Ashland, OR Shakespeare festival ride

[SuperSlab]

This report is dedicated to my wife: the most awesome partner in the world (OK, so that’s my opinion, but then again I am the one writing this post so I can say things like that!).

Why?

§ I would be surprised if 25% of women half our age would be prepared to do say 300km on the back of a sportbike. Go 3,000km and that number probably drops to 10%. Other people our age? Don’t know if you would find any right off the bat.
§ Of the number prepared to do the ride: at most 10% would be able to pack for 2 people for 9 days using one smallish backpack! And quite comfortably live out of said backpack for 9 days.
§ Of the remaining candidates: how many would ride with the backpack on her back for this distance come rain or shine…. and never complain?
§ On top of that: how many would do that and have a total blast?

I think we are now down to…. one person!

By the numbers:
§ Total distance covered: 3,316km
§ Total days ridden: 8
§ Average distance per day: 414km. Most: 543km. Least: 242km (to Ashland: we made a short day to enable us to scout Ashland and to do laundry).
§ Gas used for 3,185 of those km (I have not filled the bike since we have gotten home): 152.5l
§ Average gas consumption: 49.1mpg or 20.9km/l. Best: 53.9mpg, 22.9km/l. Worst: 45.7mpg, 19.5km/l. For two up I thought this was pretty darn good.
§ Average distance covered per tank: 212km

This was the first trip that we have ever done using an intercom. For those of you riding long distances two up: different strokes for different folks, but in our case this added tremendously to the enjoyment of the trip. The ability to talk about what we are seeing, planning what to do/how long to carry on etc. and just kidding around was great.

Our $140 cheap and not-quite-nasty IMC basic intercom worked well. The battery comfortably lasted the longest day that we rode. We tried doing 2 days at one stage and it sort-of lasted, but the sound quality deteriorated dramatically during the second day. This has convinced me to go for something better for the next time around, probably wireless as the hassle of connecting and disconnecting each time we got on and off the bike got annoying.

And so to the trip:

Saturday 16 Aug.: Home – Lake Quinalt, Washington: actual odo distance: 513.1km
Day 1 (http://www.google.ca/maps?f=d&saddr=Francis+Rd+%4049.148360,+-123.188540&daddr=48.631093,-122.475586+to:Port+Townsend-Keystone+Fry+%4048.145090,+-122.694878+to:48.175244,-124.038391+to:US-101+%4047.989170,+-124.392390+to:S+Shore+Rd+%4047.468320,+-123.846070&hl=en&geocode=13066699257535727249,49.148360,-123.188540%3B14621107863716762720,48.631093,-122.475586%3B11390429467235725058,48.145090,-122.694878%3B10448785279846388205,47.989170,-124.392390%3B7760786777265485226,47.468320,-123.846070&mra=dpe&mrcr=2&mrsp=)

We started out bright & early because we had a reservation on the 10:15 Port Townsend – Keystone ferry and you have to be there at least 45 minutes ahead of time. Damned if I know why: pretty barren and quiet place. Strangely enough, even at around 7am, we still had a 50 minute wait at the border: I was a bit perturbed about that because I had not allowed this much time in my planning. But we made the ferry on time in any case.

Both my wife & I commented on the number of police cars we saw: certainly kept us at bay in terms of speed! As usual on a long road trip: saw many cruisers (mostly H-D) and almost no sport bikes once we were outside city limits. Roads were OK: nothing for a sportbiker to get excited about.

We had a reservation at the resort at Lake Quinalt: pretty nice and the food at the restaurant was unusually good: highly recommended. Here we also ran into a group of 4 bikes with Europeans-by-way-of-Seattle: more later!

Seeing as this was mostly familiar territory we did not stop much for pictures. For good pics: see Kent's similar thread.

[Borgnine]

You guys seem like an AWESOME couple!!!

[CHIA]

Again, well done, both of you.....maybe when you are in the 70's, you can step *down* to a sport touring bike...haha.

[SuperSlab]

Sunday Aug 17: Quinalt - Oceanside, Oregon: actual odo distance: 350km
Day 2 (http://www.google.ca/maps?f=d&hl=en&geocode=3271215202753320841,47.466335,-123.848596%3B2513856812069774432,46.331181,-124.053500%3B7549533054577473855,45.557730,-123.922830&saddr=S+Shore+Rd+%4047.466335,+-123.848596&daddr=40th+St%2FUS-101+%4046.331181,+-124.053500+to:45.461094,-123.970413&mra=dme&mrcr=0&mrsp=2&sz=11&via=1&doflg=ptk&sll=45.416768,-123.940887&sspn=0.350887,0.586395&ie=UTF8&ll=45.625083,-123.922348&spn=0.34959,0.586395&z=11)

The best laid plans of mice & men…

So the good intentions were that we would get gas in Quinalt bright & early and have a pleasant ride to Oceanside. Pull up to the gas station… and the pump does not work! We decide Humptulips should be well within reach (and please: no comments on the name of the town! Who the hell thought that one up??!!). And so it turned out to be within reach, but be warned: Humptulips is no metropolis! One gas station: archaic, one 87 octane only pump, does not take credit or debit cards, ATM does not work, we do not have US cash! The young lady was not familiar with Canadian currency so she has to ‘phone her boss to find out if she could accept our foreign money.

Long story short: we ended up paying in CAD for one only gallon of 87 to get us to Aberdeen for gas and breakfast

Where we met up the group of 4 bikes/6 bikers previously mentioned.

The town of Raymond was quite a treat: full of metalwork artwork: see pics for examples.

Rode across the mother of all bridges at Astoria: 6.7km long! Was pretty foggy all the time. Got to Cannon Beach just in time to be chased off the beach by the police warning of lighting. By the way: Cannon Beach just is not for us: far too touristy and cutesy: suppose we are too old for stuff like that.

Here it started drizzling so out came the rain suits.

Ended up in Oceanside: WOW! The Inn that I found on the internet and where we thought we would stay turned out to be full. My wife very fortunately saw a sign to the Clifftop Inn hidden in some bushes: rode up to the top off the cliff and found a delightful place to stay (complete with Sauna after dinner: great in the cold and damp!).

And so endeth an eventful day 2.

[SuperSlab]

Pics of Oceanside

[SuperSlab]

Monday Aug 18: Oceanside – Sutherlin: 398km
Day 3 (http://www.google.ca/maps?f=d&saddr=oceanside,+or&daddr=N+Coast+Hwy%2FN+Oregon+Coast+Hwy%2FUS-101+%4044.651500,+-124.053020+to:SW+Philomath+Blvd+%4044.552910,+-123.305390+to:44.321883,-123.296814+to:Beltline+Hwy+W+%4044.091770,+-123.171040+to:sutherlin,+or)

This was planned to be a really short day’s ride to allow us to go for a dune buggy ride on the famed Oregon dunes. Remember that “Best laid plans” thing? Cropped up again!

Started out fine, but then the weather got more and more cruddy: really foggy and rainy. This after what we were subsequently told was the most awesome hot week in living memory along the coast. Oh well. So instead of going down to Reedsport as we had planned, by the time we got to Newport we had had enough, so we headed inland. Riding is supposed to be fun, not punishment! This is what sets us apart from the lower order creatures: we adapt!

So we headed along the 99, stopped at the Creswell library to ask about local points of interest (the tourist info office was closed!). Ended up in Oakland: the town that time forgot: worth a visit if you are down there and have nothing else to do. Note the picture of the "Oakland Trader: a used harware store: if you ever need an exhaust as per the pic, now you know where to get it! Spent a very pleasant 20 minutes speaking with the owners.

Spent the night in Sutherlin: just a rural highway town.

[SuperSlab]

Tuesday Aug 19: Sutherlin – Ashland: 242km
Day 4 (http://www.google.ca/maps?f=d&saddr=sutherlin,+or&daddr=Lower+Grave+Creek+Rd+%4042.653590,+-123.553050+to:Galice+Rd+%4042.564720,+-123.597710+to:OR-234%2FSams+Valley+Hwy+%4042.491010,+-122.938385+to:ashland,+or&hl=en&geocode=%3B4661825994096392375,42.653590,-123.553050%3B8588327297351807679,42.564720,-123.597710%3B9405158492433799621,42.491010,-122.938385%3B&mra=ls&via=1,2,3&doflg=ptk&sll=42.453861,-123.041382&sspn=0.729534,0.87616&ie=UTF8&z=9)

So the last outbound leg turned into a pretty short day! Started off by us buying a can of chain lube at a big Yamaha dealer (bikes, quads, all kinds of stuff). To spice things up we turned off the I5 at Wolf Creek and rode a secondary (Tertiary? Quadertiary? Penitentiary? Sexertiary? OK, if you had not noticed: it was a very small road and I have no idea what follows after “tertiary”!) little road that was a tremendous amount of fun. There is a lot of rafting that takes place on the Rogue River and it is very pretty there: this is definitely worth a visit. While the section away from the highway is very narrow (single lane at times) and windy, the section that we took back to the highway is very nice for sportbiking as well.

Got to Ashland pretty early and went sightseeing and doing laundry. Ashland is a tremendously “artsy” place with a lot of strange-to-my-engineering-eyes people. Very entertaining! We stayed at the Lithia resort (off topic: "Lithia"? Is that the plural of "Lithium"?): sits on top of a natural spring and the water is supposed to be extremely healthy. But it STINKS! Great bon vivant innkeeper that has tastings of the local wines every evening (just a good excuse to sit at the bar and drink & talk: gotta love it!).

We stayed in the “Water tower” room that is decorated in what I can only describe as a turn of the century brothel theme. Think red, heart-shaped Jacuzzi!

On Wednesday I washed the bike and lubed the chain: 3,000km of wet weather riding without caring for the chain is just not right! That evening we went and saw “A comedy of errors” done in a Wild West style (Shakespeare must be turning in his grave but it actually worked!) in a gorgeous open air theatre (and it did not rain…. much!).

[SuperSlab]

More Ashland pics. Note that we are not used to public laundries: I therefore found the sign urging you to check for pets and children before using the washer partcularly enlightening!

[SuperSlab]

And so to the return journey!

Thursday Aug 21: Ashland – Madras: 539km
Return day 1 (http://www.google.ca/maps?f=d&saddr=ashland,+or&daddr=OR-66+%4042.122800,+-122.057520+to:Rim+Dr+E+%4042.929110,+-122.035510+to:43.087946,-122.11853+to:madras,+or&hl=en&geocode=%3B15167066880689760635,42.122800,-122.057520%3B6636487818367417669,42.929110,-122.035510%3B%3B&mra=dpe&mrcr=0&mrsp=3&sz=10&via=1,2,3&sll=42.970492,-121.92627&sspn=0.723487,0.87616&ie=UTF8&ll=43.045809,-121.972961&spn=2.890412,3.504639&z=8)

AT LAST: SOME FUN ROADS!!! And gorgeous, gorgeous scenery.

So we started down the I5 to get to what looked like a nice twisty section of road to Klamath Falls.

And ended up in California! Damn! Never again will I just print off Google maps for a tour: the resolution is just not good enough. So 80km later: we get back to the right turnoff and start heading to Klamath Falls. You know when you have a great wife? When you do something like this and she does not make snide comments! Or any comments for that matter! Just shrugs with you & carries on.

But back to the real important stuff: what a blast of a road to Klamath Falls! This is a must-do if you ever get down there.

To my regret I must report that here we ran over a chipmunk, one of what felt like millions that kept running over the road. Oh well, one of the millions did not make it.

And then Crater Lake. What can one possibly say about Crater Lake? You guys have obviously come to realise that I am not often at a loss for words, but here I was just completely blown away.

‘Nuff said.

And the exact opposite to the twisty road: this must surely rank as the longest piece of straight road I have ever ridden or driven! The 138 from the north exit of Crater Lake Park must be all of 20km long with nary a turn in sight!.

And then onto the 97: BORING! But at least it got us where we needed to be.

As for the pics: you would notice I ran afoul of a really big bald eagle in Klamath Falls. And that there were really a lot of bugs on that section of road.

[CHIA]

Those bugs on the visor would make me crazy! How did you stand it??

[SuperSlab]

More Crater Lake pics

[SuperSlab]

Those bugs on the visor would make me crazy! How did you stand it??

Made us bug-eyed as well! Mind over matter: the bugs don't mind & we don't matter!

[SuperSlab]

Friday Aug 22: Madras, Oregon – Yakima, Washington: 543km
Return day 2 (http://www.google.ca/maps?f=d&saddr=madras,+or&daddr=OR-35+%4045.703140,+-121.504500+to:WA-14+%4045.717090,+-121.813660+to:NF-90+%4046.059830,+-122.017790+to:NF-99+%4046.281980,+-122.081390+to:WA-410+%4046.906300,+-121.426050+to:yakima,+wa&hl=en&geocode=%3B49103410174957031,45.703140,-121.504500%3B9302113856761443885,45.717090,-121.813660%3B15889386631301482235,46.059830,-122.017790%3B10653581982246658338,46.281980,-122.081390%3B15423946214998283157,46.906300,-121.426050%3B&mra=ls&via=1,2,3,4,5&doflg=ptk&sll=46.8508,-120.901794&sspn=0.676221,0.87616&ie=UTF8&z=8)

Volcano day!

My wife and I are in agreement: never before in our not-inconsiderable lives have we been presented with this much natural splendour in one day. But let’s start at the beginning…

The conrast this day was quite startling: first desert-like plains with volcanic rock features: really hard and harsh. And then the sections of forest that are lush, green, overpowering in mountain after mountain.

And the fun! Other than our minor Californian excursion, navigation was never an issue, in spite of the rather poor quality of our printed Google maps. Note to self: TAKE DECENT MAPS NEXT TIME! And then we got to Carson (now back in Washington). Here I started getting a bit uncertain, so (with apologies to all real, manly men that never ask for directions), we went up to a group of local riders at the gas station where we were filling up and said something like “I am a dumb Canadian: how on earth do we get to Mt St Helens from here?”. And then we lucked out: they offered to lead us there!

And now for some digression: we were talking with a 600RR rider almost as old as we were: he said one of the younger riders knew the local roads well and they were heading that way. I said great: we could perhaps follow them? Said he: not to be insulting but I do not think so: what are you riding? At this point we had told him where we were from and where we had been, so he obviously made some assumptions as to our bike. So I pointed at our bike, at which point he exclaimed to my wife “Holy sh*t!! You deserve a huge hug!” and promptly gave her one!

So it was agreed that we would follow along behind them and that they would stop at junctions so that we would not get lost. And so we set off.

What a blast!! This road is the next sportbike “must ride” of our trip. Miles and miles and miles of one corner after the other. Mostly rather slow speed corners and especially the later sections are pretty bumpy, so it is rather hard on the wrists for two-up riding. But still a joy.

And yes: they did have to wait for us. But I do not think we were completely embarrassed by being left miles behind either. The reality is that it just is not possible for someone unfamiliar with a road that consists of many tight, semi-blind corners on a bumpy-ish road riding two-up to realistically keep within even striking distance of clearly very good riders that know the roads and that are riding solo, never mind how big my ego or how hard you try (within reason: this is not a racetrack after all).

It was fun!

And then the scenery: here the pictures again are worth thousands of words.

[SuperSlab]

Next pics. Last one shows our "guides".

[SuperSlab]

Next batch...

You can see what the back tire looked like after following our speedy guides!

[SuperSlab]

Saturday Aug 23: Yakima – Winthrop: 335km
Return day 3 (http://www.google.ca/maps?f=d&saddr=yakima,+wa&daddr=US-97+%4047.532932,+-120.621534+to:47.83344,-120.080566+to:WA-20+%4048.472700,+-120.178140&hl=en&geocode=%3B14269340204696021719,47.532932,-120.621534%3B%3B7272883728545438459,48.472700,-120.178140&mra=dpe&mrcr=0&mrsp=2&sz=9&via=1,2&sll=48.327039,-120.113525&sspn=1.31483,1.752319&ie=UTF8&z=9)

Shortish day with not as much to see as before. This was the warmest day of our ride but still much better than what I had experienced in the area before. The boat in the picture has a 300hp outboard motor: that certainly looks like fun as well!

And I had to take my wife to Heenan’s Burnt Finger BBQ!

To add to the old us vs them Harley saga: noted that at the Motel we were staying there were 20 bikes. Ours was the only sportbike…

[CHIA]

Does the sheepskin make a huge difference in terms of comfort over a longer distance? I have read that many people swear by them for touring, but curious what your take was?

[SuperSlab]

Sunday Aug 24: Home!: 366km

The North Cascades were as enjoyable as always to me. Started of with wanting to get fresh cinnamon rolls but they were only scheduled to be ready by 07:30 and we were at the stall at 07:00. Did not feel like waiting that long so we had to pass.

As we rode out of Winthrop I told my wife to watch out for deer and verily: 2 minutes later we came across 2 just standing by the side of the road! Saw another 3 that had been run over as well.

And there are no decent breakfast places in Burlington that we could see along the road! So we ended up at the Farmhouse Restaurant near Anacortes (another old favourite). And while we were eating it started to rain…

As we got onto the I5 we were joined by a KTM riding 2 up as well: we stayed together until we split to Blaine and they went on to Peace Arch.

On a sad note: we saw an accident on the road and I also read yesterday evening that a 12 year old girl was killed in a biking accident on the I5, apparently not long after we rode that way. Heartbreaking!

But we got back safe and sound and in great spirits: what an awesome trip!!!

[smokinjoe]

Great ride report and thanks for sharing!:thumbup

[smokinjoe]

:bowdown :bowdown :bowdown :bowdown :bowdown :bowdown Very lucky man to get your wife to ride on the back of a gsxr for 3300 ks!

[lilfizzer]

wow! you are indeed a lucky man. my wife can't even sit on my bike while on its sidestand :).

[greenboy]

Great stuff. Keep 'em coming if you have more pics. :rockon

[yamalama]

Well done!

[jh8624rocks]

very well done!!!!!!!

[Borgnine]

Did you guys spend any time in Lincoln City? One of my bride & I's favourite spots. We like Tillamook too, for the amazing air museum and their great Cheese factory.

[SuperSlab]

Did you guys spend any time in Lincoln City? One of my bride & I's favourite spots. We like Tillamook too, for the amazing air museum and their great Cheese factory.

One of the difficulties of a trip like this is the fact that were pretty much riding to a destination without a great deal of time on the route for sightseeing. This meant that we stopped for incidental photographs and looking at interesting things that we saw from the road but that was about it. I considered this partly a reconnoitring trip to check out "Things To Do The Next Time Around"!

So, as a former private pilot and a flying enthusiast I looked longingly at the air museum sign but decided to keep on going. While my wife tolerates going to things like air museums with me, on a trip like this I thought I would be a bit selfish to drag her in there. Next time....

And no: did not spend any time in Lincoln City. It was a miserable, foggy, rainy Monday morning as we passed through there so I was focussing on seeing where we were going and staying warm and dry!

[elevation]

And no: did not spend any time in Lincoln City. It was a miserable, foggy, rainy Monday morning as we passed through there so I was focussing on seeing where we were going and staying warm and dry!

I told you to stay away from the coast! :p

The McMinnville air museum is a must see. Seeing the Spruce Goose up close is pretty cool!!! You can even go in it. It still has a larger wingspan than the A380!

[Borgnine]

I told you to stay away from the coast! :p

The McMinnville air museum is a must see. Seeing the Spruce Goose up close is pretty cool!!! You can even go in it. It still has a larger wingspan than the A380!

+1 on McMinnville
It's a huge complex worthy of spending a whole day. There are three entities, the Aviation museum with the AMAZING spruce goose, a space museum, and an IMAX theatre. The honeybee & I were on a schedule so we only had time for the aviation museum this time around.
..........there are also some excellent wineries in the area that offer tours.

.....apologies for any thread drift....

[SuperSlab]

I told you to stay away from the coast! :p


Ahh, but it is much more fun learning from our own mistakes than from those of others!


Seeing the Spruce Goose up close is pretty cool!!! You can even go in it. It still has a larger wingspan than the A380!


Howard you get it inside a barn?? I understand it is a Hughes aircraft!

[SuperSlab]

+1 on McMinnville
It's a huge complex worthy of spending a whole day.

..........there are also some excellent wineries in the area that offer tours.

.....apologies for any thread drift....

Ahh, some of my favourite things: good wines and airplanes! OK, OK, obviously not at the same time: the old flying adage of 8 hours between bottle and throttle is still a bit tight (no pun intended of course!).

And drifting is good!

[J_Scott]

Simply awesome report. Great pics and very interesting write-up, I can't believe I missed this until now!

I will contest one point. There IS another person willing to do that amount of klicks 2-up.... so you can make that total increase to 2. ;)

[SuperSlab]

I will contest one point. There IS another person willing to do that amount of klicks 2-up.... so you can make that total increase to 2. ;)

I will give you that. Now, if she will still be doing it when she is our age we can talk again! The problem of course is we may have to wait 20 - 30 years to get closure on that question!