I fix an old motor bike and ride to the Arctic Circle 'The Warhorse' Honda XRV750 Africa Twin

Yeah, hello, do you speak English? Okay, great. I was just calling to see if the bike is still available. Awesome, can I get your address? I've seen a lot of the world on motorcycles. Travelled in 32 countries on bikes ranging from 150cc to 1200cc. But they were never mine. They were supplied by virtue of my career projects. Now I realise what's been missing in my life. I want to know if there's a motorcycle out there which I'm destined to find. A motorcycle that was always meant to be mine. Mate, it just needs a new owner, huh? How privileged am I to be that owner? It's real, I've found her, albeit stripped of her identity. But I will let her true colours shine once again. I know a battle-scarred bike when I see one. And it's safe to say this old girl has never fired a shot off-road. Like a highly trained soldier that never got to fight in a war. This Africa twin has never been on an adventure. It has yet to fulfil its design purpose. She spent the last 30 years passed along four owners as a commuter. A top-box toting courier damned to a life of urban streets, cafe car parks, traffic jams and motorways. Only to be forgotten under a blanket in a barn. Those days are over old girl. And for our first adventure, I'm taking you straight to the top of the world. What can I say? I'm in love. 300km today so far. At least 60 of it was a nice little random off-road section. And just good to get a feel of this thing. It's so good. Definitely got a bit more weight on the back than I'd like. I've packed it full of food. So I'm going to start eating it down. And slowly but surely get a feel for the true off-road capabilities. Such a great feeling being self-sufficient on a motorcycle. Some compact camping gear, food and a few personal items. I feel like a kid again. Of all the adventures of all the missions around the world, the last time I rode my own motorcycle on an adventure was 23 years ago. I bought my very own XR600. Rode it around Australia. Yeah, I was living on it. Lived off it. And I've been missing that, really. I don't want to sound ungrateful. I've had the time of my life. Very lucky on all the adventures. But the motorcycles have ultimately been tools to get the job done. Create a movie. Test a bike for a manufacturer. Whatever. This is different. This is really personal. Where I'm going is almost irrelevant. It's just so enjoyable going somewhere on this bike. No better way to start your day in life than with a nude swim in an icy Scandinavian lake. That's the Viking coming out in me. I think I could roll like a Viking. 430km yesterday. I'm going to try and up that to about 600km today. I've got some distance to cover. But let's see how she goes on the cold start. Twin carburettors here. Bit of choke. All systems go. So here's the deal. I've made it to my first major waypoint, which is Norway 1. And I've positioned it somewhere along stage 1 of the Norwegian Tet. That's right. I've come to see what all the fuss is about with this Trans-Euro trail. I'm picking it up somewhere along the line. I'm going to ride it back to the Swedish border. See if I can come across and blend in with some like-minded adventure enthusiasts. Yes, I'm here. I am living my best life as an adventure bike rider. And I'm excited to find others doing the same. Wait, what? A couple of moose. No way. These things are as big as freaking horses. So good. This Trans-Euro trail is delivering from the get-go. And then it happens. Hello. They don't want to stop the truck. I just... I just got brushed by my first sighting of adventure riders. Oh well, I guess they didn't like the pink. You want to come with me? Do you want to come to the big circle next to the sun? Okay, so I've left the Norwegian leg of the Trans-Euro trail to pick it up again at the border of Sweden. But I've run into a bit of a problem. Bugger, I found the first fault with the warhorse. The low fuel light failed to come on and I've completely run it out of fuel. I've fallen about 30km short before the Swedish border. However, I did stop a van and it was a couple of Norwegians. And they said they're just going into this town to do some grocery shopping. They're going to get me some fuel and drop it off on their way back through. This looks like the legends now. I think they're coming through with the good. There you go. You guys are the real deal. I really appreciate this. No problem. If you like. So in the time it takes me to explain my situation, these guys invite me to their cabin in the woods. Nice place. So this is Bjorn, joined by his three boys who are on a hunting trip at their private cabin. What is it? It's reindeer meat, mushrooms, sour cream. Did you shoot the reindeer? No. We drove all the way. We hit the cab down the road. Well, you know what? If you didn't go looking for this reindeer meat, you wouldn't have found me stranded on the highway today. Cheers to the Norwegian hunting family. Thank you for your hospitality. This is amazing. Kickstart the day with a cold shower and then into it. There it is. The coveted Norwegian grouse, which the boys had hung up in their shed last night. Nice little crossing here. Seems okay. It's thick. Let's go, war horse. I'm getting a good feel for her now, as she's surprising me with every challenge we face. I've ridden the best adventure bike brands available in these kind of conditions, and this old Africa twin is performing like every bit the legend it's known to be. Let's go. Gave in yesterday. Checked into a motel. So wet. Boots were soaked from the river crossing. But yeah, I just needed a chance to fully reset. Dry everything. At least try and get it dry. Hung up all the riding gear. It's looking like another wet, miserable Swedish day out there. So, transit day today. Just gonna leg it up the motorway. And so the war horse has been granted exclusive passage across this mighty Nordic river. Lapland. This is Lapland. Why do they call it Lapland? Because Lapland is between us like the natives of Sweden. So it's their land. I just need to do a quick location check with the phone. Hopefully I got some signal. Because I'm just about to clock 300km. That sinking feeling when you realize you've been having way too much fun burning up fuel you don't really have. Relief. Civilization. There's bound to be fuel here. Okay, so I cross the border into Finland. Long enough to get a feed. Warm my hands and feet a little. Then re-enter Norway's icy cold arctic north. War horse has parked up for the night. It's amazing when you've suffered for so long being cold and wet. And big K's. The luxuries of a tiny little cabin. It's just simple. It's all you need. And I found some beer. Day six. This will be my fourth day straight riding in the rain. The only difference now that I'm well inside the arctic circle. It's seven degrees and raining out there. Which on a motorcycle isn't comfortable. But one thing I know. If you can start the day dry it's much easier to press on into the suffering. And I've almost got my boots dry. Almost. Sometimes the situations we manifest can be far from our expectations. My hands and feet are frozen numb. But I am exactly where I have chosen to be. Alone on a motorcycle in one of the most inhospitable and fascinating places on the planet. I'd like to think I'm an adventurous person. But I'm not ignorant. I will always be wary of people. I will always fear wild predatory animals. But I will never be scared of nature. I will never be deterred by climate. I will always challenge myself in the harshest terrain. And let my instincts as a human be my guide. Because it's not until all your senses are firing that you feel truly alive. Three thousand kilometers later. We made it. The warhorse and I made it to the top of the world. And you know it hasn't been ideal. If I had the luxury of time I could probably wait around for the conditions to be perfect. But who really does have the luxury of time? While it's okay to give yourself a pat on the back for your achievements. Don't fist pump too early. Because you can quickly find yourself on the side of the road pissing in your radiator. Yeah bloody hell. About time I run an eye over the warhorse. I've just been sending it every day and not even looking down to check on the old gal. And that took me by surprise today. When I saw the temp gauge had risen just a bit out of the blue. It was still cool as. But the fact it changed that was a warning sign for me. So it must have a slow radiator leak. Because it's been so wet every day I haven't been able to pick it or see it. Yeah that's um that's still basically full from when I pissed in it. I guess it's not really an adventure unless you're pissing in the radiator right? Um hold on, hold on, hold on. That's just started dripping coolant big time since I popped the cap. Okay it's not that hose. Oh look there it is. Plastic covers worn through the radiator. What bloody hell. I need to see if this servo's got any radiator or any metal putty. Absolute score. Totally in business. I've got some metal putty. Could you misc whatever it says metal? Just mix it and you've fixed it. Well we shall see about that. We are in business. All right I'm just going to give that a quick wipe and hit it. Take that out and let that bloody chafing cover hold that putty in place. Day seven and of course another dreary wet nordic day. But you know what? Despite the ---- weather it's still a really good feeling having had a good sleep. Something to eat. Got to check over the warhorse and now I'm ready to explore places I've never been before. Bit of fire is the best it's going to get out here. 500 mil over three and a half thousand k's. It's pretty good. Sitting on 5000 rpm all day. It's allowed to burn a little bit of oil. You know I think one of the most important parts of motorcycle travel, traveling with your motorcycle, is really intimately getting to know it. Know every sound, every vibration, because as soon as a new sound is introduced, a vibration, you can pick it up. You're onto it straight away. If something's vibrating it's wearing out. Loose chain, loose bolts, it's going to cause extra damage. So I've just picked up on the fact the chain slackened off. So I'm just going to tighten her up a couple of notches and smooth the old girl back out. Get all your weight into her. Perfect. Let's go. I'm fascinated by the sea, more so by the life that bubbles away by the water's edge. Ropes, anchors, fishing nets and seagulls. It is a life governed by ever-changing weather. A life enriched by the sounds, smells and flavors of the creatures harvested from its depths. I will always be in awe of the maritime world, but it's a place I like to admire from a distance. To look out over an endless body of water is spooky, but it evokes thoughts of wonder about our planet, how we choose to live here and what little time we really have. Is this going straight across? I think we owe it to ourselves to learn to be self-sufficient, to know what it once meant to source our own food, sleep under the stars and harmonize with nature. But we have created an industrial world, a reality where we swipe credit cards for a bed, wait in line to be served engineered food and observe nature from the safety of guardrails and regulations. How is it that in even the most spectacular natural places on earth we cannot experience it without cinemas, restaurants and bars? I am a motorcycle rider, but without nature these experiences would be meaningless, because whether you travel on foot, by car or by bike, exploring the natural world is the greatest gift of life. I've spent a lot of time traveling the world in search of something I didn't really know was missing. I've not only found a better version of myself, but I have found the warhorse. Thanks for coming along this journey with me everyone. This ride in particular was very important to me, very special to do it on a bike that I own, and an old bike. You know, it's not always about having the best bike, the latest toys, it's just about two wheels and a motor and going for it, you know. If you can think it, you can believe it, you can do it. Just don't wait around for opportunity, just create the opportunity, and the experiences you'll get from that will change your life. And as always, if you like this stuff, don't forget to subscribe to my channel, share and like the video, hit the notification bell, you know the drill. And if you want to see how this whole bike came to be, in terms of the setup, front to rear, what I carry, what I do as an adventure rider, click on this video right here.