bsham 9 Posted June 10, 2017 Rode over to the Four Corners area starting 2 June. I had planned on a 5 day trip but it ended up being 3. Left the house Friday morning with a plan to camp near Winslow that night. Picked out well rated roads off a Butler Map where I could. Route is shown below. It took longer than Google Maps thought it would ... a good bit longer... but once in the hills the riding was fun. Temps were pushing 110 the first 5 hours or so, warmer than I was expecting based on the forecast. Made it to camp after 2230. The good news is that it was below 60 deg by then which felt really good after a hot day. The look of late into camp. Was treated to a cool morning! Time to get back on the road again! The plan for day 2 was to head towards Chinle and Tsaile, check out Shiprock and make it to Muley point by dark. This was a segment of cool landscapes and massive protrusions from the ground. By the time I made it to Chinle I knew it was too late to make Shiprock so I picked a route to Muley Point. Monument Valley was very cool! ... and then some. Found the hat ... I don't get it. Actually looks more like a hat from the west... I think ... maybe?? Moki Dugway ... gotta see this to believe it. Made it to Muley Point with an hour to spare. That's a good thing as I wouldn't want to be looking for a camp spot up here after dark ... at least not on my first trip here. This place is incredible! Glad to be done for the day! As I was setting up camp I picked up a rock to anchor some stuff and found a warning. I should have heeded it! Fixed some eats, marveled at the view for a while and went to sleep. The sunset was awesome! When the wind was calm, that place was void of sound, like a black hole for sound. I found myself laying there trying to hear anything. Don't think I've ever experienced that before. Plan for day 3 was to hit the Burr Trail and make it back to Muley Point. Roughly 400 miles with dirt sections. Day 4 and 5 would be heading back. Remember the warning on the rock? After roughly 2 hours of sleep I woke to massive cramping and the realization that I was sick as a dog. No more sleep that night and really dehydrated by morning. Think it was my body reacting to too much time in the heat. Concerned that I would be in bad shape and not have the energy to get out of there if I was still there when it got hot again I started breaking camp at 0400. Was treated to an OK sunrise. Burr Trail was no longer an option. Feeling really exhausted and out of energy I decided to take it one mile at a time and see what progress I could make towards home. I rolled out just after 0600. That was the roughest day I can recall. Once a bit past Flagstaff I spent the next 8 hours in temps hovering around 114 with an occasional cool spot of 110 or so. Should have never disturbed that poison rock! 13 hours and 700 miles later I made it home having consumed 3 Hammer gels and continuously sipping water so I wouldn't get sick. I was done with riding forever. A couple of days later I find myself thinking of future rides. I learned a good bit from this outing. Up to this point I had never ridden over 300 miles in a day. To my surprise the mileage was quite tolerable. Though the scenery and just being out on a bike for a few days was incredible, one of the better aspects of this ride was something I didn't see coming; the people I met. Most of the times when I stopped strangers would approach me and start a conversation. They were all really positive exchanges. Can't wait for the next one! Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
tntmo 887 Posted June 10, 2017 Great report, looks like you found some of the scenery that makes a trip. Even with the bad ending, you still made it home and are ready for the next trip so I guess it wasn't a bad ending after all. How did the bike perform? Plenty of range on the tank, comfortable, no overheating issues, etc? Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
dstss 27 Posted June 11, 2017 Great report. Glad you recovered from the heat. Its easy to forget that riding that long in that heat is like riding in a dehydrator. Thanks for sharing. Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
Bp619 104 Posted June 11, 2017 Nice report bummer about heat never ridden in that sounds horrible, did 105 for 6 hours and was over it Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
Zubb 1061 Posted June 11, 2017 Thanks for the write up and pics. Always fun to see what others are doing. Riding when sick is miserable... especially if you don't have anywhere to unplug and recover, like a nice cool hotel room. Even that sucks. I've done a bit of superhot touring myself and think I enjoy it less each year. Last summer I rode 1003 miles in a day coming home from Boise, with much of Nevada above 100, and the Mojave at 110+. I crossed Death Valley once at 120 and have learned to heed the Iron Butt Associations tips for heat riding. I completely agree with their tips based on my experience. For everyones edification: http://www.ironbutt.com/ibmagazine/ironbutt_1002_62-66_Hot.pdf Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
bsham 9 Posted June 11, 2017 20 hours ago, tntmo said: Great report, looks like you found some of the scenery that makes a trip. Even with the bad ending, you still made it home and are ready for the next trip so I guess it wasn't a bad ending after all. How did the bike perform? Plenty of range on the tank, comfortable, no overheating issues, etc? Bike didn't miss a beat. Coolant temp was normal. Power seemed normal. Did not detect any detonation even when dropping a couple of gears and pinning it to pass. The hot road surface didn't do anything noticeable to the tires ... I've heard stories of some knobbies wearing out really quickly on hot roads. The one thing I did notice was range. Back roads and hills around town show low to mid 40's per gallon no matter how much fun I'm having. Out on the interstate or deserted desert stretches at 80 mph with a little wind on it I was averaging close to 30 mpg. I headed south from the 40 with plenty of range to next gas. That station only had 87 octane ... knew I could make the next one. Next one was closed. I calculated that I would run out at 215 and get to Chiriaco at 185 miles. Ran out 6 miles short. Glad I mounted a 2 gal rotopax a few weeks back. 4 hours ago, Zubb said: Thanks for the write up and pics. Always fun to see what others are doing. Riding when sick is miserable... especially if you don't have anywhere to unplug and recover, like a nice cool hotel room. Even that sucks. I've done a bit of superhot touring myself and think I enjoy it less each year. Last summer I rode 1003 miles in a day coming home from Boise, with much of Nevada above 100, and the Mojave at 110+. I crossed Death Valley once at 120 and have learned to heed the Iron Butt Associations tips for heat riding. I completely agree with their tips based on my experience. For everyones edification: http://www.ironbutt.com/ibmagazine/ironbutt_1002_62-66_Hot.pdf Thanks for posting the IBA advice! That is something I had seen a while back. I was bundled up with wicking gear ... only lacked a head liner. I have done desert scrambles in vented gear as hot as 115. In a 3 hour scramble at those temps I'll drink over 1.5 gal and still lose close to 10 lbs. Flat out can not keep up with necessary water intake. Actually feel better wearing warmer gear in those conditions. I know that trip riding and scrambles are completely different exertion levels (not so much once you're cooked off road) but when bundled up per the IBA recommendations, I need far less water to feel good and can actually maintain adequate intake all day. Another key thing ... carry plenty of electrolytes in the heat and take them regularly ... unless you like death cramps... Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
Wierdrider 187 Posted June 11, 2017 Nice write up and adventure Brian. I couldn't handle that heat, glad you're ok? Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
Covered in Dust 162 Posted June 12, 2017 Great report, I don't like riding much above 100. Last year at the end of the AZBDR when we got back to Flagstaff I rented a U-Haul when the temps were 106 and probably 115 in the lower deserts and I thought I'd die riding back to Havasu for 4 hours. Best $100 I spent. CiD Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
tomh 0 Posted June 12, 2017 Did you find that rock next to the little town made from rocks all painted up? They even made a weed dispensary. Should have gone the week I went temps were quite cooler. muley is a fantastic place to camp. Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
Uncle Champ 116 Posted June 12, 2017 Good hot weather riding addendum, I have often wondered about evaporation rates on hot rides. I watched a really tough biker type give up the ghost at a gas station once in the valley. He could ride but not walk (or anything else). I wouldn't ( couldn't ) keep going in that heat. Kudos for the effort. Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
toddman 0 Posted July 22, 2017 Nice write up. I'm thinking that rock means there are ticks with Lyme disease in that area. Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
