Great trip

So, I am back now and sorry to leave the open road, but realizing I should get back to reality for a day or two, before my next adventure. Great roads were driven, good times were had and a new part of the world was seen.

cheers,

Brad

By the way I will be moving to Australia and New Zealand in November 2006 until at least January 2008.

Day 15 To Calgary

Another hang over ride, yeah! Tom and I rode to Townsend and then parted as I wanted to capture a little more scenery on a different route back. Stopped in at "Mint" a down-home burger place and had a burger and fries with gravy, good stuff.

Townsend to White Sulphur Springs had excellent twists in a valley and then turned to long sweepers in the prairies. C=7,R=7,T=1,V=8.

Road through Lewis and Clark Forest had it all. Twists along the river, sweepers and hills/mountains. C=8,R=7,T=1,V=9. No traffic through out the day.

Tried to catch up with Tom somewhere on the HWY, but got completely lost in Lethebridge after discussing it with the girl in the Milk River tourist office, easy??? I think not

Day 14 Through Yellowstone to Bozeman

Teton and Yellowstone parks are very beautiful, but of course you have to pay the price ($20 for motorcycles). We entered Yellowstone through the South gate and exited out the North gate (last year I did East to West). Saw old Faithful do it's thing. The North gate is very different and should be seen. 15 mile final stretch C=8,R=6,T=3,V=9. Hopefully the photos help.

Got into Montana and the rain started, only the second time I saw rain on the trip, sweet.
Stayed in Bozeman at the Lewis and Clark, which is considered one of the worst values for your money as it is quite dated. Everything else in town was booked as Bozeman is a touristy spot.

I headed to the bar and met a couple of traveling Americans. The amazing thing about the night was this guy Kallan who bought the entire bar a drink, twice!!! I have never seen that before, cool.

Day 13 Jackson, WY

Calm, short drive through the Palisades into Wyoming. Nice to relax on a 100 mile drive. C=7,R=7,T=4,V=8. Starting to see lots of bikes as people are coming back from Sturgis (500,000 people bike rally in South Dakota). Also, see a ton of riders without helmets.

Jackson is a cool town, much like a Banff, Alberta, but more western. We drank at the "Million Dollar Cowboy" which had actual saddles for bar stools.

Day 12 Aug 10 Idaho Falls

Great curves on the first 10 miles out of Elko. C=9,R=8,T=1,V=7. Highest temperature of the trip at 39 deg C.

Got hit in the face by a wasp when my face mask was open while driving through a small town. Fortunately it didn't sting me! Later in the day I almost hit a Quail crossing the road, while Tom was getting a speeding ticket. Check out moon crater rocks, which is the area where the they trained before going to the moon in the 60's.

Notes: Idaho maps sucks as both mine and Tom's ripped in seconds. And when the USA says construction ahead they mean construction for 10 miles, insane.

Day 11 to Elko, NV

John headed out early to go home heading East to Toronto, so we said our goodbyes. It was fun having John with us for the 10 days.
Good hang over to start into a straight riding day on the Interstate. Sweeping valleys were cool. Went for the "Voted Best Steak in Nevada", which was not very good. Elko is small, but full of gambling and they have a "Walmart Blvd"! I couldn't believe my eyes. That prison looks like a tough escape. Also, alot of towns had their initial on a border hill side as per the photo.

Day 10 Aug 8 Reno, Nevada

Most Traffic we had faced was coming out of Tahoe. It's a shame because the drive could be amazing, check out the 0 mph curve. C=8,R=5,T=9,V=8. Nice cabins and docks along the road.

Rolled into Reno at 33 deg C and got a room at Harrah's, which is one of the better Reno Hotels, but not one of the better Vegas Hotels.

Went down to the tables and lost early on "Craps", but made it back on one high stakes hand on the Black jack table. I think the bet was $150 or so. Checked out the bars, but not much happening in Reno on a Tuesday Night.

Day 9 Heading back to Canada

Crossed the Oakland Bay Bridge on the way out of town and made it to Oakdale before we stopped for lunch. As we were eating a very tasty Tri Tip sandwich I noticed that my tire had worn out. So, I sent Tom along and went to find a tire as we had a long trip planned and I would be ok to catch up to Tom and John at South Lake Tahoe. Got back on the road 3 hours later after finding the only bike mechanic working on Mondays in Modesto.

One the way to Yosemite National Park ($10 for bikes) I came across an awesome road. C=8,R=7,T=3,V=8. Also the road through the park was excellent too; C=7,R=7,T=3,V=8 as per the photos.

Long day ended in on a dark, deserted highway with curves. A bit stressful and would have been amazing in the day (HWY 89 to Tahoe off of HWY395). A couple shots here as well.