Originally Posted By: Fastship
Hmm - heavy duty oil is different to "car" oil? I still can't understand the consequences of using a "40" weight when a "20" weight was specified.
That's a good question about the choice of vehicle and being a bike guy that's what I'd use too. Plenty of people do RTW on all sorts of vehicles from mopeds to Harley's. I'm waiting for the first person to do it on a Segway though...
My journey has a different theme in that I want to do almost the entire journey "off road" visiting as many as the planets sand deserts (my interest) as possible and also touching the extremes i.e. hottest place (Libyan Sand Sea - 66c) the coldest (Chokotka -89c) highest pass (Khardung La, India 5300m). This excludes the use of a bike for some of the sections due to cold, the requirement to carry sufficient water and the restricted range of a bike. I will however, be carrying two bikes with me so large parts (India, Indo China, Australia, South America, the USA) will be done on the bike using the truck as a base.
The Chukotka/Pevek/180 east/Uelen part of the journey is important to me and that requires a particular vehicle but two years later I will be at the opposite end of the world in Ushaia on a bike! I will also be traversing the length of the Himalya which requires deep fording and plenty of winching! Russian trucks have engine driven winches as standard but will also climb 100% gradiants. Also, they have Central Tyre Inflation and engagable six wheel drive.
Russian military trucks are ideal for this as they are cheap ($1500 with 2,500 km!)designed as off road vehicles and extreme climates are virtually indestructable, will run on anything that burns and are easy to repair. I can also live in the back with my bikes and a tonne of water so save on costs.
Tyres are about $300 each but there's 9 of them and they are hard to get outside Russia
These trucks do about 6 mpg so I'm designing a new cam, will fit an eddelbrock carb to improve that and extend the range to 1,600km. Outside of Europe fuel is cheap enough not to be a issue though (9 cents/gal in Libya!).
My route (at the mo) takes me down through Spain into Morocco as far south as Mali then up through Mauritania into Algeria, Libya, Egypt crossing the entire Sahara, Jordan, Syria, Turkey Iran, Turkmenistan, Uzbekistan, Kazakhstan into Russia around Baikal. Follow the Lena to Yakutsk then across the Russian Far East to the Kolyma River then head north to Pevek and the East Siberian Sea. After 180 east and Uelen (100km’s from the USA – I’ll wave!) down via the Chara Sands Baikal and from there to Mongolia and the Gobi, into China and the Taklamakan, Tibet then cross the Himalaya into Nepal. After Bhutan, traverse the Himalaya east to west then into India and the Thar. Have a mooch around India then ship to Singapore from where I can strike north into Thailand, Laos, Cambodia & Vietnam. Malaysia and Indonesia too but after that ship to Australia from East Timor and cross the red heart west to east up to the tip of Cape York then down the east coast.
Ship to Valparaiso then down to Ushuaia up into Argentina back across the Andes and up the spine of Chile into Bolivia and the Atacama then into Peru. From there across the Amazon to Manaus and up to Venezuela and Angel Falls. Head west to Colombia then up through Panama and C/A to Mexico. Drive the Baja route (maybe enter my Zil in the race!) and then into the USA and check out a few deserts there before heading into Canada then back into the USA and Montana then across to the East coast via the TAT and New England then ship to Liverpool. End.
That’s a gross oversimplification but in general it is my route. Any oil company want to sponsor me?
ANYONE else Jealous?????
Would love to see photos when your done or on the way thru it...
Gotta love you Brits, not afraid to go , explore and run amuck thru even the biggest Sh*t hole countries!