First of all, thank you to everyone on this forum, I constantly benefit from the wealth of information I've found on here.

I am planning my biggest trip yet for this summer beginning in mid June. I will be two up for two weeks of it and three weeks solo. Looks like I'll be covering around 12,000 miles and 13 National Parks in those 5 weeks, if all goes well. I'll give a quick run down of the plan...

From Kingston Ontario I'll ride three days to the Black Hills and spend day four doing Custer/Needles area. Day five is a 15,000mile service in Billings. Meet the wife at the airport in Billings on the morning of day 6. From there we're doing Yellowstone for three days then south to Grand Junction, the MDH, Mesa Verde, Monuments Valley, then 261/95 to the north end of Hwy 12. From there south on 12, Bryce Canyon, down to Grand Canyon north Rim. Then west to Zion, Death Valley, then north to cross Yosemite via Tioga Pass. 2 days in Yosemite then south to King's Canyon and Sequoia NP. From there west again to San Luis Obispo and PCH up to SF. The wife will fly home from here and I will do PCH north. On this second half solo I'm trying to keep it more open but hope to hit Avenue of the Giants, maybe Crater Lake, Hell's Canyon, Lolo Pass, Glacier NP and Going to the Sun, then into Canada for a bit of Canadian Rockies before the long rip home.

It's a doozie and it's looking like I'm gonna need two scheduled services. What I'm hoping for here is any wisdom from folks who've done mega trips. I've done two weekers in the past so I'm not green but the scope of this beast is intimidating. I've booked accommodations for the portion with the wife but will probably try to keep the solo half a little more flexible/adventurous.

I struggled with what time of year to book this as there are tons of mountain passes as well as desert/death valley. I've done the Canadian Rockies in early May and ridden in Dubai/Oman in 120F so I know what those extremes can bring and decided to do June/July to reduce the risk of mountain passes being closed. The gear in particular is what I've been obsessed with lately, mainly because of the huge variety of terrain/weather. I'll be on my 2014 Limited, and bringing heated gear and mesh gear too. Looking at cooling vests possibly (the soaking type).

The planning for this has really been helping my winter blues! Any experience, route suggestions, gear suggestions, or general observations would be welcomed and appreciated. Thanks in advance!

 

Sounds like a great ride. You've done two weekers before so you know what to expect. Just have apparel for all weather conditions because on that trip you will experience them.

The most important thing is to ride safe and defensive. Be careful and enjoy!

 

lolo pass

stay at http://www.konkolvillemotel.com/

get the steak dinner!!!

plenty to see and do across this great country!!!Crater lake in Oregon the PCH alot to see and do in the north also

 

If you can, add a day or two in the Blackhills. If time is limited I'd say skip Custer loop and definitely hit Spearfish Canyon, Vanocker Canyon Road, and as you mentioned needles Highway.

From Yellowstone to GJ head south out of YNP and ride past the Tetons to Jackson.

I'm not familiar with the other areas you have listed. I suppose just make sure you are enjoying the ride. Don't move so fast that you feel "rushed". Make it last and enjoy.

 

You're hitting a lot of scenic areas but one that isn't on your list that would be great to incorporate would be to swing east and down Hwy 287 from Laramie, WY to Estes Park and ride over Trail Ridge Road through Rocky Mountain National Park. It may add one more day to the ride but it would probably be the elevation height of your trip. One last tip: Give yourself plenty of time to savor each of these areas. I hope your visits to places like Zion, Bryce, etc. are more than just 'pass throughs'....be flexible with time at each stop and try to absorb the beauty, culture and local traditions of each. Even if that means dropping a couple places off your schedule. I remember the worst vacations were where my dad thought that keeping on-schedule was more important than absorbing what we could from each site. Enjoy your trip and ride safe.

 

I've ridden to most of the places you have mentioned but not all on one ride. You will see the most spectacular scenery North America has to offer.

I have lots of reactions but the biggest one is this. Be very wary of heat in the desert! It can be fatal. I see you've ridden in the desert before. Has your wife? You are planning on crossing Death Valley in the summer. I would generally advise against that but if you are going to do it, here is a trick that I've learned.

Years ago I bought an Aerostitch Darien riding suit. The outer shell is cordura fabric, and it is bonded to a waterproof Gore-Tex liner. And there are two huge pockets on each side of the jacket, covering most of the chest. Here is what they recommend that you do when crossing a desert.

You buy an eight pound bag of ice cubes and stuff all the pockets of the jacket with the ice cubes. Then you put on the jacket and start to ride. Several things start to happen. One is that the ice cubes are just on the other side of the Gore-Tex liner so your chest gets real cold. And then all the blood flowing through your chest gets cold. When this blood next flows to other parts of the body, including your brain, it has been cooled. So you likely won't pass out from the heat. But there is more.

The ice cubes melt and the water seeps out of the jacket. A lot gets caught in the creases of the jacket. I bought a pair of cheap cloth gloves in a hardware store. When the cold water melts outward, you can then get the gloves soaked in the cold water and then wipe your face, neck and wherever else you can reach. This will help you to stay cooler.

And there is still more. I assume you will be riding behind a large windshield. As the water melts outward and you go over one of those tar "snaked" on the roads, the bike does a minuscule bump. That allows a very small amount of water that is in the creases to jump up and almost instantly evaporate. What you have then behind the windshield is a swamp cooler. It's like having an air conditioner on the bike.

I find a bag of ice cubes lasts about 3 hours before it is all melted. So I generally have to ice up a couple of times a day.

This is the only way I would cross Death Valley and other deserts in the summer time.

 

I would not ride through Death Valley in June, July, or August on a bet; and I am an AZ native, and ride all year round in the Phoenix area.

I used to prefer textile touring gear, but over time... I have learned to love my leather gear. Sure, it is heavy and hot, but it is also very durable. My textile gear is long gone and my leather is just starting to look broken in. I don't find that it adds that much to the heat problem. I also always wear long sleeve shirts.

Biggest problem with riding in the heat is sun burn and dehydration. I will literally go through 40oz of water in an hour. Some kind of hydration system (Camel Back) will help reduce number of stops, but TBH... I am usually ready to stop. Those cooling vests do work, or so I've been told. My t-shirt works the same way though, so I don't bother with them.

Heated gear is on my list. I will get at least a jacket liner (don't mess around with a vest) and possibly gloves. Just need to think about the power requirements. I was surprised to find out that the battery tender pigtail is good for one, maybe two pieces of gear.

The only hotel reservations I make in advance are the first night's and for popular spots where getting a room can be a challenge. I use my tablet to look for and book rooms the day of.

 

I too would be leery of Death Valley in summer. On the other hand, it sounds as though you will be close to Meteor Crater, which I think is well worth a visit, and would bookend nicely with Crater Lake, which also is not to be missed.

 

Wow ... sounds like a great trip. You are packing to all in.

 

I too have ridden in most of the places that you intend to go and it's some of the most beautiful scenery this country has to offer but I agree with a previous poster about avoiding Death Valley.


We did it (two up on a Heritage pulling an Escapade trailer) leaving Lone Pine, CA close to sunset and at 11:00PM it was 107 degrees at one of our gas stops.
If you decide to do it, try to find someone to ride along with you just in case you have mechanical problems. You don't want to be stranded and alone.


The only other thing that I'd recommend is that you consider shipping your wife's helmet and other gear to your motel in Billings, MT and then shipping it home from S.F. if that's where she's flying home from.


Another consideration is utilizing a trailer.
In the past, I've done several cross country trips where my wife would fly out to meet me and we would do our "touring" then she would fly home and I would trailer back home.
Some folks may say that it's cheating, that it's a bike trip, not a truck/trailer trip, but this has allowed us to see many places that we couldn't have gone due to my wife's limited vacation.