Tag: Europe
A Stunning Ride through Velebit Nature Park, Croatia
by Travis Gill
We had heard about Velebit Nature Park after watching a video of the Trans Euro Trail by moToRAID. In the video, the rider, on his Yamaha XT660Z, passes through some pretty stunning areas – made even more dramatic with the beautiful drone footage. However, after riding the entire length of the Trans Euro Trail ourselves, we didn’t experience many of the areas from the … Read More A Stunning Ride through Velebit Nature Park, Croatia
Looking Back on 2022
by Travis Gill
We were recently talking to a hotel host in Morocco who inquired where we were from. This is always an interesting question, because as travelers, we feel we’re “from” wherever we started our day. However, to avoid confusion, we just say “California” since most people know of California from movies and television. The next question, upon seeing that we’re on motorcycles, is “Did you … Read More Looking Back on 2022
2023 Calendar Review
by Travis Gill
Chantil and I look forward to October each year because we start putting together the yearly viajarMOTO Overland Motorcycle Calendar. We pour through hundreds of our favorite photographs and make the painstaking process of whittling them down to just a cover photograph and twelve others that capture the natural beauty of the countries we visit, and the adventure of traveling on two wheels. These … Read More 2023 Calendar Review
Trans Euro Trail, Croatia – The Road Less Traveled
by Travis Gill
I remember reading the warning on the Croatia page of the Trans Euro Trail website: “Wherever you see a MINE sign on the side of the road, it is STRICTLY forbidden (not to say very, very foolish) to venture from the road. Croatia was unfortunately part of the wars of the 90’s. MINE signs along the white roads, in the woods, open fields, wood … Read More Trans Euro Trail, Croatia – The Road Less Traveled
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Beauty Abounds in Northern Istria, Croatia
by Travis Gill
A few days ago we were chatting with a German van traveler about our shared travels throughout Europe. One of his favorite memories was the Istrian Peninsula of Croatia and we shared our excitement of having visited this area as well. He later commented that he loved this region of Croatia, but felt it was too crowded with German speaking tourists. Our experience was … Read More Beauty Abounds in Northern Istria, Croatia
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Riding the West Coast of Croatia’s Istria Peninsula
by Travis Gill
When we arrived in Croatia we had some knowledge of famous coastal cities like Dubrovnik, Split, and the natural beauty of Plitvice Lakes National Park, however we didn’t know anything about the Istria Peninsula located in the northwest of the country. After a wonderful day in the city of Pula, we were eager to experience more of this coastal region of Croatia. Today’s ride … Read More Riding the West Coast of Croatia’s Istria Peninsula
An Uncertain Europe
by Travis Gill
As we pack our bags for Europe, the feelings of February 2020 come flooding back. We were in Idaho, visiting with family, storing our limited belongings into a cargo container, and preparing for full-time motorcycle overlanding. Our two mules were with friends in Germany, patiently waiting for us to arrive and load them up for the next adventure into Morocco, Africa. We had just … Read More An Uncertain Europe
2022 Calendar Review
by Travis Gill
Chantil and I look forward to October each year because we start putting together the yearly viajarMOTO Overland Motorcycle Calendar. We pour through hundreds of our favorite photographs and make the painstaking process of widdeling them down to just a cover photograph and twelve others that capture the natural beauty of the countries we visit, and the adventure of traveling on two wheels. Each … Read More 2022 Calendar Review
Summary of 2021
by Travis Gill
We were both very apprehensive of 2021 on January 1st. Although the COVID pandemic seemed to be subsiding there were still many uncertainties. We both sensed that getting vaccinated was vital to us being able to continue traveling. However, the chances of two American citizens getting a vaccination in a foreign country looked bleak, especially in the regions of Europe that were struggling to … Read More Summary of 2021
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Venice, Italy – The Queen of the Adriatic
by Travis Gill
Although Chantil and I prefer the isolation of riding our motorcycles on a twisty coastal road or a desert dirt path, we both agree that there are some cities that are definitely worth visiting. Iconic cities like New York, London, Paris, Berlin, Rome, Dubai, Hong Kong, Sydney, Tokyo, and of course Venice, Italy. We arrived to the city via an early morning bus ride … Read More Venice, Italy – The Queen of the Adriatic
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Road of 52 Tunnels – An Exhilarating Hike in the Italian Alps
by Travis Gill
I’m fascinated with dangerous roads, so when an prominent adventure motorcycle magazine wrote a short article titled The World’s Most Dangerous Roads: Pasubio Road, Italy, I was immediately intrigued. I read the article with excitement and fascination, but with a bit of discretion. The author’s name wasn’t listed and there weren’t photographs of motorcycles on this road. Had I been click-baited? Could a road … Read More Road of 52 Tunnels – An Exhilarating Hike in the Italian Alps
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Finding Childhood Nostalgia at Villa del Balbianello, Italy
by Travis Gill
The STAR WARS movies captured my interests from the very first time I watched the first movie in 1978. As a young child, I was immediately drawn into these wonderful futuristic, yet believable worlds. The space scenes, the desert landscapes of Tatooine, and the jungles of Yavin 4 all seemed like places I could imagine myself visiting someday. Here we are 42 years later, … Read More Finding Childhood Nostalgia at Villa del Balbianello, Italy
