The Grand Tour, or There and Back Again

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Some highlights from the Grand Tour. There and Back Again, just as Bilbo had his journey, so we had ours.

First day, lunch at the Nepenthe Restaurant on Highway 1, Big Sur area. Don't know what it's called, but it looks delicious.


Some of the decorations.


Heading south, we came to Nacimiento-Fergusson Road. Tim said to stop at "the place with the great view". Yeah well, the road kept going past that point, so we did too! Zoom! The Other Tim had to chase us down.

Waving hi from the top of Nacimiento-Fergusson Road. About half the riders were on BMW's.


Nacimiento-Fergusson is a fantastic road.




Nice and twisty, the way we like it!


The view from where we were "supposed" to stop was truly incredible.


Why yes, I do love this road! Nacimiento-Fergusson became my favorite over all four days of riding.


Wonder what happened next? Find out about... the Great Roadside Repair!

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We stopped at some beach to check out the elephant seals. This one had a good idea: Take a snooze in the sand.


But then! Tim's bike decided to puke its guts out. Or at least its radiator fluid.


The problem: The radiator hose was touching the exhaust pipe, and the heat shield around the hose had worn away. The rubber hose melted, dumping the fluid.


The solution: The other Tim had some "miracle tape", good for up to 500 degrees. Wrapped that around the radiator hose, metal clamp to move the hose slightly away from the pipe, and we were good to go. Later that day, Tim got a real replacement hose, just in case.


Life on the road! Gotta do what it takes.

My bike. The Vulcan 750 is a good ride, I really like it.


We slept in San Luis Obispo that night. The next day would bring more fun than humanly possible.

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All the first day fun was a mere prelude to one of the most awesome riding days I've ever had. On a fun scale of 1 to 10, the second day scored a 12. We started by riding "Rossi's Driveway", aka Highway 229. Didn't take any pics of it, so here's some of Tim's. Pics by Pashnit:





We then moved across the central valley to the Sierras. There's not much to say about the central valley, just get across it as fast as possible. Getting to the Sierras, we took several fun roads and then came to the linchpin, the core of the tour, the reason for riding: 23S16.

23S huh what? What kind of a name is that?

Who cares when you have views like this:


And this:


And this:


The road, twisting away. The riders were pleased.


A broader view.


Tim and I agree: This road gets a thumbs-up.


This view is awesome! Check it!


What view? Oh, THIS view!

[eye.surgeon]

Enjoyed those pictures. Sounds like a great trip so far. Can't wait to see the rest of the ride.

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23S16 is, without a doubt, the best goat trail I've ever been on - and I've been on a lot of them. Goat trails are like peanuts, you can never have just one. However, there was sand / dirt / gravel on EVERY turn. When you ride 23S16, keep your speed down. This is not a fast road.

Lots of sand.


On a scale of 1 to 5, 23S16 gets an 8. At least.


After 23S16, we went down to Fountain Springs. The map has several different names for the road we were on: Hot Springs Drive, M56, Mountain Road 50. The map also shows it as the southern portion of Highway 190. Whatever the name, the road was the twistiest road there has ever been. Imagine a sharp, 20 mph right, followed by a 20 mph left, then another sharp right, left, right, left, on and on and on. 20 miles of unceasing nonstop sharp turns. I learned a lot about "the pace" on this road, maintaining a constant speed throughout the turns. Had no time to stop for pictures, it was time to ride!

We stopped somewhere to check out the giant sequoia trees.


Group shot.


Steve looking cool.


Getting back on the road, we took Balch Park Road / Yokohl Valley Road to 198, then to the hotel in Three Rivers.

Balch Park and Yokohl were, together, an awesome end to an awesome day. On Yokohl, I got in front of the pack and with a shout of Yahoo!, disappeared into the sunset. That Vulcan is a screamer in the twisties.

The end of Yokohl.


Tired, spent, drenched with sweat, we rolled into the hotel with smiles larger than the mountains around us. It was a day I'll long remember as one of the best rides ever.

Could the next day get any better?

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The third day took us into Sequoia and King's Canyon national parks. The road into Sequoia was really sweet, except for the 15 mph limit. Got stuck behind some moron in a red pickup who was driving 5-10. Cars were honking and yelling at the idiot, who kept ignoring pullouts. Why don't cops ever give tickets for failure to yield? Idiot. We finally got past him.

There was a 2-mile one-way dirt section, where the road was undergoing maintenance.


At the top, we came to Moro Rock. It's kind of a climb to get there.


Who needs a gym? Just climb Moro Rock a few times! huff puff huff puff


But oh, the view! Looking down at the road.


It was kind of hazy, on a clear day you can see forever.

Rolling again. Sequoia trees get kind of big.


Leaving Sequoia National Forest, we rode down into King's Canyon on Highway 180. The rock walls were astounding - breathtaking - immense - incredible.


The road was too.


Topped off gas at a little store in the canyon. $4.50 per gallon. Don't see pumps like that anymore! Sign said it was a double gravity system, no pump. Gas came down from a higher tank somewhere into the fill station, then down the hose into your vehicle. Pretty neat to watch, if you can ignore the price.


Looks like a fun road? It was.


And the view!

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Leaving the park, we dropped to the flatlands of the central valley. Too hot. However, there was method to our madness: Taking lower foothill roads to the hotel! Here's Power House road.


The last day was dawning. Could this tour be almost over? Say it ain't so! We had a lot of fun, with many people swapping bikes, checking out the different rides. Up Highway 41 to Yosemite, then to the top of Glacier Point.

There's no such thing as a bad view in Yosemite.


Coming down from Glacier Point was really fun. In one nice left turn, I was off the seat, leaned over, accelerating smoothly, holding the perfect line - and there was someone on the side of the road watching me. Wonder what they were thinking? "OMG that looks so insanely fun, I've gotta do it too"? Or perhaps "them darn crazy motorcyclists need to be slowed down". Sure hope it was the former!

Got down to the valley floor. The Three Sisters.


We finished the tour with lunch at the Ahwahnee Hotel. Incredible food, decent prices.

The tour was at an end, friendships formed, so many miles of smiles behind us. Could it really be over? However, just as Bilbo went there and back, we did too. I teamed up with the other Mike on the tour for the trip home. We took Highway 140 to 49, north through the Little Dragon.

The Little Dragon section of Highway 49, just south of Coulterville.


Then Highway 132 to Modesto, and the freeway home. What? Freeway? Ugh! Let's jump OFF this freeway and take Patterson Pass instead!


Thus ended the tour, a Grand Tour of California, There and Back Again, a giant loop through the center of the state. I would SO do it again. Who's with me? Let's go!

[pashnit]

Great stuff Mike - fantastic pics! Always such a fun time together.

Good times! See you in October!

[ZR0CS]

Billy here: Great Ride: , Excellent Vistas , But best of all Fantastic Folks to ride with. I've lived in California all my life and I've never seen so much in such a compacted time frame. That's why I'm signing
up for your next available tour.. Next year ,,can we spell Season Pass..

[Cincinnati]

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