Motorcycle adventures

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Category: Asia

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Silk Road

Kashgar to Naryn in Kirghistan (370 km)

This was going to be a short day in my mind — but no! We started around 10 am with a new guide to take us to the Chinese/Kirghistan border. After about 50km we stopped at the first check-point. They checked papers and also wanted to check our cameras to make sure we had not taken pictures of “sensitive” areas”. After some time they got fed up and let us go and after a few kms we came to the immigration and customs control. We got there before noon and were not finished until 5 pm! The bikes were x-rayed (!) – not sure what they were checking for. Cameras were then checked again for illegal pictures and we were stamped out of the country. Then the personnel went for a long lunch and so did we, which was taken in a yurd (big tent) with kebabs, bread and ice-cream – actually very nice.

So at 5 pm we were finally cleared and set off for the border which was another 120km away. Getting out of China was fairly straight forward and then into Kirghistan. There was a big gate blocking the entrance but after some time a guard came and opened up. The procedure of immigration and customs was then fairly straight forward taking about one hour. We then set off for Naryn 180 km away. As the sun was setting I had beautiful views of the surrounding mountains and fields, actually, looking very different from the Chinese ones. The mountains had a softer shape and there was a lot more green nature to be seen. The last hour was in the dark, not much fun! Rule number one is to never ride in the dark but sometimes you must make an exception.

Naryn to Kazarman (200 km)

I was in a quandary where to go from Naryn. The first option was to go to Bishkek and then on to Osh on reportedly good roads while the second option was to go direct to Osh on smaller roads that were probably not great. I was persuaded to choose the 2nd option… For the first 100 km, or so, the road was not too bad with very coarse asphalt. Then this turned into coarse gravel and then as the road was ascending to cross a pass it turned into mud… With the tires on by bike this turned out to be troublesome and I was stuck in the mud. Not fun! One of the other guys helped and he got it a bit further up but then it wouldn’t go any further and he thought the clutch was burned… So two of the guys went ahead to the next village to get help and me and Andy were stuck on the mountain. Andy adjusted the clutch and managed to get the bike up the hill – a great achievement! So far I had fallen off the bike 3 times during that day and when we were setting off down the hill Andy fell off as well – even though his tires were much better suited for the conditions.

These beasts are heavy to raise!

These beasts are heavy to raise!

Anyway, we managed to get down the hill! However, it was getting dark and started to rain so we decided to stop and set up the tent. After some swearing and perseverance we managed to raise the tent in the howling wind – not easy! As we were trying to sleep the rescue vehicle arrived and we were told to rush and get everything in the van. In my mind, the rush was completely unnecessary, and led to my bike was pounded in the van on the horribly poor road. So the result was a broken pannier on the bike and a big mess. 

The bed and breakfast accommodation was brilliant when we finally reached at around midnight. We were welcomed with a nice hot dinner before going to bed and not so good sleep. It had been a nightmarish kind of day and it was difficult to drift off to sleep. Maybe, one day I will appreciate the adventures of the day but for now I’d rather not think about it.

Kazarman to Osh (could not make it with my bike)

We set off in the rain and it took us some time to find the road to Osh, it seems road signs are not a priority. The road would cross a pass at 3300 m and as i got higher up the mud became worse and it was clear that I could not make it. I decided to turn around and go back to Kazarman where I found a free room at the same b&b. When I arrived 4 motorcyclists from Holland had already arrived and I chatted for some time with them. They had come over the pass but on much more suitable bikes with good off road tires. Later, a party of 3 motorcyclists from New Zealand arrived, they had rented bikes in Bishkek and were doing a circle of the country, mainly off road.

Kazarman – June 7

Spent the day drying stuff that got wet the other night and wander around the village. I also needed to get some cash for the van transport so I went to the bank. It was a small one and it took some time for me to get some cash. There was a guard in military fatigues sitting by a desk supervising proceedings. I wanted to change a fairly small amount but they took their time investigating my passport and finally the cashier said OK. After a few signatures I got my money, quite a procedure!

Many of the buildings are left from the Soviet era and look really drab. However, it was nice to see kids playing outside in the sun shine, similar games as I was doing in Sweden in the 50’s and 60’s… Kids in the western world don’t know what they are missing!.

 

When traveling on the roads you can’t fail to notice there are a lot of old Audi 100’s around. About 30-35 years old and they’re still going strong! Having had two of these I know they were great cars, but why so many in Kirghistan? I guess they are fairly simple compared to modern cars and easy and cheap to maintain, or? Also note that they have adopted the European sign convention using the same pictograms.

A German guy who I met at the b&b is spending 3 years on a round the world trip on his bicycle and had spent 6 months on the road already. He will get to Singapore later this year so we’ll catch up then.

Remember the 80's Audi 100? I think they're all in Kirgistan!

Remember the 80’s Audi 100? I think they’re all in Kirgistan!

Kazarman to Jalal-Abad – van transport

The lady running the b&b was quite formidable and hard working. She cooked great dinner and breakfast and also organized the transports of my bike. She was very strict not to allow anyone going indoors with the boots on and I was told off several times… The driver of the van to take me and the bike to Jalal-Abad was a friendly chap and organized 2 additional men to get the bike into the van and the loading went well. I brought straps for occasions like this and was able to securely tie the bike down properly. The trip took 5 hours on, sometimes, atrocious roads and we stopped several times to check on the bike straps but everything went without problems and once arrived the driver quickly rounded up another couple of guys to get the bike off the van. The driver’s 12 year old son came along on the trip and he was sick due to the road conditions many times during the trip so we had stop and let him throw up.

Secure tie down of bike in van. It's the front yellow straps pushing the suspension half way down that kept the bike secure.

Secure tie down of bike in van. It’s the front yellow straps pushing the suspension half way down that kept the bike secure.

Pretty cold with lots of snow at the top of the pass at 3300m.

Pretty cold with lots of snow at the top of the pass at 3300m.

Atrocious road conditions on the mountain.

Atrocious road conditions on the mountain.

I walked around the town in the afternoon, it was market day and lots of people about. I managed to find a data only sim card and the girls selling it helped me install it in the phone while giggling. They tried to speak some English but showed with a small pinch how little they knew. I replied that my Russian was even worse than their English. The sim card was valid for a week and has unlimited data so should cover me for my time in Kirghistan and cost a paltry 200 Som (about 3 USD).

There was a cafe 20 m from the hotel that served nice food and tea in vast quantities. I had afternoon snack, dinner and breakfast there and the food tasted great!

Jalal-Abad to Osh (100 km)

As I handed the key to my room back and said thank you to the elderly platinum blond hotel lady she did not raise an eye-lid or acknowledge me in any way, and continued smoking her cigarette. However, her colleague rushed to the room to make sure I hadn’t wrecked it or stolen anything, mind you, the thread-bare towels were hardly worth stealing … It was if I had entered a time warp, the hotel block clearly came from the bygone Soviet era and the minuscule room had wall paper that looked like what we used to have in the 50’s.

My steed and Soviet style hotel block.

My steed and Soviet style hotel block.

Well underway the usual road closure happened and the GPS desperately wanted me to turn back to the closed road. I finally stopped and asked for the way to Osh and with those directions the GPS finally gave up insisting I turn back and got on track again. The weather was beautiful and so was the scenery and I was starting to enjoy being on the bike again. I arrived in Osh after a couple of hours and got to the hotel without any further GPS malfunction. As I turned the bike off the bell-boy came out and helped me carry my stuff to the reception, amazing service!

Close to the hotel there was a car wash so I brought the bike there for a thorough cleaning, it was horribly muddy so really needed to get the grime off.

Osh

Had new tires mounted on the bike and walked around town, Osh does not have a lot to offer! A big square with a big statue, probably of Lenin. The square has a lot of lanes which perhaps is/was used for military displays on May 1?

Some of the pictures from my walks around town:

Statue of Lenin (?).

Statue of Lenin (?).

I walked past this wedding. They seemed happy to see me.

I walked past this wedding. They seemed happy to see me.

Nice murals.

Nice murals.

In the evening Jah and missus as well as Mike arrived at the hotel and we went out for a really nice meal of beef Stroganoff and red wine.

Osh to Tashkent in Uzbekistan (390 km)

Me and Mike did not get away until 11-ish and were at the border after 15 minutes. Getting out of Kirghistan only took a few minutes while the customs formalities in Uzbekistan took close to an hour. However, the Uzbek guards were very friendly and chatty and wanted to know everything about our trip. We were let go but without a temporary immigration form which as slightly worrying. Hopefully this will not cause a problem when we leave the country.

We stopped at a mobile phone shop to get sim cards but were told we needed to have local id’s. Of course we don’t have such, but a couple of local ladies allowed us to use their id’s! Amazing! So we ended up with 4G SIM cards that will last us for the time in Uzbekistan.  

Bookshelf moving.

Bookshelf moving.

Coal fire power plant.

Coal fired power plant.

About halfway through the journey there was a pass with quite high elevation and a new and beautifully constructed highway led across it. The temperature sank by 10-15 degrees so the pass might have been 2000m high. However, there was some wet patches and with the new unfamiliar tires I rode very carefully… We found a hotel close to the city and made our way there without problems. Drivers in Uzbekistan seem to have a death wish going at high speed and worryingly for motorcyclists they give us very little space as the fly past.

Tashkent to Samarkand (320 km)

We rode through the city before turning south west towards Samarkand. Tashkent is a modern city with lots of new buildings, and wide tree lined avenues. However, there are no “famous” historic buildings in the city. Someone said it was the 2nd or third biggest city in the former Soviet union.

 

Grazing cattle.

Grazing cattle.

Hay transport. Nice stacking of the hay bales.

Hay transport. Nice stacking of the hay bales.

The road was good most of the way and we arrived mid afternoon to Samarkand. The temperature is getting higher – around 31C during the day-time. At night the temperature was a very pleasant 22C.

It’s not easy to get cash in this country, we have not found an ATM that will give us the local currency and credit cards are not accepted in many places. The only way to get local currency is to exchange pristine US $ bills, a slight crease in the bill will make it non-acceptable! It’s a real pain!

Samarkand – June 13

Walked around beautiful Samarkand, beautiful mosques and people.

 

Very old Lada. Lots of old cars on the road.

Very old Lada. Lots of old cars on the road.

Ladies relaxing before a wedding reception.

Ladies in beautiful dresses relaxing before a wedding reception at the Registan.

First night in Samarkand hotel. Very nice but no room available for the 2nd night.

Mosque close to the 2nd hotel.

Mosque close to the 2nd hotel.

Mosque at the Registan.

Mosque at the Registan.

Registan is a big area with various mosques and buildings. The building are clad in beautiful tiles - very colourful.

Registan is a big area with various mosques and buildings. The buildings are clad in beautiful tiles – very colourful.

Biker hotel.

Biker hotel.

When we got back from the Registan, Jah and his missus had arrived in our hotel.  We spent a lovely evening in a restaurant driven there by our resident taxi driver.

Samarkand to Bukhara (280 km)

Before we left we said bye to Anton who I’d met a year ago in Bogota.  I wonder where we’ll meet next?

Pretty boring but, oh so hot, ride from Samarkand to Bukhara.  The temperature was getting close to 40C with very low humidity and I was pretty exhausted by the time I arrived at the “Old house hotel” which was located in a small street, only accessible by motorcycle, and which took some time for me to find.  It’s newly refurbished and the beds are not concrete hard – hurray!  Mike arrived a bit later than me and we went for a walk in the town.  It’s much more touristy than Samarkand but very nicely done. 

We found the “Ark” the most famous structure in the town and an exert from Wikipedia states:

“The Ark is a large earthen fortification located in the northwestern part of contemporary Bukhara. In layout it resembles a modified rectangle, a little elongated from the west to the east. The perimeter of the external walls is 789.6 metres (2,591 ft), the area enclosed being 3.96 hectares (9.8 acres). The height of the walls varies from 16 to 20 metres (52 to 66 ft).”

Entrance to the Ark!

Entrance to the Ark!

Wall of the Ark in Bukhara.

Wall of the Ark in Bukhara.

It’s a huge and very impressive structure!

We found a nice place for dinner with some entertainment to go along.

My progress the last few weeks:

Rest day in Bukhara

We decided to stay a day in Bukhara before going on to Khiva.

Bukhara ladies just happened to be lining up for a photo.

Bukhara ladies just happened to be lining up for a photo.

Sunset in Bukhara.

Sunset in Bukhara.

Bukhara to Khiva (470 km)

We started early at 7 to avoid the heat.  The first 100 km was pretty badly rutted asphalt and then there was an amazingly good 4 lane highway for 270 km so the day was a lot easier than we thought it would be.  The landscape along the highway was very boring, almost desert like.

New highway in the desert landscape.

New highway in the desert landscape.

It’s low season in Khiva so no problem to find a hotel and we’re the only ones at this one.  I walked around in the beautiful historic area in the evening.  Amazing minarets and mosques.

Colourful minaret in Khiva

Colourful minaret in Khiva

Protective wall surrounding the Khiva historical area.

Protective wall surrounding the Khiva historical area.

Full moon shining on Khiva.

Full moon shining on Khiva.

There were a couple of camels inside the area. A bit scraggly?

There were a couple of camels inside the Khiva historical area. A bit scraggly?

I’m sure all “adventure travelers” have doubts from time to time about what’s the point of the trip.  You get to a new destination and wonder “what am I doing here?” and then stay a day or two and go to the next town.  I’ve been traveling for 7 weeks and am starting to wonder “maybe I should cut the trip short”?  When I get into Kazakhstan I can choose to go northwest towards Latvia and take a ferry across to Stockholm and finish the trip in a couple of weeks, or I can go south towards Georgia, Turkey and come up through Europe and spend, at least, another month. I do get tired of sitting on a motorcycle day in and out and I’m having some aches and pains and wondering if I’m still enjoying the adventure…  I’ll have to make up my mind in the next week or so…

Khiva – June 17 – 19

Mike’s front tyre is shot!  He talked to the hotel manager who found a tire in Tashkent so now we’re waiting for it to arrive in Khiva.  People here are very friendly and helpful and will go out of their way to help, like the hotel manager did.  I told him I was suffering from some hip pain and he quickly found a nurse to come to the hotel and give me a massage and some pain relieving pills.  The nurse gave me a nice massage but I’m not sure that it will help with my hip ache… 

We found a salon to cut our hair and the person doing the cutting was a boy of 17!  He had his 12 year old twin brothers in the shop while we were getting the hair cut and they were very boisterous and curious about us.  The 17 year old had a diploma and did a nice job!

Later in the afternoon Jah and missus arrived and stayed at the same hotel.  Dinner was taken at a rooftop restaurant inside the historical area and was very nice.  The full moon was amazingly yellow and together with the lit minarets produced a stunning display.  Unfortunately I only had the phone camera so the image is not so good.

Khiva minaret along full moon.

Khiva minaret along full moon.

It looks like we’ll be staying another day or two since Mike’s tire will not arrive until tomorrow the 19th…  

The road from here to Kazakhstan is not so good in places and  there is also a 300 km stretch with no petrol stations and in combination with the available fuel being only 80 octane we need to bring  some extra fuel to make sure we’re not stranded in the middle of nowhere.  I asked the hotel manager and he got us two 10 liter water containers we can use for fuel and this should be enough to get us safely to Kazakhstan.

I walked around the non historic part of town and got some pictures.

The hotel manager said this was a famous author from Khiva.

The hotel manager said this was a famous author from Khiva.

Couples getting married would walk around this statue for good luck...

Couples getting married would walk around this statue for good luck…

​_

On the last day in Khiva the hotel owner gave us a farewell dinner.  We had a very nice 4 course meal with beer, red wine and vodka.  We felt very full and slightly worried we wouldn’t be in good shape to get up early the next day.

 
Khiva farewell dinner

Khiva farewell dinner

Khiva to Kungirot (300 km)

An early start at 7.30 meant it was pretty cool and we made good speed both on the rough potholed road and some newly built  stretches so we arrived noon time.  Kungirot town does not have a lot to show for itself, it’s dusty and with terrible roads.

As the day wore on first a German couple arrived on Husqvarna bikes having come from Kazakstan and later in the evening a group of more Germans arrived also from Kazakhstan.  We chatted and they told us about the bad road close to the border of Uzbekistan.  It was nice to meet other bikers.

Kungirot to Beyneu in Kazakhstan  (430 km)

We started at 6 in the morning and made good speed the first 150 km on fairly good sealed roads.  We were thinking this is not so bad but then the road got worse and worse with huge pot holes.  I hit a big one and I knew straight away that something was wrong, the steering did not feel right… I stopped and confirmed a front wheel puncture and saw immediately that the rim was badly bent.  I tried pumping up the wheel and kept going at 40 kph but it was no good, the air gradually went out.  So I stopped and wondered what to do, there was no phone connection and I really was in the middle of nowhere with the temperature climbing into the mid thirties.  Some people stopped to help but there was not much that could be done.  So I waited for Mike who was way ahead of me and he appeared after some time.  He immediately suggested we had to put a tube in the tire and luckily he had one.  So we managed to get the wheel off, break the bead and get one side of the tire off.  We put the tube in and managed to get the tire back on and pumped it up and put the wheel back on.  Sounds simple but is not easy and in the blazing midday sun with temperatures reaching 40C it was a heroic effort! 

Badly bent front rim. Can this be safely fixed?

Badly bent front rim. Can this be safely fixed?

Mike packing away the tools after fitting the tube on my front-wheel.

Mike packing away the tools after fitting the tube on my front-wheel.

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

With this I could get going again and managed to ride to the border with Kazakhstan going over, possibly, the worst road on the planet…

After two hours at the border the road to Beyneu was fantastic for 60 km and then turned into a road of hell, first terrible dirt road and the last 5 km made up of sand as fine as flour.  It was very difficult to ride in this but we eventually found the hotel after a 12 hour long day.  I was completely exhausted but managed to go out to get some food and drink.

Beyneu to Atirau (420 km)

I was so tired I doubted I could make the trip to Atirau but somehow I managed to get going.  Temperatures of 40C made the going tough and we had to stop to drink a lot.  On top of that the front wheel is no longer round so the front of the bike vibrates a lot at slower speeds while at around 100 kph it was bearable.

A flock of sheep crossing the road.

A flock of sheep crossing the road.

A lot of camels along the road. They look incredibly docile and stoic and not one got onto the road.

A lot of camels along the road. They look incredibly docile and stoic and not one got onto the road.

I saw several O&G rigs.

I saw several O&G rigs.

This is what Wikipedia say about Kazakhstan Kashagan oil field:

“With 9 – 11 billion barrels, Kashagan is the largest oil field outside of the Middle East. It is estimated to come on stream in 2016 and reach production of 1.5 million barrels per day at its peak. Kazakhstan is a major oil producer with an estimated total production of 1.64 million barrels per day in 2013.”

Areas beside the road looked like it was covered by snow... It's dried lakes covered in salt.

Areas beside the road looked like it was covered by snow… It’s dried lakes covered in salt.

Lots of poles!

Lots of poles!

Atirau Jun 23, 2019

It is Sunday and I’m worried there will be no garages or workshops to straighten my rim.  With the help of the iOverlander app  I was able to find the area of some workshops and set off to find the place around 10.  It was straight forward and we soon found the workshop that had previously helped to fix a bent rim.  It took some time for the guy to get going and with the help of heat and a hammer he was able to straighten out the rim.  Mike found a 19 inch inner tube and after a few hours I was on the road and the rim was now much better – mission accomplished!

I had thoughts about going due north towards Moscow to avoid the terrible road to Astrakhan but in the end we decided to go towards Astrakhan tomorrow.  I’m worried that if I bend the rim again it might not be safe to fix it so I will need to take it very gingerly.

Route after China from Naryn, Kirghistan to Astrakhan, Russia.

Route after China from Naryn, Kirghistan to Astrakhan, Russia.

Route after China from Naryn, Kirghistan to Astrakhan, Russia.
 
The video shows the trip from Khiva to Astrakhan which was a real adventure.
 

 

China 2

Go back to the first part of the trip through China.

Lhasa to Gyangtse (265 km)

After riding for 10 days without a break it certainly was nice with a rest day in Lhasa, and today people, including me, were ready for another day on the road. To get out of Lhasa took the usual crazy manoeuvres but we did it without mishaps. As we have traveled we’ve seen a lot of engineering projects being done or that has been completed. Amazing concrete pillars for the construction of new high speed railways over deep valleys, or bridges for the road. I didn’t manage to photograph some of the more impressive ones but here is a nice looking bridge we passed early in the day.

Bride over the river at Lhasa.

Bride over the river at Lhasa.

The road was in good condition and we rode by some scenic lakes before starting the climb to higher elevations reaching 4800 m later in the day.

Mountains and water look nice on a sunny day.

Mountains and water look nice on a sunny day.

Reflecting lake by the road.

Reflecting lake by the road.

Surrounded by dark looking mountains.

Surrounded by dark looking mountains.

Glacier.

Glacier.

Sheep and rocks.

Sheep and rocks.

Impressive rock formations.

Impressive rock formations.

Interesting geology. Looks like sandstone brechsia?

Interesting geology. Looks like sandstone brechsia?

Close to the glacier.

Close to the glacier.

Beautiful lake nestled in between the mountains at around 4500 m.

Beautiful lake nestled in between the mountains at around 4500 m.

After a very scenic day of riding we reached the destination around 5.30 and were to meet for a walk to the local fortress but I did my own thing staying at the hotel and having a nice meal of onion soup and spaghetti bolognese. Back to my room I worked on this missive. As we travel further west and north daylight lasts longer and today it got dark a bit after 9.

Gyangtse to Tingri (320 km)

We saw Everest for the first time today! However, it was far in the distance.

Mount Everest in the far distance.

Mount Everest in the far distance.

Otherwise the ride was similar to yesterday’s one, a little bit longer, but only one high pass which was at 5200 m which is higher than the Mt Everest base camp where we are going tomorrow.

Snow by the roadside.

Snow by the roadside.

Cereal or grass fields at a high altitude.

Cereal or grass fields at a high altitude.

Interesting gathering of colourful indians. Some of them were riding their horses up and down a stretch.

Interesting gathering of colourful indians. Some of them were riding their horses up and down a stretch.

May 22, 2019  Tingri to Everest base camp (90km)

We are getting close to Everest! Tingri is a small town by any standards of 500 people and tiny by Chinese standards. It’s basically a town with a hotel or two and a petrol station… At the hotel we met up with another biker tour group that started the ride in Kathmandu and were also going to Everest base camp today. They were all riding Royal Enfield bikes and they claimed they were good for the riding they had done.

Back to Everest – we had an easy ride crossing one mountain pass at 5200m with amazing views of 5 peaks above 8000m. The 20km road up to the pass was made up of beautiful switchbacks on nice smooth road surface – pure joy on a motorcycle!

5 peaks above 5000m. The photo does not give justice to the amazing view.

5 peaks above 8000m. The photo does not give justice to the amazing view.

Interesting geologic layering.

Interesting geologic layering.

Mount Everest in all it's glory.

Mount Everest in all it’s glory.

Tonight we’re sleeping at a guest house close to the base camp, there is no heating so I’m afraid it’s going to get cold with a biting wind and sub zero temperatures.

Everest base camp to  Xigaze (320 km)

We started the day very early and got up at 6 for breakfast at 6.30 and bus transport from the lodgings to the place where the bikes were stored.  In previous years you were allowed to ride the motorcycle all the way, but now, because of environmental concerns, you have to take the electric bus.  By 8 we were down by the bikes and made sure they would start since the temperature had been sub-zero during the night and we had to scrape some frost off the seats.  Also scrambling to change into riding gear, that was stored in the service van during the night.

Mount Everest just before sunrise.

Mount Everest just before sunrise.

Well, we finally got away without incident and started riding in the cold morning – brrr… Today we would ride the same way we came – in the other direction.  We again rode the amazing switch-back road, it must be one of the best roads in the world for a motorcycle.  It’s close to 40 km going up and then coming down.

Race track or mountain road?

Race track or mountain road? The road leading to the Tibetan Everest base camp.

It's not easy to get trees to grow at an altitude above 4500m.

It’s not easy to get trees to grow at an altitude above 4500m.

Maybe not so easy to image this with seismic?

Maybe not so easy to image this with seismic?

Desolate. Very inhospitable in winter.

Desolate. Very inhospitable in winter.

We reached the hotel in Xigaze early – for a change around 4.30 and had time for a snooze before diner.

 

Xigaze rest day

Some people went to the famous and large local monastery, some worked on their bikes and I took it easy working on the blog to keep it to date.  Anyway, it was very nice with a rest day before starting the last 2500km to Khasgar.

May 25, 2019  Xigaze to Saga (400km)

Before setting off we took farewell of 3 people in the group, they were going back to Lhasa to catch a flight either home or other vacation destinations. It was the third time we rode the first 150 km of today’s route and the rest was on the G219 that will lead us to northern Tibet and Khashgar.  The ride went without  problems although there were stretches with big pot holes that we had to navigate carefully. As  we got closer to Saga the wind got much stronger and you had to ride at a lean angle to go straight.

Saga to Bagaxiang (490 km)

Nice views for the entire ride of the Tibetan landscape.  It’s incredible grand with new mountains showing up all the time .  The road was in general  in good condition.  One problem was that there was a distance of around 250km between  petrol stations and some of the bikes could not handle that distance, the strong wind making the fuel consumption go up as well.

Map showing route from Lhasa to Everest base camp, back to Xigaze and onwards to Bagaxiang.

Map showing route from Lhasa to Everest base camp, back to Xigaze and onwards to Bagaxiang.

The vastness of the Tibetan high plateau can only be experienced by being there...

The vastness of the Tibetan high plateau can only be experienced by being there…

This is close to 5000m elevation and it was cold.

This is close to 5000m elevation and it was cold.

At the highest point of every pass there is colourful bunting.

At the highest point of every pass there is colourful bunting.

Golden bull and a black tiger.

Golden bull and a black tiger.

Ice on the water.

Ice on the water.

And it was cold! In the morning below freezing and at noon below 4C.  Luckily I have electrically heated pants and jacket to help me keep warm but it’s still chilly.

Mountain on the Chinese side - still the Himalayas.

Mountain on the Chinese side – still the Himalayas.

Bagaxiang to Tsaparang (540 km)

This was to be a day of true adventure! The ride was supposed to be a short one but me and Andy pulled out in front, got into a good rhythm and followed the main road, we had a great time without thoughts of if we were going the right way.  After 170 km we stopped at a check point and sat down to wait for the rest of the group to arrive.  We waited and waited… Finally I messaged Jah, the tour leader.  He informed me we missed a turn off and were far away from where we should be and he had sent Mike to “retrieve” us.  Mike arrived but the problem was we were out of fuel and to get to the petrol station we had to cross the check point.

We approached the police officers who turned out to be very nice (they even offered us a can of Red Bull) and after showing scans of our passports (the passports were carried by the Tibetan guide) and after various discussions we were let through to find fuel.  Then we had to go back for 250 kms to find our nightly stop.  After 130 km we turned off onto the X705 road that led us through some very scenic areas.  The last part went through an area of clay-rock that displayed various colours and were amazingly beautiful.

Amazing views along X705 road.

Amazing views along X705 road.

Clay rock formations flanked by sno covered mountains - beautiful!

Clay rock formations flanked by snow covered mountains – beautiful!

 

Tsaparang rest day

A beautiful day with glorious sunshine and blue skies, and at 3700 m much lower than the usual 4500 m so the outside temperature was higher.  Some people went to look at some local site but I decided to stay at the hotel and relax – it’s so nice not being on the bike for a full day!

May 29, 2019  Tsaparang to Rutog (330 km)

We backtracked the 250 km we went wrong two days before. Since we were leaving Tibet and  entering into a new province, Xinjiang, there was a long holdup before we could continue the last 120km to our hotel in Rutog.  The hotel was not nice, no heating and in a rather dilapidated state, however, with electrically heated blankets it was still possible to keep warm. It got to -5 C during the night because the altitude was still large at around 3600m.

Filling up 12 motorcycles with petrol always takes time since the rules requires the use of a 2-stage process where first a can is filled and this is used to fill the bike. SOmetimes, we were allowed to push the bikes to the pump and fill.

Filling up 12 motorcycles with petrol always takes time since the rules requires the use of a 2-stage process where first a can is filled and this is used to fill the bike. SOmetimes, we were allowed to push the bikes to the pump and fill.

Always beautiful scenery in the mountains of Tibet.

Always beautiful scenery in the mountains of Tibet.

 

Rutog to Da Hong Liu Tan (580 km)

A long day on the road involving riding but also stops at check points which were starting to take even longer time. There was 370 km between petrol stations and we had to fill spare tanks with fuel for some of the bikes that did not have the required range using their “built in” tanks.  We all made it so someone had made the right calculations.

India on the other side of the lake.

India on the other side of the lake.

Colorful bunting in many places. Nice or an eye sore?

Colorful bunting in many places. Nice or an eye sore?

 

We arrived at the hotel town which turned out to be more of a military town late and was subjected to a thorough investigation to make sure we were the same person as shown in the passport.  This took a considerable amount of time and, of course, we had to take it with a smile.  So late in the evening we were finally in the hotel which turned out to be the worst on of the trip.  There were no showers and heating and the toilets were broken.  At night it got to several degrees below zero so the rooms got chilly during the night. 

May 31, 2019  Da Hong Liu Tan to Kashgar (600 km)

This is the last leg of the trip through China and the longest day, both in terms of kilometers and hours.  We started at 6 am while it was still dark and the first few hours were extremely cold – some people reported their bike thermometer as saying -8 C.   We climbed to an elevation of 5000 m when the sun had just come up with the views from the top of the pass being  fantastic.  The road was really rutted with big pot-holes in places and, although some people love these conditions, I feel with my motorcycle for all the hard hits it takes when hitting the pot holes… As it turned out I had hit one so badly that the front wheel rim was badly bent, luckily, not so bad that the air leaked out.

View from the 5000 m pass early in the morning.

View from the 5000 m pass early in the morning.

The road leading up to the pass. It was in a bad state of repair.

The road leading up to the pass. It was in a bad state of repair.

Camels in China? Oh yes! I was told the people here come from eastern Turkey originally and they brought camels.

Camels in China? Oh yes! I was told the people here come from eastern Turkey originally and they brought camels.

 

After many stops for petrol and security check points we arrived in Kasgar at the hotel around 10.30, pm, any later and it would have been  dark.  We had ridden for 16.5 hours!

Kashgar rest days

There was a lot of work to be carried out on our bikes including oil and filter changes as well as other repairs.  My front rim was miraculously bent back to it’s original shape without problems – I was really pleased to see that it could be done so well!  We were originally planning to stay for 2 days but because the required work on the bikes could not be completed in that time we are staying for an additional day.

Kashgar, or Kashi, as it’s also known, has a history stretching back to 200 BC and with a current population of 500,000 it has served as a trading post and strategically important city on the silk road between China, the middle east and Europe.  It’s modern day layout is pleasant with wide avenues lined with trees – so different from our travels through Tibet which showed very little greenery and was more dessert like.  Kashgar is at an altitude of 1200 m and is nice and warm with daytime temperatures in the 30’s.  So nice after the freezing temperatures we;ve seen the last few weeks.

The old bazaar.

The old bazaar.

Lots and lots of electric mopeds going at pretty high speed in their designated lanes.

Lots and lots of electric mopeds going at pretty high speed in their designated lanes. It’s an efficient and pollution free way of transport.

Tree lined wide avenues. In the middle the car lanes, to the side of that the moped lanes and at the edges the pedestrian lanes.

Since leaving Singapore I have ridden 10301 km in one month.  The first 3000  km from Singapore to the Boten China border were easy with good roads and took no more than 5 days in the saddle.  The 7000 km in China has been hard work with the first 10 days without a break.   We’ve had more breaks since then but we did 7000 km in around 21 days on, at times, bad roads and 15-20 mountain passes.  The Tibetan scenery has been breath taking – no doubt about that!  However, somewhat sterile and very brown.  

The RideChina company with Jah, it’s leader, did a brilliant job of putting together the trip and organizing hotels etc.  The hard schedule could very well be because of the Chinese authorities putting a lot of restrictions on what they would accept.  The group was not very disciplined with people disappearing for some time but Jah never let that affect his temper but remained calm throughout.  I don’t think I could have in the same situation. 

 

Boten to Lhasa

Boten to Jinghong (261km)

We left a bit after 7 to get to the border with China at the opening time at 8.  After getting out of Laos we were met at the Chinese border by the organizer, Jah.  After an hour or two of border formalities we were in China! We stopped for a lovely lunch before continuing to the next city to finalize the formalities allowing us to drive our bikes in the country. This involves getting a Chinese driving license and having the bikes inspected.

The formalities were finished around 2 or 3 in the afternoon and we got on the highway to Jinghong, the goal for the day.  The highway is new and beautifully constructed but at one point it was closed and we had to get off it and ride the old road which was very twisty so should be fun on a bike, however, with a lot of big trucks going very slowly and difficult to overtake it was pretty hard work.  After 60km of the old road we were back on the highway and were soon in Jinghong.

Our intrepid leaders

Our intrepid leaders

Boten China border

Boten China border

It had been a long day and I was very tired by the end of it.

Jinghong to Kunming (530 km)

We stayed in a nice hotel and were offered a very nice spread for breakfast.  The idea was to start at 8 and we were probably on the road about that time.

Morning preparations and chats before setting off

Morning preparations and chats before setting off

Getting in and out of the Chinese cities is not easy and luckily our guide knows his way around.  The traffic seems very chaotic, much more so than other Asian countries where I’ve been riding and it seems like a minor miracle that people do not get hurt.

We stopped for lunch at the halfway point and, unfortunately, one of the guys lost his phone and after reviewing CCTV footage it turned out that someone nicked it and he had taken off, but they knew the culprits car registration.  Wonder what will happen to him?

Discussions with the police reagarding the missing phpne

Discussions with the police reagarding the missing phpne

So after a lengthy delay we were on our ways again.  The highway is beautiful ly constructed as it cuts its way through the very hilly country.  There are a large number of viaducts and tunnels with sweeping turns in between – it’s a very nice road to navigate on a motorcycle.  Along the way there were other, very, impressive constructions with huge viaducts being built.  

We stop every so often to drink water and stretch our legs.

Water stop

Water stop

We arrived at the Kunming hotel around 6.30 where we met additional adventurers joining the group.

Kunming to Linjiang (500km)

Another group of 5 people joined us so we are all together 14 bikes.  This took some time to organize and then one guy had a scare thinking he’d lost his passport delaying us by close to an hour.  He re-traced his walk to and fro the bank and finally figured out h’ed put it in a hidden pocket in his jacket.  Without passport would probably mean aborting the trip plus having a lot of problems getting out of the country.  So everyone drew a sigh of relief once it was found.   

All this meant we didn’t get on the road until after 11 and we had a long way to go.  On the way we we’re stopped at a roadblock because of an accident further along the road and it was quite a gathering of people with the locals wanting pictures of the bikers, a bit like we were from another planet.  After half an hour the policeman let us go so we had the entire road to ourselves for quite some time.  When we reached the accident it was a relatively small one and I can’t understand why the whole road was blocked for that.

Road block gathering

Road block gathering

We arrived in the beautiful town of Linjiang after 6 some time and stayed in the old part of town which a a pedestrian precinct with cobblestone streets and old buildings – very nice!  However, since we were so late there was no time to explore the town and I was very tired so after dinner I went back to the hotel and bed.

Linjian old town

Linjian old town

Our hotel - very nice!

Our hotel – very nice!

Linjiang to Shangri La (270 km)

Today was the first day we’d traverse a mountain pass and on the way admire the Tiger Leaping Gorge. After the first stop there was a bit of a problem and some guys, including me, got lost.  It took some time to gather the group back together again and then we set off for the Gorge.  It’s pretty amazing scenery with tall mountains surrounding it.

The Yangtze river in all it's might flows at the bottom of the gorge.

The Yangtze river in all it’s might flows at the bottom of the gorge.

The leaping tiger.

The leaping tiger.

After admiring the gorge we had some nice twisty roads for 150 km reaching an elevation of 3800 m.  The temperature also dropped to 10C and it felt pretty cold after the days of extremely hot riding conditions.

Shangri La to Guibading (190 km)

Today was a fairly short ride so we set off from Shangri La a bit later.  On the way we stopped at a monastery and listen in on the service for a while.  The buildings are set nicely on the mountain side.

By the entrance to the inner court yard of the monastery

By the entrance to the inner court yard of the monastery

Monks out in the courtyard after (or in between) services.

Monks out in the courtyard after (or in between) services.

Rather than following the new main road which goes by a tunnel through the mountain we took the old road which goes over the pass at close to 4300m.  The road is not well maintained so there were several places of dirt-road and stream crossings as well as rock-fall for most of the way.  Some of the stretches were pretty rough so I got to practice my off-road riding skills which is nice and I’m getting more confident when not having full control of where the bike is going.

The lads having a laugh at the peak of today's ride.

The lads having a laugh at the peak of today’s ride.

We’re now at the foothills of the Himalayas and tonight we’re staying at an elevation of around 3500 m and I can see the snow covered mountains from my hotel window.

Guibading to Zogang and into Tibet (380 km) Total distance 5164 km

We had an early start – this was going to be a long day. Some of the people in the group love roads that are not so good and today they were very happy. The road quality leaves a lot to be desired with a lot of gravel and ruts.  We traversed two high passes with the 2nd one being above 5000m. It was getting late in the afternoon by the time we got there and it was rather cold so we quickly descended and reached the hotel at seven.  It was indeed a long day.

Filling up the tank in Tibet

Filling up the tank in Tibet

The pace is rather relentless with long days in the saddle, late dinners and early mornings.  It is starting to not feel like a vacation but a grueling test of stamina.  I did not have this in mind when I signed up :-(.  The original itinerary included more rest days and some shorter riding days.  However, I think there will be more rest days once we get to Lhasa.

Zogang to Ranwo (180 km)

We had our first puncture today!  The wheel had an inner tube and to replace this the wheel had to come off and since the service van had a tire we fit both a new tire and inner tube.  This took at least an hour but we had stopped at a sunny meadow with yaks eating of the grass.  Quite serene really.  

Puncture repair

Puncture repair

Once done we continued to lunch and then climbed up to above 4000 m.  Beautiful scenery for most of the day.

 

Ranwo to Bayi (360 km)

This was another long day and I had no energy to update these pages and now a few days later I have a hard time remembering what went on during this ride…  However, there was some nice mountainous scenery with wooded passages.

Bayi to Lhasa (400 km) Total distance 6255 km

A nice ride on undulating roads with good asphalt.  Along the road we see a lot of Tibetan pilgrims on the way to the holy city of Lhasa.  Many of them cycle, some walk while the most arduous walk a few steps (the length of their body) then lie and kiss the ground before repeating the process.  There was risk of rain at one point and we stopped to don rain gear but it turned out to be false alarm since very little rain actually came down.

Morning sun on mountain lake

Morning sun on mountain lake

Snow covered mountain all around

Snow covered mountain all around

There are yaks everywhere along the road and you must be prepared to stop at any time.

There are yaks everywhere along the road and you must be prepared to stop at any time.

Highest point on today's ride at 4900 m.

Highest point on today’s ride at 4900 m.

Since entering China in Mohan we first went due north until we reached the kink and since then pretty much due west.  The map shows the route through China so far.

So we’re now due north of Bhutan and tomorrow we’ll continue our westward journey towards Mount Everest base camp.  Since entering China I have traveled 3200 km which is more than half the total distance through the country.  Lhasa is around 29 degrees north while the endpoint of London is at 51 degrees which means I’ve come more than half way north from SIngapore.

Lhasa 

Today is a day off the bike and we spent several hours at the Potala palace.  From wikipedia:

“The Potala Palace  in LhasaTibet Autonomous RegionChina was the residence of the Dalai Lama until the 14th Dalai Lama fled to India during the 1959 Chinese invasion. It is now a museum and World Heritage Site.”

The palace is huge covering an area of 400×300 m.

Part of tapestry as we entered into the palace.

Part of tapestry as we entered into the palace.

Lhasa is surrounded by mountains and the views from the palace is spectacular.

Lhasa is surrounded by mountains and the views from the palace is spectacular.

Court yard at the top of the palace before entering the inside.

Court yard at the top of the palace before entering the inside.

Go to the legs of China after Lhasa

SIngaporeToBoten

April 30, 2019 Day 1 SIngapore to Hat Yai (940km)

First day of the trip and I wanted to get through Malaysia into Thailand. I left home at 6 in the morning and got to the Tuas border station. Because of having acquired the Carnet de Passage I had to go through a special procedure at the border and it was obvious that customs rarely go through this procedure and it turned out they did not have the correct stamp, so the lady had to phone to get the stamp brought to the office… Still, the whole process did not take more than half an hour so can’t complain too much.

Leaving early in the morning on the 30th of April.

Leaving early in the morning on the 30th of April.

The Carnet duly filled in. About to leave Singapore.

The north-south highway in Malaysia is great for a quick transfer through the country and I made good time to Kuala Lumpur. Going on the road west of the capital it started raining and the traffic got really bad and I had to stop for a while in the thought I could wait the rain out. However, the rain did not let off so I had to don my rain gear and set off at a slow pace.

Gloomy and rainy around KL.

Gloomy and rainy around KL.

It was then raining on and off all through the Malaysia. Pretty miserable! Nevertheless, I persevered and got to the border with Thailand around 4pm. Since I was there last, the border crossing is completely redesigned and newly constructed. Getting out of Malaysia was no problem but the procedure to get into Thailand took a bit of time so the whole process took an hour and then I was on my way to Hat Yai where I found my hotel after the GPS got me lost a few times.

Once settled in I went to the Post Laser Disc Pub where I had dinner and some fluid replenishment. While sitting there this geezer had problems starting his moped and he spent a lot of time trying to make it go. He cleaned the spark plug and it would start but then stop and repeating the process several times. He did not let this affect his mood but had a good laugh while working. I started talking to another angmo (non-asian), turned out he was a British guy who had been in the town for 30 years teaching business English at the Songhkla university. He loved the town and the freedom of Thailand in general and had no plans to move back to the UK. Interesting!

May 1, 2019 Day 2 Hat Yai to Prachuap Khiri Khan (700km)

I felt so knackered after the first day that I thought I might stay another day in Hat Yai but when I woke up I felt reasonably OK so I set off towards Khiri Khan. It’s the 1st of May holiday so the traffic should be pretty good and in general it wasn’t so bad. I was surprised to see a lot of trucks towards the afternoon on a holiday, however, the traffic flowed well the whole day and I made good time and reached Khiri Khan around 4 in the afternoon. It was hot at 35C most of the day but I managed to keep going.

The main and state oil company in Thailand is PTT and their petrol stations are well equipped with stalls serving Thai food and 7-11 stores as well as Amazon coffee shops serving nice lattes. They are also air conditioned giving a respite from the blazing hot weather.

Amazon coffee shop serving nice coffee. There is one of these at every PTT petrol station.

Amazon coffee shop serving nice coffee. There is one of these at every PTT petrol station.

Khiri Khan is a small town on the western side of the Gulf of Thailand set beautifully close to the water.

Khiri Khan beach in evening sunlight.

Khiri Khan beach in evening sunlight.

Khiri Khan with dramatic clouds.

Khiri Khan with dramatic cloud

The nearest restaurant was German(!) so I went there and had a pork schnitzel. I talked to the German owner who moved here a few years ago after retiring. He loved it here and has a good crowd in the high season which is when northern Europeans come here to escape the cold and darkness of their home countries in winter. The low season has started and there weren’t many guests in the restaurant. However, outside there were a number of Europeans having beers and discussing football!

Local Europeans discussing football.

Local Europeans discussing football.

Khiri Khan days 3-4

Relaxing for a couple of days before going on towards Laos. The last couple of days have been sizzling with temperatures as high as 38C and high humidity. Unbearable to be outside in the mid-day sun.

Discussions at the dinner table. Probably football.

Discussions at the dinner table. Probably football.

Locals having a morning coffee.

Locals having a morning coffee.

Market area.

Market area.

The morning catch laid to dry in the hot sun.

The morning catch laid to dry in the hot sun.

Feels like 49!

Feels like 49!

Feels like 49!

May 4, 2019 Khiri Khan to Nakhon Sawan (500km)

I got up very early at 5 to set off at first light because I knew it was going to be very hot. Nakhon Sawan is 200 km north of Bangkok and rather than go through Bangkok I turned north to the west of the city. I had no real problems apart from handling the hot weather getting up to 41C as I was nearing my destination. When you’re up to speed the heat is still bad but bearable while when stopping at a traffic light you really feel like melting. Luckily there were not so many stoplights so I managed to survive.

Nakhon Sawan to Lampang (370km)

Repeat of yesterday, pretty much. Still very hot! Did a shorter distance and arrived at the guesthouse in Lampang at 11. It’s located beautifully on the edge of the river Wang with a balcony area overlooking the flowing water. Very serene.

Riverside guesthouse by river Wang

Riverside guesthouse by river Wang.

It’s run by a European woman who said she’s been here for 38 years. Her Thai husband has a garage with several bikes, the latest acquisition being a 2014 BMW GS.

After meeting Andy, who is also joining the group through China, we went for a walk and take in the night market. A whole km of various stands selling everything from food to clothes.

Busy night market.

Busy night market.

Bridge over river Wang.

Bridge over river Wang.

May 6, 2019 Lampang to Chiang Kong (319km)

Today I’m riding with Andy.  Rather than riding the main road we took minor, but good, roads and stopped after 60km to look at a Buddhist temple high on a hill. This involved going up a few hundred meters from the main road and taking a car ride up a very steep road and a further one km walk up a steep path to the temple. We met with two Russian bikers that I’d met the day before in Lampang who had also stopped to view the temple.

Very hazy conditions.

Very hazy conditions.

At the top of the Wat. Exhausted after the steep climb in 38C heat.

At the top of the Wat. Exhausted after the steep climb in 38C heat.

Preparing to fly the drone.

Preparing to fly the drone.

Built on top of the hill with towers scattered on the hill.

Built on top of a height with towers scattered on the hill.

May 7, 2019 Chiang Kong to Louang Namtha in Laos (310 km) Total distance so far: 3051 km

Northern Laos was the destination today so we had to go through exit procedures in Thailand and entry procedures in Laos. It took a couple of hours and with a lot of papers with various stamps. Laos has introduced a new rule for bikers meaning payment of around USD 50 to the tourist police. I had a letter from the Laos ambassador in Singapore saying I was allowed to ride the bike in Laos but this, I was told, had no value so I still had to pay up. Never mind, I’m sure as we get into border crossings in the Stans there will also be unexpected charges so I’d better get used to it…

Laos is very hilly so the road was twisty with a lot of ups and downs and was reasonably good for 150 km, but after that it got a lot worse with stretches of gravel, huge potholes and washboard surface. The road is trafficked by big trucks going from China to Thailand and back and the road was not built for this kind of traffic. Maybe the China belt and road program will spend the money to improve the road?

I decided to split up and go straight to the guesthouse where we’re meeting the China ride organizers for the ride into China on Friday. I felt, I needed a few days off the bike and get some rest before China. I have done 3000 km in 8 days so I don’t feel so bad about it.

When I came to open my bag I found the lid of the skin moisturizer had partly come undone and there was cream everywhere and on everything – what a mess! It took me an hour to clean it up while swearing under my breath, damn, can’t I remember to close it tightly!

After this ordeal I found a bar and sat down with a beer to calm myself. Then three young Irishmen (do women count as Irishmen?) came in and we started a conversation covering many topics including what beer people in Ireland drink and the demise of local beers with big international companies buying up the smaller local breweries. There are quite a lot of young back-packers at the guest house, they come here for trecking in the national park and also river rafting.

Louang Namtha

Spent a couple of relaxing days in this town and met up with the group going through China. It’s an interesting bunch of characters with people from the UK, Switzerland, New Zealand and possibly others with varying professions like helicopter mechanic, plumber, solicitor and management consultant.  

 

I put together a video for this part of my trip…

 

Preparations

I started looking into this last year and found you are not allowed to ride through China on your own but must join a government approved travel agency organized ride. I found an agency called ridechina (https://www.ridechina.com) who seemed to have organized many tours in China over the years. I contacted them with my plans and they came back with a tour that would fit them. They will meet me at the border between Laos and China and get the formalities on entering China sorted out – which includes getting me a Chinese driving licence and Chinese plates on the bike!

After discussions on the home front I was given the go ahead :-), so now I need to get the bike ready and figure out what I need to bring. I found a place in Osh, Kirghistan that has the tires I need so I won’t need to bring tires with me. I’ll bring some spare parts though, such as bearings, levers and possibly fork seals.

I serviced the forks – new seals and fork oil. Although I asked a mechanic if my chain would do another 20k km, and he said no problem, I was not so sure since the chain was adjusted so far back that there was not much room for further adjustment.  I went to the same workshop and another mechanic immediately said the chain was bad and needed changing!

The route up until the exit of China into Kirghistan is set, but from there to Europe there are several options – well actually 3. 1) Go through Russia either all the way to Europe or west of the Caspian through Georgia into Turkey and further towards Europe, or 2) Go through Turkmenistan to Iran and south of the Caspian into Turkey, or 3) Cross the Caspian on a boat from Kazakhstan to Azerbaijan. The big problem with option 1) is getting a visa to go through Russia, I might get it in time for the trip but possibly not. Option 2 is problematic. Getting visas to enter both Turkmenistan and Iran is not straight forward and seems to require “fixers” inside the countries. Iran also requires a Carnet de passage (CDP) and I’m in the process of applying for one through the Automobile Association of Singapore and I will get that before leaving.  However, I’ve seen reports that you are not allowed to bring in motorcycles larger than 250cc to Iran, which if true,  makes this option not useful. Option 3) is a possibility but the boats are not  ferries, but rather cargo ships, and do not go on a regular schedule which makes this option somewhat uncertain.  However, it might be the only option if the Russian visa does not materialize.

Visa situation

The following are the potential coutries I will be passing through:

  • Laos: Need visa and temporary import permit for the motorcycle.  Got that at Singapore Laos embassy last week.
  • Kirghistan: Visa Waiver
  • Uzbekistan: Visa exemption
  • Tajikistan: Electronic visa acquired – no problem.
  • Turkmenistan: Need visa and not straight forward to obtain. However, people in the group have been in contact with an agency inside the country and it appears we can get a visa at the border with an invitation from the agency.
  • Azerbaijan: Electronic visa acquired.  Will need this if we have to take the ferry across the Caspian.
  • Iran: When you fly into the country you can get a visa when you land but not sure what the situation is when crossing a land border. I also need the CDP.
  • Kazakhstan: No visa required.
  • Russia: Require an “Auto-visa” to be able to drive your own vehicle through russia. The russian embassy/consulate has said it will take 2-4 weeks to obtain the visa so I might need to give this up – not enough time.
  • Georgia: Visa free
  • Turkey: Visa free 

The above are for me with a Swedish passport but European union countries in general have the same visa requirements.

So three weeks before departure the route after China is not clear…

 

Getting close!

Today is 25th April and it’s only 5 days until I set off!  I picked up my passport with the approved Russia Visa today – Yay!  This gives me  more options regarding the route after leaving China, I can go through Russia on the western side of the Caspian sea to Georgia and then Turkey, or, if I feel really fed up after China, I can go straight to Latvia and get a ferry to Sweden…  I also received the Carnet today but I think it will be of little use since Iran has banned any motorcycles larger than 250cc to enter the country and this was the only country along the route that requires the Carnet.

After picking up the pp I walked around the Marina bay area and snapped some photos, it’s really amazing what Singapore has accomplished in the last 20 years.  Most of the buildings in the pictures were built after I arrived to Singapore 20 years ago.

The Thinker by Rodin

The Thinker by Rodin

Marina Bay Sands – the 3 blocks in the back.

The Singapore flyer in the background

The Singapore flyer in the background

MBS

The Fullerton Hotel.

Singapore War Memorial

Singapore War Memorial

Singapore to London

I’m planning to ride my motorcycle from Singapore to Europe starting April/May this year, 2019. I will go through Malaysia, Thailand and Laos before joining a group ride through western China. After a month in China riding through Tibet I will enter Kirghistan. Then into Kazakhstan and further towards Europe.

 

This will be a long trip and there’s lot’s of stuff to prepare.  I will be going through many countries and visa requirements will vary from country to country.  There are also preparations to do for the bike.

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Singapore to Laos

The first part of the trip was easy with no visas or other paperwork needed and went from Singapore through Malaysia, Thailand and Laos.

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Laos to Lhasa, Tibet

We rode 3200 km to Lhasa through amazing and scenic landscapes gradually ascending to an elevation of around 4000m.

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Lhasa to Kashgar

The highlight of this stretch was undoubtedly Mount Everest base camp but there were many other exciting sights as well.

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Silk Road

 

 

Once out of China the real adventure starts!  Kirghistan starts off as a bit of a bad dream, but Uzbekistan through Samarkand is amazing while the route through Kazakhstan is more of a transport stretch.  

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Astrakhan, Volgograd, Moscow and onward to London

Russia turned out to be a lot nicer than it’s reputation and I particularly enjoyed Volgograd.  Of course, Moscow was amazing and I got to see the famous buildings we often see on the news.  After a ferry across the Baltic I spent some time in Sweden before going to London and the end of my adventure.

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