Adventures on the flying aga

Road miles to date: 31,254 We hadn't actually planned our arrival in Ushuaia and rode about aimlessly, hoping we would find somewhere to stay. As has become the norm on this trip, a helpful stranger with a liking for bikes appeared in a minibus and told us to follow him. Having learnt that this is usually the way we fall on our feet, we followed him through the city to a hostel. Unfortunately the hostel was full but after a chat with him we spotted another one further up the road that we could park the bike at. A Michael Caine look-alike showed us to our room and then never stopped talking to whoever would listen to him the whole time we stayed were there. Sometimes it has been helpful that our Spanish is limited. The ... read more

Road miles to date: 25,550 Passing into Bolivia was the quickest and most hassle free border crossing to date and despite the questionable demand of a five Soles charge for crossing a rope that everyone else was walking under for free, we breezed through in forty minutes. We were even fortunate enough to exchange the rest of our Soles at a very generous rate for Bolivianos from a lady sitting at a wooden school desk in the middle of the road. Done and dusted, we set off on the road to La Paz across the Bolivian altiplano and alongside even more of Lake Titicaca which had accompanied us all the way from Puno. The road was paved the whole way but at the same time gave us another big dose of ripples and waves in tarmac ... read more

Road miles to date: 22,903 After arriving in Quito we realised we had crossed the Equator without stopping for necessary photographic evidence that we can one day regale tales of to the youth of tomorrow. So the next morning we jumped aboard the Aga and ventured back, camera in hand, to Mitad del Mundo (Middle of the World). With dust blowing dramatically off the surrounding mountains, near blinding us as we rode, the scene was set for quite an intrepid affair. However, on arrival it was clear that the Ecuadorians have long been a subscriber to the tourist trap manual and had created a mini theme park out of the site with a planetarium, an insectarium, a mini model of Quito, a museum, statues galore, shops and restaurants. We took our photos, randomly met a couple ... read more

Road miles to date: 20,371 After a respite in an empty house making use of rare luxuries including an oven and a washing machine, we left Puntarenas and went in search of a new rear tyre and a superior pump. We headed to the Costa Rican capital of San Jose where we spent the day combing the area before we finally got a tyre that fit the bike from possibly the only BMW garage in Central America and found a pump the next day. Believing ourselves to finally be fully equipped for any future troubles, we set off towards the Southern coast of Costa Rica in search of some tropical wilderness. As we climbed higher up into the mountains, mist and rain closed in on us and the temperature plummeted. Riding higher, the bike began to ... read more

Road miles to date: 17,796 We were all set to leave Durango, short of one motorcycle battery which was delivered by Jorge that evening. Our delight at receiving the missing link was cut slightly short when we rememberered it would need up to twenty hours of charging before use. So it was that we booked one more night in the hotel where we now knew the names of all the staff, as well as the guys in the shop next door and the girls in the shop across the road. Twenty hours and a hotel a bit worse off for electricity later due to our Walmart purchase battery charger (later returned on a chanced, lucky refund), we waved goodbye to all our friends in Durango and thanked whoever is watching out for us as we set ... read more