After 19 months, 24 countries and more than 30,000km on two wheels, Mark Graham and Ellie O’Byrne are cycling across Newfoundland towards Cape Spear — the closest point to Ireland they can reach without a boatPublished Aug 26, 20267 minute readEllie O’Byrne and Mark Graham arriving in Newfoundland last week at Port aux Basques, beginning the final leg of their 30,000km cycle around the world. CONTRIBUTEDArticle contentMark Graham and Ellie O’Byrne have cycled more than 30,000 km through 24 countries since leaving Ireland on Feb. 1, 2025.THIS CONTENT IS RESERVED FOR SUBSCRIBERS ONLY.Subscribe now to access this story and more:Unlimited access to the website and appExclusive access to premium content, newsletters and podcastsFull access to the e-Edition app, an electronic replica of the print edition that you can share, download and comment onEnjoy insights and behind-the-scenes analysis from our award-winning journalistsSupport local journalists and the next generation of journalistsSUBSCRIBE TO UNLOCK MORE ARTICLES.Subscribe or sign in to your account to continue your reading experience.Unlimited access to the website and appExclusive access to premium content, newsletters and podcastsFull access to the e-Edition app, an electronic replica of the print edition that you can share, download and comment onEnjoy insights and behind-the-scenes analysis from our award-winning journalistsSupport local journalists and the next generation of journalistsRegister to unlock more articles.Create an account or sign in to continue your reading experience.Access additional stories every monthShare your thoughts and join the conversation in our commenting communityGet email updates from your favourite authorsSign In or Create an AccountorArticle contentNow, after 19 months on the road, they are in Newfoundland for the final international leg of their journey.Article contentArticle contentThe couple arrived in Port aux Basques last week and are now making their way across the province towards Cape Spear, which they chose as their finishing point because it is “as close as we can get to Ireland without a boat.”Article contentArticle contentThe couple are due to reach Cape Spear on Aug. 29 at around 5 p.m.Article content‘WOULDN’T IT BE GREAT TO KEEP IT GOING’Article contentThe idea of cycling around the world came from years of shorter cycling trips.Article content“We both love cycling and then we’ve taken trips abroad to Europe, maybe done a week here or two weeks there,” Graham said.Article content“On some of those trips, we’ve always said at the end of them, wouldn’t it be great to keep going, you know, if we didn’t have to stop?”Article contentThe idea slowly became a plan.Article contentGraham took a sabbatical from his university job as a lecturer, while O’Byrne took a career break from her work as a journalist.Article content Mark Graham and Ellie O’Byrne at the Equator in Sumatra, one of the many points along the route that has taken them from Ireland to the other side of the world. CONTRIBUTEDArticle contentThe couple also converted two buses and sold them to help fund the trip.Article contentO’Byrne said the journey had been in the planning for around five years, with family also an important part of the decision.Article content“I’ve got a 27-year-old son and a 21-year-old daughter,” she said.Article content“Part of the ability to set off on this journey was them being old enough and in a position of being kind of settled enough that we felt that we could.”Article contentArticle contentPreparing for the trip was a major undertaking.Article content“We were probably doing 70 to 80 hours a week for about two years,” O’Byrne said.Article contentNO FIXED ROUTEArticle contentThe couple left Ireland with a general route in mind, starting in Europe before travelling further east into Central Asia. But as the journey went on, that plan changed repeatedly.Article contentJapan was never part of their original route, but they ended up cycling there. In the U.S., they discovered a cycle route that took them from Niagara Falls all the way to Manhattan.Article contentIn China, a conversation with a man in a café led them to yet another unexpected detour — to a festival they had never heard of.Article content“We stopped for a break and the guy in the café where we stopped, he said, ‘Are you going to the big chicken festival?’” Graham said.Article content“We immediately said, ‘Yes, we are.’”Article contentFor Graham, those unexpected moments became one of the best parts of travelling by bicycle.Article content“We had a general loose plan, but we changed that so many times along the way,” he said.Article content“One of the things that helped us was being flexible and looking at where we are, looking at what’s around us and then being able to change our plan.”Article contentThe couple have also been documenting their journey through a weekly newsletter and videos on their Substack, sharing stories from the road.Article contentO’Byrne said writing about the trip has been different from her usual journalism work.Article content“It’s very nice and liberating. You’re free to just maybe open up with three or four paragraphs about something that you’ve been thinking about.”Article content Ellie O’Byrne took a career break from her work as a journalist to cycle 30,000kms journey around the world, which has taken her and Mark Graham over 19 months. CONTRIBUTEDArticle contentShe said the Substack has also helped them stay connected with people back home.Article content“We’ve been really amazed and delighted that it’s kind of picked up a little bit of traction,” she said.Article content‘YOU’D NEVER LEAVE THE HOUSE’Article contentThe couple said their experiences abroad have also challenged some of the fears they had heard before travelling.Article contentWhen they told people they were heading through countries such as Kazakhstan and Uzbekistan, they were warned about safety.Article contentArticle content“When we were at the start and told people that we were going to these places, they all kind of went, ‘Whoa, you know, that must have been kind of dangerous there,’ and the exact opposite is true,” Graham said.Article content Mark Graham and Ellie O’Byrne at Uzbekistan’s Tower of Silence, one of the landmarks they encountered on their journey through 24 countries. CONTRIBUTEDArticle content“The vast majority of people we’ve met are very kind and they’ll help you if they can.”Article contentThe couple said some of their strongest memories have come from meeting people in places where they could not easily communicate.Article contentIn one village in China, a young woman who spoke some English invited them to a school, introduced them to the children as her friends from Ireland and bought them a meal.Article content“Those moments have been so cool,” O’Byrne said.Article contentFor Graham, travelling by bicycle has offered a different view of the world than simply following news reports.Article content“If you just kind of left things to your news feed to tell you what the world looks like, you’d never leave the house,” he said.Article contentHARDEST PARTArticle contentThe physical demands of cycling thousands of kilometers have been significant.Article contentArticle content“But I think the hardest part for both of us is being away from family for two years,” Graham said.Article contentThe couple have also had difficult days on the road, particularly when weather conditions make cycling harder.Article contentBut small acts of kindness have often been enough to keep them moving.Article content“Sometimes you’re going along thinking, ‘What in the name of God are we doing? What are we doing with our lives? This is a stupid thing to be doing,’” he said.Article content“Then somebody will stop and talk to you and tell you how amazing they think what you’re doing is, and you keep going.”Article contentRESPONSE OFF THE CHARTSArticle contentThat kindness has been particularly noticeable since they arrived in Newfoundland.Article contentThe couple put out a Facebook post asking if people knew of camping spots, gardens where they could pitch their tent, or somewhere they could find shelter or a shower.Article contentThey had made similar posts during the journey, particularly when travelling through remote areas, but the response in Newfoundland was different.Article content Ellie O’Byrne and Mark Graham on Red Cliff Road near Grand Falls-Windsor. The couple hope to reach Cape Spear late on August 29 to complete their around-the-world cycle. CONTRIBUTEDArticle content“We never had a response to those like the one in Newfoundland,” Graham said.Article content“The response has been off the charts.”Article contentThey have already accepted several offers.Article contentOne person offered them the use of an RV in the woods, allowing them to get out of the rain without having to put up their tent.Article contentAnother woman offered them an RV for a night and said she would leave food for them.Article contentGraham said those offers have made the final part of the journey easier.Article content“When you’re already wet and you have to be in the tent in the rain and you’re just getting wetter and wetter as the days go on, being able to do something like that is such a help,” he said.Article content‘IT’S TOO MUCH TO TAKE IN’Article contentAfter 19 months on the road, the couple are now feeling the end of the journey approaching.Article contentO’Byrne said there are moments when she is cycling behind Graham and suddenly finds herself thinking about everything they have done.Article content“Sometimes I get this kind of almost out-of-body sensation, like, I can’t believe that this is happening,” she said.Article contentArticle content Mark Graham and Ellie O’Byrne in Vietnam, where they stopped to volunteer for several weeks and spent time getting to know local people and the culture. CONTRIBUTEDArticle contentBut that excitement is now mixed with exhaustion.Article content“At this end, it’s accompanied more so by a kind of growing exhaustion and a growing desire to bring this lap to a close,” she said.Article content“It’s kind of a monumental feeling, looking back over that time period and all the experiences that we’ve had and the people that we’ve met.”Article contentThe couple are hoping people will join them for part of the final stretch.Article content“Anyone who has a bike and would like to just ride alongside us for a while, that would be a really lovely thing to have at the end,” O’Byrne said.Article contentFor her, reaching Cape Spear will also carry a personal meaning.Article content“I’ve got to get up that hill and I’ve got to get out there to that sea and look out across the Atlantic and tell my children I’m going to come home.”Article contentA BOOK TO COMEArticle contentThe couple will remain in Newfoundland for a month after reaching Cape Spear, where they will work on their book about their journey as part of an artist residency with Pouch Cove Foundation.Article contentThey will also give a free talk about their journey at The Battery Cafe in St. John’s at 3:30 p.m. on Sunday, Aug 30, where they plan to share stories and tunes from the road.Article contentArticle contentBut first, they have one final stretch of road to complete.Article content“I’m looking forward to stopping, because it’s tough mentally every day, moving and living out of a bag,” Graham said.Article content“But I think that I’m going to miss a lot, just seeing so much different stuff every day and the kindness that we get exposed to every day from people.”Article contentFINDING A NEW NORMALArticle contentO’Byrne is also thinking about what comes next, particularly how life will feel after spending almost two years on the road.Article content“I think we’re both concerned about how that’s going to go, and how we’re going to manage to kind of restore normality,” she said.Article contentFor her, the journey has also changed the way she thinks about what comes next in her career and life.Article content“We both came into this knowing that this is going to be a life-changing experience,” she said.Article content“I think that it’s a very empowering thing to have done.”Article contentGraham said the kindness they have experienced from strangers is something he wants to carry into life after the journey.Article content“We’re going to have to be the kindness,” he said.Article content“If we want to keep that in our lives after we stop, we have to be that to other people.”Article content
Irish couples 30,000-km cycle around-the-world reaches its final leg in Newfoundland
