Adventure, Safety, and True Intentions

This trip is going to be awesome! We'll see everything from the Arizona desert to the rain forest, then on to the rugged Andes, Tierra del fuego, and finally Rio de Janeiro. Approximately 3 months of rough roads, new faces, foreign languages, and strange foods will be quite the adventure. That being said, I like to think that there is more meaning to this trip than just a need for adventure. Both Jake and I are adventurous dudes, and enjoy the occasional risky situation, but I would not categorize us as adrenaline junkies. It's been said that you can't put a price tag on experience. Life is made up of experiences, and this will be a grand one. I know that we will both grow tremendously as individuals through this.

Over the last 3 years our trip plans have undergone a lot of changes. Like Jake mentioned, we originally planned on riding the length of Africa, but with the civil unrest and hostility we eventually started considering other options. Central and South America was the obvious choice, not only because of location, but also because the people, culture, food, and geography were very intriguing.

"You know you're crazy, right?"  This is a fairly common response from people when they hear of our trip. Yes, we realize that there is danger involved in this expedition. We have put a lot of thought and prayer into this trip, and don't take safety lightly. We are planning it as well as we can in order to minimize potential issues.

Despite what Jake has told you about wanting to see the world, experience other cultures, and chase adventure, he is leaving out one important detail:  That little chica in Peru. Or Chile. He's not totally sure where she is (or who she is), but seems to think she's out there. I am determined to bring jake back a single man - follow our blog if you want to know what happens...

The Beginning, As I Remember It

Nathaniel and I have been talking about going on an epic motorcycle trip for years. We've both spent a lot of time in rural Africa and have really fallen in love with the world outside of the US. Initially we talked about a Cairo to Cape Town trip in Africa. We dropped that idea due to safety. Then we debated over China, or Southern Asia. Finally we settled on America. There was something for both of us in the idea of leaving our garage here in Bozeman MT and riding until we couldn't any more. A simplicity to it. Get on bike. Ride south. Stop when wheels touch ocean. 

There are a lot of reasons we are going on this trip and a lot of reasons we aren't. There's no mission, no task aside from going there and back again. I guess, if I had to give a reason, I would say because I'm young and because I can. Really though, we live in a incredible world and I want to see a bit more of it. I want to meet some people from different cultures, try to new foods and smell another place. 

We plan on leaving in May of 2016. Our rough route is to ride through Central America, take a ferry from Panama to Colombia and then ride along the west coast of South America until Tierra del Fuego. After that we will mosey up to Rio de Janeiro where we plan to sell our bikes and fly back to the States. There and back again in about 3 months.