Update From Ghana

February 8, 2016

A quick update from my cell phone in Amedzofe, Ghana. I’m here riding for the month of February, so the blog posts may be a little fewer and farther between than normal.

I brought a Reckless 80 for this trip – a prototype of the new 3 piece version – with the new Stinger 22 tailbag. Everything kitted up on the bike I bought here perfectly without hassle. The bike is a ‘Royal’ brand 200cc. The new R80 3 piece system was so easy to pack up for flying, and the Stinger 22 tailbag worked great as carry-on when the rest of my gear was checked. I was a little overweight with one bag so I pulled out one of the R80 leg bags and checked separately, another cool feature of this system for fly-to-ride trips.

In terms of performance on the bike: flawless, zero issues so far after riding all week on a mix of footpaths, dirt roads, sandy roads, and pavement. I love that the same bag works on everything from my BMW r1150gs Adventure down this little 200cc bike I bought in Africa. No issues with bolts, straps, etc everything is solid and firmly attached to the bike.

For a tank bag I’m using my Dakine nomad mountain bike backpack, the same slightly modified version I used last year in Laos/Vietnam, and which we’ve been using as inspiration for our own tank bag design. I love this bag. It’s the best tank bag I’ve ever used and it’s not even a tank bag. My new camera fits right in the beavertail where it’s obscured from view and securely held to the bike, but also available on quick draw. I pull the bag off and it’s a real backpack with proper straps etc which is awesome for hiking, walking around villages, exploring markets etc.

Love the new tool roll!!

I’m on my way back to Accra now after a week of exploring the Lake Volta region in Ghana, to meet up with my buddy josh and start a much bigger loop through Togo, Ghana, and Ivory Coast. Stoked!

Here’s a link to a video of how I packed for this trip:

http://youtu.be/SM1KvrypKJc

I’ll do an advrider trip report on all this when Im back in the states. Here’s some pics of the journey so far: