I woke at dawn in Tapachula, Chiapas, MX after sleeping somewhat fitfully worried about crossing the border into Guatemala. Got the bike out of the hotel and drove to the secondary (but closer) crossing of Talisman all the while pondering how different it might be in Guatemala. When I arrived near the border bridge a [...]
After the mechanic in Santa Elena who was to work on the bike was drunk on the appointed day, I took my bike on the back of a not quite long enough pickup truck back to Puerto Escondido to the official Yamaha mechanic – Mario (just past the Crucero near the ADO bus station). Mario [...]
After one night, Kai and I decided to leave Puerto Escondido for the less developed beach town of Mazunte found south on the coast by about 60 kms. In the morning I was dripping with sweat as we loaded the bike and put on heavy motorcycle jackets and jeans in the torpid humidity of the [...]
I drove into Mexico City on Tuesday afternoon rush-hour without getting stopped by any police – in fact I was blasting by some of them at twice the speed limit on the peripheral roads in the hopes that they wouldn’t notice I was a foreigner ripe for a little bite bribe/fine and wouldn’t want to [...]
Getting up at 8am and leaving Guanajuato with a certain amount of regret for not having stayed longer than four nights I drove the long route (unintentionally) to Dolores Hidalgo (‘the birthplace of Mexican independence’) and on to San Miguel de Allende. The first part of the route was a beautiful calm ride through cold [...]
After five days in the tiny hippie beach town of San Francisco I convinced Seamus that my wanderlust needed sating and we planned our trip to Guadalajara for a couple of days. With Seamus riding pillion we drove up the hilly jungle highway 200 towards Compostela hoping to put Seamus on a bus there while [...]
An hour before my mum left on new year’s eve, Seamus arrived with a headache and promptly lay under hot towels on the bed. I had had enough time lounging around in Puerto Vallarta after about five days so I wasn’t to displeased too have New Year’s Eve’s entertainment and then leave for the beach [...]
I took the bike to a second mechanic – an authorized Kawasaki one to be sure about the state of the engine after running out of oil upon arrival in Puerto Vallarta. He revved the engine for a few minutes and then told me it would require adjusting the valve clearance which would stop the [...]
Update: Rolled the bike without starting it down the steep hill to the mechanic a few blocks away. He turned it on, revved it, asked me how often I drive it and then said that the bike’s engine was likely fine but that the engine valves needed to be replaced which is causing the ticking [...]
Having left the Sierra‘s and the excitement there I have been finding the careful drivers on paved roads in the coastal plain somewhat tame. I drove to the coast at Mazatlan yesterday and hardly took any photos. I did however catch my first glimpse of the Pacific en route and felt a small sense of [...]
Things Said
August 31, 2010 (9:31) Santiago Chile and arriving in Buenos Aires Hi, Saw that you rode from Santiago to BA. My brother and I want to take an unguided motorcycle...
August 19, 2010 (8:44) How to air-freight ship a motorcycle from Buenos Aires great article thank you very much!
July 21, 2010 (7:36) How to air-freight ship a motorcycle from Buenos Aires This is great information. Any idea who to contact in Los Angeles since I want to do the same th...