Summing it all up.

Now that we are in Cochrane, the house sitter is gone, and it is just the two of us again in our home, we put together a little summary of the trip.

Facts, figures and answers to the most common questions:

• Total mileage on the bike portion: 18,000km, add on the approx.7200km for the truck portion and the total trip was about 25,000km.
• Total trip expense door to door $13,000 or approx. $100/day.
• We paid as little as $0.70/litre and as much as $5/gallon for fuel.
• How long were we gone? 4 months total (129 days).
• How far/long did we ride per day? This varied dramatically depending on the road condition and design. We would average about 6 hours per travel day, the distance could vary from 100-350km. Note: we did not travel every day.
• Any “Problems” along the way? None where we ever felt threatened.
• Any mechanical issues with the bikes? Nothing major, the BMW’s performed exceptionally well. The leaky rad hose and the lost shift lever are the only things I can remember.
• Our Favorite country and/or place? This is a tough question as we thoroughly enjoyed every country we visited, but to answer the question it comes down to Panama/Nicaragua/Guatemala/Belize. You see the dilema.
• Any food related issues? No problems with either of us the entire trip.
• We spent Christmas and New Years on a beach in San Juan Del Sur, Nicaragua.
• 16 border crossings. Minimum time 3 minutes at the US/Canada border. Maximum time 5.5 hours at Costa Rica/Nicaragua border.
• Warmest temperature 37.5C, coolest temperature -3C. Both in Mexico.

Things we forgot:

• Renew the registration on the truck (expires in Jan). Had to go into Calgary to get that done as we headed out back in October.
• Stainless steel coffee cups. This one is going to hurt because now I have to buy more and we have about a six at home already.
• Micro fibre cloths for cleaning the Visors, bought something similar but they turned out to be crap.
• Two tiny bungee cords for attaching the camera case to luggage. Used cargo net instead.
• One power cord for the Vio helmet camera. (bought supplies at Napa and built one)
• Second tube of toothpaste for Brenda, she is allergic to fluoride so needs all natural stuff. Tried various types along the way, no luck.

Things we donated to the travel Gods:

• One BMW ignition key. Yecora,Mx. I think, during the tire inflation process.
• Brenda’s new Wunderlich folding gear shifter, fell off just outside of Acapulco. I had packed the stock one as a spare.
• Syncrude keychain pocket knife. Given to the kids who were fascinated by these weirdly dressed people who stopped to fix a huge motorcycle in their yard.
• Two very worn but still useable rear tires. (Panama)
• Two very worn but still useable front tires. (one in Nicaragua, one in Honduras)
• Stuff we planned to leave- numerous ball caps and a bunch of school supplies.

Things we never see at home:

• A coconut/banana/whatever truck box filled with 3 generations of people heading to church. All standing up with the wind in their faces. Or, hanging their heads over the sides.
• A mother driving a scooter with small child standing between her knees holding onto the handlebars for balance. The only protection is the restraint provided by little fingers.
• People standing on speed bumps in the middle of the road selling tamales or begging for change. Standing in the middle is for efficiency to ask traffic in both directions.
• Man and son riding a donkey down the highway.
• Road construction done with shovels and wheel barrows.
• Grass on sides of road being cut with machetes. The grass is about 10ft tall. No shit.
• The community garbage dump is right at the edge of town, usually pretty close to the “Welcome to” or “thanks for visiting” sign. By dump I mean edge of road and ditch. Maybe they want us to take some garbage with us so they don’t have to burn it like the other towns along the way.
• Four people on a 50cc scooter.
• Two guys on a motorcycle, the passenger holding a 20 ft pole on his shoulder. But, they did have a red flag on the back of it and what appeared to be a pilot bike following.
• Mandatory seat belt signs all over the place but then again, see #1.
• Chicken busses. Elaborately decorated school busses that are used as public transport.
• People hauling stuff on their backs like pack mules. Huge loads of wood, sugar cane, corn, blankets, vegetables etc. Sometimes on their heads.
• Cutting corn fields by hand.
• Fields on the sides of mountains, 75° inclines.
• Gardens built in the remnants of mudslides. I guess it is fresh soil.
• Four Canadians, one American, and two Belizeans riding in a boat with no life jackets. This is not the prelude to a joke.
• Radishes the size of hardballs.
• Papayas the size of large watermelons, for $1.
• Farmer markets everyday of the week.
• Children doing manual labour as soon as they are able to carry something.
• Oxen still being used in place of tractors.

Memorable quotes:

• “You bump your head?” . US customs officer’s reaction after answering his question. “Where y’all headin?”
• “You crazy?”. Numerous times when we explain our trip.
• “Mortorcycle travel is more dangerous than solo sailing around the world”. Canadian sailor in Costa Rica and again from a US expat marina owner in Guatemala.
• “Now that is something you don’t see at home”. Stew and Brenda, used numerous times.
• “I hated every second of it!!!”. Brenda’s response to our scuba instructor when asked how she liked her first dive.
• "I've never met a beer I didn't like." Stew.
• “My boots will never smell the same again!”. Brenda

Would we do it again???

IN A HEART BEAT!!!