Road Trip!!!

[Scarman]

A few weeks ago my friend and brother in law called saying he needed to get out of the office for a few days and wanted to ride. I thought about it but I just couldn't get excited about riding the same roads yet again. I needed some place new to play and two days wasn't going to get it done.

So... I emailed him back with an 1800 mile route covering central & northern California and asked him if he could get out of the office for a full week. Game on! We left my house on July 4th early Monday morning. No reservations, no real plans, and no hard & fast return home date. Just taking it one mile at a time.

Day one was spent riding up through Yosemite.







As we rode through Yosemite into the high country, there were wild falls & streams crossing or tunneling under the roads everywhere. I haven't seen that much water coming down the mountains in a very long time. Sandy slippery corners come up without warning. Why always in the turns?



Finished out day one with a quick trip up 108 towards Sonora.



We spent the night at Topaz Lake and the next day riding about 400 miles the long way to Quincy.

I didn't take as many pics as usual on this ride. Especially on day two. The roads were clear of traffic and just too much fun to think about stopping for pics. Icehouse was a great piece of asphalt. Wentworth Springs was still closed that day, so Omo Ranch would have to fill in until we found Icehouse.

The GPS was great but when we needed to make quick route changes, there is no substitute for a physical map of the area. Just wish we thought to bring one.

Quick pano off Hwy 88 early in the morning.


I can't remember exactly where this was, but somewhere on Hwy 70 we made a stop before riding into Quincy. We stopped for a quick break and a thunderstorm broke over the crest of the mountains. It rain hard for the next 20 miles. Normally I hate riding in the rain, but this was nice. Just a great day overall and not even a heavy rain could dampen my spirit.



By the time we rolled into Quincy, we were completely dry. We stayed at a small place called the Ranchito Motel. I wasn't too sure about the place pulling in, but we were pleasantly surprised. Our room was clean, spacious, comfortable, and the new owners were very nice. Went to Sweet Lorraine's for dinner. Wow, outstanding food. Kind of an upscale diner. A little pricey but the food was worth it. Really outstanding!

Next day was spent riding up to Antelope Lake, across 395 and back down through Susanville, on our way to Lake Almanor and stop in Red Bluff for the night. Of course we took a few side trips along the way. The ride up through Antelope Lake was nice. It looks like there had been a fire up there in the last year or two. Probably was very beautiful before the fire, but right now the area is a bit stark. None the less it's an interesting ride and the Lake is a nice stop. Not much traffic up that way for us so it was good riding all in all.

Quick pic of Antelope Lake



Stopped at Lake Almanor. Very nice area. This next pic is the view of Lassen Peak from Lake Almanor. We had hoped to ride into Lassen on our trip but checking road conditions along the way still showed Lassen as closed beyond the visitor's center. In spite of the National Park website info, we thought it possible they could open the park without updating the website. We would be passing that way anyway so it was worth the side trip to check it out. We had plenty of time so why not.



As Sean Connery's wife once said, "Never Say Never". Sean Connery left the franchise saying he would NEVER do another Bond film. 11 years later he agreed to do one more Bond film, which his wife appropriately titled "Never Say Never".



The road was indeed open just short of the top of Lassen Peak. Way cool! Literally. Still a whole lot of snow up there.

Mark and I up near the peak. When Mark was in the lead position on our ride, I would give him a little space up front. A little room to do what he pleased without having to think about me on his tail and it gave me room to push it without worrying about riding up his tail. Occasionally we would lose sight of each other, but Mark said he could always spot my jacket through the trees. That hi-viz yellow really stands out.



Pano shot from Lassen Peak.



Next day was riding Hwy 36 out to the coast.



I read a lot about Hwy 36 so I was expecting a lot from this road. I have to say that it didn't live up to all the hype I read. Certainly a great riding road but not the roller coaster thrill ride I was expecting. It's a nice road with a little bit of everything including a few surprises. It's one of those roads that will surprise you as soon as you let it talk you into relaxing. Very obvious where people have gone off into the brush or into the guard rails. At times the road just drops out from under you and if you have much speed you will catch some air. Problem is will your tires find asphalt in time to make the immediate hard turn. Some folks didn't obviously.

TBC...

[Scarman]

This is a section on 36 where you I've been in some twisty stuff. I come out of a hard turn and see the road open up. It's one of those spots where you really get the urge to twist the throttle and let the bike run. There's a slight incline to the asphalt and a fast sweeper right in front of me and I can see the road starting to open up around the sweeper.



Most of challenging spots are not marked in any way. This was waiting just outside my view past that wide sweeper. Honestly if this one wasn't marked, it would have caught me by surprise. I'm glad I resisted the urge and rode a spirited pace and still played it safe.



It certainly tightens up closer to Fortuna and after awhile you start thinking just how many more turns can there be. Following tourists on this section drove me a little nuts honestly. This needs to be a moto only road. Let the cagers build their own road.

After Hwy 36, we headed south through the Avenue of the Giants. Bikes took a break before heading into the giant redwoods.



Resting among the Giant Redwoods.



The northern coastline was fogged in. Heavy fog everywhere except near Mendocino. Not surprising for this time of year.



We stopped in Bodega Bay for lodging but couldn't find a place that had motorcycle accessible parking and a room with two beds. Plenty of cozy single bed type places, but Mark and I are not that friendly so we moved on to Santa Rosa. Stayed at a Best Western there. I have to say we stayed at two Best Westerns on our trip and both were exceptional.

The plan was to ride through Napa and the Sacramento Delta area on our way back to the central valley. There's just no nice route back into the hot central valley. On our way back, I got the bright idea to take Mark up Del Puerto Canyon to Lick Observatory. He's never been up there and it's a nice challenging cap to our ride.

OK, not the best idea after a long hot day in the saddle. I forgot how challenging that road can be. All that much more when you're already hot & tired and it's 104 outside. Probably should have passed on that one, but we did it and it just added to the experience. Many different roads, many different climates, many different challenges. I couldn't ask for a better 5 day ride nor a better copilot.





One the best pieces of hardware we had on this trip. Bike to bike amateur radio communication. To the left of my Zumo GPS is a Yaesu VX-7r quad band amateur radio. Mark is using a Yaesu FTM-10 on his bike.



Running 1 watt power on a simplex frequency gave us a two mile range around corners & hills. Bumped it up to 5 watts and we were talking well beyond a couple miles. Amazing what a difference this has on a long ride. No mindless chatting! Just communicating road hazards, stops, and passing strategies.

Man what a great ride. Definitely one of the best I've ever done. It wasn't without it's challenges, but just too much fun all the way around. Rain, Fog, Freezing Cold, Snow, Blazing Hot Temps... had it all and loved every mile of it. Great roads, great food, met some great people along the way. What a ride!

[Loki]

Fantastic Dave. What great photos. Amazing to still see snow up in the passes this time of year. We have to get together for a ride soon...

[Jimbo94]

Most excellent!! I need a good 5 day ride like that...its been a while. Great Ride!!

[Turkus]

Originally Posted by Loki

Fantastic Dave. What great photos....

+ 1 !!

Always nice to see some places I haven't ridden, and some others that I have from a different perspective..

[Thumbuster]

Great pics! Northern California...someday.

Thanks for sharing.

[Hogpilot]

That is a great loop you did! I did much of that same loop in May and looking forward to doing it again next year!

-Hog

[Skibold]

Ha I think we passed each other up by Antelope lake. The wife and I rode past you as you when you were at a stop. I was pulling a trailer and she was on a blue&white bike wirh her dog on the back in a dog crate. We had spent the night at Antelope lake.

[Scarman]

Hey Ken!
Thanks for the reminder! When we passed you, I was thinking "I wonder if that was Ken". Not many riders with a dog carrier riding pillion. Interesting to pass by another Pashnit that you can recognize way up there. Loved it!

Hope you two had a great ride.

Originally Posted by Skibold

Ha I think we passed each other up by Antelope lake. The wife and I rode past you as you when you were at a stop. I was pulling a trailer and she was on a blue&white bike wirh her dog on the back in a dog crate. We had spent the night at Antelope lake.

[matthewp]

WOW! Dave! This makes me want to go AWOL! Awesome ride report and absolutely great pictures!