59 days, 11,353 miles, 32 States - Road Trip Complete!
#1
10-09-2014, 03:48 PM
59 days, 11,353 miles, 32 States - Road Trip Complete!
Hubby & I have just got home from the trip of a lifetime. 2 years of saving money and vacation time, countless hours of planning and we did it without a hitch! We left, each on our own bike, from Central Maine, reached the Northern California coast and travelled back via the Southwest. I wish to acknowledge and thank all those who have posted ride reports and disclosed their favorite rides. I have lurked here for many months gleaning as much info as I could.
If anyone is interested I kept a daily blog with photos etc.:
biketourwest.blogspot.com
Rather than adding to the Touring Tricks and Tips thread I will try to outline what worked for us and what didn't here.
Planning: As mentioned, we planned all our stops, accommodations and routes before we left. I know most people wouldn't do it this way but it worked for us as neither of us wanted to be spending time in the evenings figuring out where to go next! We suspected our plans might get derailed if we were delayed by weather or mechanical issues but, amazingly enough, we were not. We did make a couple of minor adjustments to avoid forecast heavy rain but that was it.
We researched accommodation using recommendations from this Forum and Trip Advisor - we were never steered wrong. We did our best to choose motels within walking distance of a place to eat in the evening.
All routes were preplanned on Garmin BaseCamp and loaded to a Garmin Zumo and a RoadTech GPS so we each had our own GPS. This took hours but resulted in carefree riding during the trip.
Safety: We never once felt threatened or insecure. Maybe we were lucky but everyone we met on the road and in the towns was friendly and helpful. We covered our bikes (for security) in the evenings for the first week but that soon fell by the wayside and we would not bring bike covers again. We often stayed in Motels with the bikes outside the room but not always and we had to get used to leaving our bikes out in the open. We locked our bags and forks but did not use any other additional locks. (Both bikes have security alarms).
Bike Care: I confess that we did take some of our favorite cleaning supplies and took the time to clean bugs off every few days. If the opportunity presented itself we would do a more thorough cleaning when we could. We anticipated our 5,000 and 10,000 mile maintenance checks and scheduled them in advance with Dealers en-route. Again, that went without a hitch and we were even able to get the September clutch recall done with the 10,000 mile service in Durango. Hubby carried the tool kit which thankfully was not needed. We did have a portable compressor which was used several times and was invaluable for keeping the tire pressures correct.
Cash/Credit Card: I called Bank of America and outlined our plans before we left. We use their Travel Rewards Credit Card. We had no problems with the card being denied even on days where we used the card at multiple gas stations, sometimes in different states, on the same day. And we were always fueling two bikes separately at each stop. We obviously took cash as well but not enormous amounts. We accepted that we would end up paying a fee to use ATMs. Our total fees for the whole trip was less than $20. One mistake we made was taking Travellers Checks. A complete waste of time as no one will accept them these days and it would seem that many younger cashiers have no idea what they are!
Clothing: We both wear "All The Gear All the Time" so did not have to worry about stowing any gear when we rode. Full armored jackets which provided enough venting so we did not overheat in the hotter places. We wear kevlar lined jeans which did get grimy but got washed when we could - about 3 times! Obviously, we carried rain gear, Harley jacket & pants for us both - kept us bone dry on the few occasions we encountered rain. We also took our heated jacket liners and gloves (Gerbing - worked well for us) and made sure we had room to pack this away when not needed. Otherwise we found that quick dry underwear (ex-officio and underarmor) worked really well and dried overnight so we could have got by with packing fewer pairs! Quick dry T-shirts were great for riding and next time we will only take two each. Evening "attire" became very monotonous as we wore the same things for 8 weeks. Again, quick dry shirts and shorts worked well. We did have a small laundry kit which included camp soap, a camping clothes line and two blow up hangers! Hubby thought I was crazy but in the end even he admitted that it was a good move. The blow up hangers were great for getting our T-shirts dry for the next morning.
National Park Pass: Recommended on this site (otherwise I am sure I would never have thought of it) It paid for itself at least three times over - we visited 17 National Parks and got into them all without additional cost.
We feel very fortunate to have had the opportunity to make this trip. We would do it again in a heartbeat if we could! Thanks again to all those who take the time to post "ride reports".
If anyone is interested I kept a daily blog with photos etc.:
biketourwest.blogspot.com
Rather than adding to the Touring Tricks and Tips thread I will try to outline what worked for us and what didn't here.
Planning: As mentioned, we planned all our stops, accommodations and routes before we left. I know most people wouldn't do it this way but it worked for us as neither of us wanted to be spending time in the evenings figuring out where to go next! We suspected our plans might get derailed if we were delayed by weather or mechanical issues but, amazingly enough, we were not. We did make a couple of minor adjustments to avoid forecast heavy rain but that was it.
We researched accommodation using recommendations from this Forum and Trip Advisor - we were never steered wrong. We did our best to choose motels within walking distance of a place to eat in the evening.
All routes were preplanned on Garmin BaseCamp and loaded to a Garmin Zumo and a RoadTech GPS so we each had our own GPS. This took hours but resulted in carefree riding during the trip.
Safety: We never once felt threatened or insecure. Maybe we were lucky but everyone we met on the road and in the towns was friendly and helpful. We covered our bikes (for security) in the evenings for the first week but that soon fell by the wayside and we would not bring bike covers again. We often stayed in Motels with the bikes outside the room but not always and we had to get used to leaving our bikes out in the open. We locked our bags and forks but did not use any other additional locks. (Both bikes have security alarms).
Bike Care: I confess that we did take some of our favorite cleaning supplies and took the time to clean bugs off every few days. If the opportunity presented itself we would do a more thorough cleaning when we could. We anticipated our 5,000 and 10,000 mile maintenance checks and scheduled them in advance with Dealers en-route. Again, that went without a hitch and we were even able to get the September clutch recall done with the 10,000 mile service in Durango. Hubby carried the tool kit which thankfully was not needed. We did have a portable compressor which was used several times and was invaluable for keeping the tire pressures correct.
Cash/Credit Card: I called Bank of America and outlined our plans before we left. We use their Travel Rewards Credit Card. We had no problems with the card being denied even on days where we used the card at multiple gas stations, sometimes in different states, on the same day. And we were always fueling two bikes separately at each stop. We obviously took cash as well but not enormous amounts. We accepted that we would end up paying a fee to use ATMs. Our total fees for the whole trip was less than $20. One mistake we made was taking Travellers Checks. A complete waste of time as no one will accept them these days and it would seem that many younger cashiers have no idea what they are!
Clothing: We both wear "All The Gear All the Time" so did not have to worry about stowing any gear when we rode. Full armored jackets which provided enough venting so we did not overheat in the hotter places. We wear kevlar lined jeans which did get grimy but got washed when we could - about 3 times! Obviously, we carried rain gear, Harley jacket & pants for us both - kept us bone dry on the few occasions we encountered rain. We also took our heated jacket liners and gloves (Gerbing - worked well for us) and made sure we had room to pack this away when not needed. Otherwise we found that quick dry underwear (ex-officio and underarmor) worked really well and dried overnight so we could have got by with packing fewer pairs! Quick dry T-shirts were great for riding and next time we will only take two each. Evening "attire" became very monotonous as we wore the same things for 8 weeks. Again, quick dry shirts and shorts worked well. We did have a small laundry kit which included camp soap, a camping clothes line and two blow up hangers! Hubby thought I was crazy but in the end even he admitted that it was a good move. The blow up hangers were great for getting our T-shirts dry for the next morning.
National Park Pass: Recommended on this site (otherwise I am sure I would never have thought of it) It paid for itself at least three times over - we visited 17 National Parks and got into them all without additional cost.
We feel very fortunate to have had the opportunity to make this trip. We would do it again in a heartbeat if we could! Thanks again to all those who take the time to post "ride reports".
The following users liked this post:
Steve Mac (05-17-2020)
#2
10-09-2014, 05:28 PM
Road Master
Thanks so much for the info... said the little green man
mucho envious. I wold love to do a week... mush less an epic like you are talking.
Query..... 1 park pass for the both of you? or did you each have to get one? I did that last year on a car trip. Paid for itself that trip alone and we used several times after.
mucho envious. I wold love to do a week... mush less an epic like you are talking.Query..... 1 park pass for the both of you? or did you each have to get one? I did that last year on a car trip. Paid for itself that trip alone and we used several times after.
#3
10-09-2014, 05:58 PM
#7
10-09-2014, 07:15 PM
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#9
10-09-2014, 09:36 PM
Congrats on the tour! My GF and I love touring on our Harleys and manage to get multiple trips each season with at least one 10 or 11 day tour. This year we got up to the Pacific Northwest. I cant begin to imagine 59 straight days on the road. Would be curious to your ages and what you ride. Will check your blog.
