The Cyclist Who Went Out in the Cold: Adventures Along the Iron Curtain Trail

Get ready for one of the wildest travel adventures ever put on two tiny wheels. Tim Moore decides—against all common sense—to cycle the entire 9,000km length of the old Iron Curtain on a clunky, two‑gear East German shopping bike. Yes, really.

Starting at the freezing Norwegian‑Russian border in the dead of Arctic winter, Moore and his brave little MIFA 900 battle through endless snow, brutal temperatures and the kind of silence that makes you question your life choices. Along the way he crashes in bank vaults, crumbling Soviet youth hostels and even the odd imperial palace.

Fuelled by dumplings, Magic Man energy drink and the occasional act of kindness from reindeer farmers, Serbian rock stars and other unexpected heroes, he pushes on through Russian hostility, Romanian landslides and the ghosts of Cold War history. Watchtowers, razor wire and abandoned border posts become constant reminders of a divided past—and a world that feels uncomfortably familiar again.

After three months, 20 countries and a temperature swing of nearly 60 degrees, man and bike finally roll onto a Bulgarian beach—older, wiser, and mostly just older. Hilarious, chaotic and surprisingly moving, this is Tim Moore at his absolute best.