To the west (no way back)
 

Hi everybody,

Im new here, I thought to share my travel idea with you, looking for any coment, tips, sugestions, warnings, or just a big boost support!!!

First, me. I'm 35 (mid life crisis...?), Italo Chilean (have both nationalities/passports), used to live in spain, italy and now in the netherlands. I've made some trips across Europe, 3 to 4 thousands km

Second, the lady (Bike). A BMW R1200gs from 2007, besides plannig to buy her an aluminium set of panniers and some paint decoration, original form the factory.

Third, and last, the trip (idea). Leaving the netherlands, and Europe, going east, through Russia to Vladivostok. Cross to Vancouver or Seattle, down to Los Angeles. Then, taking the route 66, to Chicago. Continuing to east, to New York, and down trough the east coast to Florida. Cross to Colombia or Ecuador, and riding south east, to Peru and finally Chile, to finish in Santiago. Probably broke, but hopefully happier than ever.
I'll be riding alone, with no time limit, but a fixed budget (around 12k to 15k euros). Plannig to camp, cook and do whatever to keep the expenses at the minimum.

I'll be gratefull of any replies, regarding any topic (safety, route, equipment, places, etc).

This is by far the greatest source of information that I have found, so a big THANKS to Susan and Grant!!!!!!!

Ps, English is not my native language, so in case I made any mistake, a big sorry!!!!

Welcome to the HUBB.

Your route will actually be taking you east (not west). I encourage you to look at including 'the Stans' and Mongolia in your route as you head east through Russia. They'll give you a lot more variety than simply crossing through Russia.

Mongolia would be an easy easy addition to make. Enter at the western border, via the Russian Altai, and make your way east through the country and back into Russia, south of Lake Baikal.

Good luck.

Hi Bermuda Rover, thanks for the correction, east no west doh

About your sugestion, I have never done any off road before. I would love to go to Mongolia, but I've heard the roads are not paved. or most of them, so considering my absolutely lack of experience, do you think it would be a good idea?

I think you'll be fine in Mongolia. Actually, they are paving more of the roads each year. However, where the paved roads are bad, the locals start a new dirt road alongside that tends to be much smoother and easier to drive than the pot-holed paved road. You can cross Mongolia using a combination of paved roads and dirt roads that are not extreme.

Here's a link to a video that I took of a typical Mongolia dirt road - Online - bermudarover