South Away

By Meaghan Marie Hackinen,

Book cover of South Away: The Pacific Coast on Two Wheels

Book description

South Away follows Meaghan Marie Hackinen and her sister in the adventure of a lifetime: bicycling from Terrace, BC down the West Coast to (almost) the tip of the Baja Peninsula. Along the way Hackinen battles with the elements in Vancouver Island’s dense northern forests and frigid Mexican deserts; encounters…

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Why read it?

2 authors picked South Away as one of their favorite books. Why do they recommend it?

Following a newbie on her first big adventure always thrills me, and Meaghan’s account of riding her bike from northern BC to Baja, Mexico, accompanied by her equally inexperienced sister, brought me back to my own bicycle travels, 30 years earlier.

What changed, and what remained the same? We shared many of the same struggles: fear of bears and bicycle breakdowns, for starters, and trusting the road to whip our bodies into shape.

Traveling with a cell phone and online access to couch surfing were luxuries I couldn’t have imagined in 1978, but clocking the miles still mightily tests body,…

From Marilyn's list on memoirs to take you on wild adventures.

Meaghan’s travel memoir recounted her first long cycling journey from Terrace, British Columbia to (almost) the tip of the Baja Peninsula, a feat that reawakened my passion for endurance events. Her struggles and challenges took me back to training for a half Ironman Triathlon in my 40s and cross-country ski skate races in my 50s. Her tenacity helped me to realize how an endurance goal is great motivation to keep training, to say nothing of the fascinating people you meet along the way. So thanks to Meaghan’s South away I am now training to complete The Great Himalayan Trail in…

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