:drif:
The good, the bad and the ugly
- Thread starter immigrant
- Start date
Scenic Ride
Pack Dog
A truly scenic ride, if I may say so...
- Joined
- Sep 9, 2012
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- Palm Bay, Florida, USA.
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- Honda XL500S
Absolutely spectacular scenery :drif:
Can't wait for the next installment :thumleft:
Can't wait for the next installment :thumleft:
WP
Race Dog
Nice... Keep it coming and thanks for sharing! :thumleft:
Crossed-up
Pangaman
Awesome scenery and in abundance! Great report - I'm loving it.
The TRANSPORTER
Grey Hound
- Joined
- May 24, 2007
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- Pretoria East
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- Vespa (all models)
Very nice report and wow...so clean the towns and roads...see no plastic bags all over the place... 
immigrant
Race Dog
This is where the good turn from bad to very ugly.
On my way to Bozeman the weather is cold and very windy. I keep checking the road updates of the Beartooth Highway. It is not looking good. It varies between "blowing snow and drifts" to "road closed" to "road open but with ice patches" I keep going hoping for the best. As I pull in to Bozeman, MT, my cell phone message alerts start screaming in my earphones. It sounded like I was in a casino. "where are you" "answer your phone" "contact me ASAP" Fortunately it was not a family emergency, but my accountant needed some signatures. I phone back and ask if it can wait.He says if we don't do it now it will cause lots of delays, so no, it can't wait"
The next morning I head back home
It is around 1500km so I figure it will take about two days if I follow the scenic route. I backtrack some my route and exit the US where Glacier National Park and Waterton Lakes National Park in Canada join up. It is a really small border post, but with one hell of a view for the guys working there
I give Canada Immigration my famous "document" like US Immigration asked me to. He says he has never seen this document and do not know what to do with it. I say "just take it" He says "not taking it!!"
He then asks if my plates, that clearly says "Saskatchewan" on them, is from California. Huh? Say what??? "Are you from California?" No, why do you think that" I ask. He does not answer, and let me go.
Beautiful mountain views along that road - Chief Mountain Highway
I turn towards Pincher Creek, AB, and leave the mountains behind, entering the prairies
I am aiming to spend the night in Medicine Hat, AB.......
On my way to Bozeman the weather is cold and very windy. I keep checking the road updates of the Beartooth Highway. It is not looking good. It varies between "blowing snow and drifts" to "road closed" to "road open but with ice patches" I keep going hoping for the best. As I pull in to Bozeman, MT, my cell phone message alerts start screaming in my earphones. It sounded like I was in a casino. "where are you" "answer your phone" "contact me ASAP" Fortunately it was not a family emergency, but my accountant needed some signatures. I phone back and ask if it can wait.He says if we don't do it now it will cause lots of delays, so no, it can't wait"
The next morning I head back home
It is around 1500km so I figure it will take about two days if I follow the scenic route. I backtrack some my route and exit the US where Glacier National Park and Waterton Lakes National Park in Canada join up. It is a really small border post, but with one hell of a view for the guys working there
I give Canada Immigration my famous "document" like US Immigration asked me to. He says he has never seen this document and do not know what to do with it. I say "just take it" He says "not taking it!!"
He then asks if my plates, that clearly says "Saskatchewan" on them, is from California. Huh? Say what??? "Are you from California?" No, why do you think that" I ask. He does not answer, and let me go.
Beautiful mountain views along that road - Chief Mountain Highway
I turn towards Pincher Creek, AB, and leave the mountains behind, entering the prairies
I am aiming to spend the night in Medicine Hat, AB.......
immigrant
Race Dog
I reach Medicine Hat, AB around 18h30. I start looking for a place to sleep. I google and phone and beg and plead and find nothing - Zero - Nada - Zip !!!! I have just done 900km and I did not feel like going any further, but had no choice. I have done this route before, and remember a campground about a 100km from here. I waste no time and head straight there.
It's flat on the prairies!!
I get to the campground which is next to the South Saskatchewan River at 19h45. I made it with daylight to spare. the river eroded through the landscape and makes for interesting views
I find a camp spot and proceed to unpack my bike. My sleeping bag and tent is in my right Yamaha OEM pannier - yes, the same pannier that is notorious for locks failing..... I ry to turn the key but it wont turn. Now before you guys start giving advice and opinions as to why the pannier did not want to open, let it be known that I did everything I was "supposed to do". The lock was seized up. I start bending the key. I do have a spare key if this one breaks, but if it breaks I still do not have access to my tent and sleeping bag. I try and try but the lock will not budge.
This is bad, very bad, as the temperatures at night drop down to single digits, and the mosquitos are eating me alive. I waste 30 min. on trying to get the lock open, but decide to abort my mission and head to Kindersley, SK 160km away to try and get a place to sleep. I leave the campground at around 20:00. I now panic that I may not be able to get gas this late as many small towns do not have 24hr gas available.
I roll in to Kindesley at 21:30. The sun is setting and I am relieved to have made it. I throw in gas at the first place I see, and ask the person behind the counter if he knows where I can find a place to sleep. He laughs, and says "I bet you are shit out of luck" I google and phone all the places in town, which is pretty limited
You guessed it - NOTHING available. WTF??Since when is Saskatchewan such a popular place that all hotels and motels are full?!?!?!
Now I panic. What do you do. I have no shelter and heat for the night. Sleeping next to the road in my riding suit will be too cold - my dash thermometer says it is now 8C.
I have a coffee whilst I weigh my options, which is to continue to North Battleford which is 210km from here, or just pull over and sleep in my helmet and suit, which will be very cold and uncomfortable and I will not get much sleep in any case.....
I laugh cause I am in a first world country, with money in my pockets, but I am essentially homeless. I try to open my pannier again bit this time I almost break off the key...........
It's flat on the prairies!!
I get to the campground which is next to the South Saskatchewan River at 19h45. I made it with daylight to spare. the river eroded through the landscape and makes for interesting views
I find a camp spot and proceed to unpack my bike. My sleeping bag and tent is in my right Yamaha OEM pannier - yes, the same pannier that is notorious for locks failing..... I ry to turn the key but it wont turn. Now before you guys start giving advice and opinions as to why the pannier did not want to open, let it be known that I did everything I was "supposed to do". The lock was seized up. I start bending the key. I do have a spare key if this one breaks, but if it breaks I still do not have access to my tent and sleeping bag. I try and try but the lock will not budge.
This is bad, very bad, as the temperatures at night drop down to single digits, and the mosquitos are eating me alive. I waste 30 min. on trying to get the lock open, but decide to abort my mission and head to Kindersley, SK 160km away to try and get a place to sleep. I leave the campground at around 20:00. I now panic that I may not be able to get gas this late as many small towns do not have 24hr gas available.
I roll in to Kindesley at 21:30. The sun is setting and I am relieved to have made it. I throw in gas at the first place I see, and ask the person behind the counter if he knows where I can find a place to sleep. He laughs, and says "I bet you are shit out of luck" I google and phone all the places in town, which is pretty limited
You guessed it - NOTHING available. WTF??Since when is Saskatchewan such a popular place that all hotels and motels are full?!?!?!
Now I panic. What do you do. I have no shelter and heat for the night. Sleeping next to the road in my riding suit will be too cold - my dash thermometer says it is now 8C.
I have a coffee whilst I weigh my options, which is to continue to North Battleford which is 210km from here, or just pull over and sleep in my helmet and suit, which will be very cold and uncomfortable and I will not get much sleep in any case.....
I laugh cause I am in a first world country, with money in my pockets, but I am essentially homeless. I try to open my pannier again bit this time I almost break off the key...........
Bliksem,thats a bad one!We once battled to open a pannier like that to get a bottle of brandy out at about 11 o'clock at night on the West Coast.Luckily we were all a bottle strong more or less by the time and after about 20 minutes managed to get it open :thumleft:
immigrant
Race Dog
Time to finish this ride report.....
I am angry at myself for putting myself in this situation. I feel good enough to carry on, but the sun is setting and I do not want to break my one and only rule - Riding in the Dark!!!
I am tempted to jam a screwdriver in the lock and force it open, but the same lock is used to fix the pannier to the frame, so I am worried that if I break the lock the pannier will not stay on. I am wasting time, and I head towards North Battleford.
The sunset was beautiful
Going, going....
Gone......
I then realize that my very "cool" looking tinted visor.....
........is not very good for night riding.
I need to flip up the visor to see. Fortunately the tall Givi screen creates a perfect shield for the wind and millions of mosquitos and the Vision X LED lights does a pretty good job providing additional illumination. The GPS says 200km to go - so I go!!! The fact that there are 14,000 deer collisions each year in Saskatchewan mulls in the back of my mind.
I get to North Battleford at 00h00. I am surprised to find a gas station open and whilst filling up (just in case) I phone and google again. The Super 8 still have rooms available. I go straight there. I walk in to the lobby and it looks like the trade floor of the New York Stock Exchange. The girl behind the counter is very close to crying. There are a lot of people wanting a room(WTF is going on???) and they are very abusive towards her. She shouts over the rowdy crowd "Only 5 rooms left". There are at least 15 people in front of me. I guess I will keep going before the riot starts.
I still have 160km before I get home. Not that far, but I will have to ride the gauntlet of moose and deer that is notorious for that stretch of road. I decide I will not go faster than 80km, or fall in behind a car that will hopefully strike the deer before i do. I did not see one car for 160km that night. I count 24 deer and 2 moose. Far less than one would usually encounter on this road - must have been the cold ::025::
My headlights get dimmer - I start to think my battery is failing or I am experiencing the "burnt harness". I stop to see what is happening. The front of my bike looks like it grew a beard, the bugs are caked on the lights and fairing. You can smell them burning on the Vision X lights. I use my credit card to scoop them off the headlight and aux lights. Almost home - keep it together man!!
I come around the corner of my driveway and damn near ride over my own dog (she must have heard the bike coming up the road and ran out to greet me) The gps says it is 02h30.
I pull in to my garage. Exhausted. Thankful to be safe. Depressed that it had to end like this..... :'(
The next morning I go and see what the problem was with the lock. I struggle a bit and Voila!! IT OPENS
Till next time ::003::
I am angry at myself for putting myself in this situation. I feel good enough to carry on, but the sun is setting and I do not want to break my one and only rule - Riding in the Dark!!!
I am tempted to jam a screwdriver in the lock and force it open, but the same lock is used to fix the pannier to the frame, so I am worried that if I break the lock the pannier will not stay on. I am wasting time, and I head towards North Battleford.
The sunset was beautiful
Going, going....
Gone......
I then realize that my very "cool" looking tinted visor.....
........is not very good for night riding.
I need to flip up the visor to see. Fortunately the tall Givi screen creates a perfect shield for the wind and millions of mosquitos and the Vision X LED lights does a pretty good job providing additional illumination. The GPS says 200km to go - so I go!!! The fact that there are 14,000 deer collisions each year in Saskatchewan mulls in the back of my mind.
I get to North Battleford at 00h00. I am surprised to find a gas station open and whilst filling up (just in case) I phone and google again. The Super 8 still have rooms available. I go straight there. I walk in to the lobby and it looks like the trade floor of the New York Stock Exchange. The girl behind the counter is very close to crying. There are a lot of people wanting a room(WTF is going on???) and they are very abusive towards her. She shouts over the rowdy crowd "Only 5 rooms left". There are at least 15 people in front of me. I guess I will keep going before the riot starts.
I still have 160km before I get home. Not that far, but I will have to ride the gauntlet of moose and deer that is notorious for that stretch of road. I decide I will not go faster than 80km, or fall in behind a car that will hopefully strike the deer before i do. I did not see one car for 160km that night. I count 24 deer and 2 moose. Far less than one would usually encounter on this road - must have been the cold ::025::
My headlights get dimmer - I start to think my battery is failing or I am experiencing the "burnt harness". I stop to see what is happening. The front of my bike looks like it grew a beard, the bugs are caked on the lights and fairing. You can smell them burning on the Vision X lights. I use my credit card to scoop them off the headlight and aux lights. Almost home - keep it together man!!
I come around the corner of my driveway and damn near ride over my own dog (she must have heard the bike coming up the road and ran out to greet me) The gps says it is 02h30.
I pull in to my garage. Exhausted. Thankful to be safe. Depressed that it had to end like this..... :'(
The next morning I go and see what the problem was with the lock. I struggle a bit and Voila!! IT OPENS
Till next time ::003::
Buzzlightyear
Grey Hound
epic homeride!
Vis Arend
Bachelor Dog
- Joined
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Lovely, I enjoyed this RR so much. :thumleft: Thanks for sharing.
You covered 1600km in one day home? :eek7:
Sounds like US and Canadian border officials are dumber than ours if that's possible.
Thanks for an awesome RR :thumleft:
Sounds like US and Canadian border officials are dumber than ours if that's possible.
Thanks for an awesome RR :thumleft:
- Joined
- Jan 18, 2011
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- Overberg
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Awesome RR. US north west up to BC is my no1 dream ride. Will hopefully find a way to do it some day
I'll have to go read Zen And The Art Of Motorcycle Maintenance again now
I'll have to go read Zen And The Art Of Motorcycle Maintenance again now
immigrant
Race Dog
I am glad you guys liked it. The funny thing is I constantly found myself comparing towns and scenery to places I have been to in South Africa. You guys still live in the most beautiful country in the world :thumleft:
- Joined
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FANTASTIC ride & report mate - love the pics...... I looked at your thread by chance and been sitting here reading from start to finish. THANKS for the effort and allowing us to ride with (maybe the extra weight it what jammed your locks...) :thumleft:
