Bye, bye baby, baby goodbye!

Job done! "The Beast" is now sat snugly in the corner of a multi-story car park at Southampton docks. I still can't quite believe how easy it all was. In spite of a long list of do's and don'ts from the Travel Agents, the shippers were really laid back about the whole procedure; but then again they are doing it all day every day so I guess they should be. Nobody even looked in the boxes or checked how much fuel was in the tank. No disconnecting of the battery as they apparently ride the bike onto the ship. Just keeping my fingers crossed that I don't get a phone call asking me to collect my kit from the bike before it gets shipped as I was told by the agents that the boxes should be empty! However asking around it seems that most people have left their kit on the bikes without issue. I hope that part works out OK as the rest of my kit just about fills my airline luggage allowance. Sorry Dave (Lomax) but I've never really done the ultra-light travelling bit and I guess I'm too old to start now. At the ripe old age of 66 I need my creature comforts....

So all that's left is to put the last few items in my flight luggage, sit back and relax !!! Well actually, no. I have a myriad of things to sort out before I set off. Family and friends far and near to visit; vehicles to sorn, move to various places and the house and garden to leave in a suitable state for my return in several months time...and a little over a week to get it all done! I think the next week is going to simply fly by.  Unusually for me, I have made lists of everything I have packed and where I have packed it so at least when I suddenly get in a panic wondering if I have forgotten to pack something I can check and see.

Thanks to various friends and forums I now have 3 potential contacts in Canada and the northern US. To say nothing of various other friends about to embark on trips of their own in various parts of North America and of course I also have some good friends and relatives living in Canada. So in essence all is good to go; what could possibly go wrong ? I just can't wait to get moving, throw away my watch and live by the sun. no timetable, no schedule, no stress.Just need to watch out for those pesky bears.  Bring it on !!!

It's time to hit the Road again !

In my mind there is one very big difference between those who travel and those who don’t. Travellers can always come up with a million reasons why they should go; non-travellers can always find another million why they shouldn't. It doesn't matter where the destination is; to a traveller it’s always just around the corner because they think only of the next day’s journey, whereas to a non-traveller the destination is always, oh so far away. I've always liked the motto of my local motorbike club (in fact it’s about the only thing I like about it!) “There are no such things as strangers, only friends we have yet to meet” and that really is true when you are on the road

Almost exactly a year later than originally planned, I'm finally off to Canada. It's planned to be my longest trip by far (so far!) covering something around 15,000 miles over the next 5 months or so. If all goes to plan, after landing in Halifax Nova Scotia I will head firstly north to the St Lawrence Seaway, then south-west along the Canadian-US border to Niagara Falls. Crossing to the other side of the border I'll be  heading for the windy city; Chicago and the start of the Mother Road, Route 66 following in the tracks of Peter Fonda, Denis Hopper and Billy Connelly to name but a few. In the words of the song "It winds from Chicago to LA, more than 2000 miles all the way", well, hopefully I too will get my kicks on Route 66. 

I have a few detours in mind on the way South, both scenic and cultural, but you'll have to ride with me to discover the secrets of my little journey !

My 20 year old BMW R100GSPD "The Beast" after countless hours of minor fettling and fiddling is all loaded on it's little trailer attached to the back of my 25 year old motorhome ready to trundle down to the docks at Southampton tomorrow and will leave for Halifax on the 4th May. Since it's last little excursion across Europe I have totally rebuilt the bike and it now also sports a nice new paint job designed in memory of my late son Sam, so spiritually he will be travelling with me! I'm hoping that my mechanical work proves to be as good as the bike now looks. My bags are virtually packed with just a few last minute odds and sods to cram in and I'll soon be "Leaving on a Jet Plane".

As anyone who knows me might well expect I've acquired one or two more bits of tech over the winter months including a nice new Garmin Virb Elite Helmet camera which will probably end up being mounted everywhere except on my helmet. I simply don't keep my head in one place long enough to get any decent footage. I find it works out far better attached to the front or rear of the bike, so will be trying out a few ideas along the way. I also have a little MyFi gizmo that will hopefully enable me to stay in contact when there is no WiFi available, although I'm not sure how expensive that will work out so will have to wait and see. 

Lots more to tell you but dinner is calling and the temperature here in Wales is dropping sharply so the fire needs to be lit ! I'll try to do an update once the bike has been dropped.... no, make that off-loaded, at Southampton Docks.