• The secrets of adventure riding - How to prepare for an epic trip around the world

    By Moto Morgana

     

    Every motorcyclist dreams of riding around the world. For Belgian couple Tom and Caroline, that fantasy has become reality. The global motorcycle adventurers, travelling under the Moto Morgana banner, are relying on 701 Enduro machines to complete their epic trip.

    Here they share their experience and hard-won lessons. Get inspired and find out what you would need to pack to survive your own global adventure, and how to find your way around the globe. 

     

    For those who don’t know what you did during your incredible two-year trip, can you give an overview of where you went, where you stayed, and how the route evolved?

    “In 2016, we set out on a round the world trip. We closed up our house in Belgium, jumped on our 701 Enduros and started riding. Getting out of Europe quickly was our first priority as the weather forecast was pretty horrible. So, we crossed France, Spain and Portugal and properly started our adventure in Morocco.

    What an amazing country. Morocco is an ideal playground for offroaders and it allowed us to warm up and get used to our Husqvarnas. We headed south and passed through 14 countries in western Africa before entering Namibia. From there we headed east through Zambia, Malawi, Mozambique and Swaziland and finally reached Cape Town, South Africa. By that point we were 10 months into our trip.

    After that we shipped the bikes to Uruguay. South America was amazing. We crossed the vineyards of Argentina, the Atacama Desert in Chile, Bolivia’s Salar de Uyuni salt flats, saw Machu Picchu in Peru, got rained on in Ecuador and enjoyed the hospitality of the Colombians."

    "We had to work our way around the Darien Gap, an 80 km stretch of jungle between Colombia and Panama that cannot be crossed by motorbike. We crated the bikes again and shipped them in a container to Panama, a lengthy, expensive and difficult process. As we rode through all the small Central American countries, we hungered to get to Mexico, a place all other travellers we met were lyrical about. And boy, were they right! Because we spent a bit more time in this vibrant country, we had to rush to get to Alaska before the snow. While crossing a few western states of the US and the left side of the Canadian Rocky Mountains, people often asked us if we were going north or south. When we answered, ‘North’, full of confidence and excitement, they replied, ‘Whoa, that’s a bit late in the season!’ Yes, it was freezing cold, especially at night, and we had a few snowy days. But gazing at the Northern Lights in Fairbanks - with the mouth wide-open - made up for all the suffering.

    We had originally intended on a five-year trip around the world but had to revise our plans and instead make it a two-year adventure. We decided to cross the United States of America from west to east to finish in New York, where we could spend some time with Caroline’s brother and his family. After exactly two years on the road, with lots of stories to tell but also with heavy hearts, we flew home to Belgium.” 

    Before you set off on a trip there must be many practicalities to take care of, the laborious administrative duties. Does sorting out all the pre-trip paperwork and life stuff help make the upcoming trip more real, allow you to start getting excited that it truly is about to happen?

    “Preparing for a big journey takes time. That’s why we stopped working a month and a half prior to leaving. Paperwork is one thing: passports, carnets for the bikes (depending on the countries you want to visit), credit cards, yellow card and the accompanying vaccines. Every time we checked one of those items off our list, we would do a high five. This is not really our favourite part of the preparations, but it makes the trip more real – without passports, we wouldn’t be able to get very far, right? Way more exciting were the boxes that arrived on our doorstep: new helmets, boots, riding gear, a tent and very comfy sleeping bags. Then, of course, the bikes. After we picked them up, we both sat on them for maybe half an hour with huge smiles on our faces. We weren’t even riding; we were just getting to know our riding companions for the next years. Call it the start of a new relationship.”

     

    Clearly, the decision to undertake your incredible journey wasn’t made lightly. What inspired you to do the trip?

    Caroline: “Tom always travelled a lot, even as a teenager. He loved travelling without really knowing where he would spend the night or where he would go the next day. When we first met, he had just returned from a two-month trip to South America. He would talk about it for hours with so much passion. I was definitely tempted, and it didn’t take long for me to realise I wanted to join him on his next trip. ‘No problem, but you will have to ride your own bike,’ he said. So, we got my first bike, I passed my riding licence and we left on a one-month journey from Belgium to the south of Jordan and back. Obviously, I lacked experience and after 11,000 km I was totally exhausted. But I had the time of my life. This was it. I had finally found my thing and had the taste for more. Over the next few years, we undertook trips to South Africa and Namibia, to Iran, to Iceland, to Morocco. I really got the hang of it. But the more we travelled, the more we struggled to go back home. We would finish one trip and immediately start planning the next one. Then, one day, on a sunny terrace in Lille, Tom popped the question: ‘What would you think about leaving for a longer period? Like… five years or so?’ He was rather surprised by my answer: ‘Now that’s a great idea! When do you want to leave?’ From that day on we started dreaming and planning, and the first stretch of our trip was the two-year adventure from 2016 to 2018. Now we’re going to embark on the next three years of our five-year plan.”

     

    Did you know exactly where you wanted to go, or did you take things one country at a time? Talk us through the decision-making process that helped you decide where you would head next. How has that influenced your plans for the upcoming trip?

    “When you leave on a one-month trip, it’s easy to plan ahead. What sights do you want to visit, which routes can you take, where can you camp, or stay in a hostel or cheap hotel?

    That is not an option when travelling for several years. In 2016, we left Belgium and planned to ride to Morocco in a straight line. It would take us a day or three, maybe four, to get there. But because of torrential rains and freezing temperatures all over Europe, we zigzagged for a full two weeks before taking the ferry across the Mediterranean. That was a real eye-opener; we would have to take it easy at times. So we lived from day to day, following a rough direction. Some places could not be skipped, because we needed to arrange visas for the next country for example, or there was a must-see tourist destination. But most of the time, we would look at the map over breakfast, then decide what route we would take and where we would spend the night."

    "We speak a few languages and that comes in really handy when travelling. Locals are the best tour guides. They can tell you the great spots you simply have to visit – those hidden gems are always worth it – and which roads might be impassable during rainy seasons. A smile is the best way to start a conversation, in every country, everywhere in the world. And because we were both extremely happy doing what we did, it wasn’t that difficult to smile all the time.

    For our next trip, we also have some rough directions, but the current situations in, say, Ukraine, Ethiopia or Myanmar will call for even more flexibility. It can all change very quickly. Two months after we crossed Syria on Caroline’s first trip, the war broke out and the borders closed. Syria has been a definite no-go but is slowly starting to open up again, albeit with a lot of restrictions. But even when we cannot cross countries on our wish list, there is so much left to be explored."

    Failing to prepare means you’re preparing to fail. This is a popular saying, but do you think it is true? Is planning essential, or can you plan too much?

    “Travelling like we do can be highly unpredictable. There is a lot that can happen on the road: you can crash, become ill, have a technical issue, equipment failure, you can get stopped by corrupt police or even get robbed. It’s a matter of simple statistics: the longer you travel, the higher the chances are that one day something will go wrong. Things have gone wrong for us in the past. We have both crashed our bikes, Tom broke his foot in Mali, Caroline had salmonella and Tom had malaria twice with an extra salmonella infection on top. Needless to say, those weren’t the best days of the trip.

    We’ve had flat tyres, snapped bolts, broken spokes and so on, all as a result of continuously pushing our fully loaded 701 Enduro machines to the limits. But when you know your equipment, you know which things are most likely to go wrong. There is no road assistance in the Sahara Desert, so you have to try and anticipate what you might require.

    It is a matter of making informed choices, as we really prefer to travel light. It makes the ride so much more fun. So we carry a spare tube, tyre patches and a few spokes, but we won’t carry tyres or extra rims. In exceptional cases where these might need to be replaced, we have to wait a while for them to arrive from Europe.

    We also try to calculate when things will wear out and have them ordered or shipped to a certain destination. There isn’t too much variation in chain and sprocket wear and an oil change every 10 000 km is also pretty predictable. Over the years, we have learned to limit our packing list to the bare minimum, while still being prepared for the most probable issues.

    And then there is that need for freedom, of course. It is a substantial aspect of the project and we feel like being over-prepared would just compromise that freedom of movement. You want to learn, adapt, find creative solutions and re-plan when unforeseen things happen. It’s just an essential part of travelling.”

    Survival essentials, starting with your passports what were the 10 most important items that you travel with?

     

    Tent:

    “We have a spacious but lightweight tent; easy to get all of our stuff in at night. Being able to keep your gear dry at night makes a huge difference in the morning.”

    Sleeping bag and sleeping bag liners:

    “We often experience very cold nights, so decent sleeping bags are very important. Sometimes we even use them when we take a cheap room, as in some countries the sheets aren’t always clean. The liners are easy to wash, which is great for a good and refreshing night’s sleep.”

    Ultra-compact camping chairs:

    “These are so comfortable when you camp. You don’t want to sit on cold rocks for two or three years.”

    Cameras and laptops:

    “Essential for taking cool pictures, writing great stories and seducing everyone to embark on their own motorcycle adventure once they have read them.”

    GPS:

    “We prefer riding with GPS as it really helps us to find those well-hidden tracks.

    Riding gear:

    “After a few crashes, we became very much convinced that quality helmets, boots and riding gear can be lifesavers.”

    Emergency satellite device:

    “We carry a Garmin inReach so we can send an emergency signal from anywhere on the planet, even the remotest of places. We have never actually used it but it gives great peace of mind, in case something bad happens.”

    Medical kit:

    “Bandages, painkillers, antibiotics, disinfectant… The usual stuff.”

    Headlamp:

    “Particularly useful while camping, but it comes in handy for working on the bikes as well.”

    Tools:

    “A compact yet comprehensive toolkit and some essential spares: no one touches the bikes except Tom, so he has to be well-equipped to do bike maintenance and repairs.”

     

    What Husqvarna Motorcycles Technical Accessories will you use on your trip, and why those products specifically?

    “The Technical Accessories range contains a lot to customise and upgrade your bike, but keeping in mind we really want to keep the weight of our bikes to a minimum, we try to focus on the essentials that really make a difference to the kind of riding we are doing.”

    Long Range fuel tank:

    “This adds 12 litres to the fuel capacity and extends the range to easily over 500 km. This is a no brainer for us, as the standard 13 litre tank is just not enough to make it to the next petrol station in some remote areas. Also, when a track turns out to be blocked, you want enough fuel to make it all the way back.”

    See item

    Fork and shock springs:

    “We specify stiffer front and rear springs to make up for the extra weight of the tank and the luggage on the back.”

    Pivot Pegz:

    “These allow for easier gear shifting and braking while sitting down on the bike.”

    See item

    Aluminium hand guards:

    “The handguards protect our hands and shield the levers, while also being able to withstand a crash.” 

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    Heated grips:

    “Warm hands make it easier to endure longer rides on colder days without freezing our fingers off.”

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    Radiator grille:

    “For extra protection from flying rocks when riding offroad.” 

    See item

    Handlebar risers:

    “We spend long periods on the bikes, and with both of us being quite tall, the handlebar risers help us to avoid back pain.”

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    Windscreen:

    “This helps to protect us from the elements a little bit more.”

    See item

    Fork socks:

    “We encounter a lot of muddy and dusty conditions and the fork socks substantially extend the life of the fork seals.”

    See item

    Long Range fuel tank:

    “This adds 12 litres to the fuel capacity and extends the range to easily over 500 km. This is a no brainer for us, as the standard 13 litre tank is just not enough to make it to the next petrol station in some remote areas. Also, when a track turns out to be blocked, you want enough fuel to make it all the way back.”

    See item

    Fork and shock springs:

    “We specify stiffer front and rear springs to make up for the extra weight of the tank and the luggage on the back.”

    Pivot Pegz:

    “These allow for easier gear shifting and braking while sitting down on the bike.”

    See item

    Aluminium hand guards:

    “The handguards protect our hands and shield the levers, while also being able to withstand a crash.” 

    See item

    Heated grips:

    “Warm hands make it easier to endure longer rides on colder days without freezing our fingers off.”

    See item

    Radiator grille:

    “For extra protection from flying rocks when riding offroad.” 

    See item

    Handlebar risers:

    “We spend long periods on the bikes, and with both of us being quite tall, the handlebar risers help us to avoid back pain.”

    See item

    Windscreen:

    “This helps to protect us from the elements a little bit more.”

    See item

    Fork socks:

    “We encounter a lot of muddy and dusty conditions and the fork socks substantially extend the life of the fork seals.”

    See item

    When planning your upcoming trip, how did you decide on the right mix of being organised and safe, while also remaining free and able to react spontaneously?

    “I guess when you put Tom and me together, you have a perfect mix of ‘organised and safe’, and ‘free and spontaneous’. By living together for all those years, Tom learned that organised and safe doesn’t always mean boring. And I learned to believe in myself and just jump without thinking too much.

    Because of the situation in Europe right now, we feel that some of the countries we wanted to visit in a first stretch of our trip are not safe enough. To get to Mongolia, we will have to get into Russia first. Is that a good idea? Will they let us leave the country again? When we think the risk is just too high, we resist the temptation. We still have a long trip ahead of us. One of the things we learned, is that you don’t always have to follow government advice. They can’t take any risks, so their recommendations are pretty strict. Sometimes listening to locals and using your common sense lets you travel through red zones on the safety map and discover those hidden gems no other traveller gets to see.”

    Caroline

    "By living together for all those years, Tom learned that organised and safe doesn’t always mean boring. And I learned to believe in myself and just jump without thinking too much."

    Being ready for all eventualities is so important on a trip like yours. When it comes to carrying spare parts, what will you take and why do you choose Husqvarna original spare parts?

    “Choosing original Husqvarna parts is just a way of being sure of the quality and fitment of the spares. There’s always a unique part number to avoid any confusion. The last thing we would want is to have to replace an essential part in a remote location and then discover it doesn’t fit or is not up to the task.

    The list of spares we take is pretty extensive but can be narrowed down to the following categories.”

    • Seals, O-rings, Gaskets: “These are very specific spares but fortunately they are compact and lightweight so are easy to carry. We try to avoid paying DHL 100€ to ship a 0,50€ O-ring to us.”
    • Bearings: “When these fail, especially wheel bearings, it can be a real show stopper. They are often really hard to source locally.”
    • Brake, Clutch, Gear levers: “Spare levers are essential as they are often the first things to break in a crash.”
    • Spokes: “If you hit a massive pothole at high speed, there is a good chance you will break a spoke or two.”
    • Brake pads
    • Front sprocket: “We tend to calculate when the rear sprocket will be due for replacement and have it shipped or sourced on the road. However, we do carry a spare front with us.”
    • Fuel system spares: “Fuel can be of pretty low quality at times, putting a strain on your fuel system components. So we carry spare filters, a pump, and injectors. When filling up dodgy 84 octane fuel mixed with way too much ethanol from a rusty barrel on the Bolivian Altiplano, you know there is a possibility that things might go wrong.”
    • Assorted bolts, nuts and screws: “Knowing which fasteners are used on your bike is essential to avoid carrying a bag full of useless weight. Also, bolt quality is of importance because in some countries they only sell the low-tensile type which will shear off after hitting the first pothole.”

    Where will your upcoming trip take you and why? Is the plan to simply experience more of what you experienced on your first trip, or to go to new places, or will you revisit your favourite locations? For how long will you be travelling this time?

    “Since our initial plan was to travel for five years, we would now like to do the remaining three years. During the first trip, we travelled through (mainly) western Africa and South and North America. This means we still have some parts of the world that remain unexplored by us. Some regions in Europe, but certainly also Asia, Australia and New Zealand, eastern Africa, Brazil and the southern tip of Argentina and Chile are on our list. The exact order in which we will travel these areas is yet unsure and will depend a great deal on safety and health conditions. Pandemics and war zones tend to have a great impact on the feasibility of a specific region. We know a guy whose goal was to travel to every single country in the world. That’s not really our type of project. We want to travel to countries that attract us, that have something to offer, preferably for offroad bike enthusiast like us. We don’t want to visit a country just for the sake of it.

    Visiting every tourist hotspot is not our goal either. Certainly it would be a shame not to visit Petra while in Jordan or Machu Picchu while in Peru. But we prefer riding our bikes to remote places where no tourists are to be found, instead of being part of an overly organised circus and finding ourselves in the souvenir shop at the end of the guided tour. We met quite a few people who were shocked that we ‘missed’ certain tourist attractions on the road. But they didn’t pitch a tent with that magnificent view all to themselves in the middle of nowhere, neither were they invited by a local family to spend the night in their hut. All unforgettable experiences.”

    Was there a long decision-making progress behind deciding to go for this adventure?

    “When we came home after two years on the road, we immediately started saving up for this trip. Our journey wasn’t over yet, we had to do that second part as soon as possible. That was a done deal. We both went back to work, but with only one purpose: being able to leave again as soon as possible.”

     

    Generally speaking, you know what to expect heading into your second trip. Does the gained experience from the first trip allow you to be more confident, more adventurous, or will that experience shape the trip in other ways?

    “We won’t change our way of travelling. We both feel that it suits us, we enjoy it immensely. I guess we were already rather adventurous, but the previous trip makes us more confident in many ways. We know better how to react in certain circumstances, we know what to take care of, we know our routine – as far as we have one. We found out that there is always one of us that stays positive and knows what to do in a crisis. That’s a very reassuring thought. Sometimes, we ask ourselves if this new trip is going to be as good as the first one, because it was so incredibly awesome. Then we realise it will be. Different, but good simply because we are doing what we love the most: exploring the world in the best possible way.

    We might change a few things though. We are thinking of travelling a bit slower, staying a little longer in our favourite countries, spending more time with other people maybe. We also plan to make more calls to our family at home. When you’re on the road and enjoying new scenery every day, you sometimes forget that those who stay at home are waiting to hear from you. We always thought, ‘No news is good news’, but apparently it doesn’t work that way. We’ve learned from our mistakes, that’s for sure.”

     

    Mostly everyone who ever owned a motorcycle and has travelled would love to do what you are doing – but they don’t. What is it that makes you go for it?

    “Travelling is a priority to us. We don’t spend a lot of money on cars or expensive consumer goods, and haven’t been on a holiday for the last two years. We skipped restaurant visits and barely bought any new clothes. Every time we wanted to buy something we didn’t really need, we counted how many days on the road that would be. Our way of travelling is not luxurious at all. We sleep and live in a tent or the cheapest hotels. We eat street food. When it rains, we get wet. When it’s freezing we get cold. And the tent comes without air conditioning, so we wake up early when the desert sun comes up. We’ve had days in a row without showering; our kneepads smell like ripe camembert. Unlike most of our friends, this is a life that makes us absolutely happy. Lots of people make other choices in life. When we talk about what we do, you hear the usual, ‘If I didn’t have kids…’ or ‘If I were 20 years younger…’. Well, we jumped. We didn’t want to wait those 20 years and regret it for the rest of our lives.”

    Tom

    "If someone else can do it, I can do it as well."

    Caroline

    "Treat others as you would like to be treated."