Adventuring Around the World by Motorcycle
Motorcycle travel from Belgium to the Himalayas
Being passionate about adventure motorcycling, photography and mountain sports such as alpinism, climbing, snowboarding and skiing, I want to integrate this into my trip.
My goals for this big trip are: never take highways, ride as much as possible off-road, wild camp when possible and rock climb or perform some mountaineering in every country!
Motorcycle trip itinerary to the East
The protagonist
The Story Of Bert
The protagonist
The Story Of Bert
Being passionate about adventure motorcycling, photography and mountain sports, traveling from Belgium to the Himalayas
At the age of 2 I was thrown on the ski slopes in Austria, or dragged around the world in the van of my parents. They took me high up on the mountains for awesome hikes and wild camping trips. I guess you could say that adventures and wandering the world is in my blood: my parents went for more than 8 months to Asia for their honeymoon, they love traveling, outdoor activities and the mountain life; my grandparents, well… they are both almost 90 and still travel through whole Europe with their mobile home!
I just finished my PhD as an Industrial Engineer in Product Design and I now want to start a new adventure! Having travelled to several countries with different kind of transports, I found out that motorcycle travel could be the best trade-off between mobility, interaction with world and pack ability. So, I bought myself an old bike (a 1998 Honda Transalp 600) and started planning! Being an industrial designer as profession, I like to design things and work on the bike by myself: I installed a custom-made carbon fiber rally fairing, upgraded the suspension, redesigned the “dashboard”, upgraded the bash plate, installed new lights, made a new saddle, etc.
Being passionate about adventure motorcycling, photography and mountain sports such as alpinism, climbing, snowboarding and skiing, I want to integrate this into my trip.
Recommended equipment
Since I will try to ride as much as possible off-road and will often be alone, I equipped myself and my motorcycle with some protective gear
MOTORCYCLE EQUIPMENT:
For my trip to the Himalayas, I opted to equip my Honda Transalp 600 with a full soft luggage system. The GRT709 (35 liter) of the Gravel-T series of Givi is particularly suitable for off-road riding. They are fully waterproof, well build, have a removable waterproof liner, lighter than hard panniers and safer when falling off-road. Furthermore, they have several expansion possibilities and have a lockable quick-release plate, which makes it very easy to mount them.
From the same Gravel-T series, I’m using the fully waterproof tank bag (GRT715) which is 20 liter and is compatible with the Givi Camera bag. With this set-up I have a waterproof and solid solution to store my camera and several lenses. At the back, I’m using the 60-liter roll-up saddle dry-bag. This is perfect for storing all my camping and sleeping gear.
Since I will ride a serious portion of off-road and am not a pro-rider, I will probably fall once in a while so I installed some engine guards. Last but not least, I am using their S322 LED auxiliary lights. These are just super bright, have low power consumption and bomber proof made!
PERSONAL EQUIPMENT:
For my personal protection I like to wear a soft harness like the Leatt 3DF airfit lite. It offers way better protection than a regular motorcycle jacket and is less bulky than a hard-shell harness. In hot weather you can ride with the harness only for superb ventilation!
I wear a soft neck brace. It offers less protection than a hard one, but is a perfect trade-off between cost, weight, space and protection.
I wore several soft adventure boots but was never satisfied with the stiffness of the sole and protection of the ankle. Eventually I bought a pair of Adventure boots, which offer a Gore-Tex membrane, high gaiter, ankle hinge and several hard-plastic protective zones. Especially when riding alone, you don’t want your foot to be stuck (and crushed) underneath your bike!
I’m not a big fan of integrated knee protectors. They don’t offer decent protection when riding off-road, are tight in the pants and sometimes create pressure points on the knee caps. Therefore, I opted for the Alpinestar SX1. It is a comfortable knee protector which offers decent support for a knee protector (in comparison with a brace). Furthermore, you can strap them over a normal trouser in case it is very hot or you ride for a short distance.
For riding jacket and trousers, I like to ride with gear that has no membrane inside. It is in general cheaper, lighter and better temperature controllable. And when it’s raining, I simply use a bomber proof rain suite!
Since I will try to ride as much as possible off-road and will often be alone, I equipped myself and my motorcycle with some protective gear
MOTORCYCLE EQUIPMENT:
For my trip to the Himalayas, I opted to equip my Honda Transalp 600 with a full soft luggage system. The GRT709 (35 liter) of the Gravel-T series of Givi is particularly suitable for off-road riding. They are fully waterproof, well build, have a removable waterproof liner, lighter than hard panniers and safer when falling off-road. Furthermore, they have several expansion possibilities and have a lockable quick-release plate, which makes it very easy to mount them.
From the same Gravel-T series, I’m using the fully waterproof tank bag (GRT715) which is 20 liter and is compatible with the Givi Camera bag. With this set-up I have a waterproof and solid solution to store my camera and several lenses. At the back, I’m using the 60-liter roll-up saddle dry-bag. This is perfect for storing all my camping and sleeping gear.
Since I will ride a serious portion of off-road and am not a pro-rider, I will probably fall once in a while so I installed some engine guards. Last but not least, I am using their S322 LED auxiliary lights. These are just super bright, have low power consumption and bomber proof made!
PERSONAL EQUIPMENT:
For my personal protection I like to wear a soft harness like the Leatt 3DF airfit lite. It offers way better protection than a regular motorcycle jacket and is less bulky than a hard-shell harness. In hot weather you can ride with the harness only for superb ventilation!
I wear a soft neck brace. It offers less protection than a hard one, but is a perfect trade-off between cost, weight, space and protection.
I wore several soft adventure boots but was never satisfied with the stiffness of the sole and protection of the ankle. Eventually I bought a pair of Adventure boots, which offer a Gore-Tex membrane, high gaiter, ankle hinge and several hard-plastic protective zones. Especially when riding alone, you don’t want your foot to be stuck (and crushed) underneath your bike!
I’m not a big fan of integrated knee protectors. They don’t offer decent protection when riding off-road, are tight in the pants and sometimes create pressure points on the knee caps. Therefore, I opted for the Alpinestar SX1. It is a comfortable knee protector which offers decent support for a knee protector (in comparison with a brace). Furthermore, you can strap them over a normal trouser in case it is very hot or you ride for a short distance.
For riding jacket and trousers, I like to ride with gear that has no membrane inside. It is in general cheaper, lighter and better temperature controllable. And when it’s raining, I simply use a bomber proof rain suite!