A map of Brian Brettschneider’s US-Canada Year-Round 21℃ – 22,400 km Road Trip
Alaska climate scientist Brian Brettschneider released three 21°C Road Trips, that promise to keep long-distance rubber tramp warriors comfortable as they travel around North America throughout the year.
One of the year long routes hugs the coasts, a second travels up the interior of the US, and a third route crosses into Canada and up to Alaska.
The ban excludes motorcycles, ATVs, quads, buggies, etc., from local roads and trails in the Parque Natural del Alto Pirineo, a national park in the Pyrenees and the largest in Catalonia, Spain.
The Pyrenees mountain range spread across Spain, France, and Andorra. The challenging twisty roads are known attract drivers and riders from around the world who seek challenging roads.
The regulations described in the ‘Action Plan for the declaration of a zone of special protection of acoustic quality in the Alt Pirineu Natural Park’ distinguishes motorcycles, mountain bikes, quads and buggies as ‘particularly noisy’ vehicles, without take into account their type approval or the level of decibels they emit.
The action plan includes the following:
Limit the passage of noisy vehicles to certain areas of the ZEPQA, taking into account the regulation of motorized traffic inside the park, restricting access to certain tracks either throughout the year or at certain periods.
Restrict motorized access to the entire network of forest trails and paved paths of the ZEPQA of Alt Àneu and Farrera, except the access roads to urban centres, by vehicles considered excessively noisy consisting of all types of vehicles such as motorcycles, quads, ATVs and buggies that are not electric, except those of registered residents, beneficiaries of livestock forest exploitation, public services and those duly authorized by the Alt Pirineo Natural Park and/or the respective local entities.
Promote the use of electric vehicles.
In addition, there is a specific point dedicated to ‘Carrying out awareness actions specifically aimed at drivers of vehicles that emit more noise: motorcycles, mountain bikes, quads and buggies.’
At the beginning of the covid pandemic lockdowns, Darrin found himself in Namibia.
Along the way, he started filming his adventures and wildlife he encountered and “somehow have amassed 25 Terabytes of 4K footage shot on 5 different cameras.”
He has started a YouTube series where he shares some of his footage and recounts his wonderful solo adventures during isolation. Below is his latest episode.
Note: Clicking the above image will load and play the video from YouTube.
You too can follow along and subscribe to his YouTube channel.
Crossing high-altitude deserts with snow-capped mountains rising on the horizon, meandering through gorges along vertical rock walls. And that for 766 miles! How can that not be attractive to any overland traveler? The largely unpaved road alternates with smooth asphalt and paved stretches that have turned into washboards and potholes, so you never know what to expect around the corner.
The Pamir Highway challenges you to stay alert every second.
You inflate your tires because it seems that ‘from now on the road is good’ and deflate them after half a mile on rock-protruding road surface that is killing your suspension and your back. Your mood swings from wondering what the heck you’re doing in this desolate part of the world seeing nobody and nothing for ages to marveling why you have never heard of this gorgeous route before.
Welcome to the Pamir Highway, locally dubbed the Roof of the World!
In every direction, fire-red sand fanned out across the land. Everything that wasn’t red seemed covered in it: the boab trees, the spinifex, the termite mounds stretching like tiny Towers of Babel towards the sky. The road itself shimmered like a sea of rubies. We were just hours from Alice Springs, Australia‘s de facto inland capital, and already alone on the Tanami Track.
As it happens, that’s part of the appeal.
The Tanami, as locals call it, is one of Australia’s greatest Outback adventure tracks. The 1,077km road bisects the namesake Tanami Desert – one of the most isolated and arid regions in the world – connecting the Red Centre and Kimberley region, the country’s rugged north-west frontier.
For many reasons, soft bags are the way to go. They cinch down with less stuff, so, as you’re rolling along, consuming food, you can make your bags smaller.
The lightweight traveler should always factor in bulk as well as weight. You may look at the cost of an ultra-light sleeping bag and think, “I can put $400 of gas in my bike and ride through most of Central America for that price.” The difference—and you’ll feel it after the first sandy road in Baja—is you’re getting a good-quality bag that weighs 19 ounces and packs down to the size of a football, instead of something that, although much cheaper, can weigh more than 5 pounds, and doesn’t even fit in your panniers when rolled up.
Some true diehards out there can ride for a month with a tarp and a match, but that’s not for this Girl Scout.
“The limited range of electric vehicles can put people off,” said Paul. “But Orkney, with its proliferation of rapid-charge points that take a battery from empty to full in 40 minutes, coupled with the vehicle’s 120-mile range on an island that is only 26 miles across, is the perfect place to try them.”
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Over the next couple of days we explored the island’s landmarks, continuing our oscillation between time periods. We strolled along the beach at the Churchill Barriers – causeways created in the second world war to stop U-boats from entering Scapa Flow. Snorkellers were exploring the rusting wrecks that poked out from the waves.
While the campervan was plugged into a handy rapid-charge station in the island’s capital, Kirkwall, (I only charged it once in three days, and that was just to play it safe rather than necessity), we wandered around town, taking in its old Viking cathedral – built in 1137 – and Orkney Distillery, where the hydrogen is harnessed to produce gin with no emissions other than water.
