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My Dublin to Ushuaia Trip!
- Thread starter IrishKev
- Start date
O
OUTBACKUFO
Guest
All I really taught him was how Not To Ride Off a Cliff...
... though it was good to have someone else change my tires on my gs that weekend 
Told him to change a a tire is likea hot date...
got to be smooth and gentle and it will slip right off then on
..Kev took to te dirt well up on Haggerman Pass, learned with the big bike got to go a bit faster to keep momentum up... 15mph is a good speed to ride the big one when off roading... as to what i was taught... of course while showing him how to do the water crossing (photo in his post) i almost went down in the water in a big way
for not choosing the right line... we all here will turn him into an Adventure rider before he know it... it is a good desease to contract...
H
HODAG
Guest
Man Down
I just got a desperate call from Kevfoley who is heading from Dublin to Ushuaia THREAD and had a crash today. Kev is totally fine but the motorcycle 1200 GS is quite damaged. After the crash him and another rider Simon where able to get the bike going again. However, when they stopped an hour ago to get gas the motorcycle won't start again . Kev just call me from the public phone at the gas station. He is in northern Peru in the middle of nowhere. I advice him to go the closest largest city Jaen (accent on the e) which is close to the amazon in the state of Cajamarca. The closest BMW dealer is in Quito Ecuador which i'm guessing is at least 1,000 miles away.
We need all the brains on Advrider to help Kevin figure out how to do a quick fix and get back to civilization and to a good mechanic.
since the bike was running i imagine with some help he can get it running again. He said that the EWF (EWS?) sensor is damaged (or on) and the bike won't recognize the key. The conection was really bad so I couldn't hear clearly. Hopefully he will be online tomorrow...
ADVTHREAD
I just got a desperate call from Kevfoley who is heading from Dublin to Ushuaia THREAD and had a crash today. Kev is totally fine but the motorcycle 1200 GS is quite damaged. After the crash him and another rider Simon where able to get the bike going again. However, when they stopped an hour ago to get gas the motorcycle won't start again . Kev just call me from the public phone at the gas station. He is in northern Peru in the middle of nowhere. I advice him to go the closest largest city Jaen (accent on the e) which is close to the amazon in the state of Cajamarca. The closest BMW dealer is in Quito Ecuador which i'm guessing is at least 1,000 miles away.
We need all the brains on Advrider to help Kevin figure out how to do a quick fix and get back to civilization and to a good mechanic.
since the bike was running i imagine with some help he can get it running again. He said that the EWF (EWS?) sensor is damaged (or on) and the bike won't recognize the key. The conection was really bad so I couldn't hear clearly. Hopefully he will be online tomorrow...
ADVTHREAD
IrishKev
New member
Hey guys !
I am back! Thanks Statdawg for keeping everyone updated! I am now in Lima, and damn it was a remote part of Peru! high speed internet is 32kb per sec.. where it exists !
But the ride out there is fantastic. Here is the updated report until the accident.
The sensor is on its way from Miami, just have to decide what to do about the console. I can read the speed and the revs,.. in theory thats all i need! but most of the LCD display for fuel, miles etc is unreadable.. still have the warning lights .. so guess I can still use it. Cant decide to replace it now or when i finish the trip!
Everyone has been great to me with loads of advice etc. just hope can get the machine going now!
But until then here are the latest pics.. bike damage to follow.
Following on from Quito we made our way over the mountains along dirt roads to the Amazon basin Ecuador part. The roads were pretty rough.
Simon even lost his Exhaust
The same day the skys opened and we got soaked! Here we stopped for lunch in Tena to get out of the rain but it continued for most of the day. Got absolutely soaked
After awhile exploring the jungle paths where i seem to have precious little pics checking out some monkeys etc we decided a camp would be a good idea. We stopped at an airfield and asked security if we could stay. Figuring guys with guns would be good protection for us also. But they wouldn’t let us Stay. After some conversation an Indian guy who was beside them said we could stay under his house!
So we went over and pitched the mosquito nets! And put up with some usual questions about the bike, size, speed, cost, and the they just sat there and watched us! It was weird. Like talking to a brick wall!!
So once we decided to go to bed at the very late time of 7 pm!! Wow!! The Indian guy disappeared. I awoke on the 9th of November (my birthday) to the radio with what sounded like a Spanish version of Graham Norton.. this was accompanied by a bloody cockrel who wouldn’t shut up! I was going to ring its neck but I was thinking the Indians around us might not like that very much.
So at first light we got up , packed bikes and headed off for Banos.
And just after we saw the most hairy pig in the world! We called him Afro pig!
And I had my first fall in months!! Welcome to being 27! Must be the old age! But no serious damage.. just pride. We made it to Banos in one piece, and spent the rest of the day relaxing in the hot springs.. i guess thats where the town got its name.. Banos being Spanish for bath.
We spent the evening drinking in the local, where the funniest moment had to be when there were a bunch of fat chicks passing by trying to dance. Simon blurts out in English, “I hate it when fat chicks try to look sexy” ... problem was they spoke English!! Hahahaha their mates were outside hi fiving each other!!
On leaving Banos we had to take a slight detour . After speaking with locals the road on our map didn’t exist as it was wiped out in a Volcanic eruption 2 years ago. But we got on our way, and entered the heavens
Food was the usual affair..
With some inquisitive locals
Camp was a simple affair of two tents, a fire, some Bod Dylan and Arcade Fire on the iPod, along with Boiled rice and tuna! Staple food of any poor biker!
View in the morning was nice ! check out those mountains , kind of reminds me a little of Ireland
On our arrival it was change over time to TKC 80s to cope with the up coming dirt! Only it was Sunday so all the llanterias were closed so had to do it myself!!
Road to the border was class!! I am so glad we ignored everyone advice to go to Macara, and instead opted for the little used La Bolsa, (not even on my map crossing near Zumba directly south of Loja)
Proof that even KLRs end up in the ditch at times!
There were a few Army checkpoints down here, this was the final one, where we thought the guys were friends of MC Hammer
I am back! Thanks Statdawg for keeping everyone updated! I am now in Lima, and damn it was a remote part of Peru! high speed internet is 32kb per sec.. where it exists !
But the ride out there is fantastic. Here is the updated report until the accident.
The sensor is on its way from Miami, just have to decide what to do about the console. I can read the speed and the revs,.. in theory thats all i need! but most of the LCD display for fuel, miles etc is unreadable.. still have the warning lights .. so guess I can still use it. Cant decide to replace it now or when i finish the trip!
Everyone has been great to me with loads of advice etc. just hope can get the machine going now!
But until then here are the latest pics.. bike damage to follow.
Following on from Quito we made our way over the mountains along dirt roads to the Amazon basin Ecuador part. The roads were pretty rough.
Simon even lost his Exhaust
The same day the skys opened and we got soaked! Here we stopped for lunch in Tena to get out of the rain but it continued for most of the day. Got absolutely soaked
After awhile exploring the jungle paths where i seem to have precious little pics checking out some monkeys etc we decided a camp would be a good idea. We stopped at an airfield and asked security if we could stay. Figuring guys with guns would be good protection for us also. But they wouldn’t let us Stay. After some conversation an Indian guy who was beside them said we could stay under his house!
So we went over and pitched the mosquito nets! And put up with some usual questions about the bike, size, speed, cost, and the they just sat there and watched us! It was weird. Like talking to a brick wall!!
So once we decided to go to bed at the very late time of 7 pm!! Wow!! The Indian guy disappeared. I awoke on the 9th of November (my birthday) to the radio with what sounded like a Spanish version of Graham Norton.. this was accompanied by a bloody cockrel who wouldn’t shut up! I was going to ring its neck but I was thinking the Indians around us might not like that very much.
So at first light we got up , packed bikes and headed off for Banos.
And just after we saw the most hairy pig in the world! We called him Afro pig!
And I had my first fall in months!! Welcome to being 27! Must be the old age! But no serious damage.. just pride. We made it to Banos in one piece, and spent the rest of the day relaxing in the hot springs.. i guess thats where the town got its name.. Banos being Spanish for bath.
We spent the evening drinking in the local, where the funniest moment had to be when there were a bunch of fat chicks passing by trying to dance. Simon blurts out in English, “I hate it when fat chicks try to look sexy” ... problem was they spoke English!! Hahahaha their mates were outside hi fiving each other!!
On leaving Banos we had to take a slight detour . After speaking with locals the road on our map didn’t exist as it was wiped out in a Volcanic eruption 2 years ago. But we got on our way, and entered the heavens
Food was the usual affair..
With some inquisitive locals
Camp was a simple affair of two tents, a fire, some Bod Dylan and Arcade Fire on the iPod, along with Boiled rice and tuna! Staple food of any poor biker!
View in the morning was nice ! check out those mountains , kind of reminds me a little of Ireland
On our arrival it was change over time to TKC 80s to cope with the up coming dirt! Only it was Sunday so all the llanterias were closed so had to do it myself!!
Road to the border was class!! I am so glad we ignored everyone advice to go to Macara, and instead opted for the little used La Bolsa, (not even on my map crossing near Zumba directly south of Loja)
Proof that even KLRs end up in the ditch at times!
There were a few Army checkpoints down here, this was the final one, where we thought the guys were friends of MC Hammer
IrishKev
New member
Continued...
When we finally arrived at the border the customs official was twisted drunk, and insisted we join him for a beer.. or four!
It really was quiet funny , then it was over to Peru... as the sign says below
This side was a little more slow. First the girl thought my passport was fake, then the guy takes an hour to fill out the wrong form for the bike, then he finds the real one. But by now a huge thunder storm had come in and we were going no where! It was getting dark and the only road out was bad dirt! Asking around for a place to came, I jokingly asked if we could stay in the office! But the answer was yes!! So that shack behind the Peru sign is where we spent out first night in Peru
Next day was more of the same, with the roads made worse by the rain overnight, we even had to drive up over a landslide or two.
This is one of the better sections
There were also some very powerful rivers going down the valley, swelled from the night before!
In the end we reached the town of Pedro Ruiz , where we were back to Tarmac. But first thing we did was check all the bolts to make sure all was still secure, as the last section of the road, was really corrugated, and was littered with the remains of an old tarmac surface from about 20 years ago!
On the Advice of Brennan we went to see Gocta Falls, which was ÔÇ£discoveredÔÇØ by some German dude about 5 years ago. It has been measured at 771 meters making it the third highest in the world, Its not too far from Chachapoyas for anyone interested.
Its a 2 hour walk into the base from the nearest village where we nearly stepped on some snakes having it off in the middle of the path.. donÔÇÖt think they were impressed with us!
Actually it was very Indiana Jones like .. the whole experience.
Next day we had planned a two day trip around dirt roads linking to Tingo Maria and then down to Cusco eventually, but it was near Moyobamba that my bike spun out on a corner and then ended up in the ditch with me following. We did get it started again, but decided to limp back to Lima for repairs. When we stopped for gas the EWS sensor died. So now no bike!
After some effort we located a pickup truck who agreed to take the bike and me to Jaen (the nearest big town) for $30. We got a hostal and next day located the local bus company. They had a truck going to Lima, so once the fuel was emptied and the bike was lifted into the back of a truck! (5 guys to lift to shoulder height! ) I had paid the $50 for bike and $30 for me I said goodbye. I had to wait another day, for a bus, but am now in Lima resting up waiting for parts!
More pics to follow of the repairs!! and a lesson that Knobblies on a GS are not good for taking corners like a Ducatti sports bike!
When we finally arrived at the border the customs official was twisted drunk, and insisted we join him for a beer.. or four!
It really was quiet funny , then it was over to Peru... as the sign says below
This side was a little more slow. First the girl thought my passport was fake, then the guy takes an hour to fill out the wrong form for the bike, then he finds the real one. But by now a huge thunder storm had come in and we were going no where! It was getting dark and the only road out was bad dirt! Asking around for a place to came, I jokingly asked if we could stay in the office! But the answer was yes!! So that shack behind the Peru sign is where we spent out first night in Peru
Next day was more of the same, with the roads made worse by the rain overnight, we even had to drive up over a landslide or two.
This is one of the better sections
There were also some very powerful rivers going down the valley, swelled from the night before!
In the end we reached the town of Pedro Ruiz , where we were back to Tarmac. But first thing we did was check all the bolts to make sure all was still secure, as the last section of the road, was really corrugated, and was littered with the remains of an old tarmac surface from about 20 years ago!
On the Advice of Brennan we went to see Gocta Falls, which was ÔÇ£discoveredÔÇØ by some German dude about 5 years ago. It has been measured at 771 meters making it the third highest in the world, Its not too far from Chachapoyas for anyone interested.
Its a 2 hour walk into the base from the nearest village where we nearly stepped on some snakes having it off in the middle of the path.. donÔÇÖt think they were impressed with us!
Actually it was very Indiana Jones like .. the whole experience.
Next day we had planned a two day trip around dirt roads linking to Tingo Maria and then down to Cusco eventually, but it was near Moyobamba that my bike spun out on a corner and then ended up in the ditch with me following. We did get it started again, but decided to limp back to Lima for repairs. When we stopped for gas the EWS sensor died. So now no bike!
After some effort we located a pickup truck who agreed to take the bike and me to Jaen (the nearest big town) for $30. We got a hostal and next day located the local bus company. They had a truck going to Lima, so once the fuel was emptied and the bike was lifted into the back of a truck! (5 guys to lift to shoulder height! ) I had paid the $50 for bike and $30 for me I said goodbye. I had to wait another day, for a bus, but am now in Lima resting up waiting for parts!
More pics to follow of the repairs!! and a lesson that Knobblies on a GS are not good for taking corners like a Ducatti sports bike!
B
BUBBAZANETTI
Guest
hey man! looks like you're having the time of your life. carry on!
F
franze
Guest
"was in another lifetime, one of toil and blood"
when darkness was a virtue and the road was full of mud,
I came in from the wilderness, a creature void of form,
"come in," she said" I'll give you, shelter from the storm"
Hope you have that Dylan on your ipod. Your reports are uplifting, your spirit contagious. Keep the flag up!!!!!
when darkness was a virtue and the road was full of mud,
I came in from the wilderness, a creature void of form,
"come in," she said" I'll give you, shelter from the storm"
Hope you have that Dylan on your ipod. Your reports are uplifting, your spirit contagious. Keep the flag up!!!!!
IrishKev
New member
testinglogin
Hogaan!
Simon sending you pictures Chris!
Just after I had picked it up!
Wow, Kev. You DID manage to make the GS look more "sporty" with the low windshield setup.
Did that hole in the pants happen at the same time? Good to see you were standing right after!
IrishKev
New member
Well, chip is taking a little longer to arrive than I had hoped. Have to give BMW a call on Tuesday. The Thanksgiving seems to have slowed up postal services. So I am hoping I will get it around Friday. Until been enjoying the sights of Lima. But need to get going again soon! I am getting withdrawl symptons.
Threeteas
New member
Kev,
Can you leave a trail of red twine, as I'll be heading that way next December.
Once you've reached TDF, what's your intended route back...east coast or back up the west?
Next question. How's the 1200 coped, do you feel a 650 Dakar would have been more suited to the task or just different?
Final question, can you get tea? I know this sounds trivial, but not when the whole reason for the ride is to avoid coffee.
Thanks for being my R&D guy and all the continued best to you and Simon.
(I'll explain two snakes "havin' it off" if the question arises).
Can you leave a trail of red twine, as I'll be heading that way next December.
Once you've reached TDF, what's your intended route back...east coast or back up the west?
Next question. How's the 1200 coped, do you feel a 650 Dakar would have been more suited to the task or just different?
Final question, can you get tea? I know this sounds trivial, but not when the whole reason for the ride is to avoid coffee.
Thanks for being my R&D guy and all the continued best to you and Simon.
(I'll explain two snakes "havin' it off" if the question arises).
IrishKev
New member
Bolivia ROCKS!!!
Well lads and lassies. I have now made it to Salta Argentina, and have been a bit of a muppet accidentally deleting my Cusco and Machu Picchu pictures. But I did get some great ones of Bolivia to make up for it.
After leaving Lima, I arrived in Nasca in the evening, and next day arranged to fly over the lines.
In the evening I visited a cemetery where some pre Incas were buried. The dry sand turned them to mummies
I even found the original Bob Marley
So after all the excitement of flying it was time to set off on the bike again in the direction of Cusco. This is a long long ride!! 11 hours to be exact. But some of the views are just class. As you ride up on to the Altiplano it gets progressively colder, until the liners get up in at over 4000 meters.
And i met my first Llamas
On reaching Cusco I got myself suitable lodgings and promptly made my way to Norton Rats! The famous bar on the plaza. Jeff was in so we had a few drinks and talked bike stuff.
Now its insert missing Machu Picchu pictures as I was stupid enough to delete them..
So promptly on to Puno!! On my way the clutch line that had been fixed in Lima decided to fail. Turns out the guys in the garage had over tightened the piece that screws into the clutch lever, and it had torn the threads. Unphased, I found a mechanic, we got a new bolt, machined it to be a copy of the old one, (only wider) then cut new threads in the clutch leaver, used a file to widen the connection on the line, and with the addition of two o-rings for seals, had made a make shift unit which got me going again! Wow .. ingenuity. ..
Puno is not really up to much, so quickly set off for Copacabana in Bolivia. Was almost out of Peru, when she had one more bit of bad luck to test me. Near the border and idiot in his Mexico City Green Volkswagen Beetle decided to try and take me out. Smashed into the side of him, He ended up on his side in the ditch, all his windows broken and some huge dents in the side, I was lucky enough, bent left front brake disk, and some welds from lima re-broken.. but still drivable. The locals backed me up, and advised me to get the hell out of there before the police arrive!!.. so not one to wait around I split for the border.
Here I found a cool poster.
Sadly I missed the blessing of the bike in Copacabana, but atleast got a pic of the site. ..
La Paz was cool, I met some more Irish people at a hostel called the Wild Rover (bike friendly and owned by and Irish Man). But the real highlight was Uyuni and the dirt roads around it.
In Oruro my tempory O-rings failed, but had the great fortune of meeting a nice family who got me to a shop to get new ones, (10 this time) and also fed me!!
So off south! After Challapata the road turns to sand, dust and gravel! Absolutely class riding.
Most of the time was spent standing on the pegs, picking a line through the ruts, and trying to guess the correct way when you get to a junction with no signs! GPS might be useful here.
Set up camp for the night
Well lads and lassies. I have now made it to Salta Argentina, and have been a bit of a muppet accidentally deleting my Cusco and Machu Picchu pictures. But I did get some great ones of Bolivia to make up for it.
After leaving Lima, I arrived in Nasca in the evening, and next day arranged to fly over the lines.
In the evening I visited a cemetery where some pre Incas were buried. The dry sand turned them to mummies
I even found the original Bob Marley
So after all the excitement of flying it was time to set off on the bike again in the direction of Cusco. This is a long long ride!! 11 hours to be exact. But some of the views are just class. As you ride up on to the Altiplano it gets progressively colder, until the liners get up in at over 4000 meters.
And i met my first Llamas
On reaching Cusco I got myself suitable lodgings and promptly made my way to Norton Rats! The famous bar on the plaza. Jeff was in so we had a few drinks and talked bike stuff.
Now its insert missing Machu Picchu pictures as I was stupid enough to delete them..
So promptly on to Puno!! On my way the clutch line that had been fixed in Lima decided to fail. Turns out the guys in the garage had over tightened the piece that screws into the clutch lever, and it had torn the threads. Unphased, I found a mechanic, we got a new bolt, machined it to be a copy of the old one, (only wider) then cut new threads in the clutch leaver, used a file to widen the connection on the line, and with the addition of two o-rings for seals, had made a make shift unit which got me going again! Wow .. ingenuity. ..
Puno is not really up to much, so quickly set off for Copacabana in Bolivia. Was almost out of Peru, when she had one more bit of bad luck to test me. Near the border and idiot in his Mexico City Green Volkswagen Beetle decided to try and take me out. Smashed into the side of him, He ended up on his side in the ditch, all his windows broken and some huge dents in the side, I was lucky enough, bent left front brake disk, and some welds from lima re-broken.. but still drivable. The locals backed me up, and advised me to get the hell out of there before the police arrive!!.. so not one to wait around I split for the border.
Here I found a cool poster.
Sadly I missed the blessing of the bike in Copacabana, but atleast got a pic of the site. ..
La Paz was cool, I met some more Irish people at a hostel called the Wild Rover (bike friendly and owned by and Irish Man). But the real highlight was Uyuni and the dirt roads around it.
In Oruro my tempory O-rings failed, but had the great fortune of meeting a nice family who got me to a shop to get new ones, (10 this time) and also fed me!!
So off south! After Challapata the road turns to sand, dust and gravel! Absolutely class riding.
Most of the time was spent standing on the pegs, picking a line through the ruts, and trying to guess the correct way when you get to a junction with no signs! GPS might be useful here.
Set up camp for the night
IrishKev
New member
Next day came across a few flamingos
And more dirt
Before eventually getting to Uyuni
I found a mini GS
The road out via Atocha to Tupiza was hard!! It was both exhilarating and frustrating, not to mention shatteringly tiring. There was loads of more sand, and gravel, mostly sand! And where the gravel was it was riddled with Corrugations.
But in the end i got there, and today I arrived in Argentina
Am now in Salta, having I think a well deserved rest!!
And more dirt
Before eventually getting to Uyuni
I found a mini GS
The road out via Atocha to Tupiza was hard!! It was both exhilarating and frustrating, not to mention shatteringly tiring. There was loads of more sand, and gravel, mostly sand! And where the gravel was it was riddled with Corrugations.
But in the end i got there, and today I arrived in Argentina
Am now in Salta, having I think a well deserved rest!!
testinglogin
Hogaan!
Nice! You're making me want to sell all I own and take the GSPD out for a "little" ride.
Carry on!
Carry on!
BRADFORDBENN
Slowpoke & Proud of It!
Nice!
IrishKev
New member
Nice! You're making me want to sell all I own and take the GSPD out for a "little" ride.
Carry on!
Well I highly recommend that you do!!
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