Beverly Hills to Lancaster PA with Stornello and Stelvio (The Finale)

[Green1000S]

Aka "Hippo and Hobo 2018 tour" 4811 miles in 15 days.

Complete trip and in zoomable format is here: https://spotwalla.com/tripViewer.php?id=18fd05b02198998d1b

Every few years my older (and uglier ) brother flies from Finland to Lancaster PA and we take off with few Guzzi's. This year it was a cross country trip, from Beverly Hills to Lancaster, PA.
I shipped the Stornello (Hobo) I just purchased and my 2014 Stelvio (the green Hippo) to our office in BH and that's where we took off on June 1st.



Fully prepared to mark our route ;-)


First stop Malibu, where I found that Stelvio lots its rear brakes. Very odd, since I did lot of prep work on both bikes... Decided to continue without rear brake, since the front worked beautifully .


RT 33 from Ventura to Maricpa was spectacularly beautiful, but badly charred. I had never seen aluminum road signs melted on side of the road. The fires must have been really bad here.



From Maricopa we took the ADV forum recommendation on Elkhorn Grade road to Soda Lake.
Gorgeous road, interestingly this is an open range road, so be prepared to meet hundreds and hundreds of cows (and bulls). Unforgettable road.






The heat started to impact us, so first evening we decided to eat well. Few eggs and lotsa beer did the trick at Denny's.


Hippo and Hobo was here...


Now..... that's a tree.... Sequia National Forest RT 198.





In the next few days we REALLY could have used few barrels of that white stuff.... Death Valley around the corner with silly temperatures.
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Yokohl Valley Road, what a road!!!!


First two days were finished. We stopped at Autozone, got a fuel line and dot 4 brake fluid. Bled the Stelvio rear brake line into a water bottle and Voila! I had rear brakes again.
Something must have happened during the transport and line had air in it? Either way, bike stops better now



Next stop.... Death Valley.

[Zoom Zoom]

Fantastic Lauri!

I wish you both many trouble free end enjoyable miles.

John Henry

[Green1000S]

Fantastic Lauri!

I wish you both many trouble free end enjoyable miles.

John Henry

Thanks, we survived the trip, killed one groundhog with the Stelvio, but that was it.
I'll post more pictures tomorrow.

[kirkemon]

Nice route!
I like the coast (hwy1 still not a though road yet). I also go across the Mojave and go up 395 from Hollywood.

[hauto]

Cool trip.Too bad I couldn't pick up another slightly damaged Guzzi again off you again lol.

[usedtobefast]

What a great trip! 

[Green1000S]

Day 3 / Death Valley and Titus Canyon Road


As the weather turned hotter and with our luck, we had to cross the Death Valley on the hottest day of that week.  To combat the heat, we decided to start riding at 6AM with our cooling wests on.
Joshua trees escorted us into Trona and Ballarat.



We made a mandatory stop in Ballarat to check Rocky, Charles Manson's old Powerwagon and Seldom Seen Slim's grave. Due to the 98F morning weather switching fast to 100+, we skipped visiting the Barker Ranch where Manson and his followers were arrested on unrelated charges.




This is the location where the beginning of Easyrider film was filmed.


Endless road at -77 below sealevel.



At noonish the weather hit over 110F and in our great wisdom, we desided to go offroading into the Titus Canyon Road.
Quick run into Nevada, from Rhyolite/Beatty straight into the Canyon.




The beauty of this canyon is spectacular, it is full of color, greens, pinks, blues, brown of all kind. Stunning place.





Halfway into the canyon youll meet the ghost town of Ledfield.



We tried to find shadow in canyon to cool down, but the sun was hitting us straight up. At this time the temperature had climbed to 118F and we were smoking like a porkroast in oven.
We had a gallon of water each, another 1,5lites in hydration pack and another 1,5 liters in steel containers. Needless to say, I think we peed once and sweated rest of it.
Without the hydration wests, this trip might have been really rough to do. You know its hot when you cannot take the jacket off... and you do not want to ride in place like this without proper protection.




Yup.... Hippo and Hobo were here too...




We met two Harley riders on Stovepipe Wells gas station, they wondered how in the hell we went into Titus Canyon in this weather.
Told them that were from Finland and 118F is what we call a poorly heated Sauna. We all got a good laugh and headed towards Vegas.
Total ride time was almost 12 hours.

Scored seats at Gordon Ramsays restaurant "Steak" and decided to reward us with two gallons of beer and a big chuck of beef.

[Green1000S]

Cool trip.Too bad I couldn't pick up another slightly damaged Guzzi again off you again lol.

 
Cannot always get lucky, hahahahahaha...

[PJPR01]

Toasty...looks like fun!  Keep the pics coming!

[Guzzi Gal]

Toasty...looks like fun!  Keep the pics coming!

Agreed! :1:

[Kev m]

Ha ha awesome so far, especially the steak.

Jay and I were just wondering out loud about this trip while on a ride together Saturday. We were sitting and eating wings in some biker bar the two of you have stopped in before.

Glad you guys seem to have had a ball!

[Green1000S]

After filling our empty stomachs with expensive (but delicious) Ramsey steaks its was time to explore Las Vegas night time.
A picture of our humble camping area.




We found some butterflied lambchops too. Decided to have a good cigar instead and live another day.....



After a good nights sleep we woke up at 8AM to face 103F Las Vegas temperature. Looks like the heat would not let down. Fill in the hydration west again and off we took.
Straight to Hoover dam to take a dam picture. Then hit the highway to Flagstaff and ride the Historic RT 66. Perfect time for milkshakes at Mr. D's joint.


Outside Grand Canyon we bounced into an Argentinian, who was on his way from Ushuia to Prudhoe Bay, Alaska.
On a 250cc bike! Minimal amount of gear too. Unfortunately he did not speak any english, so we would have learned more about his journey.
What an edventure that must have been....


Next to Grand Canyon... Interesting was how three dimensional the view was. More like a 3D movie. Must have been the sharp shadows and colors?





Mandatory "Are you stupid" picture...




Next we turned to RT 160 towards Kayenta, then RT163 to Monument Valley and Forrest Gump Point.







The Forrest Gump Point? It actually exists on electronic maps.
Thats where Forrest got tired of running over 3 years and went back home.






Next.... UTAH.

.

[Tom H]

Thank you for all your work on this!! Keep it coming!!

Tom

[Sykestone8886]

Wow!! I'm really enjoying your pics. I love that part of the country. Been there many times but not on two wheels. It's on my bucket list. I've actually been considering the stornello I'm getting burnt out on the heavy touring bikes. Knee & back troubles. I think you just made my mind up. Thanks for the great post.

[hauto]

Monument valley is on my bucket list.Very Cool!

[Green1000S]

Crossing the Arizona/Utah border on RT 163 in blistering 95-100F weather.



 
After purchasing some neat silver/turquoise jewelry from Navajo woman, we approached "Mexican Hat" and wondered how in the hell a town could have a name like that?
Our stupid question was answered after climbing up from San Juan river bed. Here is your Sombrero, gringo.



Of all of the states we went through, Utah left a special touch in my heart. Its dry, hot, red, close to nothing grows there, but the landscape is out of this world.
Moab will be definately on my "must visit again' list. However the miserable Navajo living conditions were tough to see....





After a good nights sleep in Monticello, we headed towards Moab. Few miles north of Moab starts Potash Road, White Rim Trail and Shafer road. All three on our "hit list".




Potash Road starts as nice asphalt road, then gravel, hills, rocks, sand with unreal scenery.



The drying lakes are colored deep blue to absorb and retain heat. Drying of the lake takes almost a year until you have crystalized Potash, fertilizer.
For a second I was thinking of filling my salt container to refil... Next meal might have tasted "somewhat odd"?



We parked our "horses" on edge of the Colorado River at the Dead Horse Point and took more mandatory "stupid" pictures.

The vests are hydration vest, filled with some sort of gel that absorbs silly amounts of water and keeps you cooler. The best $38.50 I've ever spent.
We kept jackets tightly zipped up, with all vents open. Worked beautifully.




Continuing the Potash Road towards old Shafer Uranium Mining Road.




This was the section which puckers up your butthole and you need a crowbar to get you off the seat.
Road in itself does not look bad, however it is nothing but stone and rocks, with MASSIVE drop on left.
I don't like to be on my house roof, so this was quite an "experience" and we had not even seen Shafer Road,
which is ranked supposedly as Top 10 most dangerous roads in America. (I assume after NJ turnpike )
Either way, I was fuckin hugging in inside rocks, with locked read tire and trying to control my speed with whatever was left of my front tire traction.
Road was not more than 3 yards wide and that's about the width of brown streak I left on my underwear.
3 yards is plenty, but the damn rocks, stuuuuuupid drop off and fully loaded Stelvio.... UGH.


Dead Horse Park


Approaching the Shafer Road beginning...



And here we go, the notorious Shafer Uranium Mining Road. This one was a beast. Road climbs on top of the edge, which is 1500ft higher than the river.
Yup. THAT edge. It used to be no more than a cattle trail in 1917, until Uranium mining took off in 1940's and 50's.








We may have to go to Walmart and get new underwear, but we made it!








Next stop, Colorado and having fun with high altitude. 

[Green1000S]

so.... what about the White Rim Trail?

We had reserved camping spots at the Pyramids, but after spending all day in 98F weather with our the gear on, we decided against  camping in these temperatures.
Screw that. So, we got a nice little hacienda with bigass AC unit and LOTS of beer. Food is less important, beer is importanter. 
So we got lots of THIS



Life is good in Utah.

[Matteo]

Great thread, don't think I could handle that heat.

[rtbickel]

If someone could only figure out how to make a fully self contained air conditioned helmet, they would make a fortune!

[boatdetective]

I'm trying to imagine Lauri with a hydration pack of beer. Great tale, mate. I've been out in that country and it is forbidding. Considering the risk of even a breakdown, I just wouldn't do it.  Can't wait to see the next instalment:  "Last week, we left our hero teetering on the edge of a road winding up through a dangerous pass through the mountains. Suddenly, a cougar pounced!"

[Paul Brooking]

I thought they had already done the nightlife in Los Vegas?[emoji6][emoji6][emoji6]


Sent from my iPhone using Tapatalk

[rdbandkab]

Awesome report! 

[PJPR01]

Fantastic you guys did it on the bikes...have done the White Rim Trail on a Rover expedition with friends...what a great ride up thru Shafer trail and camping down at Potato Bottom.  Beautiful scenery...like riding thru a Clint Eastwood Western...absolutel y amazing.

Keep the pics coming!!  Looks great...did you make it over to Gateway and then over to Telluride as well via the Uncompaghre Plateau? Another great offroad segment!

So what's the history of the Hobo and the Hippo names?

[Green1000S]

If someone could only figure out how to make a fully self contained air conditioned helmet, they would make a fortune!

I certainly would have paid a small fortune...

[Green1000S]

So what's the history of the Hobo and the Hippo names?

Stelvio is a big fat green bike, so it just became "I'll take the big green hippo out! And HIPPO was born.
Stornello was my bike to wander around aimlessly, without much gear. And the HOBO was born.

It was hilarious to see people to take pictures of the plates and laugh loud.
One pretty woman came to me at Mt. Evans and asked cutely smiling if I was the Hippo. I guess my 240lbs was enough to convince that I wasnt the HOBO?
At end of the day it was the HOBO that captured most pictures.

[Green1000S]

C-O-L-O-R-A-D-O Next...

After the Moab experience we REALLY, REALLY wanted some cooler air and headed toward Colorado. (and we sure got what we wished and then some....)

However, I stole a bit of UTAH with me. Love my new red Forma boots!



After doing some aimless circles between Moab-La Sal (RT46)-Naturita-Slick Rock (RT141)-Dove Creek (RT491) we arrived to Cortez, where hotel informed us that no smoking pot in the rooms.
It appears that we had arrived indeed to Colorado. 
Uhum...OK then, we'll stick with the box of H.Upmann's we had with us.

Next morning we rode to Durango and wanted to head north on the Million Dollar Highway. Strangely we smelled burned wood, initially it was a good feeling, reminded me of my family camping trips and house fireplace wintertime. Lovely.
That trip was cut short when few miles north of Durango we saw about 5 choppers in air dropping water on a full blown forest fire. Tens of firetrucks were heading to Million Dollar highway, since north of Hermosa was burning. They were trying to drop water on Hermosa Hills, which was not yet burning, but according to the firemen, the winds were about to shift and by morning the houses would be under fire. Suddenly I no longer felt that good about the wood smell.... God bless the firemen on that hill.


Sooooo.... Back to Dolores, up on RT145 to Telluride.  RT 145 offered some buffalo's and great scenery while climbing higher and higher up.




Final stop at local watering hole THE ENTERPRICE, where we met some quiet patrons. Judging from the dust, they must be locals?



Scenery was unreal. I'll happily accept a hut on this hill. Unfortunately my money might be enough for a fishing pole for that lake....



We knew about Alta Lakes from Dispersed Camping website, great camping in natural state.

Only thing we had top do was to climb there with the bikes. Quick trip to local grocery store to get potatoes, tortillas, beans, dozen eggs, sardines and spam. We have a dinner and breakfast.
However to keep the shit cool, we bought 2 bags of ice and the biggest chunk of solid frozen food in the fridge, which happened to be several pounds of Chorizo.
Great, we can eat that too and it keeps the top box frozen. Throw in a six-pack of good local stout and we are good to go. And wine, you must have red wine with Italian bikes while camping. Must.

Did I mention that we "only" had to ride up to the lakes?  Here's the road or what the locals called a road. Steep, lots of rock, so we charged up the hill and made it finally to Alta Lakes.
Yup, that 11200ft line there. I was gasping air like my English Bulldog on hot day.
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Outside Alta Ghost town. Life does not get much better than this. Unless we can open the red wine right now. and a cigar.


We made up the hill and found a perfect spot smack on the lake.




THE FOOD....


Although we made it to the top of the lake, the six-pack of beer crushed 9 of the 12 eggs, ice had melted, tortillas were wet and the chorizo... Yup, the frozen block of chorizo was allover on my top case. Well, mostly as frozen grey greasy coating on inside walls. and the smell was hideous. I would attract all bears within 25 miles. So, back on the road, down the hill, dump eggs and chorizo for neighboring hill bears and wash the top box 57 times. Back to the camp to enjoy camping.

Well... Does camping ever get better than this???????


Let the high altitude drinking begin! It is supposedly cheap to get drunk here?



The Italian Way. Stainless red wine glasses, just because you have to shit in the woods, does not mean you cannot live like a king.



After emptying a Cabernet Sauvignon bottle and a six-pack of nice stout into our faces, I can confirm that high altitude does not impact your judgement in any way.


,,,,and the night fell beautifully over the Silver Mountain and Alta Lakes.
Out patience with hot weather was finally rewarded with cool night. YESSSSSS!!!  YESSSSSS! and YESSSSSS!

As our luck was about to turn better, the mercury crept back into the thermometer chamber and night temperature dropped to 36F (3C).
Yehaa!,,,, Instead of sweating, we were freezing. Splendid indeed.
Luckily the tents were awesome and sleeping bags did their job well. No bears, in spite of us trying to invite them with chorizo.
We did not sleep much, my heart was pounding silly and woke up gasping air every 20 minutes or so. Interresting experiment.



Morning we made some good Dunkin Donut coffee, ate potatoes with tomato sardines and onions. I think we both knew was was coming next....

In next town we shipped a 20x20 box full of camping gear back to Lancaster.
Hell with camping and freezing. and the awful sardines with half fried potatoes. Coffee was good though.

[Green1000S]

After our camping "experience" at Alta Lakes, we headed back to civilization, Telluride!



and what do we find??? A Finnish flag welcoming us to check the tail of the Black Bear Trail. We stayed at the parking lot and few quite interresting vehicles exited the trail, mostly Jeeps.






We took the RT145 west of Telluride, then north on RT62 towards Ridgeway State Park and Montrose.







From Montrose RT 50 east and over to Gunnison river (reservoir)





In Colorado its easy to get misunderstood... This time in Gunnison.
The waiter asked how were we doing tonight?
We told that were got screwed up yesterday by being too high and could not sleep much at all.
He just laughed and said that pot will do that for you.  DUH.....
We gave him a great tip, being such a comedian.


Hippo and Hobo outside High Alpine Brewery, Gunnison Colorado




We rewarded us with some excellent High Alpine Brewery beer, this one was a "Italian Mountain Basil Ale".
Silly good stuff.



and the Mandatory H.Upmann. Life is good.



and possibly one of the shortest rides of the trip.

[Chuck in Indiana]

Most excellent, sirs..

I can confirm that high altitude does not impact your judgement in any way.

I've done some experiments along those lines, also. I'm pretty sure you are right. 

[Green1000S]

Yup, we were here too.....

Kebler Pass Rt 12




YESSSS!!! Throw us some curves!



Finally back again on gravel roads, for some odd reason I end up always on gravel.




Gimme a second. Is this Finland or Colorado? Massive amounts of birch trees. Bark is slightly different, but definitely a birch.





Kebler Pass is a wonderful road, partially asphalt, partially hard packed clay and rest of it loose gravel.
Here's the loose gravel part. We met some Beemer guys who few twice the speed past us. Leaving us eating the slow man's dust.


Trying to learn how not to feed bears. Must have Grizzly proof containers??? WTF, aren't we in Colorado?
I still have some Chorizo leftovers in my aluminum panniers, any takers?


This mountain side looked so fake, that we could swear it was made out of Hobby Lobby plaster and cheap Home Depot paint...



Two Finns in Colorado. Lost and confused.




Kodak moment at Padonia Reservoir (RT12/RT133)



Shower time on RT133.


Very unlike me... but we did not wash the bikes once in two weeks. 
It did hurt like hell, since I'm only somewhat obsessed of clean bikes....




Time for ice-cream or did we stop at Redstone village just because Iron Kilns or was it the nudist colony further down the road? 
Not sure, but the ice-cream melted before we saw any titties.




RT10 from Carbondale to Gypsum. Fantastic road, we truly enjoyed this twisty road. Ended up killing a groundhog with Stelvio front tire on this road.
The road maintenance was done last time when Nikita Khrushchev was alive.



Sometimes I wonder what kind of humor people have (or don't have....)
Around 5PM we arrived to Idaho Springs CO. and found this DISPENSARY.
Cool!!! We wondered if they had any PEZ dispensers and out of the door we went laughing. No humor at all... 




Well, luckily we found few local pigs and desided to eat some brisket ends at Smoking Yards BBQ. De-fuckin-licious.
anyway... whatever you do DO NOT sleep at ALTA INN and SUITES. Worst dump I've ever seen. Period.






Next stop is the highest paved road in USA, Mt.Evans and real altitude issues....

[Aaron D.]

Thank you for posting! We went through some of the same territory when it was a tad cooler-and you did some things I wish we had done!