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Administrivia On the Website: (All pages open in new window)Home Page Every newsletter is permanently archived online. Back issues here.
errr, what's an RSS Feed? there's a detailed RSS Guide here. TIP: If you like to print the e-zine, in Outlook Express or Outlook go to View / Text size (or Font size) and select smallest. If you're reading this online, in IE select View / Text Size and set it to "smallest." Then print it. The smallest font size is just right for printing, and saves a lot of paper. Netscape, Firefox, Mozilla and Opera etc. are similar.
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Welcome to the 66th edition of the e-zine! At this point, many of our readers will be at home relaxing with family and old friends, recovering from over-indulging at Christmas. Some of you, however, will be celebrating the holidays with new friends in faraway places like Ushuaia, Goa or Cape Town. Our very best wishes to all of you wherever you may be this holiday season. We're in cold and rainy London, dreaming of warmer climes...
The Road East, by Simon Roberts Snuggle up warm and be inspired by tales from all the intrepid travellers on the road, in Greece, Turkey, Mozambique, Lesotho, South Africa, Argentina (heaps of travellers!), Chile, Tibet, Laos, Jordan, Malawi, Zambia, Pakistan, Mexico, Peru, Iran, Kiribati (yes, with a bike!), Ecuador, Egypt, Sudan, Thailand, Lebanon, India, Brazil, Nigeria, Bolivia, Tanzania, Burundi, Philippines, Malaysia, Colombia, and even the USA and Canada! And take advantage of the holiday to start planning your next trip ;-) "The Achievable Dream" Video
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Too many to list! If you haven't checked out the Links page it's time you did - it's scary long, but it's a fascinating browse. Get your website listed in the LINKS Sectionby listing Horizons Unlimited on YOUR web site, let me know you've done it by mailing me a link to the page, and you may get listed here in the next newsletter and on the Horizons Unlimited web site Links page. To make it easy for you, we even have our logo and link code here! All sites will be considered for listing, but must be a MOTORCYCLE or TRAVEL site, useful or of interest in some way to travellers. We reserve the right to refuse to link back.
 Motorcycle Services MC Air Shipping, (uncrated) USA / Canada / Europe and other areas. Say "Horizons Unlimited" to get your discount on Shipping AND insurance! Documentation arranged too.
There are many 'Helpful People' listed on the Links page, a huge thanks to all of them. How about you? Or you can join a Community, or start your own!
Do you know of a good shop 'on the road,'...in other words, somewhere there isn't a large number of shops? (Also of course any shop that specializes in travellers equipment and repairs is of interest.) But we're particularly looking for those rare items, good repair shops in South America, Africa and Asia etc. Please post your info in the Repair shops around the world Forum on the HUBB. There are now 100's of shops listed in out - of - the - way places, from Abidjan to Ghana to Peru! Be sure to check out the HUBB "Repair shops around the world" forum if you need work done! When you meet people on the road, and they haven't heard of this e-zine or the website, we'd appreciate it (and hope they would too!) if you'd get their names and email addresses and send it in to me. Thanks, Grant Request for infoWouldn't YOU like to know all about the border you're approaching - what it should cost, paperwork required, 'tips' needed, and who to talk to, etc.? When you cross ANY border, take some notes, and pass them on to us. Thanks! ShippingThe Shipping page on the site is HUGE! It can be reached directly or from the Shipping link on the Trip Planning page. If you have any information to contribute, please go here, and register (or just login IF you have used this system before) and you can then submit your information. Thanks! Travel Advisories:The Foreign Office in London's Travel Advice Unit advises against travel to all sorts of places. Check out the listing before you start! The US State Department regularly issues updated travel advisories, information and/or warnings. Motocare
Erich Demant's Overhauled driveshafts 
With trade, €345, w/o trade €395.
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Ingo Cordes and Claudia Suleck, Germany, UK to Jordan, in Turkey, BMW's R100GS and F650,"Crossing the Alps at the end of November is terrible, rather terribly cold. Before passing the St. Gotthard Tunnel in Switzerland we have temperatures at around 10 degrees Celsius and sunshine. Thinking: 'Not too bad for early winter!' we are expecting the sunshine even warmer over in Italy. We come to the end of the 17km long tunnel and believe it or not it is snowing. For nearly 25 km we are crawling on the motorway at only 70km/h. A little later it stops snowing and we are accompanied by a lovely nonstop rain with temperatures at around 6 degrees. This stays with us up to Venice! Soaked and frostbitten we stop at a hotel just before Venice and I ask Claudia what her price limit would be for the accommodation tonight. I must say the hotel looks extremely posh but her answer comes straight away: 'Unlimited!' And what shall I say, it IS unlimited, but very nice and warm. I convince the girls at the reception not to charge an extra fee for the garage. My explanation is that a motorbike is more like a push bike than a car and at this place bicycles are free of charge. There we go! We take the ferry down to Igoumenitsa in Greece and ride over to Turkey. It's still only 6 to 8 degrees Celsius and we feel a little like birds, having left the country for the south too late. Sightseeing in Turkey is good fun. Troja, one of the famous sites in this country is rather disappointing with lots of stones lying around and one big wooden horse in the middle of the field. But hey, what would sightseeing be without the Japanese? We had a bus full of Asians visiting Troja at the same time as us and it was hilarious watching them how they are going to present the wooden animal at home. With artistic work like leaning out of the horse's windows, climbing on it, hanging around in front of it, single, in small groups with cameras swapping for every single person.
Pamukkale in the mountains belongs to the UNESCO world heritage and is definitely worth visiting it. A huge 100 meter high chalk mountain was formed by hot springs containing chalk and carbohydrate. It looks like a huge frozen water fall. As only carbohydrate can pass out of the water, chalk is left over, blocking the exits for the water. Huge puddles are formed and make Pamukkale look like massive bath tubs.
We enjoy our stay at a guesthouse called 'Beyaz Kale', the 'White Castle'. Hacer and her husband Omar are the hosts and make our stay unique. One of the reasons is surely the fact that we may park our bikes in their front garden. Hacer is a fantastic cook and she serves us a well prepared dinner with lentil soup, chicken, rice and green beans." Richard Miller, through Europe, the Middle East and Africa, in Mozambique, Lesotho and South Africa, 1955 Royal Enfield Bullet,"In South Africa many folks had warned me about police check points in Mozambique where poorly paid officers would stop me and find an excuse to 'fine' me as I went through. In reality as with the rest of the trip all I got were smiles. But as I drove along with minimal traffic apart from the odd South African registered SUV flying past me at 150kph or so it became pretty obvious why they stop South Africans and fine them... Then leaving the country to enter Swaziland I was stiffed well and truly by the border guard who had insisted that my visa wasn't properly valid, I was in the country illegally and if I didn't want to give him the money for a new one then I would have to go back to where I entered Mozambique and sort it out there. Heated discussions followed and of course with him holding my passport and threatening to confiscate it it ended up with me coughing up for a new visa. Then of course no visa appeared, he stamped me out and I guess the money went into his pocket... Lesotho was noticeably poorer than South Africa and the Northern part I went through was a bleakly beautiful place, yes it was another spot that looked a lot like the Scottish Highlands. At the top of the first major pass I met Elliot. Locals seem to make a habit of trying to cadge food off of passing tourists but Elliot was a nice guy and I couldn't scoff a bar of chocolate without sharing it. He's a shepherd but supplements his income by taking his sheep every morning to a nearby view point and essentially begs from passers by in a friendly way. I said I would post his picture on to him but as his address was basically, 'Elliot, behind Oxbow, Lesotho' I'm not confident it would get there. If by the miracle of the internet anyone reads this who is passing by that way, how about printing off the picture, passing it on and sending my regards!
Elliott the Lesotho shepherd I exited Lesotho down the Sani Pass. It's a route that holds mystique with South African off-roaders. It's beautiful and an amazing drop from 2800 meters to rounds about 1000. It wasn't easy but then it wasn't too tough either.
Sani Pass view I congratulated myself on the descent and then for the next two days wondered why the bike was handling strangely. I tried everything, tyre pressures, wheel alignment and then noticed the lower fork yoke had snapped. Whoops.
Broke yoke Now I'm in Cape Town. I've finally made it after one year on the road and Sascha flies in for a three week holiday tomorrow. Three weeks of holiday to get ready for the ride home. Merry Christmas and a Happy New Year to all." Ed. See Richard and Sascha's blog here on Horizons Unlimited! Help support the Horizons Unlimited E-zine - visit our sponsors!
Ted Magnum, UK, to South America, in Argentina, Yamaha XT600E,"I think this seed was initially planted in 2003. I was 23 and had almost finished University. Like most, I was pondering what to do with my life. It was then that I had an head to head confrontation. Kawasaki ZX6R vs a red Ford Fiesta. The Car won! . I was ok apart from a broken ankle but my ZX6R was a write off. I was lying in bed all bandaged up with with my (at the time) girlfriend. We were channel hopping and flicked onto an interview with Ewan McGregor talking about the 'Long way round'. We were both the adventurous type and within a few weeks we were shopping for an Africa Twin and planning an adventure through Europe with my compensation money and her savings. I won't go into the specifics of our Continental adventure apart from that I was truly bitten by the bike travel bug. Sadly, the ex wasn't so happy after a few weeks without a hairdryer and living out of pannier case. When were were down to our last credit card, we decided it was time to go home. The next couple of years were spent like many peoples. Working boring jobs, going to the same old places and generally 'going through the motions'. I've always been someone who gets bored very easily and I find it hard to settle into anything. This general boredom coincided with the breakup with my long term girlfriend. I now had no girlfriend, no house and no ties! I started planning a small trip around Europe to cheer myself up but then thought it would be a little bit too easy. Europe then turned into Australia but again that seemed too simple. I don't know why I eventually chose South America, it just seemed like the the logical thing to do. Extreme scenery, foreign languages and a large diversity of cultures, climates and wilderness.
Me and Shells (my brilliant and beautiful South African adventure buddy) at HUUK 2007 ... After the meeting in Viedma I joined a group of Germans to ride down the east coast on the way south. Sebastian, Uchi and myself started first with Ra, Ali and Korolla following an hour behind. The plan had been to take a ripio (gravel and sand track) road down the coast so we could avoid the painfully dull Rta 3 again. We were all riding pretty slow at first but gaining speed and confidence on the gravel and sand track as we rode on. After a while, the other Germans caught up with us and the boys (as boys do) started going faster and faster. It feels great to ride on these roads at speed. You feel like you are in the Paris Dakar Rally with clouds of dust behind you and gravel and sand spitting up from under your tyres. A real sense of speed and calm and control takes over, but, as in life, all good things have to come to an end... I was riding at about 70mph on this ripio surface for a good hour or two and feeling pretty good about life. The thing about ripio roads is that the faster you ride, the easier it feels to ride. You start gliding over the surface instead of bumping and sliding about in the gravel. This leads you into a false sense of security which made me have my fist big crash of the trip. We were looking for somewhere nice to spend the night camping wild and coming the other direction were two big bull dozer vehicles with massive scoops on the front. They were smoothing over the surface of the track as it becomes corrugated and portioned by car and truck tyres. So, I pass these big bull dozers and start going faster and faster again. 30 seconds later I'm flying along at 70mph like before totally oblivious to the fact that the track had turned into more sand than gravel due to the smoothing process. 40 seconds later and my front wheel goes into an uncontrollable wobble. I try to fight it straight and power out of the weave but it's too late. Before I have time to soil my underwear, the bike buckarooed me and flipped itself over into the dirt at 70mph. I lay there on the gravel surprised to be conscious and tried to work out if I was hurt. Miraculously, I could feel no pain and had the use of all my limbs. I stood up and took a look around. The bike was buried in the side of the road and my luggage boxes were about 10 metres further down the road with all my possessions scattered across the place.
I automatically assumed that my trip was over there and then. No bike, no luggage, no nothing! The others caught up with me and instantly started to pick up my things and we all got our tools out and assessed the damage. Surprisingly the bike was intact apart from the left hand luggage box was battered out of shape with the fixings ripped off, the handlebar clamps were bent and hanging out of the top yoke and the clutch lever and mirror were bent. Ali wandered off into the bushes and in a complete stroke of luck, returned with a scaffold pole. What it was doing there in the middle of nowhere is anyone's guess but it helped to bend the pannier frame out of the back wheel. The handlebars were soon back together but there was no way to straighten them without breaking them but at least the bike was rideable. I'm really surprised how tough this bike is. Many a bike would have been written off and beyond repair by this crash and my Metal Mule box still looks like a box and is useable if a little awkward. By this time is was getting late so we decided to all rough camp on the side of the road. I was feeling sore by now. My lower back and ribs were pretty bruised and it was a major effort to bend over and move about but nothing a dose of painkillers couldn't cure. It actually turned out to be a really good night. Due to me crashing we camped in the scrub in total darkness. All lying together on a sheet staring up at the most amazing night sky I have ever seen. There were more stars than black. Mists of stars, comets and satellites were flying about all night. We lay there making silly jokes (usually at my expense) and looking on the very bright side of life. So, I'm now riding with one battered and bent luggage box which is strapped up to the bike and bent handlebars. The important thing is that I'm still mobile and travelling." Help support the Horizons Unlimited E-zine - visit our sponsors!
Carol and Ken Duval, Australia, Life On A Bike - RTW 2, in Chile and Argentina, BMW R80G/S PD,"Our departure from Santiago was not going to plan as there were major problems with the bike documents. Despite our efforts to process the bike we were unable to get access as the original Airway Bill had gone missing. Assurances from our shipping agent in Australia that the Bill was attached to the crate did not assist us as the only documents with the crate were the detailed list of the contents (original) hand written by Carol and a very poor quality photocopy of the original Airway Bill. Where the original had got to no one knew and our agents in Santiago refused to budge until an original had been received. So the tedious task of arranging our Australian agent to ship a 'copy' of the original bill through DHL began. At this point in time our experiences with DHL were not good as a small package being sent from Australia to Santiago with my spectacles had gone missing. The four day journey for this package eventually blew out to eleven days!
Felipe, our shipping helper
Angelica and Mario, Santiago Meanwhile, Mario, our helper from the HU community in Santiago, offered to put us in contact with a customs agent friend who could possibly help with our dilemma. How quickly things move when the right people are involved. Within minutes of his phone call the ball was rolling. Letters were being typed and faxes sent. The next morning we met with our agent and paid the necessary fees then headed to the cargo terminal where we met our fixer who was to process all our papers. By 6.00pm, after paying a seven day storage fee, we were staring at our crated bike. Assembly took just over three hours so, shortly after 9.00pm, we were heading into Santiago to our Hostel. This process took a total of 29 hours. Our thanks go to the motorcycle community in Santiago and especially to Mario, Felipe and German for all their help. To date we have not had an explanation as to what went wrong with our shipment but one thing for sure is that the original Airway Bill for future shipments will be carried by us.
That's where we are going (heading for the Argentina/Chile border) Back to San Rafael to enjoy the company of John, Annette, Grant, Julie and travelers met in Australia, Hamish and Emma (UK). Eight motorcycle travelers cooped up in one little house. What a great time. Everyone was so busy - playing cards, eating, drinking, working a little on the farm and preparing the bikes for the next leg of their respective journeys.
All the gang, San Rafael, Argentina Departing from Chile, the border crossing went too easy. Hope we did not miss anything. Rolled down the dusty gravel road into Argentina and processed the necessary papers...a little hiccup...they had no electricity so there was no computer and our documents have not been numbered. We have plenty of stamps though. The next little village we stocked up on a few days supplies and headed back through the border into no mans land to camp on the edge of Lake Alumine. To explore this area was not on our original agenda, but our good friends John and Annette from the finca in San Rafael recommended this scenic spot. We were not disappointed.
Mirror image on Lago Alumine
Ruta 65 to Villa Traful Argentina Bariloche was all we expected, big, buzzing and touristy. Once again we opted for a cabana as all but one of the campgrounds was closed. The only campground open was too far out of town. We were finding out that this is a problem on our chosen route south with the summer tourist season not yet started. Collecting a map and an accommodation list from the tourist office we traveled along the waterfront of Lake Nahuel Huapi. The map was invaluable but the distance road signs were the best. At kilometer 5.7 we found our cabana with a waterfront view to die for.
Chocolate shops are everywhere in Bariloche Playing tourist for the next couple of days was great - Ice creams, empanadas, rides around the mountains and lakes topped off with some great Argentinean wine." Ed. See Ken and Carol's blog here on Horizons Unlimited, and follow their second RTW trip! Help support the Horizons Unlimited E-zine - visit our sponsors!
Grant says: "The Omega system is simply a must-do for all airheads" (And I just got the starter too!) Peter Hendricks, Germany, in Tibet and Laos,"From Drumpa we ride up a dirt road to the ruins of Chokhorgyel gemba, then on up another 30 km to a car park, from where we walk up some long stairs to a ridge. From here we can look down into a valley to Lake Lhamo Latso. We are at over 5200m altitude and my head doesn't like it at all, so I leave before the others. They stop for lunch in the village next to the ruins, but I go ahead a lot further down to try and get rid of the altitude sickness. We find a very nice spot by a river to camp and even manage a nice camp fire.
Terpulung Chu valley
Samye Monastery is the first temple to be built in Tibet Thai and Lao officialdom are conspiring to keep me in Laos, it seems. First the Thai embassy in Vientiane was closed for a holiday (lucky people, they get days off on holidays in Laos AND Thailand). Since the weekend was coming up and I was pressed for time I decided to try my luck at the consulate in Savannakhet, about 400 km SE. Monday the consulate was closed for yet another holiday. Today I applied for my visa and went to the Lao border post at the Savannakhet 'Friendship Bridge' to enquire whether I had to pay any fees to leave. To my great consternation I was told that (motor)bikes are not allowed on the bridge. They suggested this may be because the boss thinks there may be accidents and to load the bike onto a bus! The passenger ferries don't take bikes - I asked. They suggested I leave via Vientiane or Pakse.
Sign in our Lhasa hotel room Tomorrow I'll try to cross the bridge anyway, seeing the first officer I spoke to didn't seem to know about the restriction. Failing that I'll try to hitch a ride on a pickup. Plan C is to ride down to Pakse, a 250 km detour. I was supposed to be on Koh Samui in 3 days' time... I'll keep you posted. There is no limit to the stupidity of unaccountable bureauprats. QED." Hamish Oag and Emma Myatt, UK, Asia, Australia and the Americas, in Argentina, BMW R1100 GS,"Joaquin had suggested a good route to take on our way back to San Rafael. It was on a road which was not on our map (fantastic) but which he assured us was there. We spent the night in a tiny town near a river and the next morning rode off the map. The road was great, small and twisty and devoid of traffic, a 'Hamish road' if there ever was one. We arrived in San Rafael in time for tea and a huge welcome by John and Annette, Grant and Jules. It was great to see them all again of course, and wonderful to be back on the finca, however we were also there to see Ken and Carol, the two bikers we stayed with in our very first few days in Australia, in May 2006. They have now sold up and taken off and it was great to catch up with them.
Riding in Canyon Atuel We went for a ride together through Canyon Atuel, where there were a few obstacles on the rocky road ahead - Atuel Canyon, chucking rocks out of the way. The road was actually closed, but that's never stopped any of us before...
Chicas de las motos We saw Grant and Julie off to Africa where they will shortly be starting a whole new adventure in the continent. Ken and Carol plan to go South so we were able to pass on a few tips. And then we said goodbye ourselves, as we went on our way back over the Andes...
Eight bikers in Argentina Argentina has SO MUCH to offer in the way of scenery and things to do, it's been a great place to explore. There's not a lot wrong with it, not really... Argentina as a place to live? Oh yes, definitely. But I tend to think that about everywhere... The people we've met have been wonderful too, warm and welcoming. That makes it extra special. When people invite us into their homes we feel extraordinarily fortunate and I can only hope that visitors to our hometowns are treated in the same way. I think that our recent visit to Clara's family was an extra special insight into Argentinean life and one I'm very glad I saw. Family is important, communities are intact and people do not live the sometimes isolated lives we see so often in the 'Western world'.
Hamish and Emma in Argentina – taken by Ken and Carol Duval After almost a year here in South America I can safely say the plan - such as it was - is now totally redundant. After La Serena we'll go North. That's it! We both feel very content to take it as it comes, and I feel very 'free' - very lucky too. We thank our lucky stars most days to be able to do this, to be out here seeing and experiencing so much. Plans for the future remain vague too. But we both have faith in life and opportunities popping up, sometimes when you least expect them. I could worry about the fact we don't have a home, jobs or a plan. but I don't. I know things will work out one way or the other, and that there is a place for us to settle somewhere, I just don't know where!" Ed. Our philosophy exactly! See Hamish and Emma's blog here on Horizons Unlimited for more stories and great pics! Also see Hame and Emma's videos on YouTube. Help support the Horizons Unlimited E-zine - visit our sponsors! Simon Roberts, UK, The Road to Kathmandu - the comic strip!"Rain. Bloody rain. 'Central Europe enjoys hot summers and cold winters' or so I'd been led to believe. Well, at least I was seeing the road stretching out East again albeit through a misted up visor. The border crossed, I pressed on towards Budapest. I'd stay for a day or two. A boat ride up the Danube to the medieval village of Szentendre perhaps, then on to the vine growing regions and the Romanian border. Excellent. 'I think a large plate of Hungarian goulash tonight, accompanied by several glasses of fine red wine. Maybe try a glass of plum brandy or...WHAT??!! The battery light?? Stop the bike on the hard shoulder. Start it again. Nope. Still there - glaring at me through the rain. Shit. Now what? One day from Vienna and the bike's letting me down again... Is this another omen? Call BMW Bristol. Mike will know'.
'Funny. Doesn't usually happen.' he reassured me (again) down my mobile phone.' Could be the diode board...' The diode board? What's that? Luckily Budapest had a BMW dealer. The last one before Istanbul. Could have been worse. This could have happened in the mountains of Transylvania. Rabid dogs. Mad axe men etc etc. A garage owner, a taxi driver and a man at a bus stop directed me to the hallowed ground that is BMW Budapest, who were straight on to the case. Well, nearly. The problem was indeed the diode board - but they had no spares. However, the lovely Heidi at BMW Vienna, who's card I'd kept, did and could get the parts to me - the next day. 'Vorsprung durch Technik', as they say. Raised eyebrow and wry smile. Friday found me on the boat north to Szentendre. A pretty village steeped in history but my thoughts were with BMW Heidi and her spare parts... Saturday morning. Yes! Part had arrived. Job done. Hands shaken. Large sums of money handed over and I was on my way through sunlit hills to the vineyards of North East Hungary. 'Perhaps try some 'paprikas esirke' tonight (paprika chicken served with tiny dumplings) followed by a glass of Tokaji Aszu - 'The king of wines and the wine of kings...'" Ed. See Simon's 'Road to Kathmandu' comic strip on Horizons Unlimited. Maria and Alistair Robinson , France and UK, to South America, in Argentina, F650GS and 1200GS,"Leaving Buenos Aires after 2 weeks, with the bikes fixed, the next stop was Azul. Now, you won't find this town mentioned in any travel guide. It is however a very famous place in the Motorcycle travelling world. Everybody goes there and stops at 'La Posta del Viajero en Moto'. For over 13 years now, Pollo, (real name Jorge) and Monica, have been opening their house to travellers. You can either pitch your tent in the garden or use the travellers building and one of the bunk beds in the room. Fitted with a kitchen and shower room, it is simple but very convenient. Pollo has always refused any money from the travellers in compensation for the accommodation. He simply enjoys having travelers as guests, and he had had many visitors over the years! How is that that the poorer people are always the most generous? ... There are lots of memories in La Posta. The travellers' room is filled with drawings, names, dates, and graffiti in every language of the world. It is truly a special place and Pollo is an exceptional man!
Brits corner in La Posta, Azul
Getting ready to leave La Posta, with Monica We are finally in Patagonia. The northern bit. To get to Ushuaia we still have about 2,500kms to go. Yup! That's a long way! Patagonia is BIG. I bet Europe could fit nicely in! We had only been in Patagonia for a few minutes when the wind arrived. As we rode south the wind got stronger. The winds of Patagonia are legendary, strong enough to push a heavy vehicle off the road. It will be interesting by motorbike! Anyone we ask locally confirms the legend and we've been advised to leave at 5am and only ride until lunchtime to avoid it! Argh!
We are planning to be in Ushuaia for Christmas, which means that after Viedma, we will need to travel fast. Down Ruta 3, along the Atlantic coast, on a mainly paved road, we will still visit some fascinating places. Petrified forests, amazing wildlife, more dinosaurs and hopefully see our first penguins... Not sure we'll make it to Antarctica. Especially as one of the locally operated boats has just sunk. At one point (until the reservation fell through) we were provisionally booked to leave on that very boat on the 9th December - lucky it fell through. The journey continues, and we are taking you with us... So stay tuned!" Help support the Horizons Unlimited E-zine - visit our sponsors!
Ekke and Audrey Kok, Canada, Longitudinal Way Round, in Jordan,"The stress of travelling had worn us out a little so we slept in that morning even though we knew we had a fairly big day ahead of us. We descended from the Olive Branch in the mountains down to the Jordan River. At one point we had a beautiful view across the valley to Israel and the West Bank while the GPS indicated that we were at sea level. The ride south to the Dead Sea was done in perfect conditions with a temperature of about 20 degrees and a light tail wind. All the while we could just look to the right and see Israel a few hundred metres away. Just before the Dead Sea we passed the site where St. John the Baptist baptised Jesus in the Jordan River.
Only a kilometre from the site of Jesus' baptism We rode down the Dead Sea 15 or 20 kilometres and back trying to find a public beach to have a swim but we didn't have any luck so we pulled into a spa. We had to pay 10 Jordanian Dinars each to get in but at least we had change rooms and showers. The water of the sea was cool but not the ice cold that we are familiar with from the Rocky Mountains. Once in the water we had a great time floating and trying to avoid splashing. The salt water stung anything remotely sensitive such as eyes, inside of the nose and in my case my freshly shaven chin. We had a bit of lunch while sitting on the beach and watching the water dry up on our skins leaving us covered in white salt. In order to beat the sunset we left the Dead Sea at about 3:30 for the 40 kilometre ride to Madaba. The straight line distance according to the GPS was only 25 kilometres, indicating that the road was very twisty. Sure enough, the climb up from the Dead Sea switched back and forth up the side of the mountain and we gained a kilometre in elevation. The best part was that the road was brand new with fresh asphalt and no traffic. Still, despite our efforts at going quickly we arrived in Madaba after sunset. We had no luck finding a hotel right off the bat so we started asking directions to the Mariam Hotel which we remembered Mike and Ruby had stayed at last year. At the third stop for directions someone in a parked car overheard our query and offered to show us the way. We followed his car for a few blocks and turns and there was the Mariam Hotel sign, lit up and enormous. How did we miss this? The price was only 27 Dinars ($36 CDN) so we had no qualms about taking a room. A good, hot shower helped to wash away some of the salt.
Treasury at Petra, Jordan Having seen pictures of Petra before, we knew the Treasury would be the first thing we would see as we came around the end of the canyon. With every corner, we looked around tentatively, wondering if this would be the big moment. Finally, a mere sliver of the gorgeous pink structure appeared through the canyon. We just looked at each other, speechless and breathless, knowing it was one of those, 'Ah, so this is what it's all about' moments. Enduring rock-throwing kids, dodgy food, questionable accommodations, suicidal, reckless drivers and pestering touts did not seem to matter so much at this moment. As the Treasury came into full view, we just stopped in our tracks and took it all in. The pink coloured stone was perfectly highlighted in the morning sun. This 'building' and all the details, from the thick pillars to the eagle statues on top, had been carved out of the side of the cliff. Nabateans used Syrian, Greek, Roman and Egyptian designs, and we recognized Corinthian and elephant head columns from other empires. Somehow the hubbub of crowds of tourists, camels, and jewellery sellers took nothing away from the feeling of awe at being in the vicinity of this wonder. Pictures cannot do it justice." Ed. Lots of fabulous pics and stories on Ekke and Audrey's website. Cathy and Glyn Riley, UK, Bristol to Cape Town, in Malawi and Zambia, F650 Dakars,"Another feature of riding through Malawi are the number of indicators that the country is experiencing an AIDS pandemic. It's not been noticeable in any other country that we've ridden through so far, but here there are signs everywhere, if you care to notice them. Firstly, there're the many orphanages signposted along the road. Then there are the signs for carpenters and joiners whose first choice of product to advertise is the coffin! I find this really weird. But we see them everywhere. And some have names that make you want to laugh even as you're feeling deeply moved inside by the implication of the proliferation of these roadside vendors. Signs like 'Comfort Coffin Carpentry' and 'Heaven Bound Coffin Makers' I find both funny and poignant in the extreme.
Coffin makers advertising in Malawi Speaking of chasms, we visited Victoria Falls yesterday. What an amazing experience! We decided, on the recommendation of our good friend Sam from Lalibela, to take a micro light flight over the falls. He'd said it was definitely worth doing, and as most of his other recommendations have turned out to be fabulous, we decided to treat ourselves to early birthday and Christmas presents. I was very much looking forward to visiting the falls, as this is where my parents got engaged. Their association with intrepid explorers into the African hinterland has also meant that they have always held something of a fascination for me. So it was just awe-inspiring to finally see them in all their splendour, from the air.
As we took off from the airfield one could see the white 'smoke' that gives the place its native name, Mosi-o-Tunya, which literally means 'the smoke that thunders.' Gaining height, with the land falling away below you, the scale of the Zambezi River and its carving away of the landscape become clear. Beyond the current falls are seven zigzags of gorges, each of which were once where the falls were located. I hadn't appreciated just how clearly visible this would be from the sky – you certainly don't pick them up from any of the many pictures taken of the falls, which all focus on the wall of water and its associated mist and rainbows. Today we revisited the falls, but this time on foot. It's been incredibly wet here, so we tried to go when it wasn't pouring with rain, which it is again now (and so our bikes, including Glyn's manky sheepskin, are getting completely soaked!). It was lovely to see them from the ground too – a different and unique experience. And one I'll never forget." Help support the Horizons Unlimited E-zine - visit our sponsors!
Drop in on Alaska Leather on your Alaskan adventure for service, tires, accessories and a hot cup of fresh coffee! Mike and Lotta Vaananen, Finland, Vietnam to Europe, in Pakistan,"It felt great to be back on the road once again after our brief pause in Quetta. The early stages of the road were in miserable conditions, and we loved it. However, soon enough we were on sections of tarmac and accelerating away except when the road would come to an abrupt end! Parts of the roads had been washed away by the recent monsoon season, and as I peered around I recognized some of the territory.
Rob and Josh – our Aussie friends we had met back in Laos, also over landing it on two motorcycles in the same direction – had been here a few months earlier. Josh had placed some outstanding photographs of themselves on line attempting to cross the flooded sections which were waist deep! We on the other hand had only the task of pulling a u-turn and gently descending ourselves onto the dry riverbeds before linking up with the road again. It was quite an odd sensation realizing how extreme the weather conditions could be.
We spotted a gas pump and decided to fill up prior to our arrival to Taftan. The man played a game of charades and we discovered that there was no petrol in the pump, instead with some difficulty brought over a jerry can and we measured the amount we required. He then demanded three times the normal rate, we laughed at this and he accepted the standard fare.
Lotta and I set off in search of the post office. We had been carrying around several postcards we had written whilst in Pakistan and were determined to post them from here. We circled around endlessly keeping a close eye on our watches knowing that the border would soon shut. Eventually a kind figure stepped out of a doorway and enquired as to how he could help. He was the Post Master and quickly he proceeded to place the stamps on the postcards, except that he only had small denominated stamps, meaning he had to place at least seven per postcard and we had a lot of postcards. He happily accepted our help and we glued them on the front, as there was no space for them on the back." Les Kay, UK, Americas, in Mexico, KLR,"Back on the road at last, it was a fifteen hour ferry journey but the time passed fast enough. The ride from Mazatlan was tremendous, incredible gain in altitude, and phenomenal numbers of bends. OK, so the road is called the road of 1000 bends, that really is an understatement. I fail to believe there is only an average of three bends per kilometre, it was a wonderful ride. The bike is as good as ever, my enjoyment riding has not diminished in the slightest, not that I expected it to! I meet up with another rider, on a 1200cc BMW, shame his big heavy beast meant the ride was a touch slower than I would have liked. I felt sorry for Mike having to heave the beast around, I definitely feel I've got the perfect bike for me. I couldn't pick up anything heavier, and couldn't afford anything else new!
Mainland Mexico After Baja the mainland feels massively different, no hot desert so far for a start. High, lush hills with deep verdant valleys abound. The amount of domestic agriculture is considerably more than I ever witnessed riding through Baja. The only domestic planting I saw there was plantations of Cacti, I believe these were for consumption, they looked like prickly pear. But the people here are as friendly as ever, forever smiling, wishing us well. whenever parked up the passing drivers would be waving out their windows, big smiles and lovely attitudes. It made us feel like celebrities! ...Reaching the Tropic of Cancer brought out a bubbling enthusiasm, a photo session at the sign ensued, a sense of achievement flooded through me. And when we pulled away, I was awash with grief! Cai should have been here to share this, that would have made it right. I don't think there was any guilt at feeling full of excitement, it was purely how deeply I would have liked to share this with him. I cried for miles, couldn't stop myself, didn't want to!
... I lost the power supply for my laptop, so this is using the last 20% of available power. I'm going to be lost without it, I've grown so used to it in my weeks on confinement. It's been a lifeline to everyone, and now I feel so distant, so isolated. I keep reminding myself that I'd planned the trip without a computer, that I'd intended to use Internet cafes. Another lesson in how much you take things for granted, only when you lose it do you really appreciate what you had. So take heed, cherish those things that bring you joy, don't take them for granted. I don't really mean material possessions; it was the contact with all those who mean so much to me. With me and the bike sorted, its full steam ahead; Honduras next stop. An estimated 3,000 miles before Christmas." Ed. See Les' blog on Horizons Unlimited for the story of the trip so far. Help support the Horizons Unlimited E-zine - visit our sponsors!
Calixte LeBlanc and Alain Denis, Canada, RTW, in Utah, USA, Suzuki DR 350,"Alain is a freelance photographer and Calixte is an amateur videographer. Both of us are Living the dream on our Suzuki Dr 350 'Climbing around the world.' We are now in Moab Utah, 2 months on the road now, feels great. Xmas here then south to Mexico. It's nice to be in a home for the moment and organize before the show begins in the 3rd world!
Eden's Garden, Arches National Park, Utah We had a slow start that day but eventually we made it out of the house and went for a drive in Arches National Park. It' s been snowing non stop for the past 24 hours so it's very different looking landscapes. The snow makes it all the more interesting...
Driving through Arches was a little chill, but being Canadian we can handle it. The big challenge with driving in cold is how long you can with stand the cold air with out stopping. Stopping is good to warm up and it's an opportunity to take pictures. We stop a lot, we're in no rush but this day in particular we were chasing the light. It seem to be running away from us.
Renee, the climbing friend Renee is our new roommate. We met her three weeks ago and she's invited us to stay with her for the Xmas holidays. We couldn't resist an offer like that so we set base camp #2 in Moab. We've already spent two weeks with her and she's been an enormous help to us. Not only as she welcomed us in to her home but she's been a great friend to us as well." Ed. Not a lot of words, but staggeringly good photos on Calixte and Alain's blog. Margaret Peart, Australia, Riding to Extremes, in Peru, BMW F650GS,"The town of Sullana was the closest of any size over the Peru border, so it got the nod for the night. I needed Peruvian currency, so went into the town centre, where I had to contend with SQUILLIONS of little 3-wheeler trike taxis. I couldn't believe that there could be the demand for so many of them! Most of the towns are full of one-way streets, making it difficult to negotiate your way, when you don't know where you're going in the first place! A uniformed guy on a 2-wheel bike asked if I needed help, so he took me through many little streets to the bank, watching the bike while I was inside. When I came back out, he'd been joined by a bike policeman, also watching my bike. I asked for a 'good' hotel, so off we went, one in front and one behind me, weaving through all the little tri-taxis, in and out of the traffic and pedestrians at a fast pace. I was horrified - what if I hit someone?? But we reached a hotel, and safety, at last, and it was a decent one, with WiFi, even, and a good restaurant, where I had a luvverly steak.
Margaret (Beemerbird) Peart, by Hubert Kriegel Strangely, with all the research I'd done for this trip, I'd never actually researched the geography of the countries themselves, nor the roads therein. I had NO IDEA that there were deserts in Peru. I'd always had an image of mountains, the Incas, rainforests, greenness etc. Not deserts, never deserts. I was riding through the deserts. For some unknown reason, I didn't fill up with fuel as I left town next morning. I had plenty, I'd be right till the next town. Yeah, well, the flyspots on the mapping program on the computer weren't actually towns, just 'flyspots' - no fuel! You guessed it - I ran out of fuel, in the middle of nowhere, in the desert, winds blowing, dust swirling, nothingness." Help support the Horizons Unlimited E-zine - visit our sponsors!
The place to go to get good brakes for that overloaded world touring bike. I'm running a 6 piston caliper from Harrison on my R80G/S, and it works REALLY well! Grant Paul Read, UK, RTW, in Iran, Honda VFR750,"The ship is full of passengers and is ready to go with the exception of one motorbike and one British guy so they want me to hurry. I stare at the ship which has a loading ramp but can't be deployed as the tide is out and the ship too low to the dockside but a crane with an ominous looking cage hangs over the ship. It is clear the cage is the only way to load Vafa but she is too big to fit in with the door shut. However it must be this way so she is lifted into the cage and I am commanded to sit on her and hold her in the cage with the brakes on and this is where I happily remain for the next 30 or 40 minutes. I feel happy in the cage thinking they can risk dropping a bike in the dock but not a passenger, so will take care of me.
Dry land! My thoughts are confirmed when someone realises there is a high possibility of me and Vafa sliding out into the dock so they rope us both in after a lot of shouting and discussion among the 20 or so crew, captain and other deck hands. Even more amazing someone quickly measures Vafa and realizes she is too big to go on the rear deck and must go in the roll-on roll-off lower deck. Seven or eight blokes manually push the boat out from the dockside and the ramp is lowered but I, still from my cage, indicate it is impossible for me to ride in as they wish as it is too steep but I'm happy for the cage to be lifted up a little and then down the metre or so to the ramp when it is flat out. This seems to be impossible as the crane reach is not good enough so instead I will be lifted and swung into the hold. The hook takes the strain and I and Vafa are in the air with no major drama though I hold the front and rear brakes very securely. The crane operator is gentle and edges me to the hold door. But the cage won't go in as the rear edges catches the ramp while the front top hits the ship. So they decide the cage has to be tipped forward at 20-25 degrees. This puts a lot of strain on me to keep Vafa up right and a certain amount of vocalisation escapes from my vocal cords but they continue and I use all my strength to keep Vafa contained and upright. We are edged into the deck and finally all four wheels of the cage touch down and the cage is brought into the hold and unhooked before being wheeled over to the other cages. The crew seemed to think I am going to leave Vafa in the cage and at one point I think they are going to leave me in the cage too. More persuasion from me and we are both out and I make Vafa secure using the strap I carry and one from the ship to be doubly sure." Peter and Kay Forwood, Australia, around the world since 1996, two-up on Harley Davidson, in Kiribati,"14/12/07 We had visited the nearby airline booking office yesterday afternoon to see if there were any flights to the Marshall Islands. No luck. Air Marshall used to fly but stopped the route when a couple of pilots quit and they ran short of planes. Air Nauru also used to do this route but the government airline wasn't paying its bill and its one aeroplane was repossessed. Air Nauru is now back flying as Our Airline but no longer goes to Marshall Islands. So we felt stuck, the only option to return to Fiji for an onward flight to Samoa, until the booking office owner advised of a special charter flight from Nauru to Marshall Islands on the 28th of December. If we could put the motorcycle onto the flight we could visit Nauru on its weekly flight from Kiribati on the 21st and then fly on to Marshall Islands. We had rejected the proposal of flying the motorcycle on 737's before because air freight companies advised the cargo door was too small to handle the motorcycle. But, as you can at a small country's airport, we walked out onto the airstrip this morning to measure the cargo door of the Our Airline's flight at 6am, after it had arrived from Nauru, the once weekly flight we might be taking next Friday.
Peter measuring the cargo door of Our Airline's 737 aeroplane The cargo door is just 90cm high and 120cm wide, turning the motorcycle inside the aeroplane might also be a problem, as the cargo door is near the front end of the plane where it narrows, however we calculated if we remove the front wheel, the rear carry box, loosen the handlebars, by lying it on its side, it could fit, and by removing the panniers, it should reduce the weight to about 300kg, as it has to be human lifted into the plane. The plan is to also dismantle the shipping crate and fly it with the bike to be used for future shipping. That was all thought through by 9am and we caught a public minibus along the 30km's road to Betio, the port, where the incredibly helpful port authority prepared paperwork, helped at customs, and after much discussion with special approval from the finance department, they allowed the motorcycle's entry for a week without needing to put up a refundable bond. The motorcycle's shipping container had only arrived this morning and 'Kiribati Chief' was still unloading offshore, the port is too shallow for it to come alongside and the containers needed to be barged to the wharf. Our container was lifted down from a stack, the doors opened and there was the motorcycle right in front, as promised by Williams and Gosling, but on top of it were boxes of heavy bibles, pushing the top of the crate out of shape and ended up denting the tank slightly, another trip memory. We had the crate opened just in time for customs to inspect the motorcycle's panniers before weekend closing time and rode out into Kiribati an hour later, after reassembling the motorcycle, its 181st country.
Bike at Bonriki Airport, Kiribati 17/12/07 Pacific World Travel is trying to look after all our onward travel movements, motorcycle flight, our flight, and our visas for Nauru as well as onward from there to the Marshall Islands. This morning, Monday, there was no progress as a response to their request for information from Nauru had not been received. We went ahead with the plan of still flying there in four days time, no option, and had the motorcycle's shipping crate collected from the port and taken to our hotel. Also picked up a 2.4m x 1.2m sheet of plywood, cut it into lengths, to help with loading the motorcycle onto the plane, and to spread the motorcycle's footprint on the cargo hold floor as it won't be crated. We have a pretty generous reserve of cash we normally carry but not anticipating two onward flights we were at the bank trying to get more. The maximum ATM withdrawal on either debit or credit card in Kiribati is A$ 200.00, an expensive, repetitive process to take out a few thousand dollars, and only two of the five ATM's on the island are currently working, our mobile phone doesn't work here and the government seems to have a monopoly on internet use, Skype (internet phone), is banned as it was affecting telecom revenues. Part of our problem is Nauru, the latest information we have is that there is currently no operating bank, no foreign exchange, no ATM, bring in any money needed.
Squeezing it through the door 21/12/07 - A last minute change by the captain, to put the motorcycle in the rear luggage compartment rather than the front, meant a quick rethink, and loading the rear of the motorcycle first, not the front, and with about half a dozen staff it was manually lifted and squeezed in, the fairing scraping the door as it entered. Unable to sit upright, it rested at about a 45 degree angle. A small amount of oil from the gearbox leaked when the motorcycle was turned a bit upside down, cardboard packaging absorbed most of it, but otherwise the whole procedure went smoothly and we flew out, the aircraft spending only 50 minutes on the ground." Ed. The Forwood's have travelled to 182 countries now, over 470,000 km during 11+ years on the road. Horizons Unlimited is proud to host their complete RTW story and pictures here! Help support the Horizons Unlimited E-zine - visit our sponsors!
Africa Bike Tours provides you with a selection of unique guided Namibian tours by experienced off road hosts. Ruby and Mike, Canada, in Egypt and Sudan, BMWR1200GS,"From our location we had a great view point of the loading area for the cargo barge. Truck after truck loaded to double its height would back up to the cargo barge, lean at a very dangerous level and someone would climb to the top of the mountain of whatever stuff that was going to Sudan (like a Barber Chair) and started untying the ropes that held it all in one place. Sometimes it would stay in place other times the 'stuff' would come crashing down without warning.
Waiting to load the ferry in Aswan for the trip to Wadi Halfa, Sudan. Another overloaded truck pulls up. Our motorcycles wait in the background. There are no words to explain the night ahead and the conditions everyone is placed in. I imagine that refugees fleeing from a country on a boat would be in a similar position. We felt like a herd of cows, stacked onto the ferry, every possible space taken up. Going to the bathroom was a nightmare. We climbed along the outside railing of the ferry to get to the end of the stair way leading to the bottom, stepping over people, no lights on the boat (no moon). During the night, it gets quite cold as the wind picks up and we get the sleeping bags out. Everyone sleeps on everyone else...
Mike plows through the sand (the air filter was 1kg heavier after all this) We finally found the real Africa. The journey from Wadi Halfa to Dongola, our favorite, through some of the toughest riding we had done, 420km of washboard gravel roads to sand and more sand. The scenery makes up for all the exhausting hours of standing up and trying not to crash in the sand. Every so often one gets a glimpse of the Nile. Each village unique, the Sudanese people very welcoming and all smiles. Camping under the stars by the Nile, having the local farmer come for a visit with his wife and child in the middle of the night, is something that we will never forget. Another unforgettable night we spent in the desert between Karima and Khartoum. No sounds, no animals, no traffic, something neither of us had ever experienced, the best night's sleep in a long time. Sudan is not set up for tourism and the amenities are basic. A bit of an annoyance was the police registration prior to checking into a hotel or taking a ferry (each could take up to an hour of paperwork), that is after spending an hour searching for the police office. A couple of ancient sites worth a visit were definitely the Pyramids at Karima and tombs at Meroe." Ed. Lots of photos and great stories on their site. |
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Lois on the Loose The Telegraph: 'it roars along at a breakneck pace, and is full of funny asides and snappy accounts'. Get it here!
Adventure Motorcycling Handbook, by Chris Scott
Motorcycle Therapy, by Jeremy Kroeker From the Canadian Rockies to the Panamanian Jungle, Motorcycle Therapy rumbles with comic adventure as two men, fleeing failed relationships, test the limits of their motorcycles and their friendship. Get it here!
by Sam Manicom Sam's plans frequently don't work out as they should... new challenges and surprises... jailed in Tanzania ...lives in a remote village, canoes a dugout in Malawi, escapes a bush fire and much more. Get it here!
Into the Den of the Bear and the Lair of the Dragon on a Motorcycle. Werner, 66, was born in Germany and worked in Canada until his retirement. He has authored a number of books since getting bit by the motorcycle travel bug, including -8 Around the Americas by Motorcycle, For details on his books see here.
The Producers of Mondo Enduro present Terra Circa, Around the World by Motorcycle (6 x 20 minute episodes). Regular readers of this newsletter will remember Terra Circa's adventures around the world, and especially the Zilov Gap. Now's your chance to see it in video. Austin Vince is a very funny guy and the video is hilarious, as he leads his intrepid crew through misadventure after misadventure. "This is adventure motorcycling" says Chris Scott, who wrote the book, so he ought to know! Contact Aimimage for the PAL video or all format DVD. Don't forget to tell them you heard about it on HU, we'll make a bit, and it won't cost you any more. Looking for a travel book for someone special?Go to our Books pages, where we have listed some of the best motorcycle travel books, as well as a number of BMW books, general motorcycle books, and travel guides. There's links to Amazon USA, Amazon UK, Amazon Canada, and Amazon Deutschland, so no matter where you are - you can order books at great prices, and we'll make a dollar or a pound or a Euro, which goes a very little way to supporting this e-zine. There's also links to search Amazon sites for all their products, books, CDs etc., and yes, we get a tiny piece of that too. We really appreciate it when you start your book search from our website. Thanks for the support! NOTE: If you buy a book starting with one of our links below, we get a little bit to help support the website!
Book suggestions please!If you have a book or want a book that you think other travellers would be interested in please let me know and I'll put it on the site. Thanks, Grant Help support your favourite website! Here's how!Please be assured that we will NOT under any circumstances, rent, lease, sell, or give out our mailing list, and/or your name and e-mail address, to anyone for whatever purpose. Your privacy is assured, and personally guaranteed. See our complete Privacy Policy here. Grant Johnson, Editor Please note that you are receiving this newsletter only because you requested it! We are 100% opt - in only. To subscribe or UNsubscribe to this newsletter. Reader commentsAll comments and suggestions are carefully read, and where possible will be acted on. Your help will make this a useful service for all travellers. Please use the Bulletin Board for questions and suggestions. If you would like to advertise your product or service in this newsletter or on the website, please contact me. Ad rates are very reasonable. Details at this link. ISSN 1703-1397 Horizons Unlimited Motorcycle Travellers' E-zine - Copyright 1999-2004, Horizons Unlimited and Grant and Susan Johnson. All rights reserved. Redistribution - sending it on to friends is allowed, indeed encouraged, but other than the following requirements, only with permission. You may forward copies of the Horizons Unlimited Motorcycle Travellers' e-zine by forwarding it yourself by hand. You must forward the issue in its entirety, no fee may be involved. Please suggest they Subscribe! Legal gibberish: (particularly for those in countries that have more lawyers in one town, just for instance, New York, not to name any names, than some whole countries, as another example, Japan. Again, not naming anybody specifically you understand) Recommendations are based on positive or negative experiences of somebody, somewhere. Your mileage (kilometrage if you insist) may vary. We are not responsible in any way for any product or service mentioned, and do not warrant any such mentioned product or service, and are not responsible for any bad things that may befall you. You are responsible for yourself! Act accordingly. We check all links and information given as close as possible to publication, and all info is correct as best we can determine at that time. |
Ron Markiewicz, Australia, Africa and TransAm 07, in Ecuador and Peru,"A small group of about 5 of us |
