Well, I’ve made it back to Denver, which means this trip is over!
(They could’ve made the sign a little more colorful…)
From Joshua Tree, I made a couple stops, in Las Vegas (unfortunately I didn’t win enough money to stay on the road…) and Durango, then got back into Denver on the evening of April Fool’s Day.
All I can say is that I’m a little overwhelmed for this trip to be coming to an end. I had the time of my life, met a lot of wonderful people, and saw some amazing places.
To everyone who asked if I was going to write a book…nah, I’ve never really like writing all that much (I’m surprised that I kept up with this blog). If you want to read a great book about traveling on a motorcycle, check out Jupiter’s Travels by Ted Simon (actually regardless of the motorcycle and travel topic, if you just want to read a good book, check this one out). If you still want a book from me, print off all these blog entries and have Kinko’s bind them for you.
As far as this blog, I plan to keep it up an running (though fairly minimally). In the near future, I plan to do a few posts on gear reviews, so if you’re into motorcycling, stay tuned. If I feel inspired to write, I may also go into detail on some of the more entertaining or interesting events that either weren’t written about, or were briefly touched on. I’ll also post up photos and info on short trips around the U.S. And maybe a few years down the line I’ll fully revive the site for another big trip.
Thanks for following along, now get on your motorcycle or bicycle, in your car, or on a plane, train, bus, or boat, and head somewhere you’ve never been.
a pat on a motorcycle 
Congratulations Pat, it was great following you and your very informative pictures and details. You made us feel like riding with you.
Wish you all the best.
Thanks Tariq!
Met you at the Rawhyde camp in CO and when you told me what you had planned I was gobsmacked. I have enjoyed your posts and pictures and glad you have returned safely to close the circle. Good on you.
Thanks Darrel!
You the Man Pat come to the Possum Trot Rally @ Possum Kingdom Lake Texas Advrider.com Tejas and Gulf states April 24 Facebook Roll the Bones or Possum Trot Rally.Private ranch.You show up I will pay your registration wanna ride .
Welcome home I guess…. and congratulations on a job well done. What a fantastic achievement. But most of all, thank you. Your travel adventures took me back 25 years to my own days on the road. I thoroughly enjoyed following your adventure, so thank you Pat. Spike
Thanks Spike! I’m glad you enjoyed following along!
Hi Pat,
I am a friend of your cousin Brenda and have been following you the entire trip! Thanks for allowing me to see places that I couldn’t begin to even imagine! We are all happy that you had a safe trip and allowed us to sit on your bike with you … It was quite a ride!!!! Karen
Thanks for following along, Karen!
Wow! What a great trip Pat. Thanks for sharing and taking me to places I will most likely never get to. Your photos were amazing! Glad you traveled and arrived home safely.
Thanks Bob! I’m glad you enjoyed following along
I must tell you, when I came across your blog I became riveted by your journey. You became my hero ! I told everyone I know about your travels, shared your photos, and looked forward to every post. What you accomplished was incredible, and I hope I get the courage to ride my F800gs across the country, not to mention the world. Thank you so much for the great entertainment and I’m so happy you made it home safely.
Thanks Steve! Sounds like it’s your turn to hit the road on your GS!
I found this through a link you posted on ADVRider.com. awesome trip, I read the whole thing in a couple nights. If you ever find yourself riding through the southeast US let me know.
Pat,
If you do not go back to the oil fields you could always make it as a photographer.
Incredibly GREAT photos ! ! !
Pat, just found your blog, been reading through it, brilliant. My lovely lady Lin and I want to fulfill her dream to ride around the world, and this has been very interesting. I have a couple of questions.
1) How did your budget ($100 per day) work out, did that cover all expenses including fuel, accommodation, maintenance, shipping, flights, paying customs people etc.
2). The shipping processes ? Import, export, carnet, packing up the bike, did you plan that or find out about it on the way ?
Thanks
Simon & Lin
Portsmouth, England, UK
Hey Simon,
Thanks for checking out the blog!
My budget worked out well, and I feel like it was a good amount. By not making it larger, I was able to spend more days on the road and see more places, and if I’d made it lower, I feel like I would’ve missed out on some of the great experiences I got to have. And yes, it covered everything….fuel, maintenance, food, accommodation, flights, shipping, etc. Even the rare expenses like new clothes (as old stuff wore out) and a new camera when mine quit working in Germany.
As far as planning, I worked out the carnet well in advance. As it only lasted a year, I had to renew it while on the road, which was fairly easy to do. So if you don’t need to have a carnet until you’re well into your trip, you could have it shipped to you shortly before you need it, rather than having it while you’re in non-carnet countries with the 1 year of validity being used up.
Shipping and packing can be done on fairly short notice. I had my original flight from Toronto to Glasgow booked before I left, as it wasn’t that far out, so it was easy to keep a schedule, but for the shipments further down the line, I had to plan them out while on the road. And research for importing/exporting I did while on the road too. Typically importing wasn’t too big of a deal. In Australia and New Zealand, there was a lot of paperwork and a decent amount of fees, but it was all fairly easy to follow (and everything was in English, so there was no communication barrier). The only real issue was importing into India (if you go overland, it probably isn’t such a big deal). For this, I hired an agent to organize all my paperwork and do most of the running around for me…it was well worth the added cost.
Good luck planning your trip, and enjoy your time on the road!