A 29-year-old Canberra woman will cycle solo more than 3500 kilometres from the Balkans to Britain in an effort to raise money and awareness of issues close to her heart.
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For eight weeks, Alida Gyory will travel down one mountain and up the next in a bid to raise $25,000 for climate change awareness, human rights and the protection of natural habitats and resources.
Ms Gyory said her passion for the environment, in particular, comes from her youth spent in the outdoors.
"I was lucky when I was younger, my dad used to take me out on trips in regional Australia where I developed an appreciation for nature," she said.
The cycling, she said, is something she really enjoys. It helps her connect with her surroundings and allows her the time to enjoy them.
This isn't the first time Ms Gyory has tested her skills on a bike. While she rides everyday – it is her main form of transport – she hasn't trained, as such, for this trip. She took on a similar length ride from Canberra to Perth last year.
"The more I did and the longer I was doing it, it got easier," she said of her trip last year.
"The first couple of weeks of that Canberra to Perth trip were really gruelling, especially getting up over the mountains out of Canberra," Ms Gyory said.
"I learnt that Australia is very flat, once you get away from the Great Dividing Range."
However, the parts of Australia she travelled will be very different to her trip through Europe.
"My biggest concern is the number of people around, my safety concerning other people," she said.
For safety, she has a daily itinerary and will check in frequently with her mum and partner.
"The only thing you can really do is take precautions and not take too many outlandish risks," she said.
The adventurer will spend her 30th birthday in Austria, "somewhere near the Danube".
While a big portion of the cycle will be on her own, Ms Gyory will have a friend join her for a week over her birthday, and has connected with the cycling community in Europe for accommodation.
Ms Gyoty is funding her own travel. Funds raised will go to CARE Australia and Climate Council.
She will leave from Herceg Novi, Montenegro in late July and about eight weeks later she plans to arrive in London.
Follow her journey and find a link to donate on Facebook by searching Follow Alida.
