From Hungary, Hélary and Schiettecatte briefly sped through Bulgaria before crossing into Turkey. “Arrived in the heights of Anatolia, the scenery has completely changed. It feels like discovering a new planet,” they wrote.

Turkey gave them plenty of opportunities to pitch their camp whenever they fancied. They cycled through Anatolia, seeing few people, and then entered Cappadocia and immediately encountered hordes of tourists.

They explored the caves and churches, choosing to stick to the less visited corners of the popular region. Each morning they watched the fleet of tourist balloons take to the sky.

From Cappadocia, it was back to near isolation. They climbed up to above 3300ft (1,000m) and entered a world of reds and oranges, an exotic landscape with surprisingly cold nights. After a high pass, they enjoyed a 25mi (40km) downhill, with the reds and oranges slowly giving way to farms and orchards.