Blokes on Spokes

Two Aussie blokes riding their BMW R1150GSs from Australia to Europe

Tag: BMW (Page 2 of 2)

Pakistan – Police plus politics equal postponements – 16,135kms

April 23, 2016 /

As a fairly well travelled chap, I knew very well what to expect for the first half of our journey. South East Asia didn’t disappoint, but nor did it surprise. Once leaving India however Drew and I were both thrust into very new territory – an unfamiliar culture, staunchly religious (and a very unfamiliar religion at that), with a bad reputation in our western media for unsavoury social behaviour.

But we’re both open minded, and we have embraced Pakistan as fully as we could. I kid you not, the people are the friendliest I’ve ever come across (actually, the men are the friendliest I’ve ever come across – I haven’t met any women so am not in a position to comment).  We had expected to keep our distance with Pakistan to avoid getting into any sticky situations, but ironically of all the cultures we’ve encountered on our journey thus far, it’s Pakistan’s that we’ve immersed ourselves in most fully. We’ve done more homestays than hotel stays, we’ve been fed to bursting, enjoyed countless chai tea breaks, and even had fuel bought for us. Pakistanis are hospitable beyond words.

And the scenery is simply breathtaking – the world’s second highest peak, K2, is in the heart of the Karakoram ranges, where the Himalayas, Karakoram and Hindu Kush ranges meet. Descending from the mountains you’re taken through fertile agricultural lands, which is followed by vast deserts that give you the feeling of riding through landscapes straight from Star Wars’ Tatooine. There’s a lot to love about Pakistan, and by rights they deserve to have a booming tourism industry.

But undeniably there is a darker side to Pakistan, the side that westerners are more familiar with. Outside of the heavily populated (and economically powerful) eastern province of Punjab the presence of armed forces in Pakistan is almost overwhelming. Police walk around casually with AK47s or assault rifles slung over their shoulders and 9mm pistols strapped to their hips. The army is no different. Bank security guards carry double barrelled shotguns, whilst men of moderate prominence employ armed bodyguards to accompany them as they go about their daily business. Thankfully we’ve not witnessed anything unsavoury ourselves, and when speaking to locals about the security situation everyone’s very quick to say “there’s no security problem here”. I have no doubt that this is due to the huge presence of armed forces, and as a result we’ve become very blase about being surrounded by men with weapons.

Refuelling under armed escort in Dir

Refuelling under armed escort in Dir

When digging a little deeper in conversation with Pakistani people we’ve come to realise that their plight is a horribly complex one. Oblivious westerners might assume that all these problems relating to guns and armed forces stem from 9/11 and the Taliban’s presence in the region. No Pakistani has denied that things didn’t change significantly for them after 9/11, however the problems go far deeper than that. For more than half a century, Pakistan has been a political football; it began when the British partitioned the subcontinent in 1947, and by all reports they did a pretty average job of it. It’s no coincidence that both Pakistan and India have a province called Punjab, and to this day Jammu and Kashmir are still disputed territories.

Pakistan is resource rich, and located in a strategically opportune spot on the Gulf of Oman. Russia invaded Afghanistan in the late 70’s, and out of their own self interest America sided with Pakistan – this was part of the cold war. But Pakistan also borders China, and China’s might is huge. The Chinese are currently investing heavily in infrastructure in Pakistan, for both resources and strategic military gain. But of course China and America don’t get along so famously, and in more recent times (according to the Pakistanis) America has seen this as a passive threat and have retaliated by supporting India. Incidentally, China is also supporting Nepal after India tried to cut off their fuel supply to force them into political submission.

And we haven’t even touched on religion yet! Pakistan is an Islamic state, and Islam comes in different flavours. Whilst Sunni and Shiites previously got along, it was apparently hardlined Saudi Arabian Wahabis that showed an interest in setting the cat amongst the religious pigeons. Remember too that Pakistan is a nuclear armed nation with a notoriously corrupt government and you can start to understand just what a sticky situation it is. Religious extremists are just the salt and pepper on top.

Of course we haven’t seen any Americans, Russians, Chinese or Saudi muftis – we’re blissfully ignorant of Pakistan’s political woes. What we have had to deal with though is literally dozens of military and police checkpoints. Independent travel by road in Pakistan is arduously slow. There is no way for us to know what road is open, what road is restricted and what roads we’ll be required to travel under police escort. Hour upon hour has been wasted sitting at the roadside waiting to find out if we can proceed, and if you look closely at our GPS tracks, you’ll see all the times we’ve had to double back on ourselves. To make matters worse, the police from one district won’t communicate with the police in the adjacent district – we’ve sat around for hours whilst we’ve waited for them to negotiate amongst themselves what should be done with us. These guys couldn’t organise a root in a brothel and sadly all of this has left a bitter taste in our mouths about Pakistan.

Whilst the world’s superpowers make their sport in Pakistan, the everyday Pakistani goes about normal life as best they can. And the overlander travelling across the country is left to negotiate the roads and the checkpoints as best they can, wondering if Pakistan is bitter or sweet.

DISCLAIMER: I am not a historical, political nor religious expert – this post is a condensed interpretation of conversations with everyday Pakistani people – don’t hold it against me if I’ve misrepresented the situation.

For fellow overlanders looking for a more detailed run down of our experience, check out this post on Horizons Unlimited

Nepal – the lowest low to the highest high

April 5, 2016 /


I’m sitting in a Italian Cafe in New Delhi. I am enjoying a long black the way it should be and an orange juice to match. Today marks 2 months on the road and I thought I would treat myself to a ‘Melbourne’ Breakfast, mind you in Melbourne I don’t need to argue with a Rickshaw driver over an agreed $2 for the near death experience through Delhi traffic. I must confess that I’m a useless traveller and if I didn’t have James here to keep me on the straight and narrow I would have already spent the trip’s budget on beggar handouts and expensive western meals. I did however enjoy my meal and after 2 months of eating locally on the road I feel I have deserved it – let’s hope this meal won’t contain ‘Delhi Belly’

India has been intense and we were both pleased to cross into Nepal to be greeted with better roads, more reserved people and a cooler climate. When James and I ride in Australia we consult google maps and try to find the best roads for motorcycles, twisting and remote. Nepal was a highlight for us and on the first night we employed the same tactics. The main highway across Nepal runs along the southern border to India and we were determined not to use it, the other road above it looked more ‘interesting’ and given it wore the same colour and thickness as the highway what could go wrong?

Jimmy and I on our dirt day before finding the swing bridge

Jimmy and I on our dirt day before finding the swing bridge

We woke to yet another beautiful day had a healthy serving of Dal Bhat and headed off towards the road we had decided upon in the North. By morning tea we arrived in a village with wide-eyed, open mouthed Nepalese unable to process our presence. The road in was narrow, sections unsealed but we assumed it was a bad section and given the maps elusion it would improve. Jimmy tracked down a local who could speak English and managed to obtain information for the road ahead. I recall the advice was “very steep, go slow” and “swing bridge but ok”. I was in a good mood and felt ready to tackle anything so we pushed on, the road quickly deteriorated and fell away to a track that I would have been happy to spend a weekend on my dirt bike back home, the problem was I wasn’t on my WR450, I was on250kg of BMW! The day proved to be very challenging – we both dropped our bikes and with local help and our bikes striped of luggage managed to cross the swing bridge just wide enough to accommodate our width.
We finally arrived at the next town on the map, parched and hungry at 3pm! We had spent 7 hours on the bikes and covered 70 km’s.

The bridge was just wide enough to accommodate the bikes.

The bridge was just wide enough to accommodate the bikes.

These locals helped carry our gear across the bridge after we got the bikes across.

These locals helped carry our gear across the bridge after we got the bikes across.

We decided to head back down to the main highway the following morning to head towards Kathmandu, James’ wife Monica was flying in in 3 days and we needed to be there! A local had tipped us off that Highway 6 into Kathmandu was the road to take, newly made with many mountain range passes and only cars and motorbikes were allowed, no Tata Trucks! Highway 6 is the best road we have ridden so far abroad, perfect tarmac that twists its way up and down mountains for over 160km’s. If you visit Nepal be sure to take it.

We didn't want to come off on this road, it was along way down

We didn’t want to come off on this road, it was along way down

The perfect road- Highway 6

The perfect road- Highway 6

James and Monica had a romantic hike for 2 booked months out and I was keen to leave the lovers to it and take my own little adventure. I made some enquiries about ‘The Highest motor-able pass in Nepal’ and found that Muktinath, 3800 meters ASL was possible. In typical Drew fashion I obtained the Mustang national park permit on the day of departure and hit the road. Muktinath was only 170km’s away, easy! Obviously highway 6 had given me a false sense of security. After a long wait at the fuel station for fuel (fuel in Nepal is still hard to find after the loss of fuel supply from india last year) I was away – I covered 65km’s within the first 45 minutes then the road simply disappeared! It was like a magical act Nepalese style, you pass through Beni and then nothing apart from a track containing loose rocks the size of soccer balls. The scenery however was incredible upon every turn I caught a sights of snow capped mountains. I met Pieter from the Netherlands on his solo adventure – livetheride.me. Pieter was on his way down and we had a brief chat about the road to Muktinath, his first response was that ‘it gets a little better’ but when we parted he gave me a cheeky smile and said ‘actually it gets worse’. I continued on and did the math and realised I couldn’t make it all the way – Jomson would be my goal for the night. I arrived at 5pm, checked into a hotel had a cold shower and proceeded to dress myself in almost my whole wardrobe to stay warm.

The landscape on the way up was like nothing I had seen before

The landscape on the way up was like nothing I had seen before

Deepak having a rest over Kagbeni.

Deepak having a rest over Kagbeni.

I ventured out for a meal and realised that I had checked into a pretty average hotel and found a much better one for a meal and some great company. I met a few foreigners on week long hikes, I felt a little lazy informing them that I had ridden my motorcycle all the way! As usual our journey prompts conversation and I was soon sharing stories with others, Deepak from Kathmandu joined us and I quickly realised he was a keen motorcyclist and had been up to Muktinath a few times and had even organised ‘The Mukti Ride 2016‘. Deepak invited me to join him the following morning for breakfast and then ride to Muktinath – he had a room already booked at the Bob Marley Hotel!

Hotel Bob Marley. It was cold and I never experienced the 'Real running hot shower'

Hotel Bob Marley. It was cold and I never experienced the ‘Real running hot shower’

A small village before Jomsom

A small village before Jomsom

I don’t know how to describe the journey up to Muktinath, what was an uphill dusty battle all the way to Jomsom became a quiet ancient dry river bed plain, we took a path less travelled across the pebbly bed and the scenery was breathtaking, so was the altitude! We were to ascend another 1000 meters to Muktinath and we needed to hydrate, stop more often and try not to increase our heart rate, not that easy on a motorcycle in the Himalayas! Luckily Deepak’s Royal Enfield broke it’s throttle cable, fortunately he was carrying a spare one and we stopped for almost an hour at 3000 meters to replace it, I was very pleased to offer tools and assistance needed to complete the job. We made it to the Bob Marley Hotel just as it started to snow and after checking in Deepak suggested we ride up to the Temple another 300 meters in the snow! We spent a good 45 minutes up at the temple in the snow which I was not dressed appropriately for, I don’t know if it was the temperature or the altitude but it all was a little too much and I wasn’t feeling great, we returned to Bob Marley and Deepak ordered me hot water and a garlic soup that worked wonders. Now as the name suggests the Bob Marley Hotel lives up to its Rasta name and it was fully booked, we met many people from all over the globe who had completed ‘The Pass’ a 12 day intense hike and immediately got along and ordered countless rounds of beers and ended up playing Black Jack until 11pm. The following day I wasn’t feeling great I think I had finally caught James’ cold and obtained altitude sickness in the same sitting, I’m sure the previous nights antics didn’t help either!

Somewhere above Muktinath.

Somewhere above Muktinath.

Following Deepak through a village at 4000 meters

Following Deepak through a village at 4000 meters

Deepak was heading to Upper Mustang National Park, as a foreigner I needed to obtain a permit at a cost of $500 U.S.D and couldn’t justify it although it did sound amazing – Upper Mustang had remained untouched even by the Nepalese until 1992. The weather made the decision for us, snow had fallen all night making Deepak’s journey too risky solo and I was not feeling up to it, instead we rode up another 500 meters from Muktinath cracking the 4000 metres A.S.L. I made the call after my 3rd drop to give up, my bike was just too heavy and the strength needed to right it too much at the altitude we were at. We descended to Kagbeni for the night and parted ways the following morning as I just simply needed to descend to lower ground and take a day to recover. I returned to Jomson and beyond back onto the dusty, rock ridden pot hole mess of a the road that eventually finds tarmac at Beni. The journey down was painfully slow, energy levels low and I pushed my bike too hard and ended up with my first official puncture in my rear tyre 12 km’s out of Beni. Repair kit on board but no pump! I was not in the mood to remove the rear wheel, flag a lift into Beni for air and back out again instead I rode at 15km’s for an hour to finally find air in Beni. I also needed fuel and eventually obtained 4 litres at 2.5 times the market rate! I was pleased to be reunited with tarmac and stopped for a dip at some Hot springs that lifted my spirits to get me back to Pokhara.

Tired but happy.

Tired but happy.

Sitting in Delhi waiting for our Iranian Visa’s I have fond memories of Nepal, some days broke me but most were amazing. The people are very kind and much more relaxed than Indian’s. My adventure to Muktinath has wet my appetite for more to come in Pakistan.

Hacking through the Himalayas

Escaping from India: Nepal – 9,491kms

March 7, 2016 /

You realise what a sheltered and privileged life you’ve lived when you take a walk through a town and can feel every single eye upon you. We arrived in Phidim, a long way from the well trodden path, and Drew took an afternoon nap whilst I strolled alone through the small, remote township. Whilst I walked, there was not a single pair of eyes that didn’t stop to look at me. Young children ran and hid, whilst some not so young children called “What’s your name?” after I’d walked passed them, followed by childish giggles. Young men stared coldly and young women tried to hide their intrigue. It was only the older men and women who didn’t seem to show much interest at all. You can’t help but feel uncomfortable at the way people react in a place like this; not unsafe, but certainly not at ease.

The streets of Phidim

The streets of Phidim

And it’s this feeling that makes me appreciate how lucky we are. Lucky that we live in a country where the hourly rate of pay is more than people here earn in a week, and lucky that I live in a country amongst people whose skin is the same colour as mine so as not to turn heads. You can only begin to appreciate what immigrants, refugees and people from ethnic minorities living Australia must feel everyday after taking a walk in a place like this.

10km/h is the limit in Phidim

10km/h is the limit in Phidim

We came to Nepal perhaps a little earlier than anticipated – after less than one week in India both Drew and I felt the need to move on from the crowds, horns, traffic and pollution that India presented us. As motorcyclists we love the mountain roads, and we’d headed to Darjeeling not just for the roads enroute, but to try and escape the heat and humanity of India’s lowlands. It was bitter sweet however; the roads were fantastic, but our time in the hills was shrouded in cloud so we couldn’t appreciate the vistas that Darjeeling is renowned for.

Riding through the clouds in the Himalayas. Drew is not more than 50 metres in front

Riding through the clouds in the Himalayas. Drew is not more than 50 metres in front

And there were the people. Everywhere people. The straw that broke the camel’s back was an older Indian man getting on Drew’s bike (without first seeking our permission) for a selfie whilst we were stopped at the roadside. This in itself wouldn’t have been an issue – but that fact the he didn’t appreciate how heavy the bike was, losing his balance and falling over, taking 250kgs of motorcycle with him certainly was. After I spat some very choice words at the man, Drew and decided it best to get as quickly to Nepal as we could to try and find some respite.

Breathtaking valleys in the Himilayan foothills

Breathtaking valleys in the Himalayan foothills

Nepal is statistically one of the poorest countries in the world – it rates in the lowest quarter of the Human Development Index. Thankfully we’ve not seen anything yet in Nepal that epitomises these statistics. Even here in Phidim young children speak to me in English, which I find truly impressive. There seems to be a better equality between men and women than in India, and people seem far more liberal in general. There is noticeably less rubbish on the roadsides, and the roads themselves are in much better condition. When we stop the bikes we still draw a crowd, but people don’t touch and prod them, or worse, sit on them for selfies. Of course it’s not possible for me to judge these things properly after riding through villages for two days off the beaten track, but if I had to make a call today I’d pick Nepal over India any day of the week.

This photo doesn't even begin to capture what these roads are like

This photo doesn’t even begin to capture what these roads are like

Being the mountain loving motorcyclists that we are, after crossing the border we headed straight back for the hills. And my how spectacular they are – we’ve ridden up and down valleys and ridges countless time, dropping as low as 200 metres ASL before zigzagging back as high as 2,500 metres – you get an overwhelming sense of vertigo when you look over the edge of the road as you’re riding. One wrong corner here and you’d literally launch yourself to your end. It is simply breathtaking. I just hope that Nepal and it’s people continue to take my breath away for all of the right reasons

Hacking through the Himalayas

Hacking through the Himalayas

India, where anything goes – 9236kms

March 5, 2016 /


The last day of Myanmar was amazing, twisting backroads through gorgeous countryside overlooked by mountain ranges. We were also allowed to motor ahead of the van for most of the day giving us the freedom we all needed and are used to. The Myanmar/India border road takes us by surprise as no longer are there countless Buddha images but Christian Churches. Passing through on a Sunday morning, we are taken back by well dressed folk on their way to church with bibles in hand. As we work our way to the border we all become anxious about another dreaded border crossing taking hours with many people, pushing and spitting their way to the front of the line. We couldn’t believe we’d arrived at the border as there was literally no one else there – passports were stamped and I was even asked where I would like the stamp to be in my passport. I was offered some local fruit by the immigration official and most of the delay was our government official making chit chat with the border control.

We were waved good-bye as we crossed a metal bridge, moved back to the left side of the road and entered India with smiles across our faces; until the smell hit us!

I don’t know what came first, the smell, the dust or both?

“Welcome to India”  the border control guards offered with AK47 riffles in hand, “passports please”

We were then sent in search of the Immigration office for official forms and stamps; we actually almost drove right through the town before locating it. A nice man with good english dressed in a Ralph Lauren t-shirt and jeans took our documents and we all had a lovely time in a gazebo whilst he happily stamped. Then it was off to Customs to have the bikes inspected and approved. We all crossed the border together so this process took some time. Having never been to India the first thing that hits you is the amount of people! I knew there were a lot but was taken back at the figure of 1.5 BILLION. There were simply people everywhere and the contrast from Myanmar was indescribable.

We finally stopped for lunch and were astounded by the attention!

“Excuse me sir, where do you come from? How much your bike worth?”

Every time we stop we're instantly surrounded by hordes of men

Every time we stop we’re instantly surrounded by hordes of men

Smiling faces crowding around our bikes

Smiling faces crowding around our bikes

These 2 questions always come first, then how much fuel they consume, could they take a selfie with us or better still be their friend. At first I quite liked it, the Burmese are so shy they often retreated with conversation but the Indians are far from shy; Jimmy left his bike for 5 minutes to enquire about our first hotel room and came out to find a guy sitting on his bike!

We just can't but help heading for the mountain roads in India

We just can’t but help heading for the mountain roads in India

Look really closely at that road in the distance. Freakin' awesome

Look really closely at that road in the distance. Freakin’ awesome

The countryside however is absolutely stunning and we can feel how close we are to the the Himalaya’s – the road into Imphal was magnificent with little traffic and tight corners. We did however leave too late and ended up off the mountain range as the sun fell which left us with 2 options; stop in nowhere land or push on in the dark for Imphal. Now apart from Jimmy no one else had ridden in India before and the tales soon became reality as we were facing oncoming traffic on the wrong side of the road, push bike riders carrying loads, cows and worse pedestrians that could only be seen at the last second.

The ominous Tata truck. Best to know your place on the road

The ominous Tata truck. Best to know your place on the road

In India you don’t need indicators, stop lamps or low beam head lamps. All you need is a fucking loud horn and high beam headlamps! The theory seems to be if you want to get around someone you hold your horn on and pull out into oncoming traffic, if there are vehicles coming towards you keep going but turn your high beams on – that way you blind the person coming towards you at speed, move on and let them jam the anchors on without being able to see and it’s all sorted! Thankfully we all made it to Imphal in one piece and all acknowledged that we won’t be travelling at night again.

We finally found a hotel most of us were ok with, checked in and went for a beer – until we realised that Manipur is a dry state! We laid our heads for the night.

High on the hill was a lonely goat herder

High on the hill was a lonely goat herder

We awoke late without a plan the following morning and between cursing the annoyingly slow wifi and trying to decide what to do for the day we decided at noon to part from our group of travellers and move on from Imphal; the town was more like a city and any appeal we had hoped for had worn off. We headed towards the Northern mountain ranges based upon distances and thought that Kohima would be a nice town in the mountains to stay. We were quickly realising that towns in India were actually more like cities.

Riding through the streets of Guwahati

Riding through the streets of Guwahati

We located a hotel that had a lock-up for our bikes and met a nice Australian- Matt from Sydney working in Nagaland as a researcher for Sydney University. Over a dinner at a fantastic traditional Nagaland restaurant we were educated by Matt about the conflict in the area since 1946 and made sense of the military presence we had come across.

Traditional Naga dish #smokedpork #India #atewithourhands #adventuremotorcycling #bmwgs

A photo posted by Blokes On Spokes (@blokesonspokes) on

India is going to be epic, we have 10 days to get to Nepal (Kathmandu) to meet James’ wife – let’s hope we get him there in one piece!

Burma for Buddha – 8152kms

March 2, 2016 /

54 million people live in Myanmar and 95% of the population are Buddhist which means most people have their own Buddha. There are Buddha images in Pagodas and temples,  Buddhas in parks, on top of hills, in shops and anywhere else you can find space for one.

Buddhas. Lots of them

Buddhas. Lots of them

There are sitting, standing and lying Buddhas. Assuming one person has 2 Buddha images each that would put the current amount of Buddha images in Myanmar at 108 Million and I think we have seen most of them!

Yep, this Buddha's a big one

Yep, this Buddha’s a big one

This should be no surprise to us – we knew we needed to take a tour across Myanmar and our guide Pure is doing a fantastic job of ticking the highlights off the list. We are staying in 5 star hotels and being led across the country with easy and trouble-free travel. But we are adventure motorcyclists and we left our comfortable country to explore the world for its soul and really get an insight into other people’s lives.

I am not a religious man and neither is Jimmy so we have no interest in Buddhism; what we are interested in is the people of Myanmar and how they live and interact and simply survive.

Passing the passers by

Passing the passers by

The best experience of Myanmar has been out on the road with the people – it is one of the reasons we love motorcycling so much. We get to see mother and father on small scooters holding their newborn babies without helmets enduring traffic of overloaded lorries, buses and cars. We see many people riding on roofs of buses and trucks ducking to avoid low branches and bridges, women walking with oversized dishes upon their heads to sell on the roadside, men riding old bikes with corn cooking on the rear by coals. Young boy Novice Monks walk in line accepting donated lunch along the roadside.

Novice monks receiving their food donations

Novice monks receiving their food donations

This is the real Myanmar. The women are shy and dress in traditional wear often blushing when making eye contact with us. The men are strong but gentle and they love our bikes; it is often the first thing that draws their attention.

Notice where his feet are

Notice where his feet are

Small children stare at us, older children wave from roadside stalls. We have seen small children working with their parents carting water in tanks, young ladies serving food and others herding cattle along a roadside. Hard men in ditches digging up concrete in thongs with bare hands. The land is barren  and sections of the country seem almost unlivable – but life exists.

Hard at work

Hard at work

The people of Myanmar have had it tough over the years, war and military rule has restricted and stalled their prospects but their recent move to a democratic society has lifted the cloud from overhead and they’re smiling all over, working hard at whatever it takes to improve the country and life. This is why we are travelling across the land, we will cross the border into india in 2 days time free ourselves from a restricted tour and be away in search of more of the world in front of us.

Myanmar: the tag along tour – 7385kms

February 26, 2016 /

We arrived at Mae Sot, the Thai-Myanmar border town, on Friday evening after spending time off the beaten track in a failed search for a waterfall. Mae Sot seems like a pretty happening place for a border town; busy, with a lot going on.

Sunrise over Mae Sot, the morning we were to cross into Burma

Sunrise over Mae Sot, the morning we were to cross into Burma

There were two dirt bikes in the hotel car park with Australian plates on them and we assumed we we’d see them at the border crossing the following morning to join the mandatory tour. It’s not possible to bring your own vehicle into Myanmar without a government registered tour guide and government ministry representative. In order to do this, budget conscious overlanders such as ourselves get together with other like minded travellers to keep the costs as low as possible. It turns out there were a total of 10 motorcyclists at the border that morning, 6 others travelling in our tour (including the Aussie registered dirt bikes). It just goes to show how ‘common’ what we’re doing is! After a bit of confusion crossing to the other side of the road (they drive on the right in Myanmar) we road into Myanmar on the newly built “Friendship Highway”.

Our first taste of Burmese roads on the "Friendship Highway"

Our first taste of Burmese roads on the “Friendship Highway”

The first days were spent mostly riding with a little sightseeing along the way – a real eye opener was spending a night in the nation’s new capital of Naypyitaw. This city was purpose built 11 years ago, and almost no people moved to the city when the government moved here – for over two hundred kilometres we road on a 4 lane highway with literally no traffic on it. In the city itself we rode on a 16 lane road, and ours were the only vehicles!

This highway led to a purpose built capital city with nearly no inhabitants, which meant the was nearly no traffic on the roads. A great place to practise your 'look mum no hands' riding technique

This highway led to a purpose built capital city with nearly no inhabitants, which meant the was nearly no traffic on the roads. A great place to practise your ‘look mum no hands’ riding technique

Just trying to blend in in Naypyidaw, Myanmar's new capitol

Just trying to blend in in Naypyidaw, Myanmar’s new capital

It wasn’t until we reached the ancient city of Bagan that we had a full day off the bikes. Instead we had a full program of sightseeing; from sunup to sundown we zipped backwards and forwards across town with our tour guide, seeing all the stuff that all the tourists are supposed to see. After nearly a month of doing everything at our own pace we felt like we’d been thrown back to a school excursion, in the sense that we’ve been doing everything to somebody else’s agenda. Thankfully it’s a good group of people and we all seem to be getting along.

Sunrise in Bagan

Sunrise in Bagan

Purely by coincidence there was a motorcycle expo on in Bagan at the time we were there – thankfully our tour guide appreciated our interest and took us to the expo. There were a lot of old English bikes on display, probably from bygone days when the British had a lot more influence here.

Really old girls

Really old girls

Another day on the road saw us arrive in Mandalay, where we’ll have another day of sightseeing. I wonder where the tour bus will take us tomorrow…

Mandalay's wooden bridge

Mandalay’s wooden bridge

Enough rambling – pictures speak louder than words, so enjoy the photographic story as a substitute

Thailand to Burma (Myanmar) – 6119kms

February 25, 2016 /

We did the math before deciding a route through Thailand and decided it was better to head to Ko Lanta Island on the west coast for some R & R before heading straight up to the north of Thailand to our border crossing at Mae Sot into Burma. Ko Lanta is an island off the west coast of Thailand and based upon our research seemed to be the island to stay on not to touristy on the south end and we could get the bikes over on 2 ferries at the cost of $2 each. We were surprised at the amount of tourists but ended up happy on the south end in a great little beach side resort to enjoy our first official rest day. It was difficult to leave Ko Lanta but we were happy to be back in the saddle and once back on the main land our next leg took us through Khlong Phanom National park with perfect tight corners and limestone mountains literally leaping out in front of us, not the longest road but given our constant freeway journey since landing in South-East asia it lifted our spirits. We made it as far as Phetkasem to find a hostel within walking distance to the beach and lay our heads for the night.

True love...

True love…

Koh Lanta's National Park. Could be worse

Koh Lanta’s National Park. Could be worse

Up bright and early for a swim we made good time the following morning taking us through to the east coast, the distance surprising us as the land is so narrow only a small 70klm’ls from west to east. With a quick consult of the map we realised Bangkok was unachievable but a small town on the east coast that Jimmy and Monica had stayed last year would work and we ended up staying in the exact room they had shared months earlier. Next stop Bangkok for a much-needed battery charger for Jimmy’s camera, given our little interest in city traffic we exited as soon as possible to meet with Bangkok Police on a motorway only for cars and trucks and we were instructed to turn around and ride against oncoming traffic to get off!

Stuck in traffic on the outskirts of Bangkok

Stuck in traffic on the outskirts of Bangkok

Our breakfast restaurant in Kamphaeng Phet

Our breakfast restaurant in Kamphaeng Phet

Our chef at our breakfast restaurant in Kamphaeng Phet

Our chef at our breakfast restaurant in Kamphaeng Phet

Our breakfast in Kamphaeng Phet

Our breakfast in Kamphaeng Phet

Matt who we met over a few beers had recommended a road south of Mae Sot that weaves its way to the largest waterfall in Thailand high in the mountains in Umphung a 170klm journey taking us up about 2000 m with stunning scenery and views through to a much-anticipated Burma. Jimmy and I had a huge amount of fun on the way up over 1000 bends leading us into Umphung to a much deserved beer and given our lack of private space we decided to splash out at $8 a night on a room each.

Lunch off the beaten track enroute to Umphang

Lunch off the beaten track enroute to Umphang

The road to Umphang

The road to Umphang

We left Umphung in search of the waterfall, we had heard that one could only make it with a local tour company but given we ride adventure bikes that wasn’t going to stop us! We made our way out to the national park and proceeded to buy tickets to get in but to our disappointment they wouldn’t less us in on our bikes. We consulted the map to locate a smaller waterfall 30 klm down the road and decided to try our luck, the paved road came and went and we ended up along way off the beaten track onto 15 klm’s of dirt, mud and ruts that eventually broke the forces of gravity with us both dropping our bikes at low-speed. We dusted off our pride and headed back in disappointed to not have showered in a Thai waterfall.

Getting dirty whilst trying to find a waterfall

Getting dirty whilst trying to find a waterfall

 

 

Off the beaten track

Off the beaten track

Blokes Off Spokes #blokesonspokes #adventuremotorcycling #thailand #bmwgs

A photo posted by Blokes On Spokes (@blokesonspokes) on

With all the dirt riding in the morning the concentration needed for the journey home wore us down, the road was awesome but not consistent in condition and you had to stay alert to avoid any mishaps. A short stop at the halfway point found some other big bikes, BMW’s and a few Harley’s why you would take a Harley along this path astounded us but we soon learned the Harley rider owned Bangkok Harley Davidson so I guess he didn’t have a choice! Great to meet other riders on the road, always up for a chat about our journey.

Mae Sot was surprisingly big and initially I was keen to check it out but soon learned that it was a typical border town and mostly consisted of retail trade with Burma. A good night sleep with an early start to cross the border into Burma the following day and meet up with our tour.

Malaysia into Thailand – 4039kms

February 15, 2016 /

Chinese New Year. A time when one of the planet’s largest communities celebrates with their families and friends. A time for reflection, fireworks, food and good times. And waiting. And waiting. And waiting…

What we didn’t realise (and what the freight agent we’d employed in Kuala Lumpur who promised to have our bikes out of customs within 24 hours failed to tell us) was that we’d arrived right smack bang in the middle of the Chinese New Year celebrations. We arrived on a Sunday and booked a hotel right near the airport so that we could get straight down to business on the Monday. Our hearts sank however when Old Mate at the hotel reception told us that because of Chinese New Year, all of Malaysia had a holiday on the Monday. And the Tuesday. Come Monday we took a punt and went to the freight office anyway, but to no avail. Calls went unanswered, and emails sat undelivered on servers.

KL's Chinatown by night

KL’s Chinatown by night

So two days were spent in KL and we ticked most of Tripadvisor’s top 10 attractions off our list. It was bitter sweet however, as all we really wanted was our bikes. We finally got in touch with somebody on Wednesday morning who told us the bikes would be ready by the afternoon; so we packed our bags immediately and headed back to the airport cargo area. Once we got to the freight forwarders holding area, we meet some very enthusiastic staff who just couldn’t get enough of our bikes! We constantly had an audience of 5-10 blokes who watched and helped us put the bikes back together – we’ve since discovered that our bikes are real head turners here in South East Asia, where small motorbikes and scooters are so common.

KL's Petronas Towers

KL’s Petronas Towers

KL Bird Park

KL Bird Park

Behind the waterfall

Behind the waterfall

We were constantly surrounded by people as we put the bikes back together

We were constantly surrounded by people as we put the bikes back together

A happy camper, after boxing and reassembling the bikes

A happy camper, after boxing and reassembling the bikes

Very happy to see our bikes again, even in their boxes

Very happy to see our bikes again, even in their boxes

Very happy to see our bikes again, even in their boxes

Very happy to see our bikes again, even in their boxes

It was five o’clock by the time the bikes were reassembled, but we were determined to get as far away from the city as possible. We decided the Cameron Highlands would make some good sightseeing and motorcycling, so we punched the details into the GPS and headed off. We were amazed at just how far we made it too – Malaysia’s road infrastructure is incredible. The speed limit was 110kms/hour the whole way, and nearly all of the traffic sat 10-20kms/hour above this. We made excellent time and were really happy to be on the move.

On the streets of Tapah, Malaysia

On the streets of Tapah, Malaysia

The following morning we headed up into the Highlands proper but were thwarted by bad traffic; the Chinese New Year celebrations were still in swing and it seemed that half of KL had come up to the highlands, so once back down the other side we decided to jump back on the expressway and head to Penang Island.

High in the hills of Penang

High in the hills of Penang

Riding through a small town in Penang

Riding through a small town in Penang

The view from our hotel room in Penang

The view from our hotel room in Penang

With the deadline of our tour through Burma looming on the 20th, we decided to head from Penang straight to the Thai border, which again saw us stuck on the raw side of the Chinese New Year. Literally hundreds of people were queued up to get across the border and with no signs, order or general instruction it was a very trying and time consuming process to get both us and bikes into Thailand. But we eventually made it through and made as fast as we could to our next destination; Koh Lanta.

Riding the streets of Thailand, on our way to Koh Lanta

Riding the streets of Thailand, on our way to Koh Lanta

Bikes and beach. Could be worse!

Bikes and beach. Could be worse!

And this is where we find ourselves now. It’s tough, but we figured we’ve earned it. We’ve stopped for two nights for a break from the road to recharge our batteries (and our cameras!), before we make a big push towards Mae Sot where we’ll cross the border on the 20th to begin our compulsory tour of Burma.

The beach we decided to park ourselves at for the night on Koh Lanta

The beach we decided to park ourselves at for the night on Koh Lanta

Very happy to not be wearing our riding gear right now

Very happy to not be wearing our riding gear right now

Yep, Blokes with Cocktails

Yep, Blokes with Cocktails

Sunset from Koh Lanta

Sunset from Koh Lanta

Melbourne to Sydney – 1351kms

January 27, 2016 /

Well, it was an eventful start to the trip – I took a phone call from a police officer on the way to bike up my bike from the bar we’d had drinks the night before

“Mr. Ashton?”

“Yes”

“This is constable Stevens, are you the owner of a black BMW motorcycle?”

I don’t think my heart has ever sunk so fast so quickly, but it turned out to be a complaint from the cafe owner that I’d parked the bike where they wanted to setup their tables and chairs, and that was easily fixed!

It was a properly miserable day when we left – there were no long goodbyes of photo shoots as everybody was getting too wet. But the weather changed as we headed over the Yarra Ranges and it was set to stay like that for the rest of our trip to Sydney.

We’ll be in Sydney until Friday, spending some quality time with our wives, and doing a little more tinkering with the bikes before we head up to Brisbane where the bikes will be crated to fly!

January 12, 2016 /

Drew, the nicest mechanic in Melbourne agreed to replace the clutch in my bike when I learned that my local BMW workshop was taking an extended Christmas break and wouldn’t reopen in time our departure date. Although not the most stimulating viewing, it’s pretty cool to see the bike come apart before being put back together again. Makes me realise that I also need to invest in a second battery for the camera!

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