Got use every day over the next few months so that I can get everything down an as easy as it is in the old format.

Had to get 3 MySQL DB and will be using SlideShowPro Director for the images once I get all the pages set up in WordPress.

An opportunity has come up where I can get away for a couple of weeks and thus a quick decision to ride to warmer weather has ensued.  Initially the route was to head down to the big ditch Grand Canyon and then west to the coast grabbing Hwy 1 which turns into 101 north back to BC eating oysters all the way home.

Weather will be the decider and from the map on the left, ultimately it ended up pushing me well off the planned route moving eastward to find warmer weather.

Start of 7k ride from White Rock to Grand Canyon, then follow roads south to Route 66 and head west.  Follow this historic run through Mojave Desert and then Hwy 395 up to Yosemite National Park.  From Yosemite follow 108 Hwy to Sacramento, California and then travel old hwy 49 back over the northern passes to Hwy 80 and off to Reno.  From Reno, due east to Yellowstone NP and then the big ride home back to White Rock, BC.

Two weeks of long rides enveloping in snow, rain, heat, wind and meeting and experiencing many wonderful people and places.

Ready to leave.  Bike is loaded with about 200lbs of gear.  Saddle bags are full of tools ready for just about any failure.  Sure hope I don’t need them.

Center of gravity for the bike is usually pretty good, but I am really top heavy.  I do a test drive around the block and find I don’t like the feel of the bike. Spending time to move stuff around helps a lot and the extra hour proves to be the right choice. The bike is back to its nimble self. Every things ready, and I am off, late by about 5 hours, but off.  Next stop Mountain Home, Idaho.

The border crossing was a nightmare for a Monday.  1.5 hour wait time.  Avoided most of the wait by hitting the Duty-Free, picking up some gum and such.  5 minute stop and then back onto the main road.  Cut off a good half hour wait which can be a real bear when your fully loaded and idling 5 ft then stop, idle for awhile, move 5 ft and so on.  Got up to the crossing guards booth and a couple quick questions and then on to Hwy I5 heading south.

Its a little chilly with temps around 12′ Celsius.  At 65mph, it translates to something substantially cooler.  The Goldwing is perfect for such environments due to all the fairing and heated grips, and I am dressed to the nines and quite comfortable.  Colder weather will be seen soon enough when I start over the passes in Washington/Oregon.

The weather holds off (rain wise) for the most part and the run from the US/Canada border through to Oregon is fantastic.  I make great time and hit the northeastern Oregon border at about 6:00pm.  Traffic hasn’t been all that bad and only one rain dump to contend with so far.  Sky has cleared and hopefully will remain so.

The picture to the left shows Hwy 82.  A two lane for most part with wonderfully wide sweeps and stunning views.  It was easy to keep the speed up around 55-60mph as this late in the afternoon, there was alot less traffic.  I was passed several times by some young whipper snapper on his rocket ship.  I swore it was the same guy each time, but never was able to see him pull off as I passed.  No neurosis present, just curiosity.

It started getting dark fairly fast around 7:30pm and I thought this might be a little early for the sun setting, but then the slow brain catches up with (hey your in a different time zone now – Mountain) and some very ugly clouds were chasing me from the coast.  By 8:00pm it was pitch black and the rain hit.  I hide under an overpass for about 20 minutes and was truly bored.  The big trucks were running in full convoys now (I was to find out later this is their best time to get moving between their destinations and over the passes due to considerably less traffic).  It was quite cold at about 2′ Celsius and I wasn’t interested in spending to much time here.  With no let up on the rain, I decided to move my butt to the next town.

La Grande, Oregon was the next stop (big need for some coffee and sugar intake).  I stole this image from another site as it was to dark and ugly to get the camera’s out for any pics.  Its to bad as this is absolutely beautiful country to ride through.  Must get back here in another adventure.

At one part of going through the passes, I hit rain/sleet.  Some nervous times as a lot of the road is only 2 lane with passing lanes all to infrequent.  There was also a lot of road construction so everyone traveling was shoehorned into narrow lanes for a couple of miles.  You could tell the big trucks did not like the fact that some yahoo on a motorbike was holding them up.  Rough road and sharp turns kept me in the convoys so I could see the run lines for the turns, but it usually meant some truck was on your tail (always feeling closer than they really were).  This was not a nice part of the ride to say the least.  Cold, tired and slightly nervous, I just stuck to my guns and made it to La Grande and some really really great coffee (as if I could tell the difference).

The rest of today’s ride consisted of a couple of more stops and then finally reaching Boise, Idaho.  Its 1:00am and I decide not to continue to Mountain Home which is still another 100+ miles further.  Motel 6 it is.  Ride in and I must of looked really desperate.  The girl at the counter just looked at me and said “Yes we have a room for you” with the biggest smile I have ever seen.  Now this young lady must have stood at least 6.5′ and weighted in at 300+lbs.  What struck me about this person was her personality.  She was all smiles and humor.  Cracking jokes and commentary as if we had been friends all our lives.  What a sweet heart.  Gave me a room where I only had to carry all my gear a couple of floors up (no elevators or carts at a Motel 6) but I got a room (turned out it was the area managers room whom wasn’t due back for a forth night) – I was very lucky to get something.  Note to self – do not under any circumstances load your bike up with so much crap!  Thank God I had almost everything in tote bags and in four trips up and down the bike was laid bare. Grabbed a shower and rinsed off my riding gear and hug it up to dry. Finally warming  up (more like thawing out) and after chomping down some energy bars and a couple of orange flavoured drinks from the vending machine, I fell asleep to some agriculture farming report on the local TV station and a thunder storm raging outside (well the bike would be nice an clean in the morning).

Waking up late, the sky is crystal blue in color and with the heat and rain from last night the humity up around 100%.  I’m home and love the warmth.  I packed pretty quickly and got back on to the road.  Richfield south of Salt Lake City next destination via I84.  Absolutely beautiful weather to ride in with the exception of the wind.

Leaving Boise, Idaho.

At no point was the wind kind to me or it seemed.  Never on the back, always from the side or front trying to lift me, my glasses and helmet away from the bike.  When your bike is leaning 15-20 degrees on the left and a big truck (their three trailer configs in Idaho and Utah) things get very very interesting (said with an Almer Fudd voice over).  This goes on for hours and hours until about 4:00pm when it (the wind) settles down and riding becomes a joy again.  With stops (fill ups and coffee dumps), I’ve only traveled 6 hours and 275 miles.  Another 150 miles to go.

I stop in a little diner/fill up station just outside of Snowville, Utah (just crossed the Idaho/Utah border).  With the wind lessened and the gas indicator needle now pushing a bright red, it seem’d like the perfect time for dinner.  This is cattle country and here I believe I might find the perfect calf liver meal.  Nope – just a piece of leather with mashed potatoes and some kind of green vegetable.  Understood why it wasn’t a busy cafe for the time of day.  Note to self, check the license plates in the parking lot.  If no local plates assume the locals know better.

The good note is a fellow rider pulls in and when he comes we get together.  Matt has just bought a 02 Honda Valkyrie from some dude in Portland, Oregon.  He has been on pretty well the same route as me and about a half hour behind.  After a couple cups of coffee and a look at the maps and trading stories, we decide to link up till we reach Ogden, Utah (near Salt Lake City).  Now this guy is 6.4 and when he sits on his bike he dwarfs it (and its a big bike).  Its a funny picture where I’m 4 ft nothing riding a Goldwing and he’s on this smaller two wheeler and still towering over me when we are side by side (wished I had gotten a pic).

The following video has me following him down Hwy 84.  Great ride segment to this travelogue.