Well, I finally made it back home last night after what turned out, for me, to be a 1,697 mile loop. Four days of riding and one day of rest, hanging out with my brother in law in Old Town, ID.
Shaun and I rode together for two days, making it to Missoula, MT, where we parted ways. Our first day (after I had ridden down from the Seattle area to meet him in Portland) was spent riding along the north, or Washington side of the Columbia River, which serves as the border between Washington and Oregon. Here's Shaun at one of our more famous landmarks along the way, our own version of Stonehenge:
We spent the first night in Enterprise, OR, at the south end of Hell's Canyon on the Snake River.
The next day was spent riding north, up Hell's Canyon, to Lewiston, ID. From there, we continued on over Lolo Pass on Highway 12 to Missoula, where we spent the second night. Here we are at an overlook of Hell's Canyon:
Here's Shaun in Missoula, right next to one of its most notable avenues:
The next morning, Shaun continued east and I went north to Kalispell, then over to Sand Point ID and on to Old Town. After spending a day there with my brother in law and his lovely wife, I made for home over our North Cascades Highway (Hwy 20).
I heard from Shaun last night, he was 170 miles north of Chicago. He decided to ride all the way home to Boston, which he figured at his pace would be three more days. So, all in all, a grand total of over 3,000 miles over the course of a week. On a Ducati 900 SS. He's a better man than I, that's for sure. I wouldn't have made the first 200 miles to Portland on mine, and I knew it, hence the switch to the Road King.
I'm looking forward to hearing the rest of the story after we parted ways in Missoula. I'm sure Shaun will update us with photos and all of that once he makes it to Boston. What an epic adventure. I have to thank Shaun for allowing me to share in at least the first part of it. We had a wonderful time.
Lastly, what a pleasure it was to put faces to names at our gathering in Portland. I've known the two Jims (Superman and Jim Horton) for years, but it was the first time I had met Mike (herr_oberst) and John (jyl) in person. We had far too little time together before Shaun and I hit the road, but it was a pleasure nonetheless to spend the time we had together.
So, that's my small piece of the story. What a grand adventure for Shaun.