T-minus 7 months (ish)

Not great at updating these blog things.
Anyway, have got quite a few people interested in joining me for this trip across China and Tibet. All looking good at this stage. I have been in negotiation with many Chinese tour companies for a while now, and some of the quotes I am getting (after a fair bit of friendly negotiation!) are very doable from my point of view. Not cheap, but worthwhile for the oppurtunity to ride through Tibet. As the other option would be shipping the bike and myself from Kathmandu to Bangkok, I would rather spend the cash in China (and I hate flying!).
Now that the UK and Iranian governments are having a pissing contest; that section of the trip may need re-jigging; but there is always an option.
Anyway I am off for a beer.

T - minus 10 months (ish)

Next summer (2012) I am going to ride my Yamaha XT660Z Tenere from London to Kuala Lumpur. The plan is to ride all the way (apart from the channel tunnel and any other unavoidable water crossings), no freighting the bike and no flying! The basic route outline is from the UK through Europe to Turkey, on to Iran before heading up into Turkmenistan, Uzbekistan, Kyrgystan and into China and Tibet before dropping down into Laos, Cambodia, Thailand and on to Malaysia.For those who have knowledge of such things: the main stumbling block is China. Currently, the only way to take your own vehicle into the PRC is to pay a travel agency to provide all the necessary permits and provide a "guide" to accompany you. This costs money. So, if any other bikers or 4WD drivers are looking to cross China/Tibet around September 2012, do you want to make a (small) group to share the costs for the China section?