# Motorcycle adventures > Welcome to my Blog! ## Posts - [Malaysia Thailand Trip - Continued](https://carlnotfors.com/malaysia-thailand-trip-continued/): Baan Phii Resort Today is the seventh day of my trip and I’m leaving the posh Laguna Grand hotel for a day on the road and a more humble accommodation. The ride today is 400 kms and I will ride northward, first on the east side of the hornish looking area north of Songkhla along road 401 before hitting the main nortgoing highway, road 41. The morning is quite nice with a cooling breeze from the ocean but later on it gets really hot. I notice that the check engine light of the motorcycle has come on.. After checking everything […] - [Malaysia Thailand trip - the beginning](https://carlnotfors.com/malaysia-thailand-trip-the-beginning/): It’s Monday morning and I’m deciding whether to go on a trip to Malaysia and Thailand. I haven’t been feeling well for a couple of weeks and have been delaying and delaying going ahead. But today I’m feeling not too bad but can’t decide… Finally at close to 10 am I decide to go and get my arse in gear. After another hour I’m finally on my way. First day’s goal is Kuantan, a ride of 450 km. I get through Singapore and Malaysian immigration as usual. There are never any problems with this border crossing and if you time […] - [Peninsular Malaysia roundtrip](https://carlnotfors.com/peninsular-malaysia-roundtrip/): I was bored in Singapore and felt like doing a trip somewhere. Since the wife didn’t object I set about planning and decided to make a 5 or 6 day trip in peninsular Malaysia. After a lot of thought (ha, not really) I decided to go up north on the east side and cross over as far north as possible,and came up with a route: sgp->kuantan->Kuala Terenganu->Gerik->Frazer’s hill->Sgp. So I set off on a Monday morning getting out of Singapore at the Tuas crossing. No queue at 10 am so I was quickly in Malaysia. A note about Singapore/Malaysia border […] - [Back to Santiago](https://carlnotfors.com/back-to-santiago/): After returning from the Uyuni trip to the hostal they only had room for one night so I decided to start the trip back next day. I also decided I wanted to return as quickly as possible to get the ride through the Atacama desert over as quickly as possible. So on the first day I skipped Antofagasta and rode straight to Taltal, a distance of 520 km. It was a long day and I arrived mid afternoon. Next day I rode all the way to La Serena, even further than the previous day and I was finally out of […] - [Bolivia routa lagona and Uyuni salt plane](https://carlnotfors.com/bolivia-routa-lagona-and-uyuni-salt-plane/): At the 6am pickup I met the five persons that was joining me for the Bolivia adventure. There was a young couple from Germany, a mixed nationality couple from Ecuador and Spain and a lady proffesor from Rio de Janeiro. So a very nice mixture of people with different backgrounds. I was the least fluent in Spanish but as it turned out people in the group were very willing to translate for me to english. So, fantastic for me! After the pick-up we were quickly brought to the border with Bolivia and were soon served with breakfast. The border is […] - [El Norte Grande](https://carlnotfors.com/el-norte-grande/): Back to going north in Chile El norte grande is the northern most area of Chile and includes cities such as Antofagasta and San Pedro de Atacama. It’s a large area, with few people, and dominated by the Atacama desert. As I was riding I passed the 1000 km mark from Santiago and later saw a sign saying the distance to Iquique was another 1000 km, and that’s not the northernmost town in Chile! It’s really a crazy long and narrow country! The hotel had no rooms for a third night so I decided to leave Taltal after two nights. […] - [Going north in Chile](https://carlnotfors.com/going-north-in-chile/): Follow my trip further north in Chile Going north in Chile After a week at Hostal Casa Matte I was getting over the jetlag and was starting to get some half decent sleep. Man, jetlag is really terrible and it gets worse as you get older, at least for me. Without proper sleep for many days both my body and mind are affected. Oh well, hopefully, I’m on the mend. The hostal caters for bike travelers and when I left there were people from many parts of the world, ok, perhaps, mainly Europeans and Americans. It’s a great place to […] - [Arriving in Santiago](https://carlnotfors.com/arriving-in-santiago/): my next blog – going north in Chile When boarding the flight to San Francisco in Singapore I thought, is this trip really a good idea and was I really up to it. But it’s too late to change my mind now when all preparations were completed. I had a bulkhead seat and it looked like there might be an empty seat beside me, but it was a full flight and sure enough, a guy being wheeled down the aisle in a wheel chair, was lifted to the seat beside me. He was a big guy and seemed barely conscious. […] - [South America 2025](https://carlnotfors.com/south-america-2025/): Arriving in Santiago Going north in Chile El Norte Grande Bolivia routa lagona and Uyuni salt plane Back to Santiago - [South America 24 : Day 37](https://carlnotfors.com/south-america-24-day-37/): Go to South America 24: Day 29Go to South America 24: Day 22Go to South America 24 Day 1 Day 37: El Calafate Afer a great day of hiking in El Chalten I rode to El Calafate, the town that is the gateway to the Perito Moreno glacier. A bit over 200 kms between the two towns and tarmac’ed the whole way. I found a hostel that had off street parking for the bike and had a private room available. It’s pretty basic with a minimal kitchen, however, it has heated flooring! Very nice.  After sleeping rather badly, I rearranged […] - [South America 24: Day 29](https://carlnotfors.com/south-america-24-day-29/): South America 24: Day 22 Go to South America 24 ; Day 1 Go to South America 24 : Day 37 Mirlo’s hostel in Futaleufu is nice, great kitchen and very comfortable bed. And I slept through the snoring, yay! A good night’s sleep makes all the difference! I joined up with Felipe and Jorge and we ride together to a place along the Carretera Austral, Puyuhuapi. It’s a small town at the northern end of a fjord, ie. at sea level. The first 50 or so kms were on a dirt road but a much better one than the […] - [South America 24: Day 22](https://carlnotfors.com/south-america-24-day-22/): Starting new post after 3 weeks. Go back to posts covering days 1 to 21 Go to South Maerica 24, Day 29 Day 22: Curacautin I rode Ruta 5 south from Talca through Los Angeles to Victoria where I took a small road to Curacautin.  Ruta 5 is a great road to cover distances in short time with a speed limit of 120 km/h.  At some stretches the limit is reduced to 100 km/h but no one seems to lower their speed.  It’s a toll road and at regular, but large, intervals you need to get off the highway and […] - [South America 24](https://carlnotfors.com/south-america-24/): South America 24             Go to Day 22 of my trip Go to Day 29 of my trip Go to South America 24 : Day 37 Day 1: Valparaiso Getting here I arrived in Valparaiso a couple of days ago after a 35 hour trip from SIngapore. Very, very exhausting! I rented a flat through airbnb and it’s quite new and spacious enough for one person with beautiful views of the surroundings and Valparaiso bay. After 14 hours flying from Singapore to San Fransisco there is (of course) a line for immigration. After 30 minutes […] - [Scandinavia](https://carlnotfors.com/scandinavia/): I spend some time in Sweden in the summers and I’ve done a several rides in the area. Skalstugan and old Fröå mine   I made a day ride to Skalstugan close to the Norwegian border and then returned via Fröå gruva, an old copper mine mined 2-300 years ago, where I had a very nice lunch and then back to Duved. Read more!       Lofoten I have read and heard about the natural beauty of Lofoten in the north of Norway. Beautiful scenery and quaint fishing villages as well as a beautiful road snaking itself between the […] - [Lofoten](https://carlnotfors.com/lofoten/): I have read and heard about the natural beauty of Lofoten in the north of Norway. Beautiful scenery and quaint fishing villages as well as a beautiful road snaking itself between the islands of Lofoten over bridges and trough tunnels. I am currently residing in the Åre vicinity in Sweden. I packed my Yamaha Tenere 700 with clothes and stuff such as tent, sleeping bag and air mattress, I only plan to use these in an emergency where I can’t find any accommodation. The distance to the ferry to Lofoten is around 700km so after some trepidation I set off. […] - [Duved to Skalstugan and back via Fröå old mine](https://carlnotfors.com/duved-to-skalstugan-and-back-via-froan-old-mine/): I made a day ride to Skalstugan close to the Norwegian border and then returned via Fröå gruva, an old copper mine, mined 2-300 years ago, where I had a very nice lunch and then back to Duved.  The ride to Skalstugan offers a beautiful, winding, asphalt road, perfect for a motorcycle! The views with lakes and mountaineous terrain is fantastic!  Google map of the Skalstugan roundtrip ride. Beautiful views over lake Klingerselet. After crossing into Norway and turning towards east rather than going straight north to Verdal the road follows the border for several kilometers before turning into Sweden […] - [Western USA 4600 mile roundtrip](https://carlnotfors.com/western-usa-4600-mile-roundtrip/): I found a blog on the internet by a group who did a round trip in the western USA   with a route that  includes many interesting and scenic places. This inspired me to plan for and make my first long trip on the motorcycle in the USA.  July 1 2016. Missouri City to Lubbock 520 miles The route today will take me to Texas 36 which takes me up to Abilene, then along I-20 and finally on US-84 to Lubbock.  Texas is a big state and the first day will be a long ride.  The wife and baby got up […] - [Big Bend](https://carlnotfors.com/big-bend/): Big Bend Trip July 2017 The Big Bend national park is nestled in at the border between Mexico and Texas in a remote area of the state.  There are several interesting roads to get to and from the park and I’ve been thinking of going there for some time.  The idea is to go to Fredericksburg, then south-west through the Texas hill country taking in the so called twisted sisters roads, then follow US 90 westwards and in to the Big Bend park.   July 2, 2017  Sugarland to Fredericksburg 378 km. Started from home around 0730. Nice weather. Goal […] - [Russia to Sweden](https://carlnotfors.com/russia-to-sweden/): Go back to The Stans post. Atirau to Astrakhan (380 km) It was with great relief that I got to the Kazakh/Russia border!  The last 50 km in Kazakhstan had been on horrible road where old broken tarmac was mixed with new road construction.  It was dusty and sandy in places – perhaps the worst surface for a motorcycle. We made the optimistic plan to start at 5 am from Atirau so I got up at 4.45 and started to get ready, however, it was still dark and wouldn’t get light until closer to 6.  The “Green hotel”  served breakfast […] - [Silk Road](https://carlnotfors.com/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 […] - [China 2](https://carlnotfors.com/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. […] - [Boten to Lhasa](https://carlnotfors.com/china-1/): 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 […] - [SIngaporeToBoten](https://carlnotfors.com/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 […] - [Preparations](https://carlnotfors.com/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 […] - [Singapore to London](https://carlnotfors.com/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. Read more       Singapore to Laos The first part […] - [Pisco2BA](https://carlnotfors.com/pisco2ba/): This is the 2nd part of my blog Bogota To Buenos Aires, if you want to go back to the first part Go back to the first part Bogota to Pisco Day 38 – July 13 – Pisco to Ayacucho – 340km I woke up early after having not slept so well and was on my way at 0730 with today’s goal being Ayacucho up in the mountains.  I didn’t know what to expect and the first 100km or so was in a deep valley going gently higher but as I reached the end of the valley it started to […] - [FromBogotaToBuenosAires](https://carlnotfors.com/frombogotatobuenosaires/): I’m doing a motorcycle trip from Bogota to Buenos Aires spending a couple of months travelling through Colombia, Ecuador, Peru, Bolivia and Argentina.  Exciting!   The post was getting really big so I started a new post covering the trip from Pisco onwards. Pisco to Buenos Aires Day 1 June 5, 2018 I arrived in Bogota last night with a direct flight from Houston.  I had organized someone to pick me up and drive me to the hotel and this worked well so I was in bed a couple of hours after I landed.  Bogota is at an altitude of […] - [GPS Navigation](https://carlnotfors.com/gps-navigation/): I’m attempting to summarize my understanding of GPS software and maps…. When you think about GPS navigation, devices like Garmin and TomTom comes to mind and those two are, perhaps, dominating the market. However, in the last few years the situation has become much more “complicated” with smartphones having a plethora of GPS navigation apps available. And many new cars come with GPS navigation installed and, of course, Google and Apple have their own maps with navigation. All these devices and apps need maps to function so where do these maps come from? Maps NAVTEQ was a Chicago based company […] - [Mexico](https://carlnotfors.com/my-first-mexico-motorcycle-trip/): Day 1 I set off on February 1 with the first day’s goal being Laredo in south west Texas. US 59 goes from Houston so I followed this for the 300 miles required to reach Laredo. Nothing much to say about the ride apart from it being a very windy day with winds from the side and front making for pretty hard work keeping the bike in the right direction. I checked in to a Day’s Inn and unfortunately I did not check the room and location so my room faced the I35 which meant a lot of traffic noise […] ## Pages - [Stuff](https://carlnotfors.com/stuff/): GPS Navigation Gps navigation has been around for some time and it’s very useful.  The various offerings are somewhat confusing and it’s not clear where the underlying maps and other information is coming from.  I did some research and I sum it up in this post. Read more   OshenWatch Review   I bought the OshenWatch because of it’s advertised health functions but was rather disappointed!  See  OshenWatch Review - [Latest Posts](https://carlnotfors.com/latest_posts/) - [](https://carlnotfors.com/): Motorcycle adventures around the world On this blog I’m writing  about motorcycle trips I’m taking or have taken in the past.  I have ridden on 4 continents so far but maybe I’ll make it to Australia one of these days?  I’ll also write something on other subjects that I find interesting and worthwhile to post. A little bit about myself… I started motorcycling late in life around the age of 50.  I got really hooked and within a couple of years I was doing road racing at the Sepang circuit in Malaysia.  I was living in Singapore so the distance […] - [Riding Adventures](https://carlnotfors.com/ridingadventures/):   Singapore to London May – July 2019. I’m riding my motorcycle from Singapore to Europe starting April/Mayr, 2019. I 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 Uzbekistan, Kazakhstan, Russia,  Estonia, Sweden, Germany, Holland and the UK.  I will see places like Lhasa, Mount Everest base camp, cities along the silk route, Volgograd and Moscow. Read more    Bogota to Buenos Aires June-August 2018 I’m doing a motorcycle trip from Bogota to Buenos Aires spending a couple of months […] [comment]: # (Generated by Hostinger Tools Plugin)