Welcome to all our new readers and those who joined us earlier. We’ve some updates to share with you, as we consider Nagaland as an additional state to explore on our Expedition Ride to the north east, 23rd October.

We launch our Self-Guided Tours and two new Expedition Routes through central and southern India. In spring we ride across Sri Lanka and then Bhutan. We ‘open the support truck door’ to our Rider’s Groupies and tempt you with an offer of ‘Tenth Person Goes Free’. We report from the Webmaster’s Desk, show off our new luggage and put out the word. We’re looking for Agents!

Expedition Ride - Riding roughly clockwise through Meghalaya, Assam, north into Arunachal, we’ll explore remote regions inhabited by some of India’s most interesting and enduring tribal communities, their lives barely touched by development.

Gerard Privilege from Perth, Australia, and I, will be riding the new model Royal Enfield 500cc Classic. Its reliability, increased power and ruggedness, together with our new luggage system - we'll be self-supporting, giving us maximum flexibility in choosing our routes and locations. Three weeks exploring hilly, jungly, challenging roads and several high mountain passes. If you want to join us, please let us know now.

New Central & Southern Routes - The winter season approaches with the launch of two completely new expedition routes south, through the amazing central and southern heartlands of India.

November and starting near Delhi, the route takes us through desert, jungle, national parks, to beautiful beaches in Goa. In the New Year we ride further south, from Goa to Kerala; ‘Twisties through the Ghats’, jungle camps, hill stations, backwaters and beaches.

Guided to Self-Guided - Want to hear about our Self-Guided Tours? FreeSpirit’s Guided Tours are spectacular, adventurous, well supported and excellent fun. We also ride without support in small groups on tougher expedition routes. Now we bring you The Self-Guided Tour.

Supporting the ‘Adventure Bike Rider’, with fully equipped motorcycles, a proven motorcycle luggage system and all the digital gear you need for your Self-Guided Adventure. Our Self-Guided Tour packages will cater to the ‘Adventure Bike Rider’.

Drawing on ten years of experience, Peter Francon - me, will personally recommend when and where to ride, designing an overall route with additional day rides for your Tour. He’ll manage your collection on arrival, domestic transfers, motorcycle delivery and collection, hotel bookings and digital route options.

If you are that Adventure Bike Rider, then we’ll take you to the start point in the region you want to explore. Brief you about the bike and equipment, and send you off on your fully prepared motorcycle for your Self-Guided Motorcycle Adventure. we are already taking enquiries and the Self-Guided Section will be published soon.

Autumn 2012 Tour Nepal/Tibet – Riding from Kathmandu to Lhasa (9 days one way, 16 days round trip) is best arranged for groups. For Group Bookings, we arrange dates to suit you.

A group of six friends, a motorcycle club or otherwise is the smallest size for the best value tour, ten is the maximum.

Riding into the Chinese Autonomous Region of Tibet requires detailed planning – sometimes up to 2 months, a small mountain of paperwork and the possibility that China may close the border without notice. If this were to happen on one of our Tours we would revert to a Nepal tour; as did several other tour companies this year.

Spring Tour of Sri Lanka - Across a beautiful island emerging from 27 years of conflict, Sri Lanka reveals a fascinating history and some unique religious customs.

Miles of hilly jungle roads, coastal roads with long unspoilt beaches, spectacular central hills and the coastal lagoons on the Jaffna peninsula. In Sri Lanka we ride Honda 250 Bajas.

Ride with us in February/March 2012. We anticipate this tour selling fast, early enquirers can secure a place. Details and Itinerary to be published soon.

On the Agenda: Bhutan – Pre and post monsoon, starting in West Bengal, the ride takes you through Darjeeling District, and east in Bhutan. narrow mountain highways, hidden valleys and cliff hanging monasteries unique to The Dragon Kingdom and down into the lush rice paddies of Assam. Details of this Tour will be published soon...

Ride in the Support Truck - You want to come with us but not on a motorcycle? Fine, we’d love you to come too! You can ride in the support vehicle (sometimes it’s a truck!) Travelling with the support vehicle gives a quite different and equally exciting perspective. Follow the riders on Tour and see behind the Scenes. 

If you want to 'Ride in The Support Truck' (or Jeep), please select the Jeep Passenger Option in the Booking Form, when Booking. Typically the price is the same as for a Pillion Passenger. If we have two or more people 'riding shotgun' we will provide a jeep. And remember, "The Tenth Person Comes Free!"

The Back Office - The website, social networking, hosting and publishing – Freespirit’s web presence, is under continuous development, supporting marketing and sales efforts as wide as we can. Recent developments have brought freespiritadventure.com to mobile devices and a secure online booking system ensures peace of mind when booking. We’ve added a photo gallery and some short videos, and don’t forget you can always comment on our News Items. 

We’re Looking For Agents - With increasing workloads FreeSpirit enjoys the support of a new partner, Aslam Khan, based in Delhi, our anchor for operations in India. With me based in Delhi, Kathmandu and sometimes the UK, FreeSpirit has a pressing need to provide a national and European presence. If you have experience in Adventure Tourism, an Independent Travel Agent or are interested in working as an agent for FreeSpirit Adventure based in the UK, we’d like to hear from you. 

In Closing – A recent FB comment by Rachael Bohlander – riding Tigers and Temples, sums up what I feel FreeSpirit Adventure is all about;

“Peter I liked the way you handled things with Scott and I, teaching us how to navigate India rather than dictating what we did, when, and how. ...having you there was very helpful and made it much more fun!”

Have a great summer, ride ‘far and wide’ and we’ll see you on the highway!

Peter Francon August 2011.