Alaska to Tierra Del Fuego 2006, Around Oz 2008, Around the Baltic 2011, Taiwan 2013

Oxnard, California to Fort St. John, CanadaI decided to move pretty fast thru California, Oregon and Washington since I had already seen all that from the Harley and was anxious to get to Canada and that famed scenery. I left on Monday May 29th about 8:30 after making a nice breakfast for my sweetheart (needed to be extra nice since she will be taking care of things at my house while I am gone). :=) I made it to Redding the first day then Walla Walla, Washington on the 30th. I was using Highway 99 in California and Highway 97 thru Oregon and Washington.

Fort St. John. Canada to Dawson City, Yukon TerritoryHit the road again on June 4th, and cruised thru Pink Mountain, Prophet River, Fort Nelson, Toad River, Laird River, Coal River (did I mention that there a LOT of rivers up here). Entered the Yukon Territory (another one of those "I always wanted to do that moments"). I took this great picture

Dawson City, YT to Fairbanks, AK with a little side trip to Prudhoe Bay.
Well, THAT was an adventure. Left Dawson City (via ferry over the Yukon River) and headed down Hwy. 9, the very aptly named "Top of the World Highway". Good gravel and absolutely outstanding scenery. Entered Alaska at Poker Creek,

the "most northerly land border port in the USA" (cool, another point in the braggin rights contests) and made my way to Chicken, Alaska.

Fairbanks down to the Kenai Pennisula and back up to Palmer.Rested up in Fairbanks and then headed down the Parks Highway to Talkeetna. Got stopped in Nenana for an hour or so by forest fire that had jumped the highway. When they let us go there were still flames on both sides of the road. Stopped in Denali National National Park for a look around. Couldn't find that mountain everyone talks about. :=) I was hoping for a sight seeing flight that would let me get a picture of Denali Mountain and that would land on a glacier.

Glenn Highway and the TOK Cutoff to Haines to catch the ferry to Bellingham.I left Palmer and headed up Hwy. 1, the Glenn Highway and the Tok Cutoff back to the Alcan and south to Haines Junction.

Rode my KLR into Billings. I'll show those Harleys.Got to Billings. I left Spokane and toured around the Lake Coeur d'Alene area. Yes, more beautiful scenery and great roads. :=)

Spent three days getting over Lolo Pass on Hwy 12 (enjoying the area),

Billings back to Oxnard!I left Billings on July 2nd and headed south. Rode Hwy. 212 to Red Lodge then over Beartooth Pass to Cooke City.

Yes, I am going to say it again. There is some absolutely fantastic scenery here. If you haven't thoroughly toured the USA, you don't HAVE to go to Alaska to see a lot of wonderful country. If you have seen it, then definitely go up there. I rode down thru Yellowstone National Park, thru the Tetons, and south to Jackson.

A LOT of Pictures!If anyone might be interested in seeing ALL my Alaska Part 1 pictures, they can be found here. http://RickMcD.smugmug.com/gallery/1849361/1/92776851
There are 500 pictures, so if you are not on a highspeed connection don't EVEN consider going there! :=)

Working on the KLR and at the Ventura Harley Dealership.
After my long ride I enjoyed driving my F-150 (with air conditioning and stereo) around my local area for awhile. I have been servicing the bike (new tires, oil and filter change, repacking, etc.). I took several things on the KLR to Alaska that I didn't use or wear at all so I am cutting down "on the load".

Working at the Harley dealer and packing the KLR.Not much new to report. I have been putting in more hours than usual at the Harley dealer but it is going to come in handy (especially on that Polynesian cruise). I have been regliously reading the travelers stories and watching the HUBB on the Horizons Unlimited web site (if you can't find it, you have a problem) :=), making lists, and pouring over my maps getting ready for leg 3 and 4 of the Prudhoe Bay to Tierra del Fuego ride.

Leaving Oxnard, heading to Mexcio!
Goin' south, way south, penguin country!Time to get back on the road for the second half of the Prudhoe Bay to Tierra Del Fuego adventure. Saturday, Sept 30th is the day.

Made it to Mazatlan. Very Warm all the way!!

Made it to Puerto Escondido for more beachs, beer and riding friends.It had to be done. I had to drag myself away from the great hotel and beaches in Mazatlan and move on down the road. I left and spent the next night in a quaint little fishing village on the coast called Puerto Vallarta. :0) A local American told me where the best taco stand in PV was so naturally went there. Had two asada tacos (they WERE great).

Had to leave Puerto Escondido (although I did NOT want to). GREAT beach community with surfers from all over the world! AGAIN, I had to drag myself away from a great beach, cold beer (with tequila chasers)

and magnificant sunsets

Another beach in San Juan Del Sur, Nicaragua.
Beaches aren't as much fun when it is raining!

Made it to Panama City after a little rafting trip and other assorted exciting adventures. Border Crossings can be fun (if you are NOT the one with the paperwork problem)! OK, time to get you all caught up. When I last left you I was sitting in a bar (only because it was raining) on the beach in San Juan Del Sur, Nicaragua. It was only about 35 miles to the Costa Rican border. Got there fairly early and was looking forward to a little less stressful crossing.

OK I hate to leave this very nice hotel (thanks Cory and Jules) and this very nice city but it is time to move on to South America!Panama City, a VERY nice place to spend a few days!!

The new skyline, and

the old parts of the city are both very nice!

Alive and well in Cali, Colombia. Jumped the Darien Gap and rode from Bogota to Cali. Looking for the equator. I think it is south! ;=]Part 4 of the adventure is underway. Thanks to Copa Airlines and Girag Cargo Service, crossing the Darien Gap was a snap. In Panama City at Tocuman Airport we crawled thru all the paperwork hoops (2.5 hours) and turned the bikes over to Girag Cargo Services who promised that they would have them in Bogota, Colombia the next morning at 4:00 AM.

Made it to Peru and will be in this country for several days since it is a north south country. Nazca lines and Machu Picchu soon! Ridin´and Havin Fun!It’s time again for an update. Let’s see, we were in Cali, Colombia when I last posted. A VERY nice thing happened for us in Cali after I posted so I will tell you about it. If you have been keeping up with the blog (and you should be) you will remember that we were given a tour of Panama City by a fellow ( Douglas) in the motorcycle club who had the nice VW convertible.

Still in Peru (told you it was a long north south country). We made it to Cusco so a vist to Machu Picchu is in my very near future.We left Piura and made it to Trujillo for the night. There were some very nice views of the beach and villages along the way [if you could ignore the desert].

Finally made it to Machu Picchu! What an EXCELLENT site to visit. Did a LOT of climbing (didn´t plan it that way but the clouds and rain forced my hand). Got a LOT of pictures (many withOUT me in them) :=) The Machu Picchu tour is in the bag and what an excellent adventure it was. The train trip from Cusco to Machu Picchu is a 4 hour ride that is interesting from the very beginning and just gets better as you continue to Agua Calientes (the little village where the train stops and you stay overnight if that is the way you schedule your trip).

Finally left Cusco headed for Lake Titicaca, La Paz Bolivia, and Uyuni, Bolivia for some great salt flat riding. I will cross into Argentina in a couple of days headed for Mendoza or Santiago, Chile, then on south!Ok, we had overdosed on ruins around Cusco and had drank all the beer in the world famous Norton Rats bar so it was time to move on to our next destination, Lake Titicaca. The ride from Cucso to Puno was another one of those 14,000 foot roads with more beautiful scenery.

Finally made it to Mendoza, Argentina after some pretty BAD roads getting out of Bolivia. The big push to Ushuaia will start form here. Sal needs to be there by the 22nd of Dec. (his sister is flying in from China) Gotta Hurry! Riding on the Salar de Uyuni and taking funny pictures was a lot of fun but little did we know that there was a BIG price we were going to have to pay. That price was the road south from there to Tupiza, Bolivia (where the map said paved road started again). The gps said it was 97 straight line miles.

Ushuaia. South, WAY south! Penguin Country. The town folks bill it as the "Southernmost City in the World". Very nice little city. The Beagle Channel to the south and snow covered mountains all around! Lots of tourists (and a few crazy motorcyclists) :=) We still had a LONG way south to go so it was time to leave Mendoza. We decided to set a course southeast toward the Atlantic side of Argentina. Sal and I both had spent a lot of time on the Pacific ocean in California and we wanted to see what the Atlantic looked like

Left Ushuaia on Dec 25th and made my way to El Calafete, Arg. A very touristy town with lots of snowcapped mountains and glaciers. Got to go fly fishing for trout though (and caught 3)! :=) I have received some email asking about my status since the last time I updated was Dec 21 or so. Thought I would give you a quick update but no pictures since the connections here in El Calafate, Argentina (now you know where I am on Jan 1st 2007) :=) are really slow. I was in Ushuaia (the End of the World) for 5 days.

Made it home after 5 months and 23,300 miles of riding. Flew out of Buenos Aires with very mixed emotions. Glad to be getting back home and sad that an excellent adventure was coming to an end!OK, made it back home again and I am already into the old routines. It
feels good!!!

We were able to take some tours of the very nice snowcapped mountains
and the many glaciers around El Calafete.

I have been home from South America for over a year now just riding around the USA and Mexico. Its time for another BIG adventure. :=) Another place I have heard about since I was a kid (yes, a LONG time ago) is Ayres Rock (now called Uluru) in Central Australia. Unlike the Nazca lines and Machu Picchu, Uluru is not "on the way to anywhere" :=) There seems to be several thousand miles of ocean involved just to get to Australia then a thousand miles of "outback". Oh well, that's what makes it an adventure ride.

Australia here I come!! Only a couple of days till I leave for my 2008 Around Oz Ride and there is Good News and Bad News! Yup, Aug 28th is fast approaching and I still have all kinds of things to do before I leave. SOME even having to do with the trip. ;=} Visas, plane tickets, reservations (for when I arrive), suitcases, and motorcycle bags, are just a few of the additional things I have to be concerned with this time unlike last when I just threw everything in the boxes on the bike and rode away.

I made it to Melbourne "Finally" after HOURS of flying!! Did a walking tour and a Yarra River Cruise. Now it is time to go get the bike and get "back on the road again".We are not in Kansas any more Toto! Actually I wasn’t sure where we were when we landed. I figured it must be another PLANET after 15 HOURS of flying. :=) I slept 5 hours, watched 3 movies and still had time to kill . It DID turn out to be Melbourne though which is a good thing since that was where I was headed. I planned a couple days here to recover from the jet lag and it was definitely needed.

Another update so soon? How DOES he do it. Shouldn't he be riding instead of writing? :=) Picked up the bike, packed and repacked it several times and hit the road. Movin North looking for WARM weather!I made my way to Castlemaine about 75 miles Northeast of Melbourne via a very nice and fast train. Norbert, from the motorcycle rental company met me at the station. I swear I saw him try to sneak away unnoticed when he saw the two big “Dry Bags” and the even bigger suitcase that I had, but I didn’t let him get away.

Scenery to Die for, Beaches, Sunny Skys, Warm Weather, and Cold Beer. The ONLY way it could be any better would be if Julia were here (blatant sucking up). :=) There I was, holed up in a very nice motel room for a couple of days because it was raining and COLD (40 degrees). I was OK but when Julia said “are you going to spend your whole vacation in that motel", I decided to “man up” and hit the road. The next morning it was 36 degrees and raining but I HAD to go (must show Julia). Rain gear and electric clothing on with thermostat up to 10, and away I went (crying like a little girl).

USA Accents, Telescopes, Tall Tales and Adult Beverages! :=) An aside!! After being in Australia for a week and a half, I had become accustomed to hearing the “accent” wherever I was. On this particular evening I was in a Pub (yes, I have been known to frequent them. Surprised?) taste testing the local brews. I became aware of a group of guys that had obviously arrived at the Pub well ahead of me. They were having a great time telling stories about their adventures with each one “topping” the other (kind of like bikers). :=) The unusual part was they, had USA “accents”.

Byron Bay was an EXCELLENT stop but then they all are in one way or another. Fraser Island makes leaving Byron worth it!!!Byron Bay is a GREAT place to spend some time. A bit "touristy" but still a GREAT place to just "kick back". What place that is well worth a visit doesn't have a some tourists? I have already mentioned the Lighthouse and the Easterly most point on mainland Australia but there is more than that. Excellent beaches (only half a block from town center),

Discovering a new "Favorite" place every couple of days!!! Airlie Beach and the Whitsunday Islands moves to the top of the heap (so far)!!I finally tore myself away from Hervey Bay and Fraser Island. I had already changed my vote for “favorite place” from Byron Bay to Hervey Bay so it was very hard to leave but the guide book said that Airlie Beach (500 miles north) had a lot to offer so I rode north a bit reluctantly (you know how wrong guide books can be). There wasn’t a lot to see on the main road except sugar cane harvesting

Go West Young Man (dreaming)!! I made it to Cairns and turned WEST, after going a bit farther north!!I dragged myself away from Airlie Beach and the Whitsunday Islands. I like Airlie very much (remember, it had moved to the top of my favorite beach places) UNTIL I got to Mission Beach (recommended by the skipper of the sail boat that I cruised on). Mission Beach is about 60 miles south of Cairns and has everything Airlie Beach does EXCEPT the traffic and tourists. It is a sleepy little place

Cairns to Daly Waters on the Savannah Way. Sounds Exciting Huh? It is for any number of reasons.I headed west from Cairns on one of the best motorcycle roads I have ever ridden. Cairns to Mareeba, to Atherton, to Ravenshoe was “perfect” riding. Warm, sunny, great road, excellent scenery, and no traffic.

I saw a sign on a side road that said “Queenslands highest road to the highest city“. Had to see what that was about!

Darwin, Top End, Northern Territory, Way North. Yup. Made it to Darwin. 7500 Kilometers done (that sounds so much farther than 4500 miles huh?)!!Let’s see where was I. Oh yes the “Road from Hell” was done and I was back on tarmac, sweet tarmac. :=) Actually the road wasn’t as bad as I have made it sound (except for that sand/bull dust part), it was mostly the stress of being out there alone, especially after seeing so many signs that said “don’t travel this road alone“. I KNOW what you are thinking and I am guilty! :=) I reached the Stuart Highway where I turned north once again.

Team “Channel Islands” is back together again in Darwin. After their antics in Central and South America, they are looking forward to a whole new country full of pubs (to get thrown out of) :=)Corey made it to Darwin Saturday afternoon and his bike was delivered Sunday morning. After partying hard for two days (actually, it was lights out and in bed by 9:00 PM both nights. Corey‘s fault. Jet Lag) :=) it was time to hit the road.

Team Channel Islands has 500 miles of ”fun?” in the dirt, dust, mud, and river crossings on the Gibb River Road. An alternate title might be “Ride Point or Eat Dust”! :=) It was time for some more dirt riding along the Gibb River Road from Kununara to Derby and Broome,

clear over to some beaches on Australia’s left coast. First a little side trip up to Wyndham for another “big” plus some lunch.

Broome south toward Perth! A lot of nothing interspersed with some great Beach Communities!Broome was an EXCELLENT stop where we could ride our motorcycles on the beach.

Eat at great restaurants on the beach,

And enjoy some excellent beach sunsets!

Past Perth, on down to the Southwest Peninsula. A complete change of scenery AND weather. We are tough though, a little rain won’t stop us.
We made that visit to Monkey Mia where the dolphins come into the bay for a free handout. The tourists come in big buses so that the dolphins can eat right from their hands.

We, of course, didn’t feed them because we are “too cool”! :=) Instead we watched the tourists while we sipped cappuccinos.

More “fun?” in the dirt on the Great Central Road to Uluru/Ayres Rock. We renamed it “The Great Sandy Road”, because that is what it was and we HATE sand/bull dust! A LOT of hard riding to get a picture of a ROCK!! :=) In Esperance we heard about a great scenic loop road that passed many of the beaches in the area. Even though it was raining the morning when we left, we still did the loop road and they were right. Some of the nicest beaches and prettiest water I had ever seen.

We OD’d on red rocks so it was time to head south again for the Great Ocean Road and some more beach scenery. But first, a stop to search for Opals and live in a cave! :=) We did the 6 mile hike around Ayres Rock

and visited the Olgas for some more hiking.

Cute, Cuddly, Koalas. A Lighthouse, and a ride in the rain!! A quick update.It was a rainy Saturday afternoon and we were at church -- no wait, we were visiting the museum, well, I actually don’t remember but we ran into a local resident (bartender) who told us he heard that the rain had brought out some Koalas. There were several in the trees on the road out to the Cape Otway lighthouse. I REALLY wanted a picture of a Koala in the wild so I figured a ride in the rain might be worth it. Off we went, and we were NOT disappointed!! Several Koalas, and even a mother and baby.

A tour of Tasmania -- or-- Just how close ARE we to Antarctica ?? We finished our ride from Apollo Bay south along the Great Ocean Road on the way to Melbourne to catch the ferry for a 5 day tour of Tasmania.

North to Sydney! Great roads, great scenery, a City / Harbor Tour, and some SNOW!!

Sydney was great and I was looking forward to the Snowy Mountains and heading back to Castlemaine and California!!I very much enjoyed Sydney. Lots of history, nostalgia, and modern day mixing. The Rocks area was especially inviting and I spent most of my time there. But, it was time to move on and check out the Snowy Mountains. I planned to cross them twice, once North to Southeast on the Snowy Mountains Highway and then again from South to Northwest on the Great Alpine Road. There would be a little stop at the beach in between.

Home Sweet Home!! Sleeping in my own bed! Eating some home cooking (Julia’s, of course) :=) I made it back to Castlemaine, turned the bike in, and headed for the airport with very mixed emotions. Happy to be headed home, a bit sad that another great adventure was coming to an end. I was NOT looking forward to that 15 hour flight back to Los Angeles but I did catch a break when for some unknown reason the Qantas computer assigned me a seat in “business class”. SCORE!! It made the flight ALMOST bearable!

Julia can only take me "full time" in small doses so lately she has been dropping a LOT of hints about it being time for me to take another long ride! Can't pass up an offer like that! :=) Europe this time?????I was definitely ready for another adventure ride and since Julia had given me a "hall pass", I figured I better start planning before she changed her mind! Coincidentially my friend Corey, who you will remember from our adventures in Central America and Australia

The Baltic Lap Trip is getting close now! Just a few more days until I fly to Frankfurt to start another adventure ride. The Channel Islands Bike trash guys will soon be the Eurotrash Bunch!
The paperwork is all sorted (I hope). Got my International Driving Permit, the motorcycle is contracted, plane tickets are purchased and I have my Russian Visa and an invitation letter as you can see here.

Airport Fun, Fast Routes, Ferry Rides, Great Bike Roads, Excellent Scenery, Border Crossings, and Tall, Blond, Good Looking Women.

Another Ferry Ride, Shelly, Walled City, Island Touring, Meeting Shelly’s friends and family, and Tall, Good Looking, Blond Women wearing short shorts.We made it to the terminal in time for the ferry that would take us to the town/village of Visby on Gotland Island where Shelly and his wife Barbro live for the summer. Since Shelly had already been on the island for a week or so he said he would meet us at the ferry terminal and he did (he was only 5 minutes late, which Corey and I considered to be very early for him) :=)

Admitting mistakes, touring Stockholm, $10 bottles of beer (EVERYTHING is expensive), and tall, good looking blond women. A quick update before leaving Stockholm and heading into the wilds of the north.
OK, OK, I am admitting my mistake. For you observant folks that are experienced European travelers, the gas sign was from Germany and the prices are in Euros BUT GAS WAS STILL $9.00 A GALLON, and in Sweden it is about $10.00. A couple of times I have put $40 worth in the motorcycle tank. Corey says not to worry though that the gas in Norway is REALLY expensive. :=)

Leaving Stockholm, Heading North, Classic American Cars, Finland, Norway, Fog & Freezing Rain, The Nordkapp Goal!The Malibu Channel Islands Eurotrash boys made it as far north as you can go by road over here (but it wasn't pretty, literally).

Heading South, Arctic Circle (Again), Trouble with the Law, Finland & Russian Border Stress, and being illegal aliens (maybe).Nordkapp, the northernmost road point in the Eastern Hemisphere, Check. Looking forward to getting out of the rain and cold, Check.
We headed south down thru northern Finland looking for warm. Didn’t take long to find it. We crossed the Arctic Circle again

Saint Petersburg, check. Walking tours and boat tours, check. Time to move along and see what the border situation is. (gulp).Three days in Saint Petersburg. Time to hit the road and see what the border situation is. Turns out it is NOT pretty for us. Shelly still has no problem and is on his way to Gdansk and a ferry home to Gotland Island. Corey and I get the treatment (but we are used to it). First guard no problem. Looks at passports and says “go ahead”, cool. Second lady guard asks for motorcycle papers and then notices COPIES of registrations. Getting nervous.

Border problems done, Check. On the road riding thru some great scenery, Check.
Prague, Check (bada bing – rim shot) :=)Made it thru Latvia, Lithuania

,
Poland, and into the Czech Republic

and Prague on some very scenic roads.

Prague, Check (Hey, it was funny the first time) :=) The priorities of the trip were done: Nordkapp, Norway – Saint Petersburg, Russia and Prague, and it was time to enjoy the area and see what was available for the next week.We blew out of Prague heading south with a general idea that we would explore some of the Austrian and Swiss Alps. From Prague we rode into the very northeast corner of Germany, then into Austria, then into Germany (again) and back into Austria. Some very nice roads

More Alpine Riding, and Passes and MAJOR stress.The Mountain Gods give and they also take away. They gave us a perfect day to ride the Grossglockner Pass in Austria but they got even when we tried to ride the Timmeljoch Pass. It was beautiful

More Italian Alps Passes and into Switzerland.As I said, the Mountain Passes god gives and takes away. He/She must have been feeling bad about our near death experience on Timmeljoch yesterday as we had an almost perfect day for one of the most famous passes in the Italian Alps, Stilvio and then later and little lower Ligano. Here is what we started out with on the way up.

Back home again in California. After riding in 13 countries and involuntarily visiting another (I’ll explain) in mostly good weather (fog and wet at Nordkapp, fog at Timmeljoch Pass, and some rain getting back to Frankfurt) but otherwise sun and warm, we made it back home to Southern California. In order, we rode in Germany, Denmark, Sweden, Norway, Finland (helped the economy there by paying a traffic ticket), Russia, Latvia, Lithuania, Poland, Czech Republic, Austria, Italy, and Switzerland. 5800 miles of riding gave us more scenery than we could imagine.

Taiwan Sept/Oct 2013, a little different kind of Motorcycle Ride! Tracey, my boss at the Harley Davidson dealership where I work part time, mentioned a ride that would take place in conjunction with the Harley Davidson 110th Anniversary festivities in Taiwan. Since she told me about it, I was sure she couldn’t say “no” to a couple of weeks off work for another adventure, so I called Corey (my erstwhile partner in previous adventures)