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June 2009

The Yellowstone Brick Road

Wednesday, June 24th - 2009

We’re out on the road right now for the first big ride of the season and as usual, it’s good to be back. This time around there is an even greater sense of how sweet it feels to be doing a motorcycle tour because well, first of all, there’s actual motorcycles involved. Let me explain.

When Brandon contacted me early this spring to discuss the upcoming season he mentioned a scouting trip down to the US that would focus on finding the very best roads to include on Rocky Mountain’s new “Old Faithful” tour. Two guys in the truck could increase the mileage each day and since it looked like I was going to be guiding on that trip anyway, this gave me a chance to get a feel for the lay of the land.

The plan was to bring along a GS (or two), run the planned route of the tour and when time permitted we would take a bike off the truck and work on scrubbing the new rubber. Along the way we could also scope out the new hotels our guests were booked into and sample the local cuisine. It almost sounded like a vacation!

Some nasty weather just before we were set to head out made us scrap the idea of bringing bikes. The elevation of a few towns on the circuit is higher than the Peak of Whistler Mountain and as we all know, mixing snow with motorcycles is like putting HP Sauce in your oatmeal. You just don’t do it.

No big deal; if there’s one thing better about driving than riding (other than warmth and dryness); it’s the accessibility to junk food. After all, this was a road trip.

Our first night was in Soap Lake which is one of the stops on our Coast to California tours but on Day 2 it was time to start breaking new trail. I guess we shouldn’t take all the credit; Lewis and Clark were actually the first to explore a lot of these roads back in the 19th Century. Brandon will tell you all about it over dinner in Joseph, Oregon.

Outside of Joseph was where we encountered our first major obstacle of the mission and now that I think about it, this little setback was kind of ironic. Here we were, stopped dead in our tracks by a wall of snow on a mountain pass that takes us to Stanley. The ironic part is that the frosty delay was situated over a masterpiece of road known in those parts as none other than Hell’s Canyon.

Back the way we came and eventually we ran out of steam in Baker City. The next morning at breakfast I was reminded of two things. For one, you can have gravy in the US on virtually anything you want at any time of day. Second thing is, though, it doesn’t mean it’s gonna be good.

Back in the truck and back to the comfort food that Brandon and I have grown so fond of over the years of touring: Beef jerky. We had a few options for the day ahead and decided to explore them all. Met another wall of snow on a pass up through the Cascades and while it did force us to abandon a route with definite potential, it also led us to a very interesting stop in a tiny hick resort where they teach you how to distil your own bourbon. Maybe save that one for the Redneck Fantasy Tour that’s still in the planning stages.

We made it to Victor and I’ve got to say that is one impressive place. The restaurants, the staff, the amenities; it was all top-notch. Brandon and I were so rested in the morning we even hit the gym for a workout. To reward ourselves we splurged that day on the finest jerky Chevron had to offer.

It was time to venture into the Tetons and onwards to Yellowstone Park. Some of the sights at Yellowstone have to be seen to be believed. Very nice. We were logging into the 4000-range for total kilometres now and I was starting to see that scouting was not all fun and games. The hardest part was taking a route, being blown away by the scenery and the twisties and then turning around to go back to square one, only to take a second road that arrived at the same destination as the first. It was mentally exhausting but when the second route turns out being even better than the original, the kind of road that has made Rocky Mountain famous, it all seems worth it.

By Kalispell, Montana the driving was starting to take its toll. We both needed a break and to help ease the tension we decided to go on a shopping spree at Best Buy. Don’t laugh guys. Going into an electronics mega-store like that with money to burn felt pretty close to that first visit to a motorcycle shop in the spring. Everything so shiny and new…

Three hours and over two thousand dollars later it was time to make a run for the border. Just think about this story the next time you see Brandon recording footage as you lean into a turn. And hey, where do you think I got this laptop?

Our final stretch home topped 20-straight hours of driving and in total we logged 6 000-plus kms but some of the roads are the sweetest I’ve ever seen. Can’t wait for the chance to tackle them on two wheels.

 

Trip: Old Faithful

— Jarvis, June 24, 2009

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