Gettin' Dirty with the Wans: 8400 miles - UTBDR, KLIM rally, Canada, WABDR, OBDR +

[Bob]

Hey, thanks for the fire engine pic! Awesome present in the middle of this great RR.
I would like to thank you for giving ScottMac the other pic,

[Bartek990]

Hi,
So nice to see you back safe to crowded BAy Area.
Thaks for that fuel pomp in Idaho and grate companionship.
Keep RR coming,
Cheers Bartek

[scottmac]

Originally Posted by Bob

Hey, thanks for the fire engine pic! Awesome present in the middle of this great RR.
I would like to thank you for giving ScottMac the other pic,

Now I just need to wash my eyes out with soap...

[dustyrider]

Kelly and Matt, your efforts are appreciated. We-Who-Long-To-Go-On-Long-Remote-Rides-But-For-One-Reason-Or-Another-Cannot-Go salute your willingness to share your adventures with us. Let the fun begin.

[Bob]

Hey Kelly, wake up I need my morning coffee or trip pics.

[Nixels]

It looks like one Coney's been abused by the gate crashers.



I'm late to the party, but I'm strapped in with a bucket full of Gadget Brand Popcorn!

[LittleWan]

Originally Posted by scottmac

...my eyes...

I'm glad you guys enjoyed the Booty!

Originally Posted by Bartek990

Hi,
So nice to see you back safe to crowded BAy Area.
Thaks for that fuel pomp in Idaho and grate companionship.
Keep RR coming,
Cheers Bartek

Bartek!
hello my friend!
We were just so happy you were able to ride with us.
Lots of good pics of you coming up stay tuned!




Thanks for the anniversary wishes, Dustyrider!


Nice catch on the busted up cone, Nixels!
I hadn't even noticed that

Originally Posted by Bob

Hey Kelly, wake up I need my morning coffee or trip pics.

Dude! It's saturday!
Chill.



Haha.
Actually, I just needed a little break.


Yesterday Matt and Cap'n underpants went for a little ride up to Stonyford.
I stayed home so Matt could do some standing up and enjoy the bike again.
They had a good time, until the end.
On the way home, they were riding through a section with blind corners and almost got taken out by a pickup!
Not even going too fast, just bad timing.

Luckily, neither of them is hurt but it was close for Cap'n underpants.
Aaron had to eject and got clear, but his 990 got nailed by the truck.
After a little work to get the bike in rideable condition, they were able to limp home.

They stopped to rest at a gas station and Aaron said, "Hey, it's really good to be riding with you again, matt."








But, yeah.
After all the thousands of miles we just did (with all the blind corners, dangerous places and questionable speeds).
We're feeling pretty lucky.
This is an incredibly stupid hobby. Especially the way we do it.

But even if you're cautious, it's risky.
I'm kind of scared for everyone on ADV...
Be careful out there!



And now that I've totally killed your buzz...


Day 4: 6/25/12
Red Creek Res., UT to Torrey, UT 185 miles




Movie Night: The Aftermath...





Poor Aaron.
Apparently, the Suburban seat was not as comfy for sleeping as it was for sitting.





He brought a tent, just didn’t want to set it up.
I'm not sure what the reason was.
Me, I enjoy a tent. Keeps the bugs off.





We had a lovely breakfast of coffee and oatmeal, lounging on the Suburban seat.
Forgot to take a pic, but it was really nice.
The Reservoir was beautiful this morning





I was being stupid and tried to put on my contacts while standing over the bike seat.
I do it all the time and usually have no problems,
but today I was busy talking to cap’n underpants and I dropped one.
Right there.
In that pile of stuff on the the grass.





Motherbrother!


Luckily, Matt found it.
whew.
I got a big scolding for that one.
Yeah, it would have sucked to have been half blind for the rest of the trip.
And my optometrist recently passed away, too.
I have no idea where to get my new eyeballs.



Cap’n underpants wanted to take another dip in the reservoir,
so matt and I rode along the beach, over to the far side of lake.
What a hugely bad idea.
Got bogged down in some thick, smelly mud and then had to ride up a hiking trail to get out.


Well, that was a crap way to start the morning. let’s get out of here.





Monkey fighter!


BigWan and I had a get-off in this freshly graded sh..stuff.
It was super soft and we were going too slow
(matt was checking the mirrors to see if aaron made the turn)



No biggie, but the camera got a face full of dirt and grit. again.
This is getting old.
You might have noticed that we were running a Heidenau K60 instead of our usual D908 rally raid or Scorpion Rally rear.
Ugh.


I really hate that tire. It kept trying to kill us.
Matt says I’m not supposed to be hating on anything so early in the report, so we’ll get back to that later...


Anyway.
a little while up the road, we ran into the source of all the torn up roads.
This guy.





At least it’s pretty in the Dixie Forest.





And when they aren’t freshly graded, the roads are pretty nice.
This was road 410.





Can you see Cap’n underpants?
he’s that little dot in the middle...





It was nice to have some dirt and rocks instead of sand and gravel.




Cap’n underpants again...





Mmmm. Forest-y.





Cows.




We really enjoyed this ride.




A little sandy here, but still fun.





Here comes Cap’n underpants!





Uh oh.
That side bag is trying to make a run for it!





Get that sucker back on there.




At least it wasn’t hurt. The starboard side is pretty good.
Look at the port side bag...



Too many rock massages.



We stopped in Panguitch for gas










This guy was a real character. Gary.
He charged us a dollar for this photo.
It wasn’t worth it.




Haha, just kidding.
Gary was nice enough and wanted to give us some tips about the area.
When Matt told him where we were going next (following the tracks),
He said, “nah, you don’t want to go there. I do ATV tours so I know all the roads.
You want to take Hwy 12. It’s the best scenery. ”


But, that’s pavement.


Anyway. Gary was very insistent that we listen to him.
Aaron wanted to see some sights (and not just desert), so he was game.
Hwy 12 would go through Bryce and Grand Staircase - Escalante,
and Gary said that we could do Hell’s Backbone, which is dirt.


Sigh.
OK.


I hope we don't regret ditching perfectly good tracks for a guy in an Arby's hat...





here’s a map I stole from the internets.
Hell’s Backbone is #11




Apparently, Scenic Byway 12 is quite famous.
if you go to the website and download the route guide, you can read all about it.


Slab












At least it's starting to look like Utah!

[RedRockRider]

Fantastic! The movie night and carnage at Red Creek Reservoir was particularly amusing. I'm gonna have to go find that car seat. Very familiar with area from Pioche to Parowan to Panguitch. Lots of riding in this area. Great to see you enjoying it. Little photo from Paragoonah -- note the spelling on the sign by the locals.

[LittleWan]

Originally Posted by RedRockRider

Very familiar with area from Pioche to Parowan to Panguitch. Lots of riding in this area. Great to see you enjoying it. Little photo from Paragoonah -- note the spelling on the sign by the locals.

Hi RRR!

Yeah, the names in that area are something.
Between the unusual names and my sloppy handwriting,
I had to triple check to make sure I didn't mess up the spellings in my journal, especially "Panguitch."

Have you ridden that road, 410? I wasn't sure if I got the info right.
I think that's what the sign said, but I didn't get a photo of it.

We spent a lot of time in Utah this trip and had some top notch riding.
thanks for checking in!

[Oldone]

Hi Wans,

Boy, am I glad to run across your RR.......I've followed along on all of them (from my recliner of course!) and have never been able to stop reading until it was almost time for bed. I hope this one sees you through pretty much safe and fairly all intact. Thanks much for taking the time for old farts like me, who can at least still read! Happy 15th, maybe a little late....

Gary "Oldone"

Grampa’s Lake Superior Ride
Grampa’s National Monument Ride

[iDave]

What a fantastic adventure. Great photos and entertaining presentation Little Wan .

Loved the movie night video...

"No, it tastes like zombie dick."

Totally looking forward to each and every post .

[LittleWan]

Hi Gary, nice to see you!

Hey iDave! what's up?
yay, zombie dick!
heh, I love that movie.




Day 4: 6/25/12 continued
Red Creek Res., UT to Torrey, UT 185 miles



Where were we? oh yeah,
Red Canyon












I thought these tunnels were in Bryce, but the route guide says they’re actually in Red Canyon.











Time for lunch.
Gary recommended Fosters, he said it’s one of the only places around that doesn’t rip off tourists.





It was good! I had the veggie stir fry, but totally forgot to take pics.
Aaron was reading the menu and said, “Girl Squatter?! what kind of beer is that?”





Who wants a Girl Squatter? Aaron does!





OK, back on the slab





Yes, it was scenic.





just not as exciting as we were used to.





You see a lot more bikes when you’re on the pavement





Guess we’re in Grand Staircase - Escalante





Cap’n underpants was pretty happy, he had really been looking forward to seeing Utah.





With a name like “Hell’s Backbone,” we thought this road might be kinda interesting.





It wasn’t.
Wide, flat, washboardy gravel.





with a side of pretty.





The bridge was cool, though.
It was built in the 30s to connect Boulder, UT to Escalante, UT.











We were looking down over the Box-Death Hollow Wilderness.


















It’s hard to capture the depth of the canyon. The GoPro does it best.





It was a nice place for some photos





and a water break





Cap’n underpants wanted to visit the Anasazi Museum,
but BigWan and I were in a hurry to get to Bicknell.
We were waiting for parts for our stupid headsets.
At this point, I could hear Matt, but he couldn't hear me.
It was really pissing him off.

We left Aaron at the museum and headed to Bicknell.
It was almost 4pm and we knew the post office would be closing soon.
The more we talked about it (i.e., the more Matt ranted and couldn't hear my responses),
the more anxious we got.
We really wanted those parts ASAP.


Google says that drive should take 57 minutes, but we got there in under 35.




So, after risking life and limb (and missing some beautiful overlooks)
we got to Bicknell only to find that the mucking post office had closed at 2:30pm.

Son of a flipping biscuit!



Also, there had been a time change somewhere and we were 1 hour behind.
There was no way in hell we could have gotten there in time.
Sigh.



We sat at the Bicknell gas station for a couple hours, waiting for Aaron.
He really enjoyed the museum and the ride out to Bicknell.
When we met up again, we agreed that we should spend the night in Torrey.



Stopped at The Nielsen Grist Mill on the way back (well, stopped at the sign at least)
You can read about it here.
Apparently, it’s the site of a geocache, too (see link).
Thank you, internets!





The motel in Torrey was full,
But we got a couple cabins at the Torrey Trading Post and that was even better.





They were nice. 35 bucks for a furnished cabin (with bedding and a tv)
Nice clean showers/toilets just across the courtyard.
It was so extravagant, after camping. Showers!!





We had some takeout burritos and beer from the market across the street and called it a night.




Tomorrow - Capitol Reef and Cathedral Valley

[acesandeights]

Originally Posted by LittleWan

No biggie, but the camera got a face full of dirt and grit. again.
This is getting old.
You might have noticed that we were running a Heidenau K60 instead of our usual D908 rally raid or Scorpion Rally rear.
Ugh.

I was just about to ask about that. It was recommended to me for my DR650, but I didn't think it would fit my riding style...then again, I've never tried one. When it's more appropriate to start hating on things fill us in.

[VFR]

I've ridden hwy 12 several times & it is a beautiful ride. Probably not so much if you like dirt but I ride a sportbike. I would last about 50 feet on the stuff you like but the scenery there is nice as well. At least you don't have to camp with touristas with screaming kids.....

[rider914]

Always cool to see familiar places from another POV

Originally Posted by LittleWan

You might have noticed that we were running a Heidenau K60 instead of our usual D908 rally raid or Scorpion Rally rear.
Ugh.

+1

Originally Posted by LittleWan

Tomorrow - Capitol Reef and Cathedral Valley

-M