travellingbennetts

There is nothing more exciting than the anticipation and planning for a major expedition. The possibilities and promises of a blank notebook page and a map are intoxicating. Google Maps is all well and good, but one of the first planning tools for Duncan’s and my upcoming 5 month motorcycling trip to the USA was a 3 metre x 2 metre wall map of the Lower 48 states. This was duly hung in a hallway and is now defaced with scribbles and circling of places that will be a must-see. Getting the “big picture” is important for this duration of trip and it has definitely assisted me in the geography of the States.

The gift of the Lonely Planet book “Best Road Trips USA” was an inspiration and will ensure we don’t miss any of the big ticket riding roads. I also have a well-thumbed copy of the Lonely Planet “National Parks of the USA”, which also will narrow down which parks are not to be missed. The purchase of a National Parks Pass was interesting, as they are not electronic passes, just good ol’ school paper ones, which will be mailed to us here in Brisbane. We could have purchased these at the first park we visit but thought that prior preparation could ensure a shorter queue experience. We have had the privilege of visiting the Glacier National Park in 2016 which really did whet the appetite for more of these special places.

Packing lists must be examined in minute detail for what can fit onto the motored 2-wheel conveyances. In the past on our long riding expeditions (3 months and over) we have had a support vehicle to carry our luggage comprising of 2 x 100 litre duffle bags each. Yeah, not this time!

The riding gear of the Klim pants and jackets as well as waterproof adventure riding boots will be shipped with the bikes in 2 panniers and a top box for each of the Tigers along with a set of bike spare parts.
Our helmets however will be taken as carry-on baggage when we fly to LA. My checked baggage will be 2 Triumph expedition pannier inner bags. These are a quality roll-top bag made of a waterproof material with sturdy carry handles. Other options for checked luggage could be a “throw-away” striped canvas bag or an old suitcase which can be discarded on arrival. Of course we are on the packing cube bandwagon to keep everything neatly organised. A recent purchase of mine has been the compression packing cubes – a real game changer!

The tedium of arranging insurances domestically take on a certain mystical aspect when looking to source mandatory third party insurance bike coverage abroad. Even the business name of insurance broker Segura Gringo is tinged with the exotic.

In this day and age, a lot of research can be streamlined by visiting Facebook groups, blog pages and forums on packing, travel hacks and the conundrum of shipping versus hiring versus purchasing motorcycles. However this can take some of the fun out of the planning process and make everything a bit too predictable. I think the term is “analysis paralysis”.

In relation to route planning, we do have a loose direction which has morphed from the wall map to a Word document to a flexible Garmin GPS route. A very recent discovery is the magic of AI and using Chatgpt parameters to design an itinerary. It is amazing technology, and you can specify sights you want to see, timing, optimal riding weather etc etc. In saying that we don’t want to be too prescriptive. Having the flexibility to stay longer in the hidden gems we will invariably discover and move on from foul weather or tourist traps is a non-negotiable for this trip.

One night stays will be a rarity, as we want to experience the areas in which we will be travelling and not just transit. We will avoid big cities and when we want to explore New York and Boston we will stay out of the city and make trips in on public transport. This worked well for us in Seattle and Vancouver when we travelled independently on hire bikes in 2016. On our supported expeditions we have too often stayed in the middle of some of the biggest cities in the world including Cairo, Buenos Aires, Rio and Lima. Getting to the accommodation in the without fail hot afternoon temperatures can be debilitating and getting back out again is also a chore. The convenience of being in the centre of the action is just not that worthwhile we find.

A couple of dates are set in stone, firstly an early August riding catch up with our good mate Alden from our Alaska ride with Compass is a must. A Colorado native and fellow Tiger rider, he will guide us around his spectacular backyard. He will also help us arrange servicing and tyres (or is that tires?) for our bikes as they will be well due by then.

Family from Brisbane will fly to join us in San Francisco in early September and hire bikes to ride with us to Yosemite and Vegas where we will have some merry times I’m sure! After Vegas a trip to the Grand Canyon is much anticipated.

Where will we sleep? Likely a mix of basic cabins, some Air BnB’s for longer stints as well as experiencing character-filled places including a Nevada Motor Lodge that has refurbished classic Airstream caravans. Although we do not intend to camp, we will take our sleeping bags as cabins in the RV Parks apparently do not always have bedding supplied.

Of course an expedition needs a name so this trip is “Lower 48 Mate”! We have even had stickers printed so it is official.

Riding down into Mexico was also tossed into the planning mix until we looked into insurances and then googled some more and happened upon a week-long riding tour around the Yucatan Peninsula which will be timed for the end of our trip after the bikes are dropped back to the Port of Los Angeles. This tour is on Harleys but the riding days are short with a lot of time for sightseeing around this area of Maya ruins, stunning beaches and limestone sinkholes. Happily our son Tim and his fiancé are coming to join us on this section of the trip which should be a fitting end to our 5 month adventure.

So, we are on the countdown with the bikes to be delivered to the Port of Brisbane on 10th March for their sea journey to the Port of Los Angeles. We wing our way to LA on 26th May. The target pick up date for the bikes is first week of June which allows for a few days of local sightseeing and jetlag recovery. Bring it on!