Whats on your "Bucket list"?

[arctictraveller]

I have been very fortunate in my life being able to travel a lot. I've been seeing the world by boat for the last 20 years, and prior to that I traveled extensively on my BMW motorcycle. The goal with the motorcycle was to go from Prudhoe Bay in Alaska to Tierra Del Fuego at the tip of South America. Sadly, I only made it to Panama before running out of money (rallypanam actualy finished this same trip on his BMW) The van thing is new to me, and in the two years we have had it, we have gone to some amazing places. Now that I'm nearing retirement, I hope to have even more time to travel and thats got me to thinking about where to go next. So far the plan is Baja again in the fall / winter. Next up is a trip across Canada from the West coast of Vancouver Island to Newfoundland, using as many dirt roads as possible. Rpa has a friend who has put this route together, and has a website with all the details http://graveltravel.ca/ He also wrote a great book about the time he spent in Robb's Paris / Dakar chase / support truck. It's on his site and is a very intertaining read. ( Tales from the bivouac, Dakar 2012) This winter I spent a couple weeks traveling with Vivalavida, and we discussed the possibility of shipping our vans to Iceland to do the Ring Road, so I'm considering how to do that after crossing Canada and ending up on the East Coast. I'm not sure I can afford it though, so I want to consider other options once we arrive on the East Coast. So, what's on your Bucket List? :a4:

 

[86Scotty]

Retirement.

 

[rallypanam]

I'd like to cruise around Alaskan coastal waters, but I don't know any reputable folks offering such tours.

 

[Ford_6L_E350]

I don't have a bucket list. If there is something I really want to do, I find away to do it. Life is all about priorities. I've done over 500,000 miles riding and driving around the US and Canada. Traveled the places I really wanted to see in Europe by motorcycle. Most of my travel was by motorcycle because I couldn't afford gas for a car. Even got married on a motorcycle/sidecar at a BMW rally in North Carolina.

There are more things I wouldn't mind doing (i.e. drive a Ferrari 550/575) but they haven't become important enough to get around to them yet.

I guess the current priority project is finding the right place (outside of CA) to live.

Mike

 

[arctictraveller]

I'd like to cruise around Alaskan coastal waters, but I don't know any reputable folks offering such tours.

This summer might be a good time to book that trip! :b5:

 

[arctictraveller]

I don't have a bucket list. If there is something I really want to do, I find away to do it. Mike

Thats pretty much how I have lived my life too, but now that I'm getting older I'm not sure what I want to do next, and I don't have forever to figure it out. Currently, I'm in pretty good health (for an old guy), but we all know that can change in a flash. Sadly, a good friend from work just passed away suddenly at 52 when he was just fine a week prior. So, with some advance planning I think I can still have a lot of great adventures, I just don't know what to do, but I do know I want to do it in the van. Tent camping for more than a few days with the GS has lost it's appeal ......................

 

[larrie-SMB]

Am 20 days away from retirement so have been thinking about this quite a bit. A cruise along the rivers of Europe would be nice. Viking offers small boat tours that last from one to two weeks. Have been on four continents and would like to figure a way to get to the other four; Antartica, South America, India and Greenland. Drive to Inuvik. Iceland. Travel by van around the U.S. Canada. SMB meet and greets. Closer to home; all the chores that have been neglected, photography, grandkids, friends and church activities. All of this is great and I am looking forward to it, but first on the list is turning off the alarm clock and sleeping in.

 

[GrumpyBadger]

Oh Lordy... that's a BIG list. Hoping to get the following checked off this year:

Iceland, Africa photo safari (gets two... a safari and a new continent), Ireland, tipping a couple pints in an English village pub, and Scotland (maybe duff a few at St. Andrews if I can manage it... that would be two check offs also!)

In terms of the Sporty bucket list... depending on time off available between contracts, I might try to run up into the Canadian Rockies, maybe hit a few states I've not been to yet, and maybe work on bagging some more CO 14ers.

 

[sbgrimm]

We're a year or less away from retirement and seriously thinking about all the places we can go in our SMB. Working on getting it outfitted for long term travel. Solar next month, Endless Breeze fan arrived today (thank you Amazon Prime!)
We really look forward to exploring the the West, from Canada to Baja. And we hope to do as much exploring as possible with other forum members, going as far as our 2WD can go. As a river bum one goal is to have enough time to hang out in Utah to catch the Escalante when it has enough water to float. And a big goal in our travels is to find a nice, sunny little town somewhere to move to when we're no longer tied employment wise to the Seattle area. We love the summers here but I've had enough cold wet NW winters, especially troublesome in years like this when there is no snow for XC skiing.

Brad

 

[schluchtenflitzer]

I quit my job (i really loved it) and in 4 month my girlfriend and me are starting to travel around the world. We start to rounf africa. I think it is a continent with the most beautifull and amazing landscapes and animals on the whole world. As sooner you are there as more origin you can see it. Arctictraveler, you traveled a lot and maybe you where there also, but if not.....GO! CU on the road :b5:

 

[86Scotty]

A cruise along the rivers of Europe would be nice. Viking offers small boat tours that last from one to two weeks. Have been on four continents and would like to figure a way to get to the other four; Antartica, South America, India and Greenland. Drive to Inuvik. Iceland. Travel by van around the U.S. Canada. SMB meet and greets.

I'm with you Larrie. Those Viking cruises sure do look great!

My plan, since I'm about 15 years from retirement, is to enjoy the states with my vacations while I'm working, and then explore the rest of the world after I retire. These days, I really don't enjoy travel without the van. It's the kind of travel we love, so we plan to take all our vacations in it camping, exploring and relaxing. I would love to visit Ireland, New Zealand, Australia, and tour Europe of course, but there is so much beauty here in the states I can see never leaving and still having few regrets. The biggest challenge will be Alaska, and probably a lot of Canada, but I'm hoping to start taking a full month off in the summers in the next couple of years so I might try to swing it.

:b5:

 

[arctictraveller]

Ok, I've just added this to my list. I've always wanted to visit Tuktoyaktuk so I could say I ate MukTuk ( http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Muktuk ) in Tuktoyaktuk. What I didin't know is that you can drive there in the winter on the ice roads. I thought those roads were reserved for commercial traffic only, but there not. When I first visited Hay River I came across a magazing called "Up Here". In that issue was a story about the ice road truckers, the very same story the producers of the Discovery program by the same name read. It was compelling enough they made a hit show out of it. Now I realize I can do it, I'm thinking next winter, either prior to or after Baja. Anyone interested?............

http://spectacularnwt.com/what-to-do/wi ... adventures