Dispatch From, From Home!

going back to normal

It is over. The Last Hurrah is finished. Our lives now go back to normal. It is time for reflection. We more or less did what we said we would. There were a few disappointments along the way, one being not having the time to go off to Esphahan to look for Ernie, my old Easy-two Norton. Having to repatriate Dick from Southern Iran was another disappointment, yet also satisfying as a successful result was achieved...and he looked a hell of a lot better when we saw him in Holland 12 days later We also took a couple of trains along the way to speed things up a bit. But hey, we never said we would ride every millimetre of the way.

Crook As A Chook

We had many adventures along the way that we haven't told you about including having two illness scares with Dick in Mongolia. These come under the "now it can be told" category. He hadn't wanted to alarm folk back home as it was unfolding. At one stage Dick was told he was too sick to continue the journey and also too sick to fly to safety. He was instructed to go to hospital until he was well enough to fly. This was when we fortuitously met Thomas the French doctor who instigated a miraculous recovery...but all this will be in the book and DVD when we complete them.

Life as it should be

We saw wondrous things in Mongolia. We struggled through the Gobi Desert experiencing searing heat and a snow storm for 70 kms.

We dined with nomads and saw all sorts of wildlife...just like a National Geographic magazine, but you can read about that sort of stuff in the other dispatches.

As Few Facts and Figures

So...the detail stuff for the "anoraks" among you.

• The team. Absolutely fantastic...go find your own, these are mine. As traveling companions and friends they could not have been bettered.
• The bikes...ditto. We never took a spanner to either bike's engine or transmission, we didn't even do the tappets or check the primary drives...we didn't need to. Apart from my Penelope breaking a fork leg, there was never a breakdown that was not resolved at the roadside within a few minutes.
• We put new chains on the bikes halfway round. Regina rules OK!
• Penelope made the entire distance on the same tyres (Dunlop K70's)...impossible you say...the wheels are identical so were swapped front to back in Pakistan. Dick put a Russian tyre on the back in Bishkek and it had plenty of tread left at the end.
• Panthers use oil and we added about a third of a litre every second day for most of the trip. The Norton used less oil and had periods of negligible consumption at all. By the end of the trip however both bikes were a little incontinent. A couple of lay days would have sorted them out.
• How far did we go...dunno but more than 3,000 kms were on unmade roads or tracks, often with corrugated stretches lasting hours at a time. I may add it up but there was probably another 12,000+ kms of roads ranging from appalling to autobahn. There were also some train rides and a ferry from Greece to Venice so we did have trains and boats and planes as the song says. The journey's total distance was around 20,000 kms
• For much of the journey Penelope was two-up.
• Our guides....we were so resistant to the requirement to have a guide in China and Mongolia but in both instances we would have struggled without them.
• There was no "back-up" vehicle as alluded to in Classic Bike except in China and Mongolia.
• We used medical facilities in Mongolia, Kyrgyzstan, China and Iran. All gave immediate, inexpensive, good care to the best of their abilities.
• We had two snow storms but no rain in three months. Temperatures well into the 40's, maybe higher were experienced in Iran and Pakistan. Low 40's in the other "stans", down to zero in Mongolia.
• Approx 15,000 kms were travelled before we reached the seaside. Long way to go for a paddle.
• The Norton had 4 punctures including 1 front wheel one, Penelope none.
• Scary moments: too many to mention or dwell upon...almost all relating to other road users. Many occurring in Europe as vehicle numbers and speed increased.
• Three passes of over 10,000 feet were crossed with the highest being the Khunjerab (between China and Pakistan) at nearly 16,000 feet.
• Biggest downhill...800 kms of the Karakorum Highway from the China border to Islamabad. Most impressive was the first 72 kms to the country's entry point at Sust. A steepish, winding descent all the way...magic.
• 30 one hour video tapes were recorded and about 750 photos taken
• Countries passed through were China, Mongolia, Russia, Kazakhstan, Kyrgyzstan, Uzbekistan, Pakistan, Iran, Turkey, Greece, Italy, Austria, Germany and Holland. China, Kazakhstan and Kyrgyzstan were all visited twice.
• Longest time at a border: Three days (Russia/Kazakhstan)
• Longest day: 915 kms (18 hrs) in Turkey
• Hardest day...possibly first day in the sand of Mongolia...would we ever get out of second gear...or look away from the track ahead and see some scenery.
• Best looking women. Russians narrowly over all the others but not sure about the black shrouded girls of Iran...they might be the best of all but hard to tell.
• Cheapest petrol: Iran at US 9 c per litre, most expensive, around the US $2.00 mark. Turkey and Europe. Fill two bikes in Iran, about $2.50, next day in Turkey...$55.00
• Biggest grins: finally leaving Beijing and starting the saga.
• Most dramatic moment: dropping Penelope in the river so pinning Dick's leg under the luggage. This mini adventure resulted in unexpected night camped at 12,000 feet.
• Most baffling sign...see photo. What the hell does that mean?
• Unexpected pleasure..."rolling thunder" fart (without a wet spot) when "stoppers" kick in after bout of diarrhea.
• Real happy moments: Seeing Dick running towards us in Holland looking a million dollars. Finding Rollo and his welcoming champagne at journey's end.
• Good gadgets: Palm computer and folding keyboard. Digital max and min thermometer.
• Most disappointing gadget: Helmet camera...had faulty wiring to batteries causing intermittent fault and much frustration.
• Best support: Families...who let us go and even more surprisingly were there when we returned.

Des
(As the others have yet to come home!)