WilliamArcher

I just finished buttoning up an XR650R that I bought non-running, and I want to do a checkout ride on Sunday. I would prefer not to go alone on the shakedown just in case. Anyone up for a Sunday morning ride? I'll be leaving from Del Mar at 5:30AM and picking up the bike in Jamul en route. I will probably get to the parking lot around 7:30. Kickstand up around 8:00. There's room in the back of my truck for another bike if needed.

That's too bad. I have a pair of Sidi crossfires collecting dust, but they're 11.5. I've been busy applying to schools, but I will turn in my last app today, and I have a new-to-me XR650R that I just got running, so I'll be planning something soon.

What size boot do you wear?

What kind of trip do you have in mind? Small, medium or large bikes? Mostly dirt? Ride all day or take it easy? It's been a few months since I've gone to Baja, and I might be interested in a quick three day trip.

I'm trying to ease my girlfriend into going on Baja adventures with me, and I'm planning to start with an easy pavement-only trip to wine country this weekend. The problem is I don't know a damn thing about wineries, and I've never been to Valle de Guadalupe. I always just get on the dirt and ride South. I'm hoping some of our Baja experts with more refined tastes can help me out. Any suggestions for wineries/restaurants/itineraries would be greatly appreciated. Where are the best wineries? Which ones can be done in the same day? Where is a good place to stay that won't break the bank? I'll be two up with a girl who is a little apprehensive about motorcycles and Mexico, so I want it to be as easy and laid back as possible, so she can feel comfortable.

We'll probably trend toward the non-schmancy joints. I'm just a working stiff after all. What are the good "working man's" wineries? Hope you enjoy your Thanksgiving jaunt.

Good idea. I found a couple of good maps. We'll have to check it out. Thanks. Great information. That's very helpful. Do you generally have to call ahead to these places or can you just rock up during business hours? I've started getting the FMM when I cross nowadays. It adds a few minutes to the crossing but gives me peace of mind.

You just click on the picture to vote?

Tom from the UK is currently on a trip from Alaska to Mexico on his new Africa twin. He will be passing through in San Diego tomorrow and Friday and then heading down into Baja Saturday. I offered to tag along across the border with him on Saturday, and if anyone else is looking for a quick Baja trip that's big bike friendly, we would welcome the company. It's going to be pretty warm (mid 80s forecast in Tecate), so we'll probably stay toward the Pacific Coast. I'll be heading back up to the States Sunday because I have to work on Monday. Anyone interested?

I just realized I never gave a report on this trip. In normal form, I did not take many pictures. Let me summarize the weekend by saying 1. Compadre is beautifully graded right now as is most of La Calentura. 2. The CRF1000L does not like sand. 3. Ensenada is not much fun to ride through. 4. Keep your eyes on the road in the mountains... don't end up like this guy: We crossed in Tecate early Saturday. It took about half an hour for Tom to get his TVIP sorted so he could continue South to Mazatlán. We took the free road to Compadre and rode it down to Ojos Negros. The Africa Twin did pretty well except in the sand. Tom kept it upright with difficulty until the last long, straight stretch of sand going into Ojos Negros. He started fishtailing and ate it doing about twenty mph. He bruised his leg pretty well, and did a number on the Honda's fairings. It took some time to get the bike up and repacked and ridden out of the sandy stretch with bruised legs and (even worse) shaken confidence. We wanted to get to Erendira, but I didn't think taking the Honda down La Lagrima was a good idea, and we were running too late to go through Valle de la Trinidad and over on La Calentura, so we slabbed it through Ensenada. I can't recommend it. Lots of traffic lights. We stayed at Coyote Cal's and met with a group of riders, all women, on an annual ride they called "Hooters on scooters". They were mostly on rented CRF450Xs, but there was also a 72 year old lady on a YZ250. That was impressive. About an hour after the women arrived, a second group (the husbands I guess) showed up too, so there was a good crowd at the bar. Tom got some good route ideas from the guy leading the group trip, and I heard that the trail through El Mano Canyon is open and passable now. I'm thinking about going down it to get to the oasis at Canyon De Guadalupe for my next trip in October. I said goodbye to Tom in the morning and headed south out of Erendira along the racetrack then cut over to La Calentura. I saw a big thunderstorm coming in from Valle de la Trinidad, so I got on the slab and raced it to Ojos Negros, then I went up Compadre keeping just in front of the storm. I was back in the US by 15:00. It wasn't a very exciting trip as far as the riding went, but I met some interesting folks, and I got some interesting information about routes for next time.

Welcome to the club. I rode down to Eréndira last weekend with someone on a CRF1000L. He had an... interesting time wrangling that thing in the sand, but at the end of the day all the girls at the bar wanted to test ride it. Just post up in the Baja section next time you want to go, and most likely someone will want to tag along.

Just let us know.

I found a few more pictures on my other camera. The Teton Range. Monument Valley. Mount Evans. Zion National Park. Glenn Canyon Dam. Gunnison National Forest. (The rear tire was starting to get pretty bald at this point.) Clouds over the Tetons.

I'm getting tired of riding Baja. It's time to head north. The original plan was a road trip by car to see the eclipse, but my buddy ended up having to go to a wedding at the same time. I don't want to drive up there alone, so I'm going to ride up alone instead. I would love to do this trip on my WR250R and take as much dirt as possible, but there just isn't time. Due to my work schedule, I'll only have two days to get to Jackson. Rather than flog the 250 on the highway, I went to Craigslist and picked up a decent Versys 650. I'll have five days to get back, so I want to take a more scenic route, heading south to visit friends in Denver and then across southern Utah. I'm looking for route suggestions. Does anyone know some good roads to take on the way back?

In Yellowstone, I saw a couple of Swiss-plated WR250Rs in a café parking lot. I was hoping whoever owned them would come back before I finished my coffee and headed on, but they didn't, and I headed on. I later found their ride report on ADVrider. It's ironic that I deliberately left my WR250R at home because of how long the trip was, and they chose the same bike for a longer trip. Pity we didn't get a chance to chat.

We will probably end up in Eréndira on Saturday night. Might see you there.

Thanks. I didn't plan or reserve anything. When the sun started getting close to the horizon I kept an eye out for a sign for national forests, and then I would ride down an access road until I found a good spot. I didn't stay in campgrounds or anything like that.

I made it back in one piece. Getting up there went quicker than expected. I scooted up the 15 and with an early start was past Las Vegas before noon. I made it to central Utah and found a good campsite above an abandoned mine in Fish Lake National Forest the first night. The next day I passed Salt Lake City in the morning, up through Idaho Falls, through Victor and over the pass into Jackson Hole. I spent four days in Jackson, visiting friends, watching the eclipse, rafting the Snake River a few times, shooting clays, and making the rounds of nearby national parks. Then I headed to Denver via the Wind River Reservation to visit some other friends. I rode up Mount Evans and crossed Guanella Pass then met some friends riding out from Kentucky and went up Pike's Peak with them. I parted company with my Kentuckian friends and headed across Colorado via Salida and over Monarch Pass to Gunnison. I found another good campsite in Gunnison National Forest. The next morning I passed through Montrose and then through the San Juan Mountains, past Four Corners and into Monument Valley. I kept riding through the Navajo Nation, crossed Glenn Canyon Dam then headed up past Kanab Utah and camped in Dixie National Forest. There are lots of good campsites on public land in the West. The next morning I rode through Zion National Park at dawn. It's a jaw dropping ride from the top of the canyon to the bottom at first light. I can't recommend it highly enough. At this point you may have noticed that I picked up a guitar in Wyoming. I had to leave this guitar in Africa a few years ago, and a friend recently recovered it for me and brought it back to the States as far as Jackson. I had the guitar strapped to the back of the bike for about half the trip. After Zion, I hit the 15 South and pounded it home to San Diego. Riding the 15 was an uneventful slog notable only for the high temperatures crossing the Mojave (126F between Las Vegas and Barstow). Overall it was a good trip. The total eclipse far exceeded my expectations, I met up with a lot of old friends, saw a lot of the Southwest, recovered my favorite guitar, and the Versys never gave me a single problem over 3,600 miles despite extended high speeds, extreme heat, elevations over 14,000 feet, snow, rain, dirt, sand and gravel. I spent a total of $480 on the 11 day trip, and over half of that was on gasoline and beer.

Thanks. I'll try to update as I go, but I might just end up doing the write-up after. Thanks. You should be able to see it pretty well from there with a pinhole projector or some eclipse glasses.

I'm starting to get excited for the trip. I have a rough route sketched out: google maps link. Looks like it's going to be about 3,000 miles, so I'll average about 300 miles per day. I bought a 12v outlet and some saddlebags for the Versys (no need for racks since the exhaust is under the bike), and I'm welding up some brackets for highway pegs. I'm going to change the final drive this weekend since the original chain and sprockets have 15k+ miles on them, and the front sprocket is visibly hooked. Aside from that and an oil change, it should be ready to roll.

I also have a WR250R and there's a sticky light on my way to work. After missing some cycles and doing the right turn-U turn maneuver a couple of times, I found that bouncing my full weight on the footpegs when I'm right over the detector circle can trip it. I think compressing the suspension helps by geting the engine and frame closer to the sensor. I could be way off base on that though.

I like it. I want one. Who did the graphic design? Can we have a walking homo sapiens instead of a kid on a tricycle? Can the guy on the DRZ be doing a wheelie?

21 August.

How'd it go?

It looks like I'm going to get both Monday and Tuesday off for Independence Day, so I'm thinking of using this rare four day weekend for another Baja trip. I'm thinking about a three day trip, either... 1. Crossing on bikes Saturday morning in Tecate, braving the heat and making for Mike's or Rancho Coyote. Sunday looping south and ending up back where we started or farther north. Monday north via Compadre or Laguna Henson road. Or... 2. Trucking bikes to Ejido Erendira Friday night and staying on the Pacific coast heading south toward El Rosario Saturday. Looping south then back to El Rosario Sunday, then back to Erendira Monday and either staying til Tuesday morning or trucking back out Monday night depending on time. I'll be on my WR250R taking it relatively easy. Light packs. Minimal slab. Cheap hotels. Copious beer and tacos. Home for the fireworks. Anyone interested in going with me?