About Barnowl Adventures

Unique and Memorable Cycling Tours

Our Mission

We like to travel. We have a penchant for the hills, can’t stand the highways, and absolutely love riding on country roads. We love good food – the authentic local kind and it is a big reason why we travel. And we think cycling is possibly the best way to experience them all. It is with this mission Barnowl Adventures was born – to curate a holistic travel experience that seamlessly blends the joy of pedaling along scenic rural routes with the rich tapestry of culinary delights and cultural discoveries.

Our Story

Barnowl Adventures is an offshoot of The Bike Affair (TBA), previously referred to as The Bike Affair Tours. Back in 2008, Krish and Anil happened to venture out on their first week-long self-supported bike tour to south India. That tour changed Krish’s perspective on travel and rubbed on to his colleagues at TBA. Over the next few years, a few more self-supported bike tours followed – some of them disguised as festive 500, and the others randomly planned by riding buddies. We were hooked. We felt traveling on a self-powered bicycle is exhilarating and lets one experience a place at a level that simply isn’t possible on any other mode of transport.

Over time, many of us moved to faster road bikes, making the ‘support vehicle’ or ‘luggage vehicle’ the necessary evil. Thus was born the first supported bike tour – a 5-day ride from Hyderabad to Bhadrachalam in Dec 2015. The first international tour was in Dec 2017 in Sri Lanka, where we rode from northern Sri Lanka to the southern coast for over a week.

The Obsession

While we may share similarities with many other providers of bike tours, we are meticulous about what we want to deliver. It generally takes us multiple weeks and many visits before launching a new destination. We spent more than a month in Meghalaya in 2021 before we thought we were ready for our first tour in North East. In 2022, we did the same in Rajasthan. For every road you end up riding, there are going to be another few that we recceed and didn’t find the most suitable. We not only try and pick the best resorts, but we actually handpick the rooms we want for our guests. If we are stopping for a coffee or a snack en route, rest assured the place has been already tried and approved.

Our Team

Krish

A traveller, nature lover, and foodie, with cycling being just an excuse to connect his three hobbies. The roots of Barnowl Adventures trace back to the self-supported tours between 2010-2014 when Krish began leading week-long tours across South India. As our tour designer, Krish takes each tour from concept to execution. He meticulously plans the routes, selects the accommodations, and even chooses the café stops.

Sampath

Sampath is the talent behind the Barnowl Adventures website. He is also the technical support lead for our tours. Depending on the tour, he could be the guy who helps you set up your bikes and is responsible for ensuring they are in top shape during the tour! On the rides, you’ll often find him riding at the back of the group, offering tips and support to the riders. However, if you approach a long climb, he may just disappear. But worry not. He will most likely come back and tackle the climb with you again!

Gokul

Meet Gokul, a seasoned cyclist and marathon runner currently training for his first Ironman, scheduled for later this year(2024). Co-author of the cycling book “Escape Velocity” and co-owner of The Bike Affair, Gokul brings extensive experience to our team. As a cycling coach, he has successfully guided athletes of all ages to achieve their cycling goals. In addition to shaping tour experiences, Gokul also oversees our accounting operations, ensuring meticulous financial management.

Jack

Jack is our Lead Support Crew in Thailand. He is known for his unexpectedly witty sense of humour, always catching everyone by surprise with his jokes. A local from Northern Thailand, Jack is very knowledgeable about the area and has been part of the team since our first tour in Thailand back in 2017. While he speaks limited English, his fluency in Thai allows him to double up as our translator when we’re in rural Thailand. Jack’s infectious laughter and resourcefulness ensure a delightful experience for all our riders.

Melvin

Melvin has been part of Barn Owl Adventures since our inaugural tour in 2020. He left the life in the metros long back and moved home to Goa. As a nature lover and wanderer, over the last 3 years he has explored each of Goa’s 334 villages! He brings invaluable local knowledge to our tours, opening up unexplored cycling routes and the beautiful non-touristy Goa to our riders. Melvin loves long distance running, sea swimming, tennis, cats, cats and more cats.