| Author | Message | ||
     Terrafirma |
I'll be taking the Uly down for a meeting in Phoenix the last weekend in April. I'm heading out of Denver, traveling on Hwy 285 all the way to Hwy 160. Over Wolf Creek Pass to the 4-corners area. Does any one know of any good campsite in SE Utah, NE Arizona that I can use? I would really like to camp close to Monument Valley. The next day, I'll will heading into Phoenix, any suggestions on a great dual sport route to use? Thanks for any and all input. | ||
| Strokizator |
I did pretty much the same route last June. Aurora to Monument Valley was a pretty long ride. Once you hit Cortez, there's lots of county roads zig-zagging west into Utah but you'll have to ask the locals about the conditions. The 4-corners area is a pretty lonely place to head off-road by yourself. | ||
| Terrafirma |
Strokizator, Thanks for the heads up, I figure that the ride will be a little less than 500 miles, I figure 12-14 hours on the road.I won't go any forest service/BLM trails, just stay on the back roads. My plan is to ride through the Canyon of the Ancients, I drove it a few years ago and thought that it would be a wonderful motorcycle ride. My research on the camping spots in the monument valley area, is mostly first come-first serve, so hopefully on April 28th, there won't be too many campers out there and I'll be able to find a spot. I then plan on riding the interstate into Phoenix on Friday. Meeting on Saturday, then heading back through Payson, Holbrook then up to Cortez and back home over Wolf Creek Pass. Thanks for the info. Mike | ||
| Road_kill |
Your trip sounds great! Last year, I rented a Road King for a 4-day swing through that area. I spent a night at the Goulding's Lodge in Monument valley - a bit pricey but a great view from balcony. The nearby campground looked a bit "parking lot" but ok. I took a jeep tour the next day ... then on to Canyon de Chelly. You can't go wrong in that part of the country. | ||
| Datsaxman |
We took a trip through that part of AZ last month. Pretty terrrific...returned to SoCal by way of Holbrook, Flag, and down the incredibly curvy Hwy 89 through Jerome, and had a great ride in general. | ||
| Terrafirma |
Thanks Roadkill and Datsaxman for all the info. I'm traveling by myself and will probably camp at the Monument. I also like the idea of the ride through Jerome down 89. Thanks again for all of your insight. | ||
| Terrafirma |
Well I did the ride, Left Wednesday morning at 630 AM. I decided to avoid the snows of mountains that fell that night. However, Once I rode south of Castle Rock, I ended up on a solid slab of ice on the road. I decided to get off I-25 and wait until the morning sun melted the ice. After waiting an hour I rode through Colorado Springs and on to Walsenburg, Colorado. Then I headed west on Hwy 160. The roads in Southern Colorado were free of snow and ice, so the uly ate up the miles. I rode through Cortez and headed through the canyon of the ancients. I pulled into Monument Valley and after paying $15.00 for a entrance fee and a camping permit i set up for the night. The following day (Thursday) I rode to Phoenix and parked the bike to attend a number of meetings. Sunday Morning (May 1), I was checking out the weather and decided to ride through Payson, Arizona, then onto Holbrook. I would have to play it be ear, looking at the weather, that would determine my route home. The snow storm decided my route, so I decided to slab it on I-40 to I-25 to Denver. But the weather had plans for me and I ended up riding through about 50 miles of a high desert blizzard just west of Albuquerque, heading north on I-25 was cold but dry, until I got to Las Vegas, New Mexico. I decided to pull off the road for the night and checked into a cheap motel. On Monday, may 2nd I rode through "Snow Showers" all the way to Denver. Overall, the Buell performed flawlessly. The new tires (Trails) had plenty of grip in the dirt, asphalt and the slushy snow. |
