| Author | Message | ||
     Ferris |
i'm planning a portion of an upcoming trip and hoping to get some suggestions from those in the know as to what roads NOT to miss. i'll be taking three days to get from Las Vegas, NV to Albuquerque, NM, beginning at Hoover Dam , aiming northeast thru Zion Nat'l Park, UT and towards Gunnison, CO, and then dropping down towards Albuquerque. thanks in advance, FB  | ||
| Awprior |
Ferris, think I'm going to hop on this one too. I'm in need of route advice CA east to Detroit, by whatever path possible. Looking over weather trends, the further north, the better. I'd love to ride through CO. Thanks, Alex | ||
| Ferris |
Alex, where in CA will you be starting from? and, do ya wanna make time, or do ya wanna do the GOOD stuff? | ||
| Sandblast |
Ferris, my advice to you is to call my boss (and my wife) and convince him (and her) to let me off work, and I will go with you as a guide. We will still get lost, but it will be fun for me at least... | ||
| Ferris |
phone numbers, man, i need phone numbers. | ||
| Phillyblast |
Alex, Passing on good advice given to me by Dale (Rattler) and Tami - Do Not Miss Crazy Horse!! - and trust me see Rushmore before you see Crazy Horse, even if it means doubling back, because it's sort of anti-climactic otherwise. trust me, I know. I walked up to Rushmore 20 minutes after standing in awe of the Crazy Horse monument, and shrugged my shoulders, said "eh, is that it?" and got back on the bike. | ||
| Awprior |
Ferris, This will fall in line with the 'long ass trip' planned for the summer, http://www.badweatherbikers.com/cgibin/discus/show.cgi?tpc=4062&post=235700#POST 235700. I haven't decided where to leave from yet, I need to find a convient place to have the bike shipped, a.k.a. a place to store it or have it picked up, and a convient airport so I can fly in and begin the ride. Scenery and miles will be equally combined, in my book. I guess the longer I am out, the more camping I'll be doing so I can afford the trip. I don't know when I'll have the chance to do something like this again, want to make it as big as I can and see as much as I can. Alex | ||
| Ferris |
Alex, my gears are spinnin', back in a bit... | ||
| Newfie_buell |
Ferris, I'd say a route via Newfoundland would work!!! | ||
| Crusty |
Sure; with a stop in Massachusetts for a nice Eye-talian dinner. Of course, if you prefer, Terri makes one of the best pizzas I've ever had. | ||
| Awprior |
Forgive the cross post, my other thread fell into the digest and is buried, and I don't know how to get it back to the top... So I had a productive evening, drank a few beers and cut up a North American road atlas in the hopes of finding a decent route. This is what I tossed together for the 'Ride for Ware' this summer. http://www.badweatherbikers.com/cgibin/discus/show.cgi?tpc=4062&post=235700#POST 235700. Arrive somewhere in California, chill for a day or two and make sure the bike is unpacked and in one piece, ready to go. Make my way to Anaheim Heights and visit one or two long lost relatives. From Anaheim Heights, head to Las Vegas by way of I-15, continuing on to St. George UT. From St. George, take US-89 through a few mountains, over some streams and stuff to I-70 at Grand Junction, CO. From Grand Junction, take US-50 through some of Colorado's little foothills and valleys to Colorado Springs. From Colorado Springs, Roll up US-24 to I-70 and probably superslab it through Kansas and Missouri. I didn't really see a whole lot of by ways in that area, if you know of any, I'd love to hear about them. I know I'll see a bit of corn. From St. Louis, it's up to Chicago, then to Grand Rapids, MI to visit my buddy and see how he's progressing. Then off to Detroit and the promised land of Newfoundland to see Newfie himself. Granted, I haven't figured out stops yet, need to do that, as well as figure out who may be along some of these routes to do some visiting. Too bad the trip won't be as carefree as jotting a line along a map. If anyone has any suggestions or comments, I'd definitely love to hear them. Many of you have a lot more touring experience than I do. I'll post a pic of my cobbled together map, including highlight when I get to work tomorrow. Thanks  Alex | ||
| Jim_witt |
Dude, All I can do is make a few suggestions. If you wanted to ride the Southwest version of Deal's Gap, then I personally wouldn't miss the Arizona Torque Fest adventure route, meaning Route 191, starting at Clifton Arizona and ending to the North in Alpine Arizona ... impressive. It's about 7 hours out'a your way and South of Albuquerque NM. Then if you end up doing that, you might as well not miss Page (much further North) and Lake Powell, then head down 89 to 89A and see Marble Canyon, then onto 67 South and see the North Rim of the Grand Canyon. Hell, might as well just stay in Arizona for a few days. Cheers, -JW:>  | ||
| Ferris |
Newfie, i've got plans for you (and me 'n Denise) for the summer of '06... Alex, you're welcome to ship your scoot to Bakersfield. i'll retrieve it and ride or haul it in my pick-up (your choice) up here to Lake Isabella and store it (it'd be in very Buellish company) until you arrive. if you wanna fly into LAX i'd be glad to come get you (eight hour r/t from here), or grab a United air-shuttle and transfer into Bakersfield and i'll grab you there (two hour r/t from here). you'd be welcome to hang here at the ThunderDome as long as you'd like (once you see this area you WON'T want to leave), and i can show you the scenic route to Anaheim Heights, to include the famed Angeles Crest Highway. you do NOT want to take I-15 from Los Angeles to Las Vegas -- please, please, PLEASE don't subject yourself to that misery. instead, i'll show you how to go thru Death Valley, a surprisingly sportbike-friendly piece of real estate and not to be missed when passing thru the area. you'll still make good time from LA to Vegas, and you'll also be able to say that you rode from the highest point in the contiguous 48 states (Mount Whitney, 14494 feet) to the lowest point in the Western Hemisphere (Badwater in Death Valley, -282 feet), all in a little over an hour (and what an hour it is!) anyway, all that said, if there's a way that Denise and i can be involved, help, assist, guide, encourage, and/or accompany you on your Grand Adventure, you just say the word, k? ride to lean, FB ps: from Vegas on i can't help much with route choices, hence my original post, altho the suggestion above to see the Black Hills of South Dakota is a good one. | ||
| Awprior |
Ferris, Thanks a ton. I'll give you a call early next week to talk. Jim, I'll take a look at those routes as well. Don't know if I can spend a 'few' days in AZ, but I'll see what I can figure out. I have a lot of miles to cover on this trip... Alex edited by awprior on February 27, 2004 | ||
| Ferris |
Jim, thanks for the suggestions. i'd like to do 191 some time (and say hi to Daryl), but can't on this trip. Gunnison, CO is important to me, need to keep pointed in that general direction, but the name "Marble Canyon" and the images it conjures up intrigues me. what do you think, after i go thru Zion on 9, about making a CCW loop on 89A and 89 thru Kanab, Fredonia, Jacob Lake, Marble Canyon, Page, and then back out towards Zion so i can continue working my way north into Utah on 89? i've never done the Grand Canyon and i'm doing the South Rim on my way west, after Albuquerque -- would i be foolish to be so close to the North Rim on the 89A/89 loop as described above and not take the time to drop down on 67 and take a peek from that vantage point? thanks! FB ps to Alex: looking forward to your call. | ||
| Jim_witt |
FB, HOW do you plan on getting to the South Rim of the Grand Canyon on your way West? Then, once you see it, where you gonna go next from there? -JW:> | ||
| Ferris |
was thinking 89 from I-40 at Flagstaff, thru the park on 64, then south back to I-40 and continuing westward on Route 66. FB | ||
| Jim_witt |
Ferris, To bad you don't have the time to hit all the cool places South of I-40. To name a few, like Oak Creek Canyon! It's directly South of Flagstaff, 89A, some real nice twisties on that puppy down to the Sedona area (about 30 miles).  Then from the Sedona area (incredible scenery) on to Jerome (Court can tell you about that), Camp Verde towards the Rim and come into the backside of Pine, all on 260 (East to West) ... a really sweet ride. Out'a curiosity, what month are we talking about? -JW:> | ||
| Awprior |
Jim, Those roads look awesome. I looked over the other ones you suggested, and they are definitely out of the way for what I have planned. I may have to either extend the trip a few days, or plan to come back another time. The road posted above is phenomonal. Wish I could ride that every morning to work! I'll let you know what my final plans are, maybe we can pound the pavement for a little while this summer. Alex | ||
| Newfie_buell |
Ferris, No Problem - A threesome - interesting but I'd rather two errrrrr gals. Tehehehehehehehe On another note let me in on your little plan. | ||
| Ferris |
Jim, two words: WOW! WOW! think i'm gonna hafta see if i can conjure up a few extra days for this one. if i can, wouldya join me? (oh, early September...) Newf, i bounced a Most Ambitious Idea off of Denise the other night (and true to form she said "When do we leave?!" ), one that's been brewing and fermenting in my fetid little mind for awhile, and one of the cornerstones of said idea came from a post of yours awhile back where you said (i'm paraphrasing here) that you've always wanted to do a Trans-Canada tour. still want to? wouldya mind a little company? ride to dream, FB | ||
| Jim_witt |
Alex mentioned: Those roads look awesome ...... Na, That's noth'in dude ...... give this a shot! or this puppy. -JW:> edited by jim_witt on February 27, 2004 | ||
| Pdxs3t |
When is this trip Ferris? JC | ||
| Oldguy |
Alex - I'll second FB's demand to NOT do the I-15 route to Vegas. Did it a year ago and although the trip was worth it (saw the Art of the Motorcycle at the Guggenheim) the drive was horrible. My advice is to stay OFF of the Interstates unless absolutely necessary. Look at the US or state highways that the Interstates replaced. You'll be able to make good time at a slightly slower pace and have a lot more fun in doing it. They follow the contours of the land instead of plowing straight through and you won't have to dodge every Peterbilt, Winnebago and Buick on the road, because they'll be over on the Interstate. Can't make any suggestions for "must ride" roads, as I haven't been able to travel much recently. However, in 1969 I did ride (on a 250 Montesa) from Philadelphia to Los Angeles in 12 days with 3 rest days visiting friends. Met a lot of great people along the way and have some great memories. Good luck and have a great time. Glenn | ||
| Ferris |
PDX, this September for the ride to Gunnison. summer '06 for the ride to Newf's Land? Alex, what Oldguy said. | ||
| Newfie_buell |
I'd have to ship my bike to British Columbia!!! Or your to Newfoundland!! | ||
| Ferris |
ship? bite your tongue, mister! i think a leisurely ride from CA to NFL to BC back to CA sounds like a cool way to burn a couple of months, don't you? | ||
| Awprior |
Glenn, Advice taken. Ferris has a route for me to take to the Vegas area. I am going to try to stay off of the interstates as much as possible, I need to find the byways around them now. I have my rough route down, it needs a bit of fine tuning. Jim, Those topo maps are sweet. I'll have to take a day and dig through all of them and see what I can add to my trip. Thanks a ton for posting those guys. Ferris, If you end up making your trip to Newfie in '06, I'll ride with ya for a while. I have no idea where I'll be then, but it would be a good time. Hopefully whatever full time job I land allows me to take time off to bounce around the country. Alex | ||
| Firemanjim |
Ferris,that sept ride better be on the way to Bville.!!!!!!!!!!!!! | ||
| Ferris |
Bonneville? isn't that near Pontiac??? |
