You're right. Having no guard rail bothers some riders too.

lmb1485, I don't believe you'll need to carry extra gas. When you look where you're going, on the map, you'll recognize the more desolate stretches. Just fill up then.

On our DR650's we changed from the 3.5 to a larger 5 gallon tank, which we really appreciated when off on the trails.

 

ridewva thanks for the info ...depending how I ride hard or easy will make a big difference in my milage,Plus how much I'll be carrying with me ....I'll map it out...appreciate the help

 

I live outside of Salt Lake there are more roads and places to see here then you can imagine, I've been riding here for 15 years and I am still finding great places to go. IM me your itinerary, I'll give you my contact information and I would be glad to hook up with you when you arrive and show you some great local rides, also a beautiful route from SLC to Zions.

 

One more thing definitely be prepared for cold and rain, the saying around here is.. If you don't like the weather just wait 5 minutes.. May can be mid 60s or low 20s and snow..

 

Road Hawg thanks for the info I should be there at some point as right now I may come in from the south and towards mid month come north .....I'll send you a note and get your info when I get my plan down thanks

 

You hit the nail right on the head for sure!!!

 

I can help you out a bit ... I'll even include some pictures for you ... I'm only going to hit the southern and middle of the state ... I'll leave the northern part for those that ride there more than I do.

Let's start with Utah 12, which has been mentioned already. One of the great things about 12 is the variety of riding. Here's just a couple pics of what you'll find along the way. This first one is the Head of the Rocks, and you'll see it is definitely a different sort of place ...



This next one is a few miles farther west and as you go toward Boulder, UT. There is a dramatic difference in the scenery. This particular shot is taken just outside of a campsite not far (100 yards or so) off Utah 12 and at about 9000 feet in elevation.



Utah 12 runs mostly east-west and about mid-point across the state will run into Highway 89 (north-south). Highway 89 is a good road as well. Here's a picture of Big Rock Candy Mountain (yep, the same one that Burl Ives sang about) on 89 just south of I-70.



If you use Utah 12 to intersect 89 then you'll need to go north to see BRCM, and if you come south here's some of the stuff you'll see ...



Actually the shot above is cheating a little ... it is in fact on the Paiute ATV trail between Beaver, UT (I-70 side) and Marysville, UT (89 side). I include it, though, Maryville, UT, is one of the stops on 89 as you come south. Lots of great ATV riding around here, and you can rent a quad (straight up or side by side) in most of the towns along the route (usually runs $100+ a day).

Now for my home town, as you come south on 89 you will come in Panguitch, and from there you can take a couple route back over to Cedar City. I can give you more specific directions, but one of the easiest routes is to come straight on south on 89 to Utah 14. This highway cuts across the mountains from 89 to Cedar City, which is on I-15. Here's a shot about half-way over the mountains. You can actually see Zion National Park just beyond the lake in the background.



One of the more important points to note is that in all these pictures the actual scale of the mountains is out of proportion. As an example, the picture immediately above is taken at an elevation around 8000 feet, so you're looking "down" into Zion National Park. The mountains right behind me when I took this picture rise to over 10,000 feet ... so there's plenty of up and down.

I mention the elevation for 2 reasons. First, some folks do get what is known as Mountain Sickness (elevation sickness) when making a change in elevation like this. You can literally go from 2000 feet in elevation on the Utah/Arizona border to over 10,000 feet in not much more than an hour, so be careful. For most people (including myself, and I live here) the rapid change in elevation brings it on, and the best remedy is to drop 1000 feet or so. Symptoms include dizziness, nausea, headache, and feeling tired.

The second reason is weather. St. George and Hurricane UT (where Zion Harley is) can get awfully hot in the summer. They are between 2000 and 2800 feet in elevation. Temps in June/July/August will easily hit the 100s. But, a quick 45 minutes (and 4000 feet of elevation change) north is Cedar City, where the temperatures will be 20+ degrees cooler. And, you run east of Cedar on Utah 14 to find that Duck Creek or Brian Head (around 10,000 feet) will be another 15 to 20 degrees cooler.

Also, remember that the humidity around here is very low ... especially in the summer. It is not uncommon to see humidity around 10% or under during the summer. Yeah ... it's a dry heat ... but that just means that it will dry your narrow butt out really quick ... so be sure to hydrate during the summer.

If you've got questions just let me know. Also, for what it's worth, when you get to Cedar City we've got plenty of motels that run anywhere from $35 to $100 a night, and the town is small enough that you don't have to worry too much about crime even at the $35 a nite spots. This is a tourist area, so we tend to keep it fairly nice.

One last photo ... this is a shot on a ride last September as the trees were changing. That's me on the right ... goofy grin and all.

 

Nice pics Doc! You getting excited yet, Imb1485?

 

Thanks for taking the time to show me around in those great pics Doc.I am so looking forward to this trip.there is so much to see...Is it advised to maybe get specific with my time as to reserving rooms to stay in or are they readily available?Also I look forward to meeting some of you that have posted here.....thats so awesome to me......thanks

 

May is not a very heavily traveled time you should be ok to just show up. IMO I have always opted to find accommodations along my route, it's easier to find better deals and if I tend to roll in late I know I have a bed. In any event it will be a memorable trip. Ride Safe.....