Oregon 2013 Epilogue

June 29, 2013
Total mileage: 1510 (approximate)

The odometer on the FZ1 disagreed with Google Maps by about 90 miles.  The Yamaha recorded a little over 1600 miles for the whole trip.

Overall this was a better trip than last year.  We got home safely without any unplanned overnights and only one minor mechanical issue.  A few of the lessons learned from last year still apply:

• Bring enough tools to replace a spark plug, jump a dead battery, and deal with other minor mechanical issues.
• Take care of any mechanical issues before embarking on a trip.  Trips have a way of shaking out mechanical problems.
• Leave a rest day at the end of the trip for unpacking and maintenance.
• Do not expect everything to go perfectly.  Murphy loves bike trips.

Additionally I found it is a good idea to be familiar with the local motorcycle shops in the area in which one is traveling.  Having a tow card is only useful if there is someplace nearby to take a dead bike.

Also it's handy to have shorter backup routes planned in case there are delays for any reason, mechanical or otherwise.  And remember to stop for photos!  It can seem like a pain to stop all the time, especially when pressed for time.  But the photos are really the only thing one has to remember the trip by.

I was left wondering if it is wise to go on longer road trips with bikes over 10 years old and/or with 10s of thousands of miles.  Open question.  One would think a well-maintained bike owned by a mechanically savvy person would be reliable under most circumstances, even with high miles.  But it seems like there are always surprises.

Oregon 2013, Day 6

Arcata, CA to Vallejo, CA
July 28, 2013
271 miles

Knowing we'd inevitably leave late I chose a boring and direct route straight down 101S. Stopped for gas and standing snacks/water at a Chevron in Ukiah.  I thought a minor detour at Highway 128 through Napa Valley would break up the monotony of 101.  Unfortunately it didn't occur to me that Sunday afternoon through wine country is probably the worst time to ride through there, and sure enough traffic was awful.  A detour from the detour, left on Rutherford Rd. near St. Helena, then south on Silverado Trail, made things a bit more tolerable.  But it was lane-splitting all the way down 29 to Vallejo.

Gas stops/mileage:

• Garberville - 78
• Ukiah - 87
• Vallejo - 106

Oregon 2013 Day 5

Trinity Alps/Arcata
July 27, 2013
290+ miles

A day of fun riding in the Trinity Alps area.  Starting at Arcata we headed East on 299 to Weaverville, then about 10 or 15 miles to the junction of 299 and Highway 3 south.  Lunch at Irene's in Hayfork, then we decided the 24-mile section of 3 between 299 and Hayfork was such a great road we'd go back and ride it again in spite of the terrible heat.

Highway 3/36 junction

 We took Highway 36 west to where it dead-ends at Fortuna, and then north on 101 back to Arcata. Once again it was great to be back on the coast.

Gas stops/mileage:

• Weaverville - 94
• Hayfork - 78 miles (counting re-run of Highway 3/299 junction to Hayfork, mileage approximate)

Oregon 2013, Day 4

Bandon, OR to Arcata, CA
July 26, 2013
183 miles

We left a bit after 10am as per Mom's preference.  I canceled the longer route back to Roseburg via 42E and then south on 199 in favor of the short route directly down 101S.  I figured it'd be good to have time to clean chains in the hotel parking lot and not feel too rushed.  On the way out we bumped into an older guy riding a Yamaha Star cruiser.  "I thought I'd be the last one outta here," he said.

SV650 at Bandon Inn

On the way down 101 we stopped at Gold Beach, OR where we got stranded last year.  The weather was perfect and there were lots of touring cyclists out.

Mom at Gold Beach

Stopped for gas and lunch at Subway in Crescent City.

Gas stops/mileage:

• Crescent City - 108

Oregon 2013, Day 3

Klamath Falls, OR to Bandon, OR
July 25, 2013
252 miles

This was the same route as last year from Klamath Falls to Bandon via Crater Lake, Highway 138 West, 42 West, and 42S to Bandon.  The Canadian guys had helped Mom with her chain maintenance so everything was done and I was hoping to get an early start.  I stood around by the bikes for a bit, drinking hotel coffee and watching the Canadians pack up and head for Washington state.  Given the choice mom prefers to leave late.

Crater Lake, OR

We stopped by the general store on 138 for a snack.  Otherwise it was an uneventful but very hot ride from Crater Lake to Roseburg.  It was great to get to Bandon on the coast.

View from Bandon Inn

Dinner was pub food at McFarlin's Bar & Grill.  It's one of the only reasonably priced restaurants in Bandon.

Gas stops/mileage:

• Glide, OR - 150
• Bandon, OR - 102

Oregon 2013, Day 2

Fortuna, CA to Klamath Falls, OR
July 24, 2013
309 miles

Same route as last year, 101N to Arcata, 299E to Willow Creek, then 96N to I-5.  A brief jaunt up the freeway to 66E at Ashland, finally arriving in Klamath Falls.  We stopped briefly at Eureka Motorsports for a bungee cord where Mom sat on the new SFV650.

Later on at Willow Creek the SV650 died for no apparent reason at the Chevron station.  It had been running fine, then Mom turned the key and nothing happened... no lights, no odometer readout, nothing.  I flipped the engine kill switch a few times and then the lights went on but after hitting the starter button everything went dead again.  So I thought Hmm, fuses or battery.  Mom offered to call for a tow but I wasn't even sure where we could take it.

I unpacked the tool kit and we took off the seat to look at the battery and fuses.  Everything looked Ok.  Mom suggested tightening the battery terminal connections which looked fine to me but I had no better ideas.  So I tightened them down and the bike started right up.

Hwy 299 Scenic Overlook

We got to Klamath Falls late, partially on account of leaving late and due to the issue with the SV.  There was a group of Canadian bikers pulling in at the hotel, they were on the return leg of a trip from Alberta.  Big loud guys, mostly on big Harleys and a few Gold Wings.  They turned out to be really nice, and even helped Mom with her chain maintenance which was awesome.

Gas stops/mileage:

• Willow Creek - 68 (118 miles from Garberville)
• Happy Camp - 84
• Ashland - 92
• Klamath Falls - 65

Oregon 2013, Day 1

Vallejo to Fortuna, CA
July 23, 2013
305 miles

Same route as last year, straight up the 1.

Hwy 1 Scenic Overlook

As per Mom's preference we left late and arrived late.  We stopped at a Mexican food place in Gualala across from the Chevron which was pretty good.

I had a few interesting alternate routes in mind such as the Stewart's Point/Skaggs Springs Rd., but there was no time.  Other than that, same old Hwy 1.

Gas stops/mileage

• Gualala - 127
• Garberville - 127
• Fortuna - 50 (no gas stop)

Oregon 2013

Oregon 2013
July 23 - 28, 2013

My mom and I decided on a repeat of last year's Oregon trip which was rained out.  This time we left in late July in the hope it would be less rainy.  The plan was 6 days of 250 - 300 miles each, starting on Highway 1 North, heading East on Highway 299 at Arcata to Klamath Falls via Route 66, then west to Bandon.  From Bandon back down the coast to Arcata, with one additional day of riding in the Trinity National Forest area before heading back to the Bay Area.

We'd be riding the same bikes as last year, my 10-year-old FZ1 with 61k miles and her '02 SV650 with 37k miles.  While neither bike's mileage is a record by any means, after the first 20 or 30k miles of a bike's life the way it is maintained becomes increasingly important as far as whether or not it might break down on a 1,600 mile trip.  A well-maintained bike might look and run like new after 100k or more miles, while a poorly-maintained bike might be unreliable or even dangerous with a fraction of that mileage.  I knew I had a few deferred maintenance issues on the Yamaha.  The chain was worn, the front brake reservior was low, and I had my suspicions that the ExUP wasn't working at all.  I had no idea about the condition of Mom's bike.  Last year it died in the rain after all.  I had about 30lbs of tools packed just in case.