Hi Paddy,
Thanks for the info, I checked out your thread for the 3 week trip for next this comming year (2013). Sounds like a nice trip, albeit a little fast for my way of travelling.

I'm pretty keen to ride further east for 2013, and am currently looking at going back up and over and around the French Alps, do a bit more hiking while there. Then head over through Italy and east to Slovenia, more hiking. Then I'm thinking it might be nice to go further east still and ride on to Croatia and Bulgaria and see if it might be possible to to get to Turkey. I have plenty of time, I normally go over for three months.

So, my 2013 trip would be a nice little teaser for the trip as outlined by Nicola for the following year. Also, I can do any extra mods or work to my TDM 850 and make it as ready for 2014 as I am able, if I choose to keep it for furture trips. I'll be making up some new wiring harnesses for some of my electronics while back here in Aussie-land before I head back.

I head back over there late June 2013, I am already feeling the need to get moving on getting ready......

From the great land down under,
Paul

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Hi rockwallaby/Paul, nice to meet you here!
Sounds great. Sounds like we could maybe get a group together to cross Iran and Pakistan. Am trying to get to Nepal in about about October 2014. I might not be able to keep up with you if you're on an 850cc haha!
Would love to hear more about your 2013 trip when you go on it, hopefully you'll be able to do a ride report, sounds fantastic.
P.S. Tassie is so beautiful, need to get a bike down there and ride sometime when I have the dollars. Also New Zealand.

Hi Paul
the hiking sounds a blast in the alps. the trip for 2014 is looking good from my side just one thing trying to tell the missis that i want to go for 3 months or more is harder then the trip itself ha ha the look on her face but she knows i have the bug. life is all about new adventures. On your electronics have any tips on good cameras and other stuff to bring or not
Happy biking
Paddy

I'm sure you'll be able to keep up no problem at all, I don't go too fast, well, not all the time. I like to look about and to get off and walk in the villages. Then like I say, set up a base camp for a few days and do some more extensive walks in the mountains.

Yep, Tassie has some top roads, if it didn't I wouldn't have need for a bike I guess. Then too, the big island above me where you are has go some awesome roads up through the Victorian Alps.

Nicola, what are your plans regarding a bike over there, would you ship a bike from Oz, or do you have or would you get a bike over there for the trip?

What sort of wheels are you contemplating on having for this trip?

Hey there Paddy, well I'm still sorting that out. Actually it seems I'm always sorting this issues of electronics out. I like my electronic gadgets. Essentially, I enjoy photography, and for that I have a Nikon D90 with a few stock lenses. It's built pretty tough and has toured with me this year through the Alps for near bang on 10000 km, (not sure if you work with the old imperial or the metric system).
The other stuff, well I like to have lots of music, so carry a few mp3 players. I also do sound recording and squeeze in my sound recording gear. Then I carry a laptop with me, this year just one, last year I took two, but then I was driving a car so I had the room. Then all the cords and cables that go with all that gear. You should watch them when I go through security at airports, they can make no sense of me and really question what I do.

The thing I am wanting to try to do is to make a purpose built electronic power supply / charging system for all my gadgets, so I can charge from the bike, instead of trying to always find a safe place to charge my gear in camp ground toilet / shower blocks. It has worked well thus far.

Anyhow I hope to have it down to a fine art his coming trip.
Don't worry Nicola, it might help slow me down, having all this gear.

Anyhow, Paddy, I think you found me on another thread talking tents, another thing I am looking to renewing for the coming trip as well.

Paul

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At this stage I'm considering starting in Cork, Ireland where a gentleman on the HUBB (alias 'Wheatwacker') offers a service where he assists riders in buying a bike and sorting out the papers and providing an address at which the bike can be registered. Failing that, just picking one up myself in Ireland... Ireland seems more straightforward than the UK and I'm also an Irish citizen (which doesn't make much difference actually). There are some issues with me finishing the ride in Nepal as I can't leave the bike there, or sell it, so I might need to ship it somewhere (home?).

At the moment I'm thinking a 250cc dual purpose something. A Yam TTR250 (rare as hens teeth in Europe) or XT250 or Honda XR125/250 or a Yam WR250R.... something like that. I want something comfortable that doesn't write off the possibility of offroading.

Interesting to hear of your gadgets!! I'm trying to keep things as simple as possible in that regard but of course it's difficult. Also a photographer I'd like to take my old D40. Going to try and take only a tiny laptop and my iPhone to double as a GPS.

I am a broke long-term-student-come-Arts-worker. The less things that can break on me, the better!!!

Can't wait to hear how your trip goes in 2013. Sometimes 2014 seems so far away but I know it will come up quickly.

Sounds like a good plan, and it sounds a bit like mine, at least parts of it. I want to drive from northern europe to india and back (maybe through russia), leaving in late summer and come back in early spring. I have been touring in india before, and in fact, thats the country where i learned how to ride a bike in the first place! So i really emphasize to spend some more time in that amazing country than just transition.

Hi paul
do you know the output of your alternator on your bike my xc800 has 645w oil cooled which they say can cope with all types of electronics. I am going to give it a good test in the new year so ill let you know how good.
I see nicola is hoping to buy her bike in Ireland the old country i like the idea of Irish plates on my bike i wonder can i re reg bike in Ireland haha as for tent love new one garage for the bike love it
Paddy
happy biking

Hi nicola
if you like ill keep an eye out for bike here in the uk on ebay and if i find something ill send link and if something comes up you like and can buy i can store in my garage if you want
Paddy
happy biking

Sounds like 2014 might be a good year to do the trip ...
Hope to meet up with some of you at some point

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Mark
http://chasingdreams2014.blogspot.co.uk/

Ditto, @trackdayrider!

Hi Pledians, welcome to the forum.
I understand you are wishing to leave late summer and return in early spring, are you meaning northern summer/spring or southern hemisphere season?

If you are meaning northern hemisphere, then I take it you are keen to tour about during the winter months in and around Russia, is that correct?

When you get a chance, tell us a bit more detail about the places you wish to travel through, and what sort of bike you would travel with to do such a trip.

Ah, good to hear another keen photographer with a appreciation for the arts. A tiny laptop is good too, just enough to do the things you need, camera backups and connecting into camp ground WiFi for more detailed trip planning and weather and so on. I have a smartphone and it works well in complimenting a laptop. Just not sure about using my smartphone as a GPS, I find it's not as good as a purpose built gps, but having your iPhone and some maps makes for a great adventure.

I have two Garmin GPS's one is a small Nuvi 310 which I can put in my pocket and simply listen to the directions as they come, so no visual distractions. I found this works well and I can really continue to enjoy the ride, especially when I need to pass through bigger cities. The other one is a purpose built motorcycle GPS, a Zumo 550 and mount, and it is great for finding camp grounds and other specific motorcycle places.

Wow, I just mean wow, you mean to say your tiger has a 65kW water cooled alternator, I guess you must need a trailer to cart that about. Man, do go about selling bulk power to local villages or something?
Shame really, as the bike you have looks to be a really nice bike, I mean, really nice.

I'm not sure what size my alternator is on my TDM 850, but I will check it out, I have the manual somewhere for it. But it should not be a problem as what I am wanting to do is to supply only a few amps for charging.
I also have in mind to take one of those fold up solar panels, I have got one here, and they are great for camping in areas away from power sources, unless Paddy comes along of course



Paul

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That would be great, Paddy. What private sale website would you use in the UK for used bikes? Is there a main one? I will keep an eye on it too.

Hi Nicola
there's 2 sites i look at here in the uk e-bay and gumtree
i got all my bike's from e-bay done well too prices have dropped here on second hand bikes so many on the market let me know your budget and ill start looking out for likely one's in your price range it was a TT250 yamaha you are after
Yamaha TTR 250 in Warminster, Swindon | Motorbikes & Scooters for Sale | Gumtree.com
1998 YAMAHA TTR 250 cc TT250 R Enduro in Frome | Bike Trader

Here some i found so there's a few out there
Paddy
Happy biking

Hi Paul your bike should be 56kw or 60kw depending on model tdm850 (3dv) 91 to 95 or tdm850 ( 4tx) 96 to 01 oh man i am sounding like geek
but i think you should be fine with that you've got a good bike there
the solar panel is a good idea looking at that one myself. if i supply the power your doing the cooking
Paddy
Happy biking

Hi Paddy
Yes, I just checked, I have a 2001 model TDM850, almost the last one of that model before they went to 900cc.
So, the engine power is as you say, 60kW.

No, you don't sound like a geek at all, and even if you thought so, I would say that is good.
I can be very geeky sometimes, (read all the time).

Ok, I am happy to do the cooking, love cooking, rather cook than go out to eat. For me cooking, whether at home or on a trip like this is a lot of fun, so long as there is a bottle of nice wine to help the process.


I'm curious though Paddy.
Why do you talk about engine power in terms of having enough electrical energy?

That is why when you mentioned
I had bit of a humourous stab at you as it sounded like you meant you had a very large alternator which I had visions you would need a large trailer to cart it about. 65kW is 65000 Watts, which is huge!

But I see you have since modified to say
That I can now understand, 645 Watt alternator.
That is a good size alternator for sure.
I checked on my TDM, and I thought it was doing ok at 330 Watts.
It puts out 23.5 Amps at 14 Volts.
When you think about that, that is still a lot of energy, and which is partly taken up by the bike electrical system, such as ignition and lights.

I guess what is important is what extra capacity is available for other devices, such as for charging laptops and so on without stressing out the alternator?

I will need to look into that I think.

If or when I have the opportunity to look at another bike either for Australia or for Europe, I quite like what you have Paddy, the Triumph Tiger XC800.

Right then, you better all get your wish-lists in for cooking, and who's doing the dishes?


Paul

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