Dreaming of a motorcycle trip to distant climes? This section will help you to plan your trip, whether it's to the next state, country or all the way around the world! Start here!
The Achievable Dream 5-part series - the definitive video guide for planning your motorcycle adventure. Get Ready! covers planning, paperwork, medical and many other topics! "Inspirational and Awesome!" See the trailer here!
You could just get on a plane with your credit card and passport and buy or rent everything you need when you get there. That includes the bike, riding gear, etc. etc.
Gear Up! is a 2-DVD set, 6 hours! Which bike is right for me? How do I prepare the bike? 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! "will save you a fortune!"See the trailer here!
So you've done it - got inspired, planned your trip, packed your stuff and you're on the road! This section is about staying healthy, happy and secure on your motorcycle adventure. And crossing borders, war zones or oceans!
On the Road! is 5.5 hours of the tips and advice you need to cross borders, 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!
Tire Changing!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!
With an HU blog, you'll get a lot more readers than in some obscure corner of the web, it's all set to go, no setup required, and it's free! Start your Travel Story Blog right now!
800+ HU Communities in over 115 countries! People who want to meet travellers - yes that's YOU - and can provide local assistance, and may be your new best friends!
Make a DifferenceTips on fundraising or donating time and energy to a cause.
After the big trip - Was the trip the best - or worst - thing you ever did?
Resources and Links
Horizons Unlimited Presents!
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.'
"It has me all fired up to go out on my own adventure!" See the trailer here!
Meet people who don't think you're crazy for wanting to ride your bike to South America or across Asia! They will encourage you, share their experiences and advice on how to do it!
We're not a big multi-national company, just two people who love motorcycle travel and have grown a hobby into a full time job and a labour of love.
When you decide to become a Member, it helps directly support the site. You get additional privileges on the HUBB, access to the Members Private Store, and more. Of course, you get our sincere thanks, good karma and knowing you're helping to keep the motorcycle travel dream alive. :-)
All contributions are gratefully appreciated and acknowledged.
T-shirts, Calendars, Stickers
T-shirts 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.
Calendars Featuring the 13 winning photos from the Horizons Unlimited annual motorcycle travel photo contest!
World Map Sticker for PanniersShow your route on your panniers. Great conversation starter when you meet people on the road!
Travel BooksMotorcycle and travel books to inspire and inform you!
Videos - Watch and Learn!
Horizons Unlimited presents!
Achievable Dream 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.
"The series is 'free' because the tips and advice will save much more than you spend on buying the DVD's."
Advertisers- Horizons Unlimited is well-established as the first source of reliable, unbiased information on all aspects of adventure motorcycle travel.
We reach a dedicated, worldwide group of real travellers, and are the only website focusing exclusively on long distance motorcycle travellers.
If you sell motorcycles or motorcycle accessories, riding gear, camping equipment and clothing, transport motorcycles, organize motorcycle tours, or have motorcycles to rent, you should be advertising with us!
Ride TalesPost your ride reports for a weekend ride or around the world. Please make the first words of the title WHERE the ride is. Please do NOT just post a link to your site. For a link, see Get a Link.
Search Forums ONLY searches the HUBB, and not well. Use Site Search to search everywhere.
Boat Harbour Beach was my base for a whole week and the weather was absolutely perfect to spend some time on the beach. From there, I could have daily rides to the surrounding attractions.
You will see in Part 1, my visit to the Nut in Stanley as well as another ride to see the Big Tree and Dip Falls, which is an unique 34m high cascade waterfall over cubic-basalt formed rocks.
In Part 2, you will see that I went to Marrawah, took Green Point Road to Marrawah Beach, had a look at Arthur River as well as the 'Edge of the World'. I came back riding on the Tarkine Drive through multiple Rainforest Reserves where you find many tall eucalypts. Trowutta Arch is another stunning and natural geological structure. A very pleasant ride on a very warm day!
Part 3 gives an overview of a short ride to Table Cape, the lighthouse built in 1888, and Wynard.
After an incredible week spent in Boat Harbour Beach, I rode through Penguin and then to Riana, on my way to Leven Canyon. I hiked the Floor Track first and was quite impressed with the scenery along the river with its high cliffs. The second day, I did the Lookout Track that takes you 275m above the Canyon. A nice 45min hike with 697 steps going down.
From there I rode back North to Ulverstone, went through the town of Forth and spent a night along Barrington Lake before heading to Latrobe, then back South to Quamby Corner, near Deloraine.
I delayed my ride in the Highlands due to cold temperature in this area at one point, but I picked a very nice day on a Sunday for it. You will see in the video that it's quite a climb with lots of curves to get to the Central Plateau and the view on the Great Lake is very beautiful!
You will notice gravel on some sections of the road, but the worst part was certainly the section under construction with a thick layer of gravel. At that point, I was thinking of turning back but I have no idea how I could have managed a U-Turn on such loose gravel. I wasn't surprised to see a crashed car on the side at that moment…
It was interesting to have a look at Miena Dam, completed in 1922. It is an unique structure, a multiple Arch Buttress Concrete Dam, designed to minimize the amount of concrete required.
Taking Poatina Road back North was a very pleasant ride, lots of curves, in particular in the area with hairpins (see enlarged map below), as you get closer to the Power Station and its big pipes going down the mountain.
The video is 20 minutes long, and ends in the lovely town of Deloraine.
This episode starts at the Quamby Corner Caravan Park where I spent five nights and which offers very nice facilities, in a quiet and beautiful surrounding just beside the Quamby Bluff. First, I rode to Westbury and Launceston to get a new cell phone before heading south to Campbell Town, but going through Longford and then on backcountry roads which offer nice views on the Western Tiers.
I reached the Midland Hwy in order to get to Oatlands and had a look at the great Callington Mill built in 1837 and that is still operating. The town of Oatlands presents many historic sandstone buildings in an authentic colonial character.
On my way to Hobart for the weekend, I took an interesting country road: Mud Walls Road, and went through the beautiful town of Richmond.
After attending the Salamanca Market Saturday morning in Hobart, I crossed the Tasman Bridge and headed on East Derwent Hwy, crossing the town of Richmond again. It was a very windy day with strong crosswinds on Brinktrop Road as well as on Tasman Highway. I reached Triabunna just in time to catch the last ferry of the day to Maria Island. I had less than an hour to prepare my backpack with all essential things (camping gear and food) for a three day visit on the island. Heavy rain was coming our way, therefore the crossing that afternoon was at times, very rough.
My stay on Maria Island was just incredible, well worth it! Beautiful scenery around Darlington Bay and Darlington Township, spectacular walks to Fossil Cliffs as well as to the amazing Painted Cliffs; meeting lots of wildlife on the way, such as Cape Barren Geese, Wombats (so cute!!!), Pademelons, Foster Kangaroos, etc.
The highlight of my stay on Maria Island was certainly viewing a couple of Tasmanian Devils near a creek at dusk, just unbelievable! One was heading my way and suddenly stopped as he saw me, which gave me a second to capture that incredible moment.
This episode starts at Mayfield Bay Conservation Area where you will see the Three Arch Bridge built by convicts in 1845 next to a beautiful beach. Tasman Highway North took me through Swansea and to Devil’s Corner Tower to experience great views on the Lagoon and Coles Bay as well as on the surrounding vineyards.
Riding on the Elephant Pass to St Marys was very pleasant (one of the few twisty roads I had missed so far…) and I enjoyed going through St Marys pass again on my way to St Helens.
Going West on Tasman Highway, I made a short stop at Weldborough Pass to stretch my legs and see the rainforest. I went through the town of Derby, well known by mountains bikers.
Then I headed towards Scottsdale to meet motorcycle friends at the Northeast Park campground where I had stayed before in December, and we rode together to Launceston on the next morning, unfortunately on a very windy and rainy day.
Tasmania is a great place for people whose passions are riding motorcycle as well as hiking. One of the major highlight of my trip in Tasmania was certainly hiking the Overland Track, an extraordinary journey through the heart of the Tasmanian Wilderness World Heritage Area which I will never forget!
I was fortunate to do this great hike with a friend Richard, met at the HU Meeting in Jindabyne last November. With all the side trips done during this walk, we covered a total distance of more than 90km over a period of seven days, while carrying our camping gear and food for the whole journey.
Overall, the video presents a good overview of what we experienced: the different terrain, natural surface or hardened with a variety of boarding or planking, huts, shelters and campsites, varied vegetation and wildlife, as well as incredible landscapes and views.
The video is presented in two parts. Part I includes a short walk around Dove Lake on the day of our arrival at Cradle Mountain, as well as some views of our stay at the Waldheim Cabins before starting the Overland Track. The first day on the track, getting to Waterfall Valley was very difficult due to the weather, very windy and cold on exposed sections especially before reaching the Kitchen Hut. For the first time of my life, I realized what being exposed to a high risk of hypothermia really means…
In part II, you will see a lot more sunshine, blue sky and great views, especially on a side trip to Mount Ossa as well as to a few waterfalls. Our last night was spent at Echo Point along Lake St Clair, enjoying incredible sunset as well as fog lifting up slowly the following morning.
Most of our last two days in Tasmania were under lots of clouds and rain but we still enjoyed a ride west to Waratah and then through the Hellyer Gorge with its spectacular rainforest valley, a nice road with lots of curves!
Travelling by myself was a great adventure, and certainly a great opportunity to meet lots of people. Some of them I spent only a few hours with, others a few days but all had so much to share with me.
This is a tribute to all the lovely people I met during my trip and who have made a big difference in the overall experience! I have not filmed all of them but have great memories forever. I am so grateful, thank you!
Have YOU ever wondered who has ridden around the world? We did too - and now here's thelist of Circumnavigators!
Check it out now, and add your information if we didn't find you.
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
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.