[Twistgrip]

I hope someone here can help out this Brit. I'm shipping the bike from Southampton(England) to Baltimore in '07,arriving sometime in May(date not known yet). I plan to to stop off at Billings MT in July for the Wing Ding,then head north into Canada,then on to Alaska. This is where I need some help,as the next stage is to get the bike and me and the missus,somehow,to Vladivostok,Russia for the 7,000 mile onward journey to Moskow.My question is this,can I get airfreighted from,say,Anchorage to Vladivostok,or,better still,a ferry from some port in Alaska,or will I have to ride back down into Canada,or even back into the US in order to get a passage to Vlad?
Any help and/or advise would me much appreciated. I plan to be on this trip for about 4 months,maybe longer,depends on who or what I meet along the way!
I've toured Russia twice(just got back from my second trip,on the Wing,of course)but have never been to North America.

Ted

 

[Sid Moen]

I forwarded your post to a friend in Anchorage in the commercial transport business. I'll let you know what I hear.

 

[REDEYE]

I know for a fact that Alaska Airlines for one air freights motorcycles to Russia. Look up Alaska Airlines and check it out.

Redeye

 

[poleman]

Did you ever watch The Long Way Round? Those guys shipped their bikes from somewhere in eastern Russia to Alaska by air freight. So it can be done.

I have the DVD of Long Way Round, so maybe I'll take another look at it and try to see how they did it.

I don't know if roads from Vladivostok are any good, but the road these guys took, The Road Of Bones, was a hellish journey. You and the missus just might want to watch it first.

 

[Twistgrip]

Sid and Redeye,thanks for that. It seems,from information on another forum,more to do with round-the-world motorcycle travel,that most favour the the seafreight option via Japan,or the route from Bellingham WA straight to Vlad, but that takes 4-6 weeks!Airfreight is just way too expensive.

Poleman,yes, I've seen The Long Way Round. I even met Charlie, about a year ago, and picked his brains. Those guys had all the financial/transport(supplied by BMW)/support crews,etc,etc,etc(despite the impression that's portrayed in the film)that almost anything was possible.
The Road of Bones is,indeed,a hellish road,you definitely need a GS, or similar, for that trip! The main drag(not the RoB) from Vlad,apart from the few stretches of gravel,all the way (8,000 miles approx) via Moscow, to the Polish border is in pretty good shape.The same cannot be said for Russian drivers,you've seen nothing 'til you've seen them!!!!

The Russian part of this tour has,for the time being,at least,been put on hold( my wallet throbs,uncontrolably,at the very mention of this trip!)as,while in the US,I intend to do the "State Capitol Run"(see other post)

Thanks guys,much appreciate your input.

Ted