstan.

Now it's time for adventures in our own incredible country! And we can think of no better way to re-emerse in the Canadian culture and landscape.This will be a challenge to ourselves. We will never be mistaken for Lance Armstrong; we are averagely-fit, casual bikers. But this year has taught us that you only find out what you can and can't do by trying. Something along the lines of "face first, eyes closed, can't lose." Right?!


So we've got the energy and the attitude, now we need equipment.

To be specific, we require:
- 2 touring bikes  with hybrid Shimano pedals, disc brakes and a dynamic gear system (we think will cost us around $1000 each)
- helmets
- side panniers
- lights, reflectors and reflective vests
- tool kit, puncture kit, tire pump and spare parts

This is where you come in, dear reader and future donor. Your donations will not just be helping us get home, but are contributing to our advocacy for goal achievement: anyone can do anything, as long as you try!!

In return for donations, we have some gorgeous clothing and accessories from Nepal to offer. Because we have a limited amount, we would like to set it up as a draw. For donations between $10-15, your name goes into a draw for either a tiger balm (great for headaches and as relief from bug bites) or a traditionally designed Nepali latern.



For $20-30, you can have one of these traveller pants or one of these varying styles of bags (the backpacks are %100 hemp!)








At $35-45, we have gorgeous Nepali yak wool scarves available.




And, to the highest donor, we have a beauty of a carpet bag.


Any contribution is valuable to us and we want to share our appreciation for your part in our adventure. So if we run out of product, we will find another way of thanking you! Maybe in a letter or postcard; a tea date; a home cooked meal (we now know a number of international dishes!); flower arranging; maybe advice or even a presentation on what it's like to travel as vagabonds/women/sisters. Or maybe you know someone along our route who needs a high five! Even if we don't know you! Let us know how we can share our appreciation and our adventure with you!

Check out our blog, Cait and Erika Leave North America:  www.caitanderikaleavenorthamerica.wordpress.com ‌