Canada Week 1

Journey from Halifax to Niagara Falls with a police escort part of the way!!!The first thing we did on our first riding day was to go to Halifax just so we can see the Atlantic Ocean from the other side. There we are by the Halifax Harbour:

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Our initial impression of Canadian friendship and hospitality continues to be reinforced. We have now journeyed from Moncton through Quebec, and are having a "day off" in Niagara Falls. There are quite a few miles in between.

Bust in Buenos Aires!

It could have been worse...

It could have been worse I guess. After all, it was merely the drive-shaft that had disintegrated and not the gearbox as initially suspected.

Having established a replacement drive-shaft to cost in the region of US$1000 (and a five week wait) from BMW Buenos Aires, I picked myself off the floor and placed an order with a supposedly reputable dealer in the US, for half this price.

Restarting Starship Enterprise

I had grown used to thinking of it in the same way as it was viewed by most of the people I met along the way: A technological marvel, impossibly big and shiny with undreamed of capabilities, no doubt able to achieve twice the speed of sound with a flick of the wrist.

"How much this bike cost in your country?" they would ask in awe, clearly expecting a sum of money more usually associated with moon shots or major hydroelectric projects.

Jungle Book

The road from Phnom Penh to Siem Reep - home to the legendary temples of Angkor was horrid. OK, I only knew they were legendary after watching a trailer on Discovery Channel, but they might have added a parental advisory note about that road. For the first 100kms or so, no problems, but then the beastly thing deteriorates into a sandy, pot-holed, gravelly mess. I never knew that so many different types of awful road surface existed.

Guatemala, ElSalvador, Honduras and Nicaragua

Guatemala, ElSalvador, Honduras and Nicaragua - four countries in four days. Well almost. Neither is particularly big and it probably takes me longer to clear the border than to drive across each country. Honduras can be done in two hours. However I decide to spend at least one night in each.

Gold!

Not only did Riki and Jen welcome us into their home, but also their garage. Before leaving Malaysia I rebuilt the bike's top end as a result of stripped cylinder barrel studs, (yet another legacy of a former owner), and subsequently learnt I used gasket sealant that didn't seal. By that time we were in Australia. Originating from the base of the cylinder barrel, it was more a weep than a leak, however it was annoying and didn't appear to going away. It was time for remedial action.

South to Guatemala

This story really begins about six years ago, which is when this crazy idea popped into my head, and kept poking at my thoughts so I couldn't ignore it. I was in Belize, so not too far from my home in Colorado, when I saw a car with Colorado plates. A simple as it sounds, this sight triggered my dreams about the world's road networks and how great it would be to have the freedom of a vehicle to explore wherever I wanted, whenever I wanted, and not be limited by public transport.

The route

We've had a couple of requests for details of our route so far, so here is the latest list of major and minor towns along the way (spellings are, as always, negotiable) ....England
Foston
M1/M25/M20
Dover
Belgium
Ostend
Bruxelles
Germany
Aachen
Koblenz
Frankfurt
Wurzburg
Nurnberg
Regensburg
Hungary
Passau
Linz
Wien
Tatabanya
Budapest
Debrecen
Romania
Oradea
Cluj Napoca
Sebes
Fagoras
Sighisoria
Brasov

DAY SEVEN

Day Seven 4th September 08

Arles - Nice

miles 1201

Inca Kola

Peru's version of IrnBru

Looks like anti-freeze, tastes like IrnBru, Peru's national drink was so popular that Coca Cola couldn't beat it - so they bought it. As we were shortly to find out, it is sold everywhere....

Seattle

With lots of fond farewells to my fellow passengers, I left the ferry, riding in convoy with the other bikes heading south - there had been a lot of persuading to join the majority of them who were heading to America´s biggest bike rally, but I had to decline and said maybe another year.
Just after Seattle, disaster struck when part of my engine blew, I managed with a lot of luck and some help to get myself and Thelma to Mick Vallantine´s workshop- Seattle´s Independent BMW guy and a fellow Brit.

The road less travelled

After our Galapagos tour we stayed one more night in Quito, got our bikes from Sylvain at Freedom Bike Rentals, and the made our way down to Cuenca to visit Jose and Mary. They are a couple of fellow Calgarians we met on the Galapagos tour and are in Ecuador looking for a potential retirement spot.