After getting off to a rocky start leaving my wallet at home and only realising this – 30 minutes into the journey, my days 272-mile (472 kilometre) journey began in Miami Beach heading north to Hollywood and Fort Lauderdale. The roads out of Miami Beach for at least the first hour were pretty terrible (traffic, idiots) but once I got out of the city limits I was well on my way.
It was a pretty hot day and with my Klim Overlander clothing, I was sweating pretty badly. I took a few stops along the way to get some water onboard and once I got into the everglades a nice breeze accompanied me for the rest of the journey.
The trip took me through Big Cypress National Preserve, Fakahatchee Strand State Preserve, Bonita Springs, Caloosahatchee Creeks Preserve, Port Charlotte, St Petersburg and finally into Tarpon Springs.
One thing I realized was that I could not wait to get out of Florida, flat straight roads, tight lanes and hot as hell and no real alternatives.
One other thing was becoming very clear to me on my way to Tarpon Springs. That I had too much gear. My KTM 1290 Super ADV could easily carry the load, however getting on and off the bike was a real issue and at times my foot was getting caught on its way across the seat and tipping the back was going to happen sooner rather than later.
