2023 Adventure 1
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Monday, May 29, 2023
2023 Adventure 1 - The Wrap Up
May 29, 2023
This map shows the route pretty close to what we actually traveled. The exception is in the lower right where we didn't go through Tucson but the map software limited the number of waypoints I could put in so we have that anomaly. Other than that, it's pretty close.
This map shows the route pretty close to what we actually traveled. The exception is in the lower right where we didn't go through Tucson but the map software limited the number of waypoints I could put in so we have that anomaly. Other than that, it's pretty close.
We did 21 miles short of 4,000 miles in 10 days, meaning we averaged 400 miles a day. I get 54 miles to the gallon on my bike and while I did sort of keep track of gas on the trip, a quick calculation tells me that I used about 74 gallons and, at an average price of $4.50, that means I spent $331 on fuel. Lodgings were inexpensive since camping was free some of the time and the fees totaled under $75 for the whole trip. Other than food, which I'd have to eat anyway, the whole adventure cost less than $500. That's lots of fun for not much money.
I always like to take some time after an adventure to reflect on it, see what bubbles to the top, and if anything happened that would change what I would do in the future. Here it is for the 2023 Adventure 1.
The first thing that comes to mind is that I was colder than I anticipated. Yes, it was 104 degrees F when crossing the desert but that wasn’t as bad as it sounds, especially when compared to the cold night spent at Bates State Park in Oregon. That 30 degrees was something I wasn’t prepared for. I had the same issue last year when I camped at the O’Brien campground on the Salmon River, again 30 degrees in the morning. While my heavier, cold weather motorcycle gloves work, I’d like to have what I use for my running gloves, smaller and in 2 layers. I will also never leave home without bringing my knit hat. Keeping my bald head warm is a must and, other than my helmet, I only had a baseball cap, something difficult to sleep in.
And sleeping…I need to reevaluate my sleeping bag. I bought it in 1979 for the cross country riding I was doing that summer and it’s the only bag I’ve used for traveling since then. In better weather it works fine but I think that the insulation might have lost some of its lofting. I have another bag but it’s a bit bulkier so I’m wondering if they make newer bags that have less bulk but higher insulation properties. That’s something to look into.
Another issue that has come up is age-related. I suppose it was inevitable but even though I work out to keep myself in reasonable good shape, the wear and tear on parts is coming to the forefront. In particular, I was, long ago, diagnosed with carpal tunnel syndrome in my right hand and instead of opting for surgery I did, and do, physical therapy by stretching and resting. While it mainly impacts my drawing, when I do that it’s easy to take a break every 15 minutes, but on a motorcycle ride, that really isn’t an option. Having cruise control helps a lot but this trip really hammered my right hand. By the last morning I could barely make a fist when I first got up. Perhaps surgery for that would remedy this but after 3 surgeries in the past 5 years it’s not something I want to do right now. Plus, it’s something I’d only schedule for winter when riding season is over.
Maybe a change in angle on the grips would help. My bars are adjustable, to a point, so maybe I’ll have to try that. Some guys install bar risers so that could be an option as well. It really is something that I need to address as the discomfort does impact the enjoyment, especially with the more technical requirements of riding the twisties.
Another physical issue came up for me on this trip as well. After 2-3 days on the road, I started having massive leg cramps at night in one leg or the other. At first I thought it might be a side-effect of a statin drug I’d just started taking but I cut my dose in half and even missed a day and still was on the verge of these cramps. After returning home I resumed my normal dosage and I have no cramps. At this point I am leaning toward a lack of physical activity as the culprit. While piloting a motorcycle is certainly a physical activity, it really is sedentary and, considering that I workout by running or swimming on most days, going cold turkey from that on this trip and sitting in one position for hours at a time is the likely cause of the cramps. Dr. Google even backs up that idea.
On previous rides it was not uncommon to get up after sunrise, don my running gear, and go out for a 3-5 miles run. The only time I did anything close to that was the cold morning I woke up to at Bates State Park and I got out for a 45 minute hike at a very brisk pace. No leg cramping that night. I think I see the solution to the problem.
On this ride I averaged about 400 per day. That’s fine but I think in future rides I want to intersperse that with some way shorter days. When I see something interesting to draw, I want to stop, get out my stool, my sketchbook, pencils and pens, and watercolors, and sit for the 2 hours or so it takes to get an urban sketch done. Combining riding and drawing is as attractive to me as the combining of my photography with drawing as I’ve done over the past couple years. Last summer/fall I was riding to the nearby town of Fromberg, MT and doing some drawing, eventually completing the north side of their Main Street. I really like the results. I am guessing these might end up being 250 mile days on a long trip.
The dashcam was a revealing experience on the trip. At first I wasn’t sure if I would do it, or would want to put up with the hassle, but after returning and going through the video clips I picked up, I’m sold. I have some great footage of the scenery and all from the point of view of the bike.
The problem with the cam I am using is that I don’t really understand its workings. The instructions are rather vague. I think it just records 3-5 minute clips before starting the next one. Once the memory card is full it goes back and writes over the earlier files, limiting the number of video files it can record. At times, when I know it was supposed to be recording, it sometimes wasn’t. Files are named in a numbered sequence and I was missing a bunch within the sequence and have no idea what happened to them.
To make things more complicated, I would download the files from the camera's memory card to my iPad in the evening. I had to get two adapters to make it happen but it worked fine until the iPad got full. I suppose bringing along some high capacity flash drives would be a solution BUT I will look for a more complete fix. On the motorcycle forums this is discussed and other riders have mentioned having a camera permanently mounted to the bike. It records to a unit mounted under the seat whenever the ignition is on. That sounds like a great solution and I’ll have to track down what they are using.
Other electronic issues were not really issues. I have two USB charging ports in my tank bag. One is usually dedicated to running the webcam and the other is hooked to my phone. I have an Anker backup battery that I like to keep topped up so it has to take turns with the phone. I have an extra port in my glovebox and I might have to run some wiring out of there to add an extra charging point. I have my iPad with me and I had to charge it twice. Once I used the Anker battery which took it to 75% and the other time I ran my extra-long USB cable to the iPad which I had placed in my satchel behind me so it could charge while I was riding. This is all a necessity if I want to document my travels and I mostly have it working fine but it’s just something to keep on top of.
I didn’t take a paper map on this trip, figuring I could just rely on the map app on my phone. That works until there is no cell service so, based on my experience this time, I’d bring a paper map as a backup as I’ve done on previous rides.
Food and cooking was fine this time out. The backpacker meals are still the way to go due to their simplicity of only requiring boiling water. I’d filled my main fuel bottle and only used about 2/3 of it, not needing the extra bottle I’d brought. This was the same experience I had last year so the extra bottle might get left behind on the next 10-day ride. The breakfast oatmeal mix really worked well. It was filling and simple to do, again, just add water. As I’ve done on past rides, I like to eat out for lunch. I want to get a fresh salad and a piece of bread at least every other day so Subway sandwiches, found nearly everywhere, are fine for that. As a vegetarian, I know that my options are limited and the last thing I want on the road is fried fast food. I never eat it at home so I’m not going to eat it on the road.
On my last long rides, in this blog I mentioned the music I listen to while riding. I have the same playlist on my phone but on this trip I listened way less than I have in the past. I never listen while I am riding in a town of any size, nor do I listen when I am riding the twisty roads, because I find the music to be a distraction when I need to concentrate on what I am doing. For whatever reason, on this trip, even on the long, straight roads, I generally did not have the music on as I enjoyed the solitude and the time to think. Think about what? Well, stuff I am trying to find the answers to and it takes some time to mull over the issues and attempt to draw some conclusions. One topic I like to think on that I just can't while I am riding is about my artwork. As a visual artist, I think in pictures, sometimes representational and other times abstract. These images stream to me in full color as if they are right in front of me and that is a dangerous situation whether riding a motorcycle or driving a car so I avoid that topic until I'm off the road.
The bike did get a pretty good wash after I returned home but it still needs some touching up. I did change the oil and filter today so it's ready for more riding.
That’s about all that comes to mind at the moment. I’m getting pretty good at this motorcycle camping having now done, in the past 2 years, 3 trips totaling around 14,000 miles. It’s loads of fun and I hope to continue doing it as long as I can throw my leg over the bike. After all, I am hitting the 4 corners of the lower 48 states and I only have Key West in Florida to finish the set.
Friday, May 26, 2023
2023 Adventure 1 - Day 10
May 26, 2023
It was another chilly night but not as bad as the last one. The Conservation Corps folks were taking down their tents and getting their breakfast together while we started our morning routines. I made myself a cup of hot cocoa, the cup which made a good hand warmer. Things were pretty damp and while I don’t like packing the tent up that way, it’s the last day and I’ll get it dried out when I get home.
Before getting too far, we gassed up in Wisdom and started the ride to Dillon, MT.
It's quite beautiful out although we need to cross those mountains at some point.
As we got close to the small town of Jackson, the road was covered with something that made me concerned about slipping: several miles of manure. It looks like they had a cattle drive here very recently. Down the road a ways, we stopped for a photo opportunity.
In that background are the mountains and clouds we need to go through and go through them we did. The fog got so thick that I could barely see what was ahead and kept my speed at 35 MPH or slower to give me enough time to brake should I encounter something on the road.
We left the cloud as we descended the other side of the mountain and it felt good get into the clear again. In front of the college in Dillon we pulled over to wipe down our visors which had a heavy condensation from the fog.
We headed toward Twin Bridges and Whitehall with the plan to get gas. We rode through a fair amount of rain along the way so when we stopped to gas up in Cardwell, MT, I got my rain gear on. That is pretty much a guarantee that the rain will stop and, for the most part, it did.
As we went across Bozeman Pass, my odometer turned off to 25,000 miles. That’s a lot of riding from when I picked the bike up, new, in April 2021. Considering that there are 5 months per year where it doesn’t get ridden, due to our weather, that means that I’ve ridden it for 14-15 months since I’ve had it. That works out to about 1,700 miles per month.
We grabbed the slab (AKA the Interstate) and rode that to Big Timber for another gas stop. From there is was a quick ride to Laurel where we exited the freeway and took our tradition route between there and Billings via Buffalo Trail. We honked our good-byes as we passed the turnoff to Bill’s and I arrived home a few minutes later to a welcoming wife and a happy dog.
It was a 335 mile day. The trip total 3,979 miles.
What a GREAT trip!!!
2023 Adventure 1 - Day 9
May 25, 2023
And more.
Today’s entry is a short one. Part of this is because it was a day of riding to rack up the miles and because I’m writing this offline in my tent.
The night at Bates State Park in Oregon was cold. I woke up about 2:30am and was shivering. Was wearing most of my clothes and was inside my sleeping bag but the cold was still finding me. My toes were cold and my fingers were cold. I rearranged things a bit and was eventually able to fall back asleep but woke up about 4:30 with the birds and laid there trying to figure out how to get warm.
At 5am I got the rest of my clothes on, put my running shoes on, and ventured outside the tent. There was a pretty heavy frost.
I turned fired up the ignition on my bike and saw that the air temperature sensor said it was 30 degrees. Well, the best way to warm is to get moving and I did so, hiking the nearby trails at a brisk pace. Once I’d been out for 30 minutes I was feeling pretty good. I shot a few photos on my outing.
This state park has an interesting history. It was originally the sawmill town of Bates and the pond in the photo above is the old mill pond that fed the water-powered tools. The area where I am camping was where the housing was and there was also a hotel on the property, yes, the Bates Hotel. Other than the pond, little is left of the original town but they do have some interpretive displays about the history. More can be found here: Wikipedia and Oregon Encyclopedia.
We went though the usual morning routine and hit the road about 8:45. We didn’t have cell service so I couldn't do much with the map but I knew we were following Hwy 26 to the east. The ride is varied, going through farmland and mountains.
Today is all about logging miles, wanting to get back to Billings before things get nuts for the Memorial Day Weekend.. We plan to end up in Wisdom, MT today, getting us back to Billings on Friday. We went though lots of small towns, following the instructions from Google navigator. We stopped for gas and we stopped for butt breaks and a few photos.
In Ontario, Oregon we saw this business. No doubt what is transacted there.
We stopped in Fruitland, Idaho and found a city park. I wanted a break and also wanted to update the last two blog entries. I had good cell service here so it didn’t take very long. Just as we were getting ready to go, a nearby school invaded the park.
On Hwy 21, crossing into Idaho, we got lots of twists and turns so it was fun and challenging. We pulled over here for a photo.
And more.
I used the dashcam a bunch today and will try to extract some images and add them here after I get back. [I'm back so here they are.]
We re-entered Montana and started down the mountain we were on which is near the Lost Trail Ski Area. One of the highlights was slowing down for a beaver crossing the road.
In Wisdom we pulled into their free campground which was already heavily populated by members of the Montana Conservation Corps. They are working on a project at the Big Hole Battlefield site which is nearby. I had fun chatting with their leaders and learning about the the things they’ve done and upcoming projects.
Bill and I had our dinners and got to bed to hunker down for what looks like another chilly night.
It was a 459 mile day.
Thursday, May 25, 2023
2023 Adventure 1 - Day 8
May 24, 2023
Another day of riding and another day of limited cell service so I am, again, writing this offline with hopes to update it tomorrow.
This morning was cold. Both Bill and I remarked that it had been a cold night and neither of us brought enough warm gear. This was probably because we were focused on the hot riding we would do across the desert and weren’t really thinking about how cold it can be when camping at elevation. By the time I got up, Bill had a fire going and we stood around that as we acclimated to the day.
I made myself some cocoa and warmed up my oatmeal mix. I pre-made both the cocoa mix the oatmeal and put them in zip-lock baggies so all I have to do is add water. If I add the water the night before to the oatmeal, it’s called “overnight oatmeal.” If I forget to do do that, I just add some warm water right to the baggie in the morning. A single serving has something like:
1/2 cup old fashion oatmeal
1/4 cup powdered milk
2 Tablespoons flax meal
2 Tablespoons oat bran
1 Tablespoon chia seeds
1 Tablespoon roasted almonds, whole
1 Tablespoon roasted pepitas (pumpkin seeds), whole
1 Tablespoon roasted cashews, chopped
1 Tablespoon raisins
To that I add about 3/4 cup water.
It tasted great and is a good way to start the day, camping or not.
The cocoa is a premix I make:
1 part cocoa
2 parts instant milk
2 parts powdered sugar
1 part powdered peanut butter
I put about 2 Tablespoons of that in a cup and add hot water. Yum.
Our campsite was really quiet since we were the only ones there. It was about a 3 mile ride off Hwy 395 and most of the way was paved. The sites were pretty good sized and we were surrounded by heavy forest.
We got packed up and left about 8am and headed north on Hwy 395. We are 3 days from home and now it’s about getting the miles done while enjoying the scenery and curvy roads when we could find them. Our first stop was at a rest stop, about 60 miles out for several reasons, one being obvious, but I also wanted to turn on the dashcam.
The rest stop was really small, with only a few parking places and two pit toilets. There was a picnic table and on it was an older guy was sitting there busking. No kidding. Here with very little traffic he has his acoustic guitar out, an amp, and his guitar case open for tips. He was playing well enough but I didn’t pay much attention as I ended up talking to a woman who was waiting for the guy she was traveling with to finish his business. She’s from Eugene, OR and traveling with her brother who has a ranch in Gardiner, MT but lives in Great Falls. They had a very little dog with them of the boutique variety.
The next part of the day turned into a bit of an adventure. Bill has a shorter range on has bike than I do, something we definitively established the other day in Julian when he sucked air instead of fuel at 198 miles. We, well he, has to keep track and we sort of plan where to stop. We’d gassed up somewhere and figured the next place would be OK but when we got there, a village called Likely, their pump was broken. The woman at the shop was very apologetic and said the repairman was on the way but it could be a hour or more.
A guy from across the street at the fire station came over and told us that a guy back down the street, around a corner, sort of by the church, had a pump and might sell some gas.
Next door is the town bar and guy sitting out front comes over and gets involved and
ends up offering Bill some gas out of a plastic gas can. Bill takes him up on the offer.
I waited on the side of the road.
While sitting there I saw this:
I am working on series of drawings back home on the theme of "abandonment" and this might make it into the series.
The ride to the next town is a little less than 20 miles away, Alturas. At the first gas station we pulled in to, all the pumps were out of service. At the next one only half the pumps were broken so we gassed up and charted the next leg of the ride. On the way out of town I spied the county courthouse and got another photo for my collection, my FJR in front of county courthouses.
We rode past Goose Lake which looked pretty dry but the roads alongside it was fun.
We stopped at a rest stop, near Lakeview, for a butt break, and shot a few photos, including some of the cattle across the way.
A few miles up the roads we had to stop for construction and this one was the longest waits we’ve had on the trip, about 20 minutes. Might as well take some photos.
We got to Burns, OR and gassed up again and went to a Subway for lunch. We planned the next piece of the day and also discussed options should Bill’s bike need gas when it wasn’t available. Siphoning from mine is a possibility so we went next door to Shiptons and he bought a length of tubing that should work well for that.
From there we headed to John Day, OR, a ride that took us up though some beautiful canyons and forested sweeper curves. Great stuff.
We gassed up in John Day and popped into the grocery store next door to get liquid refreshments to go with the evening meal.
About getting gas in Oregon….the state passed a law decades ago that was a make-work thing that masqueraded as a safety effort which says that customers cannot pump their own gas. Many station have islands labeled “Full” and others labeled “Mini.” With the former, the customer gets the treatment like it was 1950, possibly check tire pressure and oil level, however, I think just gets windows cleaned. The mini service is someone just taking your credit card and pumping your gas. This became an issue with many motorcyclists since the employees know nothing about bikes and would either under-fill or over-fill that gas tank. I’ll let your mind imagine the scene when a certain type of rider, say on a Harley, sees gasoline running out the top of his tank onto his paint job. A few years ago, the legislature make an exception to the law for motorcycles and, I think, certain vintage cars. Anyway, we are able to pump our own gas in Oregon.
While I’m on the gas issue, California has its own thing, a vapor recovery boot on all gas nozzles. While using these on a car is not a problem, on a bike it causes the pump to shut off when the tank is only half full. To get around this, the boot has to be defeated/tricked by pulling it back far enough so it thinks it’s pressed up against the tank filler tube. I won’t go into the reason behind these boots but it’s area I was deeply involved in during a previous career lifetime.
So, we ended up at Bates State Park campground, a place I camped on my Northwest Adventure last September.
A great 425 mile day.
A couple photos inside my tent.
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