Hollie Ernest

Aug 29, 2024 | adventurecycling.org | Hollie Ernest |Laura Killingbeck

Climate change is increasing North America’s dramatic wildfires each year, with apocalyptic smoke-darkened skies and scorched landscapes. In 2021, smoke from California wildfires reached as far as New York City, while ashes from Colorado fires fell on coastal regions. “Unfortunately, because smoke can travel thousands of miles, you don’t have to be close to the fires [to be adversely affected] by wildfire smoke,”  said Dr. Mary Prunicki, director of air pollution and health research at the Sean N.

Jul 2, 2024 | adventurecycling.org | Hollie Ernest |Laura Killingbeck

This is a ride report for the Short Route: Eureka, CA: Redwood Coast Loop while the author and her husband were developing the route. Sweat dripped down my nose and landed on my handlebars. Gnats whirred in my ears, determined to steal my sanity. By slapping them, I slapped my own face, and when I slapped my ear too hard my hand got tangled in my helmet strap. I cursed the added weight of the bottle of wine and steak in my pannier. Won’t steak be fun, I had thought. Won’t that be romantic.

Nov 14, 2023 | adventurecycling.org | Hollie Ernest

“A white man eating nsima! Yeah! That’s good, that’s good!” the Zambian man shouted at us as he walked down the dusty road.   My husband Tom and I were sitting at a rough-cut table and chairs on the side of the road at a restaurant, the first eating establishment we had seen in weeks. Our fingertips were covered in the sticky cornmeal dish that is the staple of Zambia and surrounding nations.

Jun 2, 2023 | adventurecycling.org | Hollie Ernest

When people ask me about cycling gear, I generally say that if I’m not thinking about it (brake levers, sleeping pad, etc.), then it’s working perfectly. I used to ride a stiff aluminum cyclocross bike for everything: short bikepacking trips, cyclocross races, road rides, and randonneuring rides (extra-long unsupported road rides that guarantee a sore bum).

Mar 16, 2023 | northcoastjournal.com | Hollie Ernest

Some sports are like foreign languages — infinitely easier to learn when you're younger. Once humans reach a certain age, our hips, knees and balance operate as they always have, and it's much harder for our body to move in new, contrasting directions. For example, if you are a runner or a cyclist, your joints are used to moving bilaterally, forward and backward, but not side to side.