Preparing for my mini motorcycle adventure

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My little Australian mini adventure


Well, fairs fair and I know this is not a real adventure. It’s not around a continent, there’s no snow and I am not likely to be eaten by wild animals, but hey, its my trip so i will call it what I want 😊

So, it’s pretty much Christmas and with 5 days off in a row I figured it would be silly to stay at home. But some problems exist, firstly I have a pile of stuff to study, a laptop that needs to come with me, and its a solo adventure so middle of nowhere is fine, but 100km of dirt trails is out.
This little blog is going to be where I share with the world what is going on. Who knows if I will have enough reception to post, but hey, why not give it a go!

My trusty steed for the adventure is my recently acquired BMW F650 Funduro. Its long in the teeth but still going strong. It seems to be having a slight issue in heavy traffic with it spitting out coolant when it idles too long, but I don’t plan on idling long on this trip! So fingers crossed, bring a bit of extra water to get me out of trouble if need be and all will be fine.

Here is my BMW with my dog Jack, he isn’t coming with me, but I would love to set him up with a box to ride in... but that’s another story and on another day.



Right now it’s Tuesday, and I leave after a short day of work on Thursday so its a bit of time to plan. I decided the other day that after last year travelling through the snowy mountains and being virtually blind (due to leaving late.... don’t go there), I thought DRIVING LIGHTS! So threw them on yesterday
OMG! Wow they are bright, they would scare off aliens, I love them. Nothing too special, just a set for $40 (who knows the brand). They are wired into a relay and can be turned on and off independently from the high beams. I wanted flexibility and I think this is the way to go. Tried them out last night and I was blown away, quite focused in the centre, but lots of fill for the sides of the roads and through corners.



Driving lights off


Driving light on (note, this is only low beam plus the driving lights, turn the high beams on for some extra fun!)

Last night I was setting up the height and aim of the lights so excuse the crappy roller door but Coles had a great loading dock that was perfect for headlight alignment!
Now I have driving lights and a new top box (the old one was just way too small) and I am pretty much ready to go.
THE PLAN
Well, because I only have 5 days am going to the well known spots through Victoria
Day 1 - Melbourne to Walhalla
Day 2 - Walhalla to Myrtleford
Day 3 - Myrtleford to Bairnsdale via Omeo
Day 4 - Bairnsdale to Eildon via Licola North
Day 5 - Eildon to home via (hopefully) some back roads and dirt from Toolangi
And then to work!

My only problem is that with lights like those I will be looking for some reasons to travel at night just to have an excuse to turn them on.
I don’t have accommodation arranged yet, so things will change, but that’s the plan at the moment.

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Photos

The bike
Here is my BMW with my dog Jack, he isn’t coming with me, but I would love to set him up with a box to ride in... but that’s another story and on another day

The dog
he will be sleeping and sniffing things at home during the trip

My new driving lights
Yay, brightness

Driving lights off
They are actually decent stock lights, pretty bright and the high beams are quite good

Driving lights on
Driving light on (note, this is only low beam plus the driving lights, turn the high beams on for some extra fun!)