The Route

"Sometimes you find yourself in the middle of nowhere, and sometimes in the middle of nowhere you find yourself."  (Anon)

My route is planned in three sections.  

1.  The Silk Roads

The first section follows the Silk Road east, from London to Beijing.  To split costs, I’m travelling with 10 other riders.

The journey starts from a famous London biker’s cafe on 30 April 2011 and quickly heads - via Dover - into continental Europe.  We enter France on the Eurostar before riding out of Calais towards Belgium, then crossing Germany, Austria, Slovakia, Croatia, Montenegro, Albania and Greece, and then Istanbul - Turkey - the gateway to Asia.

Will civil unrest direct us through Iran, or Georgia and Azerbaijan?  Either way, by road or by boat, we head to Turkmenistan and the white marble capital of Ashgabat.

After this first month the route leads into Uzbekistan and the ancient walled city of Khiva and on to the famed city of Samarkand.  The countries of Tajikistan and Kyrgyzstan are next, where I’ll be riding rough roads through majestic mountain passes.  Food and accommodation will be very different here, making it a fortnight of deep cultural contrast.

China.   The Torugart Pass, at 3,750m, will be entry point into Xinjiang Province at the start of week 7.  Immerse  in the hubbub of the Sunday livestock market of Kashgar, before riding into remote, rugged country on the way towards Tibet.  Will the altitude prove too much, at 5,300m, or will Everest Base Camp live up to my breathless anticipation?

With the Himalayan range filling the side mirrors, the route descends the Tibetan Plateau and by week 9 the charms of western China take over - across the Yangtze River and winding through mountains the Silk Road route takes me to Lijiang, Chengdu, Xi’an and on to Beijing.  Taking a month to exploring this most ancient and modern of empires, I’ll be ready for a rest.  My bike will need a service.  My kit will need a wash.

2. Alaska to Argentina

The route is planned in three major sections.  The first section will take me east on the Silk Road to Beijing, China.   But after servicing the bike, it’s time to get myself, via South Korea, to Alaska, USA. 

Anchorage, Alaska is a major air cargo hub, and I intend to use this entry point on to the Americas continent.  From here I can take the truckers’ dirt highway into the Arctic Circle up to Prudhoe Bay, allowing me to start this second section of my journey from the ‘top’.

From here it’s due south all the way on smooth, winding tarmac.  I’m expecting stunning mountain scenery most of the way, beginning with the Canadian Rockies, and the turquoise lakes of Jasper and Banff.  Dodging bears and moose, but ploughing through the inevitable swarms of mosquitoes, I’ll continue towards the great National Parks of Yellowstone - all bubbling volcanic pools and geysers - and then the Grand Canyon .

After another bike service and tyre change in Tucson, I’ll cross into Mexico - dirt roads again, leading to canyons, mines and deserts.  Through the colonial heartland of Zacatecas and over steamy mountains heading for the Caribbean coast.  With 3 months having past since I left China it’ll be a relief to be getting close to Central America.

My route through Guatemala, Honduras, Nicaragua and into Costa Rica will be gentle and, I suspect, sweat soaked.  I’ll look to pull up in a coastal town in Costa Rica for some overdue R&R.  If all goes to plan I will be attending Spanish school for a while and scuba diving in my spare time - it will be important to spend some time away from the bike, which by now will be starting to lose it’s lustre.  I don’t want to become jaded by the road-wearying routine.  Christmas here would be fun, I expect. 

Into 2012, out of Panama.  Into Columbia and out of my comfort zone well and truly!  Growing up everything I read or heard about Columbia sounded terrifying.  Although more recently I have heard much more positive reports, I’m sure I’ll be nervous as hell until I have moved south again, to Ecuador, Peru and Bolivia.

Tracing the west coast of South America I will head down Chile alongside the Andes.  The goal is clear:  keep going to the ends of the world.  Through Patagonia on the brutal Ruta 40 gravel road, buffeted by fierce side winds.  Over the Magellan Straits to Tierra del Fuego and on to Ushuaia.  Will I be in time for the last boat of the season out to Antarctica?

This will probably feel like a huge milestone.  From here, all roads lead north and north is where my family is.  

So, it’s a re-tracing of the route back onto the Argentinian main land, before heading this time up the east coast - another few weeks of riding, with Rio de Janeiro or Buenos Aires possible temporary destinations.  From here I will have to take stock and consider if, how and when to take on the third and final leg of this adventure.  Will the bike stand up to it?  Will my body?

3.  Cape Town to Cairo(?)

After sections 1 and 2, I can hardly guess how I’ll be feeling.  It’s been pretty easy to merrily colour in maps with pretty routes, ambitiously plotting paths between mountain ranges, deserts, canyons.  But casting ahead 16 months, will I have the health or wealth to continue?

All being well, I will book my bike into a container ship headed out of Buenos Aires sometime in July 2012.   If the timing works out, i.e. whilst the bike is en route, I would like to try and fly via the UK.  I would love to experience some of excitement of the Olympics being hosted in my home country.  But that’s just an idea.

More likely, I’ll either try and stow away on the container ship (War And Peace tucked under my arm), or take a cattle class air ticket out.  The big question, though, will be: ‘where to next?’

Option 1 is to route over to the north-west coast of Africa - Senegal, say.  From there it should be relatively straight forward to ride up the west coast to Morocco.  The ride back through this beautiful country, then Europe to England would be fantastic, if increasingly cold.

Option 2 is more serious.  I would arrive in Cape Town and stay for a while.  The time would be spent plotting a route up through Africa, zig zagging from country to country as the political situation dictates.  Speaking of dictators, the past couple of years have demonstrated just how unstable many African countries can be, and how quickly things can spiral out of control.

It’s unrealistic, therefore, to try years in advance to plot too detailed a route across this huge and complex continent.  My research suggests there are a few well ridden routes that could form the basis of my final leg - see the movie above.   But I’ll need to consider the seasons, the state of my bike, the state of my finances, and what I’m heading back to.  To rush unduly could squeeze all enjoyment from the experience.  Yet there is a finite period of time I can commit to this journey - compromise will be needed.

Still, if I have learnt even half of what I hope on the way around the world, I should be well placed to make these decisions.