Perth to Hastings – The start of my annual journey to Europe. The usual long flight, this time on Qatar Airways (which is an excellent airline) via Doha to Gatwick. I got the train direct from the Airport to Hasting where I was picked up by my friend who also stores my bike in his garage.

My plan this year was to buy an Africa Twin but after some research I discovered that I could only get Comprehensive insurance which cost £2,149 per annum and I was not prepared to pay that much. So back on my trusty 10 year old Suzuki DL650 which has now covered almost 100,000 kms and only costs £162 per annum for 3rd party insurance. All it needed was a set of new tyres, an oil and filter change, the annual MOT and I was set to go.