It's been 5 long years , I made it to the end finally - a TAT tale

Day 2 - Salida CO to Ironton CO

Cinnamon Pass


To make it more challenging than it is , it rained and rained then hailed for about teen minutes . No crashes and the Dunlop 606 have a really good grip - verey impresed .







































Animas Forks to California Pass then Huricane Pass





























just spoted this two riders on the opposite side























Corckscrew Gulch to Ironton .

As you all know this is probably one of the scariest part of TAT . It's very steep with no room for error . For us was even worse - we had a flat at 7:00 PM and took us a good two hours to fix it . By the time we were done was pitch dark and a wolf was near by howling . Made it down to Ironton by 10:30 PM exhausted !

Wow.

Fantastic

How many days total were you riding the TAT do you think? I'd love to do it in one go.

It took us about 10 days from Salida CO to Port Orford OR , that with some sections that we skipped . One being Dragon Wash , 150 miles of Nevada and about 150 miles of Oregon . Just not enough time for the entire trail , besides that we visited Crater Lake NP . This is just the Western part as we did the Eastern last year . I think the whole trail can be done in about 24 days unless you run into problems . Thanks

Day 3 Ironton CO to Moab UT


Day 3 wasn't too bad but still a long one . We had a flat again on Geyser Pass , had a challenging ATV trail to go trough and we meet other riders on TAT that unfortunately I can't remember their names .

Me and The Beast on Ophir Pass













One of the fellow TAT riders on a 610 !


























Looking down at Ophir !








I think it was called RT 41 ! And it wasn't as easy as I thought would be . The ATV trail that was part of it was muddy and narrow then the actual main road very bumpy . Made it trough with no crashes !














Bumped again on this two TAT riders on their 610's on the side of the road where we excange few words . Took off and an hour later we bumped again in Monticello UT where we all had lunch and a pleasant conversation .





Geyser Pass UT











Just another flat to spice up the day .

Once again this day had been another tough one due to the rough terrain and heat . It was my turn for a flat that happened almost in the perfect spot - The Great Shades of Black Dragon Canyon around 4 PM . Took us a good 2 hours therefore we skipped it and went instead on Eagle Canyon as we were running late in the day . As many of you know this part of TAT is not big bike friendly so we had our share of great moments . Not easy dealing with a 500 pounds beast as I weight only 160 pounds . In all we both crashed few times and I even rode Kion's bike up the climbs as he was afraid not to go off . By the time we got out of Eagle Canyon was almost dark so with regret but joy too we rode straight to Salina . We skipped Devils Canyon and few other spots but it's just another reason to return another time . Now I will let you enjoy the pics for day 4 and with regret I have to say that due to a computer malfunction Kion's pics were forever lost . From this day on to Port Orford , all of his pics are lost . Some really good ones but luckily I still have mine . Enjoy !














Remember this climb ? Now is all nicely fixed !

























Black Canyon








Just too hot to fix the flat with all the gear on !

















Eagle Canyon .




























Under 70

Looks like a whole lot of fun..

Those trails look fantastic...

Delicious RR. I'm in

Have you had the same hardcases on the whole time ?
If they they are , they're remarkably resiliant.

Have been using this set up for over five years now . Moto-Sport 9" panniers with Touratech racks . No longer waterproof but still very usable and I hope will last another five . Thank You

That is part of the Alpine Loop in Colorado . You can easily spend one month there exploring all the trails . Thanks

Day 5 Salina UT to Baker NV

We spent the night before at a campground in Salina along with two other riders from Mississippi . Both were on TAT and both are part of advrider.com - Adam ( Trialsbikeadam ) and his buddy Justin . In the morning we had breakfast at Mom's Cafe where we meet another rider doing TAT . I can't remember his name anymore but I do remember that his riding partner badly crashed on Eagle Canyon few days prior and had to leave home .



As the day went we did well for the most part , less the ATV trail from Richfield to Kanosh . I disliked it 5 years ago and we disliked it this year . Going up hill was OK but going down hill was horrible . We just couldn't ride the bikes slow enough without sliding . It is very steep , has round loose rocks and the ATV tracks just sends you all over . To make sure that we don't crash badly we slowly lowered the bikes with the engines off . We got lost few times and had to back-track the trail as our GPS units had some messed up maps uploaded . Made it safe to Baker NV after another long day on the saddle .

Had lunch there with my buddy Lionsroaar when we did the TAT Sept. 2010. Good food but we listened to arguing in the kicthen the whole time we were there. Had a scone with honey butter for dessert. HMMM HMMM!
You're the first ones I've ever seen post pics of that long atv downhill outside of Richfield UT. My brakes were fading bad by the time I got to the bottom of that hill. Great ride though.

The food is great and everyone was awesome at Mom's Cafe . We had many other pics from this trip but were lost due to a computer malfunction , so I am using only what was taken by me . All Kion's pics are lost forever ! Thanks

Day 6 Baker NV to Eureka NV

I forgot to mention that the night before we had the pleasure to meet and had dinner with the two-up group from New Zealand that were also riding TAT . Phil and his wife Dawn then Andrew and Gale . Their full ride report can be found here http://advrider.com/forums/showthread.php?t=815869 . Very friendly ,good company and I wish we had more time to share our stories .



There were no major delays this day and almost everything went good . But there are couple of advice's to be given and I will strongly suggest to take them in consideration .

1. Watch for deep sand pockets on the gravel roads . Can be easily spotted as they have a lighter color . Phil and Dawn had their share this year as I had mine five years ago .

2. Flash storms/flooding - went trough one and in matter of minutes the road was all washed out .

3. And a easy one - take lots and lots of pics . This part of Nevada is just gorgeous .



Phil's unlucky encounter !










How about this ! A headless Elk !




































































Very slippery and I went down . Got my boots all wet as the water was over one feet deep .

Day 7 Eureka NV to McDermit NV

For the most part Day 7 went smooth with few incidents to mention , two of them were Kion's unlucky crashes . One time broke his mirror due to a pot-hole on a dirt covered bridge then second time crashed at night on the desert and lost his $300 intercom . Crashed too as the terrain got very dusty and pockets of deep sand . Had been a long day , once again , as we underestimated the last 50 miles before McDermit and rode it at night . Not the safest way as wildlife is very active - have seen at least 50 rabbits , two of them killed by Kion's .

Day 8 McDermit NV to Lakeview OR

By now we are getting close to the end of our vacation and we had to take few shortcuts . The last 100 miles of Nevada were skipped and took the highway instead . This day was OK but very dusty and the scenery like a moon landscape . Part of the trail goes trough Disaster Peak and indeed was a disaster . A week prior to our arrival a major wild fire burnt down the entire valley .

I am glad you guys made it to the end and I hope you had a great time in The States . Ride Safely !

Great pics.