Respite from the searing summer heatwave was a mere 12 kilometers away—a small lake we could reach in only 33 minutes, according to Guida, the voice coming through our helmets via Google Maps. We named the voice as she was our trusty guide as we navigated from Ireland to India during a yearlong family SUP and moto mega-adventure. We had hoped to end another long day in the saddle with a much-needed paddle and swim to wash off the day’s dust and road grime.
From Ireland to India: One family’s 51,000KM SUP and moto odyssey
“Let’s push on,” I said as the road became rougher. “We’re not that far away; it’ll be worth it.” As we pressed on, the rocks became bigger, the ruts deeper. Fun stuff on an unladen motorcycle but not so much in the searing Spanish heat with fully loaded bikes, one with a sidecar carrying two inflatable SUPs.
“I don’t want to turn back,” said Seanna, our 10-year-old daughter. “We’re almost there. Let’s get to the lake and swim, it’s so hot.”
We hopped back on, bouncing along the rocks and ruts, rolling through the thirsty pine forest—down, down, down in the direction of Guida’s mysterious lake. But when the road became steeper, the ruts even deeper and cell service cut out, we knew the consequences could be dire if we kept going.
Finally, my wife, Christina, waved the red flag when her back tire sunk into a rut about two feet deep. We’d have to turn around and make the dreaded backtrack to the main road before things got really bad. The smell of defeat rippled across the road. Dipping our paddles into this lake would remain a mirage-like dream. Sometimes, plans fall apart. Going with the flow is a lesson the road keeps teaching us and is all part of the adventure.
Freedom on two wheels
I’m not sure many motorcycle travelers are packing inflatable paddleboards, but it’s a niche that could and should keep growing. We brought paddleboards for the same reason we love to live behind the handlebars of a motorcycle—ultimate mobility and freedom.
On our yearlong motorcycle journey, we carried two inflatable SUPs and the search for water defined our 51,000-kilometer journey. We called our journey Threedom, and it was an incredible family adventure that tested the resilience of mom, dad and daughter every single day.
Before our daughter was born, Christina and I traveled extensively on motorcycles. On two major overland trips, we covered 67,000 kilometers through more than 40 countries. Back in those days, when we came across a lake, lagoon or slice of ocean paradise with rolling waves, all we could do was wish we had a canoe or kayak to explore with or rent overpriced, by-the-hour paddlecraft.
Now we had the perfect bikes—a 2021 Royal Enfield Himalayan and a 2021 Ural Gear Up—and a sidecar we named the Mule, so we figured, why not bring the fun with us? While dreaming, planning and researching for almost three years, we devised an efficient system to carry our 200 pounds of gear, which included our camping kit, paddling gear, spare tools and clothes, plus our daughter. Then we researched the best places on the European continent where we could set up camp for a couple of nights, inflate the boards and paddle. We put red dots on the map, ticked them off while on the road, and added more along the way.
The first of those red dots was on the west coast of Ireland, the very first night of our trip. We pitched camp atop a vast network of rabbit burrows and waited for the sun to pierce the cloudy skies. The white-capped ocean wasn’t terribly inviting, but after so much time packing and planning to make this trip a reality, how could we not celebrate with a cold-water experience along the Wild Atlantic Way?
The isles of Scotland’s Loch Lomond were next, where our ultimate transition transpired—all our gear from bikes to boards in less than an hour. After a windy, wobbly crossing from the mainland to Inchtavannach island, the perfect campsite presented itself. It was a protected forest with a beautiful, grassy area to spread out on, lots of firewood and not a soul in sight. As we had plenty of time and sunny skies to paddle under, we spent our days circumnavigating the small islands surrounding our camp and meeting strange locals. One morning, it was a gang of long-haired Highland cows, and the next, a wildly out-of-place wallaby sunning itself on the seaside rocks.
As we headed south, we hit more red paddle dots on our map, including in England, Wales, the west coast of France, and finally down into the clear, warm waters of the Mediterranean in southern Spain. The paddle dots on our map took us through Morocco, Greece, Italy, and as far east as the coast of the Mediterranean Sea in Turkey before a major engine failure made us ditch the bikes for a time and find other transportation into India.
Family vagabonding
Traveling for so long meant tapping into the art form known as dirtbaggery. We cooked over open flame to save fuel, cooked in hotel rooms instead of eating out to save money, washed our clothes in sinks, ate cheap cheese-and-bread picnics alongside the road, wild camped under the stars, and stayed with generous strangers who took us in, who we called road angels.
Paddling was a bonus to the journey. Traveling by motorcycle, with everything you need in a few saddlebags strapped behind you, is the fuel that feeds the fire of adventure for us. It’s a wildly self-sufficient world we wanted to introduce Seanna to. At age 10, she was old enough to remember everything, yet still young enough to hang with her parents 24/7. Bikes and boards allowed for the best of both worlds, a surf-and-turf adventure unifying our primary interests—motorcycles and paddleboards—into one primary passion: adventure travel.
We knew this journey through 29 countries would remain with our daughter for the rest of her life, so we wanted to make it as memorable as possible, and being able to paddle and swim in as many places as our route allowed was icing on the cake. Camping, hiking and fishing were part of the package when we needed time away from the bikes and allowed us to immerse ourselves in the landscapes and culture of Europe and Asia. Along the way, our daughter received the ultimate education in humanity, geography, adaptation, compassion, reliance and what true adventure can teach one’s soul.
Todd Lawson is an avid traveler, paddler and a publisher at Mountain Life Media. His first book, Inside the Belly of an Elephant: A Motorcycle Journey of Loss, Legacy, and Ultimate Freedom, was released in 2023.
This article was first published in Issue 72 of Paddling Magazine. Moments of glassy magic, like during this sunset on Loch Lomond, Scotland, made the Lawson family’s decision to carry two inflatable SUPs on their yearlong adventure totally worth it. | Feature photo: Todd Lawson
