The original trip was to fly in to Varadero, Cuba, and leave our boxes and extra gear at a hotel where we would stay for a few days. Following these resting days we were going to head west towards Vinales along the main route described in Lonely Planet's Cycling Cuba. However, plans are made to be changed.

Most times when I go cycle touring I go alone: If I get myself into a mountain valley when I'm exhausted I have only myself to blame. My wife is coming on this tour and though she is fairly strong on the bike, this is her first cycling trip. Just a few short years ago she claimed she would never be interested in such an endeavour, so I would like this trip to be a good one. I planned the Varadero-Vinales trip, I read any blogs of people who had done the route, I asked countless questions on Lonely Planet's Cuba Forum as well as Bike Forums' Touring. It seems that no matter what, there would have been some fairly long and difficult days that might even have been tough for me. You see, as much as a person 'should' train at home before going it is very hard to do so when you live in northern Ontario where outdoor riding can be very tricky. Yes, I could have used either my mag or wind trainer but I have a tough time dedicating each day to such a tedious task. In short, I have a very low training regimen.

A long discussion to say what we're not doing, so on to what we are going to do. The last few years we have enjoyed staying at a resort in Cuba. We have met quite a few people and have really enjoyed the ambiance of the place. We are bringing our own bicycles to a resort holiday from which we will be doing daily out-and-back trips deeper into the country.