I woke up when alarm went off at 6.00 am. As you do, I reset it for 6.30 ‘pm’ and woke again at exactly 8.00. I must have needed that. The motel was fine but, as I’ve said, was a bit grubby for the first time. It had a big comfy bed which was spotless, but it smelt a bit funny. I’ve been in worse! A quick breaky of strawberry jam on bread, a Cliff Bar (oatmeal, raisin and walnuts) a cup of Joe and I was off. Continue reading “Done and dusted (or should I say, dusty)” →

I was ready to go by 7.00 am but knew the Burgdorf shop wouldn’t be open to get some breakfast, pay and checkout for a while. Opening was 10.00 am, but Dannan said he’d be poking about early and would sort things out. There was a bit of rain on the roof last night, never a nice sound if you’re on a motorbike and I slept pretty poorly for the first time. I’d have been much more comfortable on my Exped in the tent than the soft and squishy mattress in Broken Wing. Broken Back it should have been called!  Continue reading “A double U Turn – such a Dirty Shame” →

I’m glad I’ve had the Leatt armour on. While it’s been hot, heavy and restrictive at times, it’s given me a heap of confidence. It does stink though as it has a skintight synthetic material that holds it all to you, not doing a lot for breathability or allowing sweat to evaporate. Chest, ribs and kidneys are all protected – I’ve busted ribs twice before and it’s a long and painful recovery. Ewwwwww I can hear a lot of you saying!  Continue reading “Things to do in New York City (and hot springs along the way)” →

I have other very famous (or infamous) stretch of road in front of me – the Magruder Corridor. Once again, it’s an ancient route through the mountains used by Indians, settlers, cattlemen, miners, highwaymen, gamblers, women of ill-repute, opportunists and thieves. Motorcyclists fit in with that lot beautifully!  Continue reading “The Magruder Corridor” →

I enjoyed a nice couple of hours to finish Lolo off. A mix of rocky trails very high up and quite exposed, I was on top of the world. This had been a truely memorable couple of days. Continue reading “Heading for Montana” →

The Blue Hut, or Blue Heaven as it’s also called, really was a nice change and the people coming through who used it showed their appreciation and looked after it well. There was plenty of split firewood, it was warm, dry and the bottom bunk was very comfortable. It had an outside loo, a babbling brook and was a real little oasis.  Continue reading “The Lolo Motorway” →

Slept well. Shoulder a bit sore. Nothing desperate, but I know I’ve done some damage. It’s tempting to say ‘what if’. What if I hadn’t stepped in that hole, what if I’d parked half a metre further away, what if …….. What if the bloody bike had fallen on me! Pretty lucky really.

Continue reading “Blue Heaven” →