Hey everyone, I am planning a trip to leave Missouri and ride to Washington, with some detours in between. We are wanting to leave May 18 and return by June 6. We are going to Washington for a Baja race with our school so we need to be in Washington May 27-30. The two of us that will be riding both have a Honda CB300f so we are wanting to avoid interstates as much as possible and hit as many epic motorcycle roads as we can. We don't have a route planned yet but preliminary ideas are to push through Kansas and get to Colorado Springs on Day 1 and let the real fun begin after that. We were thinking of spending an entire day in Moab Utah and then head to San Francisco for a day as well. From there we were thinking about taking Hwy 1 up the coast to Portland. (The competition is right on the border of Oregon and Washington) On the way back we would like to hit Yellowstone and Mt. Rushmore but other than that our trip is wide open. We will have a truck that will be following us as well and there has been some discussion about bringing the dirt bikes as well. Does anyone have any suggestions on routes, destinations, camping areas, motocross/offroad parks, places to eat, or anything that would make this trip even more epic?
On small cycles, I'd take Hwy 54 through Wichita, and when it merges with Hwy 400, I'd take that into CO. This restaurant has been highly recommended to me, but I've not eaten there yet. It's not far off the suggested route, in fact, you could make it on the route. Trading Post Restaurant 602 W Highway 287 Kit Carson, CO 80825
Moab alone makes bringing dirt bikes worth it. Do you have any extra time on the way to SF? The main route over the Sierra isn't the best. If you can, detour south on Hwy 89/88, and 4.
Without knowing your pace its hard to give you 'days', but from Portland to yellowstone... From PDX this will get you to missoula, MT via some really really great roads. The map wouldn't let me put OR242 on it, but you get the idea. http://goo.gl/maps/KcUWU How far you cover each day will decide where camping/lodging is, I'm happy to help with that as well, but I don't know if you are looking to cover 250 miles a day, or 500+ --John
We are planning on taking 54/50 towards Wichita and 88 towards SF. We also found Hwy 92 We are going to try to push to Colorado Springs in one day so I know the first day is going to be a long ride. We have 12 days to get to Portland and we were just planning on getting there in 10 to have a time cushion in case of emergencies or weather/unexpected detours. I think 400-500 miles a day is reasonable. We would like to push hard on travel days so that we have time to spend the whole day in a few places. This is a rough map that we have so far. We want to take Hwy 1 up the coast as well. https://www.google.com/maps/dir/Rol...668!2m2!1d-91.7715303!2d37.948544!2m1!1b1!3e0
I don't think your map shows your intended route. It doesn't put you on 5 north through CA, but it also doesn't have you going up the coast on 1/101, even though I see you have a way point along the coast. Maybe try making the map in classic google maps instead of the new version. Dewey316's route looks great, though I'd say take the Elkhorn and Blue Mountain scenic byways between Heppner and Baker City before going north to La Grand. For an idea of what you'd be in for if you took Dewey316's route, this is on Hwy 3 (Lewiston Hwy) between Enterprise OR and Lewiston ID.
It was a quick map. I would take 74-395-244 to la grande, its a great bit of road. The drag feature didn't want to let me put a few other bits on the map. There are a few things to know on that route as well, such as needing to go into heppner for gas, since there isn't fuel between ukiaha and fossil without that stop, etc. But tons of great roads along that route if you avoid the highway, you really can't go wrong so long as you stay off I-84.
Hey everyone! Sorry it has been a few days since I have been able to do much planning for the trip. St. Pats is a big deal here in Rolla... Anyway, this is a map of our intended route to Moab. We are going to push to Colorado Springs on the first day. We are planning on taking Hwy 92 from Gunnison into Montrose as well. From there we will head to Moab and spend the entire day 3 of our trip in Moab. https://www.google.com/maps/dir/Rol...d!2m2!1d-109.5498395!2d38.5733155!2m1!1b1!3e0 Also due to the fact that everyone going on the trip is on a college budget , we have pretty much decided to leave the trailer at home and just rent an RZR or two for the day while we are in Moab. I am working on the next leg of our trip at the moment (Moab to San Francisco). Let me know what you guys think or if you have any better ideas! Thanks!
HAHA! I remember Rolla around St. Pats. No Shillelaghs in the classrooms! Route doesn't look too bad. I'd just say that I know you don't want to ride on the interstates much, but don't be afraid to use them for short jaunts when it'll save you a good bit of time on the less interesting parts of the trip. For example, I'd definitely take I-44 to hwy 7 to Camdenton at the beginning of your trip instead of heading North out of Rolla and then West. This would save you a half hour right at the beginning of your trip, which doesn't sound like much, but believe me at the end of that first day the prospect of having an extra half hour to go won't be very appealing. The Ninja 250s we had were happy at 60mph, but we could still go 70 if we needed to. Your bikes should do even better. Also, if you have time you should ride up Pikes Peak, you'll ride right by it on your way out of Colorado Springs. RZRs in Moab will probably be $300-$400 for the day, and you'll have to have a security deposit for them too, so keep that in mind. You'll also want to reserve them as far ahead of time as reasonable, especially if you'll be there on a weekend. If that's outside the budget, there's still plenty to do in Moab. Bring some good walking shoes along and then go to Arches and Canyon Lands national parks. Dead Horse State Park is pretty cool too. There's an awesome quesadilla truck in Moab that's worth stopping at for lunch. and like BillUA is suggesting, don't forget to Stop and take pictures!!! You'll regret it if you don't.
No worries my friends, there will be plenty of pictures and GoPro footage! I like the idea of taking 44 out of Rolla. I will probably adjust our route accordingly. The bikes seem to cruise around 58 at about 6000 rpm. I will find out in the next few days what it is really capable of now that I am only 35 miles away from break in. (Rain and snow suck) I found the RZR rentals at High Point Hummer/ATV in Moab and it is $400 including the deposit but split between 2-4 people, depending if we get two, two seats or one four seat, I think we can make it happen. At the very least we will rent mountain bikes for the day. There seems to be some epic downhill trails that we could have fun on! I have mapped out some more of the trip as well. This is from Moab to San Francisco. We will take three days to get there and are planning on stopping at Ely NV for day 4 and Reno NV for Day 5. Day 6 we will arrive in San Francisco and spend the entire Day 7 there. I have never been to California but according to goggle maps it is going to take 3 hours to go 128 miles from Reno to Pine Grove...and 5 hours and 37 minutes to go 174 miles from Pine Grove to San Francisco. I am assuming this is because of traffic. Because of this there is a good chance I will adjust our route to some interstate to get to San Francisco. I am a little worried about how busy the interstate will be there though. Any thoughts on if we should take interstate or just stick with the route I have attached? https://www.google.com/maps/dir/Moa...f!2m2!1d-122.4194155!2d37.7749295!2m1!1b1!3e0 Also I have not mapped our route from San Francisco to Portland yet but I know we are going to take Hwy 1 up the coast. Any other epic road ideas or places to stop along the way that anyone knows about? Thanks Again!
Mountain biking in Moab would definitely be worthwhile to do too. There are lots of rides right out of town, or you can arrange a shuttle and ride down. Mag 7 north of town is a blast, Porcupine Rim is awesome, Slickrock is famous, and the Whole Enchilada will blow your mind. Probably wont' be able to ride all of the Whole Enchilada though since the higher parts will probably still be snowed in. You could also rent dirt bikes while you're there, but riding gear might be a bit awkward unless you can throw it in the support truck and bring it along. For routing through UT, I'm not sure I'd go north so far. Really I'd take I-70 to 24 to Capital Reef. Pick up 12 South (awesome) through Grand Staircase-Escalante to Bryce Canyon. From there, if you have time ride to Zion, if not start heading more west than south. Southern UT is a pretty amazing area though, so it'd be a shame to miss it when you're so close. Really, just look at google maps and try to ride through as much green area as you can Also, be sure to get an annual park pass. It'll be $80, but should get both you and your friend on the bike in each park as long as you both sign it and are riding together. Guys in the truck will have to get their own. Traffic in CA around major cities will suck, but keep in mind that lane sharing is legal there . Helps you on the bike, but not so much your support truck. Be careful and watch for faster riders coming up behind you. I think Hwy 1 to 101 all the way to Portland would be a great option.
You are adding almost an hour by going through San Jose. You can go over the Highway 92 bridge for free.
Part of your route to SF is on 82 - El Camino Real. It is the major retail corridor in the Bay Area. Stoplights every 100 yards will take you forever to get there. Bite the bullet and take 101 or 280 instead. I agree with Herb, go over the San Mateo Bridge and you'll avoid the entire South Bay mess. On your way out of SF, take a detour and visit Hawk Hill for great views of the City and the Golden Gate. Heading up north, ride the Avenue of the Giants that parallels the 101, really nice ride among some of the biggest trees you'll ever see. Be aware that taking the 1/101 from SF to Portland will be a LONG trek. I find it hard to make good time on that route due to all the fantastic views you'll end up stopping to admire. Oregon beach towns are slow going, but worth it to ride the coast. If you're into aviation/space, take 18 east to Portland. Stop at the Evergreen Aviation and Space Museum in McMinnville, about an hour outside of Portland. The Spruce Goose is there, among many other cool things. Just some of my experiences. Charlie
