Overseas Touring

The rules / methods of operation that we use around home were often not relevant to touring and camping due to the different constraints of time, space and mass. We developed routines based on successful actions – for packing up, unpacking, preparing meals, doing the laundry, etc.

A flexible and relaxed attitude helped - Is the procedure worth trying again? Is it worth the frustration? Should we change strategies? For example once we travelled an extra 20 kilometres to refuel because we travelled into a sparsely populated area – we should have done the calculations beforehand.

Mount and Dismount Procedure

The mount up and dismount procedure is the most frequent routine. Passenger foot boards are really helpful. Driver mounts first and steadies the motorcycle. The pillion’s hand on the driver’s shoulder is the ‘ready, steady’ signal.

The passenger steps up onto the left foot board, right foot and leg goes over the seat as the body pivots and descends to the seated position -one smooth motion. Pauses while off centre are not permitted even if your nose is itchy. My wife is at least 7 kg heavier than I and the procedure still worked fine. Some other two-up tourers had amusing dismount routines – left or right side, driver first, etc.

Border Crossings

We crossed the Canada / USA border numerous times. We encountered no hassles. Have passports and visas ready. Australians staying less than three months did not require a USA visa. The entry date into the USA is recorded in the passport. The questions are similar from one border crossing to the next. Prior to crossing we refreshed our memory as to where we came from, when we arrived. It is unusual for a foreign person to own and tour on a motorcycle, we were ready with the explanation. We tried to be accurate in any conversation and keep the travel description accurate – arrival date in Canada / USA (the date in the passport), duration of our stay in the country. We needed to retain the USA immigration departure card until our final departure from the USA. Border crossings were usually straight forward for us because we were not travelling on business, we carried no alcohol, no cigarettes nor duty free items.

Travelling with a Partner

Travelling with a partner requires some extra effort. We lived in close quarters during the tour. In our working lives we are used to more space and time apart. We tended to have a serious disagreement of some sort, most often on the first day of a tour (after staying with friends or relatives). We sometimes got on each other’s nerves – there is no free ride and not a lot of free space. But we enjoy the company and companionship. Many things were easier to accomplish using cooperation. We found that things ran smoother by not sharing items such as toiletries, toothpaste, torch, camera, etc.

Packing and Unpacking

I found that it was easier to do without some extra items than to struggle with packing too much gear daily into my pannier case. Having some spare space to start with allowed packing the leather touring pants in the pannier case on hot days.

Spare Hands

Spare hands are essential when paying for park entrance fees, ferry and bridge toll fees and the like. As the motorcycle driver I usually needed to keep the motorcycle upright and prevent rolling forward or backward. It was much easier for my partner to pay the fees, take the park information, etc.

Updating the Equipment List

Our tour started with a 5500 kilometre loop to Newfoundland and the Canadian Atlantic Provinces. On our return to the in-laws home we reset some priorities and mailed two small boxes of items back to Australia. If we did not use it and were unlikely to use it, we send it home or disposed of it locally.

Live the Adventure

We were usually rewarded when we were a little adventurous. I prefer an adventure rather than the standard bus tour. Staying in motels of bed and breakfasts is easy. But, we like camping even though it adds extra stresses. For example, we travelled through ‘outback’ Quebec (Lac St Jean area, so far out back that my French was better than their English "You are brave" one lady commented. I am glad to have made the extra effort to overcome the language difficulty in order to visit that interesting part of Quebec.

Shopping and Souvenirs

We delayed most of the souvenir shopping until the end of the tour, we had very little spare carrying capacity. We mailed unused items and souvenirs back home to lighten the load.

Fellow motorcyclists

Motorcyclists are usually parked together on ferry crossings. We found that most were outgoing and friendly. Most were middle aged, most who were camping towed a trailer. They were usually on a 2 or 3 week holiday. They were always willing to offer comments regarding the places to visit or the best routes to follow.

Introduction and Overview

Purchasing a Motorcycle Overseas

Clothing and Equipment

Tips and Traps

Last modified 13/06/2009