Marc Lange Outside

Back in Yellowknife, off to Camp

2012-02-11T13:56:00.001-07:00

Heading to Plant Lake in David's truck with him, Coco, and 2 huskies. Back tomorrow..

Pucon

2012-02-04T18:34:00.001-07:00

Arrive in Pucon at midnight from a long bus ride and the city is no where close to shutting down. I expect a small and quiet town but instead find a rather large town that they call GoreTex capital of the Chile if not the world. Too tired to partake tonight my hike up the local volcano is at 6 am tomorrow.

This hole up the mountain is exhausting but spectacular. I'll assemble pictures shortly but I have a blast sliding back down the glacier on my ass with a small toboggan.

The next day relaxing at the 20 or so hot bath that forms the Termas Geomatricas.

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Off to Santiago now to try again at a far rental and check out some of the wines in the valley and then head to the ocean. Vacation ends soon :-(

Puero Varas and the Alamo Car Rental for He'll

2012-02-04T17:50:00.001-07:00

Landed in Puerto Montt to find that a car reservation with Alamos means nothing. Email information means nothing. No cars here, no cars there, suck it up butter cup.

Cab it to Purto Varas and stay for 3 days and 2 night in the spectacular The Guest House (http://www.vicki-johnson.com/guesthouse/location/) where Petar, one of the guest house staff provides no end of advise on things to see and do, and even offers to find me a job in Chile if I need it. I've made a friend and would recommend this place to anyone.

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Bike to the small town of Frutillar to stretch my muscles from 5 days of hiking. Then work out the paddle strokes in a kayak in a nearby fjord a few hour drive nearby. On the last day I rent a car and circle Lago Llanquihue including a sighting of a volcano.

Back to Civilization, Puerto Natales

2012-02-04T17:37:00.001-07:00

Niki and I return to the awesome Hostel Amerindia to relax and get full of food and booze with several new friends we met on the trail.

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Torres del Paine, French Valley

2012-02-04T17:31:00.001-07:00

Hiked some 5 hours or so to the next camp, Los Cuernos.

On the way I hear: "Marc? Are you Marc Lange?" after passing a couple of people. Thats what Mike said to me. Mike from Inuvik who works for the NWT Water Board had just recognized me while on a one year off stint with his wife. Too much coincidence.

Moved onto Los Cuernos
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Torres del Paine, Torres Peaks

2012-01-30T11:55:00.001-07:00

The next day, hiked into the Torres mirador and the sight of these three massive rock faces just stuns you (5hr return trip).

They are: Torre Sur, Central, and Norte.

I took many pics but I also took a time lapse as well while the camera was on a tripod. I'll assemble the 400 shots or so into a collage of stills and animate it as a movie. It was typical mountain weather when I shot: rain, sun, clouds, high winds.

Every five seconds the mountains seemed to change so I'm curious to see how all these shots sewed together will look. Returned to Chileno for a sleep.

&llz=-50.94320,-72.95019

Torres del Paine, Chilano

2012-01-30T11:50:00.001-07:00

From Puerto Natales, three hour drive through gently sloping hills and dry river valleys. Reminds of Montana.

The mountains around which I'll hike rise out of these gentle hills like they were just plopped there. It's a partially cloudy day today and the sun rays and shadows playing off the mountain sides is just beautiful.

The last hour drive into the park is on a rough dirt road. The hills around us are covered in low bushes; chaparral or sage brush perhaps. Between these interspersed bushes there is brown grey clay or coarse sand, and on some of that earth there grows patchy yellow grasses. Where there is more moisture, the grass turns green, some of it is tipped by a light red or pink top.

An arid landscape, and looks like its grazed by sheep quite a bit as the grasses are cut short down to their base.

Hiked in from the end of the road past base Hosteria Las Torres and into the second camp called Alberge y camping Chilano. It's about hour and a half hike into Chilano a very well used trail.
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The Trail is 4 feet wide and trampled by some 120,000 people/year. It's easy hiking though somewhat steep here and there. Gained just 300m (900 ft) of elevation over a few kilometers. It's nice to be moving around now after sitting in planes and buses for several days.

Torres del Paine, Patagonia

2012-01-25T07:41:00.001-07:00

After many frustrations, booked on a hike in Torres del Paine Natl Park. Heading for a 5 day hike. Hope to get some nice shots of the area. Stay tuned, back on Feb 29 late night.

&llz=-51.72733,-72.50951

Estrecho de Magallan

2012-01-24T14:36:00.001-07:00

Landed in Punta Arenas. I've heard of the Strait of Magellan but didn't even know it was in Chile. Silly me. I'd like to sail here one say.

Very cold here, blowing hard wind, I'm almost at the direct opposite of my home in terms of latitude, on the opposite hemisphere. But it's sunny and I don't have to wear a parka....yet.

Heading to Torres del Paine to hike. Taking a bus there. But on my way to the bus station in a cab, WHAM, I get into a car accident.

The cab I was in rear-ends another car at about 25 km/hr. Bends bumpers and hoods, we r shook up but everyone is fine.

In the bus now, on 3 hr ride to the base of the park.

&llz=-53.15818,-70.90866

Switching a Sailboat for a Backpack?

2012-01-23T12:25:00.001-07:00

Landed in Santiago, Chile after a redeye flight. Reservations with the hotel apparently weren't fully confirmed so have to improved and finid another. The Diego de Almagro (www.dahoteles.com) Im in now I wouldn't recommend to anyone, though the staff are very friendly.

I haven't gotten a feel for the country yet, but am excited todo so shortly. So far, if you judge a country by how strongly you are swarmed at the airport by various taxi, hotels, food vendors, etc, this place ranks pretty high in that you are offered options but nno one harasses you. In facct the few folks I spoke with were as interested in chattinig me up than selling. The airport is darn well organized and I wait no time at all to be wisked in one of many new private buses that take me straight to my hotel.

&llz=-33.42398,-70.61803

Diving at the Indians

2012-01-23T11:52:00.001-07:00

Took in a dive this morning off The Indians. Stayed shallow at around 45 feets and so seemed to have air in my tanks forever. After an hour i surfaced because I was cold. Saw my first turtle and lobster underwater. Lots of turtle in the Caribbeans, but ive just seen them surface and then swim back down again The turtle i saw while diving was a little shy. She stayed on the bottom just looking around her. It was like she was purposely avoiding eye contact with me. They look a little bit like Mr Maggoo sea turtles do. Somewhat absent minded looking but always with an unchanging grin on their beak.

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More Shark

2012-01-23T11:47:00.001-07:00

Snorkeled off the tip of Norman Island island this evening. Steep drop offs with coldwater upwelling from the offshore. It's like being in an aquarium there are so many fish, soft corals, and anemone. I spotted a spotted eagle ray wih it's long long tail. The tail must have been 4 feet long, 2 to 3 times the length o it's body. It was casually swimming under me, and stopped to graze on some sea grass. I thought I would dive down the 20 feet or so to gt a better look, by when I was just a few feed from it, it became exceedingly curious with me, making a large circle and coming up to meet me. I quickly pushed off before it made contact wih me, and it turned away just at the last moment.

Before the ray, I was swimming off a particularly deep drop off, could barely see the bottom. The water was cloudy from the breaking surf nearby stirring up the water column. Large groupers were staying away from me. They looked delicious, but apparently spear fishing is not allowed in the BVI. Out of the corner of my eye a large fish emerges from ahead of me. Slowly coming into view, gliding. Past me, eventually only about 25 feet away. THis one was around 6 feet in length and looked very much like a reef shark. He didn't even pretend to notice me.

I didn't make noise in my snorkel this time, but my throat was very dry, and I swam of pretty quickly all he while looking behind me regularly.

I've been incredibly lucky to see so many sharks on this trip!

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Third Exam Results - Pass

2012-01-23T11:29:00.001-07:00

Back on Toortola, on the west end. Level three done while resting at Soper's Hole, enjoying the large 'city' and more rum drinks. Course seems to take morning to night, very hard to find time to write at all :-(

Im a certified sailor now. Played 'Im on a Boat' by The Lonely Islands on repeat, laughing http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=XRUczpDcVQM&feature=youtube_gdata_player

&llz=18.38729,-64.70048

Sandy White Beach

2012-01-23T11:21:00.001-07:00

Slow day exploring and sitting in a beach, tight anchorage, but the drinks at the local bar more then reward the 2 or 3 re-anchoring we had to do because of slippery hard packed sand bottom.

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Long sail to Jost Van Dyke

2012-01-23T11:16:00.001-07:00

Six hours of sailing in high winds. Tired when we arrive at our moorage. It's dark, when sailing in and set the anchor. After setting the anchor and reversing on it hard to make sure it's set, I dive the anchor with Hunter to check how well it's set.

Hunter gets his mask and flashlight on and dives in first. He doesn't know that I'll be following, forgot to tell him. So as I swim up to his flirting underwater beam of light, searching for the anchor, I decide to hang back a fair distance in the dark, wait until he surfaces, and then warn him verbally that I'm approaching.

I ask if the anchor is set. He hands me the light and tells me to see for myself. I dive down the 25 feet or so but haven't taken a deep enough breadth to shake the anchor properly so I come back up for air. Hunter dives backs without the light while I take my breadth. I'm looking around at the bioluminescence around me and the small reflective juvenile fish grouping into loose bait balls when I got distracted by a pair of yellow eyes to my left.

A big fish indeed as it enters my field of view and the beam from my flashlight. By the time i see it fully its at about 4 feet and bigger than the big barracuda I saw earlier. Then I noticed its deeply forked tail fin, and it's prominent dorsal fin, and then my lower brain registers, and my snorkel filled mouth screams "SHARK, SHARK, SHARK" but all that comes out is a panicked "MMMMMMMMMM".

Hunter hears my muffled calls, turns, and surfaces immediately. In the time the shark makes 2 or 3 passes at me, diverting sharply toward me in what looks like a sharp but short feigned charge. I figure well after the fact I probably scared the crap out of this reef shark as much as he scared me, and he was just defensively freaking out. At the time it looked like more aggressive approaches. When Hunter surfaces I try to calmly inform him that there is a shark in the water and that he should approach me directly and swim calmly to the boat with me while I keep watch underwater. The shark swims away casually but in my mind he's just doing so to regroup with his ten other buddies to ambush us.

We make it out of the water safely and spend the rest of the evening sipping rum and watching sharks, barracuda, and Tarpon some 5 feet long swimming by the mast floodlight we have aimed in the water.

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Anegada

2012-01-16T06:21:00.001-07:00

Crossed the straight on to Anegada Island. Anegada is 12 miles out from the rest of the islands and has negligible elevation, its just a massive 20 mile long coral head, so you cant see where to go, so had to navigate there with nothing but a map, compass, and parallel rules (a sliding ruler). Use dead-reckoning (heading up on an educated hunch), 3 point-fixes (sightings to 3 features and plotting these on a map), and back-bearing (to confirm your heading) to navigate. GPS were not allowed.

The exercise was overwhelmingly complex for a first timer, going below decks to make measurements as the boat is healing on its side, with all hatches closed made for difficult mental exercises at 40 degrees Celcius. I was high on anti-nausea meds and red bull, the med's sided-effects was extreme fatigue and the latter perked me up. I was quite pleased with the results: a sweaty, groggy yet highly alert navigator. I made coutless mistakes; flying sliding ruler, measuring true bearings instead of magnetic ones, not holding to the table sending me slipping against the sweaty nav table snapping my pencil lead, confusion about the objects i intended to measure and what they look on the map.

It was really neat exercise to do, I need to repeat it several more times to feel comfortable, but damn I prefer my GPS.

Fresh lobster dinner cooked on charcoal grill, melted butter, and bushwhackers for drinks. Second sailing exam passed, one more to go!

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Docking Procedures

2012-01-16T06:19:00.001-07:00

On a boat weighing several tons is pretty interesting. Wind whips it around, and momentum takes it well past your intended point. After lots of practice, had dinner at Leverick Bay resort for a cocoa crusted rib-eye steak.

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The Baths

2012-01-14T15:50:00.001-07:00

Swimming and hiking amongst the jumbled building-sized boulders that is "The Baths" formation. Crawling on all fours, squeezing between boulders, or climbing on top of them.

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Baitfish and Breakfast

2012-01-11T18:37:00.001-07:00

Little bait fish are leaping for their lives this morning. Darting in the water or leaping clear out of the water escaping a predator below. A tarpon was chasing it, a big 30 lbs monster. From above, a pelican and another ocean bird attacking the bait ball.

Eating breakfast, strawberries and banana`s on French toast. Eating in the open air, there is always a stiff breeze making it so much cooler than sitting at dock like yesterday.

The swim this morning to retrieve a towel lost to the blowing breeze was unsuccessful. Too deep for me to equalize my ears before i ran out of air. But the swim was beautiful and got rid of my hangover. Come to think of it, i didn't even gasp as i usually do when leaping in the water. The water is warmer than the air in the morning down here. Water is about 25C.

Last night was at the Bomba shack for a few cocktails. Its a floating bar, and fun enough, met a few local sailors. A few of the patrons chose to drink topless, and some yet were just plain naked. I have to admit those patrons were the good looking ones, but still strange to be in a bar with everyone dressed but a few nutters.

Yesterday sailing day was awesome. My instructor, Hunter, is a guy from the states, and he's good at what he does. He explains enough so that you know the concept and then leaves you plenty of space to experiment, try it on your own, and make mistakes as a way to learn hands on.

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On an Island

2012-01-09T18:21:00.001-07:00

Landed on Tortola Island in BVI, bought supplies, checked into a 33ft Bavaria monohull with two cabins, received groceries and booze, swimming in 75F ocean water, shower, margaritas and fish tacos, now bed. So tired, 2 nights with only 5 hours of sleep.
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Early in Miami

2012-01-09T02:39:00.001-07:00

Up at 4am in Miami to catch a flight to the islands where virgins and sailboats swim together.
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The First Margarita

2012-01-08T14:12:00.001-07:00

Craving first margarita in Dallas airport. &llz=32.89932,-97.04428

Sailing Away

2012-01-08T09:02:00.001-07:00

There are some things I've always known I liked.

I don't remember when I starting liking fishing, I was too young when I fell in love with it. Before I was ten I knew I loved hunting but it wasent until my late twenties that I had enough wherewithall to create the opportunity to do it.

In my early teens I fell in love with motorbiking and bike touring but only woke up in my mid thirties to the fact I had to make it happen for myself, and have bought a motorbike and toured here and there. Boating cruising, and sailing is another one. I'm making that happen now.

In the airport right now. On my way to the British Virgin Islands, to board a 33ft Bavaria sailboat. Ten days of learning to sail, and a nice break from winter in Yellowknife.

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Weaponized Snowmobile Ride

2011-12-17T08:05:00.001-07:00

Nice morning, -18C, I'll go see if I can take a picture of a moose from really, really close up, for the next two days. Don't know where I'll sleep yet, bivouac?
Sent wirelessly from my BlackBerry device on the Bell network.
Envoyé sans fil par mon terminal mobile BlackBerry sur le réseau de Bell.

Back in YK

2011-09-17T19:04:00.001-06:00

Fun camping, one grouse, one pike, 2 happy dogs, and 2 exhausted and
happy kids.

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2011-09-16T20:35:00.001-06:00

Arrived @ plant lk safe n sound

Duck2

2011-09-02T12:57:00.001-06:00

Here for the night
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Geese Honking

2011-09-01T21:29:00.001-06:00

Parked here for lunch, setting decoys tonight down the bay. Geese were
honking just a few minutes ago, but couldn't spot them.

Its too early. Ducks aren't really moving yet, so they aren't landing
in my decoys. I'm paddling around in the canoe instead of staying put
because the mosquitos would devour me otherwise.

Yep its too early.

&llz=62.34766,-114.64981

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Duckee?

2011-09-01T11:33:00.001-06:00

Leaving Yellowknife by boat, heading to northarm of GSL for some solo hunting.

Maybe there is nothing out there, maybe there is a duck or two, maybe
there is a moose, regardless there will be lots of outdoors

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Ice cream Breakfast

2011-08-26T13:18:00.001-06:00

Breakfast of goats milk ice cream, fresh coffee, and a sampling of
dozens of locally made cheeses at Saltspring Island Cheese shop

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Saltspring

2011-08-25T23:23:00.001-06:00

Sleeping under the stars on Saltspring island
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Lazy paddles and Sea Lions

2011-08-25T12:19:00.001-06:00

Heading out today for anothert lazy day of paddling toward a sea lion
colony. Today instead of burning hot sun is a low fog. A nice break
and better for photography. Paddle to a sea lion haul out and get
barked and honked at for a half hour while I take pictures. What
humongous animals. Again I think of how freaked out zoe would be of
being a few feet from these curious yet cautious beast weighing
hundreds of pounds more than her daddy. Stop for a lunch of crap I
caught that morning while setting off with the kayak. Pinned them with
my paddled while I gingerly tried to grab them from behind. Claws
arching back to give me what I deserve, thankful for imposable thumbs
and a large rock to brain them with. Found mussels along the way as
big as my fist. Only need 5 of those to fill me up for lunch.
&llz=48.88314,-125.37974
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Pancakes and Crab

2011-08-25T12:18:00.001-06:00

Late morning start, everyone had cleared their camp before I got up to
make pancakes. The beach is quiet and calm, high tide, 11am :-). Boats
are moored up ahead in the narrow bay. I dream of one day owning one
of these boats, but I'm grateful for the simplicity of sitting on the
sand, flipping pancakes before setting off on a self-propelled boat.
All I can think of this morning is how much I want to bring Zoe here.
I want her to smell the ocean. I want her to see the bioluminescense
as we walk in the water at night. I want her to see the hermit craps
fight for a scrap of my dishwater. I want her to pick mussels for
dinner with me, or chase a crap for a late lunch. I want her to see a
porpoise swim by the kayak, its rapid and deep exhale-and-inhale, to
see a huge sealion pop up and skiddadle in fear: all these from the
'safety' of a kayak that sits 2 inches above water. Next year I'll
show her all this. The look on her face will be precious.

We head to Clark Island to find great sandy beach camping but
backtrack to Turret Island for a curry salmon stew.

&llz=48.90366,-125.34898

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Leaving Port Albernie from Yellowknife

2011-08-25T12:17:00.001-06:00

It was a late day yesterday before arriving on the coast, with a
flight from Yellowknife at 1pm, followed by a series of plane changes,
ferries, car rentals, and drives to a Port Albernie hotel by 1am.

Morning now. Man the smell of the ocean, I just can't get enough of
it. On the ferry now to Sechart lodge from Port Albernie, 3hours of
calm sailing, then picking up kayaks.

Just after leaving dock on the ferry, a flotilla of sport fisherman
and their boats. I mean about a thousand small boats in a fjord about
300 meters wide. The ferry had to swerve and wind around all these
little boats, boats all mostly bigger than my little 21 foot Monaro
(big by my standard, but small by ferry standard). These fisherman
were all fishing for chinook salmon, most waving at us as we went by,
other reaching into their coolers and proudly lifting their catch for
passengers to ooo, and aaaa. I certainly "oooooo'ed" Hell I'm coming
back here next year.

Saw a grey whale on the ferry. I was kind of numb on the ferry. After
a few weeks of being excited, I was finally here and on the trip, yet
somewhat numb. Here but not really immersed. I'm use to this by now. I
know the excitement of every moment will return shortly.

The ferry dropped us off at Sechart lodge, on its way further north
west. Kayaks were waiting for us, got in after some breif "holy shit
we have too much stuff" re-organizing, then got under way to Hand
Island for a late lunch. I was tired and on auto pilot at that point,
but I'm glad Niki egged me on to keep going to Dodd island a few more
hours away. I got a second wind, it finally found my groove of
excitement again. Now every shoreline seemed to brim with life: sea
stars, mussel clinging to wave-washed rocks, harp seals coming in to
check me out, and the smell. The rich smell of the ocean.

&llz=48.91806,-125.32986

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Kayaking in Broken Group Islands, Pacific Rim Natl Park

2011-08-18T13:41:00.001-06:00

Well I'm all packed now and boarded the plane. I think I've got
everything. By tonight I should be in Port Albernie on the BC coast,
and tomorro in the Pacific Rim National Park Reserve. Can't wait to
smell the ocean &llz=48.90072,-125.33415

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SMS from 881631565197@msg.iridium.com

2011-07-29T22:27:00.001-06:00

Quiet Cove 4 fuel & 2 n8ts &llz=62.33331,-111.88666

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2011-07-29T22:24:00.001-06:00

Tripple trout headers @ Shelter Bay, but no quads. &llz=62.81335,-110.52104

SMS from 881631565197@msg.iridium.com

2011-07-28T16:45:00.001-06:00

Running the Waldron river in life jackets &llz=62.93776,-110.57728

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2011-07-27T23:18:00.001-06:00

&llz=62.94758,-110.30607

SMS from 881631565197@msg.iridium.com

2011-07-27T23:15:00.001-06:00

Stopped 2 visit the Olsen's in their wonderfull homestead &llz=62.86221,-109.27081

SMS from 881631565197@msg.iridium.com

2011-07-27T23:10:00.001-06:00

3am wind storm had 2 move boat b4 anchor lifted. sleepless night. thx 2 niki 4 zoe care &llz=62.79023,-108.94059

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2011-07-26T20:51:00.001-06:00

Camping on beach @ Lochart river &llz=62.78970,-108.94053

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2011-07-26T17:34:00.001-06:00

Final resting place & colourfull grave markers &llz=62.78874,-108.93359

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2011-07-26T17:28:00.001-06:00

Visited Back's final camp b4 arctic ocean &llz=62.78509,-108.93329

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2011-07-23T18:33:00.001-06:00

Safe, in a turquoise sea awaiting our pals &llz=62.94801,-110.30679

On the Way

2011-07-23T07:28:00.001-06:00

On the way down the bay now, last cellular signal. Got up on plane
easily, but still several hundred pound shy until Sunday when three
float plane passengers join us.

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The End of the Lake

2011-07-23T03:12:00.001-06:00

Off to the end of the lake tomorrow; 400km away, 800 return.

Loaded boat with every spare part, propellers, bolts, nuts, saws,
axes, tents, fishing rods, an 8 years old daughter, a few friends, and
well over 2000 liters of fuel between two boats.

We have everything to build a small city and survive a while. Yet I
can't help but be tossing and turning in bed right now, worrying about
that wobble on the engine I thought I heard the other day, or the
hesitation at startup I thought I picked up, or whether my weight
calculations are off and my boat won't lift up into an efficient
plane, or if I'm carrying enough satellite phone batteries, and
whether 7 shotgun slugs is enough to stop 4 simultaneous bear attacks
against my daughter.

Yes this is a familiar moment on a big trip in the wilderness, 400km
from the nearest major town. This is where I play back every
conceivable scenario in my mind and whether I'm prepared to weather
them.

The thing is I was just about to slumber off to sleep when all of a
sudden I woke up wondering if there was 208 liters in a fuel drum or
408 liters and whether my fuel calculations were accurate. And before
I could answer my own question (its 208 Lt btw) I was re calculating
my weight limits, and before I finished re calculating that in my head
I was counting the pairs of underwear I packed my daughter and her
inventory of warm clothes.

When the calculations and scenarios in my mind start piling on top of
each other, the same calculations and scenarios that I've already
conceived and answered before, I know I'm just spinning my wheels and
need to just shut my mind down. But that, for some reason, is a rather
difficult thing to do.

At any rate, here I am. Heading off toward the very end of the lake
tomorrow, Reliance is what the place is called on Great Slave Lake.
I'll try to post a message and location once is a while. I'll post
every day, so Zoe's mom doesn't worry.

I've been out there in the dead of winter on my snow machine. 6 feet
of ice and darkness is pretty different than what I expect to see now,
with 20 hours of daylight, deep turquoise water, and more than enough
fish to feed ourselves.

I think I have everything figured out and packed, even though I doubt myself.

The one thing I actually have to work hard at doing is stop, several
times a day, and take a picture of something meaningful to me. I have
to take the time to watch Zoe laugh and play, and to be present in the
moment.

Its hard sometimes to take the time to do these things when operating
a boat, listening for early signs of problems in the purr of the
engines, avoiding rocks in uncharted waters, scanning my instruments
from depth finder, fuel flow meter, radar, charts, gps, rocks up
ahead, then back to scanning depth finder....

But when ever I take the time to notice and just be present, I'm
always rewarded.

See ya on the water.

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East Arm Great Slave Lake

2011-06-30T12:04:00.002-06:00

Safe, calm sailing last night. thick fog needed radar the whole way. now sunny & clear &llz=61.91861,-113.09727

Off to East Arm of GSL

2011-06-29T20:36:00.001-06:00

Thr day remains thick with fog, rainy, but the lake is glass calm.
Calm water is perfect for setting out for a long weekend on the lake.
Happy Canada day yall.

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Hey buddy, you want a fish?

2011-06-23T08:42:00.001-06:00

11:30 PM last night, went for a ride on the motorbike down Ingraham Trail.

Stopped on the shore of the lake to catch the last bit of the sun set.

Four newfies were at the dock yacking it up and fishing. One of them
yells: "Hey Buddy! You want a fish?" What they thought was a whitefish
turned out to be an 8lbs Inconnue they tried to release but died from
exhaustion.
Couldn't have been happier if they gave me cash. After chatting it up
a bit more I strapped the fish carcass on my back seat and drove off.

Never had a fish ride bitch with me.

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Big River Break Up Is On

2011-05-13T23:16:00.004-06:00

Safe on shore of MacKenzie River
♫♪♪
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Mackenzie River Breakup

2011-05-13T17:55:00.001-06:00

Heading to the mighty Mackenzie River this weekend to watch the
jumbled mess of ice fragments make their way down the river and toward
the arctic ocean. If I'm lucky, I may be able to pluck a giant ice
cube for my gin and tonic.

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SMS from 881631565197@msg.iridium.com

2011-03-26T10:31:00.001-06:00

At Plant Lk camp w bacon :)

Arequipa airport heading to Lima

2011-02-23T15:13:00.001-07:00

Checked in luggage, went through security, where I was asked to please
not take out my computer or my liquids and gels from my bag, but where
my belt that never ever beeps at airport scanners beeped incessantly.

&llz=-16.34491,-71.56769

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Motor Tour Over - Safe in Arequipa

2011-02-23T15:08:00.001-07:00

Feb 22
Arrived in Arequipa 10:30 am after a nice early morning ride.

Staying at Hotel LaGruta, napping and processing pictures all day :-)

&llz=-16.38774,-71.53007

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Titicaca and Canon del Colca

2011-02-23T15:05:00.000-07:00

Visited the Capachuca Peninsula, driving through Reserva Nacional
Titicaca. The road was a slick and buttery clay and it made it fun to
navigate. The part of the peninsula I saw was pretty cool in that just
100km from the big town of Puno, and still on the shoreline of
Titicaca, I felt again like truly authentic small community Peru.

Both men and women's clothing were like something you would see in a
museum; colourful, and ornate. And that was everyday wear. I didn't
spend much time there unfortunately, had to start heading back south
to Chivay and the Canon del Colca, but this is a place I would
recommend if you want to be off the beaten path.

Driving south was a nice pleasant road, one part cresting at high
altitude with rain and again a drop in temperature nearing zero. But
that was nothing compared to heading into Chivay and the Canyon del
Colca area when the road crested at 4,900 meters (14,700 ft) where
steady rain turned into thick fog, hail, snow, and the temperature
dropped to -2C. For the worst part of the road, there was even snow
accumulation in the form of slush on the road.

Made it safely to hotel/spa Colca Tradicion

&llz=-15.65194,-71.65518

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Slow Day in Puno

2011-02-20T05:08:00.006-07:00

Slow, relaxing day in Puno. After the long and freezing previous day, I was not inspired at all to hop on a barge/ferry for 6 am and tour a part of Lake Titicaca. I just needed rest. And besides, I was processing with discomfort a fried trout and raw veggies from a small town the previous day. Besides, the tour of the lake is known to be painfully formulaic and repetitive. I just wasn't up to that when I so needed to rest.

So instead the day was spent exploring a few blocks around the hotel, then back for a nap, and repeating two or three times until nighttime. At one point, I woke up because the building and windows were shaking, and there was a repetitive pounding, wailing, screeching, and yelling, with a background of a melody. In my state of semi-sleep I thought it was 100 elephants battling 100 gorillas, but it turned out to be a klezmer-like (sp?) Peruvian marching band followed by a mob waving flags and placards in support of a particular presidential candidate (elections are soon).

As a Canadian, to see such excitement and noise associated with an election is, well, scary...though I should find it inspiring. Elections in Canada are painful and not engaging. To throw a street party during such moments would at least spice things up a bit. I'll propose it to whomever will listen as soon as I land in Canada. But I'll only mention it once before I get apathetic so listen carefully when I do. There is a Peninsula north of Puno (Peninsula Capachica), doted with small villages, that is rumored to be the quieter Lake Titicaca experience I'm trying to find. Tomorrow, after these torrential rains will be a better day for that.

Unfortunately tomorrow is now today, and its still pouring rain outside. Gotta get going, we are running out of time to make it back to Arequipa and then home. So riding in the rain it is then.

&llz=-15.83989,-70.02721

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A Raining and Cold Day to Puno and Lago Titicaca

2011-02-20T04:35:00.002-07:00

Feb 18

Left at a reasonable 9am this morning and started riding toward Puno. It was a full day of riding today, didn't pull into Puno till 7PM, exhausted, frozen, and soaked on the outside only thank you. After riding for hours in the rain, when I finally but my hands down from the handlebars, rain that had accumulated all along my arms and just outside my sleeves filled my toasty-warm gloves with cold water. I mean, filled every single finger slot with water, to about the second knuckle.

DAMN IT!!!

The ride to Puno was nevertheless good, following river valleys and farm lands sheltered on either side by huge mountains chains. Then it was a gentle climb to the highest elevation at roughly 13,000ft, 2C, and continuous rain, and the ever so slight descent toward Lake Titicaca.

I noticed an oil leak on my bike, probably from a hit to the oil belly pan by a freak rock, or from connecting with a step while coming out of the hotel in Cuzco. Anyway, it was amusing miming the need for motorcycle engine oil at a small town garage. They had what I needed.

Then I drove what I would nickname "The Road of Bones - Peru style". Of course its nothing like the real road of bones in Russia. But it looked like the road had suffered repetitive airborne attacks. Like from large caliber machinegun fire. It just seemed impossible for vehicular traffic to have cause this assault. The pot holes weren't limited to the two wheel strip of the road, they were everywhere, right, left, middle. And some of the holes were big enough to swallow a bike tire, if the tire wasn't going fast enough to sail through as I did. When the road crew came around to fix some sections, they filled each hole with dirt until they were overflowing and convex, little mountains sticking out, making the road just as rough as before but for the opposite reason. Being a one pony show kind a guy, I still used the same tactic to negotiate the bumps; high speeds standing on foot pegs.

Weeeeeeee

Pulling into and driving through the town Juliaca was something I'll likely not forget soon. And in case I do, I'll have to ride through it again to head towards Araquipa to finish my trip. In not so many works the Lonely Planet recommends just doing your business and driving through the Juliaca, not spending any time in this armpit of a town. Arm pit doesn't even begin to describe this town. The streets are broken, mostly mud, and tire swallowing potholes. The driving is completely insane. At this point I don't even think I've mentioned what driving on a motorcycle through Peruvian town is like, but let me tell you it is not for the faint of heart. My mother would not want to see the conditions I drive in, nor the behaviors I've evolved to survive. But I was not truly prepared from all that driving in regular Peruvian town, for what Juliaca threw at me.

Roundabouts were a concentration and melting pot for chaos. On a bike you get a feel for close encounters, and those encounters that are too close. As such, you have a sense of when a close encounter is ABOUT to become too close. And as those moments transform into 'too close', you also have a sense of whether the surrounding drivers will help the situation or whether you are the only one who will rectify the problem. In Juliaca, all situations evolved to 'too close', and none of the surrounding drivers aided the situation, EVER. It got too close all the time, and only what I did to bolt away or slam on brakes prevented a collision. It was like I was riding through a pack of unconscious but starving zombies and I was the only one wishing to remain alive. It got so intense, it felt like time was slowing down, and then I started noticing that I was the aggressor! I was weaving, I was honking and nudging traffic away from me, stopping at red lights only to run through them (as everyone else does), riding through deep mud and water holes to the side of the road to pass a slow truck. I was driving like everyone else, to stay alive. For all the madness, when I got to the other side of town, I was in a state of shock, but it was brilliantly exciting at the same time too.

Hotel chasing finally got us to Hotel Las Hacienda.

&llz=-15.83989,-70.02721

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Ridding to Machu Pichu

2011-02-19T18:06:00.004-07:00

Feb 17

My alarm went off at 4am. I started dressing in my garb. Its dark outside, sunrise in an hour or so. At least it wasn't raining outside. It was nice to have a rest from the road yesterday. My bum has rested, my shoulder muscles are feeling better, my sunburns and wind burns are settling. But now I am just aching to get on the road again.

This gentle soul of a Peruvian, who doesn't speak English, is minding the front desk. He helps me open up the doors, he stands close by as I wheel my bike around in the lobby. I mime that I would like him to keep an eye out on the street cause I'm about to ride down a few stairs to the street and can't stop when I get going. He signals ok, I give 'er and make it fine, load up the luggage bags and now I'm huffing and puffing from the low oxygen at altitude and heavy clothing.

Hotel guy and I chat back and forth, combination of mimes and one-word questions and answers. He wishes me safe travel, I shake his hand. We talk about cities in Peru a bit, I invite him to Canada, then he shakes my hand again. Yep it was a two hand-shake goodbye with a stranger. I would have wanted to talk to him a little longer. Off I go to my friend's hotel to help move her bike out of the lobby.

5am or so and we hit the road. When you can get over the shock of getting up, early mornings are awesome. Early mornings on the road are even more special. I get butterflies of excitement and anticipation in my belly when its time to peel out.

Salt Mines

The smells are always fresh and sharp after a night's rain, you can pick up the wet and woolly smell of llamas and donkeys. A previously cocky rooster runs petrified his wings splayed out in terror as I rumble by on a small rural road. School kids are walking out of farm fields and up to the road to catch their bus. I pass several Toyota minivans spewing black diesel exhaust; the local school buses. Sun rays poke out of the thick low and gray cloud cover, lighting up half of a green hillside and part of the twisting road up ahead.

Is everyone around me smiling or is it just me?

I've climbed up quite a bit in altitude again and I'm right cold now and need to add a layer, upgrade gloves, and share half an energy bar with my friend. Riding through some towns now whose homes are mostly built from red mud bricks. Makes sense really because the earth has now changed colour for the last 30 minutes of riding. Its now red instead of brown, and looks greasy like a clay. I see locals shoveling the stuff in wheelbarrows, and later on I see fresh red bricks laying about drying. I've missed seeing the molds and someone loading them. The completed homes fit so nicely within the background of green pasture and exposed red soils.

Pulled into Ollantaytambo, one of the last towns and train stops before reaching Machu Pichu. The town is pretty small and cozy. Like all other town with more than 30 buildings, there is a Plaza de Armas, the place where everyone comes to gather. I find the hostal recommended by Lonely Planet just fine and get a room for the night. Park bike and change of clothing, catch a breakfast. Catch the train, the only way into the town Aguas Caliente which is at the base of the mountain peeks that nestle the ancient village/fortress that is Machu Pichu. Trains, buses, entrance fees, food, etc can set you back a tad, be prepared to part with about $200USD to make this side trek.

Chocolate-milk river along railroad to Machu Pichu

Machu was quite beautiful. There is so much history in this place between the native Inca's and the Spaniards, as well as the story of how 'the lost city' was discovered. There is also lots to learn about the advanced architecture, irrigation, land use planning, agriculture, and military strategy of the Inca's as well. The sights are fantastic too. Having said this, I would not recommend coming to Peru just to see Machu Pichu, as the folks sitting behind me in the bus were doing. Unless ancient civilizations is your idea of porno. The stuff I've seen along the way, scenes and people, are just as fascinating if not more so. Nonetheless my day was awesome. Mostly for the combination of the morning ride, the relaxing train and bus trip, the hike around beautiful Machu Pichu, picture taking, mega downhill hike back to the village, a visit to a butterfly conservatory, and an exhausted sleep in the pretty little KB Tamba Hostal.

Night night

&llz=-13.25817,-72.26448

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Cuzco eez goooood, si?

2011-02-16T20:34:00.004-07:00

Woke from a good sleep, and then it started a downpour. So riding in the rain to Machu Pichu is off for today, visiting Cuzco is on. Walking the streets of this city I'm like a kid in a candy store. Everything is new to me, even the old and decrepit, I'm taking lots of pics today. Second breakfast now at Cicciolina for toasted bagel with an assortment of: cream cheese with savory, smoked trout, marinated red onions, and guacamole. Mochachino on the side. Damn! Server was giving me a 'strange gringo' look when I started taking pics of the coffee and food. I'll want to taste it again later, and pictures are the next best thing. You can find this highly recommended resto on Triumfo Street 365.

Went to motorcycle street to buy another spare inner tube for a rear tire, since we used our spare previously on a flat. It was awesome, the whole street dedicated to bikes and hardware. They had everything I asked for and more. Then followed that up to Toyota street (these names are mine) to see if I could find an electrical harness for my Toyota back home. They actually understood what I was asking for, thanks to a drawing and ipod translator; unfortunately they don't have the part.

Then went to the Cuzco Municipal Market. Wow.

Whole chickens hanging by there feet, rows and stands of fresh fruit and all sorts of merchandise like clothing and textile. I was the only tourist there, and the multicolour tarps setup across the market were set at a height

such that I had to walk around with a distinct hunch while everyone else had lots of headroom. Everyone stared, but they were beaming smiles and salutations. I want to live in that market.

The folks at the hotel know I speak better english than spanish, so when I come in, they enthusiastically greet me with 'hymen'; pronounced perfectly. I choose to translate that to 'Hi Man', and respond with 'Buenos diaz'. Haven't had to courage to add - the spanish word himeneo...yet. But it wouldn't be nice to make fun of attempts at trying as best one can to communicate in a foreign language.

Speaking of making fun.

Yesterday at a gas station, a kid sitting atop a local bus yells down some questions at me as I'm consulting my GPS, after telling him I didn't speak spanish and him lobbing a few more questions at me I decided to interpret one of them as "where are you going", and I answered "Cuzco". I just needed to give him an answer. He looked at me like I was an idiot. He was probably asking about my bike and how I liked Peru. In an attempt to see if I would answer any old shit to his specific questions, he started speaking gibberish. Except I know the difference between gibberish and spanish, so I burst out in laughter and answered in kind. He retorted with the same and we had a pleasant and funny conversation in gibberish until his bus had to roll away. Bus roof boys...

Just bought ticketchio's for the train to Machu Pichu, leaving 9am from Ollantaytambo, a 2 hour ride from Cuzco. So I gotta peel outta here at 5am. Sure I could have taken a train or bus from Cuzco and sipped coffee, had a lovely breakfast, and chatted up my train mates. But instead, I chose the other way. I could use a 'chill-out and go it the easy way' influence in my life. But then again, the opportunity to chase curves down the road, apply full brakes to prevent a crash with a wayward donkey, watch the sun rise across farm fields, and change gears five thousand times sounds more exciting. I never tire of the whining engine, the scenes, the people, and the lurking mishap to navigate...at my damn pace.

Buenos noches

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Safe in Cuzco

2011-02-15T18:46:00.003-07:00

Safe in a hotel now (Anden Inco Hotel), motorcycle is stowed in the lobby, ill have to take a picture of that. Luxury place with plenty of hot water.

Pounding headach from breathing exhaust fumes for the last hour in the city.

More later...

(Oh my friend is safe somewhere else in Cuzco too)
&llz=-13.51302,-71.98290
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El Tourista

2011-02-15T13:18:00.003-07:00

The day started at 1am with a case of Tourista that is weakening me quite a bit. Mild fever, frequent pit stops, aches and pains like a flu.

The road however has been more beautiful. Climbed up and up through lush grass and corn crops, and finally into a high plateau covered with a dusting of snow at some 15,000ft elevation. Lots of llamas, and paquas (?)

Lunch at Tampu Mayu Hotel, of fresh rainbow trout for a pond just outside. Now in Abancay, and lost my friend Marie. She was ahead of me before entering the town. I covered the town's mainstrip about 6 times, went back to the last place I lost site of her south of town. Went fully north of town and back again, no trace of her. Not answering emails either so I suspect she's gone onward to Cuzco. I'll do the same to WalkOn Inn in Cuzco and hope for an email soon.

If anyone sees her, please return her :-). She has a spot GPS but still hasn't given me the www site to view it.

&llz=-13.62793,-72.87487

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Climbing to the Clouds - Best Motorcycling Road in the World

2011-02-15T04:59:00.004-07:00

Left ocean earlier today to head inland. Climbed from sea-level, scorching sun and 28C to 13,000ft, pouring rains, and 3C. The roads were fantastic. Clearly built by a drunken engineer who rides bikes on weekends because even seemingly flat landscapes of the plateau were built from one twist to another. There were few straight stretches for several hundred kilometers. It was possible to take the turns quite fast the roads were that good, but you never knew when a transport truck would be negotiating the hairpins in your lane so as to just clear the tail end of its trailer on the opposite late. Hairpins are literally hairpins here, and there were dozens where I had to slow down to first gear to negotiate.

The landscape and vegetation change from the arid coastline to the lush interior mountains was wonderful.

Felt so lucky to be able to ride here.

After a few hours of rain, the mud from landslides and the oil from the centre strip of each lane was making for slippery conditions. My rear tire slid ever so slightly a half dozen times, and my front tire went sideways at least three times. It was getting late so Marie and I decided to pack it in for the night in a small town called Puquio, about one hour shy of where we planned on going. To both of us it feels like we've arrived in genuine small town Peru. The way folks dress (poncho and felt hats), the layout of the towns, and the hills cut-up with a green patchwork of lush crops lends to the look I've only been able to see in pictures.

Dinner of a warm soup with noodles, meat, ginger, spicy salsa, and lemon. Tastes just wonderful and is warming my whole body. Power went out in the whole town, so time for bed I guess?

&llz=-14.69530,-74.12410

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Someone Has Heatstroke?

2011-02-14T09:46:00.003-07:00

Feb 14th

Yay internet is back up on the BB thanks to my good friend Dali who called up T-mobile and resolved a conflict with the data plans.

This morning's 5am hike to the penguin rookery was fantastic. Saw the sunrise on a orange-pink lunar landscape of jumble rocks and steep cliffs with the blue ocean as background. Saw albatross and vultures, but the penguins eluded me.

Drove away toward Nazca but my friend wasn't feeling good when we pulled into town; overly sweaty, nausea, and dizziness. She had to check into a hotel for an hour or so. I'm off to explore Nazca in the sweltering heat covered in overly protective motorcycle armor. My fellow Peruvian riders wear no helmet, only t-shirts, shorts, and flip-flops. That's the way to ride in the heat. Right?

&llz=-14.85162,-74.95836

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Penguins in Peru?

2011-02-14T09:33:00.003-07:00

Feb 13

Slept last night aided with a sleeping pill to help ensure I went down hard and for the whole night. I was so tired that I wasn't able to relax and sleep. Slept uncovered and devoid of anything touching me because it was so hot in the bedroom. I woke up several times throughout the night with the sound of blasting loud TV and a whining puppy but it wasn't bothering me, it was just background sound, sleep was deep and fulesome.

My neck is so burnt, my friend lent me her tube scarf made by Touratec, must buy one. Its made exactly for this purpose, the area between the helmet and the jacket :-)

Breakfast at Barruci Resto for an Americano breakfast: white bread, scrambled eggs, and ham. So far the food in Peru has served only one purpose; to fuel me. I have nothing else to say about it.

Hit the road heading north on Carr Panamericana Sur. Words cannot describe what this stretch of highway looks like, but my friend and I found it beat hands down Hwy1 along the California coast: Hwy 1 is popularly known as the motorcyclist's heaven because of twisties sandwiched between ocean and rock, ups and downs, and beautiful scenery. What I saw today was much the same, but way crazier; insane twisties, gorgeous ocean water, chocolate-milk brown rivers overflowing their banks, sand beds covering the tarmac, massive rock slides with only one open lane in the sharp corners, salt fog patches that coat and grease the helmet visor, tunnels dug through the rock, and of course the wonderfully female smell of the ocean.

On my left the vast Pacific, and on my right I would probably describe simply a wastelands of desert. But this desert is at times smooth white sand, at times mangled red chaotic lunar stones and boulders, and at other

times steeply sloping step plains interspersed with cacti. Ill post pics as soon as I can.

Equipment highlights: Next time, bring goggles for sand and humid sweat, visor otherwise goes mucky with salt spray and humidity. On bike rentals, seats r crap, bring bike shorts!!

Pulled into wonderful Porta Inca, an ocean side resort next to ancient maya ruins. Beer, cerveca, pisco sour, ocean swim, long nap, and dinner of more local fish. This place is awesome, the food is finally good, and I feel like on vacation now and fully rested. Tomorrow morning, 5am, checking out a penguin rookery a 45min hike from here.

&llz=-15.83778,-74.31234

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Volcanoes and Flat Tires

2011-02-14T09:28:00.004-07:00

Feb 12, 2011.

Landed in Arequipa and the air was cool but the sun warm. I had not looked outside while in the plane, so when walking on the tarmac towards the airport, I looked back toward the plane and the three volcanoes nearby just about scared me. They were huge, and snow capped. We were picked up graciously by our host from Peru Motors and setup with two bikes. We spent a good hour or two prepping and talking about roads, safety, sorting luggage, connecting GPS, etc. Pedro, the chief mechanic, is a great guy that spent the whole time with us helping and giving us advice.

On the way out of town we had to do a few u-turns because my GPS was giving me wrong instructions. At one point, I missed a dirt road on-ramp to the highway (who would expect a dirt on-ramp to a highway!!!), and had to u-turn on a busy main road. My friend, who was riding on my right, signaling to turn left was clipped by a cab driver who decided to pass her on her left! The hit was just big enough to teeter her off balance and send the bike tipping on to the ditch. Of course it was my fault she tipped her bike, because I chose to miss the turn and had to take a u-turn in the middle of a busy traffic and missing the turnoff in the first place. At least, that's her version :-)

We righted her bike and I turned it around for her. This is how you iron out bugs when starting a trip; make mistakes, freak out, resolve it, and then the tension washes away. You've had your first incident, not you can relax into the trip. At the airport, hotels, airplanes, and again for lunches in Arequipa, had ham (cold-cut), white bread, and cheese. Was that 5 meals in a row of the stuff? I think those three ingredients form the national peruvian dish.

Heading east to the ocean from Arequipa I come across a set of toll stations. Pedro had warned me that tolls are free for motorbikes. What I failed to understand is that only the far right side tolls are free for bikes, if you go left, even with a bike, its 5 Sole. Even the assistant described that had I been in the other lane it would have been free. I don't know why the issue is about lanes rather than about the motorcycle irrespective of lane but there you have it, I lost 10S for 2 bikes.

As I was following the ocean highway, I drove through a wrong turn again and went straight to the beach side town of La Pampa, instead of staying on the highway. Good thing though as my friend just developed a low pressure problem in her rear tire. I checked it when we stopped and discovered there was a nail embedded in the rubber.

Great!

Luckily we were in a town. At this point we are under sweltering heat, my boots have jungle fever, I'm sweating like a monkey under my armor, and I'm getting impatient. But its no ones fault, flats happen. Found

a mechanic to remove the tire. Turns out the leak is coming from an old patch, and a few inches from it, the nail I saw earlier. Two patches, tire back on rim, still an air leak. Tire back off rim, insert inner tube in tubeless tire, and we are off. Almost 2 hours of work by a mechanic and he charged us 20S, that's about 6.50USD. I

would have paid much more, so we tipped him extra. At this point its way too late in the day, approaching night so we decide stay the night in town. In fact we discover we are stuck. All hotels in town are taken, going forward into darkness is too dangerous, going back the way we came from is not an option, I hate backtracking.

Hotel chasing for an hour, but it felt like six. Last hotel in town finally, and dinner at Pollos Willy, for a quarter chicken and strange pale fries, with a Cusquena beer. Back at hotel, shower with only cold water, but that's ok, because its been so hot outside. Yet every time I'm under the shower head, I gasp for air. Rode with sunscreen on my face today cause I was told the sun is extremely hot at this latitude. I discovered in fact that it is, cause the back of my neck between my jacket collar and helmet is on fire. Red neck.

Bedtime now.

llz=-16.62386,-72.71678

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Safe, but bike & driver problems

2011-02-13T04:42:00.002-07:00

Safe & sound in Camana (Hostal Elitas Inn). One flat tire with multiple punctures, one spilled bike, and enough perspiration and sand dust to fill both my boots. Blackberry data no longer works, only voice...switches between EDGE and 3G but no access.

&llz=-16.62407,-72.71674

Smiling Skin. Its Hot and Humid.

2011-02-12T03:43:00.003-07:00

Ugh soo tired I'm hallucinating. I think that was 5hrs of sleep in 2 days. And it isn't over yet, I pick up a bike in a few hours and then hitting the road. I'm going to aim for a short ride today. Last night, landed in Lima, I even sort of slept in Lima, and now I'm driving to the airport to head to Arequipa where I pick up an BMW

F650GS. I'm so exhausted I didn't sleep much for the 3 hours that were available to me. I love it here already. Its heavily tamed by exhaustion, but I love it. I love the peeps already, love the cheap coldcut meats and bad bread I had for breakfast, I love the instant coffee I love that my cab smells like old urine. I'm still stunned but I can't wait to take my camera out and capture some of what I've seen. Bought a flight to Arequipa through Peru Motors (the bike rental agency in Arequipa) and Lars, the co-owner, was bang on when he said our hotel had a great reputation for sharp airport pickups. Amongst the chaos of taxi-vendors and tour-guides, was a gringo with a sign that said my name. Sigh. I could relax all the way to the hotel, a good way to arrive in a new country.

Stayed in Hotel Mami Panchita. It was dark and night when I arrived and left, and I was there for only 3hrs so didn't have time to appreciate the surroundings, but the staff were friendly and spoke some english. I appreciated the cool shower. I wonderful friend Dali picked me up at a ridiculous 6am in Toronto for my 8hr lay over. It was great seeing him again, been years since I've said hi in person. Loved in downtown Toronto condo, and it was awesome to geek out with some for a few hours, talking about electronics and toys. Dali sent me up with a quad-band GSM BlackBerry, on an international data plan with T-Mobile for $20USD. Its freaky how much comfort I get from having this little gizmo I've become so accustomed to, in a strange country. I can map where I'm going, update my status in FB, blog, or check email. Love it! Check 'em out for all your telecom needs while at home or when traveling at www.telepath.ca.

When I left Yellowknife and Toronto, it was -25C and dry, my skin was angry and dry. Its +28C in Lima and humid, my skin in taking deep breaths, opening up, and smiling.

&llz=-12.09289,-077.07780

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Saddle Up Babycakes

2011-02-11T10:49:00.002-07:00

A friend sent me a txt msg a few weeks ago that went something like this:
"Going to Peru to develop a motor biking route, want to join?"
I had been mulling a mid-winter adventure for a few months. Its been a mild winter in Yellowknife with temperatures ranging from -20 to -40C, and it had been years since indulging in a mid-winter escapade. It seemed like traveling Peru by motorcycle was exactly what I would like to do.
Not wishing to put the horse ahead of the cart and risk disappointment (disappointment-the second most painful thing in life, right next to cleaning my house and my kitchen) I simply put one cautious foot ahead of the other.
First, I estimated total trip costs. It looked like $4K trip on the outside if I was careful-ish. Second, I looked at the ability to take time off from work and family life; my leave was approved by my most patient boss, ex-wife, daughter, and babysitter. Third I looked at flights and they were available so I booked.

Huh. Ok.

This wasn't really suppose to be that easy was it?

So far so good, let's try something else out. Routing - my friend had a plan for that already based on several tour companies, places to check out - Lonely Planet digital chapters for ipod, vaccination, dust off my riding suit...and here I am in Toronto, on the way to Lima.

Haven't slept in a while already, I'm exhausted, and the trip hasn't even started, or has it?

Here I go Again

2011-02-10T15:44:00.003-07:00

So

Um.

Two weeks ago (or was it three weeks ago), I decided to goto Peru for a self-guided motorcycle trip. I'm packing now. Its time to go.

Here is what I've got planned roughly.

View Moto Peru 2011 in a larger map

Here is what I'm packing.

Peru 2011 Packing List

Home Sweet Home....now when can I go again?

2010-09-30T17:47:00.004-06:00

Just got in. 13,000 km of road travel says my GPS. I'm thankful that I made it home unscathed and with a bunch of stories and new friends too. Thanks y'all for encouraging me along the way, being there, and witnessing with me. More later, once I've had some peanut butter and crackers, the only food I seem to have in the house?

My Packing List is HERE

The roads I traveled

View Moto 2010 - Marc Lange in a larger map

Home Bound

2010-09-30T08:54:00.001-06:00

After knocking out Ronald yesterday, actually more like after warming up to a coffee, I had a very nice day. Big prairie sun, farm fields being tilled over and the smell of cool, rich soil, autumn was in the air. The deer along the road, thick flocks of geese, and plump dabbling ducks along roadside ponds was making me salivate for the hunting season. My lust for a chase and a slow walk in the bush in crisp air of Yellowknife was returning to me. It was a quick return to my old life, especially that a few hours before that I was in New York City, in the middle of sweltering and humid heat, surrounded by a surreal man-made landscapes. In 24hours I went from an insignificant ant in the middle of a humongous human colony, and now I'm an ant in the middle of nothing but wilderness. Heading north from Calgary yesterday before sunrise, the sun cast my shadow on my left, by the time I arrived in High Level, my shadowy friend was surrounded by gold and on my far right. We travelled 12 hours together, took about 6 breaks and fillups, and travelled a little over 1000 km. No close calls, everything was as it should be. As I pulled into my hotel I noticed a self-serve truck weight scale on the side of the highway, with a big fat zero on the red display. I u-turned to go back and weight El Beemerado and myself. The scale read 410/420 KG. That's in the neighborhood of 910 lbs or shy of one ton. Holy fatty McFat! No wonder I was tired at the end of long days of offroading or of twisty turns. I gotta swing a ton of shit from one side to the other all day. And that weight is with very little food or fuel left.

Speaking of McFat, I would like to apologize to Ronald for breaking his nose yesterday. Wasn't anything that freaky multi-national malnutrition peddling tyrant did that made me angry, it was a feeling of always leaving the lovely, wonderful people that I meet along the way that had me grumpy. Enough of leaving already! I meet all yall, day in and day out, care about you, love you, we share stories and gifts, i stay in your home, sleep in your beds, eat your food, and then I leave you the next day. It's hard to keep doing that! And Ronald was peddling his empty plastic happiness to me in the morning while I was taking a wiz, and I snapped. Mc Fool!

Alrighty, breakfast is done, coffee is pumping through me, the sun just came up, I'm ready (ish) to face the just above freezing temps, the howling highway winds for 10 hours, and 800 km to get home. Largely no cell signal for the whole way, I'll be incommunicado till tonight. I'll post a quick note when I'm safe. My little Zoe is at the end of this highway, YAY!

Second Breakfast in Red Deer

2010-09-29T09:22:00.001-06:00

Fast straight highway, breakfast burrito at Rotten Roney's, coffee soothing, so cold I'm shaking (4C), my shadow keeps me company on my left side, sun rising on my right, leaves in the trees have turned and are falling from trees.

I'm in auto pilot mode, somewhat numb to everything, must just lay down miles, one after another, must stay present, must notice where I am, how I feel, and find some joy in what I'm doing.

Back on the saddle. Giddy up Lange, you are after all on f*cking vacation. Right? Right.

If I could rename myself today, I would want the name Souky to fit my pouting mood.

According to the bathroom sign at McD, Ronald McD is the Chief Happiness Officer. I think I could use a hug from him right now, and then, I would punch him in the face till his nose broke, with my armored motorcycle gloves.

llz=52.21484,-113.81251

The Beginning Of The End

2010-09-29T07:11:00.001-06:00

Leaving from Calgary, heading to Yellowknife. 1000km per day is the
goal. Sunrise somewhere down the highway.

Sent from my iPad

What? Where?

2010-09-25T16:51:00.001-06:00

Contrary to all rumors, I am alive, I miss El Beemerato, and I'm in
New York City.

I'm not sure what I'm discovering yet, well I mean I do know, but
it'll all take me a while to process.

&llz=40.75,-73.99

Up, Up, UP, and Awaaaaaayy...

2010-09-21T15:31:00.000-06:00

Sitting at the airport, having lunch.

I'm early, very early for my flight to Montreal. Wanted to go catch a
movie but start times would have put me late for my 4 o'clock flight.

I've got lots to do here anyways.Time to write, time to read the news,
time to write my 'what to take on the road list' that I've been
meaning to write for 2 years now.

Two days ago, left the Kootenay's in BC. Rode with Al for an hour or
so and then we split ways; he went west and the ocean which i REALLY
longed to see again, while I headed east to Calgary. The whole day
rained, with some periods of calm long enough to let the wind exposed
parts of my suit to dry, all the better to soak me again. Truth be
told I was snug as a bug under my suit. Pretty dry, maybe a few spots
(my seat?) that just had to take on some of the water that was
pooling, but it wasn't a soaking, it was just a moisting. The heated
vest and heated handgrips keep replacing the lost heat stripped by the
wind, and the coffee and hot soup at a stop lifted me up too.

At some point, for only about 15 minutes, there was a strong downpour.
I could feel the large raindrops pelting my suit, sometimes i could
feel them through the armor in my knees. When that rain came along I
was getting rained on twice for every drop of water. The drops of
water falling from the sky were hitting me, then bouncing forward from
the impact and their smaller sibling droplets rained back onto me. It
was kind of neat to watch from the inside of what sometimes feels like
a spacesuit; protected more or less from the elements yet amerced in
it at the same time. Scuba diving or traveling at night through a
blizzard on a snow machine is like that too. Hostile environment
around you, separated from you only by a thin and vulnerable veneer of
protection; a suit, an air tank, or a parka. It's in those places that
I sometimes see the most beautiful and dramatic landscapes. That day I
was treated with thick and fluffy white fog surrounding mountain peaks
lush with green pines, a black wet road in front of me, and sometimes
a black sky was visible above my head. There were many times when I
wished I was curled up in front of a log fire, reading a book with a
Baileys coffee, but other times I was just happy to be exactly where I
was.

Turns out that Al's trip west was the real challenge. If you recall he
lost his windshield from a previous off road tumble. All of his upper
body was exposed to the wind and rain, and rain it did apparently even
more than what I faced. Visibility was reduced to the taillights of
the car in front of him which likely continually flung mud, oil, water
out at him. He mentioned by email that his helmet visor was completely
fogged up and filthy on both sides of the glass! He made it home
safely.

Yesterday was maintenance day. Haircut for me, oil change for El
Beemerado. This was my first 'combat' oil change and I've already
learned a few lessons about improving my next, 'on the road' oil
change. I'm calling it combat because it was done at high speeds,
while dodging curious passerby's that might complain to someone about
my antics. Ive changed the oil myself many times, but not on the road
away from my home shop.

To start the process i first I bought 4 quarts of oil, a cheap and
thin plastic painters tray to catch the waste oil, as well as paper
towels to wipe any mess, rubber gloves to handle the nasty
carcinogens, and a garbage bag. I made sure the local garage would
take back my waste oil and then went looking for a spot to work under
the bike.

I could have picked the Walmart parking lot, but the abundance of
folks around got me back to Pennys house to do the work. I'm glad I
went to Pennys in the end. Starting taking apart the protective bull
bars on the bike and the bash plates underneath and everything was
going very well. I cracked the seal on the oil filter and then removed
the drain plug. Best to change the oil when the oil is warm so that it
drains better. This oil was hot, and when it made contact with the
thin plastic painters train, it started to deform the tray, causing
the sides and bottom of the tray to sag.

As the tray sagged, the oil threatened to spill on the driveway. As
one corner of the tray sagged, I lifted it up, which moved the oil to
the other end and caused that end to sag. While I was dancing from one
corner of the tray to the other, propping up the tray sides with
tools, the tray was quickly filling and threatening to spill over. I
quickly plugged the engine back up and ran inside to find another
container from Penny's house to help me. I found a used metal painter
tray and brought that outside just in time to prevent a 4 quart oil
spill that would have surely coated seagulls and romping children for
a radius of several street corners. Police, ambulance, onlookers,
Penny's condo association, and the Coast Guard would all have been
notified and locked me up. At least that's what was going through my
mind at the time; hence the need for combat-like techniques: be quick,
quiet, efficient, clean.

Everything went fine after the initial scare of the jello-like painter
tray and I continued to drain the oil, removed the used filter,
replaced the drain plug and put in a new oil filter, poured fresh oil
in the engine and filled the empty oil bottles with collected waste
oil. Took the whole mess of rags and waste oil to the local garage
where they disposed of it for me. Phew. No one had been alerted of my
dirty deed, children and birds were safe. I didn't even have a drop of
oil on my riding suit! So i learned that extra deep painter trays
aren't really enough for an oil change (but so close!), and a thin
aluminum tray is better than plastic. A spare empty container is also
not a bad backup plan.

Made BBQ dinner for Penny and her kids. It was good, but some of the
burned pork chops needed extra sharp incisors to work on them.

Woke up this morning to snow on my bike. Yuck. Calgary weather for the
last few days has put some fear into me. Wet, cold, cloudy is
something I have dealt with before. Snow and icy roads for the next
2000km is not something I want to experience on two wheels. I'm just
going to let that fear go for now. What the hell can I do about bad
weather anyways. I'll deal with what comes when it comes, and hope for
the best.

Ok bored now. I think I'm going to take a nap somewhere.

&llz=51.12852,-114.00825

Going North...but not all the way

2010-09-18T11:46:00.002-06:00

Traveling with Al means we chit chat during the day and spend time at night talking over dinner or in a hotel room. It's nice to ride with Al. My writing is suffering though; I'm just not taking the time to put down what I see and experience. Blanks in memory is what this is going to lead to when I read this on my hospital bed, wondering, why there were gaps in writing on my blog. Rained hard last night, glad I wasn't in a tent, and glad I wasn't on the road. I don't think we are out of the bad weather though, there is still plenty of thick grey skies up there. Al decided to put his rain gear liner under his suit as we started going today. I couldn't convince him that by doing so he WOULD bring the rain. In the end I was superstitious for nothing, big menacing clouds at times but no rain. I say bad weather when referring to rain, but it's actually very nice weather. I mean sure you get wet, and cold, and the roads get slippery on 2 wheels, and all. But the light is wonderful, and it plays with the landscape and makes the scenery all that more spectacular. And when you stop for coffee to dry off, you might look like a miserable wet puppy but an average coffee can taste like the best thing you ever put in your mouth. We rode around all day, the roads we chose were fantastic. I'm glad I'm recording all the tracks on my GPS so that I can post them and relive them again on Google Earth. If I ever start a motorcycle tour company, Al will be my consultant, and these tracks will be my guidebook. Stayed in Grande Coulee for the night, enjoyed discovering the stories about building this super dam along the Columbia, checked out the laser light show on the face of the dam, with a curtain of water running across it. It was a giant water-face movie screen. Rode along all day again in great roads, and found myself saddened to be heading for Canada. The US and the American people have been my friends, my source of adventure, for weeks now and it doesn't feel right to leave them just yet. As I crossed the border into Canada though, the feeling changed again to one of being excited to be back, excited to see family and friends, and my co-workers soon again! I'm modifying my travel plans again. Somewhere south of the border, I think I was still in Oregon, I got news of my grand-papa ending up in the hospital for a short jaunt. He's had a few trips to the hospital, some more serious than others, in the last year or so. And that, combined with a loss in Al's family that he discovered while we were on the road, made me think that perhaps I should use this last week or so of my vacation to visit my grand-papa and grand-maman and say hi
while they remain healthy. So through a series of emails and calls, Ive managed to get a points flight to Montreal and a rental motorcycle and off I go to ride to see my grand parents for a few days. Sssshhhh don't tell them, it's a surprise. For a moment when the plan to see my gramps was hatched I thought, crap! I need to facebook them, send them a tweet, check their online calendar, followup with an email and get their cellular number so I could txt them when I board the plane. Then I remembered that I didn't need to do all that. They would both be home. They would just be there. And that is so nice and peaceful to know. I'm sitting on the shoreline of Slocan Lake, in New Denver. It's September 18th, 8am I haven't had a coffee yet, but I feel like dancing. Must be a memory of Burning Man resurfacing. When it comes to BM and my travels over the last few months, I would love to be a ruminant and chew, swallow, then regurgitate, chew again and swallow all the memories over and over again.

Oh wait, I CAN!

&llz=49.992758,-117.377268

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Wrong turn always leads to the right road

2010-09-17T00:35:00.000-06:00

Couple of wrong turns today (nah, not really), but great desert roads
finally lead me to Grand Coulee in Washington. Roosevelt had this mega
dam built to produce power and irrigate this landscape that has
depleted salmon stocks on the Columbia but irrigates millions of acres
of now arable land.

&llz=47.93747,-119.00327

Bi, Het, Homo, you're all welcome at the Bi-Mart

2010-09-17T00:18:00.001-06:00

Imagine my excitement after being on the road for weeks when I see a
major box-store off in the distance that looks like it ought to cater
all things having to do with SEX!

I was deeply disappointed in the end and still don't know what the
heck the bi-mart really sells, but it isn't sex toys.

Sumpter

2010-09-15T09:35:00.000-06:00

Sounds like a part of a sewage system, but don't be fooled, this
little town is nestled in the hills, surrounded by tall pines on very
quiet and twisty roads. And The Depot Inn is a great place to stay.
They even put out rags and window cleaner for bikers to clean the bugs
off their windshield...just the little things sometimes.

&llz=44.74538,-118.20219

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On The Road Again...

2010-09-14T11:25:00.000-06:00

Pulled into Warm Springs Oregon for a breakfast, tea, and to wait for
Al, a fellow rider I met last year from BC who is back on the road
(http://lange-outside.blogspot.com/2009/09/glacier-natl-park.html). We
plan on riding together for a little while through Oregon and
Washington.

Left Jeff and Simone's house this morning, and all the other lovely
Bend'ers I met at B-Man.

Sigh.

We had a dinner party at Mel's house last night. The night before,
dinner at J&S's house. I miss my peeps already!!!! I just don't know
what to say, it's more like a ball of sadness in my belly from leaving
them. I'll see them again, I know.

Spent the day relaxing, hanging, talking. I rode my first off road
bike EVER, a Honda XR 450.

Al pulled in around 11am, we caught up a bit and rode east into some
great backroads.

Toward the end of the day we were on a great road running along a
gorgeous ridge, endless fields of yellow hay around us, dark grey sky
in the horizon, and a brilliant sunset made for wonderful sights. We
were moving fast on this road, when without warning, after cresting a
hill, the road abruptly ends into gravel and turns sharply at the same
time. Both Al and I were caught going way to fast, hit our brakes hard
as we tried to take the turn, bikes wobbling back and forth as the
rear wheel floated in the gravel. We barely made the turn and started
a 30 minute unplanned off road adventure.

The road turned later on into small farm town (Lonerock), and the GPS
and our maps lead us to smaller and smaller trails until we were on
double track tractor trails, and we finally had to come to a stop at a
barbwire fence. Attempts to take alternative roads kept leading us to
barbed fencing. We exhausted all our options and started turning
around on a trail made of deeply rutted track. The trail had been
damaged when a heavy pickup truck had run the trail after a heavy
rain. The ruts were swallowing our tires, making our heavy bikes
wobble and bounce from side to side as the tires hit the walls of the
rut that were only wide enough for a truck tire. I lost balance a few
times, and eventually a rut claimed Al's motorbike and brought him
down, ripping one of his saddlebags off, scratching the side of his
bike, tearing his windshield right off, and sending Al tumbling into
the ditch.

I didn't see this part because I was just ahead hidden from a hill
top. But my heart sank as I looked in my rearview mirror and saw no
one when i was suppose to see Al. I waited a minute and then got real
worried my friend had been hurt, so I got off my bike and ran back up
the hill just as Al had reassembled himself and his mount and was
getting underway. Al is an excellent rider, much more experienced than
I, he was fine, not hurt a bit, it was a very slow fall, but the bike
needs some tender loving care. I could tell though that he wasn't
pleased with the damage to the bike, but he was glad for the adventure
nonetheless.

That's what adventure riding is about. We eventually had to backtrack
to the nearest town and run our course on pavement. The side trip and
tipping though got me thinking, I normally do this stuff by myself!
What if I had gotten hurt by myself out in those back woods?

Ran another 2 hours through twisty roads, now in the dark, with crazy
deer, skunks, porcupines, and coyotes at virtually every corner,
waiting to pounce on us or in front of us. Had us both pretty tense.
By the time we got into John Day, my yellow reserve light had been on
for 20 miles, I was running on fumes. Caught the fuel station 5
minutes before it closed. Hotels were all taken up, restaurants all
closed, and we still had not had dinner. Backtrack to Mt Vernon for a
cheap stay at Blue Mountain Lodge, where I fired up my stove and made
us some Turkey Tetrazzini and tacos. Al shared his bottle of wine. We
filled ourselves with food, got tipsy on wine, relaxed our muscles,
and recalled stories of the day.

&llz=44.41777,-118.95744

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The Last Chapter in the Republic

2010-09-11T13:12:00.000-06:00

6:17PM Sept 10
drunk on one glass of cheap and terrible wine.
somewhere in northern california.
fantastic driving through twisty roads today.
my arms are shaking from exhaustion, my shoulders are numb and past
the point of hurting, my ass is probably leathery like my bike seat.
the sidewalls on my tires are more worn then the centre part which
means somehow most of the day, I was laying on my side, from one side
to the other.

AWESOME!!!

did I mention I was drunk?

Food today was not very fancy. a handful of nuts this morning, some
jerky and a banana at lunch. water from my camelback along the road
while driving. I could not for the life of me stop driving these
wonderful roads to eat properly. which means a bit o wine and I'm gone
over the top.

Great little place here at Dillon campsite in Six Rivers National
Forest. Not a soul around. got the whole place to myself. that way I
don't look like such an idiot dancing around, listening to my iPod,
making dehydrated beef shit-stroganoff and drinking cheap wine.
Greeting me at my picnic table is a sign bolted to the tabletop that
says:"caution - rattlesnakes have been observed in the area". Nice! I
can add snake to my dehydrated meal tonight.

Did I mention I was drunk?

the bad wine is done now, just cracking open the bottle of grain
alcohol I bought 2 weeks ago from a highway bootleg look-alike. The
idea was to mix that stuff with Gatorade. I'm turning to it now. 190
proof is 95% alcohol. I can feel myself going blind as I write. If my
bike ran engine coolant I would probably be safer drinking that.

here we go....

All right, here is an update on the close call of the day. Deep into
the mountains on a single lane paved forestry road, traveling at
100km/hr inside what feels like a tunnel cut through trees, a jet-pack
equipped bear shoots out in front of my front wheel. What the hell! Ya
a bear! A big brown bear decides he wants to play chicken with El
Beemerato (that's the pet name of my Beemer, the BMW bike I ride in
case I've gone senile when I reread this).

A bear, which is not at all unlike a giant squirrel, ought best to be
dealt with as a squirrel I thought at the time. As such, I decided to
initiate squirrel-like road manoevres. Best way to deal with a
squirrel on the road is to to stay my course, not swerve, and hope to
shit that one of us misses the other. In the case of a squirrel, worst
case i run the bugger over and get to add squirrel meat to my
dehydrated food at night (its the only responsible thing to do to eat
your own road kill right?). Anyways, in the case of the bear, I was
glad no one won the game of chicken. For one it's way more meat that I
can eat and I would get pulled over by a state trooper for having a
dead bear propped up on my back seat without a bear-helmet. Second, in
a full frontal collision with a bear, I probably would not roll over
it like a squirrel, I would probably bet bucked off to heaven.

Last time i played chicken with a bear no one won either, but I
started making rules about acceptable and safe driving conditions so
that i could increase my odds at avoiding a collision in the future.
At any rate, it was late fall two years ago, and I was driving at
night (broken rule#1) on el beemerato from Hay River to Yellowknife,
and it was raining so heavily (broken rule#2) that my fog lights were
barely lighting the road ahead. My helmet visor was coated with a
mixture of rain and mud, and my glasses under my helmet were fogged
up. As I slowed down for a mysteriously placed patch of loose gravel
on the highway I could see a black flash in front of my headlights, i
slammed on my breaks even more, and noticed that a bear was running
along the road in front of me, in the same direction. The black flash
was the underside of it's wet black paws reflecting in my headlights.
Black bear, black rainy night, reflecting black back at me is the only
thing I saw as the bear safely plunged toward the ditch and into the
night.

Last night I went back to a place I visited last year. It was just
convenient and it happens to be the best camp spot ever in the middle
of giant redwoods in Humbolt National forest. I pulled in around 6pm
and was beginning to unload my gear when Jim came over to say hi. Jim
is a fellow adventure rider (but currently in a RV) and we chatted
about bikes, roads, tripping and he left me to setup my tent with an
offer to come visit if I needed anything. Shortly after his wife
dropped by with a more specific offer for Northern California wine, a
steak, baked potatoes, and company by a campfire. The conversation
alone was enough enticement, but the steak and wine just didn't
compete with my dehydrated food and grain alcohol...so I gladly
accepted and we had a fun night hanging out. I hope to meet them again
on the road.

Sept 11 - 6:30am
Don't know why I'm up so early. Must be all the partying by myself i
did last night.
Oatmeal, can of fruit, and coffee-a-la-nothing (I have no cream, no
sugar, no baileys, no froth, no cinnamon).
Looking around camp this morning I notice fresh bear poop 20 feet in
front of my bike. Is that a warning cause I called his brother a big
squirrel?
off to Meadford via twisty roads and some offloading over a mountain
range, and into Oregon. bye bye California. perhaps into Bend, OR
today for a post burning man visit with new friends?

&llz=42.31442,-122.96596

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What was my Burning Man experience like?

2010-09-11T12:53:00.001-06:00

What was my Burning Man experience like.

A guy From Waco Texas whom I spent a morning with at Burning Man tried to describe it as a cross between Willy Wonka, Alice in Wonderland, and a circus. To that I would add all the best friends you've never met, and a treasure trove of gifts you wanted and never knew you wanted.

What ever you need or want, will most likely be granted to you on the playa at some point...and sometimes of course not getting what you want is exactly what you need :-).

Watching a sunrise with a stranger, a cold beer on a scorching mid-day, a fresh grill cheese from a mobile Dinner deep in the desert under bright stars and a laser light show in the distance, helping someone in need putting up their shelter, just handing out a hug, or listening to someone's problem for a while. Everything is there.

That's a general intro to Burning Man. What was the experience like for me? Well Yellowknife to the Black Rock Desert was first of all 3,500 km of driving, and some long days at that too. I was very intimidated to enter this huge temporary town of 50,000 people and living in the desert leaving no trace of myself behind. I can't underemphasize how intimidated I was by this madness. I tried as best I could to use this fear to fuel my focus and vanquish it, but in the end I could not overcome my fears without the help and kindness of others, and that was THE most beautiful aspect of my whole experience. It happened everyday, it happened, many times a day, and it happened the whole week, even as I pulled out of Black Rock in my last moments.

In my last day or so I spent time looking around and wondered, why? Why do people come here? The answer is obvious to anyone there, but the reasons all vary a little. There is a series of bulletin boards that focus on this very question. The board is a collection of thousands of pictures of people, holding a small placard in front of themselves, giving their answer to the question: why? Some of them said this:

- to be stirred awake
- because if I don't I'll be punished
- cause it's more fun on the other side of the camera
- because my alter ego needs a voice too
- as my mind conceives, my spirit believes, my hands create, and my reality responds (from an artist)
- because I like my sugar raw
- to continue my reign as the worlds luckiest man
- because I don't want a boring life
- to prove that I am more than I believe
- because I don't trust anybody elses ideas of what I shoul be
- to share my joy of life
- because I didn't say no when you asked for my help
- for the titties

check it out one day...if you dare
:-)

Two Fish And A Coffee

2010-09-09T15:07:00.001-06:00

At Two Fish Baking Company, 35590 Verdant View in Sea Ranch just half
a mile off of Hwy 1.

This is a bakery first, and they happen to sell coffee too. Having a
large mocha latte that is fantastic. It's light foam is full of
flavor. I'm halfway finished it and wished I had more already.
Definitely worth the small detour to check out.

The sitting area has handmade wood furniture with inlaid wood fish
outline that frankly doesn't look like a fish at all but a very good
rendition of a shark.

Oh and the croissants are very good too. I might just leave with a
sandwich...then again that might prevent me from discovering a lunch
place up the road.

&llz=38.69983,-123.42656

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Close But No Cigar

2010-09-08T22:07:00.001-06:00

That's 3 close calls in 2 days.

First close call was yesterday, at the beginning of the many twisty
side roads I took that day. I don't have my groove on just yet. I come
into the curve way too fast, I don't lean into it far enough. Then, at
the apex of the curve I start approaching the yellow line in the
middle, I panic a little, stiffen my body and begin to focus on my
front wheel instead of far and up along the end of the curve, I blow
the turn and spill into the oncoming traffic lane, completely panic
now, nail the brakes and head safely into the ditch on the far side of
the road by completely crossing the oncoming lane. Luckily no oncoming
vehicles so this dumb ass maneuver was completed safely, but left me
with a sobering reminder that I am human, I make mistakes, and I
should ride more safely.

Ya if you're sweating right now, I can tell you that i did have to
change my undergarments after that mishap. Apparently lessons like
this will continue to be learned.

Second close call happens today. On a very fast multilane highway, I'm
in the far left lane, level with a pickup truck in the far right lane.
In a coordinated fashion, we both signal, shoulder check, and merge
toward each other in the middle lane. I see him at the last minute (he
doesn't), I swerve a little, goose the throttle, and make it ahead of
his bumper. I see him suddenly swerve madly side to side in my
rearview mirror as he realizes too late he almost side swiped my ass
into motorcycle-heaven.

Third close call late this afternoon. A 30 pound turkey (no really...a
bird), lifts off and blows out of the side of the road, off my right
shoulder as I'm running the seaside Hwy 1 at 100 km/hr. I can see the
white in it's eye as it realizes it's mistake. It lifts it's dangling
legs as I duck my head deeply and we both narrowly avoid a
turkey-human sandwich. Does anyone have experience with taking a 30 lb
cannonball in the head at 100 km/hr? Something from my physics class
tells me I would have been knocked clean off my bike and something
from human physiology tells me I would have been unconscious before
hitting the ground. Thank god for the rockets stuck to this turkeys
ass, oh and my luck.

Dinner of dehydrated beef and macaroni at Doran Beach campground. Once
again I'm wearing all my clothing, my down jacket, and my tuque.
Nortern Cali is always windy and cold it seems.

&llz=38.31392,-123.04883

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Twisty Roads And High School

2010-09-08T14:07:00.000-06:00

Crazy fun highways in Napa yesterday, I'll have to post my tracks for
those of you wanting to follow a special road through wineries,
mountains, and then down to the ocean.

Breakfast in Tiburon right now for chili verde omelette at New Morning Cafe.

Before breakfast I met a guy I'm the parking lot who introduced
himself and asked where I was going. I said I was going where it was
fun. He asked that I park so he could talk to me. That's always a good
sign I'm in for a treat :-).

Turns out this gentlemen used to ride and write for Motorcycle
Magazine. We spent a few minutes chatting in which he suggested
severals routes I had to try. The one I chose just now took me to
Tinson Beach via Mt Tamalpais. From the San Fran bay all the way to
the clouds and through a soft mist at the top of the mountain, and
then down to the crashing surf and yellow sand beach I'm sitting on
right now. Everytime I come down from the mountains to the ocean and
smell the surf, it feels like i'm being hugged by something female.

It's a good place to sit and let everything soak in. I've got a pit in
my stomach right now, I don't understand where it comes from. Maybe
it's loneliness. Maybe it's not being able to share what I'm seeing
with someone else. Maybe. I'm just a little tired, or maybe it's just
the omelette, lol.

Not it's definitely in my heart this pit. I would love to share what I
see, the people i meet, the food i taste, the smells that surround me,
with another soul.

Yep. That what it is. That the feeling of the pit.

Last time I felt this on the road was at the base of the Sierras, on
the way to Death Valley desert. Friends on Facebook saved me back then
by suggesting I go to the ocean, San Diego, and beyond.

What next?

Coffee at 3pm in San Fran with Adit, an old high school pal.

&llz=37.89650,-122.64087

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Crepe For A Creep?

2010-09-07T12:25:00.001-06:00

Well it is 11 am so technically speaking its ok to have second
breakfast right now.
So i pulled over at Crepeville for this ultimate luxury, second
breakfast. Having salsa, black olives, avocado, onion, and cheddar
cheese stuffed crepe with hash browns and coffee on the resto's patio.
If you wanna find it it's on L street.
This morning brought me down highway I80 from Tahoe, and it is so far
the best stretch of highway I have ever ridden. I hate highways
normally, but this puppy was a great one. The air was cool, it started
off at 7000 feet at the top of the Sierra's and it was winding left,
right, left the whole way down into the valley below.
I found myself a cute little Mazda Miata to act as a radar buster and
put her in front of me, and followed her at 85 miles and hour for an
hour into Sacramento. What a good time and a great way to start the
day.
I had the most peaceful and restful stay at Hanzos place. Yesterday
afternoon, after a swim in a local reservoir, and a 2 hour ride up and
down the Sierra Valley, I took my first ever nap in a hammock. That
was after spending a couple hours in the morning washing the whole
bike, doing all my laundry (I even had to wash my sneakers!), and even
hand washing my tent, fly, and mattress. The only thing I haven't
washed is my down jacket and down sleeping bag, that would have taken
too much time to dry, but my sleeping bag liner is clean so I'm good
to go for for clean sleeping again.
My GAWD this salsa crepe is good! Gotta make this at home.
After this? Well I found some twisty roads on the map in the Nappa
Valley, then north to Calistoga, and west on a twisty road along the
Russian River where I might get into an inner tuber and float for a
while. There are a couple wineries in that neck of the woods that my
guidebook tells me are quieter than Nappa or Sonoma. I hope to try at
least one...but I'm not married to any of those plans either.
&llz=38.575117,-121.48379

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My Very Soul Is Dusty But My Heart Is Full

2010-09-06T08:34:00.001-06:00

Eating an overly ripe avocado smeared on wholewheat tortilla with
hunks of cheddar cheese in my friend Hanzo's driveway in Tahoe. I'm
waiting for Hanzo to return.

The avocado and cheddar have been sweating in my saddle bags for 7
days, it's time to eat them.

Shortly after pulling out of Burning Man yesterday, I thought to send
an email and call Hanzo. I met him on Hwy 1 last year, in Morro Strand
State Park (http://lange-outside.blogspot.com/2009/09/morro-strand-state-beach.html).
He's a solid rider with a fascinating story of moving to the US from
the Czech Republic with nothing but a vet degree and making it against
all odds.

I was very lucky that he emailed and called back yesterday. He had
just returned from a 2 week trip to BC and he checks emails only once
a month.

We had lots to catch up on since last year over beers, glasses of
wine, and cheese and cracker snacks. I also started doing laundry, and
now I regret not taking a picture of what I looked like on my bike and
suit. Everywhere I went yesterday, even hundreds of miles from Black
Rock City, people would look at me and say "Holy shit dude you went to
Burning Man with that? COOL!"

How do they know? Well picture a big machine that can pick me and my
motorcycle up, dip me in a fine flour coating, and then sand blast me
some more with that white flour, and you have an idea. I guess I
looked like a whole wheat bread baker baker on a bike. My hair, my eye
lashes, my helmet, every fiber of clothing, every nook and cranny
covered in the stuff. At first the though made my skin crawl and I
fought it. In the end I was relishing the sand and dust and wanted it
to cover my whole body, like it did everyone else that was on the
playa. The playa dust nourished me, just like my experiences and the
people i met while I was there. it was also a badge of honor when I
left.

Now the badge of honor has all been washed off in a washing machine,
but the memories and the new friends are left. Time to wash my friend
El Beemerado now. Then Hanzo and I are going to ride around Lake
Tahoe.

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Post-Burn-out

2010-09-05T14:26:00.001-06:00

Just left Burning Man, safe and sound but heavily impacted, and
changed as a result. Back in cell coverage, in Reno for food and fuel.

Wow. More to follow.

Leaving Calgary For The USA

2010-08-30T11:27:00.000-06:00

After the motorcycle tuneup process that lasted from 7am until 4:30pm,
the got back on a now finally tuned machine, packed my $900 bill, and
went to grab some supplies at MEC and Apple store.

Then I went to visit Penny. Penny and her kids welcomed me like I was
their own. Penny is a genuine one and has an exquisite way of getting
you to by honest with yourself and share with her in a way that's
disarming. I was very grateful to have her company and conversation,
oh and also to have a shower. Thank you guys :-)

Leaving Calgary via Hwy 22 was very fun. Winding road through the
mountains and high plains. Went through the town of Black Diamond
Alberta, where I imagined everyone was an expert, just like you would
be an expert to run black diamond ski slopes.

Then Into the semi-arid central BC, thought not warmer (still wearing
all my clothing), i could tell that it was dryer by the vast fields of
yellow crops.

Crossing the US border into Idaho was uneventful really, friendly
boarder guard. I was waiting for the million dollar question at the
end of the interview with the border guard and this one came in a sly
and friendly way. "Have you ever been fingerprinted sir." I love those
questions because at this point you've been answering directly and
with a smooth flow and any interruption in cadence now could be
interpreted as a fib. So I answered truthfully and said yes once as
part of my job; for a security clearance. What he was really after is
have you been arrested and gone to jail, have you a criminal record,
fingerprinting is just one step down that road. We parted each other
satisfied.

Northern Idaho was really interesting. My first look at a
micro-culture is usually by sussing out the bikers. The bikers were
very rough looking here. Like: 'Don't &uck with me boy, you ride a
German bike and we eat people like you' kinda guys. And of course they
don't wear helmets. That freaks me out. That's like getting into the
car and not wearing a seatbelt for giggles, or strapping your baby on
the roof of your car while driving. I dunno, must add a whole other
fun factor but I'm not even tempted to take mine off. Freaks me out to
imagine my noggin spilling on the highway.

Then into Washington. Had to get to an AT&T store asap before they
close to power up my iPad since it's my only way of communicating on
the road. There began a 2 hour ordeal from hell; aaffluent class,
affluent white guy kind of he'll though. Not real he'll. It goes
something like this:

Micro SIM card bought at ATT, no problem.
ATT won't let me use their wifi to activate, advise i goto a cafe.
I use their wifi anyways, as soon as i'm outside.
Activation needs my credit card info, address, etc. I enter the
information, everything falls apart at postal code. They insist on a
zip code.
Call ATT they say since ur not American I'm screwed. They advise i get
a temp credit card from a gas station and use an American address. ATT
is dumb.
I search 3 gas stations and 1 Wallmart, all their cards require some
freaky thing that annoys me or that I can't give them (like an
American address).
Find a card at Safeway, instant activation, put cash on the card,
everything is gonna be fine. But it isn't, I have to do a weird online
logging on to add my address ( a fake American one maybe? like my
friend Ryan Synn?), but I don't have Internet yet that's the whole
point!
Go find wifi again, log on, setup address in USA on new temp credit
card, all good. Now go back and activate iPad. Waiting, waiting,
failure. Repeat 19 times, then call ATT. Yes we can see u are trying
to activate, but ur card gets declined. Call ur card.
Call credit card visa centre on temp card, calling centre seems to be
in India, rep tells me for telecom purchases on the card, they 'tax
me' 15$ on top of the purchase price of what I want to buy. MOTHER OF
PERL!
With this new tax i havent put enough money on the credit card. Temp
card cannot be topped up, it's a one time only...I'm screwed.
I buy minimum iPad data package ( almost running out already) and hit
the road angry.

I'm calm by the time I get to Meichelle in Spokane and she makes me
feel at ease right away :-). Haven't seen Meichelle, a high school
friend in 21 years! My god, everything has changed, yet nothing has
changed. I was beat up tired when I got in, Meichelle gave me these
wonderful ice tea coolers that relaxed my sore body. At breakfast the
next morning, went to a diner next to the airport. Awesome food and
great atmosphere. First time eating biscuit with gravy, and ordering a
half order of food. Whats a half order look like I asked. Half order
was plenty of food.

After breakfast nap.

Hit the road again at 3pm, thank you Meichelle for the hospitality!

Buy supplies for burning man, like 9 inch tent stakes to hold the tent
down in 75 mile an hour winds, ski goggles for dust storms, aloe gel
for sunburns, extra sunscreen, rope, and of course stop by to pick up
an AR15 in .308 caliber by Ruger. Very exciting as you can see from
the dumb grin on my face.

Ride till 10 at night on great and fast highways, into Oregon. Stopped
here in Echo, a neat and clean little town on the side side of
highway, train track through town with a train that doesn't abide by
quiet hour bylaws. Had myself a beer while setting up camp and a local
woman in her mid 40s (it's dark I can't see very well) gives me six
plums and a truckers mouth of a conversation where she at times subtly
and not so subtly invites me into her life. She tells me that she has
bright blue eyes, she has difficulty sleeping, she has a comfy
mattress, a nice house, she likes walking. Basically, you are welcome
to have your way with me young man was abundantly clear. I've rarely
been hit on like a freight train, and I think I still had my helmet
on! Oh and just then, no kidding, a freight train toots by in the
background. Anyways, I was very flattered, but this was way too weird
and I was way not interested. We parted ways and I ate her fresh
plums, they were delicious :-)

&llz=45.74203,-119.19753

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Campsite From Hell

2010-08-26T16:26:00.002-06:00

From Moto 2010

Its 5am.

And if it wasent the incredible urge to pee, the nearby trains
barreling down the track hoot'n their hoots, the cars screeching down
the highway next door, or the drunk kids who tried to access my locked
aluminum cases, I'd still be asleep.

Packing camp now 'cause I've gotta be up in an hour anyways to take
the bike in for service. Since I'm having the valves adjusted the
engine has to be cooled so the bike needs to sit in the shop
parking lot for 2 hours before they open the shop at 9am. Sigh.

Yep. I'm up at 5am on my vacation to take a bike to a grease monkey.
Normally I'm that grease monkey doing this myself. But heck I'm on
vacation now, not gonna take 8 hours and get greasy in a Wallmart
parking lot doing it myself when an pro-monkey can do it in half the
time while I sip coffee or call my daughter.

The tent, the fly, the tarp is soaked from rain the day before or dew
from this morning. Packing wet shit on a crispy morning is annoying.
Everything else that the wet stuff touches gets moist because its all
packet together tight. It's freaking cold this morning! It's near
freezing at 2C. My knuckles are cold just from packing.

So I stayed at this reservoir thingy last night. Not a patch of
camping real-estate I would recomend. You remember the noise I
described above? Well the smells you'll love.

WARNING: The following contains graphic toilet descriptions, if you're
offended by this, skip ahead or stop reading.

Had to go to the can around 10pm, couldn't see a thing in the
darkness, the campground has no lights and my flashlight isn't very
powerful. As I walked up to what looked like outhouses, the smell
confirmed it. When I walked in I was hit in the nose by a odoriferous
sledgehammer that reminded me at first of a urea factory, then as a
sat there, it reminded me more of what a sea container would smell
like if it was filled with monkeys and sent on a three month long
round the world sea voyage and no one changed their monkey-litter. And
the porthole where u dropped ur business was almost full to the hatch.
Oh plus the seat and surrounding area were so filthy that I won't even
describe it. There was even a shitty two by four piece of lumber in
the hatch, what better than to beat ones own shit out of oneself?
Anyway, after cleaning the seat as best I could, and laying a
protective barrier down on the seat, I had to plug my nose with one
hand, then with the other hand I had to fold my wizard in half so that
it didn't touch the filth on the front of the toilet (men know what I
mean), and with another hand I had to hold my satchel up so it didn't
dip in the peanut butter below (I wish I had brought a few rubber
bands for all these jobs), and with another hand I had to cut pieces
of toilet paper, and with another hand clean the business end.

Jesus I've shat in cleaner Turkish toilets in Egypt. I would prefer to
shit in the woods anytime, even WITHOUT toilet paper.

The sunrise this morning is sweet and is making up for it all.

Its 2C degrees right now, did I mention that already? I'm wearing
everything I got, my hands r
frozen from packing wet stuff. The highway at 120km/hr will be REAL
cold.

Oh ya and those little shits making noise last night? Ya I slowly
crept up to their tent at 6am, my bike is quiet that way, it's a slow
idling machine in normal times. But this wasn't a normal lovely
morning 'cause the little punks kept me up way late. So I slowly
warmed up my engine by revving it up from 1000 RPM, to 2000, then
4000, 5000, 6000, and it redlined at 7000 and at this point the bike
is spewing steam out in the cold crisp air out of the exhaust,
screaming, and sounding like one thousand one hundred and fifty
screaming horses being sodomized by an angry pack of chimpanzees (yes
the same chimps who peed in the sea container).

Then I was off before I saw the tent zippers open. The whole thing
lasted maybe 15 seconds, but I kinda regret it now that I've had a
coffee and some time to think about it. I'm consoled by the fact that
their tent was no where close to other campers, my former campsite
excepted.

It's 4pm now and I'm still sitting in the shop parking lot outside
waiting for my bike that they took in at 9am. The bill isn't going to
be pretty. They estimated this corning at 900$ bill for parts and
labour on this big maintenance job. Yek.

The day is lovely though. Had time to nap, make some calls, deal with
a few work emails, pull out all my tent, sleeping mat, boots, and
other miscellany and get it all dry on a comfortable lawn patch.

Ready to go yet?!!!!!

&llz=51.011496,-114.046399

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Into Calgary, Well Sort Of?

2010-08-25T23:50:00.001-06:00

Had an awesome half hour ride from Banff off the main track on a side
road, it's called the 1A into Ghost Lake Reservoir recreational area.
Had a full belly, rested from an hour or so, getting going again was
like a brand new day. Like hitting the reset button and everything was
new and fresh again.
Do you have those days?
You pause, take lunch, take a nap, or just blink and look again and
its a whole new day again. The sky looks different, brighter, people
around you arent what they were before, the smells are different.
Anyway, the road was narrow, quiet, and would not go straight for more
than a few hundred yards as it followed the bow river. It was a road
with a decidedly multiple personality through thick riparian
vegetation at times, and at other times bordered by golden fields of
hay glowing in the sunset. Roads like that is why riding is so much
fun, rolling in and out of turns faster and faster, aware that a deer
or cattle could end the fun real quickly but you just can stop
yourself from entering the curve a little tighter, a little smoother,
a little faster. Grin ear to ear.
Pulled into the recreational area. Looks like it's a giant grass
parking spot for those wanting to enjoy water sports in an otherwise
dry prairie lake-less area. Good enough to camp for the night.
Couple yahoos maybe partying a little loudly; I have earplugs.
&llz=51.22010,-114.72027

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Current Position

2010-08-25T23:16:00.001-06:00

Comment: Sleeping here tonight

Name: Current Position

Date: Aug 25, 2010 11:13 pm

Map:
(valid until Sep 24, 2010) View on Map

iPhone/iPad Map: Maps Application

Location:

Latitude: 51.220074º N

Longitude: 114.720132º W

Altitude: 1,198 m

Jasper, Banff, And The Ice Field Parkway

2010-08-25T22:13:00.001-06:00

In Banff right now, at Coyotes Deli and Grill for a veggie burger.
Ordered "to go" so that I can cross the street and take my hot boots
off and lie down in the grass.

My boots are hot and sweaty, but what's the deal they don't smell bad!
I swear to you they don't smell at all but smell hot! Is it that we
can't smell our own smell or do they really not smell. I mean dont get
me wrong, when i smell bad i can smell myself, and my shit definitely
stinks. I'll have to coerce a passerby to smell them to be an
independent tester.

Aaaaaahhhh this veggie burger was good. Fresh made patty, avocado,
fried onions, lettuce, mozzarella cheese. Man if veggie-ness tasted
this good all the time I'd stop hunting wild animals.

Nah. Not unless I could start shooting my own veggies before eating em.

Let's see. Now that I'm full, and it's approaching 8pm, I should think
about a place to stay.

Oh I forgot to mention, I finally stopped at a good swimming lake that
Ryan recommended; Horseshoe Lake in Jasper Natl Park. You climb up on
the cliffs on the lakeshore and leap off from whichever height you
choose. I think there is a 50 foot cliff there! My leap into the clear
turquoise water was at a height of 2 feet I'm proud to say. I didn't
bring water shoes and couldn't climb out or land any substantial
heights. Plus I'm a sissy.

&llz=51.17664,-115.57164

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Why Do A Trip Like This?

2010-08-25T11:29:00.001-06:00

Someone just asked me why.

Why do this? Why do a trip like I'm doing. I loved this simple
question so much that I'll try to answer it here and add to it as
often as I can.

Well for me its about many things.

It's about adventure.

It's about living for the very present that includes the tar or dirt
road under your wheels, and find a place to sleep when you are tired
and not until then, or a restaurant when you're hungry, or fuel when
you see it, or taking a break when your tired. It's about no planning,
releasing your expectations of what comes next, it's about welcoming
what comes; the hard stuff and pain as well as the beauty or kindness
that presents itself.

It's about meeting people. On a motorbike by yourself, you meet people
all the time. The gas attendant telling you about his motorcycle, or
the guy at the grocery store telling you his dreams, or the priest
yesterday that came out of the church to chat about his son in law and
vacation, or the housewife who secretly wants to buy a bike and hand
her kids over to hubby to go on her own trip for a few weeks and wants
to know where to start.

It's about the excitement of leaning into a tight turn in the road and
coming out of it at full speed and safely. It's about traveling on a
quiet road or single track dirt trail all by your lonesome.

It's about being by yourself with nothing more than your thoughts
filling your helmet, or if your so lucky, kts about sharing that day
with another rider who happens to be going in the same direction.

It's about tasting beer for what feels like the first time ever after
a long hot day of riding.

What is a road trip like for you?

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Grande Cache

2010-08-25T10:59:00.001-06:00

Oh wow the drive starting last night after Grande Prairie was great!
Gone are the long straight northern roads, hello twisting fast highway
with deer to watch for, tar patches to avoid, and the occasional
gravel in a tight bend in the road to keep you on your toes.

Stayed at the municipal campsite in G.Cache as I did last year. Free
hot showers, clean, and lost of grassy spots to pitch a tent. The camp
site was theoretically full last night, but I found a patch of grass
in the day use area that did just fine. Slept like a baby after that
warm shower. Being on the road, dirty for days, and in pain as my back
gets used to riding again, there is NOTHING like a toilet or a hot
shower to make u appreciate life. Such simple things.

I go without showering for weeks in the bush (a few dirty birdie spot
cleaning maybe), but on the road, u just feel dirty. My face is always
covered in dust or diesel exhaust byproduct. I'm not exactly selling
this kinda of vacation this morning am I? It's wonderful. I think I'm
getting into the trip now that the roads are fun and twisty.

Pulled into The Bistro Cafe in Grande Cache (1600G Acorn Plaza - but
they are moving so stay tuned). So far the service is awesome, my food
hasn't arrived yet. Alright, home fries are actually the stuff that I
make at home on lazy Sundays, and the omelette is rolled and stuffed
to perfection, smooth and tasty. I'll be good until din-din after this
and the coffee will keep me moving fast down the highway. Oh and the
tunes in this joint are fun, some oldies right now, jazz, rock and
roll, and disco it's hilarious but in a good way, puts me in a good
mood.

On to Jasper and Calgary next, in time for my 80k service on the bike.

&llz=53.89043,-119.11898

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Wobble Wobble

2010-08-24T12:49:00.001-06:00

The bike has been wobbling since I left Yellowknife, and I think it
gets worst at high speeds. I'm suspecting it's the weights in the form
of beads in the tire that are causing the problem. I installed new
rubber on my rear tire just before leaving and the shop suggested
adding weight beads to the wheels since they couldn't balance a
motorcycle tire. I think these beads are adding crazy weight that
shifts around and sends the tire and whole bike into a very slight
wobble at speeds.

So I stopped at High Level and removed the tire from the rim and
noticed a lot of tire powder inside the wheel. I think the beads
disintegrated and eroded at the inner wheel! At any rate, there was
some weight in the form of tire powder in there. Not much, but enough
I think to cause a wobble. Now that I've checked that, let's see how
we do on the highway.

Stopped for breakfast at the Flamingo Inn in high-level for omelette
and coffee. Yum highway food!

Getting on the road again.

But before I do, I had to reset and rebuild my iPod cause I didn't
have any music to listen to! And I also scheduled a service
appointment in Calgary for the bikes 80k service. Yikes it looks like
it's going to be 5 hours of labour.

&llz=58.51787,-117.12624

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Albert/NWT Border

2010-08-24T11:18:00.001-06:00

Driving at night is the the best idea on a motorcycle. Here is no
defense against a moose or bison or even a small bird! You can't see
them until it's too late.

Anyways, after leaving the Enterprise gas station I found myself in
the dark at 10:30PM on the way to the Alberta border where I would
camp for the night.

In spite of the danger, the northern lights were keeping me company
with nothing else to disturb their display but my headlights and the
pesky moon showing itself over the spruce tree tops

Suddenly, a shotgun blast of rocks and dust from a transport truck
hits me square in the chest, face, shoulders, arms, knees, peppering
the motorcycle with ballbairing to pebble size rocks. Holy shit! It
was like being shot by a got. The visor on my helmet, and armor of my
suit took it all and left me unharmed save a few scratches on the
helmet and windshield but I can imagine what others riders would feel
just wearing t-shits and jeans! Took me completely by surprise.

Ironically i really didnt want to be on this trip until perhaps right
now. Im leaving friends, family, colleagues, pooky-pants, and a nice
house to go live in a tent for another 5 weeks! What gives?

Then all of a sudden, at night, with northern lights and a jolt from a
rock shower, and perhaps I'm getting into this trip? Maybe.

7:15AM now and I'm up, 9C cool. Mist on the hay river on the shore of
which I'm camping. Ducks taking off for they daily ducking.

i dn't sleep very well. Bears and strangers were raiding my bike, my
camp, my body in my dreams...so I woke up often.

801 km yesterday. Not bad for day one that started at 4PM

&llz=60.00108,-116.97393

Sent from my iPad

Enterprise

2010-08-23T21:53:00.001-06:00

Pulled in at 9:30PM at Winnie's and I needed fuel or else I was going to have to backtrack to Hay River. But now, the guy that run's Winnie's has been "hanging around all day" today and didn't mind opening the pumps for me. They are normally closed on Monday but are trying something out to see if they can make it.

Thanks for the fuel Winnie!

After leaving this afternoon I was driving down the highway laughing at myself for forgetting the thermarest chair and tarp, when it occurred to me that I had forgotten something else: my kidney belt. It helps hold you straight in the saddle for long hours.

I kept driving. Can't wait to see what else I find I'm missing.

Another hour drive to the Alberta border and to camp.

&llz=60.55420,-116.14248

Leaving Yellowknife - Moto 2010

2010-08-23T15:23:00.000-06:00

Well all packed up, said goodbyes, fill up at gas station then down the highway.

Made it to the sand pits and had to turn around.

Forgot my silicon tarp. Fits in a pocket and really nice in the rain. These looming clouds overhead reminded me of rains :-). Oh and while I'm at it, why not grab that thermarest chair since I'm back home.

Makes me think I didn't think of packing very well. Hmmm what else am I forgetting!? Ah well, I can buy anything else.

See u soon yall!

Name:		Current Position
Date:		Aug 25, 2010 11:13 pm
Map: (valid until Sep 24, 2010)		View on Map
iPhone/iPad Map:		Maps Application
Location:
	Latitude:	51.220074º N
	Longitude:	114.720132º W
	Altitude:	1,198 m