i took the 749s to Germany,Austria ( most rude ppl Ive ever came across ) and north italy. A 20 ltr & 10 ltr tail pack. Fitted everything i needed. I dont do camping, work ahard enough so a hotel or b&b are perfect.
I only use a GPS (TomTom W Europe app on my iphone) when I need to get to a place at a certain time. Otherwise I use a map and just head in the right general direction, avoiding motorways. 'Tis easy. You won't get lost (but sometimes you won't know where you are). Adds to the fun and you'll come across gems that you might otherwise have missed. I generally plan out a rough route on Microsoft Autoroute before setting off and then wing it. At least you'll have some idea where you're heading each day (and you can pre-search campsites at destination). I would plan for about 300 miles/day. Sometimes more (500+) and sometimes much less (e.g. Alps/Picos/Pyrenees) I fully understand those who wouldn't consider camping. I've done tours staying in hotels/guest houses and had a great time. For me though, camping adds something (but then I've camped for 50+ years) and you can always pick out hotels if the weather turns really bad, or simply for a change. Some campsites have cabins or apartments at very reasonable rates too. FE..I arrived at a site in Pompeii to camp, but ended up in an apartment for not much more. Just keep flexible. It's an adventure after all.
Couldn't agree more. I went with my (then) 16 YO Daughter on pillion. In restaurants and hotels it was really uncomfortable. You know...you get the feeling someone's looking at you, spot who it is.....and they maintain eye contact that says "You pervert". Said if I did it again I'd get Teeshirts printed up, one saying "Dad" & the other "Daughter".....with "now Fuck off" on the back.
What I've done for 30 years is use Michelin yellow maps (about 10 cover the whole of France). Then you study them looking for the twistiest routes (anything that looks like an intestine). Work out a route that looks promising and follow it. At coffee, toilet or fag breaks, you study your map for the next hour or so. This is relaxing and fun. Now and again you will go wrong, but it doesn't really matter. I don't have a GPS, but it's never stopped me getting around Europe. Maps are better than the computer in many ways, as you can spread them out and get a really good view of your route. GPS will get you where you want to go, but it's a bit like painting by numbers in my view. On a map you can immediately see if the route looks cool. On a computer you can only see if it looks efficient. I don't do much more than plan a day at a time route wise, in detail - in as much as I plan anything in detail. Navigation is part of the fun of the journey - a bit sad to give this up to a machine. If you've got a yellow Michelin map, you'll never have to do a motorway you didn't want to do.
I Did 6 weeks all over Spain and Portugal last summer on the monster, stayed in hotels & b&b and the odd hostel so no camping kit. No cooking equipment either as im of the opinion anywhere that sells fuel also sells hot food and drink. Had a small tank bag for wallet sunglasses passport money chewing gum phone camera earplugs phrasebook and set of fold up wind proof under shirt and trousers kriega us10 containing Basic tool roll, puncture kit with gas canister inflater, +front and reat 46mm rear socket ( rarely do tyre shops have sockets this big) & a small can chain lube Also carried an oxford chain and lock as well as small bike cover for hiding the bike away when I had to leave it in the middle of cities for a few days Also carried Couple of rokstraps (brilliant invention) and a cargo net for adhock/temporary additional baggage or for drying my underwear while riding Ventura rack pack containing 3 pairs socks and scruds 2 sets base layer under clothes 1 cotton t shirt for sleeping in 2 quick drying sports t shirts 1 pair swimming shorts Micropore Travel Towell 1 fleece pullover 1 pair shell suit track bottoms Only shoes apart from riding boots were a pair birkenstock clogs (comfortable to walk in even long distances and can look smartish when necessary and can wear in the beach) 1 long sleeve shirt for when I had to look tidy for meals in nice restaurants and when i had ladies to attempt to impress wash bag with a bit if clothing hand wash liquid ( shampoo works fine too) Universal sink plug ( rarely find sink plugs anywhere and makes hand washing stuff much easier ) Basic first aid kit Laptop and charger ( technically I was still on call for work and it was useful for booking hotels ahead and watching the odd movie) Sat nav and charger Phone charger Bike clothing Dianese airtex vented & armoured jacket ( it was summer, when it's cold I layered up with t shirts and the pullover and the wind cheeta then the put water proofs over top. toasty Sidi Gortex boots full length kevlar jeans with Removable armour 1 piece water proofs Gloves + set of glove liners and set of Xtra large duty rubber gloves for when it gets really cold eg going over the mountains you can put all 3 layers on and stay toasty When i wanted to go out somewhere in town i would just take armour out of jeans and wear the clogs and nice shirt. Passably smart Its a long list but lots of it is very lightweight and compact so I could remove it carry it all in one hit easily incl ventura pack rack Would prob get smaller lighter laptop next time as that was 30 % of the weight in the Ventura pack! Prob could have lived without the travel Towell but it was useful for the beach tbh Pair of trainers might have been useful for going running Apart from that everything I needed U Don't need panniers full to the brim IMHO just makes the whole journey more of a pain
I don't do camping, camping is for troglodytes and the poor, hotels all the way for. Me and me mate went round France using Formule1 motels one year and it worked out about £12 a night each. I bet it costs as much for a camping plot. Much rather spend my money on a nice hotel in the heart of a city, cos I'm gonna be needing a drinky at some stage and I'd rather be within staggering distance of the decent bars. As for kit; minimal toolkit in the bottom of your bag/panniers, lightweight shoes or trainers - ditch the walking boots, they're not necessary - then a fine selection of Primark pants, socks and T-shirts. The idea is you bin them once you've worn them; bit wasteful maybe, but we're only talking about £20 at most. One pair of jeans normally suffices, and you don't need a jumper, just wear your bike jacket if it's cold. I like a small tankbag too; big ones get in the way too much (you'll be filling up every hour on a fast run) but a small one is perfect for carrying papers, toll money, electronics, spare gloves, bottle of water, etc. Anyway freshage, you're over-thinking this by a long way, just throw some kit at the bike and head out, anything you forget can be bought en route. Just get out there.
I take a Jofama kind of wrap over tail pack with a small tank bag for easy access to change and cards for tolls etc, tried rucksacks but on the days where you're late, cold / hot, tired / lost, the weight on your shoulders of the rucksack pulling down can fray your nerves somewhat, plus make it harder to breathe properly if too heavy.
Fantastic tip I picked up somewhere, make day sets of under stuff like tee shirt, pants, socks and pack each set in a separate carrier bag. When you're done with a set, turn the carrier bag inside out and drop the dirty set in and tie up. That way you don't find yourself emptying everything out on Day 4 to find an elusive pair of clean socks.
Pete you're not helping. I read stuff like that and truly realise how inadequate I am as a biker, how little i've done and that my Dr is a perfect bike to do stuff like that on.
For the love of god bradders, just get on the fuglystrada and fuck off for the weekend, doesn't matter where. You'll happily churn out a couple of hundred miles a day on the bike, so why not do that in France..?
I do that stuff, mainly southern UK, its this cross continental bit I'm lacking language and direction restricts
Language..? We won the war mate, everyone speaks English Southern England is motorcycle shite (A272 excepted), got your ass on the eurotunnel and discover what motorbikes are really about. You will be shocked and amazed, that's a guarantee.
I used to ride abroad alone, It's very liberating. Can't speak a word of anything other than english, it's just not a problem. Rode to Italy on an old T3 Guzzi I borrowed. Talk about unprepared, I had no idea how far away Italy was, I wound the Guzzi up to max coming out of Calais, then backed off by 5mph, that was my cruising speed for the next 17 hours...
When I took my 999 to England last year, I had been looking forward to scooting around Oxfordshire a bit. The reality was extremely disappointing - wall to wall traffic, speed cameras and admonishments. The roads are narrow. In case you hadn't noticed, the south of England, esp SE, is ludicrously overpopulated. I only had fun (but big fun) when I got back to France: wide open roads, no traffic, great scenery. 2 great days getting back here.
