Rosi and Dale's Ongoing Electronic Diary

Sad News

2011-10-02T08:57:00.000-07:00

Dexter passed away peacfully at 10:00AM on Friday, September 30th at one month shy of 13 years old. Constant companion and a loving and loyal friend - not a day will go by when he's not missed. God speed old friend, God speed.

Back Home!

2011-08-24T16:37:00.000-07:00

I arrived home safe and sound yesterday at 5:00 after three days in Seoul en route. Seoul was an amazing experience and it's now most definitely on my "must see" list as a place for a return visit.

All good things must come to an end however so this brings my Mongolian trip to a close.

Next up, a six-day ride through Jasper/Banff national Park and detour coming home through Idaho and Montana to ride the Going-to-the-Sun highway and the Beartooth Pass.

Cheers!

Mongolian Opera

2011-08-17T20:24:00.000-07:00

Ulgii

2011-08-17T20:15:00.001-07:00

Fishing in Sengel

2011-08-17T20:11:00.001-07:00

Sengel

2011-08-17T19:56:00.001-07:00

Muslim Extremists

2011-08-17T06:36:00.000-07:00

August 17

I experienced my first run-in with hard-core Muslim extremists yesterday but it wasn’t as frightening as I thought it would be.

On Saturday evening we attended the wedding of the son of the chairwoman of the board of the local credit union. Since then she’s been too busy with all the family commitments that go along with a three-day Kazak wedding to meet with us at the credit union so yesterday we were invited to her house for lunch.

Like many Kazak families they have a family compound and within the fence there’s a western style house, some outbuildings and a Gerr that’s used as a summer residence. In their case, because they’re a fairly affluent family, the Gerr was not only their summer residence but a place for guests to stay and was used for traditional family gatherings. It was in the Gerr that we were welcomed for lunch and introduced to extreme Muslim behaviour. In this case though, it wasn’t anything religious or political. It was extreme warmth, extreme hospitality and an extremely good time!

The Gerr was decorated with beautiful wall hangings, family mementos and thick felt rugs, and felt more like something out of Lawrence of Arabia than a middle-class Kazak family in Mongolia. We were introduced to all their children and had a fantastic time learning about their family and little more about Kazak culture and history. And as far as Muslim traditions go, apparently you’re able to pick and choose. I don’t know much about the Muslim religion but I can’t say I thought it would include the copious amounts of Vodka that we consumed during the many friendly toasts. And just to prove that we have much more in common than differences, everyone was on their best behaviour while the Chairwoman was at the table but in the middle of the afternoon she and the children had to leave for another family function leaving the men behind – and that’s when the Vodka really started to flow! That is until the 80 year old elderly Kazak uncle joined us. He’s a much more traditional Muslim and the Vodka quickly disappeared while he sang us a few traditional Kazak folk songs and shared with us through our interpreter his family history. But once he left, out came the Vodka again! All in all it was a five hour “lunch” and by the early evening I had an “extreme” headache so I guess the Muslim’s here are extremists after all.

Cheers!

Back in Ulgii

2011-08-17T06:29:00.000-07:00

August 16
Greetings from the remote, rugged and more than just a little run down Aimeg capital of Ulgii (or Olgii, depending on which version you use) Our arrival was a little harried but all’s well that ends well. We were originally dropped off at one of the two decent (decent being an altogether relative term ) hotels in town and I was quite excited. It had a great wifi connection, small but comfortable rooms with clean ensuite bathrooms and lots and lots of hot water. We arrived early and our rooms weren’t ready yet so while they were being cleaned I caught up on a few e-mails all the while thinking longingly of the first shower I was going to have in four days. Then, just as we were ready to unpack, our interpreter got a call from the host organization and said the whole thing was a mistake.......... we were supposed to check into a Gerr camp on the other side of town. So off we trundled to the Blue Wolf Gerr Camp – a collection of small and large Gerr’s in a fenced in back yard that has more the feel of an abandoned gravel pit than the open steppes one normally associates with a Gerr. Oh well, I’m comfortably ensconced in a HUGE five man Gerr with electricity and sporadic wifi and it’s a short walk to the shower building where there are real toilets and hot showers – what more can you ask for!

Our actual work here has been with a local credit union that you would recognize as a credit union anywhere. It’s a VERY small office in a hidden corner of a rundown office building but from this location four staff looks after the financial needs of over 300 members. They take deposits and grant loans and they play an important role in the community because many of their members wouldn’t be able to access these services through regular chartered banks. And speaking of members, the credit union’s two newest members are from Canada! Scott and I both opened memberships and I deposited $20,000 MNT to a new savings account and I have the Mongolian pass book and new member coffee mug to prove it!

Unfortunately the internet connection here isn’t strong enough to upload pictures so that will have to wait until I’m back in UB.

Cheers!

More thoughts from the road......

2011-08-13T02:54:00.000-07:00

August 13
I was told once that music is the international language - and I’m sure I heard or read somewhere that math is universal regardless of language or culture. Well, I have one more to add. An activity practiced and enjoyed by everyone, no matter where or when, and that’s fishing.

Yesterday was a full and busy day. We reviewed endless financial statements and offered our insight and advice on a broad range subjects. It’s interesting and rewarding work but exhausting because everything has to be done through an interpreter and things have to be confirmed and reconfirmed in order to ensure the message isn’t lost somewhere in between. But at the end of the day our Kazak host’s surprised us with an impromptu fishing trip along the banks of the most amazing river I’ve ever seen. Not for its swift running current or any real claim to fame but for just being. It was the most idyllic, peaceful setting I’ve experienced in a long time and could have been pulled directly from the pages of a Mongolian tourist brochure. And as I was sitting there with my new Kazak friends, eating freshly caught pan-fried fish and drinking vodka halfway around the world almost on the Kazak/Chinese/Russian border, it was more than a little surreal. Sometimes the world is a very interesting place indeed and the path we travel takes is in places we would never imagine.

Next stop..... Bayan Uglii – where I REALLY hope there’s running water!

Cheers!

Random thoughts from Mongolia

2011-08-13T02:47:00.000-07:00

August 11
Hi Everyone
I’m not much into blogging anymore so this is my first entry in a very long time. I’m back in Mongolia on a follow up visit to my original coaching assignment last year. This time around I’m working with Scott again and we’re out in the remote western area of the country working with small rural credit unions. Our role is to offer whatever advice we can to assist credit unions and cooperatives in their struggle to lift people out of poverty through the cooperative model.

I’m writing this now (Thursday) but it won’t actually get posted until I’m back in an area with internet access. No such luck here. “Here” is the Soum (small town) of Tsengel, which is a small hamlet of approx 1,000 people in the far western Aimeg (province) of Uglii. I flew into the Aimeg capital of Baya-Uglii on Wednesday on the once weekly flight. Scott and I, our interpreter, a few Mongolians and WAY too many pushy, rude and loud, middle-aged European tourists landed on a dirt strip at a small post-Russian airport only five hours late from UB. The tourists and literally mountains of their hiking gear were whisked away by waiting guides and Scott and I were picked up by our contact in Tsengel and made our way approx 80 klm overland by land cruiser. A very looooong 80 klm on dirt roads that ranged from fairly smooth, to rough, to VERY rough to just two vague outlines in the dirt and grasslands.

Last year I was in a business class hotel in UB for the entire time. This time though, it’s a little different. So far there’s electricity but it’s sporadic and the wiring has a definite ancient Russian flair. I’m staying in what can charitably be called a hotel – at least that’s what the Mongolian sign says – but it feels more like a dilapidated hunting lodge. There are four rooms with four single Russian army cots in each room and a bare bulb hanging from the ceiling. There’s a small alcove in the hall that has two wash basins but there’s no door for privacy and there’s no running water – just a pot that the cook fills with hot water in the morning. The rest of the “facilities” consist of a VERY basic outhouse out back, but because we’re on the border of Kazakhstan all the toilets are “squat” toilets so the outhouse just has a strip of flooring removed in the middle - no actual commode. Oh well, my legs get a good workout while I’m balancing to.... never mind! Throw in a large communal dining room where we hang out in the evening and the Kazak family (yes, the entire family) that takes care of the kitchen and runs the place and it’s like something out of Three Cups of Tea.

So....... no running water, sporadic electricity, no internet (although all the Mongols and Kazaks are running around with smart phones and seem to have no trouble with cell coverage!) and accommodations that at best can be described as rustic. Pretty crappy, right? I should be hating it, eh? Well, nothing could be further from the truth! Yes, I’d REALLY like an actual toilet and some nice hot water but if this is the price to be paid for seeing some of the most stunning scenery I’ve ever experienced, or visiting a far off exotic land I’ve only ever seen in National Geographic, then sign me up!

Today we spent the morning in meetings with the chairman of the board of the local co-op. An amazing man doing incredible things for his Soum. The co-op has an education program to teach better land use techniques and is actively pursuing a new crop management and animal husbandry program to increase yields and finally store fodder and grain over the winter so this Soum won’t be devastated by another harsh winter. He’s also running the local credit union, a herdsman co-op and has programs running to test new crops. Amazing. And let’s not forget the hotel – it’s owned and run by the co-op too.

In the afternoon we toured a new water irrigation system, looked at his crop management area and then spent an hour with a local Kazak family that’s been hired to maintain one of the crop areas. No tourists, no “put on” hospitality, just a very nice family offering us their home and their hospitality. They’re obviously very poor by our standards but rich beyond measure in so many ways we no longer appreciate or understand. They work hard but their tie to the land, their family and their community sustains and nurtures them and they warmly shared whatever they had available – as is the custom throughout this region. Freshly boiled milk tea, several kinds of cheeses, warm bread and sweets.

I honestly didn’t know what to expect when I arrived. This area borders China and Russia and is only 18 Klm from Kazakhstan. Most of the population is Kazak and Muslim, not Mongolian and Buddhist. No matter what I expected however, what I found were hard working people going about their daily lives. No Muslim extremism here, just quiet reserved people with a smile for a foreigner and warm hospitality for a weary traveller. And as always, I was reminded that no matter how far you travel the people you meet will have far more in common than differences.

Cheers!

Unconditional Love

2011-04-16T06:54:00.000-07:00

Unconditional Love

Have you experienced unconditional love? I hope so. I have and I know there’s no greater joy. I’ve been blessed twice with this gift and only now have come to realize how lucky I’ve been. I guess its age creeping up on me but the thought of living without this love in my life is like a dark cloud on the horizon. I know the storm is coming. And like the weather, there’s nothing I can do about it except focus on the thought that seasons change, the rain will pass and the sun will shine again.

But what is unconditional love? Rosi loves me – and I couldn’t be happier. She’s my closest friend and staunchest confidant. But is her love unconditional? More importantly, should it be? Of course not. A marriage is all about trust and commitment and compromise. It’s a partnership that both have to contribute to. Ignore this relationship or take it for granted and love fades; replaced by complacency and resentment. So no, a wife’s love is hardly unconditional, nor should it be.

And what about Brad? As much my best friend as anyone and my son in every sense of the word. Does he love me? – I know he does – just as I love him. In a much different way than Rosi but no less deeply and no less committed. But is it unconditional? A son’s love is like no other but like any relationship it’s a two way street. Treat each other with dignity and respect and the relationship grows. But ignore each other or worse, treat the other poorly, and love soon fades. It’s not unconditional.

So then, what is this thing called unconditional love? In my mind it’s only one thing. The loyal companionship of a dog. I know many will disagree: those that don’t own a dog, or those that cling to the antiquated notion that dogs are just things – chattels to be bought and sold. But for a lucky few of us, we know. A dog’s love is given freely. Unconditionally. A friendly face first thing in the morning and a warm smile last thing at night. A sympathetic ear when no one else will listen and that one “person” whose happy to see us every time we walk in the door. Whether we’ve been gone five minutes, five hours or five days, it doesn’t matter. That my friends, is unconditional love.

“An old man and his dog were walking down this dirt road with fences on both sides, they came to a gate in the fence and looked in, it was nice - grassy, woody areas, just what a 'huntin' dog and man would like, but, it had a sign saying 'no trespassing' so they walked on.

They came to a beautiful gate with a person in white robes standing there. "Welcome to Heaven" he said. The old man was happy and started in with his dog following him.
The gatekeeper stopped him. "Dogs aren't allowed, I'm sorry but he can't come with you." "What kind of Heaven won't allow dogs? If He can't come in, then I will stay out with him. He's been my faithful companion all his life, I can't desert him now. " "Suit yourself, but I have to warn you, the Devil's on this road and he'll try to sweet talk you into his area, he'll promise you anything, but, the dog can't go there either. If you won't leave the dog, you'll spend Eternity on this road " So the old man and dog went on.

They came to a rundown fence with a gap in it, no gate, just a hole. Another old man was inside. "Scuse me Sir, my dog and I are getting mighty tired, mind if we come in and sit in the shade for awhile?" "Of course, there's some cold water under that tree over there. Make yourselves comfortable " "You're sure my dog can come in? The man down the road said dogs weren't allowed anywhere." "Would you come in if you had to leave the dog?" " No sir, that's why I didn't go to Heaven, he said the dog couldn't come in. We'll be spending Eternity on this road, and a glass of cold water and some shade would be mighty fine right about now. But, I won't come in if my buddy here can't come too, and that's final. "

The man smiled a big smile and said "Welcome to Heaven." "You mean this is Heaven? Dogs ARE allowed? How come that fellow down the road said they weren't?" "That was the Devil and he gets all the people who are willing to give up a lifelong companion for a comfortable place to stay.They soon find out their mistake, but, then it's too late.

The dogs come here, the fickle people stay there. GOD wouldn't allow dogs to be banned from Heaven. After all, HE created them to be man's companions in life, why would he separate them in death?"

Alive and Well in Dawson Creek

2011-04-10T05:46:00.000-07:00

Just a brief note to let everyone know what we've been up to these past few weeks.

I've been here in Dawson Creek since I started this contract on March 8th. I was home for a few days a week ago and I'll be going home again for Easter but other than that I've been here in the great white north. The contract is now firm through to the end of May but interspersed with working here I still have commitments to facilitate in Vancouver and Prince George so it'll mean some juggling but being busy beats the heck out of the alternative.

I'll be home in June but I have two engagements in Vancouver so it'll really be mid-June before things get back to normal.

In the meantime Rosi has been great. She and Dexter are holding down the fort at home and this time she's the one with the honey-do list. There are a few last minute details like tiling the backsplash etc before we can say our renovations are complete and she's making all the arrangements to have these done so we can have free time to ourselves when I get home.

The only down side to being this busy is there's been no time for riding. I toyed with the idea of bringing my bike up after Easter but everyone here tells me it's not unusual to have snow as late as the May long week-end so I'll have to reconsider. I guess I'll have to catch up when I'm home this summer.

On June 18thy I'm finally going to Boise to pick up my bike and I'm riding it to Phoenix to leave it there. Maybe I'll spend a few days on a few back roads just to clear the cobwebs.

The only other news is Mongolia. I've been asked to go back as part of the follow up team of coaches so I'll be there again for 2 1/2 weeks in August.

Anyway, that's still a few months away so no need to talk about it. For now, I'm doing rewarding work for a credit union here in Dawson Creek. I don't like being away from home but it's not forever and it comes with the territory when you're a contractor

Cheers!
Dale

Back home in Canada

2011-02-23T07:31:00.001-08:00

Hi Everyone
I apologize for not posting before now but things were pretty routine. We spent January in Mazatlan and had a great time. Brad came down for Christmas, Patty and John were down between Christmas and New Years and Tami was down on January. We drove home at the end of January and spent three days in AJ visiting my dad before the final push home, where we arrived on Feb 8thy.

We've decided on passing on buying in Mexico for the time being for a variety of reasons so we're going to look for something in the Phoenix area. Now that we're back I'm really busy with work for the next few months but by June we hope to be able to make a trip back with the specific purpose of buying something in the Gold Canyon or Mesa areas.

In the interim I'm heading to MB this Sunday for four days and then I'm off to Dawson Creek for a couple of months - maybe longer. Rosi is staying home with Dexter to hold the fort but may join me up there if I stay for May/June.

That's it for now

Feliz Navidad!

2010-12-20T06:15:00.001-08:00

Greetings from warm and sunny Mazatlan! Since my last post Rosi and I have basically fallen into the “groove” of day-to-day living down here. Nothing too exciting, just basically all the things we’d do at home. Which is why I haven’t been posting anything. No one really wants to read about shopping at the supermarket, getting our eye exams and buying new glasses and contacts or our 5 K walk each morning. Just know that we’re alive and well and thoroughly enjoying ourselves. Brad is coming down on Friday to join us for Christmas, Patty and John will be here next Monday for New Years and Tami and Marilyn will be here at the end of January. We’re going to save some of the touristy stuff for when they’re all here so we may have a few things to share after that. As for now, we just want to send Christmas greetings to all our friends and family and wish everyone all the very best during the holidays Feliz Navidad

Our hearts still belong to Mexico!

2010-12-02T06:07:00.000-08:00

Hi Everyone
Greetings from Mazatlan!

I wish I could tell you tales about the ongoing drug war and how we bravely fought our way south through bandito infested badlands. Or how the "vibe" has changed in Mexico because of all the problems. Or even how crossing the border has become an issue of running a gauntlet of death and destruction............but I can't.

But don't think we weren't just as worried about all these things as some of our friends and family. We were! As a matter of fact, by the time we were close to Nogales we had pretty much convinced ourselves that we would cancel any plans to buy in Mexico and concentrate on some of the alternatives in the US: Phoenix, Palm Springs and others - all places with warm weather, no language barrier and best of all, HUGELY depreciated property values. Places where it's now possible to buy a nice townhouse or patio home in a gated community for less than $150,000.

But then we crossed into Mexico.

Prior to arriving in Nogales we corresponded with other Snowbirds we'd "met" on a discussion board specifically set up so people could convoy down together to mitigate the risk of road blocks and (insert whatever you fear the most at this point: carjacking, theft, murder, gang rape etc. ) The theory being that there's strength in numbers. So at 8:00 am we joined three other Snowbird couples at the Wal-Mart parking lot, two from BC and one from Ontario, them with motor homes and fifth wheels and us with our CR-V loaded to the gunwales, and we headed to the border.

The border is only five minutes from where we started and the first realization was that nothing much had changed. We expected guards, tanks and machine guns - or at the very least someone - anyone - with some sense of concern. Instead we drove though a checkpoint on the US side where smiling US border guards simply waved us through and on the Mexican side......nothing. No press the button for red light/green light, no stern guards with guns and dogs.....in fact no anything. One minute we were in the US and the next, Mexico. And because this time we used the truck crossing south of town rather than the main crossing we crossed over onto a ring road that by-passes Nogales on the Mexican side altogether so there's even less of the normal culture shock of crossing from the US into Mexico. So, Voila! We were in Mexico with no muss, no fuss, and even more important, no apparent changes.

Our second realization came within a few more minutes of driving south; driving in a convoy, especially a convoy made up of RV's, is a HUGE PIA if you're the one in a car. We stuck it out until we reached the customs and immigration checkpoint 20 klm south but when we got there we were the only ones apparently, that knew you could make all your arrangements in advance on-line through the Mexican govt website. Rosi and I were done in five minutes but everyone else was going to take at least an hour.

And that's when it hit us. We were "home". No anxiety, no more fear of death and destruction, and without even realizing it, were already more relaxed and upbeat than we'd been since leaving the house.

We also noticed something else.....Snow Birds - lots and lots Snow Birds! In the short time we were there, more and more motor homes, RV's and retires arrived and all stood in line for their paperwork (Have NONE of these people heard of the internet!?)

One couple though, behind us in the passport line, seemed to be just as “in the know” as us. We struck up a conversation and it turns out they’re a retired couple from Victoria driving down to their house in La Manzanilla, just outside of Barra de Navidad. They’re travelling with their 12 year old Husky/Shepherd mix, Jade, who looks exactly like the littlest Hobo. We ran into them again at dinner, when we both stopped at the same hotel for the night. We exchanged addresses etc and we would have invited them to overnight here in Mazatlan with us but because it was our first time renting here we weren’t sure what we’d find so we didn’t. But now we have our first Snow Bird friends so maybe next year!

We rationalized that if all of these Snow Birds(all of them older than us) are still coming down it must be fairly safe - and with the thought that there would now be people behind us to pick up the pieces so to speak, we ditched our convoy and headed out on our own.

And from there........there's not much to tell. How does one convey the absence of something? The absence of fear, the absence of......pretty much anything out of the ordinary? It was a normal, uneventful two-day drive on good Mexican divided highway, the last three hours or so of which was high-speed Autopista. We averaged 120 - 130 KPH, stayed one night in a great Best Western half way down and arrived unscathed at 2:00 on Tuesday.

We're now firmly ensconced in a nice townhouse in an area north of Mazatlan known as the Cerritos district. It's a new area under development approx 20 minutes from downtown, similar to Nuevo Vallarta in PV. We're in a large gated community with a mix of middle-class Mexican families and Mexican retirees, seasonal Snow Birds and a few permanent ex-Pats. Since arriving we've made a HUGE grocery run to a VERY modern Mexican grocery store - think Wal-Mart Supercentre except much more high-end - and today our mission is to buy a Mexican cell phone so we can stay in touch with friends and family back home. All pretty routine and pretty boring stuff so, unless there’s something new or exciting to report, this will be my last blog entry for a while.

As Ward said to us once, we're not on vacation, we live here. For the first time Rosi and I can say the same thing.

We're not sure what we'll decide vis-à-vis buying here vs. the US. All it would take is for the drug war, which still exists whether we sensed a change or not, to escalate and real estate here will be worthless, but we're certainly more open to the idea than a few days ago. As Johnny Depp would say, are you a Mexi-can, or a Mexi-can't? I've often said God seems to favour the brave, or the blissfully ignorant in our case, so don't be too surprised if we end up here after all.

Take care all
Adios Mi amigos Y Mi Familia
Cheers!
Dale

Oh my GOD!!

2010-11-27T19:40:00.000-08:00

Hi Everyone Let's see, where to begin. The rest of the trip wasn't too bad. The roads opened at 10:00 but were pretty crappy with blowing and drifting snow most of the way to Salt Lake City but by then it was mostly clear sailing. We stopped for a brief visit to see my niece Arleen and then continued to St George Utah. On Thursday it was clear skies, warm temperatures and an uneventful drive to Phoenix. But.....today was the incredible part. Rosi gave me a gift for my 50th that was amazing! I received a four-hour fighter combat experience at Fighter Combat International in Mesa. I showed up at 11:15 and had ground school and a briefing that lasted about 90 minutes. After that I rode with an instructor pilot in a high performance aerobatic plane that's capable of 10G. It's basically one of the best aerobatic planes built and other than speed, is capable of maneuvers only a jet fighter could do. The pilot takes off and lands, and goes through a demo of each maneuver, but after that I was able to actually take the "stick" and fly! I flew three combat missions against another pilot, complete with simulated machine guns and smoke, and I flew several acrobatic maneuvers on my own: a full loop, the Cuban roll and a hammerhead stall. The whole experience was amazing! And more than a little frightening - and yes, at one point I got sick. You try pulling 4.2G inverted in a plane not much bigger than a Honda Civic and tell me you don't get scared - or sick. Anyway, it's now just a great memory - plus a plaque, a ball cap and my own leather call sign off of my flight suit..... Tomorrow we're only driving as far as Nogales and then on Monday we cross into Mexico for the last few days of the trip. Adios Mi Amigos!

Let it snow, let it snow, let it snow.....NOT!

2010-11-23T18:43:00.000-08:00

Hi everyone
Just a short note to let friends and family know we're alive and well in Burley ID. There were a few "pucker" moments on the drive due to the weather but overall it went fairly smoothly. We're now firmly ensconced in a warm friendly hotel and I'm SOOOO glad I had reservations. The blizzard has closed the Interstate between here and the Utah border and from what we can tell, much of Utah itself, and there was no room at the Inn for those without firm reservations. We just got back from dinner at a truck stop cafe next door and there were people in there that are worried they'll have to sleep in their cars if they can't find something.

We've got our fingers crossed that the road will open in the morning and we can make our way further south but we won't take any unneccessary risks.......more to follow tomorrow
Cheers

Notes from the road

2010-11-22T19:38:00.000-08:00

Hola Mi Familia Y Amigos
Nothing new or exciting to report. It was a fairly uneventful drive down, albeit with a few wrinkles at the border because we didn't realize we couldn't bring dog food across. We had clear skies for the first half and then some fairly heavy blowing snow for a few hours but nowhere near as bad as a bad day on the Coquihalla. It was pretty slow going for a while - not because of us but because the truckers down here exercise MUCH more caution than at home - but we arrived here in Pendleton OR right around 5:00.
All is well
Cheers
Dale

Finally, We're Snow Birds!!

2010-11-20T14:15:00.001-08:00

Hi All
Nothing too wild and/or exciting to report other than we're finally joining the ranks of all the other Canadian snow birds that head south for the winter.

Rosi and I have always said we'd eventually like to buy a second home in Mexico and we're finally at a stage in our lives where we can maybe act on it. There's an old adage though, never buy a home in a place you've only visited in February, so we're driving down to rent a house for a couple of months to see how much we really like it. The irony is we've gone to Mexico for four-five weeks every year for the last 20 years but we've never stayed in one place for longer than 10 days. The real test will see if we like sitting still for that length of time.

There's also the factor of the time and expense to drive down and not even mentioning an ongoing drug war between the government and different warring drug cartels. So this will be a real test - on several different levels.

We're leaving first thing Monday morning and taking our time driving to Phoenix. It's normally a 2 1/2 - 3 day drive but we're taking four days because we'll have Dexter with us and we want to give him lots of opportunity to stretch his legs. We took him in to get an international health certificate from our vet this week and she mentioned for the first time the inevitability of his old age. It was a bit of a shock to hear her articulate what we've been thinking for a while. His eyes are getting dim these days and he's pretty much lost most of his hearing but he still gets around OK, albeit a lot slower than last year, and he goes for a short walk twice a day. We're at a real cross-roads. He's now too old to leave in a kennel - which we would never do for two months anyway - but a trip of this length will be hard on him. All we can hope is the Mexican sun will warm his old bones when we get there. And if looking out for him means an extra night in a hotel to keep the driving days short he's more than earned it. He's given us unconditional love and companionship for 12 years and it's our turn to give back a little.

But.....not to get too melancholy......lets not forget why we're stopping in Phoenix. (Yes, it's to see my dad but....) Fighter Combat International Baby!!! WooHoo!!! By this time next week I'll be flying an hour-long combat mission in the sunny skies of Phoenix!!

We'll post a few quick updates from the road to let family know we're safe and sound but for the most part - Mexican banditos aside - we don't expect anything too exciting for the next week or so or at least until we arrive in Mexico.

So until I can post from our first stop in Pendleton OR,
Adios, Mi Amigos!

Last thoughts from the road

2010-10-29T18:45:00.000-07:00

It’s 9:00 am here in Ulaanbaatar and I’m sitting here in the hotel restaurant, quietly reflecting on the past few weeks. Outside the sun is shining and the city is going about its business. Like most mornings, traffic is absolute chaos by our standards – but seems to work. At least I haven’t seen any accidents and the pedestrians weaving their way through moving traffic all seem to make it.
My own personal nick-name for pedestrians braving a road crossing is the Mongolian death run. Think of Quail running in front of your car, their little stick legs moving for all they’re worth and you absolutely screaming inside Fly! Fly dammit, don’t run, you’re a bird! But they seem to make it too, so it must be true, as the SAS would say, Who Dares, Wins.

As I type this VERY well dressed Mongolian women are striding briskly on a cold crisp morning as they make their way to where ever they have to be. Shop keepers are opening their stores and Ulaanbaatar once more moves forward, both literally and figuratively.

I’ve been here over two weeks now and I’ll admit, at first I wasn’t the biggest fan. It’s a tough place to like at first. The air can be dirty, especially on a cold day when all the Ger’s in the vast Ger districts surrounding the city proper all fire up their small coal heaters at once, the traffic can be imposing and the older buildings left over from the Soviet era, all seem to be crumbling and decaying at once. But....... after a few days you see through this: the sun seems to shine brighter, you realize crumbling facades hide beautiful interiors and the people, who seem stoic and a little severe at first, reveal themselves as caring and engaging. Mongolia is like an onion. You need to peel through the layers to get to what’s inside – and the more you peel through the layers the more the country and the people reveal their true beauty. And I’ll admit, I’m now hooked. I absolutely love it here. The people are some of the most caring and appreciative you’ll ever meet and the country is vast and beautiful – just waiting to be explored by camel, horseback or cross country by Landcruiser.

Last night was our wind up dinner. We were entertained in a small banquet room in the Ulaanbaatar Hotel – a large opulent hotel from a bygone era. We were treated to a huge Mongolian dinner complete with enough Vodka to float a large boat. At this point I’m afraid to shave because if I cut myself I may just bleed out. I’m sure at this point my blood is running clear because of all the vodka I’ve consumed. Between Mongolian Karaoke, Mongolian Disco’s and one brave attempt at my classic dance move which went over really well with my Mongolian hosts, I’m sooooo ready to get back home.

But for all this I’m still more than a little humbled. I’ve met incredible people from government, and cooperative apex organizations and I was able to offer my advice and recommendations that may help shape the credit union movement going forward. To be asked by the Commissioner of the Financial Regulatory Commission, and the Director of the Micro Finance Department to meet with government to offer my input into draft legislation currently before parliament was the highlight of the trip – and something I’ll always treasure.

That’s it for now, I leave on a 24 hour trip back to Toronto in another few hours and by Sunday night it’ll all be behind me.

Alive and well in UB

2010-10-26T10:25:00.000-07:00

Hi Everybody
The following is mostly for my family and friends but I know, due to the nature of the internet, it's really available for all to see.

First, my apologies; the time difference and my schedule here makes it difficult for me to keep up with all your e-mails and best wishes. It's been tough enough trying to connect by Skype with Rosi (love you sweety!) and I just haven`t been able to stay on top of the rest of my e-mails etc.

I wish I could tell you that I`ve been travelling the Mongolian countryside, riding camels, visiting ger`s and sampling Yak`s milk, but it wouldn`t be true. That`s NOT to say that I haven`t explored a little of Ulaanbaatar and that I`m not soaking up as much Mongolian culture as I can but it`s nowhere near the hardship some would think. Exotic and different- absolutely - but hardship travel, hardly.

This week my days consist of getting up around 6:30, making my way to breakfast around 7:00 or so, comparing notes with the other members of the team and maybe laying out a game plan with Scott, my partner and then walking the six blocks or so to the office where we`re working.

But Oh, what work.......it`s hard to believe but we`re working with everyday ordinary people trying to do their best in a hard thankless job as they lay the ground work for what could develop into a robust healthy credit union nationwide system. This week we`re offering our advice - and even more difficult for me to believe sometimes - they`re taking it - on how to structure a Stabilization Fund, a Deposit Insurance Corporation, Liquidity Shares and an overall approach to developing a Mongolian Central Credit Union.

I know as you read this it`s hard not to think yadda yadda yadda but that`s from a position of comfort and more important, stability. When you go to the bank you just know: your deposits are safe, your cheques will clear and the world will turn. And you know what, 50% of Mongolian`s have the same comfort. They drive nice cars, use the same ATM you do and go about their day to day lives with the same fears, worries and goals as the rest of us. But for the rest, it`s not so comfortable. They may or may not have a crop this year, a herd this fall or a meal this evening. And for these people a cooperative is often the answer. All of a sudden the Hands and Globe logo takes on a whole new meaning. It`s no longer just lip service or a nice pen when you sign a form; it`s the difference between subsistence and prospering, a hand up rather than a hand out and it`s being part of a worldwide movement designed to help those that help themselves - and I`ve never been more proud and more pleased to be part of it.

What we`re doing here is small, and may not matter in the long run, but action beats inaction and moving forward, even if in spurts, is better than the alternative.

As for me, all is well. I`m taking antibiotics and I`m feeling much better and `the longer I stay in UB the more I like it.

Take care
D

Up Date from UB

2010-10-24T06:20:00.001-07:00

Hi Everyone
I apologize for not keeping my postings as current as I'd like. We've been VERY busy and I've been quite under the weather. My head cold moved into my chest and from there I think it developed into pneumonia. I'm now taking antibiotics though and I think I'm on the mend!

This aside, the last few days have been hectic and absolutely chock-o-block full but VERY fulfilling. Since my last update we filed a report with the Co-operative apex organization, had dinner with senior representatives from two different co-operative organizations, visited a VERY cool statue of Chingas Khan and spent the night at a Gerr camp outside of UB. Our Mongolia hosts have treated us better than anyone could ever expect and are absolutely deadly at Karaoke!

That's it for now. I have several financial reports I still have to read and tomorrow we have a follow up meeting with the Director of Micro-Finance to offer our input into draft legislation before parliament to structure the Mongolian CU system. It's pretty humbling to be able to be part of something like this from the ground floor up.

Take care

Up date from Mongolia

2010-10-21T03:29:00.000-07:00

Day four in Mongolia, day ten on the road and a LONG way from home and I’m starting to feel it. Whether it was getting run down due to the travel, picking up a bug on the plane or the smoke in the air here in UB from the coal fired power plant, I’ve picked up a doozy of a head/chest cold. The problem is finding a pharmacy is a little easier said than done and when you do everything is imported from Russia, China or India. I’m a little reluctant to load up on pharmaceuticals I know nothing about but not to worry. There’s a peace core volunteer working for one of the NGO’s we’re partnered with and she says she has more than enough cold medicine brought over from home that will fix me right up.

Yesterday was another very full day. And just as some background information; this trip is part of a Mongolian credit union coaching and mentoring program. Most of the team members either hit the ground running to catch overnight trains to remote rural villages or are working with small financial cooperatives here in UB to offer advice and support. My partner Scott and I however were picked by our Mongolian hosts to work with two apex organizations. The Mongolian National Comparators Association, a trade and development organization representing all the cooperatives in Mongolia and MOCCU, the Mongolian Confederations of Credit Unions, which will hopefully play the role of a central credit union similar to BC Central. We’re also working indirectly with a third training and development NGO.

Neither of us has a background at the regulatory level so we’re not sure what the Mongolian partner saw in our resume’s that prompted them to pick us for this assignment, especially when others in our group look far more qualified. The only thing that stands out is we’re both now consultants vs. actual CU employee’s so that may have had something to do with it but I’m not sure why.

When I first heard I wouldn’t be traveling to a rural area with the rest of the group I was a little bummed but now I couldn’t be happier. Scott and I are working with some incredible people: senior management from various NGO’s and so far we’ve interviewed the president of the Union of Mongolian Production and Service Cooperatives and the Director of the Microfinance Department of the Financial Regulatory Commission of Mongolia.

I won’t lie: interviewing the Director was pretty cool. It was supposed to be just our coordinator and our embedded journalist. Scott and I were able to tag along because of the work we’re doing with MOCCU but it quickly morphed into seeming like our interview. The Director is a very professional woman with a very hard job. She has to implement new banking regulations that are currently before parliament and from that virtually reconstruct the Mongolian credit union system. No small feat when you consider the previous Commissioner was murdered when he tried to close corrupt credit unions prior to the collapse.

And now a few observations and thoughts in no particular order:
- Yes, in many area’s the roads are poor, the sidewalks are broken and the buildings are crumbling, but through this most Mongolian women stride along dressed to the absolute nines. As one of our group said, she wants to come back and open a boot shop because knee-high patent leather boots and VERY sharp business suits are the uniform dejur’ for Mongolian professional women.
- Most men wear business suits and those not in business attire are dressed just as sharply as their female counterparts.
- I seen VERY little litter and virtually no tagging and graffiti.
- And finally, here’s something that I think speaks volumes about their culture. The traffic is absolutely terrible and in many areas cars are double and triple parked three deep. We joked that if you were the car on the inside you’d be stuck until the others left but our guide said it’s not a problem because if you block someone in you leave your cell number on your windshield and it’s understood you’ll come back and move your car if it’s necessary.

Take care!

The Co-operative Spirit

2010-10-19T06:46:00.000-07:00

Greetings from Ulaanbaatar, the capital city of Mongolia!

The collapse of the Soviet empire hasn’t been kind to Mongolia. Prior to the collapse of communism and the restructuring of the USSR (AKA the complete pull out from all their satellite states) Mongolia was left to its own means and had to quickly adapt. Unfortunately what resulted was far more than a few growing pains. You can’t simply convert overnight from a totalitarian regime, one in which the State provides for, controls and is involved with every aspect of your life, to a market economy and your own unique version of democracy. The job they’ve done is incredible but along the way there’s been corruption, grinding poverty, soaring unemployment and steady deterioration of infrastructure. But through all this the Mongolian people have endured. With stoic perseverance and grim determination they’re moved on.

Next to crumbling monolithic soviet era apartment blocks and the severe, imposing facades of numerous government buildings you’ll also find new hotels, cranes dotting the skyline and construction literally everywhere. And between these imposing buildings you’ll find shops. Shops of every kind and every description – many of them the retail outlets for various co-op’s. Fleece co-ops, wool co-ops, handi-craft co-ops and everything in between. Co-ops made up of rural nomadic herders, established co-ops for the manufacturing and service sector and recently since 1990, financial co-ops operating as small, grass-roots credit unions providing loans a deposit services to the poor and disenfranchised that can’t otherwise get these services from the many commercial banks that can now dot the landscape.

The co-operative movement is very much alive in Mongolia. I don’t say alive and well, because it’s struggling but it’s still here and has no intention of folding camp anytime soon.

The co-operative movement in Mongolia goes back to the 30’s, albeit in a different form, when it was embraced by socialist thinking and culture as a way to bring prosperity to the collective. In the 90’s however the Soviet Union finally pulled out and a new fledgling democracy looked to co-operatives as an established model and encouraged and supported the movement in its efforts to bring a capitalism to the masses. It was this same time and circumstance that allowed the creation of the first financial co-ops or what we would know as credit unions.

But.........as often is the case, the best of intentions doesn’t necessarily bring the results one would wish. By 1995 most imports from Russia ceased, food was rationed, and many businesses failed, including a lot of co-ops. Things looked good for a while, especially for credit unions, but then really fell off the rails in 2005. Through apparent mismanagement, liquidity issues, and what more than a few suspect was corruption at several levels more than 30 credit unions failed. Thousands of members lost millions of dollars and the people looked to the government for solutions and there were demonstrations in the streets. And since then things haven’t been much easier. A recent severe winter killed much of the nomadic herder’s livestock and unemployment and low wages plague the economy. Add to this the economic meltdown that effected all of us but none more so than the developing world, and it’s easy to understand that Mongolia has had more than its fair share of problems.

Through all of this however there have been dedicated Mongolian’s working hard in the background to wrestle a future for themselves from the current situation - and during the past two days I’ve had the incredible privilege and honour of working with a few of these people. One such person is the Executive Director of the Mongolian National Cooperative Association. A trained nuclear physicist that now works in the co-operative sector with few resources in a small out of the way office in one more non-descript government office. But what she and her staff lack in resources they more than make up with heart and desire. And between her and the others I’ve met that are just as dedicated and just as committed I know Mongolia has a bright future indeed.

And I’m humbled to be able to play whatever small part in this transformation that I can.

Notes from the Road

2010-10-16T19:19:00.000-07:00

I thought I’d post a few observations and feelings from the road while they’re still fresh.

First, the first leg of the trip wasn’t as gruelling as I thought. We left at 1:30 in the morning, which is bad enough on its own but all things being equal it wasn’t horrible. Yes it’s long but the entire trip is made during the “night” because we flew west to east. Don’t ask me why but this seems to make it easier. It seems to help convince your internal clock that’s OK to sleep vs. if it was bright and sunny outside. The plane was full but the seat room was OK and here are my first observations of Koreans. And yes, I know my exposure is limited and one plane ride does not a full analysis make but ..........from my experience Koreans are polite, professional and VERY well presented. Why is it that we as North Americans have managed to adopt schlepping in our casual clothes as the uniform du jur’ for travel? I know it’s comfortable – and probably extremely pragmatic – but trust me, when you’re surrounded by an entire plane load of families and business people all dressed to the nines you very quickly feel like a fish out of water.

Now Korean Airlines itself – WOW!!! PLEASE Air Canada, send your senior staff to whatever school Korean Airlines sends their staff to. Very polite, VERY professional, lots of them and EXTREMELY well organized. We boarded around 1:00 and left at 1:30. It was a full plane with a three-three-three configuration and it was completely full. There was a sense of calm though, and loading was accomplished quickly and efficiently.

A half hour into the air we were served a breakfast reminiscent of plane travel in the Seventies: warm meals, real linen, small but still stainless steel utensils rather than a plastic spoon and attentive service followed by a warm towel and accompanied by free non-stop wine or beer. Korea – gotta love it!

This whole experience was continued in the Soul Airport. Rather than an airport full of overweight, poorly dressed workers wandering aimlessly throughout the concourse with nothing but a poor attitude to offer a wayward traveller the Soul Airport is staffed by a professional, well dressed and extremely efficient staff that approach their jobs with a sense of professionalism and pride – something long to lacking in North America. The airport is huge but well laid out and spotlessly clean and the whole experience is somehow a refreshing change.

As I type this I’m waiting for the next leg of our journey; the flight from Soul to Ulaanbaatar which is operated by the Mongolian national airline.......hmmm....only time will tell

To Be or Not to Be (Canadian) Eh?

2010-10-14T03:16:00.000-07:00

Wow, what a day makes.
I came into this experience secure in my knowledge and belief - and more than a little smug - that as a Canadian I was different. I was one more of those multitude of Canadian travellers with my back pack and luggage adorned with Canadian flags so as not to be mistaken for our neighbours to the south. Was I a little self-centred? You bet. And naive and ill-informed too because apparently, not everyone is quite so willing to accept us with open arms - and Mongolia definitely falls into this camp.

I'm in Ottawa taking pre-departure Intercultural Training through CIDA and Foreign Affairs Canada and as part of this they brought in a woman from Mongolia to speak to us about various cultural differences we might face and to give us some background and insight in to the country and it's history. It was an amazing experience to hear-first hand what I've only read about up until now but some of what she spoke about was definitely NOT in the Lonely Planet guide I thought of as the definitive resource up until now.

I won't get into a geo-political discussion of all that she spoke about - and it must be acknowledged that hers is only one opinion that I've heard at this point - but a couple of things really hit home, not the least of which was the fact that as Canadians we might be received with less than open arms. It turns out that Canada has had fairly strained relations with Mongolia. We were the last G8 nation to open an embassy, which the Mongolians took as an insult and we have no "official" presence in the region, unlike our neighbours to the south who are helping with all kinds of development projects. But here's the real kicker.....the main bone of contention is our involvement in the Mongolian mining industry. It seems we're the biggest player on the ground and we're involved in several large gold mining projects but from the average Mongolians perspective it anything but an equal partnership. I have no idea if it's an accurate assessment or not but our liaison claims we're seen as an intruder that is only there to take and isn't giving back. What really stung is this is a phrase I've used myself to describe others, here and abroad, and I don't like it. To hear someone describe Canadians this way was a real eye opener.

Toto, we're definitely NOT in Kansas anymore. From here on out things might get interesting.

But, all this apprehension aside, sometimes you meet people so inspiring, so amazing, that you just have to share it. Last night was just such an occasion. I met a member of our team that was part of a team that hiked to the top of Mt. Kilimanjaro as a fund raiser for African aid through the Canadian Co-operative Association. Through their efforts they were able to raise more than $60,000 which the Association will use to fight poverty in the region though co-operative development. In his words, they wanted to reach the summit so they could light a torch for all to see; and with that light they wanted to show people there was hope where there had only been despair, there was love where there had only been hate and there was dignity where there had only been oppression.

Sometimes, you find inspiration in the least likely places..........

Until later
Dale

Mongolian Bound (Almost)

2010-10-11T07:30:00.000-07:00

Well, here it is - October 11th. After a lot of prep and study I'll be leaving on my trip tomorrow morning. I fly out of Penticton at 6:00 tomorrow morning for a short one-hour commuter flight to Vancouver and from there it's a 2 1/2 hour layover and then a five-hour flight to Ottawa.

I have to spend three days in Ottawa taking pre-deployment training and orientation through CIDA's (Canadian International Development Agency) educational division. The training focuses on the nuts and bolts of Mongolia itself as well as the cultural and psychological issues surrounding full immersion in a foreign culture.

After our training ends on Friday we leave that evening for Toronto to start the journey to Ulaanbaatar via Soul Korea.

It's going to be interesting. During the interview process way back when I applied, the interviewers spent a lot of time discussing the rigours of rural international travel; rough roads, overland travel, sparse accommodations, different sights and sounds etc. I figured what the heck, if I can ride a chicken bus in Guatemala how hard can it be? Once I was picked for the team they followed this up even further with discussions on the limited diet and and all the other difficulties associated with rural Mongolian living - and you know what? I was stoked! I couldn't wait! I love adventure and travel and new cultures and meeting new people and I figured this was right up my alley!

But......since then we've received our assignments. I don't want to suggest it'll be some kind of cake walk because it won't. It'll be long days working with our Mongolian counterparts to assist them and their organizations in anyway we can. But it doesn't look like it's going to have quite the deprivation and hardship that was originally indicated. Some of the other team members hit the ground and immediately start overland travel by bus or train to their rural assignments. My partner and I however, will spend the whole two weeks staying at the equivalent of the Mongolian Holiday Inn. We'll travel during the day to our various credit union locations but each evening it'll be a hot shower, clean sheets and a good wi-fi connection (I hope)

But.....it's still a foreign culture, a trip half-way around the world and an opportunity to learn from others while I do my best to pass on some of the lessons we've learned in the credit union system here at home. And if I don't get an opportunity to try fermented mare's milk maybe it just wasn't meant to be :-)

I'll post updates and pictures whenever I have the opportunity - assuming the wi-fi connection allows it - and I'll stay in touch by Skype with friends and family. Hmmmmmmm......maybe the Holiday Inn isn't so bad after all

Cheers!

WooHoo! New Addition to the Family

2010-10-04T19:52:00.000-07:00

I was too tired to post anything at the time but last week I did a 2,000 klm, three-day ride to Boise ID. I won't bore you with the usual drivvle about fantastic roads, great scenery and wonderfull weather - it had all three :-) - but I will share with you the reason for said ride. I rode down to look at a new (to me) bike. I'm now the proud owner of a mint condition 2005 Kawaskai Concours. It's a purpose built two-up sport touring road rocket. It's in great shape, has low miles and LOTS of expensive after market goodies. That's not to say I'm not going to buy and install even more - I'm already searching the net for engine guards, highway pegs and driving lights - but Shhhhhhh, don't tell Rosi!

What is love?

2010-08-29T17:34:00.001-07:00

Love is so hard to define......

I could say it it's the softly spoken phrase, "hey, should we go for a ride today?"
Or ......the words, "let's ride Highway 33 to Rock Creek".......even though there was obviously a storm brewing on the horizon.

But love, true love,.......is a look of grim determination and the words , hell no, let's continue on.....even though the temperature dropped to less than 10 degrees at the summit and the cold pouring rain was more reminiscent of November than late August. So, after changing from mesh gear to rainproof over pants, and zipping shut any open vents, we completed a 250 klm/five-hour ride from Summerland, through to Beaverdell and Rock Creek, and back to Summerland.

Or.......... I could say true love, real lasting love, is that most magical of phrases....those quiet words spoken only in the darkest hour - never at five in the afternoon in stark daylight (but hey, we were freezing!) - with a twinkle in the eye and a glass of red wine in hand......"hey, want to join me in the hot tub?"......

Hmmmmmm.....maybe love isn't so hard to define afterall.

2010-08-27T16:40:00.000-07:00

A few pictures.........

2010-08-27T16:26:00.001-07:00

A final thought "Distance is an Illusion"

2010-08-23T20:40:00.000-07:00

I can't take credit for saying it because it was part of the presentation from the guy that rode around the world....."distance is just an illusion." When he said it I don't think I fully understood what he was trying to say and even if I did, what it means to him might different for the next person. For me, it all came together this afternoon somewhere between the Oregon border and here. A beautiful stretch of road where the mind can wander and the world somehow comes into perspective.

For me it means understanding here and there, and then and now.

Far too many of us believe "there" is somewhere in the distance. It's the place we want to visit but can't or won't, or some far off land only talked about in the news or around the water cooler. And like the story of sour grapes, very soon "there" must be different. It's not like "here" so it can't be as good. Sometime becomes maybe and often morphs into never. Why would we want to leave "here" when "there" represents the unknown: something different? Something to be feared and avoided?

But whether it's five feet down the road, five blocks across town or the other side of the world, wherever you stop is 'here" and whenever you stop is "now" There is no there, only here and only now. A linear path where each point on the line is yours.

Your path, your place and your time.

And once you embrace this - truly understand it - then the world is yours. You belong. This is my planet, my place, my time. Cultures may be different but we’re all pretty much the same. We want a roof over our head, three squares a day and what’s best for our children. We’re all citizens of the same world.

But with understanding comes responsibility. Things don’t just happen “there” anymore - they happen “here” even if it’s a here that you haven’t yet visited. Whether it’s factory farming in the US or the privatization of water in Bolivia - this is your place and you matter.

Travelers know: distance is an illusion - and like the best slight of hand, it’s only a trick. My challenge to you; pull back the curtain and expose the truth. Experience your own here and now - because "there" should be just a little less frightening.

Cheers!

Day 10, 11 & 12 - Homeward bound.

2010-08-23T19:41:00.000-07:00

I’m afraid all good things must come to an end. We got up at the crack of a cold wet dawn yesterday and hit the road for home. And unfortunately living on Vancouver Island once again managed to influence our plans. I know it all too well because I was once there myself. You don’t want to but you can’t help factoring in the Ferry schedule into your plans.

We originally planned on a much more leisurely three-day ride back with short days and afternoons around the pool. The idea was we’d ride together yesterday and today and then part company in the morning (tomorrow) and each make our final push for home. I’m afraid work and family commitments put too pressure on Brad and Kevan though, and they decided to push for home a day early. Brad, to have a much deserved day off before going back to work and Kevan’s been gone almost two weeks when Nakusp is factored in, and he wanted to get home as early as possible. So we rode from Petrolia to Cottage Grove yesterday. It was only 535 klm but after 7 days on the road and too many nights sleeping on the ground that’s all I could accomplish. I was whipped. I actually wanted to quit an hour earlier because I was starting to “zone out” a bit but they wanted to carry on and I didn’t want to be left behind quite that soon so we carried on for another hour. It worked out well. They compromised by stopping earlier than they wanted and we eventually called it a day in Cottage Grove where we enjoyed a soak in the hot tub and swim in the pool. Then the three of us had dinner, swapped pictures on our laptops and we were all in bed and asleep by 9:30.

Today, Brad and Kevan are making a push for the Black Ball Ferry at Port Angeles. It’s only 575n klm so it’s very feasible and should put them into Port Angeles in the early afternoon. Quite likely as I’m typing this they’re both already home. I’m afraid I couldn’t do the same however. It’s 967 klm for me. I arrived in Wenatchee at 3:30, which was nine hours and 672 klm. I seriously debated taking a short power nap in a park and pressing on. It’s only another 300 klm /four hours but if I took off again at four that would mean pulling in at 8:00 and 14 hour day is just silly.- plus it’s not safe. I could have done it on day one or two but not day 11.

So discretion played the better part of valour and I called it a day here in Wenatchee. I’ll get a good nights sleep and hit the road early in the morning and should be home by the time Rosi is home from work at 11:00.

For those so inclined if you check back in a couple days and I’ll post a few pictures when I have a better internet connection.

And finally - a few statistics

Days on the road - 12days/11 nights
Total Mileage - 5,142 klm
Nights in a hotel - 4
Nights camping - 7
Close encounters with a deer - 1 (it was Kevan and it was VERY close!)

Day 7, 8 & 9 Eureka CA and Petrolia CA

2010-08-23T19:33:00.000-07:00

Redding to Eureka to Petrolia

Day 7
The ride to Eureka was great. We left Redding around 7:00 because we needed to get an early start so I could stop at 8:30 to call in to a conference call for a project I’m working on. It was decidedly brisk in the morning - around 10 - and became even cooler as we rode through the mountains on the way to the coast. There was light fog in places but as the morning wore on the fog burned off and it was another fantastic California morning. Great roads, thick forests, and sweeping vistas of valleys and mountains - I know I’m starting to sound like a broken record but it was pretty amazing. We arrived into Eureka around 12:00, found a nice hotel and met Kevan at the motorcycle shop around 1:00.

Eureka is a small city/large town on the coast and is definitely down on its luck. There was an undercurrent of despair in the air and lots of boarded up businesses - with the prevailing business venture leaning toward the pawn shop variety. Kind of a cross between Vancouver's downtown east side and Parksville on Vancouver Island. It was good to have a full afternoon off the bikes though. We had a great swim in the hotel pool, caught up on some laundry, drank a few cervesa's and had a wild night on the town - that is until we all turned in 10:30, lest we turn into pumpkins.

Day 8
We picked up my bike at the shop as soon as it opened and then rode the 1 ½ hours into Petrolia and it was VERY cold at first. When we left at 9:00 there was thick fog, light misty rain and it was somewhere around 10 degrees - What the heck?! It was more like Victoria or Nanaimo in February than what we thought we’d find in California but any ride is a good ride so it was all good. It was foggy for the first hour but then things got REALLY interesting. At first the highway hugged the ocean but it then it ran inland for a bit before turning off at Fernwood for Petrolia. At that point it gets pretty amazing (sorry - I know, amazing again) for a while. After the turnoff the road climbs sharply and we spent 40 minutes on one of the craziest, most scenic drives I’ve been on in a very long while. And don’t take my word for it - ask Kevan and Brad. We climbed steep - very steep and very sharp - switchbacks through mountains that ranged from thick wet rain forests to open grassland hills similar to Rock Creek but just with much steeper terrain, and alternated though thick cold blowing fog and bright sunshine. We eventually made our way to the other side and dropped down another very steep and sharp series of switchbacks that dropped us to a wide shoreline of rangeland, small dunes and rocky, craggy shoreline - and a working cattle ranch complete with range cows. It was surreal. Imaging breaking over the dunes at Tofino and being faced with a large herd of cattle - I don’t know why but it felt a little weird. We climbed back up the other side and did the whole thing over again until eventually being spit out in the small (AKA one general store and the Grange Hall) town of Petrolia. Think Cheesaw except with thicker, lusher forest and you’ll have the right idea.

Day 9

We arrived yesterday afternoon to blinding sunshine and a beautiful mountain setting. We got signed in, set up our tents and basically hung out until the presentations started in the evening. For those of you that don’t know, Horizons Unlimited is a website and loose affiliation of adventure motorcycle travelers from around the world and they hold a doz or so rallies each year in different countries. I won’t go into to it too much here but if you’re interested check it out at www.horizonsunlimited.com. The emphasis is on travel, not the means and it’s pretty humbling to sit through a slide show presentation of a couples round-the-world trip on a motorcycle when the average age of the traveler is well into their fifties or sixties and often beyond. There were ~ 50 or so attendees from all walks of life and all ages but the demographic definitely leaned to the “grey power” side of things

Saturday was a full day of presentations and tech clinics with the only draw back being that the day started cold and wet - thank you California sea air! - and stayed cool well into the late afternoon. The highlight had to be the hour and half roadside repair tech clinic put on by Kevan. He did an incredible job and the crowd really appreciated it. KUDOS BUFF!

The evenings presenters included a guy from silicon valley that packed it in early to travel the world, a women who rode her motorcycle through China - twice! - and another women traveling the world in a surplus police van with her two dogs. The final keynote speaker (keynote implies something fancy though, so please bear in mind we were all in jeans and the meeting was held in the Grange Hall ) was a guy from Turkey that took a six month leave and traveled the word on his Suzuki Vstrom. All pretty heady stuff for a closet adventurer like myself.

All in all a great day and a great event - well worth the price of admission :-)

Day 6 - California

2010-08-20T07:24:00.000-07:00

Greetings from Redding California!

I won’t get all cheesy and say it was nirvana again but it was a really, really good day of riding! We spent the night in a very nice river-front park in Homedale Idaho and took advantage of the amenities to have a leisurly coffee and shower etc before hitting the road around 8:00 Central time. Within the first hour we crossed into Oregon and the next few hours were great. Very nice scenery, low hills, sweeping curves and little traffic. It was also like Idaho for a while, in that there was lots of agriculture with farms and huge ground crops. Eventually though, we hit the part of Oregon that more resembles Nevada than anything else. Pretty much miles and miles of miles and miles. Straight stretches of 15 klm or more, desert landscape and that disconcerting feeling that if one were to break down all they would find is your dried up bones somewhere along the side of the road.

Bike don’t fail me now!

The amazing thing about a trip like this though is how much ground you can cover and how much you can see along the way. By mid afternoon we crossed into California and started to see evergreen forests and Mt Shasta in the distance.

We also put on more miles than we planned. It’s all well and good to say you’re going to call it an early day but if the magic number of klm turns out to be the middle of nowhere you might as well keep going…..and so on and so on…..until eventually you hit 800 klm and 11 hours - like today - but it’s all part of the game!

Tomorrow we’re detouring to Eureka California because I have to install a new chain. I didn’t think I’d need to until I finished the trip but it’s stretching quite a bit and I can’t take up any more slack by adjusting the tension. It doesn’t owe me anything though. The average for a chain is 25,000 - 40,000 and I’m now at 32,000 and I push my bike hard. Just because the bike is capable of what I ask of it doesn’t mean it’s designed for it. I’m afraid Mr Suzuki didn’t think anyone would be crazy enough to ride for 800 klm at a stretch - at an average of 140 kph- for days on end!

Day Five - Idaho

2010-08-17T17:54:00.000-07:00

Day Five - Idaho

Today was just one of those good days. Nothing extraordinary, but nothing untoward - just a good day of riding. It was a little chilly when we left around 7:45 but by
10:OO it was warm enough to peel off most of our wind breaker layers and by 11:00 it was good and hot. We stopped for an hour along the way to tour the Craters of the Moon National Monument, which was VERY cool (I’m sorry, but the Americans do this kind of thing really well) and then we continued on one of Idaho’s secondary highways to Boise. There was very little traffic and we were able to make some good time. AKA VERY spirited riding! There was only one short bit of excitement when we decided we didn’t need gas when we should have filled up and then didn’t see a gas station for WAY longer than we thought. We were both on fumes when we finally pulled into a station. Our bikes have 22 litre tanks and we both took just over 21 litres so we didn’t have much left.

We also ran into some heavy traffic because at the last minute we decided to pop onto the Interstate which we thought would be quicker - not! There was an accident and it was rush hours o what should have been 45 minutes turned into three hours. Oh well, because of the spontaneity we ended up here in Homedale at a beautiful small campground on the shore of the Snake River. It’s one of the prettiest spots I’ve seen for camping in along time. Good thing too - it was 97 in the shade when we got here and we didn’t have a lot of energy to go much further.

Today’s mileage - 600 klm

A good day!

Cheers

Day Four - Yellowstone

2010-08-17T17:43:00.000-07:00

It’s been a VERY long day and I’m exhausted so this will be brief…but that’s NOT a reflection of the day we spent in Yellowstone. In a word - so often repeated, sorry - it was AMAZING.

First, Yellowstone is HUGE! We spent the whole day touring the park - an eleven hour day in total - and we covered approx 300 klm but we barely scratched the surface. We saw all the highlights, though: Old Faithful, LOTS of other geysers and various hot springs, some small and some the size of football fields, huge herds of Bison, a herd of Elk, and a moose. The Bison were the high point though. We saw a huge herd from a distance - easily in the thousands - but a smaller herd crossed the road right in front of us - literally five feet away. It was VERY cool but more than a little frightening since they easily outweighed our bikes two-to-one.

Yellowstone has pretty much every different type of topography you can imagine. High mountain passes (we crossed the continental divide three times, ranging from 8,200 - 8,700 feet.) mountains, huge valley’s, alpine meadow and more lush forest than you can shake a stick at. And the weather was all over the map!
Last night was cold, very cold! It was only two degrees this morning when we got up but during the day we hit temperatures in the 30’s and everything in between. And when we left the park this evening for our run to Idaho we hit a huge rain storm with lightening and hail!

There was only one down side to the whole experience. Yellowstone is one of America’s most popular parks - which is it’s Achilles Heel. It wasn’t too bad in the morning but by mid-afternoon it was bumper-to-bumper. I can’t even begin to imagine what it’s like on a busy long week-end. And the crowds at some of the attractions were beyond belief. I hate crowds so I’m afraid it really took away from the experience at the end but such is life.

We left the park around 6:00 and made a short run into Idaho just to leave the crowds behind. It was that bad. By the time we left the park we didn’t even want to stay in West Yellowstone - just too much going on and WAY too touristy. So here we are in Ashton Idaho, population ~500. Because we rode through a short but really bad rain and hail storm to get here there’s no camping tonight!

Tomorrow the journey continues…..

Day 3

2010-08-16T20:34:00.000-07:00

Note to anyone reading this, please be understanding. My laptop has taken a beating and a few of the keys aren’t working :- ) If I say I’m having a rate time, you’ll have to use your imagination. Luckily spell check catches it most of the time.

So here we are, greetings from West Yellowstone Montana - the gateway to Yellowstone National Park and Wyoming USA.

And you guessed it, I spoke to soon - the gods smiled, the stars aligned and if anything, the roads only became better. We left Lowell and followed the L&C Byway for another 100 klm or so. It was cold and foggy at first but VERY beautiful - stunning would be an understatement. The road hugged the shore of a quiet river on one side and towering mountains on the other, and twisted and turned it’s way to perfection. At the end of the river we climbed to > 7,200 and we crested the LoLo Pass, where we stopped for a hearty breakfast at a great fishing/hunting lodge in the heart of the forest.

From there we crossed into Montana which was VERY cool in it’s own right, if for no other reason than the speed limit increases to 75 mph - Buenos!

Montana is Big Sky Country and it comes by the slogan honestly. Without exaggerating, some of the scenery is spectacular! Beautiful mountain vistas and wide open spaces - but without the desolation of rural Nevada (but then, isn’t all of Nevada rural? ) The road was amazing! At one point we dropped out of a high mountain pass into a wide valley bottom with rolling hills and HUGE cattle ranches as far as the eye could see. Montana is lakes, rivers and ranches - and all of it’s simply amazing. Well worth the price of admission!

So here we are, a KOA campsite that’s so big it’s like a small town unto itself. Kids everywhere but clean showers, an on-site cafeteria and electricity at the tent sites. It’s not our regular thing but when you show up with no reservations at the main gate of the most popular park in America, you soon learn to compromise
:- )

Yesterday (Day Three) was 715 klm of great riding, great company and new experiences. It’s now 6:00am on Monday and as I type this there’s a god awful roar in the background - really loud and closer than I’d like! - that I assume is Moose or Elk and last night around 3:00 there were wolves howling in the distance. And all this on top of the dire warnings throughout the park about bears. There’s a women next to us that is sleeping in her car because a bear walked right up to her tent the night before. Hmmmmm maybe paying the extra 50 for a cabin wouldn’t be such a bad idea !

That’s it for now - today we’re off to Yellowstone!
Cheers

Day 1 & 2

2010-08-16T20:32:00.000-07:00

Day One - Two
Summerland - Wenatchee - Three Rivers Campground, Lowell ID

Every time I go on a trip or an adventure I look for that one magic moment. That one time and place where everything comes together; the stars align and for one fleeting moment it’s perfection. A time and place to be locked away in your memory forever; to be later brought out of that closet you keep buried in the far recesses of your mind to remind you that it wasn’t a dream and yes, these things really happened.

But what if you find this place on day one of what’s still to be a twelve day adventure? Is it real? Is it true? Do you lock it away - and if you do, does that somehow take up space that should be used at a later date just in case you’re wrong?

I don’t know the answer but I do know this - if there’s a better stretch of road still to come on this journey it’ll have to be something only the gods can design for a motorcyclist to be able compete with the Lewis and Clarke Scenic Byway of Northern Idaho.

I left Summerland yesterday and rode for approx 300 klm to join Brad in Wenatchee WA. It was a typical hot Okanagan summer day and uneventful - which isn’t necessarily a bad thing sometimes. It ranged from hot to absolutely stink’n hot by the time I arrived but nothing I couldn’t handle and nothing out of the ordinary. We tend to complain these days when it gets over 35 but we have to remind ourselves that it’s summer in the Okanagan and it’s supposed to be hot; suck it up butter cup!

The first half of today was more of the same. It was pleasant enough when we rolled out of the parking lot at 7:45 but by 10:00 the temperatures started to climb. At one point we went through a small town in south east Washington and a sidewalk sign said it was 94F. And speaking of which, what’s with the “Evergreen State”? I’m guessing the guy that thought up that motto didn’t ride through the part of Washington I was in today. It’s more like eastern Oregon: bare ass prairie, wheat fields, dust storms, LOT’s of wind and generally miles and miles of miles and miles.

But then something magical happens; you cross into Idaho. If it’s possible to draw a line in the ground that matches a line on a map this is it. The road climbs, the temperature drops and for over 100 klm the road hugs a beautiful river. Wheat fields give way to lush green pine forest, blinding sunshine changes to sun dappled shade and for those of us so inclined, the riding takes on a spirited nature. OK - spirited might also be read as WooHOO, we’re flying now! - but it was heaven!

So here we are, a nice family run campground on the shore of a meandering river. In the morning we climb to > 7,200 feet as we cross the LoLo pass and cross into Montana.

Day One - 300 klm
Day Two (today) - 542 klm (It felt like a lot more though because of the heat!)

Cheers

Day Three

Note to anyone reading this, please be understanding. My laptop has taken a beating and a few of the keys aren’t working :- ) If I say I’m having a rate time, you’ll have to use your imagination. Luckily spell check catches it most of the time.

So here we are, greetings from West Yellowstone Montana - the gateway to Yellowstone National Park and Wyoming USA.

And you guessed it, I spoke to soon - the gods smiled, the stars aligned and if anything, the roads only became better. We left Lowell and followed the L&C Byway for another 100 klm or so. It was cold and foggy at first but VERY beautiful - stunning would be an understatement. . The road hugged the shore of a quiet river on one side and towering mountains on the other, and twisted and turned it’s way to perfection. At the end of the river we climbed to > 7,200 and we crested the LoLo Pass, where we stopped for a hearty breakfast at a great fishing/hunting lodge in the heart of the forest.

From there we crossed into Montana which was VERY cool in it’s own right, if for no other reason than the speed limit increases to 75 mph - Buenos!

Montana is Big Sky Country and it comes by the slogan honestly. Without exaggerating, some of the scenery is spectacular! Beautiful mountain vistas and wide open spaces - but without the desolation of rural Nevada (but then, isn’t all of Nevada rural? ) The road was amazing! At one point we dropped out of a high mountain pass into a wide valley bottom with rolling hills and HUGE cattle ranches as far as the eye could see. Montana is lakes, rivers and ranches - and all of it’s simply amazing. Well worth the price of admission!

So here we are, a KOA campsite that’s so big it’s like a small town unto itself. Kids everywhere but clean showers, an on-site cafeteria and electricity at the tent sites. It’s not our regular thing but when you show up with no reservations at the main gate of the most popular park in America, you soon learn to compromise
:- )

Same ol same ol

2010-08-01T08:40:00.000-07:00

Not much new to report I'm afraid........
except of course, the freak'n AWESOME gift my wife gave me for my birthday!!
(I turned fifty four months ago but we were too busy for any kind of celebration at the time so instead, Rosi organized a party two weeks ago.) And my wife, bless her soul, saw something in a magazine almost five years ago that was advertised as the perfect "guy" gift; a half-day flight school experience at Fighter Combat International. http://www.fightercombat.com/air-combat/advanced-air-combat-mission/

It's a half-day experience that includes ground school, an hour in the air and a debriefing after - and the best part? I get to actually fly mock combat missions against other students! I get to fly! How cool is that!

But that's still a few months away. In the interim I'm working full-time on a project for a Toronto education company that will keep me busy through to September. It's not all work though: in less than two weeks I finally get to leave on the road trip I've been planning with Brad since we got back from Phoenix. On Friday, Aug 13th (yikes!) I'm meeting Brad in Wenatchee and from there we're heading out on a 12-day road trip that should take us in a big clock-wise circle through Yellowstone and then Utah, Nevada and Northern California. I'm giving a presentation at the Horizon's meeting in Petrollia California and then we're riding back home via the Oregon and Washington coasts on the Pacific Coast Highway.

I've got all my gear ready and most of the prep is done so not much to report from that perspective. I'll be taking my laptop so I can update the blog and download a few pictures along the way - plus Brad gave me a new helmet cam so I can add a few video clips as well.

That's it for now - more to follow once I hit the road in less than two weeks!
Cheers

Exciting Update

2010-06-11T21:07:00.000-07:00

Hola Mi Amigos Y Mi Familia
I can't believe it - it's been > two months since my last update! Part of the reason is we've just been so freak'n busy.

Since getting back at Easter I've accepted a large government contract and another contract with a company in Toronto, both to write curriculum for text books. One is an education program the government is mandating for mortgage brokers wanting to renew their licenses and the other is a rewrite of a training program for loans officers at credit unions nationally. The only down side is this is starting to look an awful lot like work! Instead of leisurely spending my summer riding my motorcycle I'll be working full time right through until the end of September. Oh well, it beats the heck out of the alternative.

On the personal side we debated for the last year or so about selling our home and buying someplace newer and larger. Well, after months of debate and consternation we decided to stay. We love the area and we want to start thinking seriously about buying a place in Mexico so it doesn't make sense to take on a mortgage at this point. But that doesn't mean the status quo. No, we decided if we're going to stay we'd do a lot of reno's and updates we should have thought of earlier. I'm not posting any pictures here because you've all been through it yourself so you know - it's a LOT of work. It's been pretty much all encompassing for the last six weeks and I figure we have another month to go, but it'll look great when it's finally done.

But here's the news I'm most excited about. Credit unions in Canada are actually financial co-operatives, even though a lot have forgotten their roots. As co-operatives, their true mandate is helping their memberships by providing services they couldn't otherwise get from traditional banks. In Canada, the umbrella organization for co-operatives is the Canadian Co-operative Association, whose mandate, aside from being the trade organization for co-operatives, is fighting third-world poverty through the co-operative movement worldwide.

As part of this mandate the Association recruits credit union senior management from Canada to travel to third world countries to assist credit unions there with things like governance, management and micro-finance projects. One of these projects is in Mongolia and I've been accepted into the program. I'll be travelling to Mongolia for three weeks this October, to assist credit unions there get their programs up and running. It all boils down to giving them a hand up, not a hand out and I'm really pleased and excited about the opportunity to be part of the program. I go over this year and again for three weeks next year and in between I'll have speaking engagements and will continue to work with my Mongolian counterparts via webinars and virtual classrooms.

Other than that it's pretty much been same ol same ol - although, I'm afraid there hasn't been much riding. That will have to wait until I ride to California with Brad for the Horizons rally. We're going to ride for ten days and swing south east to Yellowstone and then west to California before heading up the Pacific Coast Highway to finish the trip. And for that, I'm MOST definitely excited.

Cheers!

You talk'n to me?

2010-04-05T05:16:00.000-07:00

Yesterday I looked the motorcycle gods right in the eye, struck an insolent pose, and snarled, "you talk'n to me? That's right, me - the go anywhere/anytime motorcycle king!"

Badges? We don't need no stink'n badges! Or, in this case, a wimpy U-Haul truck to avoid a few mountain passes. We got up early yesterday to a hard cold overcast sky but no fresh snow and bare roads. It was minus 7 when we rolled out VERY carefully at 7:30 and the first three hours were some of the most exciting, most beautiful but coldest riding either of us have ever done. We took our time and went slow as we climbed over two high passes with bare windswept roads all the way. Slowing down also really increases your gas mileage which is a VERY good thing when the gas stations at both the way points along the way were closed because of it being Easter Sunday! Anyway, after we dropped down out of the highest mountains it was some great riding through the rest of northern Nevada, a brief foray into Idaho and then much of eastern Oregon.

One final note; in the ongoing battle between gas pumps and windshields the gas pump won round one. I put my side stand down at a VERY remote out of the way, one-pump station, and didn't realize how soft the gravel was. The bike fell to the left and the windshield gave way well before the gas pump. Grrrr....

Oh well, a lesson learned.

We arrived here in Kennewick at ~ 5:30 which means it was a ten-hour/800klm day. We're tired but happy, and wouldn't change anything at all. (OK, maybe I wouldn't mind a little warmer but hey, didn't I hear somewhere.....if it was easy, everyone would do it!)

500 klm and 6 hours of riding to go.......

Just one freak'n time is all I ask

2010-04-03T21:26:00.001-07:00

As the old saying goes, if it was easy everyone would do it. Well, just once, just one freak'n time, I'd like it to be easy!

That's not to say it hasn't been fun - it has - great in fact - but easy? No.

Today was 750 hard klm under a cold slate gray sky, with gusty winds and a snow line MUCH lower than expected for early April. We rode through much of northern Nevada, which, by the way, gives a whole new meaning to depressed, despair and desolate. Some of what we saw would make for a great Stephen King novel except it's probably too desolate for even him. Las Vegas may be the play ground for the rich and famous but the rest of Nevada is decidedly for the down and out. There’s something about seeing someone down on their luck but still grimly clinging to the handle of a one-armed bandit in a roadside standalone casino, while the rest of the world is sitting down to breakfast, that makes you wonder if all the handwringers that claim gambling is the devils work may just be right after all. I don’t know the answer but I can tell you that it’s more than a little sad and a real eye opener.

As for the ride - we’re not sure. The sky closed in as we arrived here in Winnemucca and the temperature has dropped. As I type this the snow is falling pretty heavy and it’s only guess whether or not the passes will be open tomorrow. If the road is passable but just not good enough for a motorcycle we’ll probably have to go to plan B which is to rent a U-Haul and carry on.

More to follow….

On the road again........

2010-04-02T21:41:00.000-07:00

Greetings from Indian Springs Nv. Today was a great day. A little cold at times but nothing too serious and nothing that we couldn't bundle up to compensate for. We did about 650klm in total and the only thing that held us back from more is how long it took to drive over Hoover Dam. Every family on spring vacation within 1,000 miles must have been there because it was absolutely wall-to-wall people and a loooooong snake of cars slowly making their way across the dam. It took us a good hour and a half to go from one side to the other but after that it was smooth sailing again.
No pictures, though. I'm too tired and the Internet connection is too slow.

Maybe tomorrow

Cheers
Dale

Here we go again!

2010-03-31T12:12:00.000-07:00

Just a quick update.

Since coming home things have been VERY hectic. I've been out and back to Winnipeg twice to facilitate courses and I facilitated a webinar series over five days at home. And I'm now in Vancouver teaching another two-day course.

To add to that, Rosi and I have been debating for over a year about our house. On the one hand we've thought about selling and getting someplace a little bigger so I can have a better office and I'd like an actual garage instead of a car port, but on the other hand, I'm getting closer to retirement and taking on another mortgage at this stage just doesn't make sense - especially since there are a lot of aspects we really like about where we're at now. So,long story short, after much debate and consternation, we've decided to stay put. But staying doesn't mean accepting the status quo. No, we're going to put all the money we would have spent on legal fees and real estate commissions into renovating and re-decorating our place to make it more livable and more to our liking. We're pushing back a wall, completely gutting one bathroom and remodelling the other, replacing three windows and replacing every door, closet door and piece of trim and moulding in the place. We're also installing suntubes in the kitchen and hall, a new gas fireplace and replacing the kitchen counters. When we're done it'll feel like a new place and we should be happy for the foreseeable future.

(And DnT - we're buying a new bedroom suite and moving our existing Queen with the memory top mattress into the spare bedroom so the spare room will be MUCH more comfortable!!)

So all this, combined with the confirmed contracts I now have for April, has made things more than a little hectic.

But it's all worth it because - I get to ride again - WooHoo!!

I'm leaving tomorrow night to fly to Phoenix. I'm meeting Brad down there and we'll pull the bikes out of storage first thing Friday morning. If all goes well it should be a fairly easy four days back. I'll post pictures along the way and use my SPOT to send map references to friends and family.

Take care and wish us luck - it's close to 5,600 over the Sweetzer Summit and according to the highway webcams there's still a lot of snow in the surrounding hills. Yikes!

Cheers

All over but the cry'n

2010-03-03T05:36:00.001-08:00

Well, here we are, back in AJ with nothing but memories and loads of pictures to remind us of a whirlwind trip through much of north/central Mexico. As usual it was too short and this time seemed even shorter because I had to work through much of it. Oh well, just like so many things, it's better to have a short ride than no ride at all.

In this case we saw saw some great scenery, met some fantastic people and visited even more of Mexico that we hadn't been to before. It was a little disappointing that we didn't make it to Veracruz as planned but sometimes life just gets in the way.

A few statistics for those so inclined
Total mileage - 4,745 klm
Days riding - 10
Ave klm per riding day - 475
Ave hotel cost (not including the time share week) - $57
Number of problems/issues - 0
Level of hassle crossing into and out of Mexico - Nil
Level of hassle crossing back into the US - Nil (I don't count the 90 minute wait in line as we inched along because what the heck, you can get that in Oroville or the peace arch on a busy day)
Number of Military checkpoints - one (down from at least six the year before)
Cost of Mexican toll highways - approx $350 - absolutely worth it!
Cost of fuel - approx $350 (mileage is drastically reduced at speeds over 100kph and is roughly cut in half by the time you hit 140)

So there you have it. Another Mexican adventure draws to a close although, as time goes on they seem less and less like "adventures" and more and more like returning "home"

Cheers

On the road again........

2010-02-28T15:17:00.001-08:00

We're back in the saddle and on the road heading North. As much as we liked a few down days in Mazatlan, it feels good to be back on the bike and rolling down the road.

Mazatlan was great - on several levels. First, it was nice to finally use some of our time share weeks and try out the whole resort living thing. It was a very nice first taste. Just through blind luck - especially since it was a spur of the moment, last minute choice - we picked a very low key resort. It didn't require mandatory all-inclusive and the the clientele wasn't pretentious at all.

On another level, having a work space was also great. I'm very much down here on a working vacation and last week alone, I facilitated a national webinar with 20 participants, had to partake in four different conference calls and I'm conducting interviews as research for a speech I'm giving at a conference next month. Having a quiet space to work and a reliable Internet connection was a real plus.

But all good things must come to an end.

Brad left Mazatlan on Wed to ride to Los Mochis, where he caught the train up into the Copper Canyon. We left on Saturday too, and rode to Los Mochis to meet him. It was a great ride - nice scenery and great weather. And hot, very hot! Ironically, since much of Mexico has been unseasonably cool, this area is just the opposite. Much hotter than usual - we'll take it! It beats the heck out of the alternative.

We arrived into Mochis around 2:00 and checked into a nice upper-end Mexican business-class hotel. From there we had a few drinks, hung out and went out to the local mall to catch a movie at the ciniplex - which by the way, is every bit as nice as a multi-screen SilverCity multi-plex back home.

We met Brad around 9:00 when his train arrived back from the CC and we had a late bite to eat and swapped stories about the last few day.

This morning we got away early and called it a short day so we could be firmly ensconced by a TV in time to watch the Can/USA hockey final. WOO HOO!!

So there you have it. At this point we're roughly at the 4,000 klm mark with two days and 800 klm more to go before we roll back into Apache Junction.

Viva la Mexico!

2010-02-24T19:40:00.000-08:00

2010-02-24T19:27:00.000-08:00

The Devil's Backbone

2010-02-24T08:26:00.000-08:00

What is it about riding a motorcycle? Three years ago I did this same route by bus and it scarred the absolute life out of me! Yesterday on my motorcycle however, it was exhilarating, and sometimes had a high pucker factor, but the road itself wasn't that frightening. Does being on the back of a motorcycle somehow negate a fear of heights? Or is it that you're too busy, and concentrating too much on just staying on the road, that you don't have time to notice how high you are?
Whatever the reason, it was a great ride!
Rosi stayed behind to do a little shopping and Brad and I headed out on highway 40 to Durango, also known as the Devil's Backbone - the highest road in Mexico. It's a high mountain pass through the continental divide. It's close to 10,000 feet at the highest point and even the switchbacks have switchbacks! In some places you're right on the ridgeline and looking down literally thousands of feet on both sides. It's only 225 klm to Durango but because of the twists and turns it's over six hours by car and would be at least four on a bike so we only went half way, stopped for lunch and made our way back.
Not much else to report - staying in a resort is nice for a few days but exciting it's not.
Cheers
(Pictures to follow)

The Dark Side

2010-02-22T15:16:00.000-08:00

Well, apparently hell occasionally does freeze over and a snow ball does have the odd chance in hell, because Rosi and I have officially turned to the dark side. Or in this case, a very nice resort on the beach in Mazatlan. A place where the only Mexican you’ll meet is either making your bed or bringing you a cold drink. A place we always avoided in the past like the plague but now that we’re older - and some, but certainly not all, would say wiser - we’re willing to relax our standards a little and join the rest of middle-class, middle-aged BC, here at a resort.

We left Rincon Saturday morning to a bit of an overcast sky but still warn, and headed north on Hwy 200. The road was absolutely fantastic and gave us some of the best scenery and riding we’ve had so far! It’s a great back road, well maintained but not much traffic, that hugs the coast through thick green jungle and lush forest before it eventually leaves the coast and climbs back to the main autopista on the route north from Tepic to Mazatlan.

Once we hit this stretch of highway the sky was a crystal clear blue sky and the temperature rose to a really pleasant mid-twenties. Warm enough that mesh gear was perfect but not so hot that the heat became debilitating. We cranked it up to 140 (which I have to add is indicated, not actual. The speedo on these bikes is approx 10% optimistic so 140 is probably 126 in actuality) and headed north. Brad and I had already agreed we’d meet on this stretch of road somewhere so it wasn’t a huge surprise when up in the distance we saw another bike on the road and realized it was Brad making the run northward.

We pulled of at the next town for gas and a nice lunch, compared notes, caught up on our mutual adventures and continued north to Mazatlan.

Rosi and I succumbed to the pressure about two years ago and bought a time share package that gives us access to the RCI condo/hotel network. I won’t go into it here but I can tell you that I crunched all the numbers and if you take advantage of a few loopholes they don’t want the average owner to know about you can REALLY get you monies worth. In our case, for a relatively low investment, we can access seven weeks/year at some really nice resorts. Last week I booked online at Cost del Oro, a typical condo resort here in Mazatlan. We have a one-bedroom unit with a full kitchen, a balcony overlooking the beach and a fold-out couch in the living room for Brad. So here I am, typing on my lap top by the pool, a bucket of happy-hour beer by my side and my biggest worry in the world is will it be Cab Sav or Merlot with my fettuccini this evening.

Don’t despair though. For those of you thinking that we’ve gone completely over the edge, all is not lost. I can only take so much of resort living. Tomorrow Brad and I are leaving on a day run into the Sierra Madre to see how far we can make it up and over the Devil’s Backbone before we have to turn around and head back before we loose daylight. It’s the highest mountain pass in Mexico and is >10,000 feet at the highest. Snow and black ice are a concern but shouldn’t be too bad by mid-day.

Viva la Mexico!

A view over Dales shoulder

2010-02-18T18:12:00.000-08:00

A few pictures from day 6 and 7

2010-02-18T18:05:00.001-08:00

Day 6 & 7 Chapala - Rincon de Guayabitos

2010-02-18T17:40:00.000-08:00

Well, I'm afraid the Mexican weather Gods are conspiring against us this trip - but from what we've heard it's all over Mexico, not just where we've been. Yesterday we did some great site-seeing around Lake Chapala, to a small little town on the lake called Jototepic. Very quaint, very Mexican, very colonial - but oh, so cold, wet and rainy! It started to rain sometime during the night and basically didn't let up all day. It ranged from a light misty rain, almost like a heavy fog, to full on pouring - and the temperature, because Chapala is fairly high, was cold and damp. Not too pleasant after a couple days so this morning we pushed on.

Luckily, although it was still cool and damp, it wasn't raining when we pulled out and headed into Guadalajara, where we hoped to pick up the Autopista to the coast. I said hoped, because the best laid plans etc. etc. came into full contact with eight lanes of VERY chaotic early morning rush hour traffic and we missed our exit - again. I'll let it go at that. There's no use in rehashing our hour of living hell that was Guadelajara traffic and our attempt to get back on track - suffice to say that we were eventually spit out the other side and aside from a few frayed nerves what doesn't kill you truly does make you stronger.

We had fairly good weather for the rest of what was a fairly short trip this time. Just 350 klm and some four hours, and as we descended onto the coast it really started to warm up, so much so that only for the second time we were able to peel off all our rain gear and ride in just our hot weather mesh gear.

About twenty minutes out of rincon though, it clouded up again and started to spit rain, with a threatening storm moving in. We were close enough that we weren't going to stop to change again so we motored on - into a worsening storm. When we made it to Rincon we pulled into the first restaurant we came to, a place we've frequented before, and just in time. The skys absolutely opened up with huge deluge and howling winds. I kid you not, it was like a mini-hurricane for a few minutes. We ran into some other tourists from Kelowna, also taking shelter from the storm, and they said it's been like this for the last ten days they've been here. In PV for every one good day they've had it's been followed by a day of heavy rain and wind, so we're not alone.

The restaurant has rooms in a small courtyard behind the main restaurant area so we grabbed one just to make it simple. It's great! A good sizes room with two double beds, large storage closet, fridge and microwave, LOT's of hot water (which is VERY important after a day of riding)and a crystal clear pool just steps from the room - all for $28. Mexico, gotta love it!
We're here for two nights and then we're giving ourselves a treat. More to follow
Cheers

A few pictures from the road

2010-02-16T13:53:00.000-08:00

Day 4 & 5 Lake Chapala!

2010-02-16T13:07:00.000-08:00

Day 4 & 5
I’m writing this on the morning of Day 5 - sitting on the balcony of my very nice room overlooking the large manicured grounds of a Mexican hotel/resort.

Before I go on though, I have to clarify that on a trip like this the bike isn’t just a form of transportation. It’s not like hopping in a car to get somewhere. For me, the bike IS the vacation - it’s the journey I love, just as much as the destination. Otherwise, four days of riding just to spend a week somewhere and then do it all again to get home makes no sense whatsoever. I’m just lucky enough that Rosi is willing to come along. I’m not stupid; she doesn’t feel the same passion for it as me but she doesn’t just tolerate it either. There’s times she loves it too. It’s unfortunate that this area of Northern Mexico isn’t the most picturesque - and it’s often a LONG way between cities of size - but hey, we’ve seen things few others have.

Which brings me to yesterday. I don’t like to ride more than three days without a break and I like to keep it to ~ 500 klm but this time that just wouldn’t worked out. So far we’ve been averaging >600 klm and we pretty much had to ride another day to get to some warmth.

Because we’re starting to feel a little road weary we didn’t get an early start. By the time I got up and pulled the bike out of the lobby and loaded our gear it was after 8:00 before we left our little town. We then pulled into the first Pemex/Oxxo we came across for our obligatory breakfast of coffee and muffins so it was close to 9:00 before we really started to make tracks.

After that it was more of the same. Miles and miles of miles and miles - all of it at close to 120 kph but good roads and light traffic. Approx 1 ½ hours south we picked up the Autopista and I was able to average 140 kph again. The Autopista is the Mexican toll freeway system. All the roads are four-lane divided freeways in fantastic shape and are patrolled regularly by the Green Angels in case of breakdowns etc.

We wizzed through Zacatecas on a freeway by-pass and continued down the road to Aguas Callientes. According to my map there should have been another ring road in AC but for whatever reason we missed it. Instead we knew we were in trouble as the divided freeway became just four lanes, then two and then regular city roads in an ever increasing amount of traffic. AC is a large Mexican city of approx 1,000,000 and it brings new meaning to the terms hectic and chaotic. It’s BUSY, especially when you’re two-up on a loaded bike and you’ve been spit out in the very centre of town. The main town square was on one side, the main mercado on another and traffic and people were closing in fast. And poor Rosi, who doesn’t like Mexican traffic at the best of times, was panicked and more than willing to let her displeasure be known through the intercom. I actually didn’t know she knew some of the words she used - and I’m REALLY happy the Mexican drivers couldn’t hear her or we’d still be there trying to explain that we really didn’t mean it when we said the things we did
:-)

And here’s the other thing: like the previous three days, up until AC the temperatures ranged from cold in the mornings and at higher elevations, to cool during the day, but when we descended into AC it got hot. REAL hot, REAL fast - and here we ere, stuck in chaotic Latin American traffic and unable to peel off the rain gear we’d been using to add a layer for warmth. So now, on top of worrying about traffic we were both approaching heat stroke. OK, even I had to admit , Mexican motorcycle adventure or not, a nice flight into a resort for a few weeks was looking really good at this point.

But all things good come to those that deserve it - or maybe God truly does favour the brave - all I know is we eventually made our way through the maze of downtown and got spit out the other side and were able to pull over. We got off the bike, peeled off our rain gear and took a minute to decompress and get our bearings. I was able to ask a man on the street walking by for directions and it turns out he was right. (you sometimes have to ask three different people for directions and then use the average. They either don’t know and don’t want to admit it or they don’t understand because of the language barrier) He told us to take an immediate left at the next light and follow that road all the way out of the city until it hooks back up with the Autopista. We did and it did, and an hour later we were back on track and rolling down the freeway.

But….. and I have no idea how this is possible but we’re in the central highlands so it may have something to do with the elevation and mountains…..within minutes the temperature plunged and huge thick clouds rolled in. We knew we were in trouble so we pulled into the first Pemex (have I mentioned that we LOVE Pemex stations? They’re often our comfort zone and home away from home) and put all our rain gear again. We could see a HUGE storm rolling in but I asked one of the attendants which way it was to Guadalajara and it looked vaguely clear in that direction so we decided to chance it.

And for those of you now thinking “Poor Rosi. what a bastard for putting her through that”, I offered to stay the night and avoid the storm but it was only 2:30 at that point and we really wanted to get here. So we bundled up and headed off into the wilds. And what a wild ride it was!

For the next 45 minutes the winds ranged from hard to horrendous: we had heavy rain and sometimes hail so hard it actually hurt through all our gear and in the distance forked lightening, which only added to the pucker factor. But heads down and a look of grim determination on our faces, and with the promise of a slightly lighter sky in the distance, we pressed on.

Our perseverance eventually paid off because we hit clear blue sky again and had to finally pull over and peel off layers.

Our next bit of excitement was hitting Guadalajara at rush hour. The freeway into the city is eight lanes wide and BUSY. Guadalajara is Mexico’s second largest city with a population of six million, all of whom seemed to be out driving when we arrived. But all’s well that ends well. We only had to stop and ask for directions once and only had to perform two U turns before we made our way to the road out of the city to Lake Chapala.

Which is where we are now. We found a really nice large hotel type place right on the shore of the lake. It’s a resort, but not in the North American way you probably think. Instead, try to imagine the family vacation type places that were popular in the fifties - kind of like the place in the movie, Dirty Dancing - and you’ll have a better idea. First, it’s huge, with lot’s of rooms, and a restaurant, a large ballroom and an absolutely HUGE outdoor dance floor. It’s right on the shore of Lake Chapala with beautiful manicured lawns and two pools - but no disco, no bar and no loud crass tourists. As a matter of fact, it’s not popular with gringo’s at all. Rosi and I are the only white faces here, which is just how we like it.

There’s only one wrench in the works. We’d really like to stay for three days but they’re fully booked starting tomorrow so we may have to push on. If there’s a cancellation we’ll stay but otherwise we’ll head to the coast in the morning. And from looking at the preparations underway for a major fiesta it may not be such a bad idea.

More to follow
Viva La Mexico!

Day 3 follow up

2010-02-16T13:05:00.000-08:00

Day 3 started wonderful. We stayed at a Holiday Inn Express the night before and enjoyed a VERY nice king-size bed with high-end linens, a nice continental breakfast and some great service. And even better, it was chilly - around 5 degrees - but there wasn’t a cloud in the sky and we could feel the warmth in the sun even before we began. WooHoo!!

With firm directions in hand on how to leave the city we hit the road around 7:30 and by 8:00 or so we were on a good road heading south. We stayed on a secondary road through the mountains for an hour or so and then we picked up the Autopista and really made some great time.

And here’s where I have to put in a plug for Mexico in general and Mexican’s in particular; at no time have we felt threatened or put out because of the language barrier or the fact we’re tourists - sometimes the only tourists these parts have seen for a very long time, if ever. Instead we’ve only met warm welcoming smiles and anytime we’ve stopped to look at the map or to get out bearings someone ALWAYS materialized to ask how we’re doing of if he or she could help in some way.

Anyway, all day we made great time and saw a lot of northern Mexico. An area by the way, that would put northern Manitoba to shame for remoteness and desolation. We saw miles and miles of miles and miles - and not much else.

We eventually ended up at the outskirts of a city called Gomez Palacio around 2:30 and here’s where me made our mistake. It was really 3:30 because we’d crossed in to Mountain time without realizing it. It’s no big deal because we’re not on any schedule but it meant we had an hour less of daylight than we thought. We looked at the map and decided 2:30 was too soon to stop so we’d push on. We could see that the next city was still >200klm away but there were lots of small towns on the map so there must be a hotel. Right. Wrong! Once we started on the next stretch there was nothing! By then we’d changed our clocks ahead and realized an hour or so later that we were quickly running out of options. We were now on a secondary road again and as the day wore on we noticed a real increase in heavy truck traffic. They must run at night. Anyway, long story short, we eventually stopped at a truck stop and got directions to this place about 5 klm off the highway. It’s a very quaint, typical small colonial town with a main square, large cathedral and an older hotel right on the square. VERY small but the kind of place we love.

We’re now firmly ensconced for the evening in a small room with 20 foot ceilings and just enough flavour to make it unique, that is if 150 year old buildings with electricity and plumbing retrofitted in the fifties turns you on :-)

My bike is now put away in the lobby and I’m just finishing up a few notes before we head out to a lovely Valentines dinner in the lobby/restaurant cooked by the owner/manager/chef. Afterwards we’re going to join all the families in the main square and just hang out and soak up the vibe.

Cheers!

Day 3 - Long, tiring and a real sense of accomplishment

2010-02-14T20:16:00.000-08:00

Hey everyone
Too tired and not a great internet connection to post much. Suffice to say we zigged when we should have zagged and, 675 klm later, we're in a VERY out of the way, small Mexican colonial town, WAY off the beaten track. Lov'n it!
And Rosi is a FANTASTIC co-pilot and a real trooper. The last few klm were nip and tuck whether or not we'd find a place to call it quits before it got dark - and you NEVER want to be out on a bike after dark.
Anyway - once I finsh here the restaurant in the lobby will be closed and I'll pull my bike in to get it off the street.

More to follow tomorrow from Lake Chapala
Cheers!

A few more pictures from Day 1 and 2

2010-02-14T20:01:00.001-08:00

Snow, Ice, Screeching Tires and Squeeling Brakes

2010-02-14T19:47:00.000-08:00

Snow, Ice, Squealing Brakes and Screeching Tires: this CAN'T be good!

Well, we're well on our way into the Mexican heartland and so far the trip has been fantastic! I can't believe it's been just two days!

We arrived safe and sound in Phoenix and I took a day to prep the bike and take care of a few things and we had a great time going out for dinner with Dad and Carol (who were fantastic as always, and REALLY patient with my last minute goings on to get ready), Ward and Bonnie and Mick and Sharon. On Friday morning I still had some last minute prep because I had to complete the wiring for Rosi's heated vest but we finally hit the road at 9:00. A little later than I'd originally hoped but that was due to my over optimistic plans, not anything else.

The ride to the border was longer than last year because this time we crossed at Douglas rather than Nogales. Along the way we had a great lunch at a historic old hotel in Bisbee and a quick tour through downtown Tombstone. The snow on the side of the road at the top of the pass overlooking Bisbee was unexpected but by then it was just after noon so it had warmed up a bit and wasn't too bad.

We pulled into Douglas around 2:00 and decided to play it safe. The next town of size was a good 200 klm away and we still had to clear customs so rather than chance arriving in the dark we crossed into Mexico, checked into a nice hotel and walked back to Customs to take care of our tourist visa's etc. I'd like to say we then had an exciting first night in Mexico by partying until dawn but that would be just a wee bit of a fib. Instead, we had a great dinner at the hotel restaurant and, thanks to fresh air, too much excitement and 425 kilometers on the first day, we were both sound asleep before 9:30!

The next day(today) was a bit of a shock. We knew Northern Mexico is cold due to the elevation but we weren't prepared for quite how cold. Last year, south of Nogales was cold, this morning however was freak'n freezing!

It was right at zero when we took off at 7:30. We're riding in our mesh gear because we expect it to get hot at some point and we're using rain gear and long johns to layer up and cut the wind. This is an OK compromise when it's cool but today it was woefully inadequate. It warmed up a bit as the sun rose but just as we thought, OK, that's not so bad, we started to climb over the continental divide between Agua Prieta and Janos. I have no idea how high we were but I'm guessing 5,000 feet(?) and the temperature gauge on my bike dropped to minus five. There was hard crusty snow all around us and the mud puddles in the ditch were frozen solid. Who would guess that we'd travel to Mexico and our biggest worry wouldn't be the drug war but instead was black ice?!

The rest of the trip this morning was fairly uneventful. We picked up the Autopista half way to Chihuahua and were able to make some great time. And yes, my bike will still do 140 kph fully loaded and two-up! The autopista, gotta love it!

The only mishap - more like a VERY close call - was arriving into Chihuahua around 3:00, just in time for rush hour. The Mexican traffic light system is confusing at the best of times but it's even worse when you start to pull an illegal u-turn and then decide to abort and pull back into traffic at the last minute. But hey, the other guys brakes apparently worked really well, at least from what I could hear, and we finally arrived safe and sound, if not a little shaken after another 525 klm.

Total so far = 950 klm

The only other thing of note is our plans have changed quite a bit. The five day forecast for Veracruz is highs of 12 -13 and a 30% chance of rain and thunderstorms. There have been some wicked storms down here and it's been unseasonably cold in some areas so we're going g to stay further west. Our plan now is to head to Lake Chapala for a few days and then dogleg down to Cuyutlan just south of Manzanillo where it'll hopefully be hot and sunny.

That's it for now
Cheers!

Just a short update

2010-01-29T08:43:00.000-08:00

Nothing new or terribly exciting to pass on - just a brief up date on what's happening.

First, although Rosi is able to temper it quite well, I'm REALLY freak'n excited about our upcoming trip! I've now bought all the gadgets and gizmo's that Rosi will allow so the prep is all done. We leave on the 10th for Phoenix where I'll pull the bike from storage and get a service done and install all the gear that's been shipped and waiting for me at Dad's. The plan is to be on the bike and rolling by 7:00am on the 12th because it's like last year. There's not a lot to see in Northern Mexico so we'll have three fairly long days in the saddle before we make out first major stop in Saltillo, just outside of Monterrey.

The last few weeks have been a real whirlwind of activity. I was away for a week in Kamloops conducting an audit, got home on Friday night and by noon Saturday we were heading to Vancouver to attend David's fiftieth birthday party. It was a great time and we're glad we could be part of it. On Sunday Tami and Rosi drove back together and I caught an early flight to Winnipeg where I was for three days teaching a course. And just for the record, I'll NEVER complain about the weather here in Summerland EVER again. Not now that I've experienced 20 below with 80kph winds and a windchill of minus 30! Thanks, but not for me!

I'm back home again for a few days and on Monday I leave again for another week to conduct an audit in Clearwater. So far it's been great. I'm busy and having a ball!

Rosi is well and holding down the fort and has her game face on for the trip. It was scary for a brief time because the weather in the area we're going to was unseasonably cold - but it's great again and we're looking forward to some hot hot days. And more important - it'll be great to see the sun again. The Okanagan may be mild in the winter but sunny it's not.

Anyway, that's it for now
Cheers

Busy Times Indeed

2010-01-16T06:18:00.000-08:00

Just a quick update to let friends and family know we're alive and well. Not much new to report I'm afraid - just same ol, same ol.

In the past few weeks we've concentrated on getting things back to normal after Christmas and I've continued on my prep for the trip. Nothing too exciting there either. I don't want to say it's old hat, because that implies we're not excited, but it is a lot easier now that we've done it a few times. I've ordered a few more things for delivery to AJ (thanks Dad!) and there'll be a flurry of activity just before we leave but at this point the prep it's pretty much done.

The next few weeks will just fly by because we're really going to be busy. I'm leaving this Monday for a week in Kamloops to conduct an audit. When I get back I have two more assignments out of town and then we leave on our trip. And between business trips we're making a quick trip down to Vancouver to attend David's 50th birthday party. Wow - who would have thought, 50? Yikes, that means I'm not far behind!

Business wise things are really cooking. The three assignments I have this month are all repeated to some degree every month we get back until the end of June. July and Aug are always slow for training and audit and then it'll all start back up in the second half of the year. When we're on the trip I'll be working most evenings. (What can I say? Work is the necessary evil that pays for the trip so I guess it's a fair trade) I signed up as a mentor for an on-line cohort for two different credit union courses which take about 10 hours/week each and I'm working with a marketing consultant and a website developer to rebrand my business. Very soon Dexco Training Consultants will officially be Dexco Consulting to better reflect the other things I'm doing besides training. I'll be dealing with this during the trip too so that I can launch my new website as soon as I'm back. I guess it's true, there really is no rest for the wicked :-)

That's it for now
Cheers

All over but the crying!

2009-12-30T09:47:00.000-08:00

Well, Christmas is now over and it's on to other things.
We had a wonderful Christmas, with lots of great food and good times. Brad flew in from Victoria and Pam and the kids and Anne joined us for Christmas eve and Christmas dinner.
Here's wishing all our friends and family a healthy and prosperous 2010!

But.............NOW, we can turn our minds to more important things, motorcycling!!

We leave for Veracruz in just over six weeks and things are starting to fall into place. Through the marvel of modern technology and the magic of the Internet I was able to buy my Mexican motorcycle insurance and out-of-country medical insurance all online, all from the comfort of home. Likewise, even the Mexican Govt has jumped on the Internet bandwagon. You have to understand; crossing personally into Mexico is easy, whether by plane or bus. All you need is a quick stamp in your passport and a simple tourist visa and you're on your way. But.......taking a vehicle into Mexico is another matter. Now it's not immigration you're dealing with, it's Customs. It's still relatively easy but certainly not painless. There's LOT's of paperwork, stamps, fees and a LONG lineup at the border if it's a busy time. Or........you can just log onto the new Mexican Govt website and fill out everything online, pay with your visa and wham, bam, thank you ma'am, you're on your way! FedEx delivers all your import documents directly to your door ten days later - you scan your drivers license, passport and vehicle registration along with a letter promising to ensure your vehicle leaves the country within a specified time period and you're done. When you show up at the border you still have to get your visa and passport stamped but it's in a separate (MUCH faster) line and you just drive on through. Gotta love it!

And of course, no Mexico motorcycle trip would be complete without some new kit. I was well behaved at the Seattle motorcycle show so I don't feel too guilty;
http://www.cycleluggage.com/shad-sh46-top-case.html
http://www.bestrestproducts.com/c-98-beadbrakr.aspx

And of course my poor Dad in Apache Junction now has to play the part of shipping receiver and accept delivery of all my spur of the moment purchases. Every time I order something I promise him it's the last time......and then inevitably I follow up with something else....thanks Dad!

Well that's it for now - lots of planning still to do. It'll be close to 6,000 klm return and this time we're determined that Rosi will have a better time than last year!
Cheers

Seattle Motorcycle Show

2009-12-14T07:48:00.000-08:00

We drove down to Seattle on the weekend to attend the motorcycle show. Some great bikes to try on for size and some good deals on accessories!

And Priceline came through once again! We received a screaming good deal on our hotel in Seattle, and an even better deal at the Marriot in Vancouver the next night. I highly recommend Priceline the next time you're trying to book a hotel.

Find Me Spot!

2009-12-10T06:14:00.001-08:00

Hi All
Not much new to report - pretty much same ol, same ol.
I completed my assignment in Lillooet and did a quick turnaround and headed right back out to Ashcroft. I was there for a week conducting another audit and then back home to catch up on paperwork, complete a project and present a webinar on-line to approx 20 participants.

Tomorrow Rosi and I are heading down to Seattle to go to their big motorcycle show. Brad is joining us and from there we'll head up to David's and Terry's for their annual Christmas party. A good time is sure to be had by all - and my credit card will undoubtedly get a good work out at the show. Rosi and I both need new helmets ( OK she needs one and I just want one - but hey, a want is pretty close to a need, right?) and I'm always looking for new gadgets for the bike. It should be fun.

One interesting thing I just bought though, is the SPOT GPS tracker. It's VERY cool!
http://www.findmespot.ca/en/
We originally saw one of these at the Horizon's rally in Nakusp and I've wanted one ever since. It's basically a one-way GPS communications device. You sign up for their annual service and then you can pre-program up to ten separate e-mail addresses into your account. Every time you press the button it sends a pre-formatted e-mail to your contact list letting them know you're alive and well, plus it gives your GPS co-ordinates and links them to an embedded Google map that plots your course as you travel. Rosi and I will be on the Road in Mexico pretty soon when we go to Veracruz and this will allow friends to follow along. It also has another cool feature - if you press the SOS button it sends a signal to a monitoring centre in Houston. They then can get in touch with the authorities in over 200 countries and dispatch help directly to your GPS co-ordinates. And if they don't have access to the authorities in the particular country you're in they'll immediately get in touch with your Consulate or Embassy to solicit their assistance. If Search and Rescue is necessary they'll pay up to $100,000 to cover this expense as part of their insurance program.
It's probably overkill for just Mexico but I'll be on some pretty remote roads this summer because I'm riding to Colorado and I'm still planning on a South American trip in the near future and this will give Rosi a degree of comfort while I'm away on the road.

Well that's it for now
Cheers

Greetings from Lillooet

2009-11-23T18:45:00.001-08:00

Greetings from Lillooet.

I'm over here for the full week conducting an audit. The drive over was absolutely beautiful. It's been years and years since I came down on the No 1 through the Fraser Canyon, and I forgot how scenic it is. The last time I came this way was probably back in the early eighties when we lived in Salmon Arm the first time - and even that probably stopped in '86 after they opened the first stretch of the Coquihalla.
Anyway, it's a pretty little town but no pictures I'm afraid, because I didn't bring a camera.

I'll be working during the day conducting an audit and each evening I'll have to spend a few hours marking some assignments and logging into the net because I'm an online tutor for a group of 21 adult learners taking a credit course from various locations across the country.
Apparently it's true, there's no rest for the wicked.

Quick trip south

2009-11-18T19:23:00.000-08:00

This is after the fact but earlier this month I did a quick four-day run down to Apache Junction to put my bike in storage down there. Brad and I left here on a Friday morning and rode approx 2,800 klm via Death Valley and the Grand Canyon before arriving at my dads place in AJ. It was an interesting trip but exhausting. We did long miles during the day and I had to do quite a bit of work each evening online because I have several projects on the go. The scenery in Death Valley and the GC were well worth it though. I've attached a slide show of my Picassa Album into my blog. Just click on the small picture and it'll take you to the album. Brad and I both took hundreds of pictures but I took pity on Picassa and only downloaded a few as a sample.

I'm back!

2009-11-14T16:28:00.001-08:00

Hello all. After a six month absence due to technical glitches I've fired up my old blog. I tried Facebook for the first time, and it was great, but I'm afraid it's too much work to try to stay on top of all the virtual "friends" you meet. I also tried maintaining a Blog geared towards my business.....training tips etc., .....but again, I didn't stay on top of it and it soon became dated. I'm now pulling it because I think it's better to have nothing at all rather than something done poorly. Instead, I'll be revamping my website early in the new year to make it more interactive, which should accomplish the same thing.

Rosi and I will use this blog again to maintain an "electronic diary" so friends and family can follow along if they want as we continue life's journey. And speaking of which, the journey so far this year has been pretty amazing. With the help of some great support and training for new entrepreneurs through Community Futures I've been able to develop my business in new and exciting ways and so far it's been the best decision I ever could have made. I'm busier and working harder than I ever did in when I worked at the credit union but it's far more rewarding and I love being my own boss. The only challenge is learning when to "turn it off." Answering business e-mail at 6:00 in the morning probably isn't the best habit to get into. Oh well, it goes with the territory I guess. ;-)

Anyway, nothing new or earth shattering to report - just a brief note say we're alive and well and the journey continues!

If you're aware it's happening, is it still a mid-life crisis?

2009-05-29T21:36:00.000-07:00

I'm back home today after some of the most incredible riding I've done yet.

I had a business meeting scheduled in Trail for 11:00 on Thursday and with the great weather forecast I decided to ride. I debated on what to wear - mesh gear because of the forecast of 28 degrees or my regular gear because it was still cool in the morning. I compromised by wearing my regular jacket and taking both sets of pants.

When I left at 7:30 I was wearing my normal over pants and closed the vents on my jacket - and I'm glad I did. It was still cool - around 12 degrees - and didn't get any warmer once I started to climb out of Osoyoos. Riding was the best decision I could have made; Hwy 3 is Nirvana for riders and early on a week-day in late May it's just this side of Heaven; beautiful crystal clear blue sky, no traffic to speak of and the road stretching to the horizon in front of me as if God Himself (Herself?) only had me in mind when he laid down some of the best riding this country has. It's not a coincidence that this stretch of road is so popular with riders of every genre.

I made great time and soon passed through the Boundary and headed on the the Blueberry-Paulson, and it's at that point that my decision to forgo mesh gear paid off. At the top of the two summits, the Paulson and Nancy Green, there was still snow on the sides of the road and it was decidedly chilly. Now, some of this may have been due to the spirited nature of my approach to riding that morning. There's just something about clear sky's, no traffic and ZZ Top on the headset that tends to make me "push it" a little. In this case I was averaging 140 (indicated - not actual, because my speedo is about 10% optimistic) and I made VERY good time on my journey. I arrived in Trail at 10:30. 310 klm in 3 hours, including stops for gas and a coffee - I SO love this bike. Although, a nice sport-touring bike would be a nice upgrade - I'll just have to make sure I get a good radar detector!

And to those of you that don't ride and question the wisdom of this - it's not as risky or dangerous as it sounds. On a clear day with no traffic and good conditions my bike sticks to the road like glue and I'm more in the moment - and more in tune with my surroundings - than the best day ever of driving a car. I don't take unnecessary risks and I never ride without full gear - and darn it, it's just SO much fun!

When I left Trail at 1:00 I swapped over my regular pants for my mesh gear, this time over my dockers and I opened all the vents on my jacket. I carried on east on Hwy 3 which took me over the Salmo-Creston and yet another high pass, Kootenay, which again was cool, still had snow on the side of the road and if anything, was even better than the first half. Coming back down the other side though, it really started to warm up so I stopped at a rest stop and peeled off my dockers and rode with just my mesh pants and I changed my shirt for a synthetic T and headed out.

From Creston, I swung south into the US, stopped for a great milkshake in the picturesque and historic town of Boners Ferry, before finally calling it a day at 5:00 in Sandpoint Idaho.

The next morning I had a breakfast in the quintessential American small town restaurant;, huge servings, friendly service and a waitress that could only have been named Flo - served to patrons that were all either named Hon, Sweetheart, or Watchahav'n - I'm a Hon, go figure.

I continued south to Coeur d' Alene and Post Falls where I spent a couple of hours at a large full-line Suzuki dealer. I wanted to have my chain and sprockets checked and it turned out they needed to be replaced so I waited and drooled over their inventory while they did the work for me right then and there.

I pulled out of Post Falls after 11:00 and here's where I made my best decision yet. It's funny how simple things can be. We can zig or we can zag. Left or right. North or South. In my case, it all came down to a thin black line. I could have gone west to Spokane and then followed our regular route through Coulee Dam and on to home. It's safe, I'm familiar with it and I would have been home in just over four hours......and it's the direction I was first going to take.... all but for a thin black line.......... in this case, Hwy 41 due north out of Post Falls. The road less travelled. The call of the unknown. Destiny.

41 is fairly busy for the first 25 klm and still well used, just less so, for the next 25. It's close enough to Spokane and Coeur d' Alene that it's within commuting distance and the small towns and farms are like little bedroom communities for the larger centre. But, the further you go the less this becomes until eventually it's just you and the road. No traffic - at all. Great riding, fantastic weather and a spirited aggressive approach to each new twist and turn. It just doesn't get any better - actually is does (did?) - I just didn't know it was coming at the time.

I continued north on 41 which becomes 20 at Newport and then headed North West to the junction at Tiger where I hung a left to head west to Colville. And it's here that things took a turn - a turn for the better if that's possible. I laid on the throttle and hunkered down for the best riding I've ever had: 150 on the straight aways, 120 on the sweepers and a cheek clenching, sphincter puckering, peg dragging, whatever the road will bear, on the twists, turns and hairpins of the National Forrest Scenic Parkway - God Bless America! Or their road builders anyway :-)

This eventually spit me out at Kettle Falls Wash, where I had a weird sense of convergence between reality and the virtual world. At the junction of highways 30 and 395 you can either continue west to Republic or go north to Christina Lake. There's a big sign and a road-side restaurant and I SWORE, I'd been there before. It was such a powerful sense of Deja Vu I actually had to pull over. I'd never been there before and yet I HAD. I couldn't explain it but I knew - I'd been at this very spot sometime before. And then it hit me - I had, but in a virtual world, not the real one.

If you use Google Maps to plot out a course you'll see that they've somehow taken pictures of just about the entire United States. I don't know how they did it but at every junction, cross road and address you can click on an icon and see a 360 degree view of that spot. Try it - it's amazing. Or weird and WAY too much like Big Brother, depending on your perspective. In my case, I'd viewed this route on a map and had seen this spot before - but in Google's world, not mine. So now we have the Internet interjecting a sense of deja vu into our reality. Is it just me or has it gone a little too far? Hmmmm. Food for thought if nothing else.

So, back to the trip - I continued on, again at speeds that would make any Mountie weep, but on a deserted highway that appeared to be laid down for nothing else but my use and enjoyment and it hit me. I was liking this WAY too much. Work shmerk, I was born to ride! With Northern Idaho out of the way there's now Montana, and the four Corners, and and and.........

And so my question, is it still a mid-life crisis if you're aware it's happening? Hard to say, but in the interim I'm having more fun than an adult should be allowed. And I'm loving it!

I arrived home yesterday evening at 6:00 after a 1,100 klms. Tired, sweaty and glad to be back. Rosi is more accommodating and patient than I deserve and still supporting me after all these years.

Yes, life is good

Cheers

A few more pictures for the last post

2009-05-10T08:38:00.000-07:00

If it was easy, everyone would do it!

2009-05-10T07:24:00.000-07:00

I'm back safe and sound after yet another great ride. Although this one was much better in some respects, but much harder in others, than my last ride.

First, the bike. I sold my Goldwing last Thursday. I always wanted to try one, and it was a great old bike, but it just wasn't for me. Not yet anyway. The guy the bought it was from Salmo and said the same thing. He tried a Goldwing when he was in his 50's and it just wasn't his cup of tea. Now that he's in his 60's he's going to try again. Hmmm... maybe there's a Goldwing in my future........

Anyway, I made the last trip on my trusty VStrom. It's a GREAT bike but it doesn't have anywhere near the wind protection of a Goldwing, even an older one, so in some stretches I froze.

I left home last Wednesday and rode to Vancouver to attend a conference on Thursday. I rode over the Hope-Princeton because there was fresh snow on the Coquehalla. Usually, the no. 3 is much better, and it was, but no such luck on avoiding snow. I had snow coming down for at least 40 minutes through Manning Park. It didn't stick to the roads but it was absolutely freezing!

Memo to self: Install heated grips and buy MUCH better boots if you're going to keep up this kind of riding!

Kevan came over to Vancouver on Thursday evening. He met up with a group of adventure riders he'd "met" on the HUBB and after my conference and dinner I joined them for beer at the Keg on Granville Island. There were four guys but my absolute hero was a gentleman from the UK. He's somewhere well past 60 and he's riding his adventure motorcycle across Canada and up to Alaska before heading down to South America. And this after previous trips across Europe and Africa. See, there's hope for the rest of us after all. Except after meeting guys like this I feel soooo inadequate!

Riding - Day 1 - 413 klm

On Friday morning Kevan and I, with heads that were more than a little fuzzy, hit the road at the crack of 8:45. And here I have to give KUDOS and a big thanks to my Sweety. I forgot my passport at home but she was able to courier it overnight to me at the hotel so we were still able to head south as planned.

It was a non-eventful and relatively easy trip out of Vancouver and across the border to the US ( thankfully, with a passport) and down I-5 until we exited onto a smaller parallel secondary road which took us over the bridge to Whidby Island, through Oak Harbour and on to the Port

Townsend Ferry. The morning started out gray and overcast but by the time we were into the US it cleared up and we had sunny skies but it was pretty cool all day. From Port Townsend we stayed on 101 and rode across the top of the Olympic Peninsula to Port Angeles and on to Forks. Forks is a small logging town that reminded me of a larger version of Oroville. It's a small friendly place and its claim to fame is it's the setting for the "Twilight" series of books.We had a gut bomb Mexican dinner, tried the local tavern ( scary! - we left without finishing our beer) and played a few hands of cards before calling it an early evening.

Riding - Day 2 - 363 klm

Yesterday was one of my best riding days yet - ever! We rolled out of Forks at 6:45 and the first two hours were incredible. The road heads south along the west coast of the peninsula and it's like riding along the beach of Long Beach on the Island - for two solid hours. The views are breathtaking! The road alternatively hugs the shoreline or climbs to reveal sweeping vistas from wind torn bluffs overlooking breakers that started their journey's in Japan. And the weather was great. We started in heavy fog, that persisted in sections for all two hours, but in most places as it burned off it revealed rays of sunshine filtering through heavy first growth forest that warmed our backs, and our riding souls, as we rode on deserted roads all to ourselves heading south.

We stopped in Aberdeen for a Micky Dee's breakfast and had a great chat with a retired 60+ year old guy riding a fantastic brand new BMW GS. I was sooooo jealous. By now it was full-on beautiful sunshine - still cool but nice for riding. We followed 12 east to Shelton and then took the 101 north all along the west shore of the Hood Canal. It was slow going because of heavy week-end traffic but it was a great ride. It was just like riding the Old Island Hwy except it hugged the shore and you had views of the water the whole way. It eventually spit us out back at Port Townsend to catch the Ferry and the Washington State Ferry God's were shining down on us because we were the last two vehicles loaded onto the 12:45 Ferry back to Whidby Island.

We were back to the Mainland sooner than we originally thought so there was no point spending another night on the road. We stopped for gas and a sandwich and took a good half hour to stretch our legs, and at 2:30 we parted company in Oak Harbour and headed home. At Burlington Kevan turned north to catch the Ferry back to the island and I kept going east on 20 to head over the North Cascade Hwy to Twisp and then home. I had sunshine at my back for most of the way. There were storm clouds over my shoulder at one point, and a few spits of rain, but I lucked out and beat it. At the top it was heavy overcast and REALLY cold, but only bitterly so for a half hour and once I started dropping back down it wasn't too bad. I pushed through until Omak, where I stopped for gas and a burger and then I headed north on familiar roads. The border crossing was smooth as silk and I eventually pulled into my driveway at 9:00, which makes it just over 14 hours.

I told Kevan that my particular riding "style" is to ride. I don't do a lot of sight seeing along the way. Instead of 6 hours days with stops to see the sights etc I prefer a twelve hour day - usually riding in a "spirited" manner - and then a day off. It's not every one's cup of tea but to each their own, eh? But 14 hours? That's pushing it. Except.............. I had a grin from ear to ear when I arrived home. I was tired, sore and road weary...but - I loved it!

Riding - Day 3 - 884 klm

Total Ride - 1,660 klm.

Thanks;

DnT for a great dinner on Wed evening

Sweety for allowing me to indulge my new found passion and for not saying nasty things when I needed my passport couriered out

BUFF for being a great buddy and riding partner. I couldn't ask for a better best friend!

Cheers everyone

Another great ride!

2009-04-26T19:59:00.000-07:00

I'm back safe and sound after a great four-day ride to the coast. It was a little chilly going down and back over the passes but once there it was clear and sunny. I left around 11:30 on Thursday and rode to over the Hope-Princeton Hwy to stay at friends in Maple Ridge. A good time was had by all and it was great to reconnect with friends I hadn't seen in way too long. From there I left early on Friday morning to catch the Langdale Ferry out of Horseshoe Bay to make my way up the Sunshine Coast to Powell River, where I had a meeting with rep's from the local Credit Union. After the meeting I caught the 5:30 Ferry to Comox and ended up at Paul's in Nanoose where I spent the night. Again, a pub dinner, lots of red wine and sipping Tequila and I had a REALLY good sleep.

Saturday started with Paul and I and his friend meeting Kevan for brunch in Nanaimo at a small family restaurant Kevan recommended that was fantastic! Home of VERY large portions. Afterwards Paul went on and Kevan and I spent a few hours riding to a couple of different bike shops to check things out before ending up at his place late in the afternoon. He and the kids had a family due to go to so I rode down to Duncan and met Brad for dinner. Another huge meal - hmmmm, a pattern perhaps.... before riding back to Kevan's to play some cards and sip some wine before another great sleep. It's amazing how a few hours on a motorcycle will improve your sleep patterns.

Today I left early and caught the 8:30 Ferry and rode back over the Coquihalla because the forecast was for no snow. It was pretty cold at the top, and there were a few rain drops, but by the time I came down on this side it was warm enough that I had to take off a layer to stay comfortable.

I finally rolled into home at 3:30; four days and 1,350 klm later.

Muy Bueno!

2009-04-14T06:18:00.000-07:00

At long last, after a winter that just wouldn't seem to end, spring has finally arrived! It's been a long time coming. All indications are that we're at least two weeks and maybe three, behind where we should be in the growing season and it's still cold and blustery if a storm comes through. Yesterday I was outside washing the car and it hailed for a half hour and f or a few minutes it even looked like it wanted to snow!

With spring comes some excitement; Rosi leaves this afternoon to start her trip. She's driving up to Vernon with Tami and tomorrow they fly down to Phoenix for two weeks at Apache Junction at my dad's. Enjoy your trip ladies!

Ward hit the road yesterday and should make it home to Osoyoos later tomorrow evening. I'm going to drive down and meet him in Oroville so that there's no hassle when he crosses the border and I'll help him unload in Osoyoos. I'm then getting a ride back down on Sunday to drive it back. I'm taking it in for some scheduled maintenance next Tuesday and after that, WooHoo! It'll be good to go. I'm looking forward to getting some great riding in this season.

And speaking of riding, I'm now officially a "WingNut" (It's Rosi's term, not mine) I joined the local chapter of the Gold Wing Road Riders Association and this Saturday I'm driving up to Kelowna for my first breakfast meeting and group ride down to Tonasket. For those of you wondering what it's like to join a Goldwing group vs. riding with Harley owners, take a look at the following link; http://home.att.net/~pdmo/Humorfour.htm I'm not yet old enough to join but because I like Dairy Queen so much they made an exception.

Let's see, what else is new? I'm presenting my first on-line webinar this week so finally, I'll be officially be earning some income again. I'm heading down to the Island in two weeks and, knock on wood, as long as the weather is decent I'll ride. I'm going to spend the night at Dean and Leanne's in Maple Ridge and then ride up through the Sunshine Coast because I have a business meeting at First Credit Union in Powell River. From there I'll take the Ferry over to Comox and ride down to Nanoose to spend the night at Paul's. Let's hope the old Wing makes it!

That's it for now
Cheers

Settling Down

2009-03-25T05:42:00.000-07:00

Well, it's been a month since I left work and things are settling down a bit. Rosi is still very much missing her mum, and each day brings new memories and new challenges, but she's dealing with her grief as best she can and life unfortunately, moves on.

As I mentioned in my last post; Tami, bless her heart, has offered to take Rosi to Phoenix with her next month. The tickets are now purchased and they leave in less than three weeks. Rosi is really looking forward to it!

I'm afraid I was a little premature in my plans to fly down myself and ride my bike back. It sounded like a very cool, exciting thing to do when I first thought of it but a little reality is now setting in. I've already paid Ward to bring it back so it doesn't make a lot of sense to spend another $1,000 flying down and riding back just for "fun." Plus, I just know I'll get two days into a five day trip by myself and wonder what the hell was I thinking. And besides, if I'm going to spend five days on the bike I'd just as soon do it with Rosi and ride down the Oregon Coast as blast straight through from Phoenix to Summerland. So this time pragmatism is outweighing dreaming and I've passed on that particular idea.

Now some positive news; things are starting to move forward with my consulting business. I had some very positive meetings in Vancouver a couple weeks ago and I have my first teaching contract lined up for April. It's just three two-hour sessions over the Internet but it's a start. It's for a company that does training for the credit union system nationally so it could work into a semi-regular position teaching throughout the western provinces. The company will have a booth at a trade show in May that's part of a large credit union conference in Vancouver and they've asked me to join them. They know I have a lot of contacts in the credit union system and having me at their booth will be a good way to leverage my experience to earn trust in the system and hopefully drum up some business. They're paying my way down so there's no downside for me and it could end up being a great partnership.

And always one to look for the positive, it's a great opportunity to ride my motorcycle! My bike will be back from the US - or I may take the Goldwing, I haven't decided - and I can ride down. The dress is business casual so dockers will be OK, which is good because taking a suit on a bike is a huge PIA. After the conference Kevan and I may hook up and ride our bikes down to Washington State. Maybe a loop through the Olympic Peninsula or as far south as the Oregon border. He's riding to Alaska in June with Karen so it'll be a good shake down cruise for his new bike. See, I don't want to go, but I have to because I can't let Kevan down. :-)

Other than that it's same ol same ol. Like everyone else we're waiting for some decent spring weather so we can get out and work in the yard. It's not too bad - around 8 degree's - but still below seasonal temp's and at least two weeks behind where we should be.

Cheers
Dale

New Beginings

2009-03-07T08:11:00.000-08:00

It's been a VERY busy last few weeks. There were highs lows and lots of everything else in-between.

We had the memorial service for Rosi's mum almost three weeks ago and it was lovely. It was standing room only and a very fitting tribute to her life and accomplishments. A service is hugely emotional at the best of times but I sometimes think doubly so when it's your mother. Rosi is still struggling with her grief and is doing as well as can be expected. Each day is a new one and we move on.

As friends and family know, I've been working on a diploma in adult education for quite some time. I've often thought about starting down a new career path as a trainer and consultant but the time just never seemed right, especially with the recent economic downturn. This said though, there's never a right time. Rosi and I discussed it and we decided I'd give it a try. My fear is if I don't try now I may never. And, at the end of the day, it's the things we didn't do that we regret, not the things we did.

I returned to work on Monday, Feb 23rd and gave my notice that I was leaving in two months to start a new career. As is often the case with senior management though, the credit union didn't necessarily want someone hanging around who was obviously focused on something else. Particularly since other credit unions will be my primary marketing focus - so they released me immediately. It was a bit of a shock - OK, a huge shock - and it couldn't have come at a worse time, because of the other stresses due to Rosi's mum's passing, but whatever is meant to be will be. I'm now on my own as a training and development consultant, madly working the phone to develop contacts and drum up business. I have a few meetings already lined up and I have a really good feeling about where this might lead. In the interim I've joined the ranks of the self-employed and now control my own destiny. Which is double-speak for saying I now work 60 hours a week for half pay - but so far I'm loving it!

For tax reasons we formed the new company as a partnership. Say hello to DEXCO Training Consultants. The website is still under construction but I now have a business e-mail and the fax machine should be up and running in a few days. My business e-mail is dale@dexcotraining.com and the company website is http://www.dexcotraining.com/

One thing that's looking good since I now have more flexibility is I'm leaning towards flying back to Phoenix and riding my bike home. My sister Tami, one of the kindest and supportive women you'll ever meet, is taking Rosi on a two-week vacation back to Phoenix in April. Tami goes down every April and has enough airmiles to pay for her tickets as well as my other sister Sheri and Rosi. Oh boy! I can only imagine the goings on around the hot tub once those three crack open their first bottle of Corona or Red Wine! Rosi needs it though. Our vacation was cut short and it's been a crappy time for her since.

As for me, as long as I can get some work lined up before I go I'll take few days and complete the ride home. I'll fly down on a Wed so I can have the Thu and Fri to complete all the necessary maintenance, and then hit the road on a Sunday morning to avoid the freeway commuter traffic on a Monday. Looking at a map, I can do the ride in five easy days, which will put me home on a Thur night. And by late April (knock on wood) I shouldn't have any issues with snow. It'll be chilly again, but this time I'll have my other gear, which is designed specifically for cold weather riding, so I'll be fine.

That's it for now. I'm a co-executor on Rosi's mum's will and there are seven children and lots of grandchildren, all with an opinion of how things should be handled, the wills instructions notwithstanding. Stuart, her oldest son, is doing pretty much all the work and I'm just along for a second opinion and moral support, but it's still a huge commitment. And no matter how you try, someone isn't going to be satisfied. Oh well, broad shoulders.

Adios mi Amigos Y mi Familia

Last Post ( About this trip, anyway)

2009-02-14T06:59:00.000-08:00

Now that I'm back in Summerland I thought I'd address a couple of questions that just about everyone asks at one point or another;

Did I feel safe?
Yes! All the news reports aside, we didn't notice any more safety concerns than any time in the past. Right now in Vancouver the news reports a drug war or gang-related shooting every day - that doesn't mean all of Canada isn't safe. Likewise in Mexico. Yes, there are areas and unsavery characters to avoid, but my experience is no more than here, and in some respects a lot less. We've had no problems what-so-ever, in this trip or any of the others, and I'd recommend travel in the country without hesitation.

Was it safe to drive?
Yes! Ironically, in many ways I felt safer driving in Mexico that back here, or in the US when I crossed the border. For the most part the drivers in Mexico are better, more courteous and MUCH more aware than the zonered out, Ipod listening, cell phone talking drivers up here. On the freeways drivers stay in the right lane except to pass and in the cities all it takes is a look and a point to get traffic to open up to make room for you to move into a lane. Yes, in the cites it can sometimes look like chaos and anarchy, but it works for them and I'd suggest they're better drivers for it.

Were the hotels safe/clean/easy to find?
Yes, yes and sometimes.
Hotels are plentiful, clean, safe and inexpensive by our standards (but prices range greatly closer to the tourist hot spots) While every hotel we stayed at was spotlessly clean though, bed quality can differ greatly. For <$50 there's not a pillow top mattress to be found! As for easy to find, in some ways the guide book was a hindrance rather than a help. By this I mean we often found a hotel in our Lonely Planet and then spent time and energy trying to find it. If we didn't have the book we probably would just have grabbed the first decent looking place and had less hassle. One tip for riders; especially if you're looking for a specific hotel - follow a cab. When we arrived into Zihuatanejo we had a reservation that was going to allow us to check in at 9:00am and we were REALLY pressed for time because Rosi had to get to the airport. Nerves were frayed and we hit the town at rush hour and we didn't have any luck finding our place. On the contrary, all we did was get lost and ended up in the market area with narrow roads and LOT's of people. Rosi came to the rescue - she flagged over a cab and asked for directions to the hotel we were looking for. Half way through his Spanish directions she just held up her hand to stop him and said for him to lead and we'd follow. He took us right there in less than 10 minutes. Total cab fare; $2.00 Can - WELL worth it and food for thought for next time. I hope some of this helps. Anyway, thanks for following along. This'll be it for a month or so. My bike is now in Phoenix and Ward will be bringing it back at the end of April. I haven't entirely ruled out flying down and riding it back though, but I won't decide for quite a while yet. I'm hoping to get the Goldwing out of storage towards the end of March and we'd like to do a ride to Wenatchee in late March or early April to give it a good run. Rosi really likes riding and does well - and we need to replace our lost rain gear so a US trip will be in the cards fairly early in the year.

Safe and Sound in Apache Junction

2009-02-10T19:56:00.000-08:00

I left Navajoa this morning at 7:15 at a chilly 4 degree's. I made VERY good time ( no speed limit on the Autopista!) and I was at the border around 3:00. Clearing out of Mexico was quick and painless and the line up to get into the US wasn't too bad either so it was only 4:00 when I pulled into Nogales US and I figured what, the heck, I might as well go all the way.

I eventually pulled into Apache Junction just after full dark, right around 7:00. So, 11 1/2 hours and 900 klm later I'm here. Almost 3,000 Mexican kilometers in four days - not too shabby.

I'll make arrangements to store the bike tomorrow and book my flight and I should be home in Summerland by Thursday night.

Navajoa

2009-02-09T16:27:00.000-08:00

I couldn't sleep so I left Tepic at 5:30 and made it here (Navojoa) at 3:30; 10 hours / 865 klm = not a bad day. I could have gone on but the next city is an hour away and is larger than here, which may mean a harder time finding a hotel in city traffic. Navojoa is easy to get around and there was a good hotel right on the main highway so discretion played the better part of valour this time around.

When I hit the road this morning there was still an hour of full darkness and I discovered that my low-beam doesn't work - although it worked fine on Friday morning and I'm too tired and lazy to start looking at replacement lights etc., this close to home. The truckers will just have to live with it tomorrow.

Based on mileage it's time to clean and lube my chain again (hard to believe it's been >1,500 klm in two days) but I did it well in Cuyautlan and it's been clean highway riding so I'm going to leave it until Phoenix. Likewise, the tension probably needs adjustment too. It's not horrendously out of whack, just looser than when I started, but it can wait a day. The other maintenance issue is the front tire. I had the bike completely checked over before I left and the tire easily had another 5,000 - 6,000 klm left but the sustained speeds I'm keeping have accelerated the wear. Again, I'm sure it'll last but it wouldn't want to trust it on rough or wet roads.

If I push it hard again I think I can make it back to Apache Junction tomorrow. It' close to 900 klm but I did almost that much today. The two variables are the number of army checkpoints , which are increasing, and the time to cross the US border. I'll go to Nogalas on the US side for sure, but if it's any tine after 3:00 when I get there I may call it a day and go the rest of the way on Wed.

I'm making great time and all things being equal the bike is holding up remarkably well. Any of the http://www.sport-touring.net/ crowd that my be reading this and still maintain that the 650 VStrom isn't a capable sport-touring bike, can kiss my .............................Suzuki

Tepic

2009-02-08T15:41:00.000-08:00

I'm pushig hard and made it to Tepic today and think I can reach Culiacan or Los Mochis tomorrow. That may put me back at Phoenix by Tue or Wed.

Day 12 & 13

2009-02-07T19:00:00.000-08:00

The ride to Zihuatanejo and 400 long hard klm to Cuyuatlan

Yesterday was almost surreal. We were in such a lovely spot and Playa Azul was starting to grow on us. The day at the beach was great and the room and hotel were very nice. But, it wasn’t meant to be.

We both had a very poor night because of all the things running through our minds. Rosi was terribly sad and incredibly lonely because she couldn’t be with her family when she so desperately needed to be. She felt the frustration of being literally thousands of kilometres from home and there was nothing she could do.

I felt the weight of not being able to just pick up a phone and make things right. I so very much wanted to be able to give her everything she needed but no magic wand was going to make the phones work or the airport closer. But, with LOT’s of help from Brad we were able to make the necessary arrangements and all there was left to do on Thursday night was wait.

Neither of us got more than 30 minutes sleep at a time and we were up before the alarm had a chance to ring at 5:15. We debated leaving on Thursday but we needed to stay put while we made flight arrangements etc but then, on Friday we had to hustle in order to make it to Zihuatanejo for Rosi’s flight. We were up packed and out the door by 6:00. The problem of course, is in this part of Mexico it doesn’t become daylight until 7:00. And the iron clad rule of don’t drive at night means just as much at dawn as it does in the middle of the night.

It made for a VERY interesting ride. Interesting in a holy crap, this is REALLY scary kind of way. It was PITCH black as we took the back road to Lazaras Cardenus and from there we dodged the morning buses full of commuters, still in the dark, until we finally hooked back up with Hwy 200 South heading to Zihuatanejo. All the time watching the seconds count down as we desperately tried to make our way south in time to find our hotel so Rosi could shower and reshuffle/repack all her gear for the flight. We made it but nerves were more than a little frayed and it was significantly less than the Norman Rockwell farewell at the airport moment one would hope for under the circumstances.

All ended well though. Rosi cleared security and disappeared from view at 11:00 to catch her 12:00 flight. I talked to her at Dads around 8:00 and she and all her luggage made it just fine. As I type this she’s on the second leg of her journey and she should arrive into Kelowna 5:30 local time. I can only hope and pray that it’s on time.

Now it gets weird. My entries are no longer “we“, it’s now “I“ Not something either of us wanted and definitely not something I like.

I‘m a big believer in “whatever floats your boat..” It’s a big wonderful world and it takes all kinds to make it go around but I’m afraid I just don’t see the appeal to solo travel. Maybe it speaks more to me. Am I so shallow I can’t be by myself? I don’t know the answer but I do know that I’m a social animal. After 25 + years of being joined at the hip I desperately missed Rosi only ten minutes into her being gone. I’m such a suck! And, as the day wore on, rather than exploring the various sights and sounds that Zihuatanejo had to offer I found that all the bars, restaurants and people having fun just drove home the point that I was alone.

I did meet two very cool guys at the bar around the corner from the Hotel. Ramon, from Mexico and Rod, an ex-pat American, both time-share salesman. We had a great conversation about bikes (what else?)and the economy and it was good to connect with someone.

I’m now sitting in the sidewalk café/restaurant of the Hotel Fenix in the very quaint town of Cuyuatlan. It was long hot hard 400 klm/eight hour day to get here but now that I’m here it’s lovely. It’s like a smaller, slightly more laid back version of Barra. There’s a small brown German Shepherd that may belong here or may be a stray, but he’s asleep at my feet, next to the cat on the chair beside me. I've already chatted up a Mexican father/son team about my bike, their bikes and the relative merits of a Suzuki vs a BMW. I SO like it here!

Rosi - you would love it. It’s definitely a “stay awhile” kind of place. The beach runs a very close second to Playa Azul but the town is cute, comfortable and welcoming. Very un-Playa Azul like.

Cat - if you’re reading this I owe you an apology. When you talked about this place before, I confused it with Ciuatlan. A dusty little commerce centre south of Barra - completely different than here.

I left Zihuat at 8:00 this morning and, despite having walked all over the day before, and having a good idea of the lay of the land, I still succumbed to a little of can’t get out of town, syndrome. Not much, but a little. Two wrong turns and u-turns later though I was winging my way northward.

And I mean winging. On my own I’m at least 250 pounds lighter. This ISN’T however, an indication of Rosi’s weight! She’s SIGNIFICANTLY less. But, you take her, all her riding gear, including boots and helmet, all her luggage, plus all the extra stuff I now know I don’t need that I sent home with her, and the bike is WAY lighter. Before, we were a strategic bomber, winging our way south in a sedate flight pattern while we carried a full load to be delivered with precision at each subsequent target. Now, I’m Red Flight Leader, in a sleek fighter jet, speeding north with flair and élan.’

Hey, it’s my fantasy. If you don’t like the analogy, write your own blog.

There is a definite difference though. I had to back off on the pre-load because I was so high I couldn’t steady the bike well enough. I could have left it but this is a good compromise and I now clear 99% of the Topes, as opposed to 90% before.

About an hour into the ride I had a bit of a moment. My speedo has three odometer settings. The first is just the regular odometer (which is really racking up the klm’s) The other two settings are for recording trip mileage. I use one to record each day and the other I’ve left to accumulate the trip so I can keep track of when the chain needs to be cleaned and lubed. This morning, as I was cycling between the three it hit me; I’m 3,000 kilometres into southern Mexico, alone and a LONG way from home. Just when Rosi needs me the absolute most I’m so very far away and I can’t do anything about it. Then, it hit me. Up until now, each early morning ride, the sun’s been right in our eyes. Especially the further south we came because we were heading East as much as South. It makes the first couple of hours tough and is just one more of the “adventures” in adventure travel. This morning though, I was heading west for the first time. The rising sun was over my shoulder. Instead of holding me back it was a familiar friend with a gentle hand pushing me onward. It whispered; go on, she’s waiting and she needs you at home; go on.

Right about then I must have gotten a bug or sand under my face shield because my eyes started to water. Apparently, tears, suntan lotion and blind corners do NOT mix.

I’m on my way, Sweetie, I’m on my way.

You know how sometimes you’ll drive a route the first time and think it’s long or hard but the next time it seems so much easier? Not this time. The first 50 or so klm north of Zihuat are fine but the next 200 are brutal. After enough sweeping vista’s it’s just another blind corner and just another sheer drop-off to the rocks below. And so on, ad infinitum….without end. No shoulder, no view points or look outs, not even the hint of a passing lane and a humidex to put Hades to shame.

Could I make good time? Maybe, but noooooo, this time I simply HAD to try the helmet cam and video camera I’ve drug all the way from home. It would have been SO cool! By mounting a lipstick cam on my helmet I could have recorded, not just the road, but all the views; you’d see what I see; the incredible coastline, the thousands of emerald green acres planted in banana tree‘s and the young soldiers at the check point that waived me through with high-fives and a thumbs up! But….I tested the set up when I bought the camera, I tested it before I came down, I even tested it in my room last night. But apparently, I didn’t test the freak’n 12V/110 inverter I bought from Canadian Tire!

The remote camera itself needs an independent AC power source so I bought an inverter to plug into the 12V outlet I have on the bike. No such luck. It doesn’t work! And I know it’s not the power outlet because I tested it with my 12V pump and it works fine. Tabernac!

GRRRRRRR!!!

I jury-rigged a setup by bungee cording my camera to the tank bag but it’s not the same. OK, but a fairly narrow field of view.

The other thing I remembered through this exercise is why I didn’t tape much last year, despite all the good intentions. It’s a HUGE PIA. Between messing around with all the gear and wires to set up and then break down the helmet cam - and then mess around with the bungee’s etc - plus stops along the way to check things out - I lost at least an hour and a half. I was determined though, and I think I got some great shots.

I did my best to take breaks to drink lots of water but it’s a difficult stretch to do this (right Sweetie?) so by 2:00 I HAD to stop for a while. I pulled into a hotel restaurant in San Juan and had a great Ceviche cocktail overlooking the ocean. The service was glacial but the view was to die for. I seriously considered calling it a day right then and there but I pushed on.

I hit the road at 3:00 and was SO looking forward to ending the nightmare that the ride had become. By now even my Monkey Butt had Monkey Butt! Hot Hot Hot and a never ending string of tight switchbacks and elevation changes. Followed by the even more sweltering, Colima coastal lowlands. Great for banana plantations but definitely where you want to be pool-side before 3:00!

Oh, how my tune has changed!

And then, as I approached Tecoman I heard it…..the name that needs no introduction….the name that is itself the siren song for Mexican riders….. can you hear it?
.........autopista…......autopista……AUTOPISTA!!

Oh, sweet mother of all things good! Oh, glorious Autopista! A black ribbon of loveliness that enfolds you in her arms and carries you onward; faster, safer, and ever closer to home.

I’m on my way Sweetie, I’m on my way…..

Cheers

Vikki and Wayne; I didn’t get a reply so I’m not sure if you got my e-mail. I’d love to see a familiar face and I’d really like to stop in to see you both. Are you going to be around? . Please send me an e-mail with the name of you complex again and the best way to get there. I’ll check my e-mail one more time tonight.

Day 11 - The Good, the Bad and the Ugly

2009-02-05T19:37:00.000-08:00

First the good;

Playa Azul, looks MUCH better after a good nights sleep. Yes, it’s still a VERY small and somewhat rundown and dishevelled little town but it has a certain charm in an almost Caribbean poverty stricken kind of way. But, oh my God, the beach! Yes, the beach is incredible. It’s really just an extension of the fantastic Michoacán beach we saw on the way down and here, in Play Azul, it‘s a 200 meter wide swath of fine white sand that goes on in both directions to the horizon. It’s HUGE! And, because it’s such a shallow slope, the waves break way out and then gently roll into shore in knee deep shallow water. It’s warm, clean, and fantastic for swimming - and taylor made for frolicking (if I was to do such a thing) Today we spent several hours swimming, soaking up the rays and drinking a few cerveca before heading back to the hotel for a cool off dip in the pool and a nap. And this evening we look like lobsters.

But…..that leads us to the bad…..
I fired up my e-mail just to check messages before my swim and nap and we received some bad news. We have a family emergency back home and we need to get back ASAP. With Brad’s help I was able to book Rosi a one-way flight out of Zihuatanejo tomorrow. We’ll head south out of here as early as possible, maybe even 30 minutes or so before full light, so that we can grab a room there and she can shower and re-organize our luggage off the bike before she flies out at 12:00. She’ll overnight in Phoenix and should be in Kelowna by 5:00 on Saturday.

The ugly….is me carrying on sans my co-pilot. We always wanted this trip to be our inaugural run two-up to test the waters so to speak. So far Rosi has been a real trooper. She’s been a great second set of eyes and has suffered the odd missed tope taken too fast with gritted teeth and a great attitude.

We were already making our map and timing plans to leave here in the morning and head inland to visit Uruapan. It’s only 2 ½ hours from here via the autopista and is supposed to be a beautiful colonial city. After that we were considering Lake Chapala and then dog legging back down to PV to visit family already staying there.

But it’s not to be - this time anyway. I’ll stay in Zihuatanejo for at least a day because by the time I see Rosi off it’ll be too late to hit the road + we’ll have checked into a hotel overnight. I’ll get some rest and stay out of the sun and start my way back north on Sunday.

It’s been approx six full days and two half days of riding to get here and I should be able to cut that down a little flying solo. My major decision will revolve around which route. Take the inland autopista route, which may be quicker and is patrolled by the Green Angels or backtrack up the coast on a route I’m familiar with and which has the greater chance of finding English spoken in each major centre? Hmmmmmm? Between now and 6:30 on Sunday I’ll have to decide.

Day 10 - Ride to Playa Azul

2009-02-05T06:53:00.000-08:00

Yesterday, day 10, was another very tough day. Tough from the perspective of a long hard ride but a good day - a very good day - nonetheless. It was only 340 klm but on a twisty Mexican road, with more topes than you can count, it took us seven long hot hours.

Fist, we had a great night in the hotel in Colima. It’s surprising how a king size bed, colour cable TV, unlimited hot water and attentive staff that speak English will rejuvenate you when you need it. Rosi’s back, no thanks to the masseuse that received her training from the Marquis de Sade, (another story, that won’t get repeated here) is doing much better and we got away right around 8:00. Because the hotel staff speak fluent English we were able to get excellent and specific directions out of town and we had no problems.

Likewise the first 50 or so klm are on the Autopista to the coast and we made great time. But, apparently, the “can’t get out of a Mexican city” syndrome isn’t restricted to just the city you spend the night in. We took a wrong turn in the first city of size down the coast and ended up on a lovely scenic but pretty remote, secondary road heading out of town the wrong way. After 10 minutes or so I clued in it just wasn’t busy enough to be Hwy 200, the VERY friendly herd of goats notwithstanding, and the cute cow that came right up the fence to check out the lost Gringo’s. We turned around and went back into town and stopped for coffee and donuts (yes, again) and got several sets of conflicting directions until we settled on the two or three that matched the closest and headed out of town in the right direction.

The next 100 klm or so were great. Good roads, not much traffic and just enough topes to keep you on your toes. The only thing of note that happened on this stretch was when we crossed the Chiapas state line. We hit out first army road block. A full on, fairly serious affair. They directed us to the side, recorded our names, passport numbers and the bike registration on a form and asked us to remove all our luggage from the bike so they could inspect it. Rosi was convinced it was so they could go through our stuff and steal something (based on anther incident from a few years ago) so a bit of a Mexican stand off ensured. She refused to open more than one bag at a time and insisted on watching the process each time. It got a little funny, especially when the kid with the biggest tude couldn’t figure out how to open the roll top dry bags we use for some of our gear. We eventually got everything inspected and loaded back on the bike and headed south. This set us back easily a half hour though.

We then we hit the stretch that I remembered from last year. It’s 100+ klm of VERY tight turns, quick changes in elevation and never ending switchbacks and S turns. Last year - except for the truck that almost killed Kevan on a blind corner (which isn’t saying much because they’re ALL blind corners) - we were all grinning from ear-to-ear. It’s a riders dream. This year however, my bike weighed 300 pounds more and I was responsible for someone else so it added a whole new dimension.

But….very soon after you start this section the road hugs the Michoacan coast, which is some of the most beautiful coastline in Mexico. This is where Mexico meets the Mar de Sur - the southern ocean. Instead of facing due west like PV it now faces more south than west. It’s not quite the Caribbean but it’s definitely different. Without exaggerating, and trying not to be too cliché’, it’s fantastic. Literally hundreds of kilometres of untouched beach, turquoise blue ocean, crashing waves and rocky outcroppings, and all under a crystal clear blue sky.

If this is the price for several hours of hard riding it’s a fantastic bargain and well worth the price of admission!

This stretch comes to an end after a couple hours and settles into a final routine of go fast, go slow, scream because you didn’t see the tope until too late, and start again. Exhausting.

We arrived into Playa Azul around 3:00, soaking wet and literally wrung out. The temp and humidity in this area are both high and the exertion of this type of riding takes a toll. But….that’s no excuse for what happened next. We rolled up to the curb to get off the bike to check our guide book and I didn’t have it set up well enough on the side stand. If the road angle is just right it sometimes puts the bike at an angle that’s too upright for the side-stand to properly hold the bike. That’s what happened this time but I didn’t notice. I was halfway off when the bike fell away from me towards the low side.

OK, you say, this sometimes happens and bikes fall from time to time. Except, ROSI WAS STILL ON BOARD! Yikes!, my life flashed before my eyes. In nano-seconds I considered all the ramifications. Will she be hurt? Will she want to stop riding? But the one question I already knew the answer to - She’s going to be soooo pissed! She was.

All’s well that ends well though. Between the panniers both front and back that held the bike away from the road when it was on it’s side, her forethought to not try to jump away from the bike and instead hug it to protect her legs, and our motto of ATGATT, (all the gear all the time) she was fine. Pissed, but fine. The Mexicans that witnessed this little fiasco, including me having to pretend that 600 pounds of bike and gear isn’t too heavy to pick up in 38 degree’s, are still laughing their sombrero’s off.

She’s a trooper though and doesn't hold a grudge. She quickly shrugged it off and we got back on and headed off to find accommodation.

We're checked into a lovely hotel with a great pool, wifi, and a few channels of Englais on the TV. The town though, is Muy interesting. All the guidebooks describe an idyllic seaside village. I guess that’s accurate. In a scary, deserted, Stephen King could write a book here, kind of way. It’s a dusty, very quiet little place but you can see it must be rock’n on the week-ends when the large crowds of Mexican families arrive. So far we’ve seen maybe five other tourists but there are restaurants on the beach that might seat 100+ but are completely empty. Great for getting a table but a little spooky and surreal once the sun goes down.

Anyway, this morning is a new day. Sun, surf and cerveca while we decide what to do next.

Day 9 Colima

2009-02-03T12:15:00.000-08:00

As I write this I’m sitting by the roof-top pool in the Best Western Hotel in very quaint Mexican city of Colima.

http://www.hotelceballos.com/english/index.asp

We got away around 8:00 this morning and it’s approx a 2 ½ hour run to Colima - 3 hours for us with a coffee, donut/gas stop to stretch our legs. We had no problems whatsoever and it was a beautiful day. Hot and sunny and divided highway for most of the way. I didn’t record the mileage before I parked but I think it was right around 175 klm from Barra to here.
We had no problems following the signs right into Centro and made our way easily to the Best Western. It’s a step up from where we usually stay when we’re on the road but Rosi deserves a pillow-top mattress and some luxury to break up the regular budget hotel routine. This place is amazing. In many respects it’s like a very upscale business class hotel anywhere but even in Vancouver, I can’t remember the last time the concierge came by with a silver tray while I was checking in and offered me freshly squeezed OJ and a chilled towel to wipe my brow. It’s approx 150 years old and it’s very colonial with high ceilings, centre courtyards and lot’s of great architectural detail. Steve/Brad/Kevan, it’s on the main square where we had dinner and where there was a stage set up and you guys stayed and watched for a while.

One thing that’s kind of neat is we noticed a lot of smoke in the air coming into the valley and here on the roof-top there’s some ash in the air. It’s from the Volcano just outside of town! No lava but you can definitely see the top is venting smoke and ash.

Anyway, not much else to report today. We may hit a museum once the heat of the day is past or we may catch a cab out to Wally World to see if we can replace the rain pants and cover I lost. From there it’ll be same ol same ol…..cerveca at a sidewalk café, a few hands of rummy, maybe a siesta and then dinner at a different side-walk café. Yes, the life of adventure motorcycle is a rough one but we manage!

Adios mi amigos Y mi familia

Day 8 - Barra de Navidad

2009-02-02T10:56:00.000-08:00

Greetings from hot, sunny and oh, so laid back, Barra de Navidad!

Just a short note while I wait for Rosi to return from her massage. Ironically, we don't think it's the riding that's given her a sore back - although it probably doesn't hurt. It's more likely some of the beds we've slept on. We're staying in some very nice middle-class Mexican hotels but.....clean and well run doesn't necessarily equate to a Seally Postutepediac pillow-top mattress. Everything has been spotless but some of the mattresses belong in Bedrock more than a hotel. In one case in particular it brought new meaning to firm. Rosi has had a sore back for the last two mornings so we booked her a massage and we've picked up some liniment and muscle relaxants to see if she can shake it.

Barra is just as nice as we remember it. It's a very laid back small touristy beach town with a good cross-section of clientele that ranges from over the hill hippies to ex-pat's building very nice second homes and everything in between, including middle-class Mexican families hitting the beach. And the weather is just this side of perfect. The temp right now is 28 with 56% humidity, which makes it feel like 34. There's not a cloud in the sky and the forecast is for a lot more of the same.

(Memo to self - no matter HOW good it smells do NOT partake of the famous Barra de Navidad bus depot Taco's!)

I've gone through my notes and have tallied our mileage
Day 1 - AJ to Santa Ana - 379
Day 2 - SA to Los Mochis - 667 (Yikes!)
Day 3 - LM to Mazatlan - 481
Day 4 - Nada
Day 5 - Maz to Rincon - 412
Day 6 - Nada
Day 7 - Rincon - Barra - 270 (Felt like much more!)
Day 8 - Nada
Total so far = 2,209 klm - just about time to clean and lube the chain again.

Cheers

Day 6 and 7 Ricon de Guayabitos and the drive to Barra

2009-02-01T16:32:00.000-08:00

NOTE - new pictures uploaded to Picassa. Click on the link and scoll to the end to see the latest additions

Day 6 and 7
Yesterday, day 6, was a great day to chill out, get some rest and generally play tourist. We started out with coffee in bed ( we travel with our own percolator and a pound of Starbucks) and then a late breakfast at an old favourite restaurant from our previous trips. From there we went for a long walk along the beach with just about every Mexican family within a 300 klm radius. Beachside resort towns are VERY popular with Mexican families on week-ends. And why not, after all it’s their country. This can make for a very loud and very crowed couple of days though, so after our walk we sat and had a few cerveca's but then left the beach to the million or so families that were having a great time. Instead, we had to make a huge sacrifice and hang out by the hotel pool, drinking beer, lounging in a recliner and taking a dip every half hour or so to cool off. It was rough, but someone has to do it.

Yesterday evening we finished off with another walk around town and a very nice pizza and beer dinner at a local tourist haunt. Muy Bueno.

Today was a great riding day and for the first time the heat reared it head as a factor in how long/far you can go. We got up early and forwent breakfast to get on the road by 7:00ish and then stopped at a roadside OXXO store (very much like our 7/11) for a coffee and donut. Approx 45 minutes later we pulled into Bucarious (sp?) and had a great full breakfast at a lovely restaurant right on the water. We pulled out right around 10:00 but shortly thereafter we lost an hour due to the time zone change just north of PV.

Speaking of which, there HAS to be a way to bypass downtown and head south. If there is though, we missed it. The road is great coming into town - a four lane divided highway - and as you near the centre it’s still good, just busier as you enter the old hotel zone. Then, BAM, it spits you right onto a cobblestone (AKA rocks) street in downtown. We followed the Malecon right into old town, over the bridges, into Centro and through the other side until we missed a turn, backtracked to correct, and hit the hill out of town heading south. The whole process of getting through PV had to take at least an hour. Don’t get me wrong - in the big scheme of things we did remarkably well. And here’s where I have to give my Sweety a big plug. She’s turned out to be a great passenger. Yes, we’ve both had our moments but overall she’s been WAY more of a help than not. She zigs when I do and is a great second set of eyes. And she’s been a real trooper on some of the long stretches.

Vicki and Wayne - when we come back we’ll send you an e-mail and try to get specific instructions. We saw several signs for Nuevo but once we turn off the main drag it’ll be easy to get lost.

So, we eventually got spit out south of town and continued on coastal highway 200. It’s a very good road, roughly equivalent to Hwy 97, just more twisty and a LOT more remote in some stretches. Again, speaking of which, we’ve both agreed to take more breaks. What happens is you look at a distance marker and equate it to travel times back home. IE, you see a sign that says the next town is 38 klm. You might be tired and ready for a break but you say to yourself, what the heck, I’ll wait, it’s only anther 25 or 30 minutes. But then you run into twists, a cattle truck, five small pueblo’s with five tope’s each and the next thing you know it’s an hour later and you’re still not there. We fell into that trap today (not just me for those of you now saying poor Rosi - I suggested we stop but more often than not she said keep going) and we did a couple of too long stretches. Because of course, then what happens is you say OK now we HAVE to stop and there’s no safe place to pull over and/or no gas station etc to get a cold drink.

Anyway, we had a good day. It was just under 300 klm in total and we arrived into Barra right around 3:00ish local time and we were drinking beer by the pool by 3:30. I even bought a round for the only other couple in the pool, a young Mexican couple, and we struck up a great conversation for a half hour or so. Rosi is now taking a well deserved nap and I’m catching up on downloading pictures etc. She took some great shots from the back of the bike which you can see by clicking on the Picassa Web Album. We also have some great video clips from the back of the bike but they’ll have to wait until I can make a video when we’re home. It's just too cumbersome with a slow wireless connection.

Tomorrow is a down day here in Barra. It’s been a few years since we were here and we want to see how the old haunts are holding up.

So far it's been a full week on the road. Five days riding and two down days; Mazatlan and yesterday in Ricon. It sounds like a lot but we were resigned to three straight days from Phoenix just because there's not much to see. We're now following a schedule of one day riding and one day off which is very reasonable. We've covered 2,060 in total and, as long as Rosi holds up as well as she has and enjoys it when we're done, I think SA next year may be on the horizon.

Cheers

Day 5 Mazatlan - Rincon de Guayabitos

2009-01-30T20:37:00.000-08:00

Our day in Mazatlan was great. We went downtown to do a little shopping and on a whim we popped into a local ReMax office. We’ve had our eye on real estate in Mazatlan for quite a while and we’ve often wondered if the reality of a home would live up to its image and description on the internet. With this in mind Rosi hoped to take a look at house we’ve had our eye on for a while. Low and behold, it was a listing of the ReMax office!
We spent the afternoon getting some sun and well deserved cerveca around the pool and then, at 4:00, the Realtor picked us up to go look at the house. It’s a 1,000 sq ft rancher in a very nice neighbourhood and it’s as cute as a bugs ear - and it has incredible potential. It was every bit as good as it appeared and it was a great experience to be able to talk to the two different realtors and get actual numbers for taxes, legal fees, offsite management etc.
We ended the day with a really nice spaghetti dinner at a sidewalk café right on the square. Dinner, four drinks, two glasses of wine, a beautiful salad for two, coffee and two after dinner liquors all for $50! Muy Bueno!
Today, day 5, however, was officially gruelling. It was a long, hard, hot, tope ridden 390 klm, that took a full eight hours and Rosi REALLY earned her stripes. She’s been a real trooper and after today, she can hold her head up with the best of them from Horizons Unlimited or Adventure Rider.
The day got off to a good start. We decided to hold back and have a full breakfast again. Even if we get away a little later it carries us through most of the day and means we don’t have to look for a place later on. We hit the road around 8:30 and immediately ran up against “leaving a Mexican city syndrome. What should have been a 10 minute straight run turned into a series of wrong turns and weaving our way through various neighbourhoods desperately looking for a way out of the maze.
Imagine trying to get from Richmond to Abbotsford in rush hour, with no signage, no map, only the vaguest idea of which direction was right and no one to ask that speaks English. Well, forget that part. You’d have that problem anyway.
We eventually hit the freeway south (free is a wholly inaccurate description however) and it was smooth sailing for almost three hours. The Autopista south of Mazatlan is very expensive but well worth it. The road is a very well maintained divided highway and we made great time. We stopped for a break at a toll booth and had the first problem of the trip. Not a problem really, just a PIA, and all my fault.
I use a small dry bag as a duffle bag to hold our rain gear and the cover for the bike. It’s bulky but not heavy so I bungee it to the lid of my top box. It’s now on the side of the autopista somewhere between Mazatlan and the first or second toll booth because my bungee cords didn’t hold. Oh well, hopefully the Mexican that finds it needs it more than us. I can replace the cover at the first Walmart we pass and I can probably pick up some cheap rain pants in Mazatlan before we head too far north and hit the cold again. We can get by without the jackets until we get home [ Dad, I may ask you to take us back to the motorcycle gear store you took us to last year. The prices are MUCH better than Canada]
Where things fell off the rails is our decision to leave the Autopista early and detour through San Blas on the way to Guayabitos. At first things went smoothly. Or at least as smoothly as you can get between topes that alternate between aggravating and Oh, my God! I really put my “skid plate” to the test a few times! The road was as winding as anything the four of us experienced in Mexico last year - and as we made progress towards the coast the heat, and humidity climbed. Then, after an hour of this, and literally five minutes from San Blas - and just as my gas gauge started flashing empty - we came around the corner and hit stopped cars due to a construction crew. They had a crane parked cross ways and all traffic was blocked both ways. We had to wait for an hour before they let cars through again. We could have turned around and taken a different route but our gas situation wouldn’t allow it.
We eventually made it through, gassed up and stopped for a coke but then - as the heat and humidity took it’s toll and yes, we had a “moment” or two - we couldn’t leave town. You laugh, but it’s true. Between a maze of conflicting signs, one-way streets heading the wrong way and road construction everywhere, we were TRAPPED! It took us another half hour and the decision to ignore one-way signs and simply buck traffic, before we were on the road again but then we hit the construction again! This time though, we jumped the line and when we got to the front there was JUST enough room for me to squeeze past the corner of the crane. The foreman said I could try so Rosi got off and walked and I gingerly made way around and past the truck. We both loaded back up and we got back under way, except now it was two hours of very secondary roads and tope hell until we eventually hooked back up with Hwy 200 leading to Guayabitos.
We arrived around 4:30, hot, tired, and a little frazzled. The good news though, is five years from now all the uneventful days will be faded memories but we’ll remember this one for quite a while.
And don’t even ASK how Rosi likes traffic on the secondary roads. We had a few “words” about the relative merits of passing Mexican five-ton trucks and about the best time to do so………OK, so an intercom wasn’t necessarily my best decision.
All is well now though. We're settled in a nice hotel, fed and watered and tomorrow will be a beach and/or pool day. Adios mi Amigos, Amigas Y Familia

Pictures

2009-01-29T07:54:00.000-08:00

I think I've done this correctly. If you double click in the "slideshow" that's to the right it should take you to the web album I've set up. I've downloaded our pictures to Picassa and you can view them all or one at a time. This seems to work better than trying to download individual pictures to this blog.

Brad, please give this a test and let me know if it works.

Day 3 - Los Mochis - Mazatlan / Day 4 Mazatlan

2009-01-29T06:05:00.000-08:00

It's actually day 4 now - I was too tired to make the effort yesterday. Not to imply that yesterday was some kind of gruelling adventure- it wasn't - it's just that after 3 days and 1,500 klm you get worn down. My bike is great but it's not a Goldwing and it's not necessarily the best for three straight days of freeway cruising.

But.....we did great nonetheless. We knew that our final push to Mazatlan was a little shorter so we didn't have to rush. We got up a little later and had a nice breakfast in the restauarant right in the hotel. First though, I had to back the bike out of the vestuble we had it tucked away in, and roll it through the lobby and out onto the street. But even that went smoothly, although there were more than a few raised eyebrows from the other business-class customers. After breakfast we loaded the bike -again, something that goes more smoothly each time we do it - and hit the road around 8:45.

When we planned this trip Rosi made me promise we'd stay at a hotel at the outskirts of town so we could avoid the heavy and often chaotic traffic in a typical Mexican city. Well, we didn't. We stayed right downtown. And it wasn't an issue. I'm not sure if it's because I'm more comfortable on a bike than in a car in traffic, (as ironic as that sounds) if it's because we're more acclimatized to the traffic or if Mexican traffic is just getting better - or a combination of the above or all of the above, but no matter the reason, we had no problems making our way right downtown and finding the hotel.

Getting out of town went just as smooth - with only one u-turn!

The drive from Los Mochis is just about all on very good Autopista's. It's a little pricey - I think we paid > $40 in tolls - but it's worth it. It turns an eight or nine hour drive through tope Hell into a 5 hour drive on super highway with very little traffic. We made great time and rolled through another 460 klm in great time. We stopped at Pemex stations along the way and again, struck up conversations and made some great connections.

It was very interesting do retrace the same route the four of us took last year. This this I had a full tank of gas, it was a beautiful sunny day and I could enjoy the ride without any of the pucker factor. It's also interesting to note that there's a big sign as you leave Culiacan - "no gas for 176 klm" - something we obviously missed by detouring into El Dorrado.

We cruised along nicely at 130 - 140 kph, but the Suzuki speedo is notorious for being out by 8% so it was really closer to 115kph - 125kph. Still plenty fast for a 650 Vstrom but not crazy fast and not difficult on a two-lane divided highway that puts our freeways to shame. The best part was the weather. It was around 15 when we left Mochis and we could forgo a few layers. As we continued south it warmed up even more and by noon we could finally shuck our liners and finally ride in just our mesh gear. We even changed our gloves for the warm weather gloves we just bought. Muy Bueno!

We arrived into Mazatlan around 2:00ish and, again, had no problems coming into downtown to find our hotel. Just one wrong turn and a u-turn to go back before realizing it was one way but we were now going against traffic. Oh well, it was only a minute to get back to the right corner. We unpacked, showered, and were ensconced in the poolside cafe by 3:00. Lunch and a few beers later it was nap time. Later last night, we went out for a walk but called it a really early evening.

It's now Thursday morning and I'm typing this from my kingsize bed. The curtains are open leading to our deck overlooking the pool and the view to the ocean. It's a beautiful clear day and the forecast is for sunshine and 29 degrees. We have nothing planned but a leisurely lunch at a sidewalk cafe on the main square and I have to clean and lube my chain.

One final note - the news has all kinds of stories about the drug wars and escalating violence down here. Ignorance may be bliss but we haven't really noticed much change at all. There are some really long lines of trucks being checked out at check points heading north but nothing that's effected us at all.

Viva Mexico

Advice Needed

2009-01-27T20:02:00.000-08:00

I'm not having any luck uploading pictures using a wirelesss connection. It may be nothing but one thought is the file size of the pictures may be too large. If anyone knows how to "re-size" pictures to make them easier to upload please send me an e-mail to d-boisclair@shaw.ca
Thx
Dale

Day 2 - Sanata Ana - Los Mochis

2009-01-27T19:41:00.000-08:00

What is love? It’s a very hard question to answer but an easy one to define by example. I love my wife; with a depth that can only come from the passage of time and a journey travelled together. I love my son Brad, not the same way of course, but certainly no less. To a lesser degree - or rather, a poor choice of the word, I love riding my motorcycle, sunrises, and Mexico. So, at 8:30 this morning, as we were riding south through the Sonora desert highlands, I had one of “those” moments; the moment that sometimes defines a vacation. Or at the very least, will be something to focus on later on when I’m back at work or shovelling snow. I was cruising along at an easy 130kph, no traffic on a divided highway in Mexico, great conditions, a beautiful sunrise well under way, with Rosi on my bike with me and Brad’s band, The Garyoaksmen, blasting from the intercom.

It just doesn’t get any better than this……..well actually it does. Dexter could have been along for the ride and it might have been an improvement if it wasn’t absolutely FREAK’N FREEZING!
Oh well, 5 out 7 isn’t bad at all.

I wish I could now pass on stories of an arduous trip through the Mexican border states, plagued by banditos and an out of control drug war - but I can’t lie. It was a fantastic ride but not too much to write about - although uneventful is definitely better than the alternative.
We changed it up slightly this morning because of wanting to wait until full daylight before leaving. So, instead, we went for an early breakfast at a spotlessly clean restaurant right next to the hotel. It was fairly quiet at 6:00 but there were a few businessmen and a couple of families travelling - but no banditos or drug lords to be seen. We hit the road around 7:30 with our first stop at a gas station and convenience store in Hermosillo for the obligatory coffee and donuts. The one thing we noticed right away is the bike and our gear is a calling card for friendly chat and inquiries. We didn’t get a lot of this last year and Kevan hit it on the head when he said it was because we were in a group. People may not have wanted to impose themselves if we were already talking amongst ourselves etc. or we were too intimidating. Not so this time. We had a great chat with what we assumed was a rep for Pemex. He was definitely white colour and may have been a salesman etc and we talked about the bike and where we were from. He has a sister in Vancouver and he absolutely loves Canada and Canadians. Not to be outdone, we also had a chat with a salesman from the local Chevy dealer. He gave us some good advice and gave us his card and made us promise that we’d call him on his cell if we had any problems - anywhere at all in Mexico.

From there it was another long push to Navajoa - and it finally started to warm up. You’ll see we’re in our rain gear in a lot of the pictures. It wasn’t because of rain it was to add layers. It was only 3 degrees when we left the hotel!

In Novajoa we stopped at yes, another Pemex, for a sandwich and coffee. This time it was a friendly gentlemen in his 60’s (?) that started up a conversation. We soon learned that he; owns the Pemex, has 18 grandchildren, 2 great great grandchildren and two grandsons currently studying English in Canada. Did I mention he loves Canada? Or that I have flags plastered everywhere? We wanted to get going but he just HAD to take me next door and give me a tour of his Briggs and Straten shop. He sells engines and water pumps and has three mechanics to fix them. It started to get a little embarrassing though, when he took me out back to meet the crew and his son had a WTF look on his face. He put on a smile though and told me it was one of his sons in Toronto currently studying.

We finally got geared up and hit the road again. It was only 2:00 and, even though we’d done a good day, it was too early to stop. Plus, by pushing on today we’ll get into Mazatlan tomorrow around 1:00. The last two hours were nothing, if not routine. The toll highways aren’t busy and my bike absolutely purrs along at 125-130 kph. We arrived here in Los Mochis at 4:00 and , surprisingly, we didn’t have too many problems with traffic. Rosi is starting to relax and is a great and welcome second set of eyes. We eventually made our way to the Hotel Fenix. It’s where we stayed a few years ago when we did the Copper Canyon.

It’s a nice Mexican business class hotel - but one problem, no off street parking. Problem you think, no problemo! Viva Mexico! Throw open both doors, weave through the cars angle parked out front, jump the curb and voila! Lobby parking! I had to take off the panniers though, to get it through the hall to the spot they picked by the lobby pay phones :-)

It was a long 650 klm today and we’re tired - but it’s the good tired of the fight well fought and a job well done. Tomorrow, Mazatlan!

Santa Anna Mexico

2009-01-26T15:44:00.000-08:00

Day 1
Today was great!
The drive down to Spokane was uneventful and nowhere near as crappy as my drive down last year. We had good weather and had a nice brunch and dropped off Dexter at the doggy daycare at 11:00 and arrived in Spokane around 3:30. There's a nice restaurant in the hotel so we stayed in, had an early dinner and and made it an early night.

The flight to Phoenix was fine - arrived on time with no issues - and all our luggage etc made it too. Sorry, no wild story's to relate, just the way it should be. Dad and Carol picked us up at the airport and we went out for a very nice lunch on the way to their place. I spent the afternoon getting our gear sorted out out and last night we all went out for dinner with Mick and Sharon and Bonnie and Ward. A good time was had by all.
This morning we got off to a late start but it's not unexpected. It always takes a while to get into the groove and we took a while to get everything loaded etc etc, plus it doesn't get light here until close to 7:30. But, sharply at the crack of 7:45ish we rolled out the gate. It was a bit of a wobbly start though, and I'm guessing the bon voyage group were wondering what the hell? In my defense, I haven't ridden in over three months and the bike weighs a ton! After a few miles though, things started to fall into place and we headed south! We went south to Florence and then did a dogleg west to I10 so we could pick up the interstate before going through Tuscon, that way we avoided city traffic by staying on the freeway right through the city. We stopped a couple of times for coffee/gas/breaks etc and finally made it to Nogales. But.....between Tuscon and Nogales the wind REALLY picked up. From the side at first and then head-on. It made the trip after that really fatiguing. We crossed the border without incident but it still took an hour. Actually, it only took 10 minutes but I had to stand in line for 45 minutes before I could get to the window to pay for my visa.

Nogales on the Mexican side is a HUGE shock to the senses, and REALLY different than the US side. Hard to believe they're only across an invisible line from each other. Diesel fumes, sewer gas, roast chicken and all the rest that we've come to love - but.....it's definitly not for everyone.

From Nogales south, the road is fantastic. 21 klm down the road you hit the road-side check point where you get your Visa etc, and we stopped at a small VERY Mexican road-side cafe to join the locals for some hot soup and quesadilla's. Did I mention it's cold? It was really cold first thing but as the day wore on it warmed up to just cool but still not warm enough to shed very many layers. We're wearing long-johns, vests, our mesh gear and rain gear to cut the wind. In another day or too it should be in the high 20's so we'll be shedding a lot of layers the further south we get.

We arrived in Santa Anna around 3:30, which is approx 400klm today. We stopped for gas, which took us to 3:45 and we decided to call it a day. It's another hour and a half to Hermosillo, where we hoped to stop but the wind didn't let up all afternoon and we're beat. Plus, we don't want to push it too much on Rosi's first day. She's done GREAT by the way. A great co-pilot!

So, we're in Santa Anna. We're going to go out for a nice dinner in a little bit and hope to get an early start tomorrow. We need to put on at least 500klm tomorrow if we're going to make it to Mazatlan in just three days.

New Diploma

2009-01-23T19:26:00.000-08:00

I received my diploma today from VCC, just in time for the trip. I submitted my practicum back in Dec and was hoping to find out one way or the other before we left so the timing is perfect. I now have the BC Provincial Instructors Diploma (honours) and I'm qualified to teach in any community college in BC.
Now the hard part - I've worked for this for close to four years but now that I have it what do I do with it? My dream has been to retire early from banking and try to start a new part-time teaching and training consulting business. But........with the economy in absolute meltdown, is now the time? On the other hand, with layoff's and corporate downsizing, there may be excellent opportunities in adult education as people look to increase their education and/or need retraining in new fields. Hmmmmmm......lots to think about as we're eating up the miles on the trip.

Only a few more sleeps

2009-01-22T12:48:00.000-08:00

Well, there are only a few more sleeps until we hit the road to Mexico.
Two, if you only count here at home.
Three, if you include Spokane before we fly out on Sunday to Phoenix
Four, if you count Sunday night at Dad's before we head to Mexico - but it's unlikely I'll sleep much that night so it hardly counts.

There's very little to do now except wait. I've gone over all the gear lists ad infinitum, and anything that can be done, has been done. Poor Dad and Carol. Every time I tell them that the last shipment is on it's way I have to call back and beg them to accept something else. Ah, the joys of obsession. So far they've taken receipt of tools, extra levers, a jacket, and now gloves. And the only reason I know for sure there won't be anything else is because there's no longer time for anything to arrive before leave. Hmmmmm...... I wonder if there's time for expedited overnight shipping? Dale! Let it go!

So, all the insurance, registration and temporary import doc's are copied and put away. I have two international drivers licences just in case one is confiscated at a checkpoint or bogus road block and our Mexican insurance is bought and paid for.

The only thing to do now is check the weather and road report for Spokane and cross our fingers that it's better than when I drove down last year.

Cheers

Not to be outdone.

2009-01-22T12:41:00.000-08:00

I couldn't allow Rosi to be the only one with new gloves that match her riding gear. It's only fair that I look just as cool - or like a dork, depending on your

perspective

These two pairs of gloves should be delivered to Phoenix right about the time we arrive.

Rosi's new gear

2009-01-08T21:39:00.000-08:00

A while back we bought Rosi a complete set of Firstgear mesh gear for summer along with Firstgear all season pants for spring and fall. A the same time I ordered a Firstgear Kilimanjaro waterproof touring jacket for cold weather riding but since then we had to cancel. Our order was placed right as the 08's were being sold out and the 09's coming out and we couldn't get her size colour combo anywhere. She wanted red and I just couldn't convince her that dayglow Hi-Vis yellow matched her eyes. But....today we lucked out and I found a sell-off with one jacket in her size left. It's not red, but it's not Hi-Vis either. And, at more than $250 less than this years model it's a steal.

So, thanks to Dad and Carol allowing me to have things shipped to their place, her new jacket should be waiting for us in AJ when we arrive. We won't take it with us though. It would be OK for the first three days but after that it's just too heavy for hot weather riding. For this trip we'll stick to mesh hot-weather gear, even if it'll be a little cool for the first day or two. And speaking of mesh gear, I also bought her matching Joe Rocket red mesh gloves to match her jacket. She's going to be soooooo styling when we hit the road!

I just pray to the motorcycle gods she doesn't hate it or I've spent waaaaay to much money. Oh well, she still looks hot in the new gear! Grrrrr!

Safe and Sound

2009-01-03T18:09:00.000-08:00

My bike arrived safe and sound in Apache Junction after a very fast two and a half day drive from Osoyoos to Arizona. Thanks again Ward and Bonnie.

And Dad and Carol, thanks very much for storing her for the few weeks until we get there, and for making sure she's covered and locked up.

When I see the bright blue sky and sunny weather in your pictures I can't wait to get started. This morning it was minus 18 here with another four inches of snow in the last few days.

The Route

2008-12-28T17:35:00.000-08:00

Well, we've decided on a route.

We looked at a lot of options and weighed the variables. First and foremost, we want a trip that will be enjoyable for Rosi on her first major multi-day ride. We considered heading inland because I'd like to see Lake Chapala and we both would like to visit Uruapan but we don't think this is the trip to do it. The roads inland are much busier and it can be cold this time of year due to the elevation. We also thought of a circle route taking us down the coast and back through Guadalajara, but again, we ruled it out for the same reasons.

What we've settled on is the simplest and easiest - a straight run down the Pacific Coast as far as Zihuatanejo, and back. The roads are excellent, there isn't any complicated navigation and it'll range from warm to hot for most of the trip.

When we leave Apache Junction it's a long cold three-day run to Mazatlan. From there we plan to hop-scotch down the coast: Rincon, Barra, Playa Azul and Zihuatanejo. Coming back it'll be close to the reverse, with one change because we hope to hook up with Atillio in PV: Zihuatanejo, Barra, PV, Mazatlan and then the three-day run to home. Total mileage is estimated at 5,400 klm (plus side trips) over 13 days, which allows for 10 days downtime and side trips. Our average mileage will be 413 klm, with the longest day being 553 klm and the shortest day being 125 klm.

The bike and our gear is on it's way and everything else is falling into place. It's still more than four weeks away but it'll come quick and then we'll know for sure if it's Rosi's cup of tea. If not, at least we'll be in Mexico and if it means staying in Mazatlan for the whole three weeks we'll just have to suffer through! Awwww.....
:-)

Flurry II heads south

2008-12-27T17:18:00.000-08:00

Today I met Bonnie and Ward at their house in Osoyoos and loaded my bike into the U-Haul trailer they rented just for this purpose. Two months ago Ward graciously agreed to trailer my bike down to Phoenix for me when he and Bonnie head down to their second home in Mesa. They've been away in Alberta but now that Christmas is over they're packed up and heading south - with Flurry II firmly ensconced in the back.

Bonnie, Ward; thanks VERY much. Without your help with this part of the logistics we wouldn't be able to make the trip.

Rosi and I will fly down on January 24th and my bike will be there already waiting for us. I'll have a day to prep the bike and iron out any wrinkles and, if all goes according to plan, we hope to hit the raod by 7:00am on the 25th.

WooHoo - only 28 more sleeps!

On a different note - this time around we'll be able to maintain the blog a little more consistently and downloading pictures shouldn't be a problem either. I just came home from Staples, the proud owner of a new Acer Aspire One netbook, a really small laptop specially designed for travellers. I also bought a new, much smaller, Canon digital camera. When we're on the road Rosi will be in charge of stills and I'll handle the video camera ( as best I can ) and we'll try to keep friends and family current on where we are in the journey.

Finally Finished

2008-12-05T04:56:00.000-08:00

For the past three years I've been taking classes through Vancouver Community College's School of Instructor Education for the BC Provincial Instructor Diploma. It's basically the equivalent of a two-year diploma in basic adult education and with it, I can teach in any community college in BC. I've been doing some contract corporate facilitation work off and on over the past six years and this certificate will also add some credibility to what I'm already doing.
After three-years of part time classes in Kelowna and on-line, and two months to complete my practicum, I'm finished. I sent my completed practicum down to VCC for marking yesterday. Now I just have to wait for it to be graded in January and hopefully, knock on wood, receive my diploma before we leave on vacation.
Speaking of which, I've been corresponding with an adventure-motorcycle tour company in Mazatlan and we may use them to take us on a tour over the Devil's Backbone. It's so high though, that weather is a major factor in Jan/Feb so it's not certain at this point. Should be exciting if we go!

Gotta love the internet - more trip prep

2008-11-22T17:43:00.000-08:00

Just a short update for anyone looking on "how to" advice for preparing for a motorcycle trip into Mexico. The Internet makes things soooo much easier. Not only can you use sites like trip adviser, allmexicohotels and travelocity to make all your arrangements but now you can do most of the paperwork online as well. A case in point: I was able to buy my mandatory motorcycle insurance online from Sanborns in Nogales. No fuss, no muss. And now even the Mexican government has embraced the web. When you drive into Mexico there's an extra step. Anyone that's flown will be familiar with the tourist visa that you fill out on the plane. When you drive you have to fill out the same card and get your passport stamps. This is the "immigration" part of the equation and allows you in for 180 days as a tourist - and it's easy. But if you drive you have to also "import" your vehicle, which entails permits and fees from customs. And it's this part that takes the extra time. In Mexico it's all very efficient and professional but it still can take up to an hour of standing in line etc, especially since we'll be hitting the border late in the morning, rather than really early like my last trip. But...........now you can do the whole thing online in advance! Muy Bueno! So, through the modern marvel of the Internet, and the oh so convenience of Mastercard, I've taken care of two of the major headaches of driving into Mexico. Both from the comfort of my own home. Gotta love it!