It could have been Sydney: the sky was gloriously sunny, the water below was sparkling and I was riding a grand bridge sandwiched between the two. But it wasn’t Sydney, it was San Francisco and I could barely see it through my tears.
This was our final ride.
“Keep it together Fi” I muttered under my helmet. Having successfully taken our little Honda motorcycles more than 55,000 kilometres across the Americas, the prospect of having an accident during our last 30kms was too ridiculous to contemplate. Luckily, the demands of the road pulled me into the present and the tears were stored away for later.
It wasn’t the first time I’ve cried in my helmet on this journey, and it certainly not the first time I’ve spoken out loud to myself, whilst simultaneously tightening my grip on the handlebars and my nerve. But my, what a ride we’ve had!
There is a remarkable sense of freedom when all that you need fits on a motorbike; your daily concerns are reduced to the basics of food, weather, shelter; when the sky is big and a new road lies waiting. It is risky and exhausting; it is exhilarating and so rewarding.
We may have completed the kilometres, but the journey will carry on. We’ll continue to be inspired and learn about the people and places we’ve seen; we’ll keep making changes to improve our positive impact on this planet and we’ll keep planning the next adventure.
There’s really only two words that I can say, but I need to say it to many: thank you.
Thank you to my husband Matt who listened to a crazy idea; jumped in with no hesitation and maintained his faith in the journey.
Thank you to our families and friends whose support (and envy) kept us going.
Thank you to all the special souls we met along the way – we hope to share time with you again.
Thank you to the road for teaching me that an open mind and a smile is all you need to pack for a magic adventure.
We stepped off the treadmill for two years and are all the richer for it. But before returning home, there is one more adventure waiting for us and it starts next week. Stay tuned!
Note: There are still a few more stories, photos and videos we are yet to share from this trip and we will post these on our blog in time.
Posted by Fiona
Our Odyssey Overland Vitals: Two bikes, two continents, two years
| Legendary motorbikes: | 2 x Honda CB250s, a 2002 & 2003 model |
| Riding experience prior to departure: | 3 years each – we learnt how to ride to do the trip |
| Days on the road (to date): | 647 |
| Distance travelled on motorbikes: | 55,368 km |
| Distance travelled on other modes of transport: | 6,000+ km (boats, trains, 4WDs & buses) |
| Average distance per riding day: | 174 km |
| Biggest ride day: | 436 km |
| Highest mountain pass: | 4818 metres (Ticlio, Peru) |
| Lowest point: | 71 metres below sea level (Death Valley, USA) |
| Countries: | 17 |
| Overland border crossings: | 20 |
| Places stayed / different beds slept in: | 247 |
| Nights spent camping: | 151 |
| Most expensive hotel: | Cataviña, Baja, Mexico – 1226 pesos (AUD 103) |
| Least expensive hotel: | La Union, Peru – 20 soles (AUD 7.75) |
| Average daily spend on accommodation & camping (2 people) | AUD 34.20 |
| Major breakdowns: | 1 (Palenque, Mexico) |
| Punctures: | 1 (Sierpe, Costa Rica) |
| Sets of tyres: | 3 sets per bike |
| Bribes paid to any official: | 0 |
| Items stolen: | 1 (Wallet with drivers licence) |
| Near death experiences: | 4 (50% attributable to RV drivers in the USA) |
| Broken cameras: | 4 |
| Number of photos taken: | 36,975 (slide night anyone?) |
| Number of videos filmed: | 4,851 |
| Meals of beans and rice: | Too many! |
Our Odyssey Overland 
Im so happy for you two! I would love just dissappear like that and live life to it’s fullest. Someday I probably will…..
Ed Davis Ohanapecosh Camp host
Thanks Ed, it was great to meet you in Rainier.Stay in touch! Matt and Fiona.
Thank you to you too for sharing your awesome adventure!
The pleasure is all ours Adele 😉 Thanks for following.
Hi Fiona and Matt:
Meeting up with you at Arches was one of the highlights of our trip to Utah. I will never forget pointing you two into the parking spot big enough for two small displacement Hondas at the Delicate Arch parking lot. And then the next day again bumping onto you again at Canyonlands while we’re having lunch. OUR PICTURE ALBUM: https://www.facebook.com/media/set/?set=a.10152197426561599.1073741841.554436598&type=1&l=65282368f0
This Sunday I will get together with others from our section known as the Grey-Bruce section of the CVMG http://www.cvmg.ca/grey-bruce As often is the case one or two of the section will get up and tell of a extraordinary event, mishap etc. I hope there is time for me to outline the extraordinary energy you two put into this overland trip.
In the event that you are in Ontario Canada next August, I want to invite you to our vintage motorcycle rally held the 2nd weekend of August. http://www.cvmg.ca/rally Check out our pictures on the website..
Cheers, Pete and Corry
Date: Sat, 25 Oct 2014 00:39:43 +0000 To: peterandcorry@bell.net
So great to hear from you, Pete and Corry, two of the special souls we met on the road! Thank you for your invitation – we’ve got your email and will stay in touch.
The hard bit is still to come – re-adjusting to “normal” life at home. Many thanks for the great stories and videos. Good luck 🙂
Hi David, yes we agree! We look forward to hearing about your South American adventures! Matt & Fiona
And I’m sad that my journey of following you on this awesome adventure is coming to an end.:( I’ve so enjoyed the ride! Have eagerly opened your emails to catch the next chapter of the adventure – will miss them in my inbox. Any chance of seeing you Christmas Eve? Robyn 🙂
Thank you Robyn! There are still some stories to come so we’ll wean you off slowly 🙂 We’d love to see everyone on Christmas Eve and really hope we can make it!