Author Topic: Suggestions for a trip . OP lost it , we found it .  (Read 4758 times)

Offline nwguy

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Re: Suggestions for a trip . OP lost it , we found it .
« Reply #60 on: May 23, 2021, 11:48:42 AM »
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.



Current:  08 Norge, 06 Suzuki Burgman, 06 Yamaha Morphous

Past:  3 Buell Lightnings, 02 BMW R1150RS
05 Ducati Multistrada, First gen Kawasaki Concours, Kawasaki Vulcan 1500 Classic, 02 Honda ST110, Aprilia Falco, Suzuki VX800, Yamaha Radian, Suzuki TS185, Yamaha RD400

Offline nwguy

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Re: Suggestions for a trip . OP lost it , we found it .
« Reply #61 on: May 25, 2021, 07:36:15 AM »
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.







Current:  08 Norge, 06 Suzuki Burgman, 06 Yamaha Morphous

Past:  3 Buell Lightnings, 02 BMW R1150RS
05 Ducati Multistrada, First gen Kawasaki Concours, Kawasaki Vulcan 1500 Classic, 02 Honda ST110, Aprilia Falco, Suzuki VX800, Yamaha Radian, Suzuki TS185, Yamaha RD400

Offline nwguy

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Re: Suggestions for a trip . OP lost it , we found it .
« Reply #62 on: May 28, 2021, 05:22:26 PM »
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!













Current:  08 Norge, 06 Suzuki Burgman, 06 Yamaha Morphous

Past:  3 Buell Lightnings, 02 BMW R1150RS
05 Ducati Multistrada, First gen Kawasaki Concours, Kawasaki Vulcan 1500 Classic, 02 Honda ST110, Aprilia Falco, Suzuki VX800, Yamaha Radian, Suzuki TS185, Yamaha RD400

Offline nwguy

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Re: Suggestions for a trip . OP lost it , we found it .
« Reply #63 on: May 30, 2021, 11:43:54 AM »
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.











Current:  08 Norge, 06 Suzuki Burgman, 06 Yamaha Morphous

Past:  3 Buell Lightnings, 02 BMW R1150RS
05 Ducati Multistrada, First gen Kawasaki Concours, Kawasaki Vulcan 1500 Classic, 02 Honda ST110, Aprilia Falco, Suzuki VX800, Yamaha Radian, Suzuki TS185, Yamaha RD400

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Re: Suggestions for a trip . OP lost it , we found it .
« Reply #63 on: May 30, 2021, 11:43:54 AM »

Offline nwguy

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Re: Suggestions for a trip . OP lost it , we found it .
« Reply #64 on: May 31, 2021, 06:59:48 PM »
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.



Current:  08 Norge, 06 Suzuki Burgman, 06 Yamaha Morphous

Past:  3 Buell Lightnings, 02 BMW R1150RS
05 Ducati Multistrada, First gen Kawasaki Concours, Kawasaki Vulcan 1500 Classic, 02 Honda ST110, Aprilia Falco, Suzuki VX800, Yamaha Radian, Suzuki TS185, Yamaha RD400

Offline nwguy

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Re: Suggestions for a trip . OP lost it , we found it .
« Reply #65 on: May 31, 2021, 07:18:36 PM »
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

 of the road. Me thinks he’s exaggerating.
Current:  08 Norge, 06 Suzuki Burgman, 06 Yamaha Morphous

Past:  3 Buell Lightnings, 02 BMW R1150RS
05 Ducati Multistrada, First gen Kawasaki Concours, Kawasaki Vulcan 1500 Classic, 02 Honda ST110, Aprilia Falco, Suzuki VX800, Yamaha Radian, Suzuki TS185, Yamaha RD400

Offline Moparnut72

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Re: Suggestions for a trip . OP lost it , we found it .
« Reply #66 on: May 31, 2021, 07:54:54 PM »
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.
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Online Chuck in Indiana

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Re: Suggestions for a trip . OP lost it , we found it .
« Reply #67 on: June 01, 2021, 07:37:46 AM »
Great travelogue.. :thumb:  :smiley:
Chuck in (Elwood) Indiana/sometimes SoCal
 
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Offline Rich A

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Re: Suggestions for a trip . OP lost it , we found it .
« Reply #68 on: June 01, 2021, 09:23:02 PM »
Epic. I'm envious. Thanks for updating us.

Rich A

Offline nwguy

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Re: Suggestions for a trip . OP lost it , we found it .
« Reply #69 on: June 03, 2021, 02:26:07 PM »

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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Current:  08 Norge, 06 Suzuki Burgman, 06 Yamaha Morphous

Past:  3 Buell Lightnings, 02 BMW R1150RS
05 Ducati Multistrada, First gen Kawasaki Concours, Kawasaki Vulcan 1500 Classic, 02 Honda ST110, Aprilia Falco, Suzuki VX800, Yamaha Radian, Suzuki TS185, Yamaha RD400

Offline LowRyter

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Re: Suggestions for a trip . OP lost it , we found it .
« Reply #70 on: June 04, 2021, 09:55:16 AM »
I just caught up with the thread.  Good going. 
John L 
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Offline nwguy

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Re: Suggestions for a trip . OP lost it , we found it .
« Reply #71 on: June 05, 2021, 09:25:41 PM »
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.




Current:  08 Norge, 06 Suzuki Burgman, 06 Yamaha Morphous

Past:  3 Buell Lightnings, 02 BMW R1150RS
05 Ducati Multistrada, First gen Kawasaki Concours, Kawasaki Vulcan 1500 Classic, 02 Honda ST110, Aprilia Falco, Suzuki VX800, Yamaha Radian, Suzuki TS185, Yamaha RD400

Offline Tom H

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Re: Suggestions for a trip . OP lost it , we found it .
« Reply #72 on: June 06, 2021, 01:15:26 AM »
Thank you for taking us along!!! :bow: :bow: :thumb:

Tom
2004 Cali EV Touring
1972 Eldo
1970 Ambo V1000
1973 R75/5 SWB with Toaster
2007 HD Street Bob
1953 Triumph 6T (one day it will be on the road!)

Online Chuck in Indiana

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Re: Suggestions for a trip . OP lost it , we found it .
« Reply #73 on: June 06, 2021, 08:51:43 AM »
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.
Chuck in (Elwood) Indiana/sometimes SoCal
 
87 AeroLario
95 Skorpion tour
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 "Two things are infinite: the universe and human stupidity; and I'm not sure about the universe."
Albert Einstein

Offline nwguy

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Re: Suggestions for a trip . OP lost it , we found it .
« Reply #74 on: June 06, 2021, 08:55:23 AM »
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.




Current:  08 Norge, 06 Suzuki Burgman, 06 Yamaha Morphous

Past:  3 Buell Lightnings, 02 BMW R1150RS
05 Ducati Multistrada, First gen Kawasaki Concours, Kawasaki Vulcan 1500 Classic, 02 Honda ST110, Aprilia Falco, Suzuki VX800, Yamaha Radian, Suzuki TS185, Yamaha RD400

Offline Sykestone8886

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Re: Suggestions for a trip . OP lost it , we found it .
« Reply #75 on: June 06, 2021, 12:07:01 PM »
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.
54HDFL  73HDFLH. 85HDFLT. 73suzukiTS 250 76hHONDA cb360

oldbike54

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Re: Suggestions for a trip . OP lost it , we found it .
« Reply #76 on: June 06, 2021, 02:09:36 PM »
 One of the best long distance ride reports ever , thanks  :bow:

 Dusty

Offline nwguy

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Re: Suggestions for a trip . OP lost it , we found it .
« Reply #77 on: June 08, 2021, 09:18:21 AM »
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.


Current:  08 Norge, 06 Suzuki Burgman, 06 Yamaha Morphous

Past:  3 Buell Lightnings, 02 BMW R1150RS
05 Ducati Multistrada, First gen Kawasaki Concours, Kawasaki Vulcan 1500 Classic, 02 Honda ST110, Aprilia Falco, Suzuki VX800, Yamaha Radian, Suzuki TS185, Yamaha RD400

Offline nwguy

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Re: Suggestions for a trip . OP lost it , we found it .
« Reply #78 on: June 08, 2021, 09:54:52 AM »
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.












Current:  08 Norge, 06 Suzuki Burgman, 06 Yamaha Morphous

Past:  3 Buell Lightnings, 02 BMW R1150RS
05 Ducati Multistrada, First gen Kawasaki Concours, Kawasaki Vulcan 1500 Classic, 02 Honda ST110, Aprilia Falco, Suzuki VX800, Yamaha Radian, Suzuki TS185, Yamaha RD400

Online Dave Swanson

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Re: Suggestions for a trip . OP lost it , we found it .
« Reply #79 on: June 08, 2021, 10:00:45 AM »
What a great travelogue this has been!  Thanks so much for taking the time to create it!
Dave Swanson - Northern IL
1935 GTS
1968 V700
1973 V7 Sport
1974 Eldo
1974 Police Eldo
1976 Convert
1977 Lemans 1.2
1980 T3 California
1993 1000S - Sparklehorse
2004 V11S - Eraldo-ized
2016 Griso SE - Beetle-ized
2021 V7-850 Stone Centenario
2022 V85TT Guardia d'Onore
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Online PJPR01

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Re: Suggestions for a trip . OP lost it , we found it .
« Reply #80 on: June 08, 2021, 10:32:56 AM »
Fantastic trip and write up...enjoyed that!  I imagine you'll have lots of great memories, and a great bonding experience with the bike!
Paul R
2021 Honda Goldwing Bagger Manual Cement Gray
2015 Red/Black Griso
2008 Silver Norge
2002 V11 Scura

Offline Tiki Joe

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Re: Suggestions for a trip . OP lost it , we found it .
« Reply #81 on: June 08, 2021, 11:33:20 AM »
Thanks for sharing your adventure.  Your house has a beautiful view!!
1997 Moto Guzzi Sport 1100
1993 Ducati Superlight
2015 Harley Road Glide Special
2015 Harley Road King

Offline greer

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Re: Suggestions for a trip . OP lost it , we found it .
« Reply #82 on: June 09, 2021, 05:15:00 AM »
What a trip, thanks for taking us along!

Sarah
Sarah '21 V7 Special, '17 XT250, '17 V9 Roamer sold August 2021, '16 V7 II Stone sold September 2021, '08 Nevada Classic sold August 2020 
Doug '21 V85TT, '05 Sportster Roadster, '13 XT250

Offline nwguy

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Re: Suggestions for a trip . OP lost it , we found it .
« Reply #83 on: June 14, 2021, 06:31:34 PM »
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
Current:  08 Norge, 06 Suzuki Burgman, 06 Yamaha Morphous

Past:  3 Buell Lightnings, 02 BMW R1150RS
05 Ducati Multistrada, First gen Kawasaki Concours, Kawasaki Vulcan 1500 Classic, 02 Honda ST110, Aprilia Falco, Suzuki VX800, Yamaha Radian, Suzuki TS185, Yamaha RD400

Offline ozarquebus

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Re: Suggestions for a trip . OP lost it , we found it .
« Reply #84 on: June 14, 2021, 09:43:58 PM »
What a great trip and report! That was epic. Thanks for going to so much trouble to make all those detailed installments.
John

V1000 G5 (ex-cop impersonator)
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Offline nwguy

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Re: Suggestions for a trip . OP lost it , we found it .
« Reply #85 on: June 15, 2021, 11:50:02 AM »
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
Current:  08 Norge, 06 Suzuki Burgman, 06 Yamaha Morphous

Past:  3 Buell Lightnings, 02 BMW R1150RS
05 Ducati Multistrada, First gen Kawasaki Concours, Kawasaki Vulcan 1500 Classic, 02 Honda ST110, Aprilia Falco, Suzuki VX800, Yamaha Radian, Suzuki TS185, Yamaha RD400

 

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