I remember those days. Now I need a hot shower, a flushable toilet, air conditioning, and a warm bed.

 

I spent about 7 weeks on the road a couple years ago, camped from LA to Wash DC and then down the coast to Key West then back up along the gulf coast.

just prior to that I took my lil darlin on a trip from Denver to Chula Vista CA then straight up the coast to Portland OR. 23 days on the road, it was awesome.

I usually camp 3 nights then hit a motel on the 4th to get shined up and remember what a bed is all about.

I have been in KOA's, they work good - hot showers, convenience features etc. but I gotta tell you, that bike will go places if you just do it. When I'm out traveling, I am always watching for BLM and US Forest Service access roads to the back country. You're gonna get off the pavement, you're gonna chip the paint underneath, but if you bought it to ride - well, that stuff's gonna happen anyway.

There is nothing, in my opinion, better than getting off the beaten path, away from the highway, up in the trees or canyons and finding a secluded place to pitch the tent and lay up for the night. Coyotes howlin, stars beaming down, skunks paying late night visits, middle of the night thunder storms. Hey it's all there and it's all cool. Just part of the experience and I wouldn't have it any other way.

You also ought to be lookin for National Parks and Monuments, lots of them have very decent camping facilities. If you want some details on where I've been and where I've stayed, drop me a line and I'll be glad to share.

Timing is everything, too, when you're planning a trip... too early in the year and your gonna frost yourself, but if you can get something going before schools let out for summer break, you'll have lots of great places, mostly to yourself. Fall trips are great, too, but if you get into the back country stuff like I'm suggesting, it can be a little weird - archery season/ bowhunting starts before all the other game seasons (at least as I am familiar with it) and the hunters kind of like the woods to themselves.

You asked about equipment? Gees, the learning curve is steep. That west coast trip I mentioned was really the first extended trip she and I made together on a bike - 03 Road King - and she, being the excellent cook she is, figured we better have the whole gourmet kitchen along. Me, being the accomodating guy I am, went along with it. Ok, how much can YOU pack on YOUR bike? I bet I beat every one of you on this one. By the time we got to Lake Havasu about 4 days out of Denver, I was just trashed. Never dropped the bike, but with all that "gear" (I have another 4 letter word for it...) it was more than a little top heavy. To the point that every stop just felt like a controlled crash in slow motion. Start to slow down, by the time I'd downshifted into 1st gear, it was always starting to shimmy and shake, like a dog passing peach pits, just no good feelings coming from the handlebars. Hey maybe it was my inner self saying "OH SH**, we're gonna drop it this time!" It was as if my scooter had been possessed and had become the most evil handling machine I'd ever been on, bar none.

Anyway, by day 4, I knew I wasn't having as muchfun as I intended, so we had a heart to heart. It started with her asking me why I seemed so tense as we were packing up for day 5 and ended up with us finding the nearest UPS Store in Havasu City, shipping 35 pounds of "gear" back home to Denver. And check this, the rest of the trip went off without a hitch. Cooking plans changed, but it was all good.

We use Thermarest back packing mattresses, compact and comfortable. She's quite the seamsteress, too, and made up a mattress cover that holds both of our mattresses side by side and a silk top sheet to boot. Go ahead and laff, but this is quite the setup. T

 

I'm counting down the days to my departure in mid June. I just bought a Thermarest mattress. Very small package and seems it will do the job. I have a large beach towel from Ron Jon Surf shop that will pull double or triple duty one being a blanket. That's close to it for camping. No tent as I'll rent a cabin at the camp grounds. A little more expensive but I'll save on packing. If I need anything else I'll buy it on the road.
The gear I'm packing goes like this.

Lower saddlebags on RG contain stuff that's always on the bike. Raingear, shaving kit, tools, flip flops, binnoculars, cooler with a few bottles of water, papers etc.

King tour pak: Photography equipment period. Two camera bodies, 4 lenses, etc.

T-Bags back seat bag. Clothing and odds and ends

T bags Dakota bag for rack on Tour pak. Camping gear and to remain mostly empty to hold camera for quick use and expansion for whatever I buy on the road.

Sounds like a plan to me. Next week I'm going to go on a short trip for two or three days just to try everything out. I'll probably learn a lot because I've never been in a campground.
I appreciate and find helpful all the suggestions and experiences expressed. Keep em coming. I'm learning.
Fred