Something I passed today

[arnie]

I was just there a couple wks ago with my son, We couldn't see the top of the bridge from all the fog. Great pics. Dennis, it is beautiful out there.

 

[iaff84]

Left the PCH this morning. Now in Barstow, CA. Will jump on I-40 for the ride home.
Big change from riding the coast to this barren land.
Dennis

 

[PIGGI]

Left the PCH this morning. Now in Barstow, CA. Will jump on I-40 for the ride home.
Big change from riding the coast to this barren land.
Dennis

Hey Dennis, watch out for that I-40 thru Az, worst road around here. If you decide to drop down to I-10 around Tucson give us a shout.

 

[iaff84]

It is 108 here, Needles looks no better tomorrow. I think we will hit the road early. Only 90 at 6AM. (I forgot, it is dry heat)
Hey, any roads out here are better than Indiana
(we are asking ourselves, why go West in July)
Dennis

 

[iaff84]

Left Barstow early, 6AM. Allot cooler. Had overcast skies all day till 2PM so good day to just ride the interstate East. Stopped at Winslow, AZ for the night. Another wreck with 10 miles of stopped traffic just East of Flagstaff, found alternate route which kept us at least moving. Its a drag that the trip part is over and now just homeward bound.
A wild Fire and some high priced gas!
Dennis

 

[jcolson]

Great pics and videos Dennis!! pretty country. I'm jealous!! I would like to come visit sometime in the next 2-3 weeks, if possible. Jim

 

[PIGGI]

Was that gas @4.99 in Barstow or Az?

 

[riden2low]

Dennis Swan, Liked your videos. Is that a gopro cam you are using? What is the best model? And how do you have it mounted? I live right here on the Oregon Coast next to hwy 101 just out side of Lincoln City. I think I might have seen you guys as we were doing some things down in Newport and on our way back North, seen a couple trikes riding together and my eye caught your trailer. I have a bushtec but always see what guys are pulling. Here in a little town Otis, they just finished up Run 21 this week end. Pretty descent turn out

 

[iaff84]

Was that gas @4.99 in Barstow or Az?

Needles ,CA

- - - Updated - - -

Dennis Swan, Liked your videos. Is that a gopro cam you are using? What is the best model? And how do you have it mounted? I live right here on the Oregon Coast next to hwy 101 just out side of Lincoln City. I think I might have seen you guys as we were doing some things down in Newport and on our way back North, seen a couple trikes riding together and my eye caught your trailer. I have a bushtec but always see what guys are pulling. Here in a little town Otis, they just finished up Run 21 this week end. Pretty descent turn out

Go here, I think post 28 http://www.triketalk.com/forum/threads/21406-GoPro/page3

 

[iaff84]

Just pulled into Springfield, MO for the night. Will be home tomorrow. Have allot of film to go through. Will post some clips next week.
Was a real great trip, meeting Trent and riding down the Left coast was great.
Dennis
Some pics from Texas






Cadillac Ranch

 

[Trent]

Well,, The Swans are almost home. We had a great time traveling with Dennis & Marilyn down the left coast. They are regular, easy goin' folks and were great to travel with. I think maybe we taught them how to eat more like pigs when you are on vacation!! That is part of the deal,,, to Clam Chowder your way down the coast. ! We could not have asked for more perfect weather the whole trip, till the end when it was roasting hot across California, Nevada and SW Oregon. One bad thing about our Idaho location is you have a full long day of riding thru faceless hot desert landscape to get to the west coast and see the ocean. But I know some, such as the Swans, have it worse, so no complaints.! We split up with the Swans in Morrow Bay, Ca. and they headed across the Southwest. We went North thru Central Ca, almost got heat stroke in Fresno, and over the Kit Carson Pass above Yosemite to Tahoe and then Reno. We have done 3 of the 4 passes there now, and will hit the 4th one next time.

Ended up with 2600 miles on the TG thru Washington, Oregon, California, and Nevada. Made good time from Reno to Winnemucca on I-80 as we had a tail wind, almost zero traffic, .... 85 to 90 all the way. From Nevada line thru Oregon on Hwy 95, you have 120 miles of posted 55 miles per hour. It is one giant speed trap. In some areas you can see the horizon 20 miles away with a road straight as an arrow with deputies hiding in various places. Maddening! But..!! We got behind a pickup with a radar detector and did 75 to 80 most of the way across there too. Still very hot though and we were glad to get home. We will not do this trip in July again.

It is a fun thing for us to head down the coast with no plan or schedule. Just stop where you feel like it as during the week as most hotels have vacancies. My BOB {Babe on Back} is an expert at using smart phone apps to get rooms ahead of time at good prices when we know we need to plan ahead.
We never get tired of seeing and smelling the ocean, wandering thru the Redwoods, following the Columbia River thru The Gorge, climbing the passes over The Sierra Nevada's, and indulging in all the fresh seafood. I have a lotta photos I will send to Swan and he can post some more if he wants. In his videos, you get a view of the Blue Tubby TG rear end for many many miles!! Thnx for hangin' with us Swans!! Have to do it again sometime!..

 

[riden2low]

Trent, Got a good story there. I had to laugh when you said you almost got heat stroke going thru Fresno. I am from that area, Kingsburg which is South of Fresno. Moved up here in the Oregon country years ago. When I plan a road trip down that way, it is always early Spring or Early Fall. As I posted to Dennis, I am sure that we passed you guys heading South down the 101 Hwy. I am in the process of getting a Tri-glide here soon. Been taking off somethings on my ultra glide before the trade in. And sort of just slowly making the move to a trike in my mind. As Dennis has posted to me that I will not regret, it just do it. LOL LOL

 

[iaff84]

I am with you on the heat leaving Morrow Bay. The first day we only got to Barstow. After that it has been allot better. July is not the best time.
Also, I ate more at each meal than I eat all day! But it is Trents way so I rolled with it!!!!!
Thanks for the great ride.
Dennis & Marilyn

 

[Trent]

Trent, Got a good story there. I had to laugh when you said you almost got heat stroke going thru Fresno. I am from that area, Kingsburg which is South of Fresno. Moved up here in the Oregon country years ago. When I plan a road trip down that way, it is always early Spring or Early Fall. As I posted to Dennis, I am sure that we passed you guys heading South down the 101 Hwy. I am in the process of getting a Tri-glide here soon. Been taking off somethings on my ultra glide before the trade in. And sort of just slowly making the move to a trike in my mind. As Dennis has posted to me that I will not regret, it just do it. LOL LOL

Dennis the Menace is correct! You will not regret going to 3 wheels. Not only is the comfort level greater for 2up touring, so is the safety level. Makes traveling much easier and not as stressful. Yeah,, that stretch of Hwy 41 from Morrow Bay, then 99 freeway from Fresno to Merced, and then Sonora was brutal man. Passed a bank temp sign that read 115 degrees. I was seriously a brain dead zombie by the time we got to Sonora. When checked in, sat in front of the AC for 30 minutes chuggin' water. Could not get enough. Lesson learned about July travel in that area!

Very sad and disgusting to see mile after mile of dried up olive orchards, vineyards, dry dusty fields, thousands of acres of dead crops, shuttered up fruit processing facilities, and millions of dead fruit trees courtesy of our all knowing federal gubmint. This is where the feds shut off all the irrigation water in the region to protect a threatened 3/4" long guppy sized minnow that we all just can't seem to live without. This smart move has turned that whole region into a giant monument of thousands of acres of fertile farm land now a wasteland, and a crashed economy with thousands of people affected. It really is a head shaker.

 

[riden2low]

Dennis the Menace is correct! You will not regret going to 3 wheels. Not only is the comfort level greater for 2up touring, so is the safety level. Makes traveling much easier and not as stressful. Yeah,, that stretch of Hwy 41 from Morrow Bay, then 99 freeway from Fresno to Merced, and then Sonora was brutal man. Passed a bank temp sign that read 115 degrees. I was seriously a brain dead zombie by the time we got to Sonora. When checked in, sat in front of the AC for 30 minutes chuggin' water. Could not get enough. Lesson learned about July travel in that area!

Very sad and disgusting to see mile after mile of dried up olive orchards, vineyards, dry dusty fields, thousands of acres of dead crops, shuttered up fruit processing facilities, and millions of dead fruit trees courtesy of our all knowing federal gubmint. This is where the feds shut off all the irrigation water in the region to protect a threatened 3/4" long guppy sized minnow that we all just can't seem to live without. This smart move has turned that whole region into a giant monument of thousands of acres of fertile farm land now a wasteland, and a crashed economy with thousands of people affected. It really is a head shaker.

Yeah, I hear ya on the water situation. I rode down the 1st of June and it was bad then but I can imagine now with the hotter weather things have really dried up down there. I have noticed the price of fruit up here has slowly been on the increase in price. It's sad situation for CA. As I write, it is 92 degrees down there in Fresno at 9:30 PM. Sure glad I am here on the Oregon Coast which 58 degrees now.

 

[iaff84]

A trip through some big trees. This was a most relaxing ride.
The scrapping you hear at times, left rear brake caliper had locked up on me. it freed up some but only had gears and front brakes for several days till repair made.


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Then some water. All was good.

<iframe width="500" height="281" src="//player.vimeo.com/video/102273672" frameBorder="0" allowfullscreen="" mozallowfullscreen="" webkitallowfullscreen=""></iframe>
Dennis

 

[Trent]

Good vids Swan! The big tree vids are of us driving thru the "Avenue Of the Giants" which is an alternate scenic route off of Hwy 101. You can sure see why it is named as such. The 2nd vid starts in the Redwoods, then fades into a twisty forearm numbing little road known as Hwy 1 in Calif. This is where you leave Hwy 101 and go west just south of the Redwoods, and then the fun begins for 32 miles to the ocean.

What you see, { and hear } on these vids is a demonstration of the Swan ridin' skills. This road is very steep { 7% to 9% grades } up and down with a lot of 10 mph hairpin turns that you share with morons pulling oversized 5th wheel RV's with under-powered pickups, and crazed logging truck drivers that drive like their logs are on fire. This is a challenging stretch of road even with brakes,,, but the Swan actually rode from Cannon Beach Oregon to South San Francisco with no rear brakes. That was the closest competent HD dealer that could work on them. He used his gears and front brakes to keep it in the wind. My BOB { Babe on Back } and I salute you Swan!!!

 

[iaff84]

<iframe width="500" height="281" src="//player.vimeo.com/video/102384708" frameBorder="0" allowfullscreen="" webkitallowfullscreen="" mozallowfullscreen=""></iframe>
Allot of mist rolling in on PCH.
Dennis

 

[Trent]

Above is a good vid of Big Sur from Carmel, CA down to Cambria, CA. It looks cold but it was not... just morning mist from the ocean.

 

[riden2low]

Trent ..... did you guys happen to stopped in Carmel at all? Maybe do a Carmel Mission tour or go to Clint Eastwood's Traven? Oh yeah, did you stop in the Redwoods and hug a tree? LOL LOL

 

[iaff84]

Trent ..... did you guys happen to stopped in Carmel at all? Maybe do a Carmel Mission tour or go to Clint Eastwood's Traven? Oh yeah, did you stop in the Redwoods and hug a tree? LOL LOL

Stopped at Mission and passed Clint's tavern. I just sped up Vid in that section. Funny, in Indiana we pronounce Carmel, Indiana like the candy.:laugh:
Dennis

 

[riden2low]

Stopped at Mission and passed Clint's tavern. I just sped up Vid in that section. Funny, in Indiana we pronounce Carmel, Indiana like the candy.:laugh:
Dennis

I assumed you did stop but if you go by your videos it looks like you and Trent are on a mission to get to you destination. LOL LOL

 

[iaff84]

I assumed you did stop but if you go by your videos it looks like you and Trent are on a mission to get to you destination. LOL LOL

I just film the road. Have never been big on the picture taking. Trent is sending some pictures to me I will post.
We saw allot of stuff along the way. There was allot we did not see but that would take a lifetime!
This Go Pro is all new to me. I have enjoyed watching others road trips. Yes, they know all this edit stuff and add photos too, I am not there. Never been big on adding music, just what sounds come through camera mic. (this trip, allot of brake noise)
Believe me, I was in the "flower sniffing" mode more than it shows and more than I have ever been on a trip.
Dennis:Angel:

 

[Trent]

Trent ..... did you guys happen to stopped in Carmel at all? Maybe do a Carmel Mission tour or go to Clint Eastwood's Traven? Oh yeah, did you stop in the Redwoods and hug a tree? LOL LOL

As Swan sez, we did stop at the mission but did not take the time to take the tour.. And we have been there before. We went past The Hogs Breath Inn, Clints place but did not stop this time... they were not open yet anyway. BOB and I have eaten there a coupla times... really good food,, but what else would you expect from Mr Eastwood huh?! A coupla trips ago we stopped at Clints ranch where they also rent cabins,, north of Carmel a few miles. Very cool place,, but way outta our price range!! And yes, we did hug a lotta Redwoods! Not a tree hugger per say, but you just cant help it,, they are just so cuddly.. and old..!

 

[iaff84]

Well I just spent a few hours giving all the bugs from out West a respectable burial here in Indiana. I am sure I missed a few but it will have to do. A dirty bike is OK in my book but this was dirty even by my standards. (Trent's just seemed to stay clean, even riding out front)
Dennis

 

[Trent]

I just washed mine last night and it was pretty bad... I think bugs do not show up as well on Cool Blue as they do the darker colors.

One funny thing though... When we left San Fran and went down to Monterey to wait for you, we went thru Half Moon Bay, which is a big agriculture area. Lotta workers out in the fields picking artichokes, lettuce, carrots, strawberries. On one section a truck had lost a large pile of strawberries on a curve. Cars were swerving around the Strawberry Jam in the road and I had a choice to either plow thru it head on or swerve to one side,, but there was just no way to miss it, so I swerved to the left and pureed some of the pile with my right rear tire. I did not really notice any red crap on the Trike later... Last night when I stuck the hose up under my right fender, you would not believe how much dried strawberry jam I washed outta there.!! It was like a 1/2 inch thick!!! I had to get a shovel to scoop it up out the gutter! Still not sure if I got it all either... may need to pull into a carwash and take a high pressure nozzle to it. That section of the road sure smelled good though....

 

[riden2low]

I was in the military at Ft. Ord there in Monterey and never ran thru berries before but did one time had to drive some spilled lettuce. Not fun to clean off of the vehicle. While I was stationed there I ran around to all of those places in that area there. I liked Salinas alot.

 

[Trent]

In my travels around the country, I always like to check out the agriculture stuff around me, having grown up farmin' and ranchin' and milkin' cows. Sometimes miss the farmin' and ranchin'... I do not miss getting up at 4am every single day to milk cows. I have never seen agriculture done as effeciantly and above the scale that they do it in California. Long growing seasons, HUGE variety of crops, the vineyards are amazing to see, cool lookin' machinery to handle it all. They are the pro's in my opinion.

 

[BinIdaho]

Great photos and write-ups.....now I can put a face to the name...Dennis!!! Wish you had hung out in Trent's "hood" so we could have met....

 

[iaff84]

Great photos and write-ups.....now I can put a face to the name...Dennis!!! Wish you had hung out in Trent's "hood" so we could have met....

We really enjoyed the "coast" part of the trip. The getting there and back, well just road time on interstates.
I just got a program for editing the vids I shot with the go pro. As we take very few photos, Trent is going to send me a disc of what he took on the trip. With new program I can add these to the vids.
Saw allot of great stuff, good ride, good scenery and good people. Great trip in our book.
Dennis