Friday 18 JanThe word for today is BIG, big roads, big freight trains, I counted one with over 60 containers and 50 army trucks - big truck and trailers and big, big, big expanses of landscapes, as far as the eye can see in all directions. From Mojave our destination for today was Twenty Nine Palms, as a base for a visit to the Joshua Tree National Park. Our journey took us on Highway 58 to Barstow, out past the Edwards Airforce base where we are given our own fl...

Tuesday 15 JanYesterday was about acquainting ourselves with the bike and getting used to where we could put everything. Today was all about getting out on the open road with the sun on our backs and heading down the Pacific Coast Highway (which is like the Rimutakas with ocean and miles and miles of bends). Feeling like we had them to ourselves, the roads were perfect bike riding roads, with the sun shining on the Pacific to our right, seals frolicking on the ...

Monday 14 JanOur mission should we choose to accept it......get all our belongings for 5 months into two solid panniers and a seat pack before heading off this morning. With some very strategic and inventive packing we eventually have everything packed away and we are ready for departure. We bid Wolfgang farewell and we are off. Our decided route is to head South but we temporarily head North over the Golden Gate Bridge to take a photograph of us and the bike...

Wednesday 9 JanWe bid farewell to New Zealand, again, and head off on a 12 hour flight to San Francisco. On arrival at Customs we have our finger prints and a photograph taken as extra security in the US. We pick up our bags and head off to our first encounter with BART (not the Simpson variety but the Bay Area Rapid Transport). We travel on what is San Fran's underground system to the downtown area. Neil is carrying the bags but soon decides he can't carry them ...

TUESDAY 9 OCTOBER - A Very Special Treat This was the day for our big treat of the trip and a visit to Zion Wildlife Gardens in Kamo, near Whangarei. Zion is the home to television's "Lion Man" Craig Busch and is a sanctuary to some of the world's rarest big cats - Barbary and white lions, Royal white and orange Bengall tigers, some very cute cubs, two Serval cats, a black leopard and a baboon. We took the tour of the park which was absolutely amazing ...