I’ve been quite anxious in the last few days leading up to the trip despite my calm demeanor. The goodbyes and the going away parties are not as comforting as they should be. Everyone wishes us well, but my stomach hears people saying “I hope you make it back”. You begin to question the reason you’re doing this and if it is in fact crazy as many comically suggest.

Today was launch day and I hit the road. The morning felt great, as the weather was nice and the ride east through the Columbia river gorge was as beautiful as always. But as the trees and terrain faded into the Washington cornfields and searing heat above 95F, it became less comfortable and more lonely. Again, questioning my reasoning. Why am I doing this again? I already miss home and it’s only day 1. I know it will get better as I find a routine and become distracted with the challenges and pleasures of the trip. I've been here before.

Crossing the border into Canada at Eastport ID was a breeze. I handed over my passport and the agent asked me the typical questions: where are you going, why, and are you carrying any weapons? I explained my plan to depart Calgary with the bike for Europe and Africa and he was amazed. Sometimes I think these people are bored and just like to have an interesting chat. He asked me a few questions about preparation and who I’m riding with, and the wished me luck and waved me on. I was quite surprised he didn’t pry any more, because I was entering the country with my vehicle but not returning by the same way.

I've settled in Yahk BC (funny name) just a few miles across the border at a the Yahk Provincial Park Campground. Nice shady place (referring to the trees), but I’ve managed to pick the noisiest campsite situated between some people running a generator and the logging trucks coasting down the highway on their engine brakes. Hopefully it all shuts down soon (edit: it did). There’s a whole neighborhood of squirrels here. One of them is in the tree above me dropping pinecones like stones from the tree next to my picnic table. It's so quiet now I can hear the pinecones whizzing by before they hit the ground.

I’ve noticed a little popping noise coming from the steering stem bearings on the bike when I brake hard and compress the suspension. I suspect a hard fall that the bike took a few months ago (off road) may have shifted the two triple clamps out of alignment. I attempted to straighten them prior to departure, and I considered disassembling and re-torquing the steering stem, but I ran out of time. I think I will seek out a shop in Germany to fix it for me. Not urgent, but it should be addressed.