East Coker comes to Guayaquil......again.

Yesterday I found a place where they would sew my badges on to my riding jacket. I had quite an impressive pile to do so I left it with them and collected it in the evening. It wasn't until I put it on this morning that I noticed they have sewn the Chilean flag on upside down! I will have to get that re-done before I bump into any countrymen!

It was another ride up through the mountains, into the cloud, fog and cold. It is a drive through a national park called Cajas. From the little I could see it was a bit like the Scottish Highlands (including the weather) , lovely waterfalls and rivers. I am sure when the sun shines it would be spectacular.

Once out of the other side of the mountain the sun shone and you could see right down the valley, including the next band of cloud you would have to ride through. It is so very green here and it must be a botanists delight as you pass all sorts of weird and wonderful plants.

I stopped for a coffee and some fuel .There has always been a lot of interest in the bike but this beat them all. Families were having pictures with the bike, me (which is unusual) and taking it in turns to sit on it for yet more pictures. I really don't mind as they are smitten with the bike but I was there so long my coffee got cold.


The area is very fertile and once on the plain you pass banana, water melon, avocado and pineapple plantations, plus just about every citrus fruit you can name. It is not that I am good at plant recognition, it is just that the stalls at the side of the road have it piled high.I was going to stop and take a picture of one of these stalls as they are very impressive, but I didn't pass another one and was closer to Guayaquil than I thought.

The other thing you see a lot of is standing water. This is clearly Mosquito heaven as the temperature was in the 30's (it was only 5 degrees in the mountains an hour earlier) and puddles of stagnant water. I didn't hang around to let them find me. I am relying on the internet which says Guayaquil doesn't have malaria as I don't want to start taking my medication until I absolutely have to. I haven't been bitten yet!

Guayaquil is a complete surprise. I had anticipated a rather rough and ready port town on the Rio Guayas. It couldn't be more different. Modern, high rise buildings, enormous grain silos, impressive bridges and road system with a downtown area that wouldn't look out of place in Florida (about the same number of Spanish speakers too), indeed the houses that front the river look very Palm Beach.

They have taken a "slum" district called Las Penas and turned it in to an artistic quarter with cobbled streets and lots of steps - 444 to the top (I didn't count them). Walking around you don't see any foreign tourists but this is a where the locals spend Sunday, here and all along the board walk which is miles long.

Right next to this area they are building some smart new buildings with a view across the coffee brown swirling waters of the Guayas. It is tidal as you can watch the tufts of Water Hyacinth I have been reliably informed (not mangrove as I said) sail up and down depending on the time of day.

 There are very few boats on the water, this was a rarity to see one plodding by. The bits in the water are the Water Hyacinth which seem to live quite happily floating about.

Surprisingly Guayaquil has a link to Somerset, even more amazingly to East Coker (where we lived).  In 1709, the English captain William Dampier (born in East Coker) along with 100 other "chaps" or "pirates" -depending on your point of view, looted Guayaquil. They didn't hang around long as an epidemic of yellow fever broke out. I bet they talked about that in the Helyar Arms over their cider. I wonder what their skittles team was like in those days.

I have a few concerns abut my bike as there is no secure car park so it is parked on the road by the hotel. They do have 24 hour security patrolling the street. I gave him a decent tip and hope that will be good enough to find the bike in one piece at the end of my stay!

JR Hartley Indeed?

My mood wasn't improved by the weather, it was wet and relatively cold, I hadn't expected to use my hand warmers this close to the Equator, even if we were at 2,500 meters.

As seems to be the case with Ecuador (an expert in only two days!) the sun soon came out and it warmed up on the journey to Cuenca.

  

As I had left without breakfast it was nice to find a small cafe along the way. Freshly scrambled eggs and coffee all for $2, I also topped up the tank with higher octane fuel to try to make the big run a bit smoother (it worked). Price of a gallon - $2 (that is about 25 pence per litre).

Cuenca and the area generally gives the impression of greater wealth than Peru but (having looked it up) their GDP per capita is about 85% of that of their neighbours. Another fascinating pub quiz answer for you!

Cuenca (pronounced Kwen-ka) is an old colonial town and a UNESCO World Heritage site. The narrow cobbled streets don't lend itself to smooth flow of traffic and this is a third thing that is evidently different from their neighbours. It is the calm and thoughtful way they drive. The taxi drivers let people in and you seldom hear a horn (in Peru the Taxi's horns seem to sound perpetually).

I found the hotel relatively easily, I couldn't park the bike in the Car Park as they were repainting the entrance. The doorman wanted them to take the scaffolding down so I could get in straight away. He took some persuading that it really could wait until they had finished for the day.

After a shower I put my shorts and sun glasses on and set out to buy insurance for the bike. There is a quirk in the legislation which requires us foreigners to buy specific cover for Ecuador (& Colombia). There are many stories of people not bothering to buy it or trying to buy it & not finding a way through the system.  A quick dip into the internet set me off to a local bank. After a few false starts I finally found the correct office, was given a personal service by a very pretty girl (which was nice) and one month's insurance for $3.
At this rate of expenditure the kids should be happy!

After this success I went shopping for a sticker of the Ecuador flag for the bike. I must have tried 30 shops asking  " I don't suppose you have a ................" JR bloody Hartley indeed! I could not find one anywhere. I will redouble my efforts tomorrow but I am not hopeful.

All this wandering around was a good way to see, what is, a very attractive city with some fast flowing clean rivers.

These domes shine like silver when the sun hits them.

I didn't have any luck with a sticker but i did find somewhere to sew all my fabric patches (flags and such like) on to my Jacket. It wasn't until I got it back to the hotel I noticed that they have sewn the Chile flag on upside down! I will have to unpick it before I am accused of being rude to Chileans!

I watched the Olympic opening ceremony on TV with a beer in my hand. It was quite long wasn't it! I thought the theme was good but it went flat at times. The TV reports over here are all very positive so a good start, which is good.

I will head off tomorrow but I think Cuenca is one of the nicest places I have visited. There is nothing very special but it just has very nice feel to it.

Another Top Travel Tip - for Ecuador

I got up early for what could be quite a long ride. It was nice, as the daily traffic hadn't started so the run down from the mountains was wonderful. The only slight problem being that the sun was so low in the sky it made seeing the next hairpin a bit of a challenge. I enjoyed passing the rice fields again, and the cattle wading through the sludge with the old boys hanging on to the plough in their wake.

After such a nice ride, it was a shame to find myself back on the Pan American highway. It is flat, unattractive scrub desert. Not the prettiest part of Peru and not the image to take away with you after so many wonderful sights. Because it is a flat plain nothing stops the wind howling in off the Pacific. It was rather uncomfortable but not as bad as Patagonia some months ago. The sand is constantly blown across the road looking like a rippling sheet of silk. A few towns came and went but eventually I came to Piura. It was my chosen lodging for the night simply because it is in the right place (close to the border with Ecuador).

A new dilemma in this region is when to start taking the malaria tablets. The map says "advised" but you can only take Malarone for 2 months and as I am going to be in "it" for three months. I need to start as late as possible as I am pretty sure it is going to be worse later on.

Not being a huge town it was easy to find the hotel. Again it was an off sight parking lot, but not far. It had been a full day on the bike so, shower, beer, dinner and bed were all that I wanted.

The next day town was in full Parade mode, obviously another key date in their history (but I can't tell you what specifically).

 I was surprised by the show of force by the police given it was mostly the school children parading. Then on my walk I heard and then saw a "rival" parade - the miners.So it was a case of Minors v Miners.

 Clearly they wanted to make a point and the police knew it. They seemed to do a pretty good job of shepherding them away from the main parade and plaza so no trouble ensued. I quite fancied doing my Kate Addie impression

On the way in to town yesterday I was following too close to the car in front of me and didn't see a bloody great chunk of wood in the road. I ran straight over it. Having checked the tyres, the rear looked about ready to change. Rear tyre number 4! I had bought one in Lima so wandered around town to find someone to fit it. Having found a car place that would do it, I went back, took the wheel off, grabbed the new spare and got a taxi back to the tyre place. Five minutes later it was all done. Yet again they would not take any money for doing it. Another example of just how generous these people are.It must be they way they are brought up - to go home feeling good about themselves rather than make a few extra Soles. I know a few people who could benefit from that attitude.

Another early start was called for as I was heading across the border to Ecuador. It is best to assume several hours to get through the controls. The ride out of Peru was also a ride out of the desert. The land rises and greens as it does so. By the time you get to the border it is green and fertile land.

I tried to use up my Soles by filling up with fuel at the last town, not only did I not use up my Soles I am not sure I was given 90 octane fuel. The bike didn't seem to like the new stuff.

I had a great time in Peru but was glad to be moving in to a new territory.

Macara is a quiet crossing and I was first in the queue, a queue of one! The various officers (immigration and customs) were pleasant and chatty, they even took my camera to take pictures of themselves.

Notice they haven't got round to taking down the Christmas decorations.

Everything was going well until the Customs man was trying to complete the exit papers for the bike - on his computer. Lots of huffing and puffing, his PC was not playing ball. It was funny to watch him shake the mouse vigorously on its mat, obviously hoping it would loosen the computers hold on the information. He resorted to "turning it off and on again", the international language of computers. It worked, so the next thing was to photocopy my passport. The Photocopier decided to play up. He tried opening the paper tray many times but that didn't help so he just resigned himself to technology, gave me back my passport with a handshake and "suerte" (good luck).

Moving 30 meters along the bridge you stop and do the process in reverse to get in to Ecuador. Again the guys were all very nice, one spoke very good English as he was stationed in Washington for 2 years. Papers all completed and tucked away in the tank bag and that was it. It all took about an hour - most of which was due to the technology glitches.

The first thing I noticed that makes Ecuador different to the other countries I had visited was the sign posts. They actually had some! At every junction and sometimes in between you got helpful advice like how far the next town was and which road to take. I wonder if it will catch on?

The second thing was the lack of Speed Humps. Peru has about three in every village you pass through & they are so big you can't ignore them. It is a pleasure to drive through villages now as you can look around rather than lining up the next bloody Hump. I do try to be considerate with my speed through the towns and villages so I don't think they make a difference.

The roads were not so clever, well not to start with. it was a string of pot holes joined together with a little tarmac. This went on for about 20-30 kms. Rising all the time and eventually disappearing inside the clouds that hung over the mountains. It was thick fog, what with that and the state of the road made it very slow going and not much fun.

As luck would have it, we came out of the clouds and not long after came to brand new tarmac, perfectly smooth and lovely twisting road around the mountainside. It lasted about 30-40 kms and then returned to the pothole emporium! Why it has been done I have no idea, it doesn't join two towns together, it is just there - great piece of road though! The temperature gauge was reading 33 degrees at this point (up from 16 degrees whilst in the clouds).

On the journey I was stopped at two military checkpoints. Smiles, handshakes and a wave goodbye. I am not sure why they are there but they certainly didn't hold me up.

The road changed again to good tarmac so the last 60 kms was very pleasant.......until it started to rain! I haven't had rain in South America for so long I can't remember it. It wasn't too bad and because it was so warm the roads never got particularly wet.

Loja came in to view a full 7 hours after I left Piura which according to the hotel owner "you must have flown" was pretty quick. how impressed would he have been if it hadn't taken and hour at the border?

The hotel is Shabby chic (without the chic) but the family seemed nice enough. I signed in and he asked for cash. Ahhh, "I haven't had a chance to get any yet, where is the nearest bank ATM"?
I was pointed in the direction of a supermarket a few blocks away.

It wasn't just a supermarket it was s shopping mall! It was rather disturbing to find such a beast down here, they belong in North America. For pity's sake it even had a KFC.

I found the ATM and got some money out. "Oh bugger, it has given me US Dollars". Thinking I must have pressed the wrong button I asked if there was a "Cambio" in the mall to change the dollars in to local currency. No but there is a bank. Great, I queued and eventually get to the counter.

"Please can I change these for Ecuadorean Pesos" (I didn't actually know what Ecuador uses but I thought pesos would be close enough). She looked back blankly at me. So I tried again with lots of ruffling of notes and repeating my flawed Spanish. Eventually another lady at the bank came over and said
"What do you want, speak English".
What a relief (the queue behind was getting restless).

"The ATM gave me Us Dollars and I wanted Ecuadorean money".
She just looked at me (as blankly as the first lady) and then said ..................
"That is what we use in Ecuador".

Yes I did feel a right Prat! Another Top Travel TIp: When travelling, read something about the bloody country you are visiting before you get there!

The day didn't get any better. I went back to the Hotel with my Dollars and threw my stuff in the room. I went to the bathroom and it was not clean - I will spare you the details. Even after they had supposedly cleaned it, I was not impressed.
The advertised wifi didn't work, their grandchildren were screaming blue murder for most of the evening and then it cam to dinner. I went down and was offered a set meal - Chicken and rice (it is always chicken with rice). Ok great. Two minutes later  "actually we haven't got any food". It was past nine and I was past caring so I had a beer, read my book went to bed. I had already made up my mind I was moving on in the morning.

At about mid night the owner was banging on my door "come and move your bike!!!
When I had arrived I parked it in there garage and put it where they asked, no problems. But they obviously had a late arrival who wanted to put his car in the garage too. They didn't see what the problem was of getting me out of bed to move the bike. I flipped! The only time on the whole trip I have been met with surly indifference.

I left at 7:30 the next morning, shaking my head at the Four stars on the front of the building. not quite the way I had wanted to be introduced to Ecuador.

All quiet on the Northern front -Cajamarca

At breakfast my host suddenly told me that he did not think it was a good idea to go to Cajamarca! He had spoken to friends up there was still trouble with the Miners, so much so that the Tour companies had been cancelling their bookings there. A few days ago the news talked of three dead and a state of emergency. As I had booked an hotel I thought that any trouble would be a roadblock, if I met one of those I would turn around and find another town.

The first few hours were through yet more desert but eventually I got to the junction that would take me inland and in to the hills. The road from the junction was only 200 kms but the petrol station attendants had suggested it would take 5 hours!!!

Almost immediately the scenery changed and it was nice to get amongst the hills, trees and the twisting roads.

This is a man made lake, apparently part of the local conflict is to do with the water demands of the new mines & how they will affect the locals and their farming.

There are many big trucks trundling up the hills, we would all climb 3,000 meters before dropping down in to Cajamarca at 2,500. I can see why it would take 5 hours in a car as, without the bikes ability to overtake quickly, I would not have done it in 3.5 hours. Most of the road was good tarmac but there were a few stretches of gravel.

Down in the desert a lot of sugar cane is grown - with the benefit of irrigation obviously, the small scale farms still use horse/donkey power. Up in the hills you begin to pass rice paddy fields and best of all , you can see them "ploughing" the slurry with cattle. I stopped to take this picture in a tiny hamlet and I was soon surrounded by kids and toothless grandparents. They were so excited and asked far more questions than I could understand or answer. They didn't have much more than their adobe houses and the clothes on their backs but I didn't see one person without a broad grin (with or without teeth). One lady I think, was called Juanita, because she had one tooth left from her upper set.

Once you get to the top you look down on the valley in which Cajamarca sits.

My hotel would have been relatively easy to find as it is on Plaza de Armas (the centre of all towns) but they are doing a lot of roadworks which meant many roads were closed. As I was stuck in a traffic jam a couple of quite large guys on quite a small motorbike pulled up next to me and started to chat (they ALL love the bike). they kindly showed me a way to get to the hotel and we had a brief chat before they disappeared back in to the traffic, their arses hanging off each side of the saddle, poor little bike.

This is a pucker hotel right on the Square and with a Car park rather than reception. The trouble is, the entrance to the car park required me to rejoin the traffic and retrace my tracks to the entrance!

There was no sign of any trouble but it was another long day on the bike so I had a few beers and an early night in nice crisp white sheets!

It is a very similar town to so many in south America, the Plaza de Armas is the centre, with gardens, fountain, chairs for old men to sit and chat to their friends. A few shops and a few churches. I also got my shoes polished again. There was a bit of a crowd and I was the butt of plenty of jokes judging by the amount of laughter - all good fun and I have got very nice shiny shoes now.

Cajamarca's history is in the events of 1532. For those who read the blogs and paid attention you will remember the nasty character Pizzarro.

Atahualpa had beaten his brother in a battle for the Inca throne in Quito. On his way to Cusco with his army of 80,000 soldiers, he stopped at Cajamarca. Pizarro and his 170 soldiers charged there to meet him. Pizzarro made unreasonable demands of Atahualpa which he had to refuse, giving Pizzarro the excuse to declare war on the Inca's. The Spanish with their arms were able to massacre thousands of Incas and captured Atahualpa with virtually no loss. The Conquistadors were actually trapped but somehow convinced the Inca's not to attack Atahualpa gave them the famous ransom for his release -  a room filled with gold and twice as much silver. Pizzarro took the money and murdered Atahualpa anyway. All in the name of Catholic God, nice eh?

 "The Ransom House" where all this happened, still exists and is protected from the elements by a rather gaudy orange "umbrella" The stonework is identical to that at Cuzco.

The Bowler hats of the south give way to the over-sized "Stetsons" of the North. Some of them are huge. I am not sure if they are made of very fine straw or coarse fabric, they look the part though!

This is what the Plaza de Armas is all about!

Something fishy here

I was happy to be getting on the bike as feel I have almost forgotten how to ride. I have also been in Lima for quite a few days so it was time to make a move anyway. I don't think I ever posted a picture of the Lima Coastline. They fly paragliders along here ($40 for 10 mins), over the tops of the buildings but the only day I saw them flying was when I was leaving.

Having taken some clothes back to England (mole skins, jumper and surplus other clobber) it was easier to pack than before, obviously a bit lighter too. One new addition to my wardrobe is a Mosquito net but it is light and doesn't take up much room. I suspect I will need that once I get to Ecuador and beyond.

The hotel staff convinced me it was easy to find my way across Lima and to the Pan American Highway (north)............2 hours later I proved them wrong! I would still be there now if, it wasn't for a nice guy Jorge on a BMW, who led me from God knows where to the right part of town. It was strange having a 1 minute conversation at every red traffic light, there are lots of them so I found out a bit about him. More evidence of how nice these people are to go out of their way for nothing but a "Gracias".

The biggest issue was that the Freeway running through the city centre (which would have got me there in no time at all) does not allow Trucks or Bikes. I can understand no Trucks but what detrimental affect does a bike have on the free flow of traffic?

The northern suburbs of Lima are "workmanlike" and it takes quite a few miles before you leave the city behind. Once out of town you are immediately reminded that you are still in the Desert. As stunning as it can be I feel I have seen quite enough and am looking forwards to a change of scenery. At certain points along the way I thought I was breaking in to lush greenery only to be disappointed as beyond  each valley was more desert.

 I know I have bored you with this before but it is astounding the affect a bit of fresh water can have on the surroundings- barren dust to crop rearing in a few paces. The agriculture up here seems more commercial and profitable. Despite the mechanisation here, you still pass men ploughing with horses.

 

To the side of the Panamerican is another Adobe Fortress, I don't who which tribe built this one and I didn't feel inclined to take a trip around it today.

For the first time I was stopped at a police check point (of which there are many). He waved me to the side of the road. And I thought "here we go" as the reputation of the Peruvian Police in the north is not all positive.
He looked pretty sour faced as he asked for my passport, then the insurance and then my drivers licence. He liked to give the impression he was studying each very carefully but given that he spent most time looking at the Japanese page of my International driving licence, I wasn't convinced.

He then tried to explain a violation I had caused by overtaking a bus on the left. He even got his book out and showed me the crime. I couldn't work out how you are meant to pass a bus if that was the case and what's more lane discipline is not great here! I really thought that "cash" is going to be required at this point.

My Spanish is not great and a bit rusty having been home for a few weeks. We then had a conversation a bit like the Two Ronnies wherein, I was answering his questions out of sequence. He looked more puzzled than annoyed. It seemed to work as he then started asking what I thought of Peru and the quality of the roads - to which I could honestly answer in glowing terms.

Then all my papers were handed back to me a handshake and I was waved on my way. I suspect I had done something wrong and he just gave me a warning - I am shame faced that I suspected him of looking for a sweetner.

I kept forgetting to photograph these funny little mototaxis. They are everywhere with weird and wonderful colour schemes and names but they are not quick!

The PanAmerican reduces to a 2 lane road for most of the journey but, to one side, they are expending time effort and what must be an enormous amount of money to make it 4 lanes in the near future.  Given the number of Trucks labouring up the hills I am sure the locals will appreciate it.

About another hour or two down the road another police checkpoint and another wave to the side of the road. Here we go again I thought. Not a bit of it, the officer gave me a salute and asked me if everything was ok! Yes thank you, a hand shake, another salute and a wave goodbye............what can you say to that?

Along the way I caught up an English plated bike, which is a pretty rare sight over here. We shook hands at yet another set of lights but the "nice young couple" were clearly happy on their own and did not show any sign of wanting to get a coffee or have a chat. I absolutely understand that so wished them well and sped off.

For most of the day the weather was typical Lima - grey and overcast making any attempts at photos futile. Only when I was quite close to Chimbote did the sun come out to play.

Chimbote is not an attractive town and it is fair to say that you smell it before you see it. It is a major commercial fishing port and there is no getting away from it.

I checked in at my shabby chicish hotel with the, now usual, performance of parking the bike in reception. A mother ("Mummy") and son (50 +) run the place and it has a slightly disquieting feel to it ....Bates Motel, I hope not!

Lima Revisited

It seemed to take a lifetime to get here but get here I did. I am not sure if it was the delayed flight or the lack of sleep from the previous weekend but I am struggling to get on to local time.

I checked the bike and found the battery to be all but flat. I was rather pleased to be able to use the battery charger I have been carrying all these months.

I noticed a slight weep of oil from the rear damper - it isn't much and I certainly hope I am not going to have the same problem I had with the front down in Patagonia. I don't think there is a BMW main dealer until Columbia.

I have also splashed out on a new rear tyre. The current one has a few more miles in it but as there was the correct tyre on sale nearby it seemed a good idea to buy one here rather than risk Ecuador having such a beast. Mind you it was bloody expensive, so much so, that I was tempted by the Korean version but the name put me of "Spongo" or some such name.

It all feels rather normal to be back which, in one sense, is a little disappointing, compared to the excitement of the initial landing. I am sure once I get on the road and do battle with the Lima traffic I will feel a little more exposed. It should take me a few days to leave the desert scenery behind and begin to reach the outer edges of the Rain Forest.

One last word for Mother (assuming you read this on the 18th) - Happy Birthday X.
I hope you like the Baby Alpaca cardigan........ if you haven't opened your present yet - Oops, sorry!

Have you missed the blog?

I am back in Lima after a few weeks back in the UK & France.

The catalyst for going back for a few weeks was that we were fortunate to get an entry for Le Mans Classic. It is the French equivalent of "Goodwood Revival" with 450 cars racing for 24 hours (in 6 age groups) and 109,000 spectators.

It was quite a gathering of family and friends, probably encouraged by the tales of blistering hot weather back in 2010. Unfortunately the weather was similar to the UK which meant not as much fun as we had hoped - having rented a camper van, taken tents (and even the freezer full of food). Doesn't really make much difference as you can't sleep anyway. If you are not preparing the car (before and after the race) you are listening to the other nuts racing around 24 hours a day!

Added to this we had a mis-fire that we couldn't solve. This meant our qualifying and races were somewhat "limp". It didn't help that every time we got ready to race the rain started, not much fun and especially at night with headlights from the 1970's!

Yours truly in the middle of the night (it is a 1977 Lola 296 for those that are interested)

Still we managed to finish on a high note on the Sunday with the mis-fire fixed. Because of the poor performance up to then we had to start in 55th place (out of 65). We were up to 15th by the end of the race, passing lots of cars. Not quite what we had hoped for but still good fun and put a smile back on our faces.

Better was to come at our "end of race" dinner on the Sunday night. The "team organiser" John Ruston arrived to tell us that Team 5 had won the "Team Trophy" (teams are made up of one car from each gird - 6 grids). Clearly our team mates had done better than we had.

That was a good excuse for the Ball's (GT40 grid 5) to order some champagne, as if we needed any more wine! At least it proves that it is the Balls that are the troublemakers and not the Wilkins!

It is a shame that they are not as good at buying fuel as they are wine.

As we had no idea we would be in the hunt, we missed the prize giving and collected the trophies with fuzzy heads the next morning.

It was nice to catch with just about the whole family and some friends but I can't say I am sorry to leave the English summer behind - the weather was terrible!

It took a little longer to get back than I anticipated as the flight from Heathrow to Madrid was cancelled (fuel leak in an engine). Still, I slept better than I would have done on the plane as BA put us up in a nice hotel!

I wasn't too pleased to see there is a "State of Emergency" in the North of Peru - Miners and the Police clashing, 3 dead so far. The "S of E" gives the police the power to arrest on sight with no questions asked. I don't fancy getting locked up for 30 days, becoming a miners plaything for parking on a double yellow line!

I will get my bearings and then head north shortly.