Bolivia

The title says it all!
Posted on Thursday, May 18, 2006
By Mark Deeley to A quick ride from San Francisco, California to Argentina

Bolivia

Every biker that goes through Bolivia has a tale to tell. The weather, extreme off road conditions and scenery make the place a truly memorable experience. First stop was Cochabamba on the edge of Lake Titicaca. We had seen pictures of Cochabamba a few days before with sunny sandy beaches. It took us a few minutes to realise that it was actually in Brazil and not Bolivia. It was a nice enough place to hangout nevertheless.

La Paz the capital was quite a surprise as its so much more developed than the rest of the country. Great fun getting lost in the street markets t - more

(5) Peru

The title says it all!
Posted on Saturday, December 17, 2005
By Mark Deeley to A quick ride from San Francisco, California to Argentina

Ah, the sun at last. It makes such a difference to how one feels.
The first stop was at the party town of Mancora which sits on the coast with the Pan Americana Highway going straight through the middle. What amazed me while having a few late night cervezas was how the crowds from the bars spilled out on to the narrow two-lane highway. People would blindly wander across the highway from one bar to another, there would be jugglers and acrobats then a Semi Trailers would come flying straight down the middle of the road full bore with its horn blaring and God help anyone that wasn’t qui - more

(4) Ecuador

The title says it all!
Posted on Friday, December 09, 2005
By Mark Deeley to A quick ride from San Francisco, California to Argentina

Arrived in Quito and within hours had met up with the local bikers who continued to look after me during my time in town. Unfortunately I never got to ride with them because of delays in getting my bike from the airport due to public holidays, incompetent customs agents and a weekend, which meant I was in a rush to get going when I finally got my wheels out of the airport. While bikeless I tortured myself climbing up volcanoes with great friends I met at the hostel and playing tourist on the buses.

The first day on the road in South America was nerve racking. The road to Cuenca win - more

(3) Lone Rider

The title says it all!
Posted on Wednesday, November 16, 2005
By Mark Deeley to A quick ride from San Francisco, California to Argentina

COSTA RICA

Wilma has been following me for days. Every time I think I'm rid of her she is back to give me another drenching. I caught the tail end of a hurricane that was to drench me everyday through three countries. Costa Rica is supposed to be the wealthiest and safest country in Central America but the roads and the drivers are by far the worst. Coupled with the fact that it was bucketing down with rain that filled the potholes it made for quite a hair-raising experience.
I was fortunate on the first day when I decided to stop because the rain was getting to me and I spotted - more

(2) RIDERS OF THE STORM

The title says it all!
Posted on Wednesday, November 09, 2005
By Mark Deeley to A quick ride from San Francisco, California to Argentina

MEXICO

Well there have been many ups and downs over the last month.

We were up at the crack of dawn and rode out along the jungle covered roads with the wind in our hair to the ancient Mayan ruins at Palanque. The great thing about having your own set of wheels is that you can get to places before the tourist buses come and spew out their noisy, camera totting hordes. The Mayans were quite ahead of their time and the fact that their buildings are still standing after 2500 years is testimony to their skill.

The plan was to head to Cancun so we could go to Cuba but a - more

(1) MAD DOGS AND ENGLISHMEN

The title says it all!
Posted on Wednesday, November 09, 2005
By Mark Deeley to A quick ride from San Francisco, California to Argentina

USA

Luckily when John and I arrived in San Francisco my friends Jason and Isabel came to collect us and take us to their flat where they had been keeping the bikes they purchased for us. We then spent four days preparing the bikes and getting paperwork sorted before we were ready to head off. This proved to be quite draining especially as we were trying to fight off jet lag.

The first night had us in Yosemite where we had be warned not to leave a single item of food in the bike top box or tent as bears will tear your vehicle apart at the slightest whiff of just a wee canola b - more