Forth and back-TOR '14

[RBMann]

I need to get this started after two months. I had 14 days for the ride this year but in the report only count riding days. I had the S and 650 ready this year but after losing an argument with a table saw a week earlier I went with the easy pull clutch of the 650. I was not missing any body parts but had some sore fingers. Left Sunday a day late. Had to kill a day at my friend's farm till the I could renew my drivers license in Walla Walla on Tuesday. Noticed it had been expired for three months when I was loading $$$ Sunday morning.

Day-1

Checked the weather and it looked like it would go 100F+ every day on the way to Colorado. Luckily that was only true the first day. This year was the best weather for the TOR trip in the seven years I have gone.

To start with my accommodation would be supplied by Kelty using there Windfoil Room for the next two weeks.



The first trip pic is another good use for zip ties-



Even when condition are not great, Mt. Rainier is still impressive-



The high point of central WA. and a nice backroad near Walla Walla-





The private MC bridge to the farm and owners rushing to greet a visitor-





The wheat crop at sunset-

[SergioK]

Subscribed!

[lightfighter]

Hi Rick! Missed seein ya... I'll watch here to get in on the trip

[RBMann]

Day 2-

After a day layover at the farm it is Tuesday morning and I am armed with a shiny new temporary driver license making me legal again. What could be more appropriate in E.WA. then a camel on a 80F. morning? Just one in a field with horses-



I started the morning swapping GPSs as my main one was frozen on the Garmin startup image. Unfortunately none of my way points had been transferred to my backup unit. At Kooskia, ID I had planned to head south to do the Magruder Corridor(Nez Pierce Trail) from Elk City to Darby, MT. Since I was now running two day later time was a factor in choosing the route. GPS said I could be in Salmon,ID at 7:00PM going over Lolo Pass or the Magruder Corridor would add two hours. Doable so off to Elk City-



A ranger had just done the road the week before and is a KTM rider. He said no problem, told me about a campground and to watch for the babyhead rocks in some sections. Nice meadow just outside Elk City and the sign that started me thinking I would not be in Salmon that night-





Beautiful late afternoon driving-



At 7:00PM I arrived at the ranger's Poet Crk CG. I had not passed another person in 40 miles of the trail and now knew I could finish the dirt in daylight. Home for the night-

[wswartzwel]

How do the bears get to eat with that bike parked in front of the tent door?

[RBMann]

Day 3-

Really nice morning light but unfortunately most of the area the Magruder goes through was burnt last year. Also the skies were a little smokey from fires in WA. I saw some vehicles parked at trailheads near the start and end but never passed anyone moving during the 85 miles dirt section-





The fires take out the forest but seem to make the flowers more noticeable-





Didn't end up with any shots of the rock sections. Just imagine rocks the size of a baby's head liberally scattered about with some half buried and others loose on the road surface. Looking back to where the flower Photos were taken and yes snow in July in northern shadows-





The origin of the corridor's name-



Arrived in Salmon at 2PM. Ten hours over the Magruder vs. four hours over Lolo Pass. At this point it was make miles time so just gas & go to Evanston,WY for the night. Afternoon valley in SE Idaho.

[RBMann]

Originally Posted by wswartzwel

How do the bears get to eat with that bike parked in front of the tent door?

They come with rip-stop openers attached to their paws.

[RBMann]

Day 4-

Went through the Flaming Gorge area again and it is a very enjoyable drive-



Douglas Pass, CO-





Lunch date at the pass-



Made it to TOR in the afternoon for a small Pelican gathering.

[RBMann]

Day 5-

Camping at TOR and up for an early pee-



Not many Pelicans at the rally this year but we headed out to ride the Black Canyon of the Gunnison-



Beautiful day and not much traffic. We stopped a number of times for 'Moments With Sensei'-





What do you think about aperture settings, wait I have a app for that-





While Bill and CK were talking and producing art, I was up to my usual National Geographic standard-



I really do try to learn but I am an old dog and those new tricks are hard. Women are attracted to clean examples of the classic S-



The reason I go to TOR-an enjoyable time with friends, bikes, cameras, good roads and scenery.

[dee jones]

Thanks for the report Rick!

[RBMann]

Day 6-

Jerry and JarHead ready to ride home. Bill had a questionable back so they were riding in support back to the trailer in Clayton, NM-



CK and I headed to Moab with a nice stop in Gateway for gas and liquids. Amazing 3" insect wanted to join in the party-

[RBMann]

Day 6 cont.-

Headed off into Canyonlands for the afternoon. The Moab area is incredibly beautiful both in the desert and the mountains. Unfortunately I was the one taking photos and not CK-















Ok, where did we park the Jeep? Down there?-

[SergioK]

Very nice. Must go back soon.

[ckcarr]

RB, nice pictures!

I forgot about that bug... It was a monster!!

[RBMann]

Day 7-

A day full of beauty and disappointment.

Leaving Moab along the Colorado River heading toward Dinosaur Nat. Monument-





Disappointment strikes as I ride along I-70. My voltage monitor LED started cycling orange-green-orange-green. Below 70MPH it was fine but it did not like higher speeds. It was 95F as I pulled into Loma, CO where it started cycling at idle. Loma is an hour from where my fuel pump started failing last year. Checked with my multimeter and the regulator's internal circuit breaker was tripping and resetting. The irony is I had replaced the stator and regulator with aftermarket items after reading about a high failure rate on the F650/800GSs. If the the monitor went orange while riding I found that turning the key off and back on would reset the breaker for an hour, a tank of gas or sometimes a whole day. So I continued to toward home and the cooler weather helped too.

Heading north on CO139 toward Rangely-



I had read about Echo Park in Dinosaur on my way home from my first TOR. You can camp at the confluence of the Green and Yampa Rivers. With more time and the GS the 14 miles dirt road was easy-



Riding along the Yampa Bench Rd.-



An intimate wildlife photo-



The campground was cool and I am happy I went out of the way to stay there. It had miles of foot paths running along the river. Most of my photos were poor because I was having a hard time dealing with all the cliff shadows-

[RBMann]

Originally Posted by ckcarr

RB, nice pictures!

I forgot about that bug... It was a monster!!

Yeah except they do not capture what it is like to be standing there and really seeing it.

[RBMann]

Day 8-

Drove back up to the Yampa Bench Rd. and following the river continued east all the way to Maybell, CO. 30-40 miles of dirt with river viewpoints but the best stuff was on the Echo Park Rd.-



Now heading west on US40, I set the GPS for Tabiona, UT so I could ride up UT35 to 150 and then stay in Evanston, WY again. GPS blessing and curse as I was on a nice paved road to the Upper Stillwater Reservoir the turn to Tabiona was gated and locked. Merde! Continue on or backtrack 20-30 mile? Full stream ahead to Upper Stillwater Reservoir-



At the dam I turned south on the Blindstream Rd. to Hanna, UT. What a lucky outcome. Beautiful dirt over a 10,000' pass with a welcoming committee and late sun on the rock cliff-







At the top was a beautiful basin then it dropped down through aspen and a few miles later was a dry red dirt road. Dramatic changes in a short distance. Stayed in a state park just north of Heber City as the detour made it too late to ride Hwy 150-

[RBMann]

Day 9-

UT150 and 35 are both nice low traffic scenic roads. A sign stated that the Uintah Mountain are the only major range in the USA to go east-west not north-south. Up over 150 in the morning-







WY is probably the most cowboyish state out west-



Southern ID can look a lot like the empty spaces of Nevada. Last time I was on this road I ran the S around the ton mark for over an hour. Somehow 85MPH seems more prudent on the 650 with the regulator issue. Hwy 28 on the way to Salmon-

[RBMann]

Day 10-

Started the morning in Salmon with a haircut. Told the barber I planned to go over Horse Crk Pass. He said it had been burned and suggested Big Hole Pass out of Gibbonsville to the Big Hole Battlefield in MT. Just before the pass I stopped to take a break and heard a big roar. A fighter was doing a fly over. Heard a second roar and was able to get the camera out in time-







It was still early enough so I decided to head back to the Salmon River, drive along it to Shoup then over Horse Crk Pass. Some teens were rafting the Salmon-

[RBMann]

Day 10 cont.-

Back on Hwy 93 I see the same animals at the same place as previous trips-



A little further north it is a common scene in recent years-





Screwed up my camping plans and ended up in a crowded KOA in Missoula-