Jan/Feb '16 Premium Content Baja California, Mexico: Rip to the Tip I used to write for myself as a way to catalog a fraction of the memories to look back upon in the future. I wrote as a way to stimulate my mind with words and vocabulary, organizing my thoughts in a creative, descriptive way. I wrote, yes even for the
Jan/Feb '16 Denver, Colorado City Escape The highest continuous paved road in the United States is in Rocky Mountain National Park—Trail Ridge Road. Connecting Estes Park (the town that inspired Stephen King’s novel, The Shining) to Grand Lake, home of … well, a pretty big lake! But then again, why settle for ghost stories, big
Jan/Feb '16 Premium Content British Columbia and Washington: The Border Tour The Canada-U.S. border disproves the old saying that good fences make good neighbors. It’s famously the world’s longest, undefended international border and, in much of the West, it’s simply a line drawn along the 49th parallel. There are no walls or fences, just a column of
Jan/Feb '16 Premium Content Southeast Oregon: Empty Land Full of Adventure As I open my eyes and look out of my tent, the Milky Way has almost an overwhelming brightness, and I momentarily feel as if I’m being catapulted through space before I realize that I’m just lying in the middle of a remote high desert road. After months
Nov/Dec '15 Premium Content Reader Ride–Southern California: Scootouring Scootouring (v.) the act of traveling long distances on a scooter. Sometimes the right word just doesn’t exist. Such is the case with touring on a scooter. With the advent of maxi-scooters (scooters with motorcycle displacement engines and similar performance), major manufacturers have embraced this growing market segment. But
Nov/Dec '15 City Escape: Salt Lake City, Utah > This route travels the rural “Wasatch Back” beginning at the mouth of Emigration Canyon in Salt Lake County and loops northward on twisty canyon roads, over mountain passes, and through the pastoral Morgan and Upper Ogden Valleys. June, September, and October are the most scenic months to ride. Length
Sep/Oct '15 Premium Content San Francisco, California to Seattle, Washington: The Unusual Route For simple navigation it would be easy to connect both cities via Highway 1 along the coast, but the inland route, including an occasional coastal intermezzo, promises much more diversity. Wow! This is steeper than it looks on television—and much better. We don’t know what to do first.
Sep/Oct '15 City Escape: Las Vegas, Nevada > This loop south of Las Vegas is a serene escape from the urban bustle. Once free from the neon lights and the traffic of Sin City, riders will experience the raw beauty of the Mojave Desert. The clear desert air allows awe-inspiring views of rugged mountains, expansive sand dunes,
Jul/Aug '15 City Escape: Santa Clarita, California > Santa Clarita lies just north of Los Angeles along the West Coast’s main north-south corridor, Interstate 5, so it’s easy to get to from many surrounding areas. Just north of town is Six Flags Magic Mountain amusement park, with fantastic roller coasters, and Castaic Lake, which offers
Classic Roads Premium Content Route 66 West: Riding the Mother Road Today, when people think about Route 66, they see visions of dramatic expanses of southwestern desert and the adventure of exploring the wide-open country. At its peak, the stretch of 66 through New Mexico, Arizona, and California was a bustling highway as Americans moved west to seek their fortunes. Then
Jul/Aug '15 Premium Content Trans-America Trail, Colorado to Oregon: Detours, Broken Bones, and New Friendships As if on cue, my new riding partner, Luke Swab, rolls into Fairplay, CO, on a Yamaha WR250R, where I am waiting to meet him by the side of the road. I’m relieved, yet I’m apprehensive to have a riding partner. The first half of the journey had
Jul/Aug '15 Premium Content Reader Ride–Utah Highway 12: It's the Journey and the Destination In my impetuous youth, I felt the kickstand was my sworn enemy. I was one of those guys who wore continuous hours of saddle time as a badge of honor and total miles for the day like the crown jewel on my riding tiara. In my more mature years, I
May/Jun '15 Premium Content Trans-America Trail, Tennessee to Southern Colorado: Banjos, Tears, & Corn Nubbins I have arrived in Tellico Plains, TN, and the official starting point of the Trans-America Trail (TAT). It took thousands of miles just to get here, but as I prepare to make my first turn onto the trail, I feel a weight and a reality of what I am about
May/Jun '15 City Escape: Seattle, Washington > This circuit includes Seattle's own volcano, Mount Rainier, climbs over the 5,430-foot Chinook Pass, goes through Mount Rainier National Park, and returns via the Puyallup River valley. Park entry fee is for motorcycles. Stop in charming Elbe and take a two-hour steam train ride on the
Mar/Apr '15 Premium Content California and Oregon: High Sierra Hoedown Call it unfinished business, if you will. In 2006, I collected a Ducati Multistrada 1000 DS from Southern California Motorcycles in Brea, CA, and set off to tour the northern Sierra. My trip would include most of the famous Golden Chain Highway, California 49, through the foothills and over the
Mar/Apr '15 City Escape: San Diego, California This exhilarating day ride emanating from San Diego comes within a quarter mile of the Mexican border at its southernmost point and reaches an elevation of almost 6,000 feet to the north in Mount Laguna. In addition to the elevation and terrain changes, this route has the added attraction
Mar/Apr '15 Premium Content Wyoming and South Dakota: Where Indians Roam Again Given only rough guidelines and a new touring motorcycle, I set off to explore Wyoming on two wheels following the Sturgis Rally in August. My goal: bring home a “living with proof” report on what Indian Motorcycle calls the best of their best, the Roadmaster. Impeccably suited to fit on
Jan/Feb '15 Premium Content Washington—Olympic Peninsula: Water Rules The Olympic Peninsula is not only surrounded by water on three sides—it is ruled by the wet elements, which forms a unique place in the Pacific Northwest. Whack! This could go so wrong, I think to myself. Just before the salmon hits the faces of the surprised customers, the
Nov/Dec '14 Premium Content Colorado Rockies: Mountains, Mesas, and Monsoon Season? What a difference a day makes. Riding the ski lift at Crested Butte, my wife, Sharon, and I attempt to watch both the alpine panorama unfolding ahead and the shrinking festival grounds below where Lukas Nelson’s band POTR is performing to a growing crowd under a sapphire blue sky.
Nov/Dec '14 Premium Content Maui, Hawaii: Jungle vs. Paradise When I finally booked my ticket to Hawaii for the first time, I had no idea what was in store for me or how it was going to change my life. Honestly, I would have never bought the ticket if it weren’t for a friend that I met four
Sep/Oct '14 City Escape: Los Angeles, California Northbound > A great northern escape from Los Angeles is through Ojai and the Los Padres National Forest, which is commonly considered the “better way” of getting to the Pacific Coast Highway from LA (between Cambria and Carmel). Best rides are in the fall when central valley temps drop below 100
Sep/Oct '14 Premium Content Reader Ride–Colorado High Country: Back to My Childhood Home Our 2012 Honda Gold Wing purrs as we head south on U.S. 6 through the beautiful Spanish Fork region. It’s Day 2 of our seven-day journey from Eagle, ID, to Golden, CO, where I grew up. I look forward to sharing my home turf with Howard, my intrepid
Sep/Oct '14 Premium Content Portland, Oregon to Seattle, Washington: The Scenic Way I’m standing in a fine Japanese garden, and I’m looking at a volcano—an exotic combination. I didn’t have to go too far. This is neither Tokyo nor Mount Fuji. I’m in Portland, OR. Toward the east, the snow capped peak of Mount Hood is clearly
Jul/Aug '14 Premium Content California: Extremes in America’s Far West This is not the best way to start our trip—but what shall we do? Today is one of those many days when the fog from the cold Pacific rules San Francisco’s weather. We had planned to ride across the Golden Gate Bridge and then cut east. But in
