I've got the itch

[limeex2]

Ive done trips with and with out friends. Camped and hoteled it. Its all good as long as you have wind in your face. This year I made my second trip to Colorado and then added in the 4 corners area of the Grand Canyon, Zion, Bryce and countless others. This time I rode with a high school friend(I'm 58) who had 40k on his Concourse and it had never been out of Mn/Wi. Took back roads from Mn and didnt hit a stop light until southern Co. That area is absolutely stunning with amazing roads. Riding alone forces you to meet people and interact with total strangers. Everyone has always been friendly, think that I must be superman for attempting my Journey. When I ride my Triumph, the first comment is "I had a Triumph in high school" and the conversations go from there.

Fall riding is my favorite time of the year. Less heat, bugs, tourists and beautiful fall colors and much easier to see deer. But when the weather turns it can turn really hard and for me if its going to turn into a adventure I would rather be warm and dry.

[GS1150Pilot]

Tuesday I spent several hours on Rt 395 down through CT (going down to Westerly RI and the beaches) and another several hours on RT 95 back thru RI.

Pretty much the only super slabs I've done this season and I've done about 30K on the FZ1 this year.

I only bring it up because it reminded me how little I like being on them, no joy.

I've been cross country three times, shipping my bike to LA and riding it back. About 10K miles each time going west to east. Typically 3 week duration.

If you haven't seen the country I highly recommend it , however I've done enough of the flat lands to diminish my itch to do them again.

My dream trip would start in the Flag Staff area and would zig zag back and forth over the Rockies till I reached Jasper NP in Canada. Then back south on the coast and Rt. 1. Stay mostly in hotels and take as little gear and clothes as possible. Buy new clothes every several days and mail the dirty ones home.

My main reason for doing it would enjoying the roads and its difficult to do that when the bike is loaded like a mule.

Bottom line from my perspective is do as few Hwys as possible.

It's pretty easy to pack light enough to use only one dry bag.

[isleoman]

It's pretty easy to pack light enough to use only one dry bag.

My thinking is your going to buy souvenir T-shirts along the way so just send the old stuff home (dirty).

Laundry matts, cooking, and doing dishes is not part of my ideal Moto vacation.

I like camping and have world class ultra light, light, and medium weight camping gear but unless you're just doing a hammock and sleeping bag you're still going to end up with 25 lbs of sleeping stuff and another 25 lbs of clothes and other essentials. Throw in a significant other and you've got a full boat.

If I was going the camping route I would be more inclined to do a Sprinter Type van with the bike inside or on a trailer, then my wife could do her share of driving along the boring roads.

[Sandy]

This is my long haul touring configuration. Looks cumbersome but with all bags full they weigh a total of about 60- 65 lbs. In this config I can basically travel and camp indefinitely with laundry about once a week. Between a lot of backpacking and canoe touring over the years I've accumulated some pretty good, compact and light gear and can camp quite comfortably up to slightly sub freezing temps. Some might find it weird but I would take camping over motel travel any day. I really do hate motels, constantly eating in restaurants and the time wasted in doing it. The daily routine actually starts the night before by filling with gas and grabbing something like a muffin, fruit or maybe some juice for the morning before I head for camp. In the morning make some coffee and eat while breaking camp and hit the road with a full tank of gas. I usually stop at a mom and pop type restaurant for lunch and a coffee around midday and that would usually be the big meal for the day. Supper I'd usually grab a couple of beer and something takeout along with the breakfast stuff and head for camp and enjoy a leisurely evening at camp, maybe go for short hike, walk, swim, maybe even a ride, whatever. Works for me. Longest trip was way back in 1981, 6 weeks, 16,000 kms across Canada all 10 provinces. I did cheat and stay with friends or relatives along the way every few days though. However, the GS1000 does make a much better mule and is way more comfy. Life's supposed to be an adventure. Motel or camp which ever you prefer but go do it. I've done lot's of cool stuff but my biggest regret is still looking back on stuff I could have done and should have done but didn't.

[DimitriT]

Sandy, that's a great post. Six weeks! Wow.

I broached the subject with the wife and it did not get summarily executed. Mentioned that it would make a great 50th birthday present for me.

She did look a little taken back when I said that I would be going solo. Made me reconsider. The problem is she is not the adventurous type at all. Never camped out. Her idea of camping is not having AC.

I'll have to think it over a bit.

Sandy, when you were on the road did you plan out your campsite stops ahead of time or just looked on a map? I wonder if there are any moto-friendly campsites along the Appalachians. Something I need to research.

Originally I thought this would be a fall/winter trip. Honestly I just hate bugs. But now I think it would be great to have the extra daylight so I could ride most of the day, setup camp around 4:00 PM, and then still have some time to explore.

[Jedz123]

Life's supposed to be an adventure. Motel or camp which ever you prefer but go do it. I've done lot's of cool stuff but my biggest regret is still looking back on stuff I could have done and should have done but didn't.

Well put! And Gorgeous Machine!!!

[tkent02]

But I've got my 50th birthday coming up next year and I'm thinking about asking for a pass to ride down to Florida.

If you're 50 and still need a pass, you're not ready.

[Sandy]

If you're 50 and still need a pass, you're not ready.

You're a cruel person Charlie Brown .....accurate, but cruel.

[DimitriT]

If you're 50 and still need a pass, you're not ready.

I'm as ready as I'm ever gonna get.

[roeme]

Wait, that was serious?

Why would you need a pass when your kids are already 14/16?

But in any case, you must do it.

[Wingsconsin]

I don't see the need to bash on someone who is obviously being considerate of the people in his life.
Getting a pass probably simply means something like "I will express my desire to do this to the ones who love me so they know my intentions."
I usually make sure my wife knows and understands my travel plans - and that my plans do not interfere with some other family obligation.
Being a rugged individual motorcyclist does not mean forgoing common courtesy in my world.
But I only ride about 15,000 miles per year in a state where we get 4-5 months of snow and ice.

Get your pass - take your ride - you will be glad you did it .

[azr]

Here's my setup, took me a few trips to get it down to this size, I'll see if I can find the hilarious picture of my first road trip on a bike, ha,ha,ha...



I have a single person tent in there, single element stove and the gas for it, compact pot set and there's some spare parts etc.. I actually am not sure if I'll keep taking the stove and pots because I do what Sandy does, stop somewhere before setting up the tent and grab a cooked piece of chicken or something and a beer or two along with a piece of fruit or something for a light breakfast. I wake early and ride for a an hour or two and have a large breakfast. Breakfast is usually my largest meal (it's also the cheapest), lunch usually consists of energy bar and nuts and dinner is from a grocery store. I'll usually hit a motel when I can smell myself or if it's a downpour of rain. And it's amazing how long a single guy can make 3 sets of clothes last

[Sandy]

I don't see the need to bash on someone who is obviously being considerate of the people in his life.
Getting a pass probably simply means something like "I will express my desire to do this to the ones who love me so they know my intentions."
I usually make sure my wife knows and understands my travel plans - and that my plans do not interfere with some other family obligation.
Being a rugged individual motorcyclist does not mean forgoing common courtesy in my world.
But I only ride about 15,000 miles per year in a state where we get 4-5 months of snow and ice.

Get your pass - take your ride - you will be glad you did it .

Well put, my apologies Dimitri. As for your question to me about booking ahead. It's not something I usually do but then I try to travel outside of normal tourist season where campsites usually fill up early. Only issues I've ever had was one September traveling the US west coast when it was screaming hot inland. Everyone came to the coast to cool off and if we weren't camped be 3:00pm we were out of luck. It actually worked out good because it was one of those trips with no destination or time schedule.

[dpep]

Long rides are about the only kind of riding I do. I usually do at least one of two weeks or longer each season. I did a six week 10,000 mile one out to the Pacific Northwest, British Columbia and the Great Plains back in 2012. I estimate my trips by tank fillups more so than miles. I have made that trip between Florida and New England several times each way and for a while rode up to WV every year which is about halfway along the route.

My strong suggestion is that you do not totally eschew the Interstates. They have their function. They allow you to avoid slow unpleasant stretches so you can have more time to enjoy the fun roads along the way. If you stay on surface roads including through the populated areas your time will run out very quickly. The logistics of camping require a fair amount of time also. If you dawdle along on backroads and always stop with enough daylight to set up your camp, just making Florida and back in two weeks will be a challenge. That daylight consideration varies with when you travel. I like to plan my long trips not more than a month or two from June 21.

If I were doing the trip you describe from MA to FL I would take I-84 over to I-81 in PA and take it south to I-77. US 11 parallels 81 for much of that section so that is an option as well. Once you get down into VA and NC I-77 is a pretty ride itself plus you can jump off on either side and parallel it on some great roads in in WV, VA, and NC including the Blue Ridge Parkway.

I avoid I-95 like the plague, particularly up there in the Northeast. Heavy, heavy traffic, flat road, ugly scenery, and tolls, tolls, tolls. The I-81/I-77 alternative has none of those.

Keep us posted as the time draws closer. And if you do make it to Florida, Jacksonville is right here at the top.
...

[lurch12_2000]

Seems like the GW250 would not be good for a long haul trip loaded with camping gear and if you're a 6 footer or bigger guy. That seat would be torture after 500 miles and the ergos seem small for legs too. MPG is great but..... Great idea of doing a long trip journey and I have visions of doing something similar with my GS850G. I would agree that longer days around summer would be conducive to more time to travel in light, less cold weather gear(DO NOT leave your rain gear behind to save space!!) and easier for camping, even though traffic and busier time for travel. Highways have their periodic benefits to make up time or skip certain parts of the states, but again that 250 will be huffing and puffing at 75-80 mph to stay up with traffic.
It looks like my old GS500E shrunk down, and I had that twin 500cc wound out at 95mph...and my legs were cramped.