We are riding from Fife, WA down into Oregon, stopping in the Sisters/Bend area. It's a fine, 27c day, sunshine all around. The K13GT is our moto this weekend, and even fully loaded she's a mile eater.

Some scenery...

Snow-covered Mt Jefferson across Detroit Lakes.

Snow-covered Mt Washington from Santiam Pass.
Wildfires ran through here in the recent past. It's a 27c day, even at altitude. Our wax didn't melt and we flew into Sisters looking for a cold frothy substance. 300 miles, seven hours, on as much two lane as possible. Success.

I'm jealous - we've just had that unbelieveable rarity in the UK of almost wall-to-wall sunshine for the last two weeks and I haven't been able to do anything because I've been off sick from work. Nasty throat infection that robbed me of my vocal chords for over a week.

Sorry to hear about your ailment. We hoist an ale to your good health.

Pamela's got a hefeweizen and I'm into a brown ale, smooth, chocolaty and lovely. Difficult to see but I'm wearing my K forum tee.

I cannot agree more and share Pamela's excellent choice of beer. Hefeweizen is my favourite beer at the moment. Cheers Tom and safe travels.

looks great dazza

I think it has inspired me to get out for a ride today ...somewhere

we've hit the glory winter days here in qld . with acres of sun around and super temperatures during the day ,
over night temps are a bit chilly for us lot  and a bit earlier in the year than normal .

enjoy you two !!!

Lovely to see that smiling face again ......... and you too Daz!

Have fun you two.

And good luck with the sore throat Dai. When I was in Ireland I too had a shocking case of dry sore throat and was hoping that virus had been eradicated from the Emerald Isle by now (so that I will feel better on my next trip).

Cheers

Geez, looks terrible. Glad I'm not there.
Yep... sure glad I'm not there in that sunshine with a Hefe.
Yep...

Dai wrote:I'm jealous - we've just had that unbelieveable rarity in the UK of almost wall-to-wall sunshine for the last two weeks and I haven't been able to do anything because I've been off sick from work. Nasty throat infection that robbed me of my vocal chords for over a week.

Off work sick for a week and unable to speak...w2w sunshine...how does that not make for the perfect excuse to get out for a long ride?

Nice scenery TWB and classy glassware! Enjoy

Did you pass thru the Lava Field ? That road is incredible. Rode there on my Moto Guzzi  in 2010 ,real nice area. I plan on passing thru there again next year on my K 100

It's called McKenzie Pass, and while starkly beautiful with amazing upclose views of the mountains and massive broken up lava, it remains closed from Winter due to heavy snow. It'll reopen around the third weekend in June.

We spent the day yesterday with Pamela's sister and her two grown daughters enjoying a bbq under brilliant sunshine. Last night we settled into a coupla sturdy Adirondack chairs and sorted out a fine bottle of plonk, rugged up, whilst the cool wind whistled through the ponderosas above. The billion star hotel was putting on a good show.

Studying the local map now for a meandering route home. The 13GT is a steadfast and agile beast.

In the end we chose to ride over Santiam Pass and back to Salem OR, straight up I-5 then through Portlandia on I-405 for the fun of it, over the Willamette and Columbia rivers into Washington state, then after a while took some back roads to Fife in an effort to avoid peak drive time traffic towards home. It was a three hundred and a bit mile, seven hour tootle; good weather, loads of welcome sunshine, and a quick stop for lunch at a local cafe. Once home we unpacked, and I said to Pamela, "I could have ridden another two hours more", such is the comfort of the 13. Managed nearly 45 mpg (US gallons) two up and was awarded no velocity stamps from the well-armed and ready for a fight constabulary forces nor had any mechanical issues.

In late July I'm heading out the K13 once again to Sturgis SD with a mate, then after a few days of camping near there - before the madding crowds arrive on their Harleys - I'm riding solo across the US to the New England states to visit my daughter in western Massachusetts. I'll likely take the upper US route paralleling I-90 on two lane highways, then return through southern Canada above the Great Lakes mid month.

It'd be great to catch a cuppa with any K forum members as I pass through (not code for I need a place to stay) as I'm mainly set there for the duration.

Something like this:
https://www.google.com/maps/dir/Fife,+WA/Rapid+City,+SD/Greenfield,+Massachusetts+01301/Thunder+Bay,+ON,+Canada/Banff,+AB,+Canada/Fife,+WA/@45.7604285,-97.0312153,5z/data=!4m38!4m37!1m5!1m1!1s0x5490552643bcb38f:0xba86adf014e71c27!2m2!1d-122.3570664!2d47.2392665!1m5!1m1!1s0x877d42a59ebba5fb:0xc471615a3e93b7c7!2m2!1d-103.2310149!2d44.0805434!1m5!1m1!1s0x89e125f2515de343:0x9dc7b0ab2145abc3!2m2!1d-72.5994104!2d42.587915!1m5!1m1!1s0x4d5921774c16e98d:0x3d0557348f1d8b74!2m2!1d-89.2476823!2d48.3808951!1m5!1m1!1s0x5370ca45910c4afd:0xcaafaebedaac9463!2m2!1d-115.5707694!2d51.1783629!1m5!1m1!1s0x5490552643bcb38f:0xba86adf014e71c27!2m2!1d-122.3570664!2d47.2392665!3e0

Very envious of that cross country return run Daz. Should be a beauty.

Cheers

Gaz wrote:Very envious of that cross country return run Daz. Should be a beauty.
Cheers

I have not ridden above the Great Lakes in yonks, and need a good Canadian run to have a good squiz at the place. I'm looking forward to an 'ossum' Summer of riding ahead. I find myself, lately, with some rare time off and have a few rides planned. The first one is on the Big Block at month's end to John Day Oregon to attend the Chief Joseph rally held there every June. I wrangled a coupla mates together and we're all riding 'naked' bikes (an SV650, Airhead, R1150R, etc) down, slowly and deliberately on two lane roads, avoiding the major roads, camping in the forest when possible. The rally as a destination isn't our focus - tho' it's a pretty good one - but simply enjoying the time on the road in more relaxed, less frenetic, avoiding high mileage days, burble.

The next one is in July to Republic Washington, in the east of the state near Kettle Falls and the upper reaches of the Mighty Columbia River at Lake Roosevelt (think Coolee Dam). The local Beemer club hold their annual Cascade Country Rendezvous at a county fairground. There's a new-ish brewpub in town in the old fire station with a terrific selection of frothies, a coupla decent restaurants, and fine local roads over low mountain passes. The local constabulary are known to 'look the other way' unless the rider is doing something really stooopid on the bitumen. The deer population is the critical worry. They're almost as thick as 'roos at dawn and dusk.

I might get to New Mexico again late Summer for another visit to my auld haunts. A mate from near Albuquerque just got back from two weeks riding a R1200GS in Germany and met up, purely by chance, with another mate from Seattle who was riding his R1150GS there, same time. We've got some catching up to do. I've known them both for many years but they did not know one another. The six degrees of separation thing...

So with the cross country jaunt in early August, there's also the general local weekend rides to here and there on sunny days. All in all a good chance to put some miles and smiles on my dials. After these past few years of hard yakka (work & toil) I need some helmet time to clear out the white noise and daily dull thud of a miserably intense news cycle in Amerika. It ain't just me who feels at times there's no oxygen in the room left for reasonable thought and intelligent discourse.

Of course, can't wait to get back to OZ. This time arriving early to mid-September instead of my usual October visit, and am staying on longer this time. The stored red RS needs a good, long run to nowhere, and so do I.

Best,
Daz

The Big Block is scheduled to take you to the Chief Joseph Rally?  That's good news indeed!  I look forward to seeing that bruiser in the flesh (so to speak).  I hope to meet the master builder, as well.    I doubt I'll have my K1100LT roadworthy by month's end, so I imagine I'll be riding to John Day on Borboleta, my trusty R100RS.

brickrider2 wrote:The Big Block is scheduled to take you to the Chief Joseph Rally?  That's good news indeed!  I look forward to seeing that bruiser in the flesh (so to speak).  I hope to meet the master builder, as well.    I doubt I'll have my K1100LT roadworthy by month's end, so I imagine I'll be riding to John Day on Borboleta, my trusty R100RS.

The bike's assorted squeaking ills should be quelled by then. Of the three sets of K100-16V/K11RS Marzocchi forks I have, all of them bloody well leak a bit. I should be able to whack a good set together beforehand. Also, some under tank wiring needs to be tidied and idjuts light attached for essentials like oil pressure & water temperature, and some non-essentials such as indicators, fuel level and neutral (she starts with a pull of the clutch lever). I really have no excuse for not having her along to the rally. It'll be good to catch up. Look for an orange tent, a maroon Kermit chair and a smiling bald head sipping single malt from a flask.

If not ready then it's the black '06 K1200R I'll be riding.

I'll also be alert for anyone speaking  Strialian....   

I have found that if the bushes aren't good then they leak regardless of what you do they weep at the least and will just piss it out if the bushes are bad.

brickrider2 wrote:I'll also be alert for anyone speaking  Strialian....   

I'm only partly an '...alian' but I still speak Straylian.

RicK G wrote:I have found that if the bushes aren't good then they leak regardless of what you do they weep at the least and will just piss it out if the bushes are bad.

I've got a set of bushings, so will get into it tomorrow and see what else I need in there to "git 'er done."