Another Crazy Adventure
Running a tour company, you can imagine how many visitors to Kyrgyzstan I get to meet each year. Many, of course, are clients, either on an organized tour or else guests at one of our hotels in Bishkek and Naryn. Not all of them, however.
Every now and again we come across travellers who are undertaking a bit more than a vacation trip to the mountains of Central Asia; they might be trying to follow in the footsteps of Marco Polo or other adventurers along the Great Silk Road but others are going on the journey of a lifetime – a “Round the World” trip.
Some of them are taking a year out after college, before starting work. Some just want to see as much of the world as they can. Some try to do everything on foot, using public transport wherever possible, whist others have their own transport: cycles, motor cycles or cars. Rob, for example, was an American cyclist who crossed the border from Kazakhstan just after the Tulip Revolution … and managed to spend several months in Kyrgyzstan. Another couple were travelling in a custom built “hot rod” that made people stop and stare as it whizzed by … boy, did they get the attention of the GAI, the local traffic police!
I did one of those journeys once – but it was nowhere near being a “crazy adventure”. A friend of mine from New Zealand was going home to visit his family and I decided to tag along. New Zealand, of course, is on the other side of the world from the UK and although we could have just flown there and back direct, we decided to take our time about it and visit a few other places en route. Unlike the newly qualified graduate taking a “gap year”, I didn’t have a lot of time to complete the journey although, as a schoolteacher, I wasn’t restricted to the usual, traditional, “two weeks holiday” but had the long six weeks of the school’s summer holiday in which I could travel. Still, that’s not a lot of time to undertake such a journey and so I ended up taking several flights to cover the vast distances involved.
I often wish that I could do the same again … and am filled with envy and admiration for those that do.
A couple of month’s ago, we received an enquiry form one such traveller, Simon Race, who lives in Baldock in Hertfordshire, in the UK. He was planning his next “crazy adventure”, having already completed one which took him over 12000 miles across Canada and the US. This one is a bit more ambitious – at least in terms of the distances involved, the number of border crossings and different cultures he’s going to encounter. He was contacting us because of our little “excitement” last year, and he wanted to ask for an update on the current situation in Southern Kyrgyzstan.
Like quite a few of the people undertaking this sort of journey, he’s using the opportunity to publicise and raise funds for a number of different charities.
Well, all the research and planning has now been completed and he’s about to set-off on his next “crazy adventure”.
He sent out an “eve of departure” email which arrived in my mailbox over the weekend … complete with links to his website(s) and chosen charities. It’s worth checking them out.
I take my hat off to people like Simon who undertake this sort of journey and I wish him luck. I am looking forward to following his progress … and to meeting him when he gets here, (… and, yes, I think we can look after his “vodka allowance” when he is here in Kyrgyzstan).
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Anyway, for the record, here is Simon’s email:
Dear All
I recognise that some recipients of this missive will be familiar with my latest planned adventure – and I’m sure a few from the village pub may be “sick to death” of hearing about it !
But there are many others who might not be aware of what is planned, when it starts or how to keep abreast of it… If they are interested..!
So allow me to briefly explain.
With my acute case of “wanderlust” I’m off again on my trusty motorcycle. And this time I’m hoping to completely “lap the planet”..!
It is a bit of an extreme length to go to, to avoid The Royal Wedding – but on Easter Monday (25th April) I shall be setting off to ride east through Poland and Belarus to Volgograd. From there I’m heading south east through Kazakhstan and Uzbekistan following parts of the famous Silk Road.
If possible I’m hoping to enter Tajikistan and follow the Afghanistan border line as I traverse the Pamir Highway and cross the 16,500 ft Pamir Mountains into Kyrgyzstan.
From there it will be back into Kazakhstan and Russia until I reach the western border of Mongolia, where I shall hope to traverse this vast country to its capital UlaanBaatar some 2,500 miles from the entry point.
On leaving Mongolia via the northern border I will follow a short (1,000 miles) of the Trans Siberian Highway before I turn north east to head to Yakutsk and ultimately Magadan – via Stalin’s infamous “Road of Bones”.
From there a six day journey on a Russian freighter ship will get me to Vladivostok.
At that juncture I have the option of riding back to Europe across the 9,000 mile Trans Siberian Highway to Moscow or shipping my bike and myself across the Pacific to, once again, traverse North America.
For those that like a bit more detail I’ve pulled a few web pages together:
The main site can be found HERE – This allows access to not only this latest adventure, but my last journey into Alaska’s Arctic Circle and Trans America Trip too. There are links to more detailed route information, my Satellite Tracking Page and my trip journal.
For those who would like to just focus on “Where’s Racey ?” the link to my Satellite Tracker is HERE and will become active on 25th April. It should show progress every 10 minutes – so long as i’m not stuck in a Mongolian bog or on an Uzbek one !!
And those wanting to go straight to the journal I’ll be trying to keep up to date can do so HERE
I hope that if you do follow the journey from time to time, knowing someone is struggling to cross vast expanses in Siberia or fording fast flowing Mongolian rivers will make whatever problems you might be facing that day seem a tad more bearable..!
Once again, as I did for the 2009′s Arctic to Atlantic journey I will be trying to raise much needed donations for Charity. As many will understand, because of my wife’s illness, Breast Cancer Care features again. But I am also supporting a wonderful charity which helps disadvantaged children and orphans – The Christina Noble Children’s foundation.
As with my last trip I’ll be paying every penny of the trip myself. So if anyone feels inclined to give a bit of encouragement there are links to my “Just Giving” Pages on my website and you can be safe in the knowledge that anything you give will be going to charity rather than my “Vodka allowance” !!
My struggle and hardship will come to an end… Eventually… When I get to New York. But for disadvantaged children and Breast Cancer sufferers sometimes their suffering isn’t so easily resolved… So if any of you want to go straight to my fund raising pages – here are those links:
Racey’s Breast Cancer Care Page
Christina Noble Children’s Foundation Page
Thanks for reading and for those that offer support to me or my chosen charities – my profound and sincere thanks…
If anyone lives locally to Weston there will be a few beers sunk on St George’s Day evening, April 23rd, in The Red Lion in Weston Herts. And to the friends of mine along the route – I look forward to meeting you soon…
Finally, for those that know me through work – let me reassure you that Lu and the rest of the gang will be manning the fort – and often say they are more efficient and effective when I’m not meddling !!
All the best
Simon
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Bishkek