Liam Bushrod

24/06/2024

once again I am incapable of nice un-candid photos 💀
📸:

21/06/2024

dorp

10/05/2024

Cape Town – you've been a distant end goal for so many months on the road that it was hard to imagine ever getting to you.

Now that I'm here, well, I don't really know what to do with myself.

Tomorrow it will be three weeks since I arrived to complete my trip down the southern half of Africa. 🚲

But for at least half of those days since arriving, I've scrolled the time away on my phone or procrastinated the things which are actually worth my time.

Things like properly resting, or calling family and friends, or seeing new things, or... catching up on the videos I want to edit from my trip.

When you go from every day having a singular clear objective – cycle to the next destination and keep yourself alive – it's hard to then be in a place where there are a million different potential objectives to chase.

Suddenly it feels like I have no time at all.

Life on the bike had a LOT of time to just think and wonder, formulate plans and dream future ambitions.

I literally couldn't scroll on your phone. Or sit and watch YouTube. Or look at F1 memes.

I just had to keep pedalling and observe my surroundings.

And think about stuff.

It was perfect.

Now that I'm done and I actually have to CHOOSE what ambition to chase next or FOCUS on the particular idea or thing I want to work on, and I'm a bit, well... lost.

I'm "travelling" but I'm also in limbo.

I'm "resting" but I'm also anxious.

I'm "living" but I'm also frozen.

And I'm sitting here writing this, not knowing what the f**k I'm doing out here still.

But I don't have my own home to go back to.

And I don't have a job to go back to.

I don't have a clue what I'm doing tomorrow or the day after that.

What does the path forward even look like?

It's scary, that's for sure.

But one thing I must learn is to not beat myself up when I get to the end of the day and I haven't spent it the most optimal way possible, or achieved everything in my to-do list, or suddenly worked out all the problems in my life.

I should've learned that lesson when I left university without anything to show for it, and yet here we are.

Don't beat yourself up Liam.

Tomorrow is a new day.

And that new day is a gift.

22/04/2024

Bosh. Equator to Quape town. Completed it mate.

5,500km+ distance cycled through 8 countries in 4½ months 🤯 

To think back to last November... 

When I had been out of work for two months. 

When I didn't know what was next in life.  

When I decided to just send it and go bikepacking in Africa.

When I booked my one-way ticket to Uganda two weeks before departure and at that point not in possession of a suitable bike. 

From that moment, it's been a daily madness of figuring s**t out and taking every bump in the road head-on.  

Whether that be failures or setbacks.  

Accidents or surprises.

It's been exciting.

It's been invigorating.

And just focusing on the day in front of me has been so liberating.

Where am I cycling to today?  What might I discover or explore? 

Where am I going to find food, water and shelter? 

How can I look after myself in a way that will benefit my health, the team and therefore the overall objective?

I hope I can take these learnings and way of life into the future.  

I know I overthink and stress about stuff – so how can I make changes in my life for the better?

I may not know what's going to happen tomorrow... But how can I make the most of today?

For now though I think I need a few days to sleep and rest :)

Thank you to everyone who's followed along on this journey – I am so excited to go back through the footage and pictures and relive each moment again.  I have so many videos I want to make and so many stories to tell so stay tuned! 

Thank you to and for allowing me to join this epic adventure and putting up with my shenanigans 🤗

Thank you .schuijt for all the laughs in South Africa (sorry for the snoring!) and thank you to everyone who has made this trip so special – you know who you are 😊

Lastly thank you to everyone who came to the finish line to welcome us in Cape Town! You are awesome.

Love Liam 💚x

26/03/2024

Hardly believable that this is Africa.

So green. So picturesque.

My perception of Africa is being blown apart by the day.

These were from our first of three days cycling the Congo Nile Trail in Rwanda 🇷🇼

Swipe for a selfie of me and ➡️

**REAL TIME UPDATE:**

There were so many stories and moments to share from these three days and I'm working on some reels, but I'm only a few weeks away from the end of this trip and the push to the finish line means you probably won't see or hear much of me until I'm already in Cape Town.

After those reels I have one about my experience collecting a parcel in Kigali airport (which was hilariously good fun and I can't wait to edit), followed by several reels about the time I filmed myself falling off my bike 🤕, and then I think one more reel before I'm even done with Rwanda.

Then I cycled through Burundi, Tanzania, Zambia, Botswana and now Namibia – which has been my life for the past few months – and there's countless stories I want to tell from those countries.

I've been constantly moving, experiencing so many new things on my days off from cycling, and creating memories for life. But also running errands, fixing issues with my bike, troubleshooting problems with filming and importing footage, problems with my editing software.... and it's honestly been a bit of a tiring blur.

Even prioritising rest has been extremely difficult at times.

Thankfully through video editing I get a second chance to re-live moments and properly process things that happened too fast in real-time.

And I can't wait to do so 🤗

Big thanks to everyone who has sent me love and feedback from the videos I've been able to make so far while I've been away 💚

xx

04/01/2024

1000m+ of uphills are worth it for views like this. Holy s**t Uganda you are beautiful.

Also, nothing better than making it to the top of a hill where there is a tiny settlement with maybe one shop and a couple of street food sellers...

This time the cuisine was: chips.

Chip shop style chips too.

Served with a "salad" of sliced cabbage and tomato sauce 🤪

Either to eat on a plate or to take away in a plastic bag like I did.

A whole new definition to "a bag of chips" ahaha

Chiiiiiiips glorious chiiiiiiips..... 🎶

03/01/2024

vegan loses his mind over a giant avocado, c. 2023, colourised

24/12/2023

My first day solo cycling was the ultimate conversion of pure stress to complete exhaustion.

So many things went wrong the moment I tried to cycle.

So many doubts that I'd even make it.

That I'd come all this way to not even be able to join

So much anxiety and negative thoughts.

My mind racing.

In those moments, my mind is my greatest enemy.

But I'm slowly learning how to turn those moments into a strength.

Sure, it takes time, deep breaths, help from friends (and some fruit pastilles), but I can do it.

Even today, Christmas eve, I spent the morning alone in my room, stressing about all the footage I need to edit and the pictures I want to share, completely immobile and unable to do anything about it.

Only when and I went for a lil lunch date could I get my brain moving.

This morning's slump took hours from my day, and I won't get those hours back, but I'm proud that we got there in the end.

Much like my first solo ride.

24/12/2023

Fort Portal 📍

The start point of my journey - but not before meeting some amazing people and having some unexpected adventures. My plan was just to spend one night here, unpack my bike and start cycling the next day, but in that one night I met two people that were so interested in what I was doing in Uganda that they both wanted to show me what they do.

Peter (pictured first), works in insurance but also runs a popcorn stand in the evenings as a side hustle, which is where we met. Each bag sells for around 10p! He couldn't believe it when I told him the price of popcorn in the UK :) Peter also invited me to stay at his home just outside of town the night before I ended up starting my ride, and I loved how simple a life he and his family live. He grows bananas right next to his house and gave me some for breakfast - WOW I've never tasted any banana so fresh and delicious. Amazing fuel for the road 🔥 Thank you Peter for your hospitality!

Meanwhile Marsereka (pictured last), runs a not-for-profit foundation to educate his community in ICT and provide them with better future prospects. I witnessed first hand his generosity in providing and paying for food in the market for others and how he supports his family who live among the hills with him. I've never seen such a variety of plants, fruits, veggies and crops growing in one place. Papaya, avocados, Irish potatoes, arabica coffee, peas, beans, pumpkins, jackfruit and mango among others. All on the side of a hill with stunning views towards the town. Thank you for the time you took to show me all the work that you do.

Initially I said no to both these gents' offers.

And I'm not sure why.

Maybe it was the amount of travelling I had done.

Maybe it was the anticipation of getting on the road and cycling.

Maybe it was the discomfort of saying yes to people I'd just met.

But I'm so glad I did say yes.

I guess I like having my own space and time to myself, like a lot of people, but this taught me that sometimes you just have to get out your comfort zone and send it.

A mantra for this trip, I'd say :) 🚴

10/12/2023

Huge thank you to Hamid who took care of me during my time in Kampala, hooking me up with transport, accommodation, food and an incredible night at a traditional Ugandan dance festival. I was only supposed to be collecting something on behalf of Rob and Flo but you went the extra mile and then some more. Your kindness and selflessness was so inspiring and I appreciated it more than you know 🙏

Until next time brother!

07/12/2023

I'm joining !! 🚴‍♂️🌍

The incredible Rob & Flo are currently cycling from Cairo to Cape Town over the course of one year, and after ascending Mount Kilimanjaro with them in the summer, I've decided I'm mad enough to join in the cycling too :)

It's gonna be a journey full of crazy highs and lows, but hey, at least I won't have to deal with the British winter 😉

Since booking my flights about 2 weeks ago, it's been a non-stop grind to get everything I need (not least a suitable bike!) so it feels great to finally be on the ground 🇺🇬

Over the next few days I will journey from Kampala to Fort Portal in western Uganda and then cycle solo south to the meeting point

01/12/2023

⏳

20/01/2018

HP Notebook Setup Tour 2018 (MKBHD style)

After watching MKBHD's Setup Tour 2018, I thought I'd make my own version...
https://youtu.be/7etdWMEuECw

Make sure you check out MKBHD's Setup Tour 2018! I tried to make mine as similar as possible in style... but as different as possible in terms of the actual ...

01/01/2018

Liam Bushrod's cover photo

01/01/2018

Welcome to my new page which is linked to my YouTube Channel: Liam Bushrod

16/11/2017

Liam Bushrod