New magazine watch: For the love of bicycle travels

For all the talk about the death of print and magazine industry, there are still a surprisingly high number of travel and travel-lifestyle magazines that exist, and new ones that get launched every year. With digital, launching a magazine — especially a digital-only magazine with custom print run — has become a lot easier, with the proliferation of digital and indie distribution channels to boot.

One of the new magazines recently caught our romanticist eye, ever on the search for deeper travel experiences. The obscurely-named Bunyan Velo, a new quarterly magazine launched out of Minneapolis, Minnesota by a group of idealistic young editors, focuses on the the slow travel pleasure of bicycle travels.

As they describe it in the inaugural issue, Bunyan Velo “is a quarterly collection of photographs, essays, and stories about the simple pleasures of traveling by bicycle. Issue No. 01 brings together a small group of bicycle tourists, commuters, mountain bikers, mechanics, and racers, each of whom offers a unique perspective and assortment of cycling experiences.”

Languid multi-page photo spreads and long-form text dominates the magazine, with no ads, and certainly makes it stand out from the standard travel magazine. As for the name, Velo means cycling in French, and Bunyan is likely named for “Paul Bunyan Trail” which is the longest bike trail in Minnesota.

Helpfully, the full digital version of the magazine is available for free online, which we’ve embedded below.