Monday August 8th, 2011 Camrose, Alberta to Jasper, Kamloops, Mill Creek - 857 miles

Left Camrose about 0600 local time, clear but very cool. So cool I had my fleece on under my jacket. I used the GPS to get to the Yellowhead Trail (H16), and made really good time around Edmonton. The heavy highway construction I saw last year was still there, some completed, but the crews hadn’t started for the day so I had no delays. I had forgotten that H16 is a dual highway (I used it last year to get to H43 to head north), and in fact it is dual until about 50 miles from Jasper. With very little traffic I made really good time, with no photo stops as the scenery is repetitive.  Jasper National Park is quite spectacular into the Rockies. I must be getting familiar with mountains as I didn’t really see anything that was a ‘wow’ factor, I have to take that photo. I guess having traveled the Rockies many times, and the North Cascades, one gets used to the scenery. 

Jasper and the Rockies:

 After Jasper, the scenery is still great, and at times with more snow on the mountains.  Once clear of the last range, the scenery becomes more of the foothills type, and so into Kamloops. I had expected a lot more holiday traffic, and so made good time, arriving in Kamloops about 2:30 local time (now Pacific). It was far too early to make a stop for the night, so I headed west, across the border at Sumas about 6:00 PM, and arrived home at 8PM.
857 miles, 15 hours travel, not bad. The bike just eats the miles.
So my summer road trip for 2011 has ended. I am not sure about next year yet.

Saturday August 6th, 2011 Shelby, Montana to Camrose, Alberta

Left Shelby with cloudless skies, and the sun just hitting the horizon. It was very cool, but the best morning so far the past few days. No problem at the border and into Alberta., and onto Route 36. A long, straight, flat, and virtually free of traffic road. The scenery was typical eastern Alberta, but progress was great. After about 3 hours I hit Route 56, and into dark clouds, very high winds, and really cold. I was the coldest on the bike I have been in a long time. After Drumheller the sun came out again, and as I rode north the scenery changed quite dramatically, with trees, valleys and even agriculture instead of cattle. It was obvious there had been a lot of rain in July, the grass was really green, and the sloughs full of water. Some fields had part under water still. About an hour before Camrose, clouds again, this time very ominous, and rain started just as I hit a long area of road works, with the sign “slippery when wet”. How is that for timing. Slow riding was in order, and a long single lane area didn’t help. Still by about 15 miles from Camrose the sun came out again and I entered Camrose. First impression was that it was a nice place to live. The surrounding area was certainly a surprise, with evergreens in places. Totally different from the Hanna area.

In Camrose tomorrow, then as Monday looks like being sunny, I’ll most likely head for home via Japer then Kamloops.

Friday August 5th, 2011 Devil Lake, North Dakota to Shelby, Montana 672 miles

Left Devil Lake about 0600, under fairly clear skies, which I had just before Minot. The town was surrounded by thick black clouds, with the occasional lightning to the south. The scenery for that part of the day was same old, apart from heavy flooding still around the Mouse River area. The river was really high, well over its banks. Still, with hardly any traffic on US2 dual lane highway I made good time to Minot, after which the traffic pattern changed dramatically. The oil boom has come to North Dakota, and how, changing the landscape dramatically. Minot seemed like a frontier town, pickups, big rigs, and dirt. The road from Minot to Williston was packed with big rigs hauling tankers, drilling equipment, and large construction debris trailers. As they generally entered the road from a dirt area, the road was very dirty. Which meant when I hit heavy rain showers, instead of washing my bike, it got dirtier. It was interesting to see the various oil sites along the road. Areas cleared to house oil pumping donkeys and storage containers, with the flames burning off the gas, drilling platforms, mobile and RV cities, and pipe line construction sites. These were sited amongst the normal prairie sights such as grain and cow pastures. I bet some landholders are making a killing. Many of the big rigs are those used for long distance hauling, and it would seem that it is more profitable to haul dirt than produce for the owner driver. Some signs were out advertising for drivers. All in all it was a very interesting ride, and the time zipped by as did the miles. Williston is much like Minot, busy, noisy and dirty.

After Williston I entered Montana, and my dual highway disappeared, but traffic also lightened. At times I was on my own for miles, and the scenery became the normal prairie for miles until Shelby. Despite showers and light rain for most of the day, progress was great, with very little traffic through Glasgow, Malta and Havre. The only delay was extensive roads works just before Havre.

So into Shelby for the night. The sun was actually shining here, which was nice after a cool and damp ride under black skies for most of the day. No thunderstorms though, which was great. The town is full of bikes, most likely from Canada on the way to Sturgis. It starts tomorrow. Many bikes were heading the opposite direction to me after Williston, all most likely heading for the big event.

Tomorrow I ride the 15 miles to the Canadian border, then on to Camrose for a couple of nights. Most likely I will not blog until I leave there for home.

Thursday August 4th, 2011 Ironwood, MI to Devil Lake, North Dakota 474 miles

I hadn’t intended to stop here, but circumstances made the decision. I stopped here for gas, and asked how far to Minot. “About 90 miles, and I think the road is open”. Huh?. I guess they had serious flooding there a couple of weeks ago when a dam burst, and so the question then became, what about motels. I phoned home for Google help, and it turns out all the motels are fully booked, the next stop would be 90 miles into Montana. So I checked in here in Devil Lake.

So the day was really riding US2 for 474 miles, and many more to go. Immediately after leaving the motel, I crossed into Wisconsin. The morning was OK, very cool, and some good scenery when passing a view of Lake Superior. Some towns on the lake looked interesting. Most of the scenery is basically riding through forests, with some lakes behind the trees, according to the signs. Plenty of Resorts, and camp grounds. It seemed very much like Northern Ontario again. Onto Duluth, a major Minnesota industrial town and port on the Great Lakes. One forgets the lakes have many ships transporting goods. It marks the western end of Lake Superior, and seeing as I had been riding along it for 2 days, it shows how large the lake is. After that it was much the same, and then Minnesota became prairie like and continued so into North Dakota. US2 was a good road to Duluth, after that it is a dual highway all the way to Montana, and beyond. Incredible to ride what is basically a freeway, with hardly any traffic, yet is a red road. One passes through a variety of towns, with populations varying into a few hundred. Although it is a great road to ride, one needs to be aware of the lack of gas stations, and motels. Towns with both a few and far between, and if you miss one, the next may be 90 miles or so down the road.

Devil Lake must be the dust bowl of North America. One sees a mass of huge dump trucks moving dirt up and down the road, convoys of them. Everything is covered in dirt dust, roads, sidewalks, vehicles, the lot. My bike was covered just by riding a few miles down US2. Dirt must be an industry in town.

I also found out why everyone drives here. I walked for a meal and cut across some grass. I was swarmed by mossies. Small but numerous. Talking of grass, no shortage of rain on the ride to-day. The grass was really green all the way. I did cross the Red River at Grand Forks, and it was still very high, with some banks under water. I also crossed the Mississippi River, and it must have been near the source as it was really just a creek.

So tomorrow I hit US2 again, for some 650 miles to Shelby in Montana.

Wednesday August 3rd, 2011 Waterloo, Ontario to Ironwood, MI 750 miles

So my time in Ontario visiting family and friends ends, time to head west for home. Had a great time, and the bike got plenty of action with pillion riders.

Left Waterloo at 0600, light rain, drizzle and low clouds. Not too much water on the roads, and light traffic so it was good going. I took H7 until cutting down to the 402, and then to Sarnia. No waiting at the border, and into Michigan. Most of the morning weather was on/off drizzle, but it was much cooler than of late, at least 25*F, and I was glad of the jacket besides it being waterproof.

So west on I69, then north on I75 and across the Mackinaw Bridge. Very impressive, and quite the site of the lakes as you cross. The scenery until then was like northern Ontario as one went north. Woods, marsh and some lakes. Northern Michigan is obviously a large recreation area, camping, fishing, canoeing. Once across the bridge I picked up H2 (the same one in Washington), and headed west. It travels right alongside the northern shores of Lake Michigan, and has many sandy beaches. I then cut north to pick up R23, and rode along the south shore of Lake Superior. Scenic if you like a huge lake, more like an ocean. It was windy, so lots of whitecaps.

Most of the day I experienced little traffic, but did see an enormous number of bikes on a road trip. I guess the area is very popular for that as well as recreational vacations. Along H2 were many touristy places and stores, but at times nothing in the way of houses, or gas stations. I thanked having my 6 gallon tank a few times to-day.

About 4 pm I entered into blue skies, I guess the tail end of the front, and it soon warmed up. I found out that Ironwood had torrential rain yesterday, and the motel was struck by lightning. It seems the forecast is good for the next few days, so hopefully I’ll get good weather.

So tomorrow, it is onto Duluth, then H2 west for a few hundred (or thousand) miles.

Wednesday July 13th, 2011 Macedon to Bowmanville, Ontario

Back along I90, across the border at Niagara, QEW, 403, and then the 401. The only part of interest was heading from I90 to the border crossing, all the bridges and crossing the Niagara River. Quite scenic.

So 3 weeks of visiting family and friends before starting for home.

Monday July 11th, 2011 Portage to Macedon, NY

Uneventful ride along the I80/I90 turnpike, then onto I90, past Buffalo to Macedon, spending a couple of nights with friends.

Sunday July 10th, 2011 Omaha to Portage, Indiana 519 miles

I left Omaha about 1000, crossed the Missouri River into Iowa, and headed east towards Des Moines, then Illinois. Based on discussions with my friends, and taking into consideration road closures due to flooding, I decided to hit the direct route towards Chicago, bypass it to the south, then head directly towards Buffalo and Rochester. It was the 3 Hs weather-wise. Hot, humid, and hazy. Actually it was more overcast most of the way to the Illinois border, where it was fairly sunny. The scenery was corn, corn and more corn, and the same in Illinois. Quite boring after the first few miles. At least there were some bends, and slight rises in the road. The only things of note were crossing the Mississippi into Illinois, and also the amount of road works and lane closures. A good job it was Sunday. I realized the day after seeing many bikes heading west in the morning, all loaded up, then those in the afternoon out for a spin, shorts, tanks tops and no helmets. It is ones choice. I could never ride a Harley in shorts, my engines get too hot. One would sear the legs more than getting gravel rash. So tomoorw I head for Macedon, New York, until Wednesday, then across the border into Canada at Buffalo.

Saturday July 9th, 2011 Kearney to Omaha, Nebraska about 190 miles

Just a short ride to Omaha to visit some friends, and stay the night with them. I had the tour of Omaha, and was really surprised as to how open the city was, with lots of green space and parks. It is a nice city. We did visit the river front to see the Missouri River. It is incredible how high, and fast the river is running. The spot we were standing was above a river walk, with tables, chairs and umbrellas. The only visible objects were the tops of the umbrellas, and apparently it is starting to recede. The river front area is really well developed for the public, and well done. The downtown was humming with locals out for Saturday night, and we spent some time in the old quarter. Like I said I was impressed with the city. I did get to see where the local celebrity lived, Warren Buffet’s house. A little different from the one owned by his buddy, Bill Gates.

Friday July 8th, 2011 Parachute to Kearney, Nebraska - 573 miles

A tale of two totally different rides. One of the problems of trying to recap the day’s sights is that you cannot remember it all. One needs a microphone to make verbal notes as you ride.

It was a great morning for a ride, cool and clear. Cool enough for my jacket. Leaving Parachute and heading East on I70, following the Colorado river, and whence the river goes, so does the road. For the first 60 or so miles, the road cuts through a canyon heading into the Rockies. I really like to ride the North Cascades, but this was something else. Heading East, the river is alongside the road, in fact, if you fell over the barrier wall you would end up in the river. And it is not a slow meandering river at this point. Fast with rapids. The railway line is the other side of the river. Another example of how the engineers really pulled out all the stops to build the railway, then again the road. Much of it is raised on pylons, crossing the river at times. Quite a magnificent sight to ride it, with the red granite sides of the canyon reaching to the sky. The landscape then broadens out into a kind of plain, still following the river, with the actual Rockies in the distance. Next up was Vail. I decided to pay a visit, so rode around the village, viewing all the sights. ‘No street parking’ was posted everywhere, although there was a parking garage free for the summer. I did the grand tour on my bike, getting a few odd looks. It was quite deserted, I guess the rich and famous were off doing their thing, whatever that is. Some of the cottages – mansions up on the high peaks were quite a sight. I have no idea how some drive up there, maybe they helicopter in. The actual town was really nice looking, very clean and obviously reeking dollars. Nothing like the ski resorts we have in Washington. Even Whistler seems cheaper in comparison.

I then continued east, over Vail Pass (over 10000 feet), and into the Rockies. The road still follows the river, although it is getting smaller and narrower as it nears its source. The scenery was still fantastic, and then into the Eisenhower Tunnel (elevation 11000+ feet). Once out of the tunnel, the highway descends for what seems ages, and eventually I arrived in Denver. It looked a lot like the pictures one sees, another modern city of high rises, so I decided to move on east.

Once out of Denver, the scenery changes to the prairies, for miles and miles. Quite different from the previous 150 miles. Flat and boring all the way to the Nebraska state line, where it continues for goodness knows how many miles. It was interesting that in Colorado, to the south of the highway was just the prairie, with no trees. To the north was actually agriculture, and trees. Obviously there was a water source for irrigation. Once I crossed into Nebraska, both sides were agriculture, mostly corn, mile after mile of it. Occasionally there were cattle ranches, which you knew were coming by the smell. Obviously not naturally fed. I had my longest stretch so far of road works in Nebraska, about 12 miles of filtered into the other lane traffic. So far it has not been too bad, where there have been road works or lane closures, there has been relatively little delay. At least they fix the roads, not like I5.

Like I said, the tale of two rides. One could have spent a few days just stopping along the road to Denver, the scenery was awesome. One thing of note to-day was that there was no shortage of towns along the way, with gas and services, unlike yesterday in Idaho and Utah.

So tomorrow I head for Omaha, to visit friends, then will head east again on Sunday. I think tomorrow is Saturday, time has disappeared again, there is just to-day.

Thursday July 7th, 2011 Twin Falls to Parachute, Colorado 567 miles.

Now I know where all the Idaho spuds are grown. Leaving Twin Falls on I84, one experiences mile after mile of potato fields, all being irrigated. I guess it is like the Yakima valley, only here it is the Snake River that supplies the water. Once the fields disappeared, it became much like the prairies, no trees, no fields, just open space. Mountains were in the distance at times, some with snow. Mile after mile until the Utah border,

Into Utah:

Water is definitely the differentiator, with more in these places, a lot more produce could be grown. With no activity, no towns, just nothing but prairies, not flat but small hills. This continued into Utah until I got near Brigham and Salt Lake. I was now riding I15, and this runs south with the lake on one side, and mountains on the other. I think 90% of the population in Utah must live in the corridor. You pass many malls, big box stores, and refineries, all packed together. Interestingly, the only high rise buildings seem to be in Salt Lake City. It looks like Seattle, with the snow capped mountains behind it. I stopped for a while to visit the Temple Square. If you think Seattle has a parking problem, try this place. At least Seattle has signs for ‘Public Parking’. I gave up looking and entered a private parking garage and asked where I could park. I think it must have been under a Mormon building as the attendant was dressed in a black suit, white shirt, and black tie. Anyway, he gave me directions. So I went to the Square. Very clean and scrubbed. The visitors center is quite something, with huge religious paintings et al. I wasn’t sure about photos, so didn’t. Interestingly the Temple seemed to be walled in, like a private space, unlike other cathedrals which are very open in aspect.

Temple Square:

On leaving I headed south, then cut off on US6 to Price. This was a great ride, into red canyons and over the mountains. I got a few sprinkles between Brigham and Price, it must have been holy water. Once past Price it was through the desert for 70 miles or so, and it started to get hot again. Nothing on this straight road, no gas either. I hit I70 and headed East towards Denver. Again for about 60 miles it was desert, at least there were signs warning of no services. It was odd seeing miles of nothing, with snow capped mountains in the far distance. Into Colorado, and the scenery changed, more green.

Utah heading towards Colorado:

Into Colorado:

I rode through Grand Junction, and there was the Colorado River alongside the road. Riding by the Colorado River in Colorado, how cool is that. We followed the river for miles, through canyons not unlike the Grand one. Very spectacular. So I decided to call it a day in Parachute, a brand new Comfort Inn, and you get AARP rates. I had little choice for a meal without firing up the bike, Mexican, Chinese or Subs. I elected for the former. It was fun. Real Mexicans, watching Mexico beat Germany 3-2 at soccer. They do get excited.

Colorado River near Parachute:

On to Denver tomorrow. Maybe I’ll reach Nebraska.

Wednesday July 6th, 2011 Mill Creek to Twin Falls, ID. About 680 miles.

Heading out:

Left Mill Creek about 0700, headed for I90, over Snoqualmie Pass, then I82 to Yakima and Richland. Over the Columbia River into Oregon, and then picked up I84 to head South East. It was a great day for a ride, nice and cool first thing, in fact it was chilly going over the pass, but warmed up in Eastern Washington, and really got hot in Oregon. I did see a temperature gauge that said 98*F. It felt like it. Eastern Oregon is a bit like Washington, lots of nothing with a few towns in between. Once past Pendleton, there are hills, or small mountains, some still had snow on them. There are actually Blue Mountains en route, a surprise. I crossed into Idaho, around Boise, and on to Twin Falls for the night. This place looks a real tourist area, many families here, and riding into town there was an incredible view of a gorge and river. The sun was dead into the camera, so I’ll try to take it tomorrow. Eastern Idaho was more of the prairie type scenery. I was a bit surprised. I had expected more hills, and greenery.

To-day was really a shakedown run, settling into the routine of touring, and training the butt to be quiet. Actually the seat is stock, and not too bad. The bike ran well, totally different from other bikes, with a 6 speed and cruise control. I actually let it run from I90 to Pendleton, in 6th, up the passes no problem. It sure is nice to have the bigger gas tank as well, knowing I have at least 200 miles between gas stops. I think water stops become more frequent than gas stops with this heat.

Tomorrow it is into Utah, and possibly into Colorado.

Snake River at Twin Falls Idaho:

Ride for 2011

OK, so I hadn't really planned for a blog for this year, but a few people had asked so here I go. Nothing really spectacular for this one. I plan to ride to Toronto and back, but take in a few States I haven't ridden in before, like Colorado and Nebraska. I would like to avoid the Chicago area heading East, but may hit it home-bound. Also, Sturgis is happening the first week of August, so I may have to work out a bypass route for my return. Nothing against Sturgis, been there done that, but getting a motel in the area during the happening is hard, especially as the rates are jacked right up, and getting one for a night impossible. So the basic directions are below. I have a stay over in Omaha, and also Rochester NY to visit friends. Notice it is mostly Interstates, but that is to get the general direction of travel and I have no time constraints this year.

With such great weather, it looks like D day is Wednesday 6^th July. The bike is cleaned and serviced, chomping at the bit; I haven’t packed yet, but have most things ready. I’ll update once on the road.


Theoretical route.