We are travelling from Melbourne, Australia and intend to end up in Kobe, Japan, taking around 5 months to do so. We started the trip recently and currently, we are cooling our heels in Dili, Timor Leste while waiting for the bikes to arrive by ship from Darwin.

All being well they will be here and unloaded shortly. If not, we will need to extend our visas to stay longer.... and wait. Once we are reunited with the bikes, we will head west into Indonesia as soon as we can (our Indonesian visas have been applied for and should be available in around three days), and will continue on to Malaysia, Thailand, Cambodia, Laos, China, Sth Korea and, ultimately, Japan.

At this stage, waiting is a challenge - mind you, it gives us a good chance to acclimatise to the humidity (Melbourne has been hotter so the heat is not so much of an issue) and to readjust to the SE Asian environment: food; traffic; elastic time etc

Any advice is most welcome. I have been keep an eye on most posts about the region for the past couple of years so am keen to see what has or has not changed. I have travelled to most of these countries before but not travelled through the back country by bike, so am most excited by the opportunity to sample them from a different perspective.

Cheers,
Ro

Sounds like a great trip. Are you aware of the difficulty and great expense of venturing into China?

Yes indeed, we are well aware of the challenges of China, particularly the expense, but have decided to do it anyway. So all plans are in place. We may be crazy and go home paupers but, it is an opportunity we might not get again.

I am keen to do the overland trip and finish in Kobe, Japan, given my work affiliations and friends over there. In fact, I will be visiting some work colleagues and doing a little work as I travel though most of the listed countries. Some fun, a little work and then some more fun. I haven't been able to get into the back blocks in SE Asia before, except in Thailand, so it is a great chance to do so.

So, through China it is, otherwise it won't be an overland trip to Japan (as much as possible anyway)

I usually fly in and out of the major cities with work so I can now get down on the ground a really experience the different areas.

Hey ro. Keep the updates coming. I'm in the planning stages of a similar route (minus china) so very keen on hearing how you get on.

Got any info / pics on your bike setup? I've got a drz but was considering upsizing to something orange (prob a 690)

Sure thing.
Info on bike set up: I have converted the bike that I set up and used only for off road back to a trail bike, while trying to keep it as standard as possible. Mine is a K6 model while Bruce's is a K11. They are pretty much identical.

Mods:
respring & revalve suspension, Andy strapz racks and soft panniers, B&B rack & bash plate, safari tank (translucent 17l), renthal bars with a higher bend, bark busters, pivot pegs (they were good off road), reshaped seat (wider), aftermarket muffler, taillight & indicators. I have Heidenau tyres on it and that is about it.

I have some pics and info about the trip on Facebook.com/latrobe.2wheels

Cheers,
Ro