As my spring semester comes to a close, and only three weeks stand between me and the road, the reality of the trip is finally starting to set in. I've been planning, saving, and thinking about this trip for so long, that I almost forgot I'd have to get on the bike and actually do it! It's a welcome realization, but it's still hard to wrap my mind around living off of a motorcycle for a year...not to mention the whole riding to the bottom of South America part of it.
The prospect of the journey ahead is incredibly exciting, but with that excitement comes a growing amount of apprehension. All of the "what ifs?" that I've quickly shrugged off in past months, suddenly bear more weight and linger in my mind a little longer. To add to it, a recent spill while riding off-road on my fully loaded bike, provided for a humbling reality check into how quickly things could turn for the worst. As I lay in the dirt, thankful that I had narrowly avoided breaking my leg on one of the panniers, I immediately thought of what would happen if I hadn't been so lucky, and I was on a desolate road in Central or South America. On the upside, I learned a valuable lesson; It's better to fall on your leg than have a pannier rip it off. While riding safely will always be on my mind, I know that most of my other concerns will fade once I have negotiated a border crossing and have ridden some miles south of the border.
From a more logistical standpoint, preparation is almost complete. I've received all the required shots and have been prescribed a stockpile of malaria medications and a bottle of antibiotics for when my stomach turns against me. There isn't too much paperwork involved in the planning stages, but I've sorted out my travel insurance and have purchased the required liability insurance for Mexico. I still need to make multiple copies of my motorcycle registration, title, and a couple high quality copies of my driver's license that will hopefully pass for the real thing.
After several futile attempts to fit my original packing list on the bike, I had to concede defeat and start removing stuff from the list. Who really needs three boxers anyways? Two is more than enough! Although coming up with a packing list sounds simple, the capacity and weight restrictions make it a more involved process than you would think. It's hard to determine what is actually "needed", when I don't know what to expect. The fact that I'm new to bikes and unsure of parts availability along the way, makes it even more difficult. Fortunately, since I'm not in any sort of a rush, I can always chill out for while and wait for a part to be shipped. At any rate, the bike is packed and that brings a sigh of relief. I'm probably still over-packed, but I can always toss out a pair of boxers along the way.
For those interested, here's my packing list:
