Some things I have that I use a lot. A cup holder for my coffee. And water bottle/pouches that mount on the front of the rear crash bars. I make coffee in the room (I have a small kettle if you here is no coffee pot, and that happens more often than not) and sip it as I ride. Then swap the coffee cup out for a water bottle. I find it very important to hydrate no matter the temperature.

Eye drops. For the desert. And a big bottle of Tylenol.

A full size bike cover. For sketchy motels and big rain storms and an alarm on it. Got them from Harley. But got the one that does NOT say Harley Davidson.

A disc lock. Fits in the crash bar pouches. I also put my air gauge, flashlight, etc in them.

Get one of the small sized battery boosters. You can do everything from jump starting your bike to charging your phone.

A couple of cables so you can charge your phone on the fly. And a flash drive with your favourite music. The music makes the days go by very nicely.

A short, 10 ft, extension cord so you can charge your phone at night by the bed. Often the motels don't have an outlet close.

Windshield pouches. For your wallet, phone, extra glasses, eye drops,

Make sure you take your passport. Not getting into Canada without it. And if your not aware, if you have a gun, you won't be getting in either. If you say you don't, and they search you and you have one, you will be arrested. And it will cost you several thousand dollars and days to resolve it.

Keep all medication in the original bottles in case you get searched at the border.

At the border it is "Yes sir, no sir". Keep your details short, take your sunglasses off, and for God sake don't crack funny or start up a conversation.

Cash. Both US and Canadian. And extra CC card. In case you loose your main one. Stash some cash and the extra CC card in the bike, as well as your Passport. My biggest fear is loosing my wallet and having nothing to travel with.

Take pictures of all your cards, Drivers License, passport and email them to yourself.

Make sure you unpack your bike every night. Even the stuff in the hard bags.

 

Oh ya. Your extra bike key. Take the battery out of it, and duck take the battery to the inside or one of the panniers, and keep that key in your luggage. If the battery is in the key, and the key is inside the luggage, and the steering is not locked, they can start it up, and ride away. Always lock the steering if your stepping away from the bike.

I always do a check before I ride away. I say outloud "Phone, wallet, keys" and check to make sure I have them.

Another thing. Never EVER ride on the bottom half of your gas tank in the North. If the gas station is open, always fuel up, even at 3/4 tank, if your heading into The Wild. The next gas station might be closed, not have fuel, or not have electricity.

 

"The camping gear is all out as I plan on camping at a Motel 6, Holiday Inn, or some other mid range hotel."

This time of the year I seriously doubt you will have a problem finding a room almost anywhere. Here is how I do it ....

I use Bookings.com. There are many of these, and I have tried them all, but I find Bookings gets it done (no, I get notta from them). When I get an idea of where I am tying down, I jump on their app and punch in the location. Then I sort by "cheapest to highest". and make sure you put in 1 person, often it is a lower rate.

Then I check for ratings. I don't care about carpet stains and noise.... I care about bed bugs and cockroaches.

5.9 or lower.... usually sketchy one way or another. I read the reviews, and if the top 5 are bad, I move on to the next one.

6 to 6.9... this is the big variable. Can go from Skank to upscale. Again, read the reviews.

7+.... usually nice, read the reviews.

I have seen 5's expensive and 7's cheap.

The other thing is look for motels with doors to the parking lot. So you can park in front of them, unpacking at night and repacking in the morning gets long in the tooth pretty quick.

And when booking, in the notes write in "Motorcyclist, please downstairs room with door to parking lot". You will find most motels will give you that courtesy if available.

 

Here's some additional advice: (some may be repetitive from earlier posts)

Tools.
Spot Tracker
Be on the defensive every time you get off the bike. Especially in lonely places. Never take your eyes off of a stranger who's too close to you or the bike while getting gas, etc. Keep the bike between you and anyone you're talking to.
A good pocket knife.
A good LED flashlight.
Duct tape... just a small amount.
First aid kit. (Know how and when to use it)
Dried food for emergencies.
Small water filter in the event you get stranded out in the boonies.
Small, folding splint big enough for your leg.
Fire starter.
Signal mirror.
Pocket pen and notebook (space pen / water proof notebook)
Know how to create tourniquet with what you have with you.
Tire pump and plugs.
Your Limited comes with a charging port inside right on the fairing, and in the tour pack. Bluetooth your phone to the bike and keep it inside the tour pack plugged in while riding. It charges faster that the USB port in the dash.
Earplugs for riding (helps cut fatigue dramatically), and hotel (for the ambitious lovers next door or above you)

Most of the things I mention are small. One thing to avoid is carrying so much crap that you can't find any one thing without tearing the entire bike apart. Know where you put everything.

Also, I use a grease pencil for way-points and / or turns. Write them on the inside of the windshield and clean them off at the end of the day. Nice non tech navigation and the battery never dies.

That's about all I can think of to add or think about. Have done a good bit of long distance riding. Site seeing takes a back seat to self preservation.

Good luck. Wish I were doing the same thing.

 

For the spot tracker, do you have a recommendation on one or is something like this ok?

Stupid question here... How can you hear the radio with earplugs in?

 

check

 

The crash bar pouches and water bottle holders fit on the front of the rear crash bars.

...."I have a weekly pill organizer, will they give me **** about that?"....

No, as long as you got the original bottles. I set my pill organizer the first night I cross the border.

 

Yep - that's the SPOT tracker you need. A bit expensive, but if you plan to do this more than once, it's invaluable.

As for earplugs and the radio - The wind noise on the bike is worse than the sound of the pipes, and that's what I wear them for. You'll still hear the pipes but it will dull everything down. I have a headset in my helmet and can still hear the radio fine, but I rarely listen to the radio while riding. I like the solitude.

 

Very well.

 

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