Wildguzzi.com
General Category => General Discussion => Topic started by: nwguy on April 26, 2021, 08:34:27 PM
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I live near Seattle and need to visit my Dad who lives in Maine. I'm retired and have an understanding wife who's fine with me being gone for a couple of months. Soooo, I've decided to go visit him on my 08 Norge. For decades I've wanted to ride in the Ozarks and the Appalachians. I have a son in Salt Lake and one in Boulder, CO. My tentative route is as follows:
Leave Poulsbo, WA (my town)
South to eastern Oregon where I've ridden a lot
South to Winnemucca, NV and east to Salt Lake (disc golf in Elko, collect some salt for Dad)
On to Boulder, CO, maybe through Flaming Gorge park
South to northern New Mexico to do a loop around Taos, Los Alamos and Santa Fe
East to the Ozarks for 2+ days of riding there (Pig Trail and The Serpent)
East to the Carolinas to ride the Tail of the Dragon, Cherokee Hwy and others
Zig zag north through the Appalachians to visit a friend in Reston, VA
North to Main through Amish country, Delaware Water Gap
Visit a friend in Orange, MA
North through the White Mountains to Rangeley, ME for a week stay with my Dad
West and south through NY, PA and OH (Buffalo wings, Corning museum of glass?)
North through MI's upper penninsula (Picture rocks?)
Down through Wisconson and over to SD (Badlands, Burn Basin, Black hills, Custer State Park)
Wyoming (Devil's tower, ride routes 14, 14a, 296 and 212
Home again
This site has lots of interesting places to go:
https://www.atlasobscura.com/things-to-do/united-states/natural-wonders
Any suggestions for particularly twisted roads, epic day hikes, interesting geological features, wonders of the world, factory tours, great eats, etc? I'll be camping as much as possible.
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great trip. Must be a good 3-4 weeks plus?
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Let me be the first but hopefully not only Guzzi mate to offer assistance on your trip--I live on the coast of NH and can help out while you're in NH and Maine.
When are you leaving? If soon enough, you could make the MGNOC rally in Keene, NH.
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Work at stop at Hamlin Cycles in CT for routine service if needed. The Corning museum is fabulous as is the Glen Curtiss Museum not far from there.
I'm in Buffalo and can show you Niagara Falls.
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Dingess Tunnel.
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When are you starting out ? Cedar Vale is in the middle of your route .
Dusty
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I would suggest searching out diners along the way. Also, pick an interesting route each day rather than pick a destination in the morning and try to get there by nightfall. I wore myself out trying to ride 500+ mile days to get to campgrounds each night when I rode CC. Youth is so wasted on the young.
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Let me be the first but hopefully not only Guzzi mate to offer assistance on your trip--I
Let me be the second. I'm in Santa Fe.
Rich A
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Norge’s are no good for touring... :evil:
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If you need anything, place to stay, tools whatever Im 30 miles east of the Chattanooga Tn area if you are coming through and need anything. Have a good trip
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Work at stop at Hamlin Cycles in CT for routine service if needed. The Corning museum is fabulous as is the Glen Curtiss Museum not far from there.
I'm in Buffalo and can show you Niagara Falls.
After you leave Hamlin Cycles, head north in eastern NY up the Husdon Valley, and western Berkshires of Mass.. MANY great roads, and some nice historic small towns.
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Sounds great, stick to Lake Superior instead of down Wisconsin then take mn210 over to the Dakota's or (Hwy 2 can go all the way west along the Canadian border if you want).
Of course if you stay in northern Minnesota you'll miss the Spam museum :smiley:
I'm in a Minneapolis if you need help.
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Touch base with me when the departure time draws near as I may be able to offer support for the NC part of your adventure.
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Don’t listen to that foto Guzzi guy.Make you way from the pictured rocks to Spring Green ,best roads in Midwest,stay at my place.
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I'm in the St. Louis area.
Harpers is just north of Kansas City- if you need anything, they are great.
J
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Don’t listen to that foto Guzzi guy.Make you way from the pictured rocks to Spring Green ,best roads in Midwest,stay at my place.
ok, then you can see the Spam museum after that. Austin, Mn.
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From Seattle to Salt Lake I would go from Seattle to Lewiston Idaho then Lewiston to Lolo MT. Then south through the Bitter root valley to Challis Idaho, then Stanley , at Stanley you can head to Boise or to Idaho Falls. both routes have great scenery. twisty roads and good accommodations. Going from Winnemucca to anywhere is a boring trip and wasted opportunity for some great riding.
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Sounds like a super trip. If anything comes up in WNC, I am here to help. I've got a nice little guest suite in the basement if you need a garage and a place to crash for a night in the Asheville area
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From Seattle to Salt Lake I would go from Seattle to Lewiston Idaho then Lewiston to Lolo MT. Then south through the Bitter root valley to Challis Idaho, then Stanley , at Stanley you can head to Boise or to Idaho Falls. both routes have great scenery. twisty roads and good accommodations. Going from Winnemucca to anywhere is a boring trip and wasted opportunity for some great riding.
100%! Moving a bit farther east, hitting the Chief Joseph Scenic byway and the Beartooth would be a nice addition to running the Lewis & Clark trail in Idaho as mentioned above with a nice overnight in Cody...plenty to do there too!
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Watkins Glenn if you're headed that way.
Live in Basking Ridge, NJ just off rt 287 if your drift further east. Working from home these days so there's a hot shower and tools available if needed. PM me if you want my contact info.
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Wow, thank you all for the offers of support, etc. I'm pretty sure I'll be in touch with some of you. May post pictures here from time to time during the trip. If not then, afterwards. I plan on leaving this coming Monday. Have my second - shot on Saturday and expect I'll need a day to recover. I have to be home by about the 25th of June, so I'll have 6 or 7 weeks to do this. I've driven most good roads multiple times west of Helena, MT and north of Fresno, CA. Am hoping to dwell on new places rather than old, such as the Ozarks, Appalachians, New England, South Dakota and certain roads in northern Wyoming. Some prior trip reports here:
http://nwguy.fun/mc/index.html
I'll have to play it by ear with the MGNOC rally in Keene, NH. That'd be a great stop though. I've printed out a map and list of all the guzzi dealers around the US. I expect I'll need a rear tire change (maybe both tires) and an oil change at some point. I'm definitely going to try to not be in a hurry, and it'll be more about the routes than any destination. So far, the long days I've planned are around 425 miles. When motel-ing it, my normal practice is to connect all the twisty roads I can and end up in whatever town is convenient, hopefully with a restaurant that has prime rib within walking distance of my motel. Will be camping most nights on this trip though. Any suggestions on diners would be great. I've never had chicken and waffles but spent many years in VA before moving west and have had collard greens and catfish, blue crab sandwiches, stuffed shrimp, lots of good BBQ. Definitely will be doing Chief Joseph Scenic byway and the Beartooth Hwy on the way back, possibly multiple times.
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I can't offer any help. I'm in FL, way out of your planned routes. But I would suggest you carry a spare alternator belt. Might save a couple of days waiting for shipping, or avoiding over-night charges.
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Sounds like an awesome trip. If you stop at Hamlin's in Bethel, CT for some maintence, you're welcome to a meal and a bedwith me. I'm only 11 miles from Hamlin's.
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Don't forego the Badlands. Awesome.
Seriously consider Monument Valley. Awesome^2.
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Between Salt Lake City and Boulder, CO try to ride through Rocky Mountain National Park. You can claim riding the highest elevation paved road in continental US. It drops you out in Estes Park for a nice meal if the timing is right. There are many great ways over the Rockies, but the National Park is special.
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John fish in PA seems like a cool cat. I’d pm him for advice on Amish country in PA. Try to swing thru Pottsville PA to tour the yuengling brewery. Back in the day their tours were awesome. Been 20 years tho.
Dale’s wheels thru time is a cool museum in Maggie Valley NC if it’s reopened. The proprietor passed away and I don’t know what the families plans are.
I’m 45 minutes west of Atlanta. I have a trailer and am off on Tuesdays and Wednesdays. If you’re passing thru I might ride a few miles with ya. Two Wheels Only in Suches GA is a motorcycle lodge/campground that is a nice place. Asheville NC is awesome. Lots of great food, music and lodging. And close to the Blue Ridge Parkway.
Have fun holler if you need anything.
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On the road now in Salt Lake City at my son's place. Leave tomorrow for CO, NM then OK. Bike is running great, though my back tire isn't as round as it was. Should wear out the sides some in the next few days. Been keeping it under 85 mph. Don't want to stay much above 4k rpm. Pics below show a curvy roads near Shaniko, OR, my camp by the John Day River, the Perrine Bridge in ID, the Morton Salt facility in UT and my son on a hike overlooking SLC.
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PM me if you're near Colorado Springs and need anything.
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Great pictures.
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From the Danbury/Bethel/Hamlin Cycle area going north
Rt22 is a cool road. Starts in the congestion of I-84/danbury area. Slowly drops the mini malls, traffic and runs in the Hudson Valley straight north all the way to Burlington Vt. At a few places you get views of both the Adirondac Mtns to the northwest and the Green Mtns of Vermont. Long open sweepers running in the valley w hills to the right and left.
The one great ride id suggest for Vermont...there is the Vt Gap Ride...Appalachian, Lincoln, etc.. a guy routed it so you spend 1/2 the day going one way thru all five, make a turn and spend the rest of the day doing it all over again in the opposite direction. The gaps are distinctly different in each direction due to topography. 250 miles but it’ll take 8-10 hours...some short gravel stretches no problem.
Here is one version and a good resource
https://www.newenglandriders.org/route/stowe-vermont-gaps-ride/
That’s my one hat tip for the Northeast
From Burlington i love hugging the canada border on the way east.
My Rangley Maine story....after being accosted by 3 zillion loons trying to mate all night long on Rangely Lake...woke the whole state park up...
I was up and rolling at a crisp 6am. Walking into the grocery store (the Rangley grocery store has a million dollar view of the lake btw) 3 different people asked, seeing my bike gear, “which way you going?” I was headed towards Errol.
“WATCH OUT FOR THE MOOSE!!” One guy thought I’d be dead for sure...sober morning folk freaked i was headed that way. There had been a constant stream of ambulance runs that summer
Freaked me enough to stay 5 below the limit. Sure enough a moose the size of a garage door scared the bejeezzus out of me. These were not Bullwinkles.
Enjoy!
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Am in Santa Fe, NM now staying at Rich’s house about 20 minutes south of downtown. Rich is on Wild Guzzi and has 2 fun dogs and a really vocal parrot. He’s got 5 Moto Guzzis in the garage including a 70s era one with a side car. He also has a nice electric bike that I got to try. Wow! Fun! I had a New Mexico treat tonight, a green chilie burger that was great.
Rode from just north of Ouray, CO this morning. Temps read 34 degrees when I went through Ouray. Had ice all over my bike when I woke up. Will be glad when I’m out of the high altitude west and in warmer, eastern places. The aspens don’t even have leaves on them and what grassy slopes that aren’t covered with snow in the mountains are still brown. Still, some places are spectacular, particularly Rte 550 betwen Ouray, CO and Durango, CO. Did encounter ice on some roads from snowmelt runoff freezing on the pavement.
Have seen many animals crossing, standing in or standing beside the road including a fox, a big horn sheep, many longhorn goats, cows, deer and wild turkeys. Gotta watch out. No elk yet though despite the many signs warning of them.
Did over 500 miles yesterday on some really interesting roads between Salt Lake City and Ouray, CO. I love those 2 lane roads where you can maintain 80mph, almost as much as I love the 25-35mph rated turns. Lots of 10-15mph turns over the last 2 days too. The long days are fine so long as they’re curvy. Rode Colorado National Monument, which is a super curvy 30 mile road near Fruita, CO. It’s unbelievably twisty. Got to see many "Earth ships" outside of Taos, NM, which are semi-underground, adobe, passive solar houses. Pretty fun!
Tomorrow begins the grueling ride across Oklahoma to the Ozarks. Straight, flat, but they’re 2 Moto Guzzi dealers there, which is a comfort.
Returning to New Mexico is interesting having gone to school in Santa Fe. I rode up the ski basin road for old times’ sake. It’s a 15 mile hill climb with endless linked, low and medium speed corners. No gravel to speak of. Tons of fun. Will try to contact an old friend who hired me as a bicycle mechanic back in 1975. The shop he managed is still here.
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Dale’s wheels thru time is a cool museum in Maggie Valley NC if it’s reopened. The proprietor passed away and I don’t know what the families plans are.
Wheels Thru Time is still rolling along, Matt, Dale's son was already very involved/running the place day-to-day so there seems to be no major change in operations at least.
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I live in Springfield, Mo, AKA “The Queen City of the Ozarks” Happy to be of assistance, send PM if you would like guidance :thumb:
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:thumb:
Dusty
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Am in Santa Fe, NM now staying at Rich’s house about 20 minutes south of downtown. Rich is on Wild Guzzi and has 2 fun dogs and a really vocal parrot. He’s got 5 Moto Guzzis in the garage including a 70s era one with a side car. He also has a nice electric bike that I got to try. Wow! Fun! I had a New Mexico treat tonight, a green chilie burger that was great.
Rode from just north of Ouray, CO this morning. Temps read 34 degrees when I went through Ouray. Had ice all over my bike when I woke up. Will be glad when I’m out of the high altitude west and in warmer, eastern places. The aspens don’t even have leaves on them and what grassy slopes that aren’t covered with snow in the mountains are still brown. Still, some places are spectacular, particularly Rte 550 betwen Ouray, CO and Durango, CO. Did encounter ice on some roads from snowmelt runoff freezing on the pavement.
Have seen many animals crossing, standing in or standing beside the road including a fox, a big horn sheep, many longhorn goats, cows, deer and wild turkeys. Gotta watch out. No elk yet though despite the many signs warning of them.
Did over 500 miles yesterday on some really interesting roads between Salt Lake City and Ouray, CO. I love those 2 lane roads where you can maintain 80mph, almost as much as I love the 25-35mph rated turns. Lots of 10-15mph turns over the last 2 days too. The long days are fine so long as they’re curvy. Rode Colorado National Monument, which is a super curvy 30 mile road near Fruita, CO. It’s unbelievably twisty. Got to see many "Earth ships" outside of Taos, NM, which are semi-underground, adobe, passive solar houses. Pretty fun!
Tomorrow begins the grueling ride across Oklahoma to the Ozarks. Straight, flat, but they’re 2 Moto Guzzi dealers there, which is a comfort.
Returning to New Mexico is interesting having gone to school in Santa Fe. I rode up the ski basin road for old times’ sake. It’s a 15 mile hill climb with endless linked, low and medium speed corners. No gravel to speak of. Tons of fun. Will try to contact an old friend who hired me as a bicycle mechanic back in 1975. The shop he managed is still here.
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My wife and I will be at Two Wheels Of Suches (Suches, Georgia) this coming weekend if you get to the area, and will be back home May 16th if you need anything.
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Being in Georgia, I am of course a fan of the Smokey Mountains.
BUT, I did not see West (by God) Virginia on your list. There is a lot of great scenery in WV.
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I left Santa Fe, NM yesterday morning after having breakfast with Rich, his dogs and his parrot. He’s owned the parrot over 40 years. They live to be 60. I asked Rich if he thought the parrot would outlive him. He said maybe, and that the parrot’s in his will! Anyway I set off east and south bound and found a fun little 30ish mile curvy road before I hit Interstate 40. I new this was going to be the grueling part of the trip. Straight superslab across eastern NM, northern TX and then OK. I thought about stopping at the Moto Guzzi dealer in Oklahoma City, but my back tire continues to have tread. Next MG dealer was in Tulsa. So I made it to the Super 8 motel in Tulsa after riding about 650 miles. It wasn’t as boring as I expected. Interesting to watch the dashboard temperature gauge go from 46 degrees to 60. New Mexico’s mountainous red earth and scattered sage yielded to Texas’ flat grass pasture land, feed lots and massive wind turbine farms. The low hills, green fields and scrubby oaks and pines appeared in Oklahoma. Kept a pretty constant 80 mph. Had my goose down jacket on under my leather jacket, and used my winter gloves that day. Strangely, at the end of the day I felt less stiff and sore and could have driven longer.
Cloudy and cool this morning with rain in the forecast. Headed east on another superslab until I reached Rte 10 south from the town of Kansas. It’s rated as a good motorcycle road, and a scenic road. It was both in spades. So nice to get back on a 2 lane road. It wound along the Illinois River. Parks with boat launch ramps were named so and so “Hollow”. An occasional dead armadillo was on the side of the road. While standing next to a guy in the bathroom with all my gear on he said, “Ain’t gonna miss you in that helmet.”, referring to my hi viz yellow helmet. What a place! Heading further east the rain set in hard. On with the rain gear. Thought I’d shelter in a brew pub and try get some BBQ. Found Penguin BBQ in Fayetteville, next door to Crisis Brewing (heh heh). Got a couple of their IPAs on tap with my pulled pork sandwich and a rib. Delicious!
I want to start riding the good Ozark roads with the “Pig Trail”, this areas most famous motorcycle road. So, I head south out of Fayetteville on a nice road to Alma, and then east on another backroad to the town of Ozark. Am now in an Army Corps of Engineers campground on the Arkansas river outside of town. Met a nice guy in the grocery store parking lot who owns a Honda Goldwing. He was interested in my Moto Guzzi. The park that I’m in is called Aux Arcs, which is French. When I pronounced it ohs arcs he correct me and said “aux, like auxillary". The guy’s a native and doesn’t know his town and area name are French. I didn’t press the point.
Anyway, the rain’s let up, otherwise I’d be in another motel. Happy to be here in the campground. Pig Trail and hopefully many other great roads tomorrow.
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I left Santa Fe, NM yesterday morning after having breakfast with Rich, his dogs and his parrot. He’s owned the parrot over 40 years. They live to be 60. I asked Rich if he thought the parrot would outlive him. He said maybe, and that the parrot’s in his will! Anyway I set off east and south bound and found a fun little 30ish mile curvy road before I hit Interstate 40. I new this was going to be the grueling part of the trip. Straight superslab across eastern NM, northern TX and then OK. I thought about stopping at the Moto Guzzi dealer in Oklahoma City, but my back tire continues to have tread. Next MG dealer was in Tulsa. So I made it to the Super 8 motel in Tulsa after riding about 650 miles. It wasn’t as boring as I expected. Interesting to watch the dashboard temperature gauge go from 46 degrees to 60. New Mexico’s mountainous red earth and scattered sage yielded to Texas’ flat grass pasture land, feed lots and massive wind turbine farms. The low hills, green fields and scrubby oaks and pines appeared in Oklahoma. Kept a pretty constant 80 mph. Had my goose down jacket on under my leather jacket, and used my winter gloves that day. Strangely, at the end of the day I felt less stiff and sore and could have driven longer.
Cloudy and cool this morning with rain in the forecast. Headed east on another superslab until I reached Rte 10 south from the town of Kansas. It’s rated as a good motorcycle road, and a scenic road. It was both in spades. So nice to get back on a 2 lane road. It wound along the Illinois River. Parks with boat launch ramps were named so and so “Hollow”. An occasional dead armadillo was on the side of the road. While standing next to a guy in the bathroom with all my gear on he said, “Ain’t gonna miss you in that helmet.”, referring to my hi viz yellow helmet. What a place! Heading further east the rain set in hard. On with the rain gear. Thought I’d shelter in a brew pub and try get some BBQ. Found Penguin BBQ in Fayetteville, next door to Crisis Brewing (heh heh). Got a couple of their IPAs on tap with my pulled pork sandwich and a rib. Delicious!
I want to start riding the good Ozark roads with the “Pig Trail”, this areas most famous motorcycle road. So, I head south out of Fayetteville on a nice road to Alma, and then east on another backroad to the town of Ozark. Am now in an Army Corps of Engineers campground on the Arkansas river outside of town. Met a nice guy in the grocery store parking lot who owns a Honda Goldwing. He was interested in my Moto Guzzi. The park that I’m in is called Aux Arcs, which is French. When I pronounced it ohs arcs he correct me and said “aux, like auxillary". The guy’s a native and doesn’t know his town and area name are French. I didn’t press the point.
Anyway, the rain’s let up, otherwise I’d be in another motel. Happy to be here in the campground. Pig Trail and hopefully many other great roads tomorrow.
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They found a crack in the bridge on I-40 going into Memphis going over the mississippi river and it is closed. traffic is being re-routed to I-55. Just in case you are going that way. Bob
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If you head north to get gas take 19 north thru Missouri,rolling hills no traffic.Take 94 east from Herman Mo,then 61 north to Louisiana Mo Then 79 north toHannibal cross into IL .all good roads with no traffic.
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Well dangit , you were only about 25 miles East of me on Oklahoma 10 , would have bought you breakfast in the Boomerang cafe in Tahlequah .
Dusty
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Camped now along the Buffalo River near Harriet, AR. This is perhaps the most beautiful campground I’ve seen. Vast grassy fields mixed with deciduous forest along side the Buffalo River. Rock cliffs line the far side of the river. Waters are murky in Arkansas rivers. I’m in a “walk-in tent site” at this campground, which happens to be near a pavillion. A bearded, friendly fellow called over to me and asked if I’d mind if a group played bluegrass music in the Pavillion. Imagine my response! He said “if I have anything please join in”. Me? My ukulele? Haven’t had that much liquor yet. Anyway they’re warming up now.
The churchbells in Aux Arcs/Ozarks rang at 4:00 this morning. I counted the bells lying awake in my tent. Dozed for another REM cycle and began the task of making breakfast and breaking camp. This trip has made me learn to relax when doing this. In past camp trips there’s always a sense of urgency to break camp. Now, for me, it’s just one thing at a time till I’m all set and everything’s packed. What else is there to do except to get on the road.
I started today riding “The Pigs Trail”, north on 23 out of Ozark. Meh. It’s a cruiser road with a little bit of twisties, and moderate traffic.
They’re playing “If I only had a brain” over in the pavillion now.
Then 16 east woke me up. Perfect pavement, no gravel, no traffic whatsoever and linked 20 to 45 mph curves the entire time. Paradise. Heaven. A dream come true. Forest, fields, farms, country houses, rivers and cliffs line the roads. Many Ozark roads follow a ridge, sometimes for tens of miles. Feels like Skyline Drive in Virginia all to yourself. As my friend Joseph once said after riding FS 25 near Mt. St. Helens before it deteriorated, “It feels like I’m dancing”.
I rode The Pigs Trail, the Arkansas Dragon and The copperhead today. Also many connecting roads that rivaled the named roads. 410 miles of riding, all in the Ozarks. Not done yet though. I have about a half a day of more good roads to cover, then a short drive to Jonesboro, AR where I’ll get a motel before having my rear tire changed on Friday morning. Have been monitoring it’s use and think I’ve timed it so the chords may start showing on the way to the dealer in Jonesboro. Then fresh rubber for all the important roads in GA, TN and NC. Will visit a high school friend I haven’t seen in at least 40 years near Atlanta. He lives in Savannah but says he’ll meet me someplace closer to the mountains.
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Having BBQ in Mountain Home, AR after riding Ozarks roads for 2 days. Have done the alleged best of the best, and they are unbelievable. Mostly perfect pavement, no traffic, almost no gravel, beautiful scenery, great engineering. They really get the curves banked well here.
Woke this morning to fog. Eerily quiet. The stars last night were amazing. So little artificial light at the campground. The bluegrass people were pretty good. Nice to fall asleep to them playing. Will head to Jonesboro this afternoon so I’ll be in the same town where my rear tire will be replaced tomorrow morning. Think I timed the wear pretty well.
Had somewhat of a disaster happen at the Exxon station here. The pump didn’t shut off with the gas nozzle inserted into my tank. A fountain of gasoline shot up when it got full. Had to step in and grab the nozzle to turn it off. Got gasoline on my leathers, my hair, my shirt, etc. The gal working at the gas station was amazingly unsympathetic and wouldn’t let me use their big sink to clean up so I did what I could in the bathroom. Ugh. Will need to wash my leathers in the bathtub of the motel tonight. Dry cleaners I’ve called don’t do motorcycle leathers. Fortunately the forecast is calling for warm weather while my leathers dry while riding. Guess I’ll never rely on the little catch on nozzles to release when the tank is full again. Anyway, will ride a couple more good roads on the way to Jonesboro.
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Have fun!
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Nice report! You're in the good stuff for sure...those roads are so much fun to ride! the Norge dances and carves around like it's supposed to.
Enjoy!
By the way, if you're into music...try this place..not far away. I stopped there for 1/2 a day 2 years ago after the Cedar Vale, parked myself at the historical Hotel Seville (thanks Lowryter for the tip) in Harrison, Ark for 3 days and rode 200 mile loops each day of a different sort. Found this place by accident and really enjoyed it...live music, skilled tradesfolk...hard to beat!
https://www.arkansasstateparks.com/parks/ozark-folk-center-state-park
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The "Suggestions for trip" one, where I'm riding cross country and back? Did I post something offensive? I certainly didn't mean to.
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No idea , wasn't me .
Dusty
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I still see it
https://wildguzzi.com/forum/index.php?topic=110384.0 (https://wildguzzi.com/forum/index.php?topic=110384.0)
-AJ
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It's magic :laugh:
Dusty
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I did get a motel room in Jonesboro, AR, very close to the shop I had scheduled a tire change with. A scary Day’s Inn with some questionable activity at the back corner, not far from my room. Blacked out window blinged up SUVs with heavy hip hop music playing, stopping to talk to a woman who asked if I had a lighter. Turned out to not be a problem. All was quiet that night. I did wash my leather jacket in the tub with some dishwashing liquid. The pants were OK, but the jacket, its liner and my shirt got gas on them. Still a faint smell of gas on the jacket, but it’s fading with the constant wind while riding.
I checked my tire wear and felt there was enough tread left to make it to the Moto Guzzi dealer in Murfreesboro, TN the next day. I voicemailed and texted them saying that I’d get there at about 1:00. So, Sloan’s Cycle in Murfeesboro ROCKS. I had them change both tires with some Dunlop SportMax Roadsmart IVs, and had them change my oil and filter. What a difference! Leaning into curves is much better. The old rear tire had a flat spot in the center that made the transition to leaning over sketchy. Now it’s great. Much more confidence inspiring in the twisties. Anyway Sloan’s was a big place. Lots of new bikes on the showroom floor. Guzzis, Aprilia, KTM, Suzuki and more. I was lounging in their “Pit Stop” room using their WiFi, when a nice older guy walked in and chatted with me. It was Curtis Sloan himself! After telling him my trip so far and next destinations, he said their shop used to be a franchise for Eagle motorcycle rentals. They did 1-way rentals and he’d fly to wherever a bike was left and then ride it back to Murfeesboro. That’s the way he did a lot of his long distance riding. Said he liked riding alone. No worries about other people’s bladders, hunger, thirst, fuel range, desire to get going or linger. I understand what he means.
After leaving Sloan’s at about 5:30 I did a quick test ride up and down the highway to test tire balancing and then checked the oil to make sure it was at the right level. All was perfect. Curtis actually checked on my repairs after talking to me and said a veteran mechanic was doing the work, not “some kid”, and that everything was torqued to spec. Then on to my campsite destination, Edgar Evans park by a nice dammed lake. Friday night, so all that was available were “primative sites”, where you carry your stuff from the parking lot down into the woods where the sites were. That was fine. It was the latest I’ve made camp so far, so had to use my headlamp to set up camp. Lots of kids in other sites screaming and having a grand time. They even had hot showers that I took advantage of the next morning. With my senior discount it was only $12 to camp.
The next moring (today) it was time to ride to the alleged best motorcycle roads in the US. The Tail of the Dragon, Cherohala Skyway, Hellbender and more. I turned north in Copper Hill, TN and began the second leg of my trip. No more heading east. I won’t be meeting up with my high school friend Walter from Savannah, GA. It was simply too far out of my way, and Walter couldn’t drive that far to see me (5 hours each way). So besides riding all these crazy roads, my next destination is another high school friend’s place in Reston, VA.
Am camped now in a really nice campsite off of the notorious “Hellbender” road in North Carolina. I rode Cherohala Skyway. It, like many roads in the Ozarks was sublime. So many miles of linked sub-40 mph rated curves on velvety smooth pavement with impossibly beautiful scenery all around. Unfortunately it’s hard to take in that scenery because you really have to be focused on the road. Stopping at overlooks is awkward because I’ve illegally passed so many cars I don’t want to meet those people again. Heh heh. Tomorrow I’ll get an early start, finish Hellbender and do the famous Tail of the Dragon.
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Last night at the campground near Hellbender I was sipping whiskey and playing my ukulele at my picnic table. A woman in a pickup truck with a kid next to her stopped and asked if they could listen. I said sure and played Melissa by the Allman Brothers for her and she was delighted. She then invited me to her church luncheon the next day at noon. I said maybe I’d make it but that I’ve got places to go. She said “They’ll be good food!”. I said I’m sure there will be.
Did laundry last night at the campsite hose bib. Fun riding these roads with wet socks and shirts bunjied to the back of my bike.
Drizzling this morning, so I hastily broke camp and put my rain gear on expecting it to worsen. Finished Hellbender with partly wet pavement, then the rain stopped, everything dried out and the sun started coming out. Time for the famed Tail of the Dragon. In a few words, what a zoo! 11 miles of mostly 10 to 20 mph curves on deteriorating pavement. Mostly grojups of Harley riders, lone sportbike riders, some packs of sportbike riders (many on hypermotards), and then the packs of sports cars. I’ve never seen so many Honda S2000s. There would be 4 in a row zooming around corners. Photographers are at many different corners taking pictures of you. I guess you can buy the images. The Deals Gap resort place had many motorcyclists there of all types. Lots of beer can sized mufflers on sportbikes. Anyway I rode it out and back. Those super tight turns just aren’t the Norge’s forte. People say there are better roads than the dragon, and I rode at least 3 later that day.
So today I road Hellbender, Tail of the Dragon, part of the Mountain Meander (too many tar snakes for me) and the Copperhead Loop. This part of North Carolina is a jungle. Thick, bright green deciduous forests with lush green hay fields. So beautiful. Starting to see more Kudzu, plus random patches of wild bamboo. You really have to watch for poison ivy here. Seemingly endless curves on so many roads. Still, I think I prefer the Ozarks due to the greater number of 25 to 35 mph curves, less traffic, better pavement, and better site lines due to the wide, mowed grassy shoulders. Will do the Devil’s Whip tomorrow and some spur roads off the Blue Ridge Parkway as I head north to visit a friend in Reston, VA. Nice to be on the second leg of the trip where I’m heading north instead of east.
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The "Suggestions for trip" one, where I'm riding cross country and back? Did I post something offensive? I certainly didn't mean to.
Too political? :laugh:
Ciao
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I just saw it this morning???
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Am now in Reston, VA at my high school friend Don’s house. Quite the events have happend in the last couple days. After spending the night in a motel in Hendersonville, NC I set out to finish the final few sport bike type roads I’d highlighted in pink on my map. Found a few gems including Route 9 leading into Blowing Rock. Besides the pink, I marked certain roads with an exclamation mark indicating that it’s a “must do” road based on comments people made in the motorcycleroads.com website. In almost all cases they were indeed that good. Fun! The super curvy road by “Little Switzerland” off of the Blue Ridge Parkway (BRP) was particularly twisty. I left the Blue Ridge Parkway to get gas in Boone, NC, then back up to the BRP. In peak tourist season the BRP gets a lot of traffic with slow RVs. Mid week in the springtime it’s almost empty. Same for Skyline Drive in VA. You can really enjoy the curves with no one else on it. Back on the BRP my right foot felt slippery on the foot peg. I looked down and saw oil all over my boot and thought WTF??? Pulled over despite no shoulder and saw that oil was running down the right cylinder from under the valve cover. I called Deb and had her post a “On the side of the road” post to the Moto Guzzi forum. Within minutes, Dusty from OK called me and said the valve cover gaskets fail often on these engines. Indeed it looked like that’s what happened. In the mean time I flagged down a park service truck for help. 3 more trucks eventually stopped and I had a gang of maybe 8 park service guys discussing the best options for towing, and to what town. Dusty suggested I just ride to and auto parts store to fix it, and to watch the oil level. So I said good bye to the park service guys and rode down into West Jefferson, where there was an auto parts store. I got there about an hour before they closed and bought a couple tools, some gasket material and gasket glue. I got the valve cover off and found that one part of the gasket hadn’t adhered to the cover and had slid off the surface of the cover, causing a leak. That solves the mystery of why I had to add most of a quart of oil during the first 4k miles, and why I had smelled burning oil while riding. I showed the cover and gasket to the auto parts store guy and he said I should talk to 2 guys near the door who were mechanics and rode motorcycles. One guy said to just scrape the gasket off and use gasket maker, which comes in a tube that you squeeze onto the surface. I didn’t scrape the gasket off, but did apply the gasket maker after returning the cork gasket material. After getting everything reassembled I coasted my bike down a hill over to a Day’s Inn motel next door. The gasket maker goo was supposed to cure for 24 hours before exposing it to fluids.
So I checked in to the motel and made dinner. I’d bought Ahi tuna and veggies for a stir fry and didn’t want to waste it by going to a restaurant. My neighbors 2 doors down were barbequing on the tailgate of their truck, and gave me a grilled brat on a bun. I offered them some of my tuna and veggies. The gal who worked at the motel counter who was hanging out with them took some, but the guy said “I don’t eat vegetables”.
“NCDan” from the Moto Guzzi forum called me. My “On the side of the road” post to the forum had mobilized people to assist me. What a great bunch of people. Dan lamented my not having called him initially since he was at his vacation house close by. He said he’d come by in the morning to pick me up for breakfast. He came by around 8:00 and drove me to a little diner out in the country for eggs, bicuits and pork gravy. Delicious. Dan put in a few words for me and my motorcycle when he said Grace. Thanks Dan! Then we went to his beautiful house on the New River where I met his wife. What an idyllic setting. They played some tunes for me, his wife on guitar and Dan playing banjo then fiddle.
Got back to the motel before checkout time and fired up the Guzzi. No leaks after it got good and warmed up. I packed up and Dan followed me to the edge of town where it was easy to get back up on the BRP. We said goodbye there. I passed the spot where I stopped the day before and happily rode on. So nice to be on the BRP. I came to think of getting off it as getting back to reality. Made me want to get back on it. No decisions to make at intersections, just glide through the forest and stop at the overlooks sometimes.
I stopped in Roanoake, VA for lunch at a brew pub, then rode up Rte 81 to get to Vesuvius, which is the steepest hill on Bikecentennial trail accross the US. I rode down it as a teen on an attempted cross country bike trip. While on 81 at high speed my bike suddenly wanted to slow down and stop, So I pull over and found that my rear wheel was locked up. The rear brake rotor was super hot. So somehow my rear brake engaged and stayed that way. As it cooled off I was able to rotate the wheel. I called Dan and he confirmed what I suspected. An ABS malfunction. There’s a button to turn it off on my bike, so I did. No problems then. Later I left the ABS on and it was still fine. Maybe it was just a one time glitch.
Thought about making a beeline to Don’s house on Rte 29 211 from Charlottesville but opted to continue up Skyline drive to Rte 211. Glad it did. So beautiful. I stopped at the Little Stony Man overlook where my Mom’s and stepfathers ashes were scattered. I can see why they chose that spot. The down from the mountains and into suburban northern VA. I moved west from there in 1985 and hadn’t been back for many years. Nothing’s recognizable of course. With Google maps on my phone I wouldn’t have been able to find my way anywhere.
Really great to see Don. Sushi dinner. Talked, then bed. Will hang here for a day and then resume my northward journey. Next stop will be to visit another high school friend Ken in Orange, MA.
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By the time you get home you will be an expert on everything that can go wrong on modern Guzzis.What is the mileage on yours?
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About 30k now.
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At my high school friend Ken’s place in Orange, MA. He just left for a RC glider meet in Rhode Island. Had a great time with him last night. Pizza and beer in the garage. Good to catch up with him as it’s been a few years since we last met. Ken took me to the airport where he dialed in a plane before this meet. Take offs are fun since a battery powers a motor and prop. Ken had me hold a plane while he rev’d the control so I could feel the pull. Pretty cool I have to say. Fun to watch him seek out thermals. Anyway we said goodbye this morning. Good visit. Will be at my Dad’s later today.
Great seeing Don too, but I was glad to get to more rural places after leaving northern VA. Went through the Delaware Water Gap, a route on a bicycle tour I did once, and then to Peter and Laura’s house in Ridgefield, CT. They live in a beautiful part of CT with some great older houses.. Had a very nice time talking to them. They’re 11 miles from Jim Hamlin’s Cycles in Bethel. I had called ahead and went there at 9:00 am. After checking out my bike, they changed:
Front brake fluid
Clutch fluid
Final drive fluid
Outer spark plugs
Rear brake pads
Also bought a pair of valve cover gaskets. I feel better about the ride home now. Jim test road my bike after working on it and thought it ran great for an older bike. “Older bike? Moi?”.
The drive north from Don’s had a lot of Interstate highway miles. 80% tractor trailers. Had never seen that many trucks before, and hope that doesn’t become a thing. Route 202 was nice. Will be on that today too.
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Please don't confuse me with Dusty. Man, that's mean. :wink:
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Noted LoRyter. My apologies.
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Noted LoRyter. My apologies.
We did speak , I'm the one with the voice that sounds like kerosene and gravel mixed together .
Dusty
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We did speak , I'm the one with the voice that sounds like kerosene and gravel mixed together . Dusty
Sounds just like Bob Dylan for the last decade then!
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Got to my Dad’s house in Rangeley, Maine yesterday afternoon. Would have gotten there sooner but I took a wrong turn and went to Crawford Notch. So lost about an hour there, but it’s beautiful there. Did about 335 miles from Ken’s place. Mainly backroads through the New Hampshire and Maine countryside. Very pretty. Nice to see older houses and small town buildings. You don’t get to see as much of that out west. Have come about 6,000 miles now with maybe 3,500 more to go. If I tour Michigan’s upper peninsula on the way home I may break 10,000 miles by the end of the trip.
While I’m here I’ll research the way home. Destinations along the way so far include:
-Ride along the St. Lawrence Seaway
-Eat some wings in Buffalo, NY
-Riding along the shores of the Great Lakes including the famous “Tunnel of Trees”
-Seeing the Coast Guard cutter that my friend Rob was first stationed on by the Mackinaw Bridge
-Riding roads in Custer State Park, SD and Rte 14A.
-Seeing the Badlands and Black Hills in SD
-Maybe seeing Mt. Rushmore (never have)
-Seeing Devil’s Tower in SD
-Riding the Chief Joseph Scenic Hwy in WY
-Riding the Beartooth Hwy and Rte 296 in WY
-Riding Rte 16 between Buffalo, WY and Ten Sleep
Friend John the Welder says to see the Corn Palace in SD. Anyway, I have a few days more to plan.
Got a good rain this moring. The news says there’s a big “heat dome” over the southeast now and in the near future. Nice to be up north where it’s cooler. Hopefully it’ll stay cool on the way west.
My Dad’s house is undergoing some major renovations. They bumped out the wall thickness in much of the house for more insulation and replaced most of the windows with double pane ones. New siding is partially complete. A new septic system was just installed. The old one dated back to 1968 when the original camp was built. Apparently contractors have been tough to schedules, big surprise. The leaves are just coming out here and the lake is too cold to swim in, for me at least. Dad’s still practicing his chanter, which is used to learn to play the bag pipes. Am wondering what a chanter/ukulele duet would sound like. Dad’s 97 now and is doing well. Still likes driving the Jaguar he bought 3 years ago. Nice to catch up with his wife Jeannine.
Dad’s being interviewed by the Rangeley Historical Society and Rangeley Snowmobile Club tomorrow. He was an early adopter of Bombadier’s Skidoos, and used to drag the trails for the club with a single ski dual track machine towing a big, heavy, galvanized steel drag. He used to do that at night until 1:00 in the morning. Now I know why I like to go stand up paddleboarding at night.
Will give the Norge a bath while I’m here. My windscreen looks like a Jackson Pollock painting. Lots of red and yellow. The gas smell has faded from my jacket as I hoped it would. Still happy wearing my leathers instead of textile gear.
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Still at my Dad’s in Rangeley, ME now. Will start heading west on the third leg of this trip on Thursday morning. The road is already calling me. I contacted Tom (Tkelley) in Wisconson yesterday and he graciously offered to put me up for a night before he heads down to a Moto Guzzi rally in North Carolina next week. I suspect I’ll be at his place 4 days after I leave here. Will also camp at his sister’s farm near the Tunnel of Trees in upper Michigan. Will have 2 other nights on the road before that. I plan to ride along the St. Lawrence seaway and camp near the Thousand Islands area. Not sure about the next night.
If you’re into snowmobiling this next part will interest you. Yesterday my 97 year old father drove us to the Rangeley Country Club in his F-type Jaguar to be interviewed for the Rangeley Lakes Snowmobile Club. They’re trying to preserve the history of very early snowmobiling in the Rangeley Lakes area. My Dad built the first house (camp) here in 1968 and soon bought a snowmobile. Ronnie Sargent who ran a construction company back then became one of the first Bombadier dealers in the early 60s. Bombadier produced their first snowmobile in 1959. It is now recognized as Canada’s 17th most important invention/innovation. They were called “Skidoos”. Craig said they originally named them “Skidogs”, but a secretary made a a typo and the Skidoo name stuck. Over the years, Ronnie accumulated over 8,000 slides of people snowmobiling. They did a lot of snowmobile safaris where groups would go ride and have cookouts, even making french fries. All unhealthy food they say. Ronnie had 3 sons, Craig, Steven and Eric. Steven and Ronnie have passed away, but Craig and Eric were there conducting the interview. Great to see them after nearly 50 years!
After mic’ing us, they sat us down in chairs facing still and video cameras on tripods, with floodlights on us. I didn’t realize it was going to be such a formal thing. Dad, who has been interviewed many times was asked about his life. He went though a condensed version like a pro. He’s written about 95 books in his life, mainly science books for young people. But also “Our Universe” published by the National Geographic Society. Taught astronomy at the U of Southern Maine, and ran their planetarium. Has led expeditions for years all through Russia in search of large meteorite craters, fragments, etc. Ever heard of Tunguska?
Moving on to snowmobiling we discussed the early Bombadier models, the drag that Ronnie Sargent made to groom trails, the club rides and so on. Prior to the interview, Dad dug up some old 16 mm motion picture footage he had taken of various things including snowmobiling. He, my brother Jonathan and his then wife Harriet produced a short movie called “Spring Holiday” where they drove up from NY to the camp for some fun. They had to shovel snow off the roof so the doors would open, then shovel snow down to the kitchen door so they could get in. I’ve been told that the snow has been so deep they drove snowmobiles over the roof of the house. Then there was lots of footage of snowmobiling. At times, Dad sat on the back of a snowmobile facing backwards, filming riders behind him. We used to drag sleds behind snowmobiles that looked like dog sleds. You’d stand on the backs of the runners and hold onto handholds. Tons of fun to do that. We brought a viewer device made by Braun to the interview to show them the movie. They positioned the video camera to capture the movie as I hand cranked the spools of film around and around. Took me a while to figure out how to set up and operate the viewer. Picture of me at about 13 years old in snowmobile gear attached to this post.
I learned a lot from both Craig and my Dad during the interview. What a treat. At the end, one of the video assistant guys asked Dad’s opinion of the recent news about UFO information being released by government agencies. Dad likened it to astrology. No scientific evidence whatsoever of extraterrestrial life. And if there were as he said, it would take them tens or hundreds of thousands of years to reach us from other parts of the galaxy. Then they’d see what state our planet was in and just turn around and begin the long trip home.
The road has begun to call me. Have been poring over maps to plan my route, and researching things to do and see on the web. The forecast for Thursday looks good (rain on Wednesday) hopefully it’ll hold for a while. No matter though, west-bound I will be. I figure I’ll be home in about 2 weeks.
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Well, sustained rain finally happened today. I left my campground in upstate NY on the shores of Lake Ontario with solidly overcast skies and 15-20 mph north winds. The eastern sky was crimson at about 5:00 AM. Red at night sailor’s delight, red in the morning sailors take warning. It was 46 degrees when I rode out. Dry though, but that ended within the first hour. I put my rainsuit on at the first drops since it looked like it was only going to get worse. It did, and for the whole day. The temperature finally got to 51 degrees after most of the day. Now, I am ensconced in my nice motel room in Orlean, NY. Many things are drying on makeshift racks around the heater. I think they’ll be fine in the morning, but I got too cold near the end of the day. Slow thinking/reacting, worried about making it to safety. Really glad this town had modern amenities. In these rural towns, sometimes you see a motel (maybe questionable), and sometimes a restaurant, but rarely together and both seeming worthwhile.
I got myself into this pickle because I’d heard Route 6 running east/west across Pennsylvania was beautiful. Even though it rained today, I could appreciate the amazing beauty of upstate NY and NW PA. Unfortunately Rte 6 is light on towns with amenities, so I had to bale half way across and head north towards the interstate. No matter, I’m warm and dry now, sipping nice scotch my Dad sent me off with.
I left my Dad’s place in Rangeley yesterday morning and crossed NH and VT before ending up in NY state. So 4 states in 1 day. Harder to do that out west. I crossed Lake Champlain north of Burlington on a bridge leading to the charming town of Champlain, NY. Thought I might take a ferry, but my way there led me straight to the bridge. I’ve only taken pics of 2 nice old houses. They’re endless as are the beautiful brick buildings in towns with their corbeled parapets. Lots of Italiente houses, which I love. Have seen 3 Amish horse drawn carraiges and one Amish farmer ploughing his field with big, wide, plough drawn by 4 horses!
I liked my campground last night. It was Long Point State Park on the Thursday before Memorial Day weekend. There were still plenty of sites available. No one at the booth as you entered the campground, and no reservation forms clipped to each site’s wood post. I assume everyone camped for free as I did. They even had hot showers, which I used this morning. What a luxury. I was near the campground’s playground, but enjoyed hearing kids play. People were playing music, walking around with kids in packs. It was nice, and quieted down completely as darkness fell.
So I did ride along the St. Lawrence Seaway to the Thousand Islands area as I’d planned. The road was mostly inland, but did afford numerous nice views where you see over to Canada. I found a nice waterfront restaurant/bar in Alexandria Bay, which I guess was on Lake Ontario, not the Seaway. Had a couple nice IPAs there and some calamari. I like smaller tourist towns, but not big ones. Have been trying to ride only on 2 lane roads. When I get on an interstate, I wonder why I’m riding. Those big, 4 lane divided highways are only for getting to/from places as fast as you can. I’m not that. Slowing down through a small town is just fine with me.
I just saw that they upgraded the forecast for tomorrow, here to have a zero percent chance of rain. Wow. Earlier the forecast was for rain all day tomorrow and into the next. Had wondered what my strategy would be in that case. I learned a lesson not to ride in prolonged rain under 50 degrees. So, yay!
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Bootleg camped now in a mowed clearing on land next to a huge wheatfield on the east coast of northern Michigan maybe 30 miles north of Detroit. You leave Port Huron on Rte 25 north out of town. Then you can see the shores of Lake Huron through a veil of trees on the side of the road. Huge homes, palaces really line the shores. The campground I’d hope to stay in was full, and they wouldn’t let me use a bicycle or walk in campsite. Pity. They gave me a map showing distributed camping on what’s effectively BLM land. I explored and elected to camp near the end of a dead end road. It’ quiet and beautiful. Tomorrow I’ll have a short day getting to Nancy’s farm near the Tunnel of Trees. Her brother is on the Wild Guzzi forum. I’ll be staying at his house realistically a couple of nights after Nancy’s.
At dusk tonight I noticed movement to my side on the dead end road. It was averu large black cat stopped on the road staring at me. When I say large, I mean bobcat or cougar size. I froze, watching the cat. It froze too, but eventually hustled on down the road. I’ve never seen a large cat before in real life. Wow.
Today I broke my rule about staying on 2 lane roads and did interstate highways all the way to Port Huron. Just wanted to get through the rain storm that plagued me yesterday. It was coming out of the west, and blazing quickly into the west was the best way to get through it quickly. I waited till checkout time (11:00 AM) at my motel to leave to let the storm pass through as much as possible. Indeed, I only had less than an hour of drizzle, then the blue skies started pushing in. By the end of the day the temps have climbed from 46 degrees to over 60. When I saw a weather map showing 67 in Toledo I said “Holy shit!” but then corrected myself, “Holy Toledo!”. Powerful northeast winds have been coming across the Great Lakes though. Cruising at 80ish on interstates with a 20 mph crosswinds gets old. Getting calm now as I write this.
My bike is showing signs of wear. A valve rattle started today. Friend Joel assures me that it’s not a concern. Loose valves are better than tight valves. The rubber cover on my right side after-market, Honda Holdwing footpeg has dissappeared. Apparently the bolt holding it on from underneath rattled loose. My back tire is getting a flat spot on the center from riding on straight roads a bit faster than I expected. No curvy roads in sight, so it may not last long. Dunlop, humph. Anyway, it still runs strong and idles well, so why worry?
I did seriously ponder the interstate vs. 2 lane road issue today. I really hate interstates compared to country, 2 lane roads. On interstates you see distant fields and forests, but you can’t see how people live or how healthy a small town center is. I know I’ll ride more interstates on the way home, but I’m sure going to try to limit it.
Had cod pieces with sauteed red pepper, broccoli, onion and lime tonight. Tasty! Haven’t had oatmeal in the morning for a while. Looking forward to it.
*The next morning *
I rode out my dead end road onto Wildcat Rd.
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From my bootleg campsite I headed north up the east coast of Michigan’s “thumb”. It’s a north pointing peninsula in the lower part of Michigan. Rte 25 runs along the coast, then above the thumb Rte 23 follows the coast. The map makes both roads look like you’ll have expansive views of the water while riding along. Not so. The roads typically run at least a few hundred yards inland, but more often further inland. Private estates and many, many trailer parks line the shores, so you get only occasional glimpses of the water. There are some scenic overlooks, and parks in the center of small towns that allow a view or access to the water, but you have to stop to enjoy them. Still, it’s nice riding and I got to see a lot of Memorial Day vacationers bustling around their waterfront houses.
Seeing the Pointe Aux Barques lighthouse was pretty cool. Various plaques described the grave dangers of navigating the Great Lakes. Lake Huron, which I was riding along is apparently the deepest and most dangerous. So many boats and lives lost on these lakes.
At a certain point above the thumb on Rte. 23 I headed west and cut across to the famed Tunnel of Trees. It’s a 20+ mile long road that goes along the shores of Lake Michigan. The south end start in a charming and wealthy town called Harbor Springs. The grand old houses were the best I’ve seen on the trip. The Tunnel of Trees road is narrow with no centerline and stunningly beautiful. About a third of it really is a tunnel of trees. Beautiful views to the water.
Then it was time to head to Nancy’s farm nearby. Tom, a fellow Moto Guzzi owner, arranged for me to camp at his sister’s farm. She texted me an asked if I had any dietary restrictions. I then realized I wouldn’t be cooking dinner that night. She offered a spare bedroom too. It turns out that Nancy studied French cuisine in Paris, and also taught cooking there for a number of years. She has a restaurant which is temporarily closed due to -, but does catering. Her former boyfriend, another motorcyclist was there, along with 2 friends, Mary Ellen and Becky.
After settling she asked if I’d like something to drink. I suggested wine. She brought out 3 or more bottles of Georgian (eastern Europe) chilled whites that we drank in an optimal order. All delicious. Her dining table reminded me of scenes from Downton Abbey. I knew dinner would be good when I saw the desert spoons oriented sideways at the top of each plane. Nice cheeses for appetizers. Dinner was superb. BBQ’d salmon, asparagus, avocado/artichoke heart salad. Rhubarb pie with ice cream for dessert. I couldn’t believe it. Nancy lived in Paris in the late 1980s for about 8 years. While working there at one point she only made 65 francs a day on good days. A beer at a cheap place was 25 francs.
Anyway, visiting with new friends was great. I told Nancy that a night like that is restorative after camping alone. When I described my encounter with the big, black cat, she said Michigan has panthers, and that must have been one. That reminded me a short poem by Ogden Nash:
If called by a panther, don't anthwer.
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This morning Chris and Nancy rode with me to the Mackinaw Bridge, which is the gateway to Michigan’s upper peninsula (UP). We found friend Rob’s boat that he was stationed on in the Coast Guard, then said our goodbyes. Sure hope to see them again some time. After crossing the 5 mile long Mackinaw Bridge I headed west on Rte 2 along the shores of Lake Michigan. Lots of unobstructed views. Then happened upon The Top-Of-The-Lake Snowmobile Museum. Best snowmobile museum in the world. The number of old machines they had there was overwhelming. I could easily have spent a whole day.
Made my way up to Pictured Rocks on the north side of the UP, where you see Lake Superior. I have now seen all 5 Great Lakes on this trip; Ontario, Erie, Huron, Michigan and Superior. I had to taste the water in Lake Huron to see if it tasted like salt. No, it doesn’t. They say you need to see Pictured Rocks from the water. I can see how you’d want to, but there were nice overlooks at the park. See turquoise blue water in attached pic. Met 2 guys on Moto Guzzis there, one on an 08 Norge like mine. Tom, the MG guy in Wisconsin emailed me warning about a rainstorm between me and him. Indeed, I got caught in the deluge, sigh. Now drying out in a motel room. Will try contacting MG dealers on the way to Toms tomorrow morning. My valve tap is getting louder. Should probably have the valves adjusted. Friend Joel says they’re simple enough to do with a plastic fork and a rock on the side
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of the road. Me thinks he’s exaggerating.
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I've done a couple of outboard marathon races out of Indian River not too far from where you were. Absolutely beautiful country and the lakes and inland waterways are outstanding. The two races I did are a couple of the highlights of my life. My buddy and I drove there from California on part of the way you are going. If you are into old racing outboards I can fix you up with a mini museum in Tomahawk.
kk
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Great travelogue.. :thumb: :smiley:
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Epic. I'm envious. Thanks for updating us.
Rich A
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I got a pretty early start out of the motel room in Escanaba, MI with the intent to get to a Moto Guzzi dealer ASAP to fix the noise coming from my engine. Per Tom Kelly’s recommendation, I went to Dunn Imports in Middleton, WI. Got there about mid-day after riding along the west shore of Lake Michigan. They used to be a dealership for Guzzi, Vespas and others. Now they service European cars. However Jeremy, who’s a Guzzi mechanic works there and checked my bike out. He instantly diagnosed the tapping noise as an exhaust leak. Later when the engine cooled off I found that the collar attaching the header pipe to the left side cylinder was loose. There were 2 studs to secure it. A nut on one stud was missing and the other was loose. Jeremy fixed it in 10 minutes and didn’t charge me anything. There are special nuts that should be used. He faked one and reused the other, and said it should be good for the rest of the trip. Indeed, the engine sounds normal now. Whew! I called Jim Hamlin in CT who did work on my bike. He said yeah, he should have retightened those nuts again after riding it and going through heating/cooling cycles. He’s sending me replacement nuts and washers.
So all’s good with the bike. Tom Kelly requested I stop by a European bakery in Middleton to pick up some loaves of bread before heading to his house. I hit a nice brew put first, got the bread and headed to Tom’s. He’s waaaay out in the country in an impossibly beautiful setting. A lot like North Carolina, but in the bluffs of Wisconsin. Apparently the glaciers didn’t mow down any mountains or hills in his area vs. other areas of WI. It’s really beautiful. Tom was leaving for a North Carolina Guzzi rally in the morning with his friend Steve who came to dinner and spent the night for an early start today. Friend Eric also came, riding a Griso. Had a really nice dinner with Tom, Debbie, Steve and Eric. We all woke up early the next day and went our separate ways. Tom had suggested a rather complex route that I got most of. Visited a Frank Lloyd Wright designed warehouse in one small town. Nice having the morning east light a my back as I headed out through the Wisconson valleys.
Went through Bluff Country in the NE corner of Iowa and then across southern Minnesota to South Dakota. 540+ miles today. Lots of interstate after the morning backroads. Stopped at the Obscure Brewing brew pub in one town on the way to my campground. Had a rather uninspired IPA. Finally made to the American Creek campground on the Missouri River outside of Chamberlain, SD. It’s an incredibly beautiful walk-in campsite. I took a quick dip in the river. Pretty cold below 1 foot depth, but refreshing after a hot day’s ride. Had steaks with asparagus for dinner. Scotch, a cigar and some ukulele playing. Time for bed. Badlands tomorrow.
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I just caught up with the thread. Good going.
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After leaving the beautiful campsite on the Missouri River I headed west to the Badlands. For some of that ride I was on 2 lane backroads paralleling I90. The road was often only 50 yards from the interstate. But what a difference! All those signs and billboards on the interstate aren’t facing you on the side road. Still can go 85, but it’s a totally different experience. No dealing with idiots camping in the left lane. Interstates, bleah.
Before reaching the Badlands I visited the Minuteman Missile Monument. It’s interesting, though morbid. Predictable coverage of “Duck and Cover”. The jist of the Minuteman missile is that it uses a solid propellant vs. the older Atlas rockets they used liquid propellant. It took an hour or more to prepare them for launch. By then it would be all over. Thus the Minuteman.
The Badlands are pretty crazy. There’s a “wall” 60 miles long where 2 elevations of prairies meet, separated by weird, eroded soft stone. It reminded me a lot of Goblin Valley Park in Utah. But it’s huge. The person who designed the road through the park must have had a good time. The road is very curvy and traverses the 2 elevations of prairies in interesting ways. So many cars though. It’s a very popular park and the turn offs, overlooks and trail heads are crowded. I joined the throngs and did a couple mile hike where signs said to wear “sturdy boots” due to the rough rock terrain. Flip flops worked fine for me. I went through a whole liter of water in a hydration bag. It was really hot. No relief for that getting back to my motorcycle. Encountered some Bison on the way out of the park.
Next destination was the curvy roads in the Black Hills and Custer Park. I did Rtes 16 and 244. They were very good sport bike roads complete with narrow tunnels and spiral routes over trestle bridges. I didn’t do Rte 87 because it would have cost $20 to enter that part of the park. “But it’s good for 7 days”, the park ranger lady said. “But I’m only here for the next few hours”, says I. I even got on a little rant about such fees being discriminatory. That fell on deaf ears and I realized I might be sounding like a wacko. After 30 days on the road I may be one. I did get close to Mt. Rushmore without having to go through the long lines at park entry points to actually see it.
The sun was getting low, so I headed north towards campsites I saw on my route north. Indeed I scored a beautiful site on Pactola Reservoir. No showers, so I bathed with my ivory soap in the lake and did laundry there too. Underwear and socks flapping in the wind under a bunjie on my bike the next day.
This morning I rose before sunrise and started breaking camp. Next destination road was 14A leading north to Spearfish, SD. Truly a spectacular road scenery wise, also very curvy. Tall cliffs, waterfalls, river with rapids. Then it was on to Devil’s Tower. I made it through the line into the park and once again joined the throngs doing the 1.3 mile walk on a paved trail around the tower. It’s really spectacular. Apparently the biggest known Basalt columns on the plant. Friend Frank climbed it around 1980 with a few friends. I called him to ask him which face he climbed. He could only remember the route name, which I can’t now. Looks like it would have been a lot of chimneying.
On the way out of Devil’s Tower Park I stopped at a field inundated with prairie dog holes. There were lots of prairie dogs skittering about, disappearing into and popping out of holes. Wild!
Now in Gillette, WY sponging internet from a corporate chain restaurant drinking an IPA overly infused with mango. Next up, Chief Joseph Scenic Hwy, Beartooth Hwy and various others in those areas.
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Thank you for taking us along!!! :bow: :bow: :thumb:
Tom
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Awesome trip. I've done most of it "over the years" but doing it in one trip is amazing. You will *love* Beartooth, one of my very favorites. If you like firearm history, the Buffalo Bill museum near the start of Chief Joseph highway is a must.
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Southern Minnesota and much of South Dakota were in the Great Plains. The trees of the east disappeared pretty quickly heading west. My first view of “real” mountains was seeing the Black Hills in SD. Rocky, covered with evergreens, made me feel I was West again. The first snow covered mountains I saw were the Bighorn Mountains near Buffalo and Sheridan, WY. I actually whooped and hollered when I saw them. I hit rain approaching them but saw blue sky coming up beyond them so just powered through rather than putting on rain gear. Didn’t get too wet and dried out quickly after hitting blue skies. The Chie Joseph Scenic Highway takes you up over a 9,430’ high area that lasts many miles. When climbing up that grade I felt a bit forlorn looking back, saying goodbye to the Great Plains, the East, the whole trip really. Gotta move on though. The grade down from that place on Rte 14A (A for alternate though I have seen roads on this trip where letters B through F were used) is legendary. Long and steep, tough for motorhomes when ascending.
After descending down to Lovell, WY I bought some supplies for dinner and headed up Rte 37 into the Bighorn Canyon National Recreation Area. Found a campsite near a reservoir that was pretty spartan. There were bathrooms and hose bibs though. I camped for free even though a Ranger drove around a time or two. Lightning against purple skies was still visible back where I rode through rain. Winds were cyclonic that evening. Had to put big rocks in my tent since the ground was too hard to stake the tent down. I need to get better at making dinner. My fake crab meat, broccoli, onion, rice stir fry was not delicious.
The scenery on the Chief Joseph Hwy between Ranchester and Lovell, WY, and Route 296 over Dead Indian Pass is spectacular. I took too many pictures. I was looking forward to riding Beartooth Hwy, but its pavement was terrible and there was lots of gravel on the road. Not for me. So, on through Yellowstone Park to get to Montana. I should have known better. What a zoo. Parades of cars that stop in the middle of the road to gawk at a bison or a bear. Can’t blame them I guess. I did my usual quick pass of a car over a double yellow line and found myself behind a park ranger! I thought maybe they didn’t see me, but they pulled over, then got behind me and pulled me over. Nice lady park ranger. Took me about 5 minutes to take gear off my seat to reach my registration stored under it. She asked me if there was any reason why I passed illegally. I said “No good reason”. After checking me out on the computer and her radio she just issued me a warning saying she understands how frustrating driving through the park can be. She said she would have given me a ticket had there been oncoming traffic. I thanked her and silently thought she has a pretty terrible job.
My plan was to go south over Dunraven Pass in the park, head out the east park entrance, then head up Rte 191 through the Gallatin mountains to backroads that roughly paralled I90. Dunraven pass is on its second year of being closed for repairs, so I had to head north. Hating driving in the park I went out the north entrance into more cyclonic winds. My plan to then avoid I90 on other backroads was thwarted by construction signs advising motorcyclists to seek alternative routes. Oh well more time on interstates with 20+ mph side and head winds and some heavy rain over the Gallatin mountains. Dried out quick on the other side though.
Am now in a motel in Missoula having morning coffee and pondering the rest of the route home. I think I want to take the northern route home through WA, leading to the Port Townsend ferry. So instead of doing the famous Lolo Pass road I’ll head north and do Rte 50 west out of St.Regis, ID and then Rte 97 along Coeur d’Alene Lake. Then somehow across NE WA to the North Cascades Hwy. Probably will have one more night on the road.
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Thanks for the great trip narrative although your making me jealous. I’ve done a lot of your trip on a motorcycle and I’m dying to do it again, hopefully soon.
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One of the best long distance ride reports ever , thanks :bow:
Dusty
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Well, it's my last night on the road. I'm camped at Perry Gin State Park just outside of Winthrop, WA. Came from Missoula, MT today, logging approx. 475 miles. Very little of it was on interstate highways, so I was happy. I actually like riding this much so long as I'm on a 2 lane road. I had 2 destination roads today. One was Rte 50, aka St. Joe Scenic Byway. The next was Rte 97 that winds along the east side of Coeur d'Alene Lake. Both were spectacular. Curvy, curvy curvy, and so beautiful. The first required driving 14 miles on gravel road. Prior to this I'd done a few miles at most searching for a campground and dealing with road construction. I couldn't remember in the road description I read weather it was 8 or 12 miles. Now I know. It was ok. Did 30 to 40 mph when possible. Got her done. Then came sport bike heaven next to a fairly violent river. All the rivers I've seen on this trip are running high due to spring snow melt and run off. Most, at least in the midwest are silty and muddy. This one and another earlier in the day (Clark Fork River) ran clear. Based on the vehicles with kayaks and other floaty things it's obviously a popular river running place. But those curves, whoo boy. Velvety smooth pavement too. Crossed a fun suspension walking bridge for a break. Will do that one again with friends some time. Then it was time for Rte 97 on the lake. What pavement! What engineering! What light traffic! So fun.
Google found me a nice brew pub in Coeur d'Alene where the IPAs I had and the food were excellent. Last night's dinner was excellent, except I'm pretty sure I got a small bout of food poisoning. Not so with this lunch. Then I headed east on Rte 2 across the wheat fields When I was a hang glider pilot I learned of a saying to remember the towns on that road; "hawk doctor". It stood for Hartline, Almira, Wilbur, Creston, Davenport and Reardon. Pilots in events where you just want to fly as far as possible would launch from Chelan, ride thermals up to cloudbase and the glide downwind, eastwards with the prevailing wind, to the next thermal. Repeat until the lift dies in the evening. I never got that far in hang gliding, but friend Paul can tell you all about it. He flew from Chelan to Pullman.
Anyway, the wheat fields looked healthy, the roads were predominantly straight until I reached Grand Coulee dam, where I popped into the visitors' center. That dam can make more power than any other dam in the US. It's big. The sun was still high in the sky, though it'd been cloudy and cool (mid 50s) all day, requiring me to wear my down parka under my leather jacket again for the first time in a while. Was beautiful riding up the Methow River valley on the way to Winthrop. Normally on rides I see Winthrop during lunch time when there are throngs of tourists. Nice to see it quiet on a Sunday evening.
Tomorrow, home. Will ride across the North Cascades Highway, then down Whidbey Island, then take the ferry across to Pt. Townsend and should be home by early afternoon. Today my odometer showed that I broke 10,000 miles. It feels like it.
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Well, I’m home now after riding 216 miles from Winthrop, WA to Poulsbo. Total miles for the trip are approx. 10,100. If it’d been a little less I would have had to ride around just to break the 10k mark. Apparently I owe NJ $66 in fines for not paying tolls near the Delaware Water Gap. Guess I should pay it so I can return without fear of who knows what. It rained hard overnight at Perrygin Park. Woke up to rain pelting my tent fly. That’s the first time on the whole trip that it rained at night. Packed the tent away wet in the morning because it didn’t matter anymore. There was fresh snow in the high mountains, and I wondered if that was going to be a problem. Coming over Washington Pass, my temp indicator got down to 36 degrees, and I swear I saw a few snow flakes falling. The roads were wet from the night’s rain and I was afraid of ice on the roads, so took it easy until temps got into the 40s at lower elevations. It seems to rain around Marblemount and Sedro Wooly whenever I return from Winthrop over the North Cascades Hwy. It did this time too. Hated putting on the rain gear again, but things cleared up further west. Rode across beautiful Deception Pass onto Whidbey Island, then on to Coupeville for the ferry to Pt. Townsend. I missed a boat by about 10 minutes and had to wait about an hour. Rode down one of my favorite backroads on the way to the main road back to the Hood Canal Bridge. The last beautiful, lonely road of the trip. Wonderful to see my wife Deb again. Walked up to our local brew pub to reunite with friends. Good to be home. Last picture here is my house. Got some unpacking to do and eventually do some maintenance on my faithful steed. My Norge is a really great, capable, fun, reliable machine.
I’m thankful for the help I received from folks on the Wild Guzzi forum and their relatives (thinking of you Nancy). Also my own friends and relatives. Meeting Guzzi people were some of the best moments of this trip. If any Guzzi people are on a trip and need a place to stay, please contact me. I would love to help others as I’ve been helped. Not sure if or when I’d attempt another trip like this. Who knows, maybe this is the first of many to come. Certainly worse ways to spend retirement.
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What a great travelogue this has been! Thanks so much for taking the time to create it!
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Fantastic trip and write up...enjoyed that! I imagine you'll have lots of great memories, and a great bonding experience with the bike!
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Thanks for sharing your adventure. Your house has a beautiful view!!
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What a trip, thanks for taking us along!
Sarah
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If you're interested, I put a much more complete version of my travelogue for this trip here:
http://nwguy.fun/mc/10k/index.html
It includes many more pictures, captions for most pictures and numerous corrections. Plus there's a fun video of Rich's parrot (Guzzi guy in Santa Fe). He told me his 40 year old parrot Woody laid an egg for the first time in her life just recently. He's considering renaming her Woodleigh. Video link here:
http://nwguy.fun/mc/10k/02.html
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What a great trip and report! That was epic. Thanks for going to so much trouble to make all those detailed installments.
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I added a link to a video where I rant about deer and motorcycles after having a really close call with one on the first day of my trip:
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Hq1cmRPOkrE