Cross Continent Ride

[RossKean]

Edit: (June 25, 2015)
See post #47 (p.3) for Dropbox links to the map files I came up with as well as a Spotwalla link for the trip starting June 27 (I hope)

Original Post follows

I am in the planning stages of a month-long solo bike trip (my 60th b'day present to myself). Start approx. June 19 but will shift for a decent weather window to start. I'm posting here because I expect to be passing through ALL of the regions in the sub-forum. I thought I would have LOTS of time to get this together but I suddenly realized that I would be leaving in less than 4 weeks. Yikes!

Trip parameters:
Lots of riding, expect to average 500 miles/day. Up to 1000 miles of slab if getting from one area to another. Perhaps only a couple of hundred on other days.
Camping whenever possible
Want to see "stuff" - natural wonders, not cities. Twisty roads are not the primary attraction; more interested in scenic vistas.
Avoid the worst of the crowds, traffic and tourist traps (won't always be possible)
Hopefully avoid the worst of the weather - tornados, extreme heat, extreme humidity, hurricanes etc.
I have done some of this before but most is new to me

In this limited time slice, I can't do it all! Very generally, I am headed down the East coast via slab until I get to Front Royal Va. Skyline, Blue Ridge, Smokey Mtn. National Pk., Cherohala etc. Ending out in Telico Plains. I have done this before but have no problem repeating the experience. From there, the plan gets pretty fuzzy.

In no fixed order, I have the following stuff in mind:
Make my way up to Colorado where I expect to spend a few days - lots to see Million $ Hwy, Mesa Verde, Gunnison NP, Mt. Evans (or Pikes Peak) etc.
I have nothing in my itinerary that gets me from Tellico Plains to Colorado. Suggestions for a route that can be done in maybe three to four days?
(I had wanted to do some of the South and the Gulf coast (Florida Panhandle to New Orleans) but figured I wouldn't enjoy the heat and humidity in early July.)
A few attractions in Utah (Bonneville, Monument Valley, Bryce Canyon etc.).
Grand Canyon and Meteor Crater in Arizona
Make my way to the California Coast just north of Los Angeles. No particular route to get there but I may have some questions later.
Generally head up the Coastal Highway all the way to Oregon with suitable trips inland to see parks/forests etc.
Probably head into British Columbia to visit my sister near Vancouver.
Head over toward Nelson BC to take in the CFR if the timing works.
Head north in BC and ride through Jasper and Banff (North to South)
Back down to Washington and do some of the Cascades.
Going to the Sun Road, Glacier NP
I have been to Yellowstone before so might bypass it to avoid the crowds and head for the Grand Tetons.

Probably running out of time by then and will be headed for home faster than I would like. I will try to take in some stuff in Wyoming, Montana and South Dakota on the way through. Not sure on the route home at this point; it may depend upon how much time I have left. I could slab it in three days but would rather take an extra couple of days if possible. (I might also have to swing up to Winnipeg Manitoba to visit daughter)

Anyway, I have to start committing some of this to maps and start to figure out total distances and time. I had an initial crack at it last summer and got to something like 12-14,000 miles which should be do-able but did not have much detail in that plan.

Anyway, any suggestions for "MUST SEE" places and "MUST RIDE" roads that are not too far off my somewhat fuzzy route?

What's a great way to get from Tellico Plains to Colorado?

Any great route from SD to the East Coast? I have done (and enjoyed) Wisconsin, Michigan Upper Peninsula, into Canada at Sarnia, back down into Western NY, Finger Lakes, Adirondacks, Vt, NH etc.) Did not enjoy the slab from central SD through Minnesota!

I appreciate any and all suggestions. This trip SHOULD be eight weeks (not four) but that's all the time I can manage away from work.
I will post further details as the plan comes together. I hope to have a Spot link available before I head out, if anyone is interested.

If I am looking for specifics of a particular area, I may end out posting in the regional sub-forums. If responses here are good, it would be better to confine it to a single thread.

Thanks

 

[bluesdog]

Going East through BC from Hongcouver, may I suggest hwy 3 (Crowsnest) rather than the Coquihalla? You also may wish to avoid Kelowna and environs, as the traffic is pretty awful.

I rode across Canada, Victoria to Halifax and return, many years ago, and had a wonderful time, especially since it was solo after mid-Saskatchewan.

Keeping to the secondary highways was more interesting that the freeways, but sometimes those roads were not in the best shape.

 

[RossKean]

I have done Hwy 3 before (and loved it). Haven't done the Coquilhalla so might give it a go (not sure about that one). Kelowna is beautiful but I have to agree about the traffic. While I would love to do all secondary roads, road condition and riding time can often be issues. Sometimes you just have to slab it to get from one place to another. I have ridden across the Canadian Prairies and although it was a unique experience, I don't have a burning desire to do it again; at least not this year.

The biggest difficulty in planning a trip like this (once you decide the main points of interest (POI)) is to figure out how to get from POI "A" to POI "B" without eating up an inordinate amount of time or spending endless hours droning along a featureless major highway. I have to face the fact that some parts of this continent are (relatively) boring and I will have to simply endure some areas. I have done some planning to try to avoid the worst of these but its really easy to add a day or two due to added distance or slower travelling speeds.

By the way, I am starting the trip with a new(ish) General Tire G-Max on the rear and a brand new Bridgestone T30 GT on the front. Hope the front makes the trip! Planning one mid-trip oil change at a local Walmart somewhere in the West.

 

[Teehaml]

The north New Jersey/ New York area can be a nightmare.

Good luck on your ride.

 

[jmgrif]

Don't even consider Coq! Leave Vancouver to Whistler and take the Duffy Lake road to Lillooet. Continue past Lillooet and go to Lytton. From Lytton go north on Hwy to Spences Bridge and then take Hwy 8 east to Merritt. From Merritt go 5A to Kamloops. East from Kamloops on 1 to Hwy 97 south to Vernon. Phone me in Vernon and if possible I could put you up or at least buy you a beer or two. From Vernon tap take Hwy 6 to Nakusp. From Nakusp stay on 6 to New Denver. From there head east to Kaslo where you turn south to Nelson. I'm sure I could find you a place in Vernon if required and I have a lift and tools as well as a tire machine so if repairs or replacements are required it can get done!

Mark 250-275-4702

 

[RossKean]

Mark

https://goo.gl/maps/RzaLV

Eight hours becomes fourteen but I like it!

From Vernon, I might consider heading north to Jasper and head south through Banff to hit Nelson from the other side since these areas are on the general plan. Will depend upon timing.

So many miles, so much to see and too little time!

Thanks for the offer of beer and a possible place to pitch a tent. I will let you know...

 

[Panman]

This is a nice route, I took it to Castlegar a few years back. At Cranbrook I headed for Castlegar instead of south to the boarder.

https://www.google.ca/maps/dir/49.2467806,-122.9684367/Valemount,+BC/Jasper,+AB/Lake+Louise,+AB/Radium+Hot+Springs,+BC/Whitefish,+MT,+United+States/St+Mary,+MT,+United+States/@51.6435107,-118.3898846,9z/data=!4m49!4m48!1m10!3m4!1m2!1d-122.5418696!2d50.3376308!3s0x5480ceaccfe391f7:0xaaba588d1be4bbed!3m4!1m2!1d-120.4677471!2d51.8073854!3s0x5381b60b1ca1c9cb:0x2ad439137a974f94!1m5!1m1!1s0x53830a809f8934a9:0x5349e146b7c628b5!2m2!1d-119.264311!2d52.83122!1m5!1m1!1s0x53832b0868553e29:0x1f2002bd0b192882!2m2!1d-118.0813581!2d52.8736786!1m5!1m1!1s0x53775d28a0e1ce11:0x3c373c7b6365bce6!2m2!1d-116.1773193!2d51.4253851!1m5!1m1!1s0x537a6f24d273951f:0x8421a9bb8499e85f!2m2!1d-116.0733586!2d50.6200385!1m5!1m1!1s0x536669ab14afecb5:0xccca7a6b8837463e!2m2!1d-114.3352652!2d48.4106373!1m5!1m1!1s0x5368b82e593730e5:0x6a0435f0e8ece02d!2m2!1d-113.4295461!2d48.7438663!3e0?hl=en

On the way to Vancouver you should do the Cascades so your not back tracking.

 

[RossKean]

I will probably do the western part of the Cascades from the Washington interior out toward the coast and up to Vancouver. Vancouver to Jasper via a nice route; Jasper through Banff and Kootenay NP and toward Nelson via Kimberley. Can do the Balfour ferry across Kootenay Lake on the way. I can cross the border south of Christina Lake after I am done with CFR (if I make it there). Then to the eastern part of the Cascades, Glacier NP, Going to the Sun etc.

I will map it all out to make sure there isn't too much backtracking. (Not to say that running some of these roads a second time would be a bad thing!)

 

[Panman]

I'm sure the BC boys crew and the Oregon/Washington crew you could spen your whole month here!

 

[Top_Speed1]

Wow, pretty awesome Ross, and you sure have a lot on your plate which to me is part of an epic asphalt adventure. When you mentioned tornado's I hesitated with a vision... whoa, sure hope you don't come close to that crap!

Maybe we'll see you out n about. Me and a couple of others are doing an 8500mi loop out to Montana then down to Pikes Peak before returning back East.

Good luck, be safe and can't wait to hear about this epic trip!

-KJ

 

[Geezer]

I have nothing in my itinerary that gets me from Tellico Plains to Colorado. Suggestions for a route that can be done in maybe three to four days?

Once you get west of the Smoky Mountains you will have to cross the plains. Crossing the plains on the interstate is about the same as crossing them on smaller roads, flat and straight, except on the smaller roads you will pass through some interesting towns and you will have the occasional traffic light to slow you down.

Kansas is about the worst way to cross the plains, but crossing Kansas will put you in Colorado near Pike's Peak and Mount Evans, so you may want to do that. The further south you are when you cross Kansas the windier it gets. But, if you have to cross Kansas, it is a memorable experience to do it on US 50. The corn fields vary a little bit and battling the wind is something to put in your 'I did that one time' memory book. There are also some gigantic windmill installations along US 50 that are cool to see. Once you hit the Rockies on US 50 the road and scenery are great.

Staying further south across Oklahoma will put you in less cross wind, but otherwise not much less straight and flat.

 

[RossKean]

I've done straight and flat in Saskatchewan, WINDY in Montana and cornfields in Minnesota. I appreciate your viewpoint on making this segment of the ride a little better. No getting around it without going a couple of thousand miles extra!

 

[russperry]

Awesome plan! I like your idea of camping as much as possible - once you get into the rhythm setup and takedown happens pretty quick. I don't know much about sightseeing east of Colorado so i'll leave it to others, but here are my suggestions:

Colorado - I've been to Pikes Peak and Mt. Evans (both with paved roads >14,000') and in my mind Mt. Evans is much more dramatic and picturesque. I'd try to go through Rocky Mountain NP if you can plan it. I think the Million Dollar Highway is a a little overrated, especially if you end up there in a high traffic time. I passed through early on a mid-week day so it wasn't bad traffic, but i think there are better rides.

Utah - totally recommend a ride south past Capitol Reef NP and use Route 12 to go down towards the Grand Staircase Escalante - the road is AWESOME! If you're around Capitol Reef for the night there's a very nice campground that was nearly empty when me and Brodie stayed there. After Capitol Reef you head south then west and you can go right by Bryce and Zion and stop at both of those fantastic parks - Highway 12 is really incredible and I don't hear too many people talking about it. I highly recommend it.

From Utah it sounds like you want to head south, probably through Las Vegas if you want to get to the coast near LA. You could go through Death Valley but in July it might live up to its name. The good coastal riding really starts near Ojai, where you can take 33 north into the Los Padres National Forest, then head west to the coast and and intercept 101 near San Luis Obispo. From there you can take the long windy route up 1, or another route up some remote roads starting near San Miguel on 101 - this route skips the coast and you end up in Hollister. If you want to know more about that one shoot me a PM.

It seems from your plan that you're going to miss the entire Sierra Nevada including Yosemite and all the great passes - you might want to consider how you might get those into your route.

From the Bay Area to the northern parts of California, staying on the coast highway is probably the best idea. Inland will be very hot, whether you're on 101 or 5, so take the coast route and enjoy the scenery. Once you get closer, I would recommend you head inland to 5, then set up for getting onto Highway 36 in Red Bluff. Highway 36 is home of the famous 140 miles of windy road sign and takes you to Fortuna. That road is absolutely the best motorcycling road in the world, at least until I'm convinced otherwise. From Fortuna I'd suggest either 299/3 or 96 north towards Oregon. There's a remote path from 96 that gets you back to the coast if you want to travel on 1 through Oregon - I've always wanted to cover that ground but never have had the chance. If you're interested, plot a route from Fortuna to Crescent City CA, with an intermediate stop in Happy Camp, CA. According to Bugnatr that's a great road.

That's about all the terrain along your route that I know much about so I'll stop there and let others chime in.....

 

[RossKean]

russperry

Awesome suggestions. Just the kind of stuff I'm looking for. I have never been to California and really don't know what I MUST see. You have certainly given me some stuff to add to the mix. I will digest this and perhaps PM you if I need some more detail.

Thank you!

 

[jmgrif]

My experience on 1 and 101 has been, at this time of year it's a parade of motor homes and fifth wheel trailers. At the same time every little town along the way has quite restrictive speed zones and control! Ask me how I know! If you're prepared to pass sometimes a little outside the "Law" you can make up some time?

 

[RossKean]

My experience on 1 and 101 has been, at this time of year it's a parade of motor homes and fifth wheel trailers. At the same time every little town along the way has quite restrictive speed zones and control! Ask me how I know! If you're prepared to pass sometimes a little outside the "Law" you can make up some time?

I was afraid that traffic would be an issue on the coastal road; especially closer to the larger urban centers. I assume it gets better further north? I will likely tough it out for a while and head inland if its driving me crazy. I don't have a radar detector so I won't be pushing the speed envelope to make up time - performance awards are not in the travel budget. Forests and mountains are nice but don't want to spend days in the desert! Wrong time of year for that.

You really need to do this sort of trip in two stages. Mountains and coastal areas in the summer but Gulf Coast and southern deserts in the early spring. Maybe I just need to retire so I can go whenever I want! I don't live in the right part of North America to get to some of these regions quickly; the Southwest in particular.

 

[hppants]

Subscribed to this thread just because I want to live vicariously through you.

As much as I'd love to show you around the Gulf Coast, and will still do so if you change your mind, the sauna is in full tilt now and I do not think you will enjoy yourself. From Tellico Plains heading generally West to Colorado, consider hitting a small section of the upper Natchez Trace from south of Nashville. It's nice and a good change of pace. Once you jump off that, you might consider making some time slabbing West to Memphis (I know you said no "cities", but get some BBQ ribs on Beale Street and a draft beer - you'll be glad you did it). Then stay at least one night in the Ozarks (anywhere north of I-40 and West of Arkansas Hwy 7 is a good bet road wise).

Unfortunately, Texas is as big as ... well..... TEXAS!!! So getting from the Ozarks to Colorado is going to be boring and HOT AS HELL!!! The good news is that as long as you don't act like a squid, you can set the throttle lock at about 90 and they will leave you alone.

Hope this helps - oh, one more thing.... bring the camera and some extra batteries!!! (don't forget the food porn)

 

[RossKean]

Holy crap! Less than a week before I go and still have a ton of stuff to do (including a fork leak problem at the last minute). I have most of the (overly ambitious) route planned with the exception of California and Oregon. These areas are tough; especially California. It is a balance between "Must see" and "Must avoid". Avoidances include excessive traffic, excessive heat and major cities. The "must see" items include some of the Pacific coast plus the mountains and forests of the interior. My original thought was to run the coastal highway all the way up but it was pointed out to me that not only would I be battling traffic but I would be missing a LOT.

I see something that looks interesting and use Google street view and decide to take a particular route. Then I find another and another and another etc. I would have no trouble spending AT LEAST a couple of weeks in California alone. That's not in the cards for this trip; I would hate to get home and find I don't have a job (or wife) anymore.

I think my best bet is to get a taste of the region and plan for a return trip in a year or two. Problem is that the most direct (boring) route to CA is ~3500 miles or (for me) four to five pretty intense days on the slab. Lots of great areas and the hardest thing is to find the right roads to string them all together while avoiding big cities and excessive distance/time. russperry had some good ideas so maybe I'll try plotting some of it and see what happens. Based on my schedule, I probably only have 3 to 3.5 days in California this trip.

Before I leave, I'll post a list of the places I'm going to try to see and perhaps a Spotwalla link so everyone can laugh at how much I missed along the way. Current map is right at 15,000 miles. Do-able for me as long as I don't encounter too much rotten weather or mechanical problems.

 

[RossKean]

Partial list - will no doubt be edited as I go. My mapping programs tell me it can be done although I won't be stopping anywhere for very long. Most of what I want is stuff to see as I ride through. I'm not one for places to stop and eat, museums etc. I may have to pass on some regions and pick them up next trip. California may be a drive-through and wait for a better time. The loop around Jasper (in Canada) might get missed this trip as well. Here it is...

Edit: Feel free to comment on any of it or offer suggestions if you see anything EPIC that I have missed that is generally along the Route. I can't swing too far "off-mission" due to time constraints. Looking at this as a list of places is somewhat daunting but many (most) are "drive through" points of interest with maybe a brief stop for a photo op.

Quick run down the east coast (slab)

Trip really starts at Front Royal, VA

Skyline Drive

Blue Ridge Parkway

Great Smokey Mtn Nat Park

Deals Gap - I'm there anyway

Cherohala Skyway

Some of the Natchez Trace from Nashville

Pretty much blast through Arkansas (via National Forest routes)

Up to Colorado via Oklahoma and Kansas

Rocky Mtn. NP

Mount Evans

Mesa Verde

Million $ Hwy

Black Canyon (Gunnison)

Grand Mesa Nat Forest

Four Corners (because I'll be there)

Over to Southern Utah

Bryce canyon

Monument Valley

Zion NP

Arizona is next

Grand Canyon (of course)

Meteor Crater

Sedona

Skipping Nevada this trip

Angeles Nat Forest (roads look interesting)

Sequoia NP

Big Sur (area)

Yosemite NP

Tahoe area

Sierra Nevada

Klamath Nat Forest

To Oregon

Crater Lake

Mount Hood area

Washington - Mt. Rainier area

To the 20 (Cascades) near Coleville

20 toward the Coast

Up into Canada near Vancouver (visit sister)

Nice route to Jasper (thanks jmgrif)

Banff

Kootenay Nat Park

To CFR in Nelson BC! (one day only)

Back down to the 20 heading east

Going to the Sun Rd

Glacier NP

Lolo Pass and Nat forest

Pass through Yellowstone

Beartooth and maybe Chief Joseph Hwy

Blast up to Winnipeg Manitoba (visit daughter) via ND

Back down - through Minnesota to Wisconsin

Oshkosh air show for a day?

Michigan Upper Peninsula

Into Canada at Sarnia and back into USA at Niagara Falls

Quick sprint to home via:

Adirondacks (NY)

VT and NH