The long way home - Australia to Ireland on a bicycle

Join us for a slide night as David McCourt recounts the story of taking "the long way home" by bike and shares his amazing experience with us.
Here's a little insight into his adventure and what he has in store for us.

Words & Images: David McCourt

In June 2022 I left my front door in Melbourne with a plan to cycle back to the village I grew up in, Cushendall, Northern Ireland. Over the next 2.5 years I would cycle over 38,000 kilometres through 27 countries.

Throughout my journey I experienced the deserts of Australia’s Outback, the majestic Himalayan mountains in India and Nepal, the lush jungles of Sumatra, Indonesia, and the rugged mountain deserts of Iran, just to name a few of the incredible places I visited.

But in addition to the mind blowing nature, I had countless interactions with kind, welcoming and generous people across the world. I cannot tell you the number of times I was invited into someone’s home, fed, watered, offered a shower, had my clothes washed and even had wads of cash shoved into my reluctantly accepting hands.

I was blown away by the human kindness I experienced throughout my journey, especially in poorer countries, and in particular Muslim countries.

There were many layers to my trip. I loved the challenge of pedalling and navigating through difficult environments, experiencing how different cultures do life, fascinating conversations about local politics and history, the remarkable variety of religious and spiritual expression and even the bureaucratic acrobatics of visas and border crossings.

Cycling across the world was not easy. But if it was easy would it be worth doing? Throughout my time on the road I experienced broken bones, an anaphylactic reaction, antibiotic resistant parasites and killer weather conditions.

My adventure was 12 years in the making. It not only met my expectations but exceeded them in so many ways. Come along to see and hear more about my epic long way home to Ireland!

I am raising money for a charity called the ASRC - Asylum Seeker Resource Centre. They do amazing work supporting people seeking asylum in Australia. I’ll have a donation box and QR code on the night but if you can’t make it and would like to support this important cause you can donate here: https://hostyourown.asrc.org.au/page/CycleforFreedom

Where - Inner North Brewing, Brunswick - https://g.co/kgs/P5QNZUi 
When - Wednesday, December 4th at 6:30pm.