Horizons Unlimited
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Welcome to the 73rd edition of the HU e-zine! It's mid-summer in England, we've actually had a few nice hot sunny days, interspersed with cold sunny days, cold wet days and the odd hailstorm - typical 'British Summer Time' as GMT is called this time of year. So what's happening here in HU HQ? Just a few days before the UK meeting, we received the production copies of the second DVD of the new Achievable Dream series - Ladies on the Loose! and were able to ship out the hundreds of back orders, so that was very satisfying! We're recuperating from the Horizons UK meeting, where we had a record turnout of over 500 happy campers. As always, the UK meeting is incredibly enjoyable and exhausting. Even with all the help we have, and without the added effort of filming for the DVD series, or even doing our marathon 'how to' presentation, I still felt like I was running around like a headless chicken for most of the time. Obviously I projected that image too, as someone who was there mentioned: 'Had meant to come and say hello to you and Grant at Ripley - but you looked so very busy.' I keep saying that next year I'm actually going to get to see some presentations, and never quite manage it! We hosted Peter and Kay Forwood for a few days, before they headed off again. Last time that happened was in Canada in 2003, so we had a lot to catch up on. They reminded us of what it was like to just be travelling, without any obligations, for years at a time. Yes, we did that once upon a time, for two whole years. Last year, we got less holidays than the Yanks, which is pretty pathetic :-( What's next? We're off to Spain in less than two weeks, which constitutes our holidays for the year! We're planning to be in the Pyrenees for a few days before the meeting to update the paved road course and check all the arrangements. We've got a new record turnout for the HUMM, over 100 participants, competing in 3 classes this year, plus quite a few NRSOs (WAGs to the Brits) who plan to chill out and take advantage of the facilities at the 4-star hotel we'll be staying at. So, it should be great fun! After the HUMM we're riding on to Germany through Switzerland, then back to the UK end of July. Shipping of DVDs will be delayed for a couple of weeks, but since everyone seems to be out riding now rather than watching television, hopefully that won't be a problem! Enough of my rambling. As usual, our travellers are all over the map in this issue: Albania, Argentina, Azerbaijan, Brazil, Cambodia, Chile, Colombia, Congo, Ecuador, Gabon, Georgia, Greece, India, Indonesia, Iran, Japan, Malaysia, Mexico, Peru, Pakistan, Romania, Russia, Tajikistan, Turkey, Ukraine, Uruguay, Uzbekistan, UK, USA, Venezuela, and more... So, get out there on the road - we want YOUR adventure stories and pics! Don't forget to submit your best pics for the Photo Contest, which ends September 1st! Susan Johnson, Editor The new 'Achievable Dream' DVD Series! Ladies on the Loose! is now shipping :-)
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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.
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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. 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
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!  Get the Achievable Dream DVD's NOW and learn how YOU can hit the road!
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Tiffany Coates, UK, UK to Mongolia, in Uzbekistan and Tajikistan,"At the border crossing, the Uzbeki guards were very thorough in their search (which as we are leaving the country seemed a bit odd), they x-rayed every bag and started searching through them by hand as well-the sort of treatment I have only seen at an Israeli border several years ago. It was going to take a long time so drastic action was required - I went very pale and vomited copiously at the entrance to their office - not surprisingly they quickly decided that their search was over and they urged us to continue our journey (yes, Annie did take a picture). Before we could leave though, the cleaner came over and stroppily thrust a brush and pan into my weak and clammy hands. I was unable to stand up at this point. Luckily the sniffer dog came to investigate and liking what he saw, proceeded to eat the vomit on the ground which made me feel better as he was looking a bit emaciated and I knew that this was definitely one meal that included the five food groups...
In the Kyzylkum Desert - crossing the border from Kazakhstan to Uzbekistan - had to go round the hard way as Turkmenistan had closed its borders. ...As always when we were getting Thelma ready to leave, a small crowd gathered and asked where we were going - an incredulous look when I announced Dushanbe and the crowd said 'On that bike over those mountains?' making high mountain gestures in the air - I managed to distract Annie as they did that - it's a need to know situation and I really don't think she needs to know that we have two huge mountain passes ahead of us, and anyway as she has currently mislaid her reading glasses (my now blind navigator) she has not been able to read the route description in the guidebook so is blissfully unaware. I had told her the thermal balaclava was for the dusty conditions. So far it had been almost unbearably hot, like riding in a convection oven set to full heat, but I knew this would change. The tarmac was good to begin with, scenic mountains, dry, dusty valleys and occasional oasis towns. Roadside hawkers included blokes holding out writhing snakes, not sure what people were buying them for. 100 miles further on, a police checkpoint and they indicated a rock and gravel strewn track leading upwards as the way to Dushanbe. It got very bumpy and then the snow appeared, small amounts at first until it was banked up at the sides of the road, some of it melting and falling onto the track in front of us. The surface got more slippery as I was faced with the unenviable choice of slippery mud or slippery slabs of ice on a narrow dirt track at 3300 metres altitude. The lack of oxygen was starting to give me a headache and I was desperately conscious of the fact that I had donated my last square meal to the customs sniffer dog yesterday and had eaten only a bit of dry bread since then - I decided to not dwell on my weakened state and just focus on the road as we lurched towards the edge of the precipice. I stopped in time, straightened Thelma and apologised to Annie as I then gunned it up the final straight - we had made it to the top, now all we had to do was get down the other side - and for those who know my feelings about downhill stuff, it was not a pretty sight. I got Annie to walk about 15 yards at one point as there was so much snow across the track, it was downright dangerous.
In the snow on the road to Dushanbe, Tajikistan ...Eventually the tunnel of terror loomed up before us, I had been pre-warned about this, it's an Iranian constructed four mile pitch-black flooded tunnel with deep potholes and a delightful carbon-monoxide atmosphere. At least it meant we didn't have to go all the way to the top of the mountain in the snow again. We paused and a cement mixer lorry came along and beckoned us to follow him through - what a gent. He even put on his light at the back to act as a small spotlight for us, the upside was that we could see the watery surface ahead though the downside was that we had to choke on his fumes all the way through and at times when it would have been safer for us to go a bit faster we were trapped behind him going slowly - Thelma is more stable on uneven ground at faster speeds. Within 50 yards we had lurched into a very deep pothole that soaked us and I almost dropped Thelma, I think it was only the thought of trying to pick up Thelma in 2 foot deep filthy water in the inky blackness that enabled me to desperately keep her upright. After that I watched the truck's wheels intently (a bit hard with my eyes stinging from all the fumes), looking out for that tell-tale lurching. It seemed to take forever, but finally we were out into fresh air once more and now it was definitely downhill all the way." Ed. Tiffany shares her top tips for travelling in the new 'Ladies on the Loose!' Achievable Dream Series DVD - shipping now! Help support the Horizons Unlimited E-zine - visit our sponsors!
Mark Hammond, USA, from Morocco to Cape Town, in Congo, Suzuki DR650,"Puddle doesn't do it justice. A mud puddle is a small pool of water that a little boy in yellow rubber galoshes jumps into on his way home from school on a rainy April afternoon, for the thrill of the splash. These were not mere puddles - they were ponds, swamps even, some as long and wide as a Greyhound bus and a good three feet deep. It rained regularly here in northwestern Congo, even in the so-called dry season of mid-January. These ponds were ecosystems unto themselves, with tiny organisms skittering atop the surface and, in at least one, even newts.
I have always enjoyed water fordings, and after we crossed from Gabon into the Congo, at a tiny border settlement called Nyanga, I would have more than my share of fun. I propped my arse up slightly on the waterproof duffel bag lashed up on pillion, steered with my feet, locked my elbows straight on the handlebars, and plowed on through these gigantic ponds. Great V-shapes of brown water sprayed into the air. The water was warm and fetid and soaked my torso and legs and boots and tank bag and painted an ear-to-ear grin on my dripping wet face. I kept the motorbike in a mid-first gear, ready to gently administer additional throttle if necessary. In the middle, the water could be nearly seat-high and the surface below snotty and thick. Or bumpy - at the bottom, there would potholes within potholes, or logs or rocks. No one was about to do any deep-pond diving to find out. All of a sudden, in the middle of a crossing, I'd hit some obstacle and vroom! The motorbike would heave, the front wheel would lurch - keep those bars straight and the throttle steady!" Ed. Mark's got more great stories and pics on his blog. Carol and Ken Duval, Australia, RTW (again), Uruguay to Brazil,"Our hosts were keen to take us into the surrounds of Porto Alegre for some sight seeing so we chased the Super Tenere into the mountains enjoying the ride and Carol enjoying a holiday from navigating. Taquara, Sao Francisco de Paula, Cambara do Sul then a very rough stony 20 kms to the Canyon Itaimbenzinho in the Parque Nacional de Aparados da Serra. We were a bit concerned as our tyres were more street orientated and a little thin.
Maybe this could be our next touring vehicle! We survived the ride then walked a few kms to view the spectacular canyon. We took way too many photos then rode the remaining 20 kms out of the park, however around 5 kms from the end of the dirt the rear tyre let the air out. Patched tubes with 'slime' do not hold we found out, and it was dark before we left our unplanned stop.
Flat tyre and both our pumps would not work. For the second time on our world travels both our pumps failed so it was our hosts small hand pump that brought our tyre back to life. Our destination of Torres was not too far and the distance was covered quickly." Ed. See all Ken and Carol's stories and great pics on their blog here on Horizons Unlimited! Help support the Horizons Unlimited E-zine - visit our sponsors!
Adventure Riding Techniques - The essential guide to all the skills you need for off-road adventure riding. Oliver Abrahams, UK, in Mexico, Honda XL650 Transalp,"I met my couchsurfing host (Paulina) and her friends on Friday evening and on Saturday morning we were going to ride bicycles naked through Mexico City, as part of the World Naked Bike Ride. You may have gathered from my last post that I was fairly tense about this undertaking. It's not every day that you ride through a city in your birthday suit with a group of people you've only met 12 hours earlier. Plenty of questions had been bothering me in the days leading up to the event. Things like: Are there protocols for this type of thing? When do you actually get your kit off? Will there be any chafing? Where do you look? What do I do about sun cream? What if it's cold? Oh please don't let it be cold! What if they're all really attractive. Oh God. What the hell have I signed up for, etc. However, as Saturday drew near I managed to convince myself everything would be ok and I was rather looking forward to it. That's a bit of a lie. I was actually still sh*tting myself. Unfortunately, we all went to a party on Friday night and everyone got to bed very late. I was actually ok on Saturday morning and probably could have made it to the ride but Paulina (my host) felt too bad to venture out so we cancelled. I thought about going myself but I think that might have been a bit weird!"
Rob Jardine, UK, Melbourne to London, in Pakistan and Iran, on Honda Transalp,"50 in the shade (if you can find any). Yes, that's right, I didn't know temperatures went that high, but they do, in Pakistan in the summer, and I rode right through the middle of it. Since the last update from Dharamsala, I've holidayed in two of the world's most notorious hotspots (Peshawar and Quetta), endured hours of police escorts, and I am now recovering in Bam from a spot of heat exhaustion (read - extreme diarrhea). I'm still travelling with T-bone, my intrepid German companion. I would normally have steered clear of Peshawar, but I had received a strong recommendation for a tour guide there, and when I contacted the Prince he assured me that all was well. The ride from Islamabad was fairly straightforward until I got a puncture about 20km outside Peshawar. There was a big shard of metal in the tyre, so it went down pretty quick and gave me a big speed wobble at about 100kph. Fortunately there was a tyre shop about 50 metres away, so after taking the back wheel off, I paid the grand sum of 50 rupees and spared myself the trouble of changing the tube.
Pimp my bus, Peshawar style On arriving in Peshawar, we checked in at the Rose Hotel and called the Prince, who came out to meet us with his colleague Hussain. While I was waiting for the Prince, I went across the road to a tyre shop to see if I could find a replacement inner tube (for a Transalp? Not easy...), where they told me that the Taliban had bombed an internet cafe in Peshawar earlier in the day with many casualties - I decided the situation was sufficiently hazardous for me to stay off Facebook for a few days. The Prince and Hussain arrived and they were an absolute blast, so we decided to stay in Peshawar for a couple more days so that they could give us the full tour. On the way up to their office, there was a loud bang which sounded suspiciously like a bomb blast, but the Prince assured me it was a wedding - he later fessed up that it was a bomb, but he didn't want to worry us on day one...
Iran border crossing ...The nonsense started as soon as we entered Iran. Our passports were confiscated with no explanation, leaving us stuck at the border. Eventually it was explained to us that we would need a bodyguard to proceed to Zahedan, but no indication was given as to when this bodyguard would arrive. After 90 minutes, a boy-soldier (about 19 going on 12, and doing his best to act tough) presented himself, with no radio, no gun and no transport. Not much of a bodyguard. But he had our passports. Now there's not much spare space on the back of my bike, but this lad can't have been more than about 50kg, and since the alternative was to pay $25 for a taxi for him, he was duly added to the rest of the luggage and we set off. I'll spare the gory details of the remainder of the day, but it took us 14 hours to cover the ~350km to Bam, with brief spells at 120kph behind police escorts interspersed with lengthy waits in 40+ degree sunshine outside many, many police stations. At one point we waited 30 minutes to be escorted 500 metres to the next post. No smiles, no explanation, no passport. I was extremely pissed off. We eventually received our passports back about 50km from Bam, but only because the final escort ran out of petrol. We were then almost run off the road by another police escort arriving in Bam, who thought they could tell us which hotel we would be staying in. To make matters worse, it was the hotel that I had planned to stay at anyway, so I had to make it absolutely clear that I was staying there because I chose to, and not because they wanted me to. Akbar's Tourist Guest House in Bam proved to be a great place to stay, and Akbar and his son Mohammed were wonderful hosts. My stay there was somewhat spoiled by a chronic case of heat exhaustion / diarrhea, for which I blame the Iranian police for keeping me hanging around in the sun the previous day. Bam was completely devastated by an earthquake in 2003 and is still being rebuilt, and the ancient mud-brick city is a far cry from what it once was, but it's still an interesting place to visit." Help support the Horizons Unlimited E-zine - visit our sponsors!
Ian Moor, UK, Wrong Way Round The World, in the USA, F650GS,"After the Memorial Day Weekend I headed back to the northern end of the Blue Ridge Parkway by a slightly different route to start the Shenandoah Skyline Drive. When I arrived there was heavy fog in the mountains along Skyline Drive although either side was fine. I camped at nearby Waynesboro for a couple of days and set off in clearer weather. Shenandoah Skyline Drive is a 105 mile scenic drive with a strictly enforced 35mph speed limit. I opted to go slower than that and try and spot a black bear which were supposed to be fairly common in Shenandoah. Naturally I didn't see one although there were deer and other unidentified creatures.
Blue Ridge Parkway, Virginia When I stopped to camp 20 miles from the end of Skyline Drive I asked the park ranger what was the chance of seeing a bear. She reckoned 30% and the best way of seeing one was to quietly walk the trails or stay still in the forest and wait for one to come past. As I left the rangers office a black bear was by the side of the road about 150 yards away. A deer crossed the road in front of it then the bear slowly wandered across the road and disappeared into the forest on the other side. Spurred on by my first sighting of a bear in the wild I pitched the tent and set off on a 'bear hunt'. Following the Park Rangers advice of being as quiet as possible I turned my hearing aid off as I have found I do everything more quietly that way. I spent a day and a half enjoying the trails through the mountains but never saw another bear. I have done over 4500 miles from Miami to Princeton New Jersey in eight weeks. The direct route is about 1350 miles. I have avoided Interstates and major roads wherever possible and done less than 100 miles in total on these. The only built up area has been at the mouth of Chesapeake Bay around Newport News, Portsmouth, Norfolk and Virginia Beach on the way to and from False Cape State Park for the Memorial Day Weekend.
Not as exciting as a bear, but wildlife nonetheless The vast majority of the roads have been very quiet and enjoyable to ride on (unlike the Interstates). I have done a couple of 30 mile stretches of dirt road and a few shorter sections. These could have been avoided but added to the variety. I have camped every night except one when I stayed in a B&B because the camping gear was wet. Not including getting to America, cost of paperwork and bike parts (tyre, chain & sprocket) it has cost about $260 per week (185 pounds sterling). Most of this was on camping fees of between $5 and $33 per night. When I return in three weeks time I intend to head north, mainly along the coast to Nova Scotia to do the Cabot's Trail." Ed. See Ian's blog here on Horizons Unlimited! Help support the Horizons Unlimited E-zine - visit our sponsors!
Adam Lewis, UK, RTW, in Uruguay and Brazil, BMW F650,"I rode a few hours further south to the beautiful and aptly named colonial town of Colonia. On the way I came across the unusual sight of a guy using a chainsaw to cut a 10m tall Christ from a tree trunk.
Hostel Espanol, a rambling old rabbit's warren of a place arranged around both indoor and outdoor courtyards proved a great place to stay and was well located for walking to the 'Old Town' where cobbled streets lined with painted houses were adorned with gas lamps. I moved along the coast to the capital, Montevideo in the hope of finding a pint of Guinness on St. Patrick's Day. It remained a hope though as 'Shannon's' turned out to be a Guinness free Irish pub - the irony wasn't lost on me!
Colonia, Uruguay Curitiba is the starting point for one of Brazil's most spectacular railway journeys and was my reason for going. I'd noticed a contributor on the Horizons Unlimited website forum lived in Curitiba and so sent him a message asking if he knew a hostel that had parking for Lady P. He replied saying there was no need for a hostel as I could stay with him and so the following day I met Reginaldo in a petrol station south of the city.
Lewis and Reginaldo He worked for the fire service and had recently been promoted to station officer, a post he would take up after returning from a forthcoming trip to Chile on his Suzuki DR650. As well as putting me up for the weekend he took me around the town as I gathered the parts I would need for servicing Lady P when I got to Avaré. We spent the evenings swapping information as I had travelled the route he was planning through Argentina and Chile and he furnished me with GPS maps for Brazil, Peru and Venezuela. The railway journey was spectacular. Plodding along at a mere 28km/h it climbs through a series of tunnels before emerging on the side of a huge forested valley where it descends via a combination of high bridges and yet more tunnels in a giant 'horseshoe' around the valley and back to sea level at Morretes before continuing on to the port town of Paranagua." Help support the Horizons Unlimited E-zine - visit our sponsors! Simon Fitzpatrick, UK, Americas, in Peru and Ecuador,"'You have committed two serious infractions señor, and the fine, with a receipt, amounts to 375 Peruvian Soles (75 GBP)', barks the uniformed shortarse in the layby (just after the tollgate 150 miles north of Lima). Bingo! I think, on hearing the phrase 'with a receipt'. I loathe bribery - it rots people and societies from within, but... the officer has a point. I was, in fact, speeding, and I do not, on this occasion, seem to have 3rd party insurance for Peru. I meant to get some - truly I did - but it appears I haven't been able to get round to it. So I am - I suppose - in the wrong, and he is - in theory - a policeman (read 'armed pickpocket'). I explain that I don't have 375 Soles on me - a massive lie. He asks me what I would like to do. I show him 50 Soles (10 GBP). He pockets it. Game over. I feel sickened and ashamed for 24 hours, but - look - I had actually done the crime, and if you're gonna do the crime, hurrah for corruption...
After this incident, and still uninsured, I scheme up a foolproof new plan; the next time I'm flagged down by these fellows, I'll pretend not to notice and sod off quickly. It works! Four times between Lima and Trujillo! It's all extremely exciting, despite the fact that they're not fussed enough to give chase. Fun though it's been, I do now intend to buy some insurance for the last 500 miles - if only so I can get back on my high horse (which is currently lying down in a deep ditch with its hooves over its eyes) and refuse to pay subsequent bribes. A little bit of insurance back story: In Argentina, you have GOT to have it. I had, and I was stopped and asked for it 50 miles outside BA by some very nice, un-corrupt cops. Chile - according to the border chaps, motorbikes don't need it. I was never asked. Bolivia - same story. Peru - well, I guess I'd sort of lost interest in the whole insurance issue by then. So when you boil it down, a 10 GBP bribe covered me for 8000 miles and 6 months of uninsured riding. The game is SO up.
...Talking to a motorbike is stupid and pointless isn't it? But, hell, I challenge you to ride one 10,000 miles across the continent of your choice and not start doing just that. We bang over a pothole and I pat the tank and say 'sorry darling'. I promise oil-changes out loud. I remind this lump of metal, plastic and rubber, when things get weird, that 'I told you we were going on an adventure'. Never say anything like 'what an excellent motorcycle you are' though. That's a magic spell that causes something to break, however much you believe that Homo Superstitio is an evolutionary mid-point between flint-arrowed, mammoth-bothering cave-thug, and facted-up, Spock-a-like future person." Ed. See lots of pics and stories on Simon's blog here on Horizons Unlimited! Warning, some profanity! Help support the Horizons Unlimited E-zine - visit our sponsors!
Peter and Kay Forwood, Australia, around the world since 1996, 193 countries two-up on Harley Davidson, in the UK,"They say it is rarely sunny on the Isle of Man, but today, after the fog cleared, it was T-shirt weather and everyone was out enjoying. It was late in the day when we arrived in Castletown, after strolling through the pre TT Classics compound where participants were preparing for the afternoons practice session. The short road circuit, 7km's, near Castletown, came alive shortly after 6pm with two stroke motorcycles, an era gone. Seven practice events, as lively as a real race, the leader losing it on our corner of the first event, but no other excitement as they progressed from 125cc motorcycles up to the open class plus sidecars.
Pre-TT classics on the Billown Circuit, Isle of Man The general public motorcycle enthusiasts are starting to arrive, more motorcycles on the roads and at camp grounds. We visited a great private motorcycle museum, the ARE Collection, in the morning, mostly British brands, old Triumphs, Norton's, BSA's, Enfield's plus names I haven't heard of. Then, as it is Honda's 50th anniversary of competition at the TT's, there was a special exhibition at the Manx Museum, including the first Honda to win a TT, in 1961. We joined the leather clad lads at Creg ny Baa, a popular race watching spot at the end of the mountain road. Racing boots, leather racing pants and jackets, colourful full face helmets their uniform, quite different from the H-D uniform of Harley events, or even the goretex uniform that we saw at the overland riders rally recently in Germany. We were the only ones not in a dress code, just members of 'Joe Public', anonymous, while our motorcycle took most of the heat from onlookers.
Sidecar practice at Creg ny Baa corner ...Glynn's friend, Danny, a KTM Adventurer rider, an outdoor guy, invited us to his home for dinner, with his family, wife and three children. Danny does the Road Kill Cookout at the Horizons Unlimited Rally in the UK, bringing along rabbits, squirrel, and other animals he has caught for the event. Tonight he honoured us with a taste of his new brew of silver birch wine. Made from the sap of the tree, taken in early spring, it is fermented with yeast, then bottled. We had the first tasting of last years brew, a clear white, strong, a nose of apple, a pleasant taste. It was accompanied by a venison stew, one Danny had shot, and shared with Joanne, another overland traveller. At the Horizons Unlimited UK meeting ...Danny has a great sense of humour and an amazing array of food that he had prepared, most of which we had not encountered during out travels. Woodcock, pheasants, elderflower champagne, wild garlic, game stew with a variety of animals, not to mention trout and yabbies fresh from local streams. We had been invited to a special guests preview of his cookout assortments over the last few days and today he had an amazed and slightly stunned audience as he proceeded to humorously describe unimaginable ways of catching yabbies and trout by motorcycle, or attempting to run down rabbits or deer using a motorcycle. There was a demonstration of preparing the 'road kill', the audience could assist, preparing their own, and cooking it in the log fire, a well received, although squeamish for some, but immensely humorous presentation.
Danny at the Road Kill Cookout at the Horizons Unlimited UK meeting ...We don't visit a lot of Harley-Davidson shops, finding we now have less and less in common with the riders there who, like we used to, use their motorcycles more for a social event rather than for riding, but this morning we needed to restock our supply of wheel bearing seals, so we visited the H-D shop in Southampton. Unfortunately they were out of the seals but we stayed, talking to 'Red' the chatty ex-American sales manager and had a coffee with a couple of Harley riding Horizons Unlimited followers, but the other riders, who turned up for the short ride out, were more locally social."
Horizons Unlimited is proud to host Peter and Kay's complete RTW story and pictures here! Paul Brealey, Australia, across the USA, in California,
Wind Farm in the Mojave "The ride into the Bay was pretty uneventful until I got close to the city. I had written out driving instructions and placed them on my tank bag and they were good until I got to a fork in the highway and I had to make a guesstimate. Next thing I have a toll both in front of me and the whopping big Bay Bridge looming in front of me. I stopped to pay my $4 to cross the bridge and ask the lady in the booth if I'm heading the right way. Yep, stay on the right side over the bridge. Phew! My instructions were saying go left. Off I head to cross the Bay with a smile on my dial that I was nearly at my goal.
Golden Gate Bridge What's that in front?? A friggin large sign reading 'Strong Winds on Bridge'. I don't think I'll write what I thought. There were 5 lanes of traffic in each direction and I positioned myself as close to the middle as I could to try and get protection from all of the cars but they still found a way of beating me up. After what seemed like an eternity, I finally made my way down and into the streets of Frisco and to my hotel. It is the Andrews Hotel on Post Street. A boutique hotel recommended by my man in Charlotte. Now I have since uncovered the code and now know that boutique doesn't necessarily mean 'top shelf' hotel. No sirree Bob. Ladies and Gentlemen, Boutique means small. Yep, I'm on the 6th floor and there are about 5 rooms on each floor and I had to walk sideways to get in the door. They used a crane that is permanently attached to the roof to lift my bags up and passed them in through the window. Nah, it's not that bad ;-) but yes, it's the smallest hotel room I've ever seen but it's nice enough. It was built back at the beginning of last century and has an elevator that has two doors on it. One that you open manually outwards and then inside a steel grill gate. I also have a King size bed which I am becoming accustomed to having. Now, don't go getting upset Bill, I like it and I'm just stirring you up a little. The great thing is, that it is smack bang dead in the centre of town and easy walking distance to everything. Also, you get a complimentary glass of wine in the bar each day." Ed. See Paul's blog here on Horizons Unlimited! 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!) Stephen Bray, Ireland, Argentina to Alaska, now on a bus in Mexico!"I swap trucks. This one had a full load on the back so when we take off down the road I saw the branches whizz past my head a meter above. The sun goes down. In the dark we zip through tunnels as the engine brakes belt out a deafening roar. It was quite an experience and then in the distance the sky flashes. We are driving towards a storm and soon the whole sky above me is a constant explosion of light. I had the perfect viewing platform for this storm, but I was pretty sure I was going to get soaked. For half an hour more we drove deeper into the the storm and closer to my destination. Nicely, but not perfectly timed the rain started. Not a drop on the back of the truck but once he left me at the corner it bucketed down, central American style.
Tis I, me... The royal I, in front of the lava, for can you not see it there behind me in the background and such and so on...
On the stick! now I just need to cool it and the greatest Souvenir ever is born Thank god for my trusty giant black plastic bag. I ran through the rain with my bags bouncing about my shoulders, plastic bag strewn loosely over my head and got only a tad bit wet. Moments later I was drinking a beer and telling my story, later on the storm got louder and I heard the loudest thunder clap I have EVER heard. Car alarms went off and I was again in total awe of the power of nature. Later that night I saw the brightest lightning bolt I have ever seen. The fork was a thick strip of brilliant white and it seemed to have another bright glow of white on both sides of it. It was a crazy storm and went on most of the night but I treated myself to a few beers and slept fine." Ed. Stephen's explanation of the crash and aftermath in El Salvador is on YouTube. Help support the Horizons Unlimited E-zine - visit our sponsors! Peter Hendricks, in Malaysia and Sumbawa, Indonesia,
Malaysia border crossing "It only takes us two days to ride from Cherating to Georgetown. I had read about Malaysian motorways: there are rain shelters for bikers and bike lanes go past the toll booths, so we don't have to pay. What people didn't tell us is the other half of the story: the bike lanes continue all along the motorway, at half the width of an emergency stopping lane. At the entrance you have to dodge a steel barrier. Most bikes in Malaysia are small and slow, but it's quite dangerous to overtake them, as two bikes barely fit past one another. Either side of the lane is lined with solid crash barriers and sometimes trees. If you crash you will be chopped up by the crash barrier supports and what's left will be smashed by the trees. But it gets worse: at every exit there is a speed bump and a stop sign. Bikes must leave the motorway, stop at the lights, then ride up the ramp with the cars and enter the next section of bike lane. We ask people and apparently the cops will give us a ticket if we don't ride in the danger lane.
Georgetown, Malaysia Our original plan was to try to get from Sumatra to Borneo. This hasn't quite worked out (we didn't try very hard) and Su decided she didn't really want to go there anyway, so we continued along the Indonesian island chain and we are now on Sumbawa, having crossed Java, Bali and Lombok. The 'new' plan now is to go to Sulawesi and then Philippines, although there is still a big '?' about the latter, not least it being typhoon and rainy season there now.
Funny coloured chick
Swordfish transport
Takengon sports a river
...and some interesting public transport We are now in Bima on the island of Sumbawa. Today we were told we can't take the big modern passenger ship to Sulawesi, as it won't take our bikes. We have to take 3 ferries, going via Flores and some other island. We will find out in due course." Help support the Horizons Unlimited E-zine - visit our sponsors!
Andy Berwick and Maya Vermeer, in Peru, BMW R100GS+sidecar,"To get to Jeff's place you go from Pedro Ruiz South on the road in the direction of Chachapoyas. You will ride through a beautiful valley over a smooth asphalt road (a great pleasure after all those bumpy tracks!) next to a river, along Scottish Highland look alike mountains (but with banana trees). Than 6 km up a windy dirt track that takes you to San Pablo De Valera.
Ed. Maya and Andy explain 'why a sidecar' on the new 'Ladies on the Loose!' Achievable Dream Series DVD - shipping now! We met Jeff 3 years ago in Cuzco, he is the owner of a bar called 'Norton rats' and has the one and only riding Norton Commando in Peru. We spent 3 weeks in Cuzco and a big part of that was in his bar drinking beer and talking about bikes and travel adventures. Later we met again and together we visited Chan Chan, the remains of an immense ancient adobe city near Trujillo. Jeff had bought a Triumph Speed Triple than and he was riding it home at that time. At the moment he is building a house and a hotel at the outskirts of this little village and it's near the 3rd highest waterfall in the world and other beautiful spots worth a visit (like Kuelap, an ancient oval-shaped pre-Inca city, South of Chachapoyas and other archaeological sites).
House and hotel are in an absolute great spot! Clouds like huge battleships are floating by, we are in a place where people live above the clouds. Butterflies, rainbows, this place is a treasure high up in the mountains, surrounded by waterfalls. The people in San Pablo De Valera are super friendly and get also very old. They get up by the first light and go to bed when it's getting dark. It has electricity since 2 years, so there are TV's as well. The people here love soap operas and wrestling shows. Everything here goes in slow motion. The village is very small, but it has a little restaurant and 3 tiendas (mini shops), where we can buy toilet paper, bread, water, just the basic stuff.
Giggling children ('Look at those strange Gringos!') Every evening we walk from Jeff's house and our tent on a ancient Inca path towards the village, which is a pleasure. Along this path you meet horses loaded with firewood or bags with corn, dogs who bark and wiggle their tale at the same time, woman carrying sugarcane on their back and a chicken (ready to be slaughtered) under the arm, three ducks and a few chicken families, a huge pink pig, a small black piggy..." Ed. Read Andy and Maya's stories here on Horizons Unlimited! Saad and Richard, QWR, in Ukraine and Russia,"And so we are on our way back to Blighty. We have had to cut short the trip due to me having unexpected work type commitments and if we are honest, Russia (which was becoming by far the largest part of the trip) was not the 'adventure' we were seeking. Long tedious riding only to get to grim industrial crappy cities where we were made to feel extremely unwelcome does not make a 'trip of a lifetime'. Going further east would have made this the rule rather than the exception. Even me popping back to the UK and then returning to Russia would have resulted in Kaz being impossible (you can only get a 2 entry visa for Russia).
Ukraine So in summary:
Motorway service station, Russia London to Moscow and back on two Honda Transalps has proven how great these bikes are. They have been supremely comfortable, with strong reliable engines, handled the excessive amount of kit we have hauled (but not really used) around Europe's roughest roads and we have never once regretted our choice of steed. We are really looking forward to seeing family and friends (and, no doubt, the largest mobile phone bills ever recorded) and are already planning our next trips overseas. We have had a great time and thanks must go to all who have either supported us, encouraged us or simply sat there as we rabbitted on about the trip. Be warned however, we have 100's of photos! If you are wondering whether to do a similar trip, the answer from us would be a huge YES." Ed. Read Saad and Richard's stories on their blog here on Horizons Unlimited! Erdem Yucel, Turkey/USA, RTW, in Albania and Greece, Suzuki V-Strom 1000,"Albania has recently opened its borders. Most Albanians still don't have the financial and official means to travel outside their country but there is an increasing number of tourists eager to visit this country and its amazing people. The road conditions and traffic is really bad. Actually it's the worst I've seen so far. I had to stop and change the suspension settings on the bike. Bad roads are sometimes worse than off-road conditions, because riding on a paved surface, you expect some sort of consistency and adjust your speed accordingly. In Albania, this would be a mistake. You can easily fall into a huge pothole in the middle of the city. Locals know to avoid these obstacles, and there aren't too many visitors so it's not really a priority on the long list of improvements.
Somewhere between Thessaloniki and Kavala, I missed the highway exit and the road took me about 20 kilometers inland. I wanted to camp on the seaside but there weren't any roads on the map. However, there seemed to be a thin road barely visible over the mountains. I decided to take it. After a few kilometers, I arrived at a hut where the road seemed to disintegrate. I took a few uncertain turns and found it again. Climbing further up, this time I ended up near a TV antenna tower. Apparently, the road existed for the construction of this tower and did not continue beyond it.
Ed. Check out Erdem's site for lots of good pics and video as well as really good writing! 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! Murray and Joyce Castle, Canada, in Brazil, on Katie & the Bumblebee,"Leaving Pato Branco in scattered rain showers, we press on westward to one of the world's greatest natural wonders, Foz do Iguaçu. Located well away from well known large cities like Buenos Aires, Rio de Janeiro or Asunción, this corner of the world is literally that, with the borders of Argentina, Brazil and Paraguay meeting here. Meeting here too is the Rio Iguaçu, after wandering westwards for 600km, with a three kilometre wide escarpment. The result are 275 individual falls, averaging from 60m to 87m in height, making the whole spectacle wider than Victoria, higher than Niagara and to our mind, grander than either.
Joyce visits arm in arm with a friendly macaw. Unfortunately, once again, communication is a problem, for the bird can only speak Portuguese and Macawanese, neither language Joyce is comfortable in. But, as with all foreign travel, eye contact and a smile can go a long way.
Ed. See Murray and Joyce's blog here on Horizons Unlimited! Help support the Horizons Unlimited E-zine - visit our sponsors! Alastair Todd, Round the World, in Uzbekistan,"...There's no way I can ride the bike today, I feel like I'm not far short of needing to go to hospital. In desperation I ask the hotel if they have a better room, and remarkably they do, with air conditioning and without the godawful stench. I wish we'd been in it from the start, instead of the fetid squalor of the room we have been in. The air con starts to cool me down and rescues me from what was probably quite severe heat stroke brought on by the food poisoning. I catch sight of myself in the mirror and am shocked to see that with the beard and the effects of 3 days vomiting and diarrhea I'm so gaunt I look like I've just come out of a prisoner of war camp. Everything I drink, so far I haven't eaten, still just pours straight through, but if I can sleep tonight there's a good chance i can get back on the bike and head off through the desert towards Bukhara tomorrow. I'm hoping that the terrain isn't so harsh as what we've just come through, and that the river on the map actually has water in it and might offer a chance to cool down if I start overheating again.
Are we having fun yet? God knows what I've eaten to put me in such a bad state, or how the locals tolerate it. I hope this doesn't happen again. As i lie here watching the same songs loop round on an italian music tv channel, which is slightly more watchable than any of the Russian or Uzbek stuff, I find myself craving a peanut butter sandwich. The only food we could find locally that wasn't left out in the open, unrefrigerated and with flies buzzing around, was pretty much limited to a packet of crisps. The Italian music channel selects james blunt as the next track, and suddenly i'd rather be watching the bad Russian soap.
Currency inflation in Uzbekistan. The hotel is grim, but I'm mostly just lying on the bed, swatting away flies and trying to keep cool. The plan had been to ride up to the aral sea, but with Dave ill, and realising how hard it is to ride in this heat in the desert, we scrap the plan in favour of trying to get well. Dave gets bitten by a thousand insects, I seem to escape. I exchange a few left over euros at the bank and end up with 134,000 of the local currency." Nathan Thompson and Akiko Nishikura, Taking the slow road round the world, on the cheap, on a postie-bike... 2-up, in India,"After an overpriced lunch in Jambusar the road to Kural turned very rough and I noticed a strange sensation round my right ankle. The plastic oil reserve bottle I keep in front of the seat had dislodged and leaned on the exhaust, leaving a trail of oil behind us and one boot full of warm motor honey. It was about this time that I realized we had been on the road for nearly 5hours and had done just 130kms! On any normal day we would start to look for a place to sleep but it turned out that rural Gujarat is VERY rural and the hamlets were often little more than one street, one Jain Temple and one government building surrounded by makeshift tents and structures. Strict Jain's believe that liberation is achieved by shedding all matter generated by ones actions which actually equates to their towns being some of the simplest we have seen thus far. No guest houses or lodges around so we were forced to push on... We hedged our bets on Lothal but when we rolled through it was too dark to see the ruins but light enough to see there was nothing else around at all so a 20km ride further out to Bagodra had us hoping it was a big enough place to have a lodge... It was but the sole hotel was fully booked!
Unfortunately no one in Bagodra could tell us where the nearest place was so we headed down the dark south road in search of something before I fall over from exhaustion. An abandoned homestead filled with homeless kids was too much, a 24 hour service station too noisy. Riding through the darkness racing the clock and chasing native Blackbuck filled the next 4 hours and it wasn't until midnight that we found ourselves in Bhavnagar, finally lying down on a hard mattress and drifting off to a well deserved sleep. Our whole MO of travel has been to take things in slowly, without pushing it, keeping the stress low. The previous days ride was so out of character for us that I wanted to make sure nothing was broken. After a lengthy walk around the ancient bazaars one afternoon we decided what was needed was a place to chill out for a few weeks and gather our thoughts. The pace and craziness of India was somehow clouding our greater vision.
What better place than the tiny island of Diu. A former Portuguese colony at the very tip of Gujarat, it has beaches, good weather and it's off the tourist trail so we had the water pretty much to ourselves. The tourists that do come are mainly Gujarati's coming for the cheap booze and crowded Nagoa Beach Resort. It took us a few days to find a secluded beach of our own... ...We have been in Diu for 3 weeks now and are ready to move again. Tomorrow we are on the road north, deep into the remotest parts of Gujarat. Hoping to catch a glimpse of the last pride of Asiatic Lions at Sasan Gir WLS as we ride through. Apparently they are well fed so here's hoping they won't be chasing after us on our little bike. Will be checking out a place where the people have been in a constant communal chant since 1964, not sure how they get any sleep! Will head out into the desert to witness the great Rann of Kutch, ride around a bit and throw stones over the Pakistani border. If lucky enough we may swap the bike (for a day or two) for a camel and sleep out under the stars in the desert dunes.
Would you buy a camel from this man? Things are better now, we are back to full strength and have returned to our initial plan of having no plan. We have torn up our maps and are excited about the uncertainty of it all. It's good to be back..." Help support the Horizons Unlimited E-zine - visit our sponsors!
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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!
Lois' new adventures in Africa! "Alone. No support vehicles, no fancy GPS and no satellite phone. Leaving from London, finishing in Cape Town - and the small matter of tackling the Sahara, war-torn Angola and the Congo Basin along the way - this feisty independent woman's grand trek through the Dark Continent of Africa is the definitive motorcycling adventure." Get it here! Distant Suns, by Sam Manicom
"Sam Manicom's dynamic third book transports you to Southern Africa, South and Central America in an action-packed three year voyage of discovery... a thought-provoking mix of scrapes and encounters with people which illuminate some moments of true darkness... acute observations on everything from human behaviour, to remote and stunning locations. Distant Suns grabs you, enthrals you and spits you out as a convert to the dream of overlanding these amazing continents." Buy direct from Sam here!
Adventure Motorcycling Handbook, by Chris Scott
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 1999-2009, 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. MotocareMotorcycle Rental, hiring Honda's Transalp for touring Argentina and Chile. Ride across the Andes, from the Atlantic Ocean to the Pacific, lakes, deserts, salt pans, waterfalls, beaches, rain forests, glaciers...
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!  Get the Achievable Dream DVD's NOW and learn how YOU can hit the road!
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Simon Roberts, UK, The Road to Kathmandu - the comic strip - in Turkey and Pakistan!"With only two episodes of the 'Road to Kathmandu' to complete (the concise version) I was suddenly presented with a possibility to exhibit my work. As I had none, barring the episodes you see before you, I hastily dug my 'On the Road' painting kit out and put these two watercolours together.
One shows the haunting fortress in Eastern Turkey, the Ishak Pasa Sarayi, Dogubayzit and the other is a scene from the legendary Karakoram Highway in Pakistan. Both based (loosely) on photographs and drawings made on the road and both representing 'spiritual' moments on my trip. I reckon they've worked out well and now plan to do a whole series - Inshallah..." Ed. See Simon's 'Road to Kathmandu' comic strip on Horizons Unlimited. Lois and Austin will be on the loose, in the USA,We will be riding across the USA, from Richmond, VA to Seattle, WA during July and August. We're going to be travelling in a Ural 2WD sidecar, taking it in turns to ride. It's gonna be fun, fun, fun! Also, we'll be giving a talk in Knoxville, TN on the 30th August while we're there and I'm also going to be giving a presentation for the closing ceremony of the AMA Women's Motorcycling Conference on Sat 22nd August in Keystone, CO." Johan and Charmaine Claassens, South Africa, RTW, in Argentina,"We are safely in Jujuy. We are finally in what seems to be the nice part of Argentina. Friendly people and beautiful scenery. I've uploaded another YouTube movie, that covers the Moreno Glacier and Ushuaia. We plan to spend the next 5 or 6 days between here and Iruya." Darius and Jane Skrzypiec, RTW 2008-2011, in Pakistan, Africa Twin,
High kicking action at the Wahga border
Marriott in Islamabad
Zoji la pass is not the easiest to cross
Magnificent Indus River
Long shadows Chang La, India
Ed. Not many words but lots of pics on Darius and Jane's trip in their blog here on Horizons Unlimited. Nick Ison, Adam Broadbent and Mike Stevens from New Zealand and Australia, in Argentina, Kawasaki KLR 650s,"The Bridging Gaps journey has been temporarily paused as we have invested in property and become humble farmers." Ed. The Antipodeans also have video updates on their site. Mark and Maggie Allenspach, Australia to Switzerland, in Pakistan, BMW 1150 GS,"It's about a 2hr trip from Leh to the summit of Kharadung La, the world's highest motorable road at 5603m. The road is good until the last few km, the bike claims the mountain without problems except a slight loss of power just before the summit.
Arriving on top is a great feeling, we are on top of the world:) Over a cup of chai we get the prayer flags ready which we carried all the way from OZ with hundreds of well wishes and signatures as part of a fund raiser for the Australian Cancer Council.
It's a fantastic feeling hanging up the flags in memory of a lot of people and having achieved what we set out to do. Ed. See Mark and Maggie's blog here on Horizons Unlimited!
Rollo Turner, UK, from England to the Black Sea, Panther 600,"Here I am basking in sunshine at the Black Sea! The 60 plus year old machine has taken me more or less effortlessly through rain, cold, across the Alps, through the 35C heat of Italy, across Slovenia, Hungary and Romania to the Black Sea. Rather to my surprise it is still going. No major problems with either rider or bike after earlier electrical problems caused major crisis in a long tunnel in the Black Mountains of Germany. Blew the fuse when I turned on the lights which then died and so did the sparks. Repair in the dark was scary with lorries and cars thundering by inches from the blacked out bike! Fixed it properly at the top of the pass and since then have had only minor worries, apart from spending a night in the shadow of Dracula's Castle. Count did not make an appearance though...
People I have met include a man cycling to the Black Sea (haven't met him here though!) Russians on their way back form the FIM rally, 6 Romanian truckers spending a night at a truck stop drinking bear and their sweet red wine, amazingly helpful people at my hotel here at the Black Sea who all speak English and will do just5 about anything for me, and the Romanian police who stopped me for not showing a light - I am nervous about turning them on full these days - they peered into the headlight, noticed the piloy glowing in there in the bright sunlight and decided that complied with the law. I was thankful I did not have to show my docs as nobody here believes the bike is that old or anybody would be stupid enough to ride from England..." Annette Pearson, London, UK, in Venezuela,"Angel Falls 'discovered' by Jimmy Angel in 1933 are the world's highest falls at 980m (3212ft). It must also be one of the world's most isolated falls. We took a 16 hour bus ride to Cuidad Bolivar a town on the banks of the Orinoco. From there we took an hour plane ride to a settlement that you can not access by road, near an inland lagoon. Then a five hour boat ride up a river.
The waterfall comes from rain on the top of the mountain as it has it's own ecosystem and rains all the time. I still find it hard to believe all that water is from rain."
When we walked behind the falls in Canaima I spotted a frog and when it jumped away and I tried to find another one all I found was a leaf.
Also check out the ant that needed a light. David Newman, Round the World, in Azerbaijan,"We've made it to Baku. Hope to do a proper update if I get some laptop time! Big ups and downs getting across Turkey (damn its big), Georgia (wet) and Azerbaijan (hot). Bikes are now in customs and we're awaiting the ferry, hopefully Tuesday!
Baku at night
Baku during the day Baku is incredible, too hard to describe. A new bolt of astonishment round every corner. Loads of expats here, but I bet none of them realise how astounding this place is because they will have flown in and just arrived in a big city, not ridden 5096 miles to get here, passing through the rest of this country and everything leading up to it. I want to live in Baku, and I want a Lada with an air horn that sounds like a police siren. Seems to be de rigueur here. That or a big merc with blacked out windows and your hazard lights flashing, hand permanently on the horn button.
Trip mascot (and experienced international traveller) Mr Smurf is unimpressed by the washing facilities in Albania Ed. Follow the adventure on David's blog here on Horizons Unlimited! MedjetAssist is an air medical evacuation and consultation membership program and is HIGHLY recommended by us and many others for all travellers. The regular MedjetAssist program is for citizens or residents of the US, Mexico and Canada, and gives hospital of choice protection virtually anywhere in the world and air evacuation as needed. (See below for more on the Foreign National Plan) Click the logo below for US, Mexico and Canada citizens to find out more. (NOTE: It's still in progress for the final HU version, but you can get MedjetAssist now!)
For OTHER nationalities it is currently a little more complicated. There IS a Foreign National Plan, but you can't enroll online. It's a faxable enrolment and subject to underwriting approval. The rates are the same, but transport is restricted to 'back to home country - hospital of choice' rather than 'anywhere in the world - hospital of choice'. We are working on improving that, but at least it IS available! Go here to contact MedjetAssist and inquire about the Foreign National Plan. Be sure to mention Horizons Unlimited. Michael Paull adds his endorsement of MedJet (and he DID use their services - twice!):"...After an additional three days in Beijing, I was deemed stable enough for air evacuation back to the University of Washington Medical Center in Seattle, WA, in the company of my wife Aillene (who had flown in from Japan), and an air transport trauma nurse provided by the company that I had procured medical evacuation insurance from, MEDJET Assistance - without doubt, the best insurance coverage I have ever purchased in my life. A small plug here - these people were remarkable... If there was ever a better case for '...don't leave home without it.', MEDJET Assistance is at the top of my checklist, no matter where I travel (and I hope to do a LOT more)." Note: Per the Medjet Assistance site: "...a medical transport between Europe and America can run more than $35,000. Middle East and South American flights range from $60,000 to $80,000. Transport from Asia often exceeds $100,000." Sounds like $205.00 for a single is pretty cheap insurance! Robin Breese-Davies and Rik Davis, UK, RTW, in Japan, BMW R1150GS,"We visited the Usuki Buddha Carvings before catching the ferry over to Shikuko Island and onto Matsuyama.
Osaka to Moriyama via Nara -It took us 2 hours to ride 40kms to Nara, not the best start to the day. Then when we arrived in Nara the rain started, but it didn't dampen our spirits, we met our friends Marc and Megan and we headed to Todai-ji & Daibutsu-den Hall, which is the largest wooden building in the world protecting a massive Buddha."
Leaving Mark and Megan Laura Bennitt, UK, in Romania, Honda Transalp 650,"The next day I headed off to Bucovina, an area of Romania full of painted monasteries. The paintings are inside and outside, hundreds of individual scenes, many of which feature bored-looking saints being martyred in a variety of ways. In one I met a tiny old nun, well into her eighties, who asked me with gestures and a mixture of languages where I was from. I managed to explain what I was doing, at which point her face lit up with excitement and she offered me her blessing. I'm sure if I'd offered she would have perched herself on the back and come with me!"
Painted church in Romania
Nico and Leon, the "tandemistes" Santiago Lema, Colombia, in Ecuador, Suzuki DR650,"But other parts of the desert could hardly be transformed: sand is carried permanently by winds, covering the road here, building dunes up over there.
Pacific near Nazca Pacific coast has splendid places; the journey is just a nirvana I would like to ride very slowly. It will be a target in my next trip."
Pacific coastline near Atico, Peru Ed. Check out Santiago's blog in English and Spanish on Horizons Unlimited! Oliver Francis, Wales, in Cambodia,"It's 30 degrees and the humidity is a physical weight on your shoulders. Hours have passed since you last saw the sun and it feels like you will never see it again. The ground is crawling with bugs, huge lines of ants work together to carry away their latest kill and their bites sting your bare legs. You trudge forward, one foot in front of another minute after minute hour after hour and all you can see in every direction is a dense green. Stopping would mean allowing yourself to think about all the discomfort, the cramps in your legs and the sweat pouring down your back so you keep on walking onward deeper and deeper into the unknown. Welcome to the Cambodian jungle."
Bjorn Holland, UK, on the road to Oz, writes to the Darwin HU Community:"Hi, I'm currently on a RTW and in Timor. I seem to have some problems with my BMW F650 Dakar, some weird tank-slapping behaviour since I got off the last ferry from Flores to Timor. Does anyone know a good mechanic in Darwin who's familiar with the F650 and head-bearings/forks? (I had heard bad stories about over-tightened head-bearings on the F650 and was recommended to get someone who's familiar with the F650). Cheers Bjorn" Donald Pannett, New Zealand, writes to the Santiago HU Community:"My wife and I will be arriving in Chile in mid September. Once we have our bike we will be heading over to Argentina to take in the falls before heading back to Chile. Will the passes over the Andes be able to be done on a bike at the end of September. Gabriel Bolton, UK, RTW, Honda, writes to the Bishkek HU Community:"Hi I am trying to ride my honda round the world, and will be in Kyrgystan within a week or two. Would you like to meet up? IS there anything that should be in my list, as I travel through your country? I plan to follow the Pamir highway from Tajik. Many thanks Gabe" Paul Read, UK, in Malaysia,"I also arrange to meet up with some of the local Horizons Unlimited members. Firstly Kenneth who takes me to probably the best Japanese restaurant I have ever been too where the beef was astounding. Then John Brown, who also has a VFR 750, with whom I enjoy time swimming in his condo's outdoor pool in front of the KL towers. His Sikh wife, Sharon, is a bundle of laughs and after she retires to bed we carry on discussing their life in the expat community and of their plans to go travelling on a GS1200. Upstairs in their apartment I am mighty impressed to see a whole wall in the kitchen has been devoted to their trip planning. They will ride down through Africa and then onto South America. John also says he can look after Vafa while I'm back in Europe which will help Dave's wife Amudha enjoy her garden again rather than looking at endless bikes as she enjoys her nightly cigarettes."
Is that a gargoyle?
Frasers Hill, Malaysia Hubert Kriegel, France, Sidecar-ing the world, in Russia,"Being at the Ural buildings was important for me. In the 70's, as a young man, I was wondering what the factory looked like?
In this historic factory, there is a huge contrast between these antique machines and the finished product. Vladimir, plant manager and his team have been challenged by the new ownership of 2004. It is not anymore about quantity, but about quality and they are doing a great job at it..."
Ed. Check out Hubert's website for lots of great pics! Frank Butler, Papua New Guinea, RTW, writes to the Xalapa HU Community:"I am doing the last leg of a round the world tour that started in 2002 in Papua New Guinea. I will be down your way in the next few weeks if anyone would like to hook up for a beer and a chat please drop me a line I have a website at where you can see something about the trip so far My best regards... Frank " Joao Batista de Lima, Brasil, writes to the San Salvador HU Community:"Amigos motoviajeros, Yo y mi esposa estamos en vuelta el mundo en moto e iré a estar en su área por una noche. Me gustaria su ayuda a encontrar alojamiento económico en su ciudad. Muchas gracias" Bill Bateman, UK, writes to the Asuncion HU Community:"I am travelling to Asuncion next week. I am currently in Rio, Brazil. I am coming to the end of this particular journey, and I now have two motorcycles to dispose of. I have been told that Asuncion is the best place to do this. Can anyone give me advice on how best to go about this? Obrigado!" Malcolm Todd, New Zealand, writes to the Santiago HU Community:"Hi guys, it's me again. Just want to try and clarify something. there seems to be various ideas about a foreigner buying a bike in Chile. Some say it can't be done, some say it can but you can not take the bike out of Chile for one month. Others have suggested one year? Not surprisingly a bike shop in santiago said you can leave the same day once you have your RUT. Is anyone definitely sure about what the rule is? Also if i buy a bike do i need a carnet to tour Argentina and other south american countries. thanks a lot malcolm" Rob and Jo Mott, Australia, A tour of Europe and the Continent,"So far the riding has been ok, the motorways are pretty boring, chew the petrol a bit but do get you from place to place quickly. The A and B roads that we have been along are much more fun in terms of the twists and turns and the general scenery. Jo has been doing a fantastic job navigating from the back of the bike. Juggling a Europe map, the weather and my requests for which exit at the many, many round-a-bouts can't be easy and I would like to say I am sorry for any harsh comments I have made.
Rob and Jo at Stonehenge
Rob and Jo at Lands End Apart from the push start the previous day the bike has been great. On the camping and luggage side of things we think we are carrying too much. We have by no means been in all the weather scenarios we had thought of but already we think we will leave a few things in London when we get there in a week or so. Things like the 3rd and 4th pot/ pan/ mess tin, powered milk (which isn't really adding to our early morning drinks taste) and a few other items of clothing." Ed. See Rob and Jo's new blog on Horizons Unlimited!
Adrian Coe, 40th birthday trip to Marrakech, back home in England:"Arrived back in the UK to clouds and pouring rain then went the wrong way coming out of Portsmouth and headed along the A3 instead of M3. All corrected as usual by heading north on first available road and then had a wet but drama free ride home.
24 Hour Circuit Museum As I pulled onto the drive the trip meter ticked over to exactly 4900 miles at journeys end. Thanks for following the blog and I will add some photos and a reflective blurb over the weekend but right now I am home safe after one hell of an adventure." Ed. Check out Adrian's blog here on Horizons Unlimited! Support Horizons Unlimited - check out the HU Souk for jumpers / pullovers, mugs, steins, t-shirts, hats and other products with a variety of slogans!
Thanks! Grant and Susan New Communities:We've now reached an amazing 602 Communities in 101 Countries as of June 24, 2009! A big thanks to all those who took the first step and established the Community in their area. New Communities are too many to list! If you are on the road, do check out the Communities - don't feel like you're imposing on people! They signed up for a Community because they want to meet travellers - that's you! You'll have a great time, so go to the Communities page and let them know you're coming. Please remember that they are volunteers and offering to help because they're great people - common courtesy helps! When you write, tell them who you are, that you're passing through, and would like to meet them. Let them know if you need anything, and I'm sure they'll help as best they can. From Pete and Brucellaq Ridley: "We would like to thank Martin, his wife Sasha and the 3 kids for putting us up at his place in Hazyview SA, he replied to a post I put up on the HUBB when we were in Mozambique asking if anybody fancied a drink out there in Moz or SA. I really needed new tyres and chain for both our XT 600,s and he put me in touch with a guy from Reaction racing in Nelspruit, I have since found out he is part of Horizons Community and would like to say what a fantastic idea that is. Me and the missus are 1 year into our RTW trip, 17 african countries and 30,000km so far! Horizons has been so useful on the road. Also a big thanks to Thomas who also replied to the original post, this guy runs Motozulu tours out of Port Shepstone, he let us tag along with some tours he was doing at no cost to us. He also is the best XT mechanic in SA, and let me use his workshop to give the XT,s a full service. Once again thanks to everybody who replied to my sometimes stupid questions and thanks to Grant for pointing out some of my IT limitations, hehehe." From Tiffany Coates: "I have to say 10 out of 10 to the Israeli community for efficiency and helpfulness, I had five replies within 24 hours and all sounding really helpful. They are stars." For details on how you can join a Community in your area, or use the Communities to get information and help, or just meet people on the road or at home, go to the Community page. Send me some photos - with captions please - and a little text and you can have a web page about your Community! A few links to web pages about your area would be useful too. Just a reminder to all, when you Join a Community in your area, send a note to the Community introducing yourself and suggesting a meeting, or go for a ride or something. It's a good way of meeting like-minded individuals in your own town. Become a Horizons Unlimited Contributing Member or Gold Member!To help with the cost of creating and distributing the newsletter and running a huge website, which has been a full time job for Grant for ten years, Susan as much as she can, plus a couple of part time assistants, we gratefully accept contributions via PayPal, credit card, and cheque. Members also get additional privileges on the HUBB, such as more PM's, custom avatars, and more photo space.Support this Newsletter by becoming a Contributing Member today, by PayPal, credit card, or cheque.
If you want a t-shirt or other logoed merchandise, go to the Store. All contributions will be acknowledged and gratefully accepted. If you later decide you do want a t-shirt or other member logoed merchandise from the store, let us know and we will arrange access to the Members Private Store. More ways to support your favourite website!How to Link to Horizons Unlimited Also, you can just click on any Amazon link on the site and we'll get a small commission on your purchase of any Amazon merchandise - and it won't cost you any more! Thanks, Grant and Susan |
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I am working on a listing of people who have ridden around the world, as well as what I call 'significant journeys' e.g. the first across Africa. Any information you may have on this topic, please let me know. Preferably e-mail me direct. I currently have information on over 800 world travellers listed, but there are many more. Have YOU done it? Let me know! We hope you've enjoyed this issue, and do please let us know your thoughts. It's your newsletter, so tell us what you want to know about! It is not the unknown, but the fear of it, that prevents us from doing what we want... We'd like to think that Horizons Unlimited; the website, the HUBB, the Communities and this newsletter help to push back the fear through knowledge and connecting with others, and teach all of us about the world and it's wonderful people. See you on the road!
All text and photographs are copyright © Grant and Susan Johnson
and their respective authors or creators, 1987-2009. |
