My trip is now starting to feel very real! This was my second last weekend in London before I head to Seattle. I am getting so excited and I can’t wait to have Grant join me for the Canadian section of my trip.  I know we will do nothing but laugh (and eat) for 11 days. Two of my favourite activities!

The weekend started out with a bang. On Friday night I threw a ‘Mojito party’ for the guys at work who gave up their free time to help me out with various aspects of my trip. I could not have done all this without them!

Saturday morning was a bit of a slow start. However, the day soon turned out to be a real treat as I got to spend it with my cousins, Guy and Charles, and aunt, Jane, who are visiting London. It’s been Guy’s life long dream to see some West End plays in London and this year his dream came true. I am so happy to have been able to share that with him!

Sunday was all about getting Trinity ready. This was my last opportunity to pack the panniers and make sure I have everything I need for my trip. Due to my Scottoiler being set on maximum, that has now been changed to minimum, cleaning Trinity was one seriously messy job. I can’t believe how much fun I had getting dirty thugh. I think the photo says is all. Thank goodness for Fairy liquid!

The other fundamental part of my preparation was learning to pick Trinity up from the ground. Given her weight (230 kilograms without fuel or luggage) and height, it is really not funny trying to pick her up. I’m starting to regret not going to the gym the last few months.

We are however all packed and ready to rock ‘n roll!

The last two weekends have certainly all been about figuring out what does and doesn’t work. The latter probably being more important.

Last weekend’s trip to Exmoor National Park taught me the following:

• Don’t camp next to a river (certainly not in the UK). It’s it absolutely freezing.
• My Kriega US-30 dry bag is great as a weekend bag but it’s not going to work as a tank bag. It’s therefore staying at home.
• Don’t try and get onto the bike when it has luggage on and not have it on the stand. I dropped Trinity as a result. That would have been fine except I learned I can’t pick her up (well at least not the way I was trying to do it).
• Air compressors at the petrol filling stations do not fit Trinity’s wheels. I decided to buy a portable air compressor as a result.

Given my very eventful weekend last weekend I thought this weekend would be a breeze. That was my first mistake. The important lessons I have learned this weekend (so far) include:

• Do not start a trip at 6pm at night. It’s not fun in peak hour traffic on the motorway; you cannot see that well; and it’s not great knowing it’s getting dark when things go wrong.
• Take a spare USB charger for the bike and a wall charger.
• Take a paper map.
• Having to check in with people is more stressful than just dealing with the issue at hand.
• I don’t like having so much “stuff” with me. I love simplicity and all this gear to worry about is a pain. I need to look at how to simply what I’m taking with me.
• On the positive side, I love the Welsh countryside. It is simply stunning!  and And I am also very grateful to be learning all these lessons before I head to the U.S.
• Finally, I’ve completed this post from my iPhone and it was fine so I think my iPad will stay at home. Result! One less this to carry.

The weather forecast for tomorrow is rain all day. That should be interesting. Bring it on!

It is starting to feel like crunch time. In 5 weeks time I will be in Seattle and getting ready to pick up Trinity.

This week has been very much focused on getting my insurance sorted out, and giving thought to the gear I will have with me on the trip.

On the insurance front the following happened this week:

• Finalised my travel insurance (I ended up going with Holiday Safe who are my current travel insurance provider as they would cover my dodgy hip and accessories which my other quote would’t cover).
• Paid and sent off all my paperwork for my Temporary Motorcycle Insurance. The only real choices seem to be Fernet and Motorcycle Express. I have gone with the latter as their cover is more comprehensive.

On a gear front, I have had to give thought to what I really need on the road; do I have space for everything; how am I going to keep it safe and dry; and finally does it work for me. As I haven’t actually camped yet I am heading to Dartmoor National Park today for an overnight stay. It is a 400 mile round trip so will definitely test my readiness for long rides and of course I will get to test out all the camping gear that my friend Grant picked up for me in REI while he was in the US on holiday.

I also picked up the following this week:

• 109L Ortlieb dry bag. My rucksack and tent fit nicely into it and will be completely waterproof in the event I hit any rain showers on the road.
• Abus Granit disk lock (this is much smaller than the huge chain I currently have).
• Oxford bike cover (a compact waterproof version of the one I currently have which is too big to travel with me).
• Oxford analog tyre pressure gauge.
• Kriega US30 dry bag. The intension was that this was used as my tank bag but it may actually be too big for this. I will test it out today and see if it works.

Finally, I think Migi and I have finalised my ‘business card’. I can’t tell you how excited I am to see them when they come back from the printer! The best thing is that the company we are using to do the printing, it’s called moo, also has stores in the U.S. so I could pick more up on the road if I need to. Amazing!

It has been a successful week! Who doesn’t like buying new toys.

This week I have:

• Confirmed with Moto Freight that I will be using them to transport Trinity to and from the USA (their service has been excellent to date).
• Joined BMW Motorcycle Owners of America (this includes breakdown cover and a book of contact details for members across the country with listings of resources like garages, trailers, accommodation, and members willing to come and lend you a hand if you get stuck).
• Sent off the necessary paperwork to allow me to temporarily import Trinity into the USA (EPA exemption). I was impressed to receive a confirmation of receipt email the following day.
• Booked my accommodation for my arrival in Seattle.
• Designed a ‘business card’ that I can hand out to people I meet along my route. This was something my friend Duncan advised me to do as he found it very handy on his trip across the USA in 2013. Thanks Migi for all your help with this. I could never have done this without you!
• Bought and received my Delorme InReach satellite communication system (another tip from Duncan). It is worth checking out if you like to go off the beaten track.

This weekend’s job will be insurance! But first, I’m off to ride my baby. I haven’t seen her in three weeks. Trinity here I come!

Things are getting exciting! 45 sleeps to go.

My website is now live! I accepted the quote from Moto Freight Ltd to deal with my shipping today. They have been absolutely fantastic. Thanks Kathy! My EPA exemption letter will go out tomorrow, as well as confirming my insurance.

There is still loads on my list of things to do but its just a matter of sitting down and getting things done. This week is my week for getting things done. I’m a woman on a mission!

I chose to go home to say good-bye to my aunt (may she rest in peace) and spend time with my family. I want nothing left unsaid before my trip. None of us know how long we have on this earth. Sometimes we just need to be reminded of that to put things into perspective. It’s the last gift my aunt gave me.

My family have taught me many wonderful things but what I value most is how they taught me the meaning of ‘love’ and ‘family’. I’m not saying this because I have a ‘perfect’ family. My family has had its fair share of trials and tribulations but when we cry, we cry together and when we laugh, we laugh together. They are real, and they show up, and that makes them perfect to me.

Love and family are a choice. How much you choose to get from both is up to you. I made my choice. Love and family are none-negotiable.

I have realised that my motorbike trip is very much a reflection of life. It does not matter how well you plan your life, or a trip, there are always going to be things you have not taken into account and other factors that come along and take the wind out of your sails. These things force us to take stock and make some tough decisions. I have had two of these decisions to make the past week.

After discovering that my decision to support a U.S. charity on my trip meant that firstly, I would need a business visa for my trip, and secondly, seriously complicated getting any insurance cover, I had to decide whether pursuing my desire to support the charity was worth potentially not being able to make the trip at all. This was clearly not an option. The conclusion is that my trip will now be purely for holiday purposes. I have and will, however, not forget the commitment I made to the charity, so watch this space on my return! This is the factor I had not taken into account.

The second tough decision is one of those factors that have taken the wind out of my sails. Last night my sister let me know that my aunty Penny had passed away. I lived with my aunt and family when I was at university, so my aunt is like a second mom to me. My heart is telling me to fly back to South Africa to make her funeral on Friday, but my head is telling me I cannot go. There are some decisions I wish I did not have to make.

So this is turning out to be quite an interesting little project. I knew nothing about building websites, or social media really for that matter, until I actually had to get all these things up and running for myself. It is amazing how quickly you can learn is you want to.

There are a few things that definitely need a trained eye (thanks Matt and Colin for lending me a hand) but getting a basic website sorted out on WordPress is actually quite easy. The content and structure definitely require a little more thought. Let’s hope this works on the road as easily as it does on the laptop at home.