Day 13, Thursday 9 October:The weather was still a bit wet, but we had a ferry to catch so we set off for Bilbao. At least it wasn't raining as fiercely as it did the day before and it wasn't as cold either.
Here we stopped for a break and Locky took a quick photo on his phone:
Next stop was at the ferry port, there were a lot of bikes in the queue and we found 2 blokes on Ténérés who also just came up from Morocco and had a bit of a chin wag, as you do.
This was going to be our boat out:
While boarding we had a nice surprise: we bumped into a local celebrity and arranged to meet up with him in the lounge after stashing our gear, showering and getting into clean, comfy clothes. I was starving so I got myself a sandwich and found a nice spot to sit and eat. Locky found the sign on the wall very amusing
Not long after our celebrity arrived: Enduro Alexis! Obviously we had to pose for a group picture at this point, makes me smile each time I see it
We had another good chin wag with Alexis about all manner of things.
It was noticeable how empty the lounge area was getting as the sea was getting rougher. People were all returning to their cabins to have a lie down and we thought it'd be a good idea to follow suit. On the way to the cabin the ghastly smell of puke wafted through the corridors, this doesn't help at all when you're already feeling a little queasy yourself... I took some more seasick tablets and had a lie down, we listened to some music and talked about whatever came up. Then it was time to put ear plugs in and sleep.
Day 14, Friday 10 October:It was a rough journey, but we arrived safely to the UK. We had some breakfast, packed up and, once docked, disembarked and went through customs.
In the customs queue, the last view we had of our boat:
Right after going through customs I stopped and topped up the oil. We found a petrol station and fueled up and then set off for home. Other than having to stop a few times to check/top up the oil it was just a slightly wet and uneventful ride back. We stopped for lunch and to compare the tyres on the bikes before setting off in our own directions for home.
When I arrived home I parked the Strom and, as it turns out, that was the last time I ever rode it. It's now SORNed and being broken and sold for parts. You could say the Strom has served it's purpose for many years, as a commuter, as a fun B-road bomber, as a overly heavy off road bike, as a tourer in Europe, as an adventurer in Africa. It's gone out on a high and I'll always remember the good times it's given me and the astounding reliability I've had from it.
This is one of the fondest memories I'll keep of the Strom: Parked up next to Locky's at a well, in a desert in the middle of nowhere in Morocco, on a very hot day, with me resting in the tiny bit of shade I could find and the Strom not complaining at about all the punishment I've ever put it through
