Hitting the road to the great north west (US)

[sgollapalle]

Finally got a decent internet connection to upload some pics. Here are a few.

Since Indianapolis, I went up to the Quad Cities (Moline, IL); cut across to Madison, WI; then Green Bay, WI; then up into the upper peninsula of MI. From there, i took a bit of a detour down to Minneapolis for a couple of days. Going to head back up to hwy 2 in North Dakota today and camp at devils lake.

The big cats.






Beautiful sun rise in the UP of MI along green bay


It was called Sunday lake, somewhere on county road 77 in WI



Spotted 2 monsters along the way.
One black older model, probably a 750 along HWY 2 in UP of MI somewhere about Iron Mountain this past sunday.
The second was yesterday in downtown minneapolis near the bar arrogant bastards.

If you folks are on here, we crossed paths

[duc_fan]

Very cool.    Ride on... 

[spolic]

Great call duc_fan on Hwy 14. I got that tip years ago from an old truck driver.

[KnightofNi]

I approve 

Hwy 20 through WA is a nice drive.

I have been warned about 26 through OR. One of the podunks along the way will get you for a couple over

Other than that, pick the roads that appeal to you each day and enjoy!

[krolik]

Watch out for Jacob on Mt Hood.

[duc_fan]

Is he still stationed up there?  I was at SkiBowl last weekend... didn't see his bike at the Gov't Camp fire station.

[Skybarney]

Be aware there are several large fires burning right now.  Best to avoid the smoke filled areas.  Here is a link to check fire/smoke status.

http://www.inciweb.org/

[duc_fan]

Yeah... the Government Flats fire complex outside The Dalles, OR has the whole Gorge smoked up right now.

Road visibility is fine, but the epic viewpoints aren't so great right now. 

You'll definitely wanna check the status on the Idaho wildfires.  They're pretty bad.  Most of the PacNW wildfire resources have been diverted to fight there.

[sgollapalle]

Thanks guys. I will check on the wild fire status. I am now in Plains, MT and headed towards Spokane and Seattle. Won't make it to Dalles, OR for another 3-4 days. Hope it gets better soon. May be the rain I see here is a bigger shower out West 

thinking of doing 101 down from Seattle down to Eugene, OR (I have a place to crash there) and then Crater Lake NP and out to Yellowstone NP. But I might still do a day trip out to Dalles along the Columbia river for that brew  . @duc_fan, will send you a message with my number. If you want to shoot me a text, I can message you if I make it there on a weekday.

Some more pics, since I have a good connection.

A beautiful sunset in Montana


They had horses on the roof 


After a storm passed by at the Glacier NP


Gremell Glacier, Lake and Falls






Night Sky


Sunrift Barge falls


Iceberg Lake


Going to the Sun road 


Awesome twisties - From the dash cam
Vid 1

Vid 2

Vid 3

Vid 4

[duc_fan]

Wowsers... that is beautiful country.  We have mountains out here, but not quite like that.

Yep, just post up with your route when you figure it out... If you don't make it into The Gorge, the coast run is a beautiful ride, too. 

One of these days I will take some vacation time and go on a multi-day adventure ride.  That's on my bucket list.  It may end up being local to the PacNW, but there are some cool loops one can make around Oregon, Washington, and British Columbia.

[duc_fan]

Modified route, considering the direction you would likely come from...

http://goo.gl/maps/2beyi

Starts in Portland, and gives you a sampling of some old favorites.  Historic Columbia River Highway, SR-14, a little of 197, Tygh Valley/White River Road (NF-48), then back to Highway 35, Hwy 26 to Sandy, and then you can head back to wherever in Portland.  This can easily be an all-day gig.

There's approximately 1,627,348 variations of this route.    If you want, lemme know how much time you want to spend exploring, and I can add a few excursions.  Cook-Underwood Road is a good one (there is an epic view overlooking Hood River on this road).  I also recommend Highway 142 out of Lyle (WA)... follow this up into Goldendale, then you can take 97 south to SR-14 and head west to The Dalles.  Oh hell, here's another Google Map route with these added:

http://goo.gl/maps/MpX7z

From the Dalles, you can also make a side trip to Mosier on the old highway 30... there are some excellent twisties and great views on that road, too.  Anyway... as I said, this loop can easily become an all-day gig, with many variations.  

If you stay on the coast, I highly recommend hitting up bnbmike... he owns the Craftsman Bed & Breakfast in Pacific City, OR.  Nice guy, fellow Monster rider, and knows a few hidden backroads around that area.  Here's his website (includes contact info): http://www.craftsmanbb.com/

If you have time and like airplanes, stop in at the Tillamook Air Museum in the old blimp hangar: http://www.tillamookair.com/index.html

And when riding the Oregon coast, it is almost obligatory that you stop, at least briefly, at the Tillamook Cheese Factory. 

Have fun and thanks for the pics!  

[LA]

Wow! Most excellent photographs. 

[sgollapalle]

Thanks Dan!
Thinking i'll do 26 from the coast to portland, pick up your route to hood river, then take 35 south, and hop back on I5 to eugene.

[duc_fan]

Sounds good. 

Quick FYI: the Bridge of the Gods in Cascade Locks and the Hood River Bridge are both toll bridges... $0.50 for Bridge of the Gods (last time I crossed), and $0.75 for Hood River.

[BlackdogGS]

I'm in The Dalles, if you need any assistance call me 509-969-4999.