Arctic Nights and the Last of the North

We spend three days Nordnes Camp and Bygdesenter, a little slice of heaven just south of Røkland. It feels like a northern town should; remote, lacking options in just about every way and, even in August, quite cold. We’re north of the Arctic Circle, farther north than any mainland point in Iceland and, if we […]

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Atlantic Road to Arctic Circle

The morning is brisk. Really brisk. There’s a light covering of frost on the tent and, where the dry-bags have been laying, a film of damp has formed on the floor. The low-lying clouds have saved us the view of Trollstigen but we definitely feel socked-in and rain seems a certaintity at some point along todays […]

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From the Falls of Stryn to the Heights of Trollstigen

It’s a strange sensation being camped this close to a road that, while not busy, does play host to the occasional truck and car. The only level spot to pitch our tent is just off the shoulder which certainly presents an occasional what if… but somehow we’re always able to pretend that those are simply impossible inevitabilities. […]

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Bergen’s Wooden Homes and the Quiet of Fuglsetfjord

Our moonshine friends are still fast asleep and, after crawling from the frost-covered tent, we hurry to pack. The morning air is brisk and once again the bikes protest the chill. The Shorai batteries have protested at any temperature close to freezing all along our journey and the extra strain on the starter always puts […]

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A Goodbye to the West

By the time we wake in the morning, yesterdays waffle-hangover has long since passed and the surly skies have been replaced with a bright sun and deep blue. It’s a short hop from Brugge to Oss in the Netherlands and another wonderfully unguarded border awaits. The riding is easy and the road unfolds in front […]

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Friends by the Forest and the Beauty of Brugge

The Gasthaus Sonne in Niedereschach provides simple comforts and we awake to a glorious sun that seems to blur the world in the most delightful way. Before heading into Touratech HQ we take a quick ride around the area; the small towns and quiet streets quickly lead into narrow, winding rural roads. In fact, in […]

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The Warmth of Navia to the Chill of Pélonie

We awake to a bright sun and perfectly warm day. The heat which had followed us through much of this leg is long gone and we welcome it’s absence. After we pack the bikes and say our goodbyes to Santiago de Compostela we emerge from the hotels underground parking, savouring that moment of blindness as […]

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Pilgrims and the Chapel of Bones

Even at this early hour the sun is sitting high enough in the sky to seemingly burn our shadows onto the ground. The heat is searing and dissolving our breakfast in buckets of sweat as we wave our final goodbyes to Carlos and Gabriela before making our way back to the twisting roads that will […]

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From Morocco’s Sun to Serpa’s Heat

There’s nothing about the ferry from Tangier to Tarifa that seems complicated. Exiting Morocco is, by far, the easiest border we’ve dealt with. There’s the usual lines and, when the gate opens, a crush of people swarming towards the booths. Rather than waiting on the bikes, I simply walk up to the immigration booth and […]

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A Souk, a Riad and the Road North

Almost overnight, something changes for us in Morocco. Perhaps it’s the energy that envelops Meknes, perhaps it’s the massive injection of B12 back into our diets. Maybe, it’s just me letting go of trying to push through things and easing myself back into the headspace of allowing things to unfold as they may and taking […]

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Endless Kindness and the City of the Sky

The view of the Rif Mountains from high on this stoney perch is stunning. It’s Bilay’s favourite spot and it’s easy to see why; two crashes (one each) and a few hours stranded on the side of a mountain pass while Nita’s heart runs wildly out of control all seem to slip...
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From the Edge of Narrow Moroccan Roads

For all of the activity at the border it doesn’t take long for us to feel like we’ve left it all behind. After passing through a few busy streets we leave the caterpillar of traffic and take a right turn up a tight switchback and find ourselves quickly climbing into the hills to the...
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A World Between Countries and Spies Like… Us?

The events of the previous day don’t simply fade into a shrug. In all honesty, continuing the journey to Morocco seems incredibly foolhardy. Yet something in both of us is pushing to work through our fears and fulfill this part of a lifelong dream. It’s an inner dialogue that...
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Through Heat and Broken Heart

The staff at Hotel Termas Marinas El Palasiet are excellent and the manager, Joaquin Farnos, is wonderfully friendly. We’re not sure if a security camera picked up the F650′s headstand in the parking lot, but shortly after we settle in the phone rings and on the other end...
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A Cave, a Beach and Sleeping Bikes

True to the idea of taking some time away from computers (and technology in general), we’re just going to write about a couple of highlights – which turns out to be harder than you’d think. Nothing long, no story arc, just some of the things we enjoy about these places....
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Sardegna: An Island Apart

After a final goodbye dock-side to Rutiger and Naum, we take a minute to collect our thoughts before heading north through Cagliari toward our intended home for the evening – a campground just south of Oristano. Most of the riders in the region hold high praise for the roads on the east...
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Discovering the Upside of Sicily

It takes about ten corners in Palermo for me to use my horn the first time. During our time in Tunisia we’d forgotten (or blocked out) how terrible the drivers are in Sicily. At least in Tunisia the mayhem had some rhythm – though in some spots it did truly feel dangerous. Here, in...
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Two Reunions and Three Goodbyes

It’s the first time in a long while that we’ve felt an end of sorts to our journey. There was so much reticence – so many nerves – wrapped in coming to North Africa it’s hard to believe that the first leg of this part of the world is coming to an end. Over the [...]

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Sufetula and the Long Road to Kairouan

With a long day on the road ahead of us, Nita and I want to get an early start and it’s not hard to get out of bed. All night my dreams have been invaded by a plague of six and eight legged critters running across various body body parts and, when I awake, I [...]
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Desert Sandstorms, the City of Grit and a Road to Algeria

It’s our last camp in the northern Sahara and during the night, the wind really picks up leaving any of the sounds we normally hear silenced by it’s steady roar. When we wake, everything is covered in sand. Even the inside of the tent has a fine layer of sand covering everything...
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