Guatemala ..

After a restful stay in Zipolite I connected with the motorway running down the coast towards Guatemala. A quick overnight in a roadside hotel and then took the advice of a few others on Horizonsunlimited and went left up into the highlands to cross the border at a quieter crossing, St Mesia. As soon as I left the motorway the road began winding its' way up into the hills, very beautiful and much cooler.

Into the hills

Drink Break

After about 3 hours I eventually reached the border, first step was to leave Mexico and make sure I got my deposit back.This would have taken a mere few minutes except Yamaha have placed the vin on these bikes in a difficult to see place, the customs quy wanted to take a photo as proof. Thirty or so minutes of camera, torch, me and two others eventually seemed to get the required proof. After this I had my passport stamped and waved Mexico goodbye. A few KMs of no mans land and then you pull up into a shopping street/market. The bike 'fumigated', money changed, passport stamped in and then customs to import the bike, all this took place on the side of this busy road, all rather interesting but went smoothly. I believe the next few borders may be somewhat different. After eventually being given the all clear I road off and headed to Huehuetenango for the night.

Safe for the night

Along the road there were many police and army check points, more than I had seen in Mexico. I was stopped 4 times, by the third I was suffering sense of humour failure, the guy who stopped me could see I had just been stopped further down the road, '.. three time' I said, showing three fingers, I tried this a couple of times before realising that I was the junior partner in this transaction, I smiled and showed him the papers he wanted to see. Rode on and got stopped again.

Now that's what I call a good road, on route to Antigua

I decided to head to Antigua, a bit of a tourist mecca but worth a look and the oppourtunity to spend a couple of days off the road. I had been feeling under the weather for a day or so and was aware things weren't that solid in the bowel motion area. As soon as I got to Antiqua I hit the first hotel I saw intending to stay for 4 nights, the next part of the journey is going to involve border after border so getting prepared here made sense. After 3-4 days the town worked it's magic and I was restored to health (ish) Antigua is an amazing place, old Spanish colonial capital, ringed by volcanos and great coffee.

Antiqua street, get your bike stuck in here and ..

Coffee houses on the right

Volcano at the end of the road

As always I checked out the bike the day before I intended to leave and found the chain hanging on by a 'thread', literally one link only had one of the two plates left, the other had just broken off. I remembered reading about an 'off road' bike tour and hire place in Antiqua when I was researching the trip last year, I found out where they were and went down. Met Dave (http://catours.co.uk/index.html), great bloke, who tried to persuade his mechanic to pop over, no chance it was party weekend in town. He then told me about another place who might do it there and then. I shot back to the hotel, got my spares ready and then the rainy season hit with a vengance, I couldn't see 10 metres for the rain (the rain was in for the night I was informed). So, I had to wait until the Monday and stay two more nights .... ummm that was OK.

Mechanic on the left, 'I was just walking by and saw you taking a photo' on the right, great place, no hassle

The Moto shop were brilliant, if you turn up they work on your bike, don't book it in. If you are in no hurry they work on your bike in between times. Imagine in the UK, I would have to book in a week ahead. Gave them my spares, chain, sprockets, cush drives and off the guy went, while you stood there and watched. Any communication problems we had were sorted by Google Translate on their desktop, bought some oil and a spare link for the new chain and off I went all done, great job. (tip: it was a big mistake to get the chain rivited for a journey like this, if I had used the link that came with the kit insead, Dave and I could have fixed the chain at his cafe, because it was rivited we needed a 'chain breaker' or grinder to get the chain off. It was at the rivit point on my chain that the link shattered)

With the bike all sorted I left Antiqua and headed to the border with El Salvador, aware that a number of border crossings were coming up in quick succession.

Mexico .. going south

The Tropic of Cancer worked it's magic. Driving south out of Mazatlan the grey desert of the last few weeks fell away and it began to get more humid, slightly less hot and very green. The road south wound its' way up from the coast and into the hills, and these were green, rolling hills. I made good progress that day until I got to a place called Tepic, on route. I had planned to stay a few days in the resort area, Nuevo Vallarta, which is just next door to the better known resort of Puerto Vallarta. A thunder strom had just caused a mud slip in Tepic so going through the centre of town was slow and the road difficult. After this the road kept rising into the hills, tight corners and more rain and mist which led to steady progress, it's a busy road to the coast.

Greenery

Coming down over the otherside I pulled in to a petrol station and into conversation with Gustavo (a picture taken by his daughter did not quite work out, it was a video of our feet, which was useful for me as I had not attempted the video feature before). He took our picture and told me to email him my progress. Then Javier, a local man dreaming of fitting out an old Landrover to travel to Panama, came for a chat, needless to say their English out did my Spanish. I eventually pulled into Nuevo Vallarta and found the place I was staying, Casa Virgilios, an amazing place, I felt very welcome and decided to rest for a few days, in luxury. I would highly recommend this to anyone.

Casa Virgilios and the lap of luxury

......suns going down

and they are ?

After a great rest I hit the road for a fun packed drive through Puerto Vallarta and down the coast to Manzanillo. The road hugged the bays with some amazing views but made for a harder ride after the motorways, I began to realise that I would not be covering the same distances from now on. I had been warned that this road was OK in the day but not at night, I began to see more Police/Army road blocks, most of which just waved me through, only once was I stopped and papers checked. In Manzanillo I met a Dutch guy who owned the local Pizzeria, he had married a Mexican and they had moved here just over a year ago, he had seen my bike with the number plates and came looking for the fellow gringo. In the morning he wished me well and I also got talking to a Spanish mechant seaman who had just flown in with two colleagues to join a ship in the harbour, an oil tanker. He told me they could be going to Australia or the middle east, he did not know, he liked Chile but wasn't keen on Mexico.

on the coast

From Manzanillo I road to Zihuatanejo and then down to Acapulco. Again I was warned about the road but kept to daylight and felt no risk. The people were changing, there was more subsistance farming obvious at the side of the road, makeshift stalls with pineapples, melons and bananas. Also, the 'topes' or speed bumps. I had read about these being everywhere and they are, you get a better sense for where they are likely to be after sometime, mostly in towns and villages, but they come in 'teams' as well as 'solo', you can hear the suspension creek. To the experienced Mexican they offer an overtaking oppourtunity, they also give people the chance to sell stuff, you're almost at a stand still, may as well grab a bite and drink. I will not be sorry to see the end of 'topes', but they live also in central and south America so sometime yet (and in Nottingham and ...)

curves and greenery

I will not be riding a bike through Acapulco again, amazing number of VW Beetles but they are all on a mission, to get in front of you and they are Taxis. Having escaped in one piece I took a long ride down to a very small place called Zipolite, right on the coast (bit of a theme here).

air brakes ?

Stayed a couple of nights in Cabañas Biuzaa, was met by the manager, cold beer and he sent out for food, I had been on the road for about 8-9 hours and was very tired, a great welcome. Just a hut(ish) up in the bush, veiw of the sea and about the least money I had paid in Mexico (and of course North America). Very chilled, a muddy and rutted road to get to but worth it, as long as I make it down in one piece.

in the bush, Calla Bizuzzi

on the beach, wind and rain

So, now planning for the border into Guatemala, where and when to cross, documents needed, lots to think about. This will govern where I go next in Mexico.

One other quick point, I am having some problems accessing this account, partly this is because I am moving around so much (and google gets worried) but they also inform me that there have been attempts to 'hack' the account, gawd knows why. If it dies I will just start another and leave a comment on the old blog giving the new address, should you be interested, of course. Many thanks and enjoy the heatwave in the UK.

Mexico .. Crossing the border

Nogales has two border crossings, the first is in the centre of the town and enables people to park up either side and walk across to shop, they are also able to drive into the town centre. There seems to be a 'duty free' element to this for people from the USA side, there are also many families who are split by the border (it runs through the centre of Nogales) and this enables them to walk over to meet. The other border is off the I19 and gives you access to a toll road around Nogales and onto the Mexican highway 15, I chose this crossing. I got up early and headed to the border stopping on the USA side to hand in the card they staple into your passport when you enter the country, I literally just handed it to the guy at the crossing, they were not going to stop me. Then, you are in Mexico, there are some 'nothing to delare' or 'declare goods' lanes, a stop light system for the Mexican border guards to stop you anyway should they wish, they didn't so off  I went up a two lane highway.

A bit of a theme here, desert, very hot. It may be Mexico but those borders are only a line on the map. Petrol and then into the Oxxo (snack shop) for bottles of water and air con

All the action happens at KM21 on the highway, you pull over into a carpark and then walk around importing yourself and the bike. It starts with you, tourist card, pay for this, get photocopies. Also copy all your ID, passport, drivers licence, bike registration documents and take these back, pay a deposit (the Mexican authorities don't want you to sell your vehicle, this is reimbursed on leaving the country) and pay your fees. It took about an hour and I was lucky, there were very few people there, the immigration people were very helpful and easy going. That was it, I was legally in Mexico and able to travel where I wanted.

Somewhere to grab a bite to eat

I headed south, the only way for me. Stopped the first night in Hermosillo and then on to San Carlos, on the edge of the Sea of Cortez. Espanol for me not good but I had been practising the hello's and goodbyes, 'fill her up please' and trying to work the numbers, the locals were very patient. The motels I stayed at were fine, all the usual basic needs covered, shower, shower and air con, air con and air con.

View from motel in San Carlos, there is the sea in there, honest 

Stayed a couple of days in San Carlos, out of the sun and resting after the excitement of getting over the border. I kept looking for temps that were lower than where I was and realised that I needed to keep heading south to get a break from the heat. This took me down to Mazatlan, via an over night stop in Los Mochis, I was now down in the 30C's, a massive improvement. It also meant I had driven through most of  the state of Sinaloa, home of one of the bigger cartels. I felt no obvious increase in risk but it's often very difficult to pick up local cues/culture in such a brief time. What you do notice is the Federal Police (federales) and the road blocks, the municipal police stood on the back of pick-ups with machine guns in hand and the Army riding around in convoys with fixed guns on bigger pick-ups. Ummm, yeah maybe you can pick up some of those cues in a short time.

In a moment of rare bravado I took this photo of the municipal police in Mazatlan, it's the big pick-up with the stripe on the left, man standing up on the back with large machine gun, he waved as they drove by

Mazatlan brought me back to the Pacific, cooler breeze off the sea. Most of the hotels have a guard and there is always the fear that your bike wont be there in the morning, it is one conversation I always try to have when I stay somewhere, a safe spot for the bike please (a 'conversation' is possibly a bit more that I'm able to do). At this motel Trinnie was the guard, he wanted me to put the bike in front of the reception, I was sort of happy with it hidden by a van and thought it would stick out by the reception area (I was tired), although I realised he would be better able to keep an eye on it. He pondered this foolish gringo for a while and then directed the next guest to arrive to place his van behind my bike making sure it was totally hidden, what a man. He works 12 hours a night, 6 days a week for the equivilant of 100US dollars, he is married and has two children at school, they are grafters down this way.

Mazatlan beach front

I don't pretend to understand the politics/tensions in this part of the world, it would be patronising to do so, suffice it to say most everyone I have met has been really helpful and gone out of their way for me and I have never felt at risk. There are many toll roads here, pretty well maintained and they do allow you to cover some distance but it is also important to use the 'free' roads to get a better picture of where you are. The toll booths are all manned and it's a bit of a pain when you are on a Moto, especially in the heat, those gloves do stick on. Mostly it's a business like exchange, money, receipt and change and on you go. At this one booth the guy said '10 pesos' in english straight away (I can't hide my roots, the few I have), after the business had been done, he looked at me and said 'Hasta la vista', paused, raised an eyebrow and then said 'baby', he then fell over laughing, it was great. I was stuck with a Police pick-up behind me trying to stop laughing while getting my glove back on, a great guy. I was also struck by how he could see that my body so resembled Arnie's', even when I was in my bike gear, amazing.

Oceano Pacifico

So, onwards we go south, it's the only way now, will aim to keep to the coast. Next stop the Tropic of Cancer.

Hot

I got up and was on the road out of Ventura by 5am, 2 or so hours later I was clear of LA and heading towards Palm Springs. Starting so early was pretty successful, the roads in and around LA were busy but kept moving, as I rode across the city and suburbs, criss-crossing as I went, it really depended on whether I was heading towards the downtown area or away as to the amount of traffic I encounted. As you are probably aware the motorways here, like the M25 around London, can have up to 7 lanes, the inside lane is perhaps the most busy as this is where vehicles arrive and depart the motorway, coupled with undertaking being legal it is good for keeping focus on a small motorbike.

It's getting hotter, 'air-con' stop on route to Pheonix

As I left the city behind the desert began to take over, just past Palm Springs civilisation began to receed. I had decided to head towards Tucson, Arizona, via Pheonix and cross into Mexico at Nogales, from there head down to the coast again. I thought hard about Baja and looked into the times/cost of the ferry that would be needed to get from there to mainland Mexico. It was difficult to get information from the Ferry website, in the end it seemed worth while experiencing Arizona and then heading south without the worry of the ferry and also to miss the border at Sand Diego/Tijuana. 

Desert

Across the desert, along Interstate 10, I got into a survival rhythm, stop every 70-80 miles or where there was a truck stop, head into the nearest fast food joint, buy water and stand in their air-con, I would drink half the water and then pour the other half over my head, in my jacket and fill-up my helmet. I realised that I might as well head to Pheonix and stay the night there, it was too early to check-in to a Motel, in all I rode 440 miles that day, the temps reached 110F, around 43C, don't think I will be doing that again in a hurry. I listened to local news and heard they had warnings out for the heat, advice 'stay in doors'. However, I needed to be in Tucson as I had the bike booked in for a service, that meant just a shortish ride the following day.

Motorway rest stop, Arizona style, protect those pets. It may have shade but that was not enough, air-con is a must.

I made Tucson in good time, I left Pheonix at 12 (the latest I could check-out) and went via a Burger King, arriving in Tucson in time to check-in to the next motel. The service went well at the Performance Cycle Center (http://performancecyclecenter.com/content.asp?page_id=1), new oil, two new Avon Gripsters which should get me into South America and a chat with Doug who told me how a 'Mexican National' had tried to rip him off for parts ' ..I followed him to his car and made him empty everything, at the end he owed only 4 cents'. Needless to say I paid up and rode back to the motel/air con via a Starbucks.

Performance Cycle Center, don't try to rip them off

So, due to the heat, I decided to stay put in Tucson for a couple of days, no rush to get to Nogales. When I did leave it was again only a short run down. I booked into a motel on the USA side of the border to organise bike insurance for Mexico and get some pesos. That evening a strange thing happened, it rained. Apparently this is what everyone has been waiting for, the 'monsoon rains' that appear here end of June/early July. They are hoping this will bring the temps down below 100F, so far I think Tucson has had 30 consecutive days of +100F temps, the record is 39 days. Great to see the rain, it did drop the temps a couple of degrees but also brought with it some humidity, just an amazing place/climate to live in.

When it rains in Nogales ......

All ready now for Mexico, will cross the border in the next few days.

Final note, really tragic news about the 19 US fireman who died in Arizona. The storms, when they arrive, come with amazing thunder and lightning and it appears that was how this fire was started, you hope for rain but it does not come alone. Thoughts go out to their family and friends. 

South

I left Florence with only one way to go, south. I decided to continue along the 101 for as long as I was comfortable and was enjoying the ride. I had a plan to reach San Francisco and ride over the Golden Gate bridge, it did occur to me to do this outside the morning/afternoon rush hour. Also, I wanted to see and ride along the Redwood Highway.

Morning coffee and the sea mist is burning off

Crossing into California I only had one problem, petrol (gas). At my first fill-up I could not enter a zip code while trying to pay using my card at the pump. In order to get around this you go into see the cashier, hand over some cash money and they will activate the pump. It is too difficult to guage the exact amount you need each time so I settle for 20 dollars, if you don't use the full 20 you go back to the cashier and they give you the change. Also, they have a consertina cover on the pump handle to catch fumes, so I end up fighting with this, some pumps also have a switch (cleverly disguised). The first time I filled up, I was there for about 20 minutes providing great enterainment for the locals. Now I just pull up, kill the bike, walk into the shop, handover 20 dollars, fill up, walk back and get some change, ride off, a master.

Redwood National Park, Info centre

Riding along the Redwood Highway was somewhat intimidating, at certain parts the trees are right on the edge of the road, no where to go if you get it wrong, so big and beautiful. I didn't stop to take a photo but there's plenty on the web. In fact this route is photo oppourtunity overload and the further south you go the more there is to see. I can't recommend this route enough (thanks Chris), I met one Dutch couple who had flown over and rented a small (for North America, big for Europe) RV/camper, they loved it, could be a way to see it all if you choose not to ship the bike.

I stayed the night in Eureka and decided, as it was Sunday, to ride straight for San Francisco in order to be clear the otherside by the start of the working week. Even though I moved more inland the countryside still amazed. I stopped at a rest area and got talking to two ex-pat Brits who now lived in Vancover, they were heading to the Nappa Valley just north of San Francisco to see the wine. It had been raining on and off and they had decided, like me, to make up some time, in fact they had Redwood overload, " ... there's only so many trees you can take in". They had not riden across North Dakota and Montana, clearly.

Golden Gate, in all it's foggy glory

No, that's not rain, it's the famous fog/sea mist, but it might as well be rain, I was soaked. So, I rode over the bridge, pulled up with all the other tourists for the 'photo' and then found myself driving through the centre of San Francisco, it was one of those moments when you just keep smiling. Deb and I had been here before so no need to stay and do all the sights, it was the bridge/bike I needed. After the city I picked up Highway 1 and spent a couple of nights in Santa Cruz, I wanted to finalise my route into Mexico and sort out a service for the bike just before I cross the border.

Highway 1

What can I say about Hwy 1 ? nothing except, please ride/drive it. You have to accept it's a tourist run and so you have to crawl along at times and the 'curves' will be taken out for you by an SUV enjoying the view, but relax and just enjoy, again it's 'photo overload'.

Still the '1'

I came to a halt at Ventura, I planned to get up early the next day and ride through Los Angeles before rush hour, 'man, god and plans' eh ?

Ventura, it's SoCal

Many thanks for all the support, especially from the NAS based in WSM, I'm missing you too guys, keep the club running, it's needed. Bike is running really well, have not even needed to top up the oil, just keeps going whatever the weather, about 5000 miles now, will treat it to new oil before Mexico. Gear is holding up well, no really hot temps yet, remains comfortable and dry. Body OK so far, ocassional aches, mostly linked to riding the 'super' winds. Still on imported baccy, they have local stuff but have not tried any, the filters here are massive though, about the size of toilet rolls, makes for interesting rolling. Also, they still offer 'smoking rooms' in motels, even in California, I tried one but could not work out what to do, it's been years since I smoked inside, I still joined the local branch of the NAS outside....

The Sea

When I woke up the next day I had a choice, go south (as sort of planned) or continue west, I went west and what an amazing ride it was, at the end I saw the sea.

The Pacific

Chris in Ottawa had been talking about how good the riding was in this area, especially in California. I have always been really intrigued by the coastline north of San Francisco up to Washington state, in particular the Redwood Highway. Also, somethings we may have to do, even though it's been done a few million times before, ride a bike over the Golden Gate bridge.

I left Great Falls and rode as far as Kamiah in Idaho, mosty along Route 12. Straight away the hills and mountains began to appear and the flat and straight riding of the last week was gone.

The hills/mountains begin, Info centre on the route out of Great Falls.

I rode via Missoula and by pure chance found myself passing a warning sign which read something like '99 miles of curves', I think it's called the Lolo Pass. Even in the rain it was great, not too tight just sweeping curves and hardly anyone else on it, it just went on and on until I stopped for the night.
  

Lolo Pass

My neighbour in Kamiah was Bill, who with his dog went up into the hills to survey the forest, either for the State or Federal authorities. Bill lives in Colarado and drives his camper around the US each summer doing this work. He showed me the maps he is given, already a lot of detail, and then using GPS he hooves it into the woods, now 60 Bill reckins he has 5 more seasons in him (he's due a hip operation in the fall, just can't choose the right specialist). He told me that there were other crews in the motel, younger than him and working long days, they were 'entitled to it', his days of hiking and using a tent were behind him, especially as the money was now worse than before. His dog, from the shelter so of unknown origin (Bill said it was a snow dog), sat watching use talk. In the last couple of years he had seen cougars and bears, plus he had been close to wolves.. 'damn government interfering bringng them back, they're dangerous and weid got rid of them'. Bill would appear each time I walked outside for a cigarette, he was no way 'gonna work in the rain'. The next morning, after breakfast with Bill, I headed for Portland, eventually joining the trucks on I84 to make sometime and get buffeted and blown along by the wind, as with Montana it just blew and blew. As I rode up out of Walla Walla it just hit, amazing scenery but focus very much on the road. I found a truck stop about 100 miles from Portland and called it a day, knackered.

A size issue

I was now in Oregan and had been following the Columbia river and at one stop the next morning, not far from Portland, I found this sign,

Those guys fron the navy get everywhere

The valley itself was, again, beautiful,

Columbia River

I got through a busy rush hour in Portland and headed for the coast, eventually reaching a place called Florence for the night. A great few days, wind, rain and sun, lots of amazing scenery and a few interesting characters along the way.

Yachats, Pacific coast, Oregan.

Ready now to plan the next phase of the trip, including where and when to enter Mexico. Many thanks for the comments and support, can't fault those WSM guys, cheers Tone..

House keeping ...

Sat talking with a guy in Glasgow (Montana) who had ridden his RT1200 up from Louisiana to see his new grandson, well that was his excuse for a ride. As he said, ' .. in this country you have to ride 2-3 days to get to decent bike roads'. He told me there was construction on the 'to the sun road' and some doubt they had cleared the top of snow/ice. I figured it was a good enough reason to get into some housekeeping, it was time to take a 'left' and head to Great Falls for a few days, the RT man had just come up from there..

It is amazing riding in North Dakota and Montana, massive views and huge skies. No corners. You get those classic long straights where you can see the road going on for miles, only a few small towns on the way. The exception was Williston which seems to be at the centre of a new oil and gas boom, mostly fracking.

Williston .. it's booming

On a water break at Fort Belknap an old guy came up to ask about the bike, he wanted to me to know I was on a Indian reservation, it was good just to talk and take sometime, one of those 'this is what it's all about moments'.

Fort Belknap Indian Reservation, Casino (one of many in these parts)

The route I was taking to Great Falls seemed to pick up both the Missouri River (catch all those western movies ?) and the path taken by the Lewis and Clark Expedition which was tasked to map this area (https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Lewis_and_Clark_Expedition). By the side of the road you get these signs pointing out historical events, some not as benign as this one.

Maria's River, on the 87

So, into Great Falls and a Motel downtown with secure parking, even a 'proper' coffee house around the corner.

Civilisation

Lots to be done, wanted to sort through all my gear, it was packed in Halifax so was due a review. Clothes washing, exciting heh ? and for the bike a clean and a new back tyre. The Harley 'bikers' can often be seen cleaning and polishing beside the road, this motel knows it's client group, it provides not a car wash area but a 'Bike wash', quality crew them HOGs.

Nothing else to add .. really

I found the local bike dealer (http://www.stevessportscenter.com/index.htm) and went over to see what they had in the way of tyres. They were great but had limited choice, even so we sourced a new back tyre and they cleaned up the back of the bike when they fitted it. We spent sometime in the workshop setting up the drive chain and getting the tyre inflation right to better manage the load I'm carrying, Steve, the owner, was a great help. It seems that man/motorbikist Nick Sanders got re-shod here on his way through during his 'north to south America' record breaking attempt, can't get away from that man. Just riding around town getting things done showed a real improvement in the handling of the bike, will be great to see what it's like when fully loaded again.

Crisp rubber and shiny hub

It's been a really successful stay in Great Falls, spending a few days in one place really helps to get a much better feel for the people and place, as has been the case so far, everyone has been very helpful.

Other news, Michael and I have now gone solo, my decision and I think a good one, we've now got a much better chance of getting 'the' trip we each want. I've updated the blog to reflect this, gone is the sponsored gear and no more 'riders and bikes' just 'rider and bike'. A couple of obvious benefits to riding solo, firstly you can get more involved with people as you go along and secondly, you can wake up and choose to go exactly where you want .... so

Music to listen to, new Daft Punk and Tony's Bonobo et al mix (many thanks Tone)

Elvis, he live in Great Falls.