Not an ABR just yet

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SteveW
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Re: Not an ABR just yet

Post by SteveW »

salawton90 wrote: Mon Jan 22, 2018 9:59 am I did think about the multi but no real off road credentials and servicing is extortionate. Reliability justified or not is a concern the monster has been in twice for electrical gremlins and now coolant is disappearing.

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The do-it-all-bike is the Holy Grail of this forum :lol:
What makes a bike good on the trails often detracts from it's ability on long-haul road work.
My stock answer for anyone wanting the best compromise between long-haul road work and abilities when the tarmac ends is......
The GS800.
What ever you buy will be a compromise.
I've got a 950 Multistrada, it's a better road-only bike than my previous GSA800.....but would be far more limited for a mixed surface trip.
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Comfy, economical, big tank range, decent weather protection, cruise at 90mph, tops out at 125mph,
salawton90
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Re: Not an ABR just yet

Post by salawton90 »

I need to change the bike regardless to do the trip. I would be deaf and have vibration white finger before i hit dover. I can't justify 2 bikes and a car but i need a car for the family runs. So the thought of being able to go off down trails and enjoying that aspect numbs the hurt of losing all that power and hooliganism. Change my mind every couple of days but for me the 1000 africa twin appeals the most at the moment. It will be a h2sx the week after and a r1 the week after next too much to choose from and not enough money

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OB1
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Re: Not an ABR just yet

Post by OB1 »

I did a similar trip during the summer of 2016 - ended up being one of the best trips of my life!

I crossed from Harwich to the Hook of Holland and rode a similar route to your plan, up through Germany and Denmark, across 'the bridge' (the famous one from the TV series).

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From there, my original plan was to enter Sweden and head for Gothenburg and then on to Oslo in Norway. However, due to roadworks in northern Germany, I though I was around a day behind, so I headed straight up to Stockholm instead. Then I just continued north until I arrived at the Arctic Circle.

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Staying in cabins is a great idea as they cost around €20 a night and give you a warm dry place to stay and hotels can be costly (I was quoted €175 for a night near Nordkapp!) and you don't always want to pitch a tent after a day's ride.

When I arrived at Nordkapp, it was 23°C and I was told by the car park attendant that she'd never seen a day like that up there.

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I headed back south through Finland towards the ferry crossing from Helsinki to Tallinn in Estonia. I would have liked to cross over into Russia to visit St Petersburg but didn't have time before I left to sort out the visa. The ferry from Helsinki to Tallinn was €100 for the night crossing which included a cabin and, even though we docked at around midnight, they let you sleep on the ferry until the next morning, saving you the trouble of finding somewhere to stay that late at night.

Your plan goes further south than I travelled as, from Estonia, I just rode west through Latvia, Lithuania and Poland. My final day was a mad dash as I had to get back for my sister's 50th birthday. I woke up in Poland, had lunch in Berlin and was back at the ferry port in Holland with 15 minutes to spare before they closed the gates!

A wonderful trip of 4,500 miles (plus another 500 up to my sisters and back for the weekend) over 10 days.

Regarding the bike: you'll need something that gets good mileage. The further north you go, the fewer petrol stations there seem to be... or maybe I missed them! Coming down through northern Finland, I went 300 miles between petrol stations and was so glad that I had an extra gallon strapped to the back (which I used twice during the trip). Because of this I would suggest using the GS 800 BMW which is very frugal or the Tiger 800, as I did, which returned around 55 mpg for the whole trip: that was 4,500 miles, fully loaded with panniers and a top box, having fun in the twisties and the 90 mph all day dash on the last day.

Oh... and cruise control was very welcome!

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PaulinBont
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Re: Not an ABR just yet

Post by PaulinBont »

To be honest I didn't bother with Nordkapp: too commercialised and too busy, too touristy. I went even further North at Sletness, camped for nothing on the beach overlooking the Arctic Ocean and didn't see a soul all day :)

A Norwegian biker told me that Norkapp was a bit disappointing so I give it a miss and went about 20 km East up to the top of Europe ( albeit on a few " more North :)
salawton90
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Re: Not an ABR just yet

Post by salawton90 »

Again thanks for the write up and sharing your trip. All this information is invaluable. The more i draft plans together and see what other people are doing/done the more impatient i get! I will i could set off this weekend. Although i would need a ski doo for most of it

Nordkapp does look a little bleak but i very much doubt i will be going north like this on a trip again so i need to get the obligatory photo.


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92kk k100lt 193214
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Re: Not an ABR just yet

Post by 92kk k100lt 193214 »

salawton90 wrote: Sun Jan 21, 2018 10:45 am Morning all.

Have a trip in the planning for july next year will be joining the adventure bike crew in the coming months.

Well i am from chesterfield and at the moment blasting around on a ducati monster 1200 but it will have to go soon.
The trip is a bit of a beast for me will be covering around 6500 miles around the baltic sea in around 2 2.5 weeks i haven't put that on the monster in nearly 3 years!

Had a browse through the range at the NEC and change my mind every couple days! At the moment the africa twin has got my vote but the power is a bit of a concern having always ridden powerful bikes. But the thought of a genuine duel purpose bike i can take on the green lanes could keep me interested!

Will be browsing for advice and eventually get my self set up! ImageImage

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Fabulous trip, I have also researched it with a view to getting up to Kirkennes but not a chance of doing it in your timescale unless you want to end up looking like the Hunchback of Notre Dame. I have a few old BMWs that are great mile munchers and well up to big miles in a day but no way would you do it on those routes on even the very best of new bikes. Atlantic coast roads tops 30mph average over a day if you want to seat/wee/smoke/refuel/take photos etc etc. A naked bike will test you if you get the weather that normally prevails. I have done 3,000 miles in 8 days but it was a specific purpose rather than a holiday- so I know what that's like.
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Boggs
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Re: Not an ABR just yet

Post by Boggs »

Welcome to the forum matey,riding any bike to any place is an adventure,god bless motorcycles,i suspect he probably rides a Versys 650 8-)
salawton90
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Re: Not an ABR just yet

Post by salawton90 »

The monster will be going at some point this year on a part ex for a newish africa twin

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salawton90
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Re: Not an ABR just yet

Post by salawton90 »

I have been a little quiet but been to look at this beauty today.

Taking an adventure sport out tomorrow. Being slightly vertically challenged little bit worried about footing, I prefer the non adv sport version but that's not available to demo. ImageImage

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Re: Not an ABR just yet

Post by Earwig »

SteveW wrote: Mon Jan 22, 2018 1:04 pm
salawton90 wrote: Mon Jan 22, 2018 9:59 am I did think about the multi but no real off road credentials and servicing is extortionate. Reliability justified or not is a concern the monster has been in twice for electrical gremlins and now coolant is disappearing.

Sent from my SM-G950F using Tapatalk
The do-it-all-bike is the Holy Grail of this forum :lol:
What makes a bike good on the trails often detracts from it's ability on long-haul road work.
My stock answer for anyone wanting the best compromise between long-haul road work and abilities when the tarmac ends is......
The GS800.
What ever you buy will be a compromise.
I've got a 950 Multistrada, it's a better road-only bike than my previous GSA800.....but would be far more limited for a mixed surface trip.
IMG_1097.JPGIMG_1349.JPG
Comfy, economical, big tank range, decent weather protection, cruise at 90mph, tops out at 125mph,
Or the latest version ... https://www.bmw-motorrad.co.uk/en/model ... 850gs.html ... More Power :D
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