Blog post, Avoid Highways publication
My Post-Pandemic Quest: Round the World on a Honda dirt bike
Details & Itinerary
The Quest: A Round the World (RTW) trip on a small motorcycle, a Honda CRF 250 dirt/street bike. I’m going solo most of the way except in places where I can convince my wife Jayne to join me.
The idea to do this came to me on October 9th, 2019, while I was on a run around Lake Union in Seattle. I knew instantly that that’s what I wanted to do more than anything else in the world. And that’s stayed the case throughout this crazy year we’ve all been through.
I originally set the departure date for early March 2020. I then dived into the extensive, almost overwhelming, planning and preparation that a journey like this requires.
What Pandemic? False start, serious denial, and getting kicked out of Oregon
Despite the pandemic, the slow train crash the world was on, I left Seattle, Washington on March 14, 2020. I was in total denial about the world’s situation. I’d done an enormous amount of planning and work to get to this point and I just didn’t want to accept postponement.
I made it as far as Oregon (one state away, about 200 miles from Seattle) before the cascading lockdowns and world panic forced me to pause and re-evaluate. After a few days of hanging out on the Oregon coast, I knew it was over. Even the Oregonians didn’t want to see me — I got a call from my Airbnb landlord, “Sorry, but you visitors aren’t welcome anymore. You’ll need to vacate by 12 tomorrow.”
So back home to Seattle I went on a freezing, wet, wintry day. A day that mirrored my mood.
I spent most of 2020 in Seattle, with my wife Jayne and two 20-year-old boys, Mathias and Peder. We were one of the very lucky ones — we stayed healthy and, after getting used to it, thrived to some degree.
Itinerary — Then and Now
My original itinerary was roughly:
USA north to south and down through Mexico.
Africa south to north (Cape Town, South Africa to Cairo, Egypt)
England to Eastern Russia/ Mongolia
East Asia
Australia
South America (Argentina to Panama)
(Central America completed already)
I planned the above itinerary in the ‘Old Normal’ times, in the innocence of the pre-pandemic days.
Now, in the New Normal, post-Pandemic, my plan is to continue the trip piecemeal , doing whatever regions open up first.
I’ve already got a couple of legs done. In November 2020, I completed a beautiful trip from the border of Canada to the border of Mexico. I hugged the Pacific Coast most of the way, riding through Washington, Oregon, and California before turning east and crossing over to Tucson, Arizona (where my wife, Jayne, and I now live.)
The next leg will most likely be through Mexico, on to Antigua, Guatemala, where I have friends and family. (I was born and raised in Guatemala)
After that? Who knows!
It will depend on what opens up next. With two motorcycles on two different continents, and great shippers ready to ship the bike, I can go almost anywhere. Ideally, after Mexico, I’ll do:
Africa south to north
Europe, north then west to east
Asia, east to west (either to the Russian Pacific coast… or India)
East Asia/Malaysia/Australia
South America, south to north
A bit ambitious, I know, and perhaps a serious pipe dream in these days (January 2021) when just going to California on non-essential travel is a misdemeanor. But the world’s bound to open up at some point. And visitors, with their spending money and economic boost, are now welcomed with friendly fist bumps and big smiles.
Progress so far
Central America (Guatemala, El Salvador, Honduras, Nicaragua, Costa Rica) Fall, 2016. 89 days, round trip. I wasn’t thinking RTW (Round the World) when I did it — but I’ll count it now!
USA North to South (Washington, Oregon, California, Arizona) November 2020. 25 days. From the border of Canada to the border of Mexico, along the Pacific coast most of the way.
Motorcycles
I have two CRF 250 Honda (2019) dual sport motorcycles. One an “L”, one a Rally. They’re built for both paved and dirt road riding. One is with me in North America and one is waiting patiently for me in England. It was to be shipped to Cape Town by the wonderful UK based motorcycle shippers — Moto Freigh — back in early 2020. Instead, because of the pandemic, they very kindly held on to the motorcycle for me, not charging me storage for several months.
Why?
The short answer: fun, adventure, see the world, support a Cause, and meet new friends. Here’s a longer answer: https://medium.com/jakes-journeys/why-im-going-around-the-world-on-a-motorcycle-254f584fbfc5
New friends along the way
One of the great joys of a journey like this is meeting new people, making new friends along the way. If you’ve read this far, and want to share a meal together, please leave your contact info in the comments below (or message me.)
Until then, I wish you the opportunity and blessing of going on your own adventure, be it around the world or around the block! It’s all relative.
Thank you Jayne
I’m lucky to have a wife that supports this crazy idea of mine 100%. This trip is a solo one except wherever she chooses to join me. She has dreams of her own that she’s creating. But, during my long breaks back home, I plan to convince her to leave them for little while and join me.
