The Summer of Stupid: 7400+ miles of 2up - OBCDR, CDT, TAT West and more...

[pyrate]

Originally Posted by LittleWan

Thanks, WOXOF - I love the clouds in that one!



I haven't gone back to read much of this RR, but with 63 pages, it's a challenge to find anything!
The freaking pages take forever to load, too.
Sorry.


This morning I renewed our photobucket pro account for a year - the photos should be safe until next december...


Anyway, if I can't find anything, I guess no one else can either.
I added a very basic index to the first post, and I'll put it here at the end, too.
Here you go:

The Stupid Index

Pacific Crest Quest: starts on page 1, and there's an update (PCQ days 6,7 and 8 without snow) here.
Oregon Back Country Discovery Route: starts here.
Continental Divide Trail: starts here.
Trans America Trail: starts here.

And for those of you who have questions about the GPS tracks we used for this ride, the info is here.

No video index? Just teasing!!

[redog1]

Just great.
Nice follow-up!!!

[SlowRide13]

Originally Posted by pyrate

No video index? Just teasing!!

Yeah and we need a 'BigWan Grin' index:

BigWan grinning because he has a burrito in front of him
BigWan grinning because he has a beer in front of him
BigWan grinning because he has a sandwich in front of him
BigWan grinning because he has another beer in front of him.......

[LittleWan]

haha, SlowRide13!

You forgot the most important one!
The "BigWan grinning because he has an ice cream" link...





Our next ride is going to be the T of I - Tour of Icecream...!

[sion]

Originally Posted by LittleWan

Hey, is that bear scat?












Uh oh. This pile was really fresh...just riding near it, we could smell the aroma of berry jam!

bear-y jam?

make bear-y jam your favorite

[pyrate]

Originally Posted by sion

bear-y jam?

make bear-y jam your favorite

Those aren't berry seeds in there. It is Pepper spray and the remnants of the person that sprayed the bear! If there are bells there then it typically means it was a backpacker!

[ADVwnbe]

Little Wan you are the best! That video was the perfect way to end the ride report. Sorry to keep it going with another post

[chrish4ku]

Wait, wait, wait a minute.....

I just bought this same bike and bought my wife all the gear , as we thought this post was going to take us through the winter and into the spring for that matter....

Uh - oh crud - this TV advertising always gets me late at night. Now this bike is just sitting in my garage.... and she has some pretty high expectations...

Worst part - no more office chat about epic ride reports about the Wans, and I'm tired of Ewan and Charlie's DVD set...

Great report guys - let me know if you ever frequent Alice's as we Bay Area folks love it.

[kaia]

... but great ride report, LittleWan! your photos & video & commentary put this report in the best of the best category, for sure... especially for those of us who want to (or do.) ride two up. one hell of an adventure! it'll be tough to top it, but i'm sure you'll manage. those last few videos from the PCQ were insane, i don't know how you hold on to film one handed through that kind of stuff!

i'm just finishing up two weeks of paternity leave (the new littleone is asleep beside me), and this report was the only thing from ADV that i kept open during this time of no-sleep. the wife saw me reading you report a few times, and it made her miss 2up (can't really 2up while pregnant). she's itching for the spring so we can get back out on the bike together.

... anyways ... congrats on finishing up, it was epic.

[LittleWan]

Hey Guys!
Wow, when did this go over 100,000 views??
thanks for continuing to read the report!

I think I've responded to most of the recent comments via PM - except kaia...

Originally Posted by kaia

i'm just finishing up two weeks of paternity leave (the new littleone is asleep beside me), and this report was the only thing from ADV that i kept open during this time of no-sleep.

Wow! kaia - congratulations! PM sent

We've been traveling around, visiting family, and I haven't been signing in to ADV.
edit: that clip didn't last long (was removed by user).
Try this one instead:





Flying out of Nashville, BigWan got a full body scan AND a nice pat down... You don't get that kind of love on a bike. Well, not normally.

So, while I'm back on ADV, checking out larryboy's new DV report, I'm also re-reading this a little and I found a couple of dead linkies.
For example, Apu talking about "nearly rectum-free" beef jerky (post# 847) - the video was removed, but I found an audio clip!
I know those videos don't stay around forever (and most of them shouldn't), but if you notice any dead links, send me a PM and I'll try and find replacements at some point.

Also, I'm going to go ahead and post this list of TAT west motels. I've had a few PM requests, so maybe someone else will find it useful next year.
I don't usually read ADV in the winter/spring, but now it'll be here for you if you want it.


Motels - TAT west (trinidad, CO to port orford, OR)
BigWan and I are fine with Motel 6 and that type of 1 star motel. Clean is good, but sometimes...eh?

I’ve put an approximate price - what I wrote in my journal. Your price may vary - higher or lower.
You can get better prices by booking online, but it’s not always practical on the TAT.
Most of the time, we couldn't even get cell reception on the trail.
I’ve added a link if I could find a website for the motel.
I looked at a lot of motels on http://www.tripadvisor.com/ and read reviews.
We stayed at all of these (either 2009 or 2010) and none of them had bedbugs at the time!

For a few towns, I also listed alternate motels.
I tried to add notes when I could. Some of the links are messy, sorry.

1. Trinidad, Colorado. Trail’s End Motel, 616 East Main St.
ph. (719) 846-4425
$55
http://www.yelp.com/biz/trails-end-motel-trinidad
Friendly. Rooms seemed a lot crappier in 2010. Room 14 is nicer than room 19.

2. Salida, Colorado. Silver Ridge Lodge. 545 West Rainbow Blvd
ph. Toll Free: (877) 268-3320 or local (719) 539-2553
$75
http://silverridgelodge.com/index.html
Nice breakfast. Pretty gardens. Friendly.

alternate: America’s Best Value Inn. A little dumpy. Lousy breakfast.
http://www.americasbestvalueinn-sali...dly-motel.html

3. Lake City, Colorado. Silver Spur Motel. 301 N. Gunnison Ave
ph. (970) 944-2231 or 800-499-9701
$79
http://www.lakecity.com/index.php/pl...ver-spur-motel
Funky and old. Creaky.

4. Monticello, Utah. The Monticello Inn. 164 E. Central Street (Highway 491)
$50
ph. Toll free: 877-927-3191 or local (435) 587-2274 $50
http://www.themonticelloinn.org/

5. Moab, Utah. The Bowen Motel. 169 North Main St.
ph. toll free 1-800-874-5439 or local (435)259-7132
$74 plus tax
http://www.bowenmotel.com
Really liked the Bowen. They have a special bike wash area!
Nice pool, other guests were very friendly. Lots of international travelers.

alternate: The Adventure Inn
http://www.adventureinnmoab.com/
Nice towels. Grumpy owners.

6. Richfield, Utah. The Comfort Inn. 1070 W 1250 South.
ph. (435) 893-0119
$80
http://www.comfortinn.com/hotel-richfield-utah-UT072
I think this one was our favorite room. Really nice and comfy.
Big, roomy, airy. super clean.

alternate: The Rodeway Inn in Salina, UT.
http://www.rodewayinn.com/hotel-salina-utah-UT112
Pool, hot tub. The clerk was really nice to us in 2009.

7. Ely, Nevada. Motel 6. 770 Avenue O, US Hwy 50 at US Hwy 93 S
ph. (775) 289-6671
$45
http://www.yelp.com/biz/motel-6-ely


8. Battle Mountain, Nevada. Super 8 Motel. 825 Super 8 Dr., I-80 Exit 231
ph. (775) 635-8808
price varies - over $92 in 2009, about $75 in 2010.
http://www.super8.com/Super8/control...opertyId=08525
Clean, nice. Indoor pool (nice). Expensive for Battle Mtn, but worth it.
When I checked Tripadvisor in 2009, this was the only motel in BM that didn’t have bedbugs!
Make a reservation - it fills up fast.

9. Denio Junction, Nevada. There’s nothing here but the restaurant/bar/gas pump/motel. You can’t miss it!
ph. (775) 941-0171
$66.
There are only 6 rooms or so. Call ahead if you can’t camp - you have to go at least 100 miles if they are closed or booked up.
http://deniojunctionmotel.com/
(if that link doesn't work, google "denio junction motel")
Funky. Our room (#1) didn’t lock. Can be loud if the bar is rowdy.

10. Lakeview, Oregon. The Budget Inn. 411 North "F" Street.
ph. (541) 947-2201
$57 for one bed. $66 for 2 beds (ask for cash discount).
Dumpy, but we like it. Stayed here 3 times and the clerk is really nice. Can be sketchy in the cleaning dept...
Jan/2012 - Uh oh. looks like The BudGet In is the Executive Inn now?
http://www.booking.com/hotel/us/budg...keview.en.html

alternate: Best Western. Didn't actually stay at this one.
Around $100 and not very bike friendly. Got dirty looks when I walked in with my helmet.
http://bestwesternoregon.com/hotels/...ne-motor-lodge

11. Crescent, Oregon. Ugh - keep going!
We stayed at the Woodsman Country Lodge in 2009.
They are assholes. Nice rooms, but the owner (Barb) is horrible.
You can read about our experience here:
http://www.advrider.com/forums/showp...4&postcount=93
If you must stay here, make sure you call ahead and make a reservation.
They will NOT give you a room if they see a bike or helmet!
http://www.woodsmancountrylodge.com

12. Port Orford, Oregon. In 2009, we couldn’t get a room in Port Orford - everything shuts down at 9pm!
We continued down the road to Arizona Beach (about 11 miles).
Arizona Beach Lodge. 37015 Arizona Beach Road.
Ph. (541) 332-1001
$75
http://www.arizonabeachlodge.com/
These folks were so nice, we went out of our way to stay here in 2010 (when we could have stayed anywhere).


Make sure you double check all the info before you leave.
I may have made typos or the info may change.
(Tried to update the links january 2012)
Denio Junction (#9) is esp. hard to get ahold of, you may have to call several times.



Okay, you guys - hope you all have a wonderful holiday season!
Time to break out Pee Wee's Christmas special...




take care and ride safe!

[WOXOF]

Happy Holidays LittleWan and BigWan.

[Nixels]

LittleWan!

Once again you've increased my cultural knowledge with that PeeWee Herman Christmas video.

Have a good holiday!

[Lion BR]

Great summary of info, LittleWan.
Lion

[katoomryder]

finally finished reading your great RR!! Thanks so much for putting all this info up here for the rest of us. I'm planning a TAT trip next summer, with all the links and such you put here, it'll save a lot of reseach time.

Thanks again for taking us along!

[LittleWan]

Originally Posted by katoomryder

I'm planning a TAT trip next summer, with all the links and such you put here, it'll save a lot of reseach time.

katoomryder - glad to help and hope you have a great trip!



WOXOF, Nixels, LionBR...
Thanks, you guys!

I used to make BigWan watch that Pee Wee xmas special every 3-4 years, until our VCR died.
After seeing that clip yesterday, I was inspired to find a torrent - now I've got the whole special on a thumbdrive.
A little goes a long way, though.
I'm good til Christmas 2014!


Oh, but real quick - you should see Laurence Fishburne as Cowboy Curtis...



Man, I'm really going to miss having a place to dump out my bookmarks. This report made such a nice repository for random shit.


Just in case you missed the WTF? links,
here's a nice catchy one for the holidays...



Make ukuleles your favorite!