A bunch of us were able to get the time off together so we're shipping the bikes to San Fran and will be taking 2 weeks to get back to Maine. We're more interested in "west of the Mississippi" this trip.

First thought is to do PCH down to LA, then to Vegas, Kingman, Grand Canyon, Meter Crator, 4 corners, then basically continue the route 66 route to Chicago then head home to Maine.

Another thought is to do Yosemite, Tioga Pass or Tahoe area to Tetons and Yellowstone (or even Colorado? - we have friends there) and Sturgis/Black Hills areas then to Chicago and home.


We will be starting May 19 in San Fran so it's early in the season to do 'the northern route' but what are the thoughts about this?

How about the thoughts about "the southern routes" too?

Weather? Will it be warm or should we be bringing our heated/rain gear? Will the northern route be too iffy due to the time of year?

 

The northern route can be iffy. In May, 2011 I didi a cross country ride. We went east on the southern route and tried to come back through Colorado. There was however a low pressure system sitting over the Rockies for an entire week, so we couldn't make it through Colorado. It was snowing in the mountains every day. So we headed south again through NM and AZ. There is a lot to see there. Tioga Pass may not be open in mid/late May, We are having a lot of rain/snow this winter. I would do the southern route. YMMV.

 

Probably the southern route would be best that time of year. Don't forget Death Valley, a must see.

 

I figured going north wouldn't be wise...


We're flying into SFO and running down PCH then cutting across at LA to Vegas.

Trying to figure the time to spend in Cali - so much to see but we only have 15 days to get back home. We're still at the high-level planning stage but here is what I'm thinking

day 1 - pick up bikes at Dudley Perkins in SFO area, then the girls want to see Fisherman's Wharf, then head down rt 1 to Half Moon or Santa Cruz
day 2 - to Pismo Beach
day 3 - to Santa Monica - end route 66
day 4 - to Barstow/Vegas
day 5 - to Hoover Dam, Oatman, Seligman
day 6 - to Grand Canyon, Winslow - Meteor and The Corner
day 7 - to Tucumcari, NM
day 8 - to Clinton, OK
day 9 - to Joplin, OK
day 10 - to St Louis, MO
day 11 - to Chicago ish
day 12 - to Ohio ish
day 13 - to upstate NY
day 14 - to HOME

Lowest mile day (after 1st day) is under 200 and the highest mile day is 400. We'll be 4 bikes and loaded with the ladies so 400 mile days will be met with the wrath of 'if the wife isn't happy, nobody is happy'...
I'd like to fit in a down day or two but darn, maybe not...

 

On Day 2, plan on stopping for lunch at Nepenthe's, http://www.nepenthebigsur.com/. Take seats on the rail facing south overlooking the Big Sur coast. You will experience the California coastline in all it's glory.

Let me know if you have any questions about the San Francisco Bay Area.

 

Thanks Psycle -

The only things we were thinking of was Fisherman's Wharf, Ghirardelli Square, Lombard St and crossing the Golden Gate then heading along the coast down to Half Moon. If there's something we should see, we're up for suggestions. I was just in SFO this past fall for Oracle's OpenWorld but was too busy being wined and dined by my Oracle Sales Reps to do much exploring...

 

Some of what I would tell you would literally depend on which day of the week and what time of the day you are wanting all this to happen. Traffic can be a huge issue. The city's population had grown tremendously in the last 30 years, but we have the same number of streets and freeways. So if you can tell me which day of the week and the time of day you expect to pick up the bikes at Dudley Perkins, and the time you want to be in either Half Moon Bay or Santa Cruz, I can tell you about how you might go about this and where to expect traffic. If you get your bikes early, you should be able to do most of what you wrote, but not much more.

Dudley Perkins has been where I have bought and maintained my bikes for the last twenty five years. They are usually pretty good at getting things done on time.

 

What's the weather like in Maine around June? Wife and I are riding to Laconia and then heading up to and around Portland.

 

I can tell you that I was in Wisconsin around the 3rd weekend of May last year and got into some cold weather requiring me to layer up much more than I had planned. Our plan was to go the UP Michigan but we diverted west and thankfully so as a dealer we stopped at told us that a UP dealer had snow on the ground.

Pack it and be prepared regardless of your intended path.

 

-Psycle,

We're flying in Thursday night and will pick up bikes first thing in the morning Friday and riding from there.

Shazam,

The weather in northern New England (ME/NH/VT) in June is or can be cool. You can expect 50's at night and it should top out to 65-70 during the day. It can be rainy so pack rain gear. But saying that, be prepared for mid-70 days and low-60's at night too.... I call May/June our transition season...