Officially On The Road Yesterday we spent about six hours extracting 15 bikes, one truck, one trailer, and an unconscionable amount of other stuff from the hands of Colombian customs in the port of Catagena. Usually this can take days and we are forever in the debt of Victor Sierra who runs Valley Group Cargo …
Author Archives: colindotpdx
The history of South America is simple – Act One: Indian Civilisations – Act Two: Spanish Conquest – Act Three: Armed Chaos. Sitting here in Cartagena, Colombia, it is possible to imagine that this is the place that closed all three acts. Let me explain. The first people of the Americas were Indians that are …
This is the plan for the next couple of months. Expedition65. By the numbers: the idea is that 15 gentlemen with 5 nationalities on 15 BMWs with 2 guitars, one van, one trailer, one 8Kw generator, one driver, and one cook (his nickname is El Gordo so we’ll see how many calories we consume) will …
Awesome Alps with Globebusters. The Alps were formed – are still being formed I suppose – by the pushing of the Africa plate against the European land mass. Just like today, everything in Africa and the Middle East wanted to migrate to Europe and Europe pushed back. The result is a dramatic rocky barrier from …
Orbital ATK – On the road north from the Golden Spike National Historic Park, in the middle of flipping nowhere Utah, you come across a display of America’s most famous rockets whose names represent a who’s who of the drive to win the Cold War and conquer space and the dodgier parts of Earth. Orbital …
Spiral Jetty into the Great Salt Lake Many people make the 25 mile detour off I-15 through Salt Lake City to visit the Golden Spike National Historic Site; the place where Leland Stanford drove the final spike to create the first transcontinental railway linking the Union Pacific and the Central Pacific railroads in 1869. But …
What is Historic? Hampi: A Tragedy in Three Acts Act1 : The RIse of Vijayanagar. Around 1350 Vijayanagar, the City of Victory, was established as the capital of a Hindu Kingdom that stretched from coast to coast; grown rich controlling the trade in horses and spices across all of South India. In the following two …
Religion in India – It’s Complicated. My British history classes told me that, after Partition to keep the religious fanatics apart after independence in 1947, India was Hindu and Pakistan was Muslim. End of story. But even a small time traveling in India tells a very different story; with sights and sounds of religious observance …
Luckily Forgot My Cheque Book – but an afternoon at Le Salon Retro Mobile in Paris was a mind-boggling treat. There was open access to the auction room where classics were under the hammer by Artcurial but I just missed seeing the 1957 Ferrari 335 Sport Scaglietti which became the world’s second most expensive car …
Muddy Ranch – An Amazing Story Returning to Portland from Mitchell, there is a lovely dirt road short-cut from the Painted Hills to Antelope via the Muddy Ranch which has played a fascinating role in Oregon’s history. Prineville Land and Livestock Company The federal government poured troops into the area to pacify it for settlers …
Colin's Travel Journal 