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19 May 2018
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Contributing Member
Veteran HUBBer
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Join Date: Jan 2011
Location: RTW, From Vancouver BC 2012
Posts: 3,579
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The birds are what usually wakes us at dawn, but they were quiet today. We made up some breakfast and tolerated the few flies not very well and so packed up quickly and fueled up and left going north!
We have about 990 km to go to Darwin and will try to get over half way today. The roads today are STRAIGHT! it is hot and mind numbing riding. We had a stop at Elliott for lunch of some not too bad steak sandwiches.
 NT-14 by Sara & Daniel Pedersen, on Flickr
 NT-16 by Sara & Daniel Pedersen, on Flickr
We had to rest again at Larrimah at the lazy lizard for a cold drink.
 NT-17 by Sara & Daniel Pedersen, on Flickr
 NT-19 by Sara & Daniel Pedersen, on Flickr
 NT-18 by Sara & Daniel Pedersen, on Flickr
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19 May 2018
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Contributing Member
Veteran HUBBer
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Join Date: Jan 2011
Location: RTW, From Vancouver BC 2012
Posts: 3,579
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We arrived to the Mataranka Homestead/thermal spring at 4. This is a nicer camp ground with good showers. They have no kitchens, but have a fun restaurant and live music tonight as well. We set up camp with the occasional kangaroo running past. Then we walked 300 m to the thermal pools for a therapeutic dip. There are quite a few pea hens wandering about, which is a bit weird. In the night it was quiet except for the thundering whomp whomp whomp when the kangaroos stormed thru the tents.
 NT-20 by Sara & Daniel Pedersen, on Flickr
 NT-26 by Sara & Daniel Pedersen, on Flickr
 NT-25 by Sara & Daniel Pedersen, on Flickr
 NT-24 by Sara & Daniel Pedersen, on Flickr
 NT-22 by Sara & Daniel Pedersen, on Flickr
 NT-21 by Sara & Daniel Pedersen, on Flickr
 NT-28 by Sara & Daniel Pedersen, on Flickr
 NT-27 by Sara & Daniel Pedersen, on Flickr
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19 May 2018
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Contributing Member
Veteran HUBBer
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Join Date: Jan 2011
Location: RTW, From Vancouver BC 2012
Posts: 3,579
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It is the final stretch today as we ride up the 412 km to Darwin on another very straight stretch of road.
 Screen Shot 2018-04-30 at 14.52.35 by Sara & Daniel Pedersen, on Flickr
 NT-29 by Sara & Daniel Pedersen, on Flickr
It is also getting hotter and more humid by the km. We fueled up in Mataranka and then rode the 206 km to Pine creek where we stopped for lunch.
 NT-30 by Sara & Daniel Pedersen, on Flickr
We had to get a drink and a snack in Adelaide River and both us and the bikes were on our last legs. We are getting terrible fuel economy with the wind and the 110-115 speed to try to kill the miles ASAP.
This just left 71 km to get to Noonamah where we planned to meet our host David. He led us home to his amazing place in Palmerston, where Johan from Norway and German from Argentina were also staying. They have been here a week, but their bikes arrived from Dili 1 month ago. They are still waiting for an inspection from Quarantine!!!
We had a great evening hearing about everyones past adventures. We really appreciated getting first had knowledge of the route and ferries in Indonesia from these guys. Johan has been several times to Indonesia and had great advice on where to go.
 NT-31 by Sara & Daniel Pedersen, on Flickr
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21 May 2018
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Contributing Member
Veteran HUBBer
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Join Date: Jan 2011
Location: RTW, From Vancouver BC 2012
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We appreciated staying with Dave, but we decided to head into the city center where we could get a 2 bedroom place for a reasonable price, we could cool off from the heat and get caught up on all sorts of “office” work.
Next update from the freight forwarder is that the boat is delayed!!! We were to drop the bikes in 2 days time for the departure next week. The boat will leave Darwin on time, but because of a mechanical issue it will go direct to Singapore and not stop in Timor.
The next estimated sailing to Timor is now May 18! AGHHH. We spent 2 days mulling over all the options. There is no way to get a small plane to Timor as none can fit even one of them at a time, we ride to Perth or Adelaide and ship the bikes to Bali and back track, we leave the bikes here and rent a car/van and tour, or what we settled on is take a repositioning free camper “rental” to Perth and then fly Perth to Timor. Making Lemonade!!!
 IMG_2664 by Sara & Daniel Pedersen, on Flickr
We managed to get a 2 week van return from Darwin to Perth leaving May 4. We will fly to Dili May 20 and hope to get the bikes before the 25th. This has kiboshed our plans for this fall. We will now arrive to North America a month behind schedule and will miss the HU meeting in Nakusp and also Wolfgang who will be in Canada to make his ride to Alaska this summer!
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21 May 2018
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Contributing Member
Veteran HUBBer
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Join Date: Jan 2011
Location: RTW, From Vancouver BC 2012
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We did hook up on HUBB with riders Chantelle and Todd = HU/ADV The slow ride home - Canada to Australia on a pair of CT110 Honda Postie Bikes. We met with them for drinks.
They are temporarily working and giving in Darwin, but after 5 months they are counting the days until their 1 year contract is up. It is hot and humid here and the Darwin culture is a serious challenge for those with even a slightly open mind.
The Racial tension is palpable. Here like most of the NT the police obviously target Aboriginal people. They are posted at the drive thru liquor store and clearly only are checking ID of non white patrons. Here you must register your ID to buy liquor and in many places there is a daily limit. At our rental apartment we were not asked to leave a damage deposit, but the Aboriginal couple after us were. We all had paid with credit cards. When I was waiting in the lobby for the guys the Chinese owner asked me if I would like some teas as she had put the kettle on, but the other lady waiting was not offered the same courtesy. It goes on and on. I will say there are a huge number of obviously drunk people laying about all over town, and I can see how one could become jaded.
What to do in Darwin… Very hot and humid so we decided to walk 2 km in the heat of the day to the museum. (morons). There is lots of evidence of the recent cyclone.
 Darwin_ by Sara & Daniel Pedersen, on Flickr
 Darwin_-4 by Sara & Daniel Pedersen, on Flickr
 Darwin_-3 by Sara & Daniel Pedersen, on Flickr
 IMG_2673 by Sara & Daniel Pedersen, on Flickr
 IMG_2674 by Sara & Daniel Pedersen, on Flickr
Last edited by saralou; 9 Jun 2018 at 15:16.
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21 May 2018
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Contributing Member
Veteran HUBBer
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Join Date: Jan 2011
Location: RTW, From Vancouver BC 2012
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Today we will drop the bikes off at the SDV freight forwarders, which is 18 km from the city at the cargo port. They have agreed to store the bikes for the 2 weeks no charge. We rode out there and parked in the warehouse only to be told we had to go to customs first (in the city) and get the carnet cancelled. (They failed to add this in the email to us of course!)
This is a crazy system, because once we get the stamp we could technically sell the bike here is Oz and fly out and still collect on the carnet?!?
Whatever, we did just go to customs, get and stamp, and then rode away without them even asking for proof that we had booked export!
Then it was back to the SDV to pass away the riding gear, disconnect the batteries, and lock up the luggage.
 Darwin_-5 by Sara & Daniel Pedersen, on Flickr
 IMG_2680 by Sara & Daniel Pedersen, on Flickr
 IMG_2679 by Sara & Daniel Pedersen, on Flickr
 Darwin_-6 by Sara & Daniel Pedersen, on Flickr
Last edited by saralou; 9 Jun 2018 at 15:13.
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21 May 2018
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Contributing Member
Veteran HUBBer
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Join Date: Jan 2011
Location: RTW, From Vancouver BC 2012
Posts: 3,579
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Not sure when we will have internet capable of updating and uploading photos of the road trip in OZ, but here is some good news!
We arrived to Timor last night and the bikes are arriving on the ship tonight!!
 Timor Leste by Sara & Daniel Pedersen, on Flickr
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30 May 2018
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Registered Users
HUBB regular
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Join Date: Aug 2012
Location: Riverside California
Posts: 78
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You two have been my lunch time entertainment for some time now. Thank you for staying the course. Enjoy Timor
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1 Jun 2018
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Contributing Member
Veteran HUBBer
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Join Date: Jan 2011
Location: RTW, From Vancouver BC 2012
Posts: 3,579
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Glad to have you along! Timor Leste was epic. We are now on Flores. 12 hour ferry arrived last night at midnight. So currently zzzzzz
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9 Jun 2018
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Contributing Member
Veteran HUBBer
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Join Date: Jan 2011
Location: RTW, From Vancouver BC 2012
Posts: 3,579
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My way too long video on the ride to Darwin! 
https://youtu.be/mfnyqsP1Fas
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11 Jun 2018
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Contributing Member
Veteran HUBBer
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Join Date: Jan 2011
Location: RTW, From Vancouver BC 2012
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We set out south again 412 km for Alice Springs. We were expecting some Outback back eddy out in the middle of nothingness.
 Screen Shot 2018-05-06 at 20.37.38 by Sara & Daniel Pedersen, on Flickr
The road is almost straight and the landscape flat, but surprisingly pretty green with small trees and brush. We stopped in at Whycliffe Wells Road house for gas."But Wycliffe Well is not just another roadhouse — it is the self-proclaimed UFO Capital of Australia. According its own brochure, "UFO sightings are so common, that if you stayed up all night looking, you would be considered unlucky not to see anything, rather than lucky to see something”.
 Devils Marbles Australia-12 by Sara & Daniel Pedersen, on Flickr
About 30 km north of Alice we crossed the Tropic of Capricorn. You can not stop for long as the flies are terrible . We had to make and eat our lunch inside the van. To go out you have to wear your bug hat or the drive you mad.
 Tropic of Capricorn Australia by Sara & Daniel Pedersen, on Flickr
 Tropic of Capricorn Australia-2 by Sara & Daniel Pedersen, on Flickr
Alice is quite a big modernish town and not quite what we expected. They did have a large Coles to stock up and a BWS. The police are stationed here at the liquor store to monitor purchases, but they seem only interested in those who people who are aboriginal!
 Alice Springs Sign Australia-2 by Sara & Daniel Pedersen, on Flickr
 Coober Pedy Australia-4 by Sara & Daniel Pedersen, on Flickr
For a treat we booked onto a powered site at the G’day mate park. They have huge grass sites and great showers. The flies are not too bad here even in the daytime. In the desert here is 35 in the day time, but often as low as 5 degrees at night. In fact last night they said it was 2 degrees.
 IMG_2704 by Sara & Daniel Pedersen, on Flickr
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14 Jun 2018
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Contributing Member
Veteran HUBBer
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Join Date: Jan 2011
Location: RTW, From Vancouver BC 2012
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Now for the big rock at the “red center”! South from here it is 204 km to the turn of at Erldunda to see “The Rock” and it really is getting redder in colour. There are also no more acres of termite mounds as it must be to hot and dry here.
 Screen Shot 2018-05-06 at 20.37.57 by Sara & Daniel Pedersen, on Flickr
On the road to the centre there is views of mount Connor (the rock everyone mistakes for Ayers rock), low bush, and NO wildlife. In 56 km at Mount Ebenezer Roadhouse there is a free camp, free showers, and gas (199/l up from the usual 155). We have 212 km still to go!
You can see the Ayers rock from a long distance and we arrived to the view point nearest, but outside the paid area. We decided that 75$ for 3 of us was just too much to get closer to a rock. We checked out the “town”, which is basically a gas station (202/l), some hotels, and a camp ground. It has 220 unpowered sites, and there was not one left when we arrived at 430 pm. We had planned to use the free camp 10 km back down the road, but thought we would check here.
We headed back to the view point for sunset and the relief from the flies!
 Uluru Australia-3 by Sara & Daniel Pedersen, on Flickr
The free camp is just off the road 10 km back down the road and we got here just as it was getting dark. In this van we can only go 500 m “off road” in a camp site and plus the road any farther was pretty steep and sandy so we set up camp in the last spot before the sandy hill. From here we walked about 1 km on the road over the next 2 ridges. In the dark we could not see the rock, but we managed to catch it in the Austral photos. We had a good night as it was totally quiet. There was only 2 other vehicles here.
Only Dan got up for the sunrise!
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Check the RAW segments; Grant, your HU host is on every month!
Episodes below to listen to while you, err, pretend to do something or other...
2020 Edition of Chris Scott's Adventure Motorcycling Handbook.
"Ultimate global guide for red-blooded bikers planning overseas exploration. Covers choice & preparation of best bike, shipping overseas, baggage design, riding techniques, travel health, visas, documentation, safety and useful addresses." Recommended. (Grant)
Ripcord Rescue Travel Insurance™ combines into a single integrated program the best evacuation and rescue with the premier travel insurance coverages designed for adventurers.
Led by special operations veterans, Stanford Medicine affiliated physicians, paramedics and other travel experts, Ripcord is perfect for adventure seekers, climbers, skiers, sports enthusiasts, hunters, international travelers, humanitarian efforts, expeditions and more.
Ripcord travel protection is now available for ALL nationalities, and travel is covered on motorcycles of all sizes!
What others say about HU...
"This site is the BIBLE for international bike travelers." Greg, Australia
"Thank you! The web site, The travels, The insight, The inspiration, Everything, just thanks." Colin, UK
"My friend and I are planning a trip from Singapore to England... We found (the HU) site invaluable as an aid to planning and have based a lot of our purchases (bikes, riding gear, etc.) on what we have learned from this site." Phil, Australia
"I for one always had an adventurous spirit, but you and Susan lit the fire for my trip and I'll be forever grateful for what you two do to inspire others to just do it." Brent, USA
"Your website is a mecca of valuable information and the (video) series is informative, entertaining, and inspiring!" Jennifer, Canada
"Your worldwide organisation and events are the Go To places to for all serious touring and aspiring touring bikers." Trevor, South Africa
"This is the answer to all my questions." Haydn, Australia
"Keep going the excellent work you are doing for Horizons Unlimited - I love it!" Thomas, Germany
Lots more comments here!
Diaries of a compulsive traveller
by Graham Field
Book, eBook, Audiobook
"A compelling, honest, inspiring and entertaining writing style with a built-in feel-good factor" Get them NOW from the authors' website and Amazon.com, Amazon.ca, Amazon.co.uk.
Back Road Map Books and Backroad GPS Maps for all of Canada - a must have!
New to Horizons Unlimited?
New to motorcycle travelling? New to the HU site? Confused? Too many options? It's really very simple - just 4 easy steps!
Horizons Unlimited was founded in 1997 by Grant and Susan Johnson following their journey around the world on a BMW R80G/S.
Read more about Grant & Susan's story
Membership - help keep us going!
Horizons Unlimited is not a big multi-national company, just two people who love motorcycle travel and have grown what started as a hobby in 1997 into a full time job (usually 8-10 hours per day and 7 days a week) and a labour of love. To keep it going and a roof over our heads, we run events all over the world with the help of volunteers; we sell inspirational and informative DVDs; we have a few selected advertisers; and we make a small amount from memberships.
You don't have to be a Member to come to an HU meeting, access the website, or ask questions on the HUBB. What you get for your membership contribution is our sincere gratitude, good karma and knowing that you're helping to keep the motorcycle travel dream alive. Contributing Members and Gold Members do get additional features on the HUBB. Here's a list of all the Member benefits on the HUBB.
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helps answer the question - Why Go? Inspirational stories by veteran travellers Greg Frazier (5 times RTW), Peter and Kay Forwood (193 countries), Tiffany Coates (Mongolia Mayhem) and Rene Cormier (University of Gravel Roads).
Get Ready! covers planning, paperwork, medical and many other topics! "Inspirational and Awesome!" See the trailer here!
What stuff do I need - riding gear, clothing, camping gear, first aid kit, tires, maps and GPS? What don't I need? How do I pack it all in? Lots of opinions from over 150 travellers!
break down language barriers, overcome culture shock, ship the bike and deal with breakdowns and emergencies."Just makes me want to pack up and go!" See the trailer here!
Grant demystifies the black art of Tire Changing and Repair to help you STAY on the road! "Very informative and practical." See the trailer here!
Ladies on the Loose! For the first time ever, a motorcycle travel DVD made for women, by women! These intrepid women share their tips to help you plan your own motorcycle adventure. They also answer the women-only questions, and entertain you with amazing tales from the road! Presented by Lois Pryce, veteran solo traveller through South America and Africa and author of 'Lois on the Loose', and 'Red Tape and White Knuckles.'
Cotton or synth sweat-wicking t-shirts with the cool Horizons Unlimited graphic on the front and a snappy slogan (changing every year) on the back.
Show your route on your panniers. Great conversation starter when you meet people on the road!
Motorcycle and travel books to inspire and inform you!
The definitive guide to planning your motorcycle adventure! This insanely ambitious 2-year project has produced an informative and entertaining 5-part, 18 hour video series. "The ultimate round the world rider's how-to!" MCN UK.
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