Sunday, July 22, 2007

Hey boss, I think I need another month off!

Well, it's been going absolutely fantastic! I was outside Pendleton, OR last I reported. Everyone's been complaining that I don't give updates often enough, so here you are.

I left Pendleton, OR on the I-84. But, I wanted to do a little exploring. I rode a little while on the old Oregon Trail for a while. Nothing to exciting, but it wasn't the interstate and was kinda cool. But, it dumped me back onto the highway again. I got off and took Rt 82 into Hell's Canyon National Recreational area. WOW!! The sign said it was the deepest gorge in North America. I've never seen the Grand Canyon, so I can't compare. But, I can tell you was gorgeous! The morning had started out cool, but pretty quickly it got REALLY hot. Which I thought appropriate for a place called Hell's Canyon. And the canyon roads were AWESOME!!! Nothing like scraping exhaust at 70+ with a fully loaded bike. :) The roads aren't quite like the Dragon in NC, but still an exhilarating ride. I'm not sure exactly how long the canyon roads were, but I can tell you there was MILES of them. Almost no RV's and a couple guys pulling boats. Everyone quickly (safely) pulled over to let me by. It was really cool.

You wanna ride along, click video below:


Paradise:


Me at Hell's Canyon with a fire in the backgorund:


Every forest sign I passed stated that the fire danger was "Extremely High". And part of the mountains there were already on fire. There was plenty of fire damage evident from prior years. It is amazing how well mother nature takes care of herself if we don't muck it up.

From Hell's Canyon I headed over the Oxbow Reservoir (I think?) into Idaho. Oh, did I mention it was hotter then a witch's stew?? Different then the heat back east. Fairly dry, but damn hot. Anyway, as I headed into the Payette Forest to find a camping site, it cooled off quite nicely for sleeping. I stayed at the "Last Chance" camp site in the Payette Forest. I think it had about 25-40 sites. Nothing special. The dirtiest pit toilet I've seen on the entire trip. A pump well for water. The sites were clean and flat. They had tent sites with grass to setup on...I got the last site in the place which was an RV site. But, I'm ok with sleeping on gravel, it was fairly level anyway. There's a 2 mile road to get back to the camp ground. One lane, traffic both ways. The gravel was deep and loose in spots. And, there's a good drop off on one side (I didn't have time to see how far down because I was too busy just trying not to find out the hard way...but it was pretty far, as in a a couple hundred feet). So, if you go back there on a bike, be careful. I was also told some logging trucks use that same gravel road...and they always have the right-of-way. Could make for an interesting moment.

The reservoir I crossed into Idaho at:


Anyway, it was cool again this morning when I headed off and took Rt 55 thru the Boise National Forest. I was hoping for a nice morning jaunt through a pretty setting...yeah, it didn't work out that way. It was a miserably busy road with lots of little towns and very little forest. The bastards didn't understand what the "Slow Vehicle Pull-out" was for. Dumb asses. Today was the first time I was REALLY aggravated at other drivers on this whole trip. But, this too passed.

Jumped back on the Interstate (I-84) in Boise after not being able to find the Boise HD shop. I really didn't need anything, just wanted to stop in. They have apparently moved recently. Oh well.

Today was hotter then yesterday. I seriously considered (momentarily) riding without my shirt and helmet for a while. Anyone that knows me, knows I NEVER ride without my helmet. And NO ONE wants to see me without a shirt one, much less on a motorcycle! So you can imagine the heat I was feeling to even have that thought cross my mind. I did ride gloveless, which is another one of my never-ever do things. I almost envied the Goldwing riders I saw that had shorts on. Then I had a cold bottle of water and came to my senses. Damn, I can't drink enough water.

Some more fire (this time in Utah I think):


This is what my speedometer looked like most of the day (and note, I was doing the speed limit!):

Also, note the mileage on my 2007 Sporty!

I've bunked down for the night somewhere near the Great Salt Lake in Utah. It's still hot outside. The three requirements for a hotel tonight were (in this order); AC?, Laundry?, Internet?, yes...ok I'll take it. The added bonus was the pool they have. It was quite refreshing while I was doing laundry. I'll be raring to go in the morning with clean jeans and underwear!! I got a lot of ground to cover.

Also, thanks to all those that have left comments for me on this blog. I've been reading them and they do encourage me to keep this up.

For all the pictures from the last two days:

7/20/07 - Pendleton to Payette Forest
7/21/07 - Payette to Ogden

7 comments:

Ninjacpa said...

Hey Dan, I talked to your boss this morning and he said no problem on another month off as long as you keep riding and blogging your adventure!

Seriously, your posts are a real treat. A lot of us are riding with you in our minds eye. Keep riding and keep posting.

BTW, I'm heading south today and will likely catch the Skyline Drive before I return home. Hopefully it won't be too crowded but it is a beautiful Sunday and may not be a good choice. If it's nuts, I'll hop off and explore somewhere.

Regards,
Mike Snyder

decman said...

Dan, glad you are having a good ride.
I'm back in NJ now myself. Call me
if you are going through Wyoming.

later
dec

Cindy Dietz said...

Sounds like you are having a great ride. You are not going to know what to do going back to a normal job. Have you gotten to the point where you can't imagine not doing this everyday? Your Blogs are great, the pics are great, THANKS!
Cindy

Chuck said...

Cool pics out of UT. That one of you in front of the Hell's Canyon fire looks like you when Colin asks you questions about DHCP, all steam coming out of your ears........:)

Stay vertical!

L8z,
CN

Unknown said...

Really enjoying the blog and pics. Sounds like this weekend has been really fun for you. Wow, that's allotta miles for an 07. Good for you! Have I mentioned that I'm jealous? ;-)
Ride on my friend, and I look forward to your next blog. :-)

Xena

brad said...

Utah is beautiful ~ where you heading next? I'm a New Mexico fan, but it's all good out there. Me and JohnnyBGood are planning a trip to Prince Edward Island in Mid August. Think you can extend your vacation? :)

Unknown said...

Nice pictures Dan. Are you riding around one handed making movies and taking self portraits?

Also, you still running the 883 gearing?

Higgy