jjp4674
Well-known member
Well, I did it. I flew out to Phoenix and rode back nearly 3000 miles to Rochester, NY where I live on a 2008 FJR purchased from FJRTom on this forum. And it was an experience I will never forget.
Mind you, I did this trip solo and it was the first long distance trip I've ever done on a motorcycle, so there were certainly some things I did wrong (like not taking enough pictures due to letting my phone run dry), but it was one hell of a sink-or-swim learning experience.
So, here's the report. First, this is the route (more or less) that I took: Click for Map
To start the trip, I headed out from Rochester in the mid-afternoon and after a number of delays due to storms in the east, made it to Phoenix much later than anticipated. Tom was kind enough to pick me up at the airport and offer me space in his house for the night.
Day 1:
The day began by running all over the place to handle the paperwork necessary to sell the bike and obtain temporary out-of-state Arizona tags (very easy to do, by the way). I packed up the bags, strapped the empty duffel bag to the back, and headed off.
The start of the adventure was going up 87 in the twisty mountains of Arizona. It was an absolutely breathtaking and beautiful route with good roads and amazing views. There were few places to pull off, it seemed, so I have no pictures of said views.
After getting to Camp Verde, I continued up I-17 to Flagstaff and stopped for lunch/dinner around 4. Some locals suggested that I head over to Williams and up 64 to ride the rim of the Grand Canyon, so I took their advice and made my trip to the Grand Canyon into a loop instead of up and back. I'm glad I did, as I originally wasn't planning to ride anywhere near that much of the rim, and the sights were stunning at sunset.
Seeing this couple made me realize that I really wished my girlfriend had come with me, but alas...
The sky only got more and more red, and more and more beautiful. Unfortunately, my phone ran out of power and no more photos could be obtained.
I made my way back to Flagstaff after the sun had gone down, and discovered just how quickly it can get cold in Arizona when there's no sun and little terrain to hold the heat.
Day 2:
On the second day, I headed east on I-40 and stopped at Meteor Crater along the way. I will say that while it's pretty huge and is quite the sight to see, it becomes less interesting and novel quickly. The view back toward Flagstaff, however, was the best thing about it.
After Meteor Crater, I continued east along I-40 and did a side jaunt to ride through the Petrified Forest. It was exactly what it sounds like, but the most interesting part that I found was the painted desert portion of it. The colors in the ground were unlike any I had ever seen in my days in the northeast.
Once finished there, I started to grind miles as I had seen weather reports of possibly severe weather in the central states later in the week, and wanted to beat it through. That night, I stopped in Albuquerque, NM.
Day 3:
Today, a long day. Albuquerque to Oklahoma City.
I was surprised at how beautiful Oklahoma was. I expected it to be barren. It was lush rolling farmlands. Very green.
Day 4:
Another long day. Oklahoma City to St. Louis (Lebanon, IL, really). At this point, I began couch surfing as I have friends scattered all over the place east of the Mississippi.
Day 5:
Up to Lansing, MI. Another long day. By this point, my friends were wondering where all the photos of a motorcycle in front of various pieces of scenery were, so I took the following picture upon entering Michigan:
Day 6:
A short rest day! Off to Ann Arbor to hang out with an old friend I rarely get to see!
Day 7 (Friday):
Home to Rochester via Cleveland. Didn't bring a passport, and didn't feel like dealing with international travel while sporting temporary paper Arizona plates and registration.
When I checked my trip odometer, it read around 2900 (I got off route a couple times due to no GPS/map farkles on the bike yet). I'm pretty pleased with 2900 miles in 7 days as my first long distance trip on a motorcycle.
All in all, I managed perfection with the weather. Got through the midwest before their storms, and got to the northeast after it was all cleared out. Sunny travels the whole way.
Mind you, I did this trip solo and it was the first long distance trip I've ever done on a motorcycle, so there were certainly some things I did wrong (like not taking enough pictures due to letting my phone run dry), but it was one hell of a sink-or-swim learning experience.
So, here's the report. First, this is the route (more or less) that I took: Click for Map
To start the trip, I headed out from Rochester in the mid-afternoon and after a number of delays due to storms in the east, made it to Phoenix much later than anticipated. Tom was kind enough to pick me up at the airport and offer me space in his house for the night.
Day 1:
The day began by running all over the place to handle the paperwork necessary to sell the bike and obtain temporary out-of-state Arizona tags (very easy to do, by the way). I packed up the bags, strapped the empty duffel bag to the back, and headed off.
The start of the adventure was going up 87 in the twisty mountains of Arizona. It was an absolutely breathtaking and beautiful route with good roads and amazing views. There were few places to pull off, it seemed, so I have no pictures of said views.
After getting to Camp Verde, I continued up I-17 to Flagstaff and stopped for lunch/dinner around 4. Some locals suggested that I head over to Williams and up 64 to ride the rim of the Grand Canyon, so I took their advice and made my trip to the Grand Canyon into a loop instead of up and back. I'm glad I did, as I originally wasn't planning to ride anywhere near that much of the rim, and the sights were stunning at sunset.
Seeing this couple made me realize that I really wished my girlfriend had come with me, but alas...
The sky only got more and more red, and more and more beautiful. Unfortunately, my phone ran out of power and no more photos could be obtained.
I made my way back to Flagstaff after the sun had gone down, and discovered just how quickly it can get cold in Arizona when there's no sun and little terrain to hold the heat.
Day 2:
On the second day, I headed east on I-40 and stopped at Meteor Crater along the way. I will say that while it's pretty huge and is quite the sight to see, it becomes less interesting and novel quickly. The view back toward Flagstaff, however, was the best thing about it.
After Meteor Crater, I continued east along I-40 and did a side jaunt to ride through the Petrified Forest. It was exactly what it sounds like, but the most interesting part that I found was the painted desert portion of it. The colors in the ground were unlike any I had ever seen in my days in the northeast.
Once finished there, I started to grind miles as I had seen weather reports of possibly severe weather in the central states later in the week, and wanted to beat it through. That night, I stopped in Albuquerque, NM.
Day 3:
Today, a long day. Albuquerque to Oklahoma City.
I was surprised at how beautiful Oklahoma was. I expected it to be barren. It was lush rolling farmlands. Very green.
Day 4:
Another long day. Oklahoma City to St. Louis (Lebanon, IL, really). At this point, I began couch surfing as I have friends scattered all over the place east of the Mississippi.
Day 5:
Up to Lansing, MI. Another long day. By this point, my friends were wondering where all the photos of a motorcycle in front of various pieces of scenery were, so I took the following picture upon entering Michigan:
Day 6:
A short rest day! Off to Ann Arbor to hang out with an old friend I rarely get to see!
Day 7 (Friday):
Home to Rochester via Cleveland. Didn't bring a passport, and didn't feel like dealing with international travel while sporting temporary paper Arizona plates and registration.
When I checked my trip odometer, it read around 2900 (I got off route a couple times due to no GPS/map farkles on the bike yet). I'm pretty pleased with 2900 miles in 7 days as my first long distance trip on a motorcycle.
All in all, I managed perfection with the weather. Got through the midwest before their storms, and got to the northeast after it was all cleared out. Sunny travels the whole way.
