Packing Starting this Friday 17th, I’m going to be spending some time riding my motorbike around Europe. Pictured below is everything I’m taking—except for the camera I took the photos with—and everything I need to ride, camp, work, eat, swim, hike, etc. It also happens to be the majority of what I still own. With this trip I’m going to try something new and post more regular and complete updates as I go, rather than come back with a pile of photos to sort through. Check back soon… Untitled 14 / 5 / 2013 Untitled 14 / 5 / 2013 —

Ronce-les-Bains to Covadonga Untitled 28 / 5 / 2013 Untitled Geoffrey Ramaud Self Ronce-les-Bains 24 / 5 / 2013 After some good times with Geoff, and too much rosé and pamplemousse syrup, I saw a window in the weather and decided to continue south. This was to be the first time I’d visited Spain and didn’t know what to expect. The northern coast of spain is known as the Costa Verde, and I should have known that verde, meaning green, means rain—my break in the weather wasn’t to come quite yet. Bac Gironde Royan 26 / 5 / 2013 Untitled Bilbao 26 / 5 / 2013 At the end of many, many kilometers I headed up a mountain road. Hoping to find a camping spot I climbed into clouds, and the air chilled with each hairpin bend. Already sunburned, and now soaked, the prospect of a good night’s sleep was not looking likely, so, defeated, I turned around and parked up at the first B&B I could find. I learnt two important lessons about Spain; nobody speaks English (and I speak no Spanish) and it’s pleasantly cheap (€30 for a charming room). Untitled Covadonga 27 / 5 / 2013 Next morning the clouds had lifted somewhat, so I went to look at the town and the lakes at the end of the mountain road. Untitled Covadonga 27 / 5 / 2013 Untitled Covadonga 27 / 5 / 2013 Untitled Covadonga 27 / 5 / 2013 With plenty of time left in the day I set off east to complete some more kilometres, the story of which I will save for the next post. —

Covadonga to Granada Untitled 31 / 5 / 2013 Long sections of this part of the trip are already forgotten, whispers lost in the wind noise of 500km+ days across open country. On such days the focus tends to be on the next destination, and the good experiences don’t become cemented until they have the context of a past and a future built around them. The worries, boredom and sore throttle hand are forgotten quickly—by being surmounted they amount, in hindsight, to nothing. Untitled Aviles 27 / 5 / 2013 One memory was delivered fully-formed: leaving Oviedo on the AP66 up into the mountains under moody skies, entering a tunnel and emerging, on the other side of the pass, into glorious sunshine. Shouting inside my helmet; it felt like I’d arrived. Untitled 27 / 5 / 2013 My mood at this stage of the trip would vary greatly with the weather. On the bike and camping you’re out in it all the time. But after this section of the trip I was getting back into the routine of stocking up during the day, finding somewhere to camp with an hour or two’s light remaining then getting up with the sun, driving until I found a warm cup of coffee, and somewhere to sit and trace the previous 24 hours onto the map. Being methodical with even the most simple things helps. Untitled 27 / 5 / 2013 Stealth camping tip: radio masts often have access roads which are dead ends with lots of potential spots. Untitled Ledesma 28 / 5 / 2013 Untitled Toledo 28 / 5 / 2013 Untitled Jaen 28 / 5 / 2013 Untitled Jaen 29 / 5 / 2013 Finding time to edit and upload the photos on the go isn’t too tough, but these updates are about 1500km behind. Hopefully I’ll have the chance to catch up somewhat over the course of the next week. —