Touring Ted

I will roll out at 7am tomorrow morning so I better write this now !

The bike is packed and all I have to do is go and ride it now….  There’s plenty of crazy thoughts running through my head right now. Will this old battered enduro bike make it ?? Will I bet able to get the visas ? Am I going to get kidnapped, murdered, run over and shot at ?  … Knowing me, probably all of the above !

To be honest, it’s the waiting which is the worst thing. I’ve been ready for a while now. I finished work over a week ago and i’m just bored sitting at home waiting to leave..

The thing i’m LEAST looking forward to is the long ride from my home in Merseyside to Neils place in Surrey. Avoiding Motorways (my bike isnt fast enough), it’s going to take about 6-7 hours.. Not fun in bank holiday traffic ! I guess im going to have to get used to this and back into the mind set.

While on the road, you become a different person. Living a day at a time is the norm. You get used to packing and unpacking your bike, looking for places to sleep and long long days in the saddle.  When you finish a trip and get yourself back into the “Bubble” of a nomral 9-5 comfortable existance. It’s very hard to lever yourself out of it again..

I’m looking forward to being that other person again because it’s a fantastic way to live and very “free” !!!   I miss it !
So, anyway ! I don’t know when the next post is coming.. Soon I hope !!  Off I go……..   😀

Ahhhh I can’t believe it. Only two weeks to go.

Quiet a lot has happend since my last post.  I finally have my Carnet de passages (Very important customs document for the bike and worth £8000)   There is nothing stopping us now. All the ferries are booked, the bike is running ok and I have bought a spare pair of undies !  🙂

Packing……. GROOOAN !  If you thought you had problems packing for a week on the Costa Brava then try packing and arrranging everything you will need for youself and a motorcycle for a six month journey through Africa. I have the equivilant packing space of one large suitcase and I have to fit in all my clothes, tools, spare parts, camping equipment, paperwork , first aid kit, mosquito net, food, water etc etc etc !  I am the master of packing light now but it’s so stressful trying to guess what you will on won’t need on an extended trip like this.

So, the plan !!

I’m going to leave Merseyside on the Monday 30th August (Bank holiday traffic BOOOO) and mosey my way down to Neils in London. Avoiding motorways, it’s going to take about 6-7 hours. Grim !!  The ferry leaves Plymouth on the 1st September !

It’s all go now…  Watch this space !