Hello, it's nice to be on-line again. I like the egroups setup. I have been
enjoying shooting
straight east from the coast through Yosemite and exploring the areas north
and south off
the 395/108. Here is a report of a trip I took late this fall.
I am roasting in my riding gear. The ride down the coast and over Heckor
Pass is always
nice, but that shot across the Central Valley is brutal. How can it be so hot
at 70 mph? And
its fall.
Pulled into the Frostee Freeze in Mariposa and ordered my burger. What's
this, an A-15
pulling in next to my bike. Guy checks-out my rig and comes over. His buddy
was on a
Harley, and there were a few cars following them. They had been in Yosemite
and were
headed home. I hadn't seen this years model with the new tank color until
now. Chowed
down and waved good bye. Gassed-up and headed into Yosemite.
Flashing my Golden Access card, I climbed out of the Valley and attained
Tioga Pass.
What a blast, effortlessly cruising along with enormous granite formations
towering
overhead. Glaciation eroded these mountains relentlessly, but they stood firm
and punch
defiantly into the cobalt-blue sky.
Though Yosemite is usually a circus, the road is noticeably empty now. Just
trees, rocks,
and water rolling by. I pull over every few minutes and shut it down just to
take it all in.
This is a long ways from the sterile environment I work in. I get back on the
road and lean
into one effortless curve after another, what a blast. It's going to take
surgery to remove
this Joker-Gas 'esque grin from my face.
The drop down towards Mono Lake/Lee Vining removes the grin, actually. Or at
least one
should concentrate. The road is great, perfect pavement with huge drawn-out
S's you can
see all the way through, but the drop-off on your right is sobering. A very,
very long ways
down. A definite no-recovery situation. But the road tempts you to go fast.
Getting groceries in Lee Vining, there are several heavily loaded R1100GS's
and a Honda
Hurricane out front. They are headed-into the Park to camp in Tuolumne
Meadows. I buy
water and a few groceries, gas-up and hustle-off because its already past 5pm
and the dirt
portion is still coming-up. I still take the time to check-out the tufa
formations at Mono
Lake. I pass the turnoff to the ghost town of Bodie, a living museum which
preserves the
former gold mining town. On an earlier trip, I rode from Bodie to Bridgeport
on a 20 mile
dirt road which kept you above 8000 or so. I saw nobody, and the views of the
Eastern
Sierras and into Nevada were huge.
Last spring, a buddy and I attempted to attain Leavitt Lake in his 2-wheel
drive Ranger.
The turnoff for the lake is just below the south/east side of Sonora pass,
off the 108, and
then it is only about 3-4 miles of dirt to the lake. You're at approximately
8500 feet to start,
and the lake is just below 10,000'. It's in the Emigrant Wilderness, where I
have been
backpacking for years. My buddy gave it a heroic try, hammering his truck up
this road
over huge puddles, ruts, loops around puddles that were too big, and
generally beating the
shit out of it. I walked ahead and stuck sticks into the puddles. But when we
came to the
first stream crossing, the ride was over. The snowmelt had made the water
high over large,
slick cobblestones and the attack on the other side was steep, rutted and
loose. We drank a
couple of beers and turned around.
I hit the dirt road just before dark, and being in a hurry to beat the sun
and make camp,
didn't hesitate at all. I should have, my tires were inflated to the max for
high-speed travel.
The first parts that had given us so much trouble were nothing on the KLR.
Additionally,
most of the water had dryed-up and it was easy to simply go around the
obstacles. Oh, but
here's that stream crossing again. "Hmm, waters way down, but that other side
is ugly
looking, in even worst shape from a summer of 4X4's."
I eased downhill towards the stream, tires getting good traction on what
looked like slippery
rocks and mud. When the front wheel entered the water, I started to give it
some gas, the
rear wheel slipped a bit, but found purchase and I bumped across. The steep
uphill started
immediately, and I gassed it hard. But despite my fullest intentions to not
let-off on the gas,
I was drifting off towards the right side, where there were bigger, ugly
rocks poking-up. I
let-off on the throttle, "Oh shit," I was immediately coming to a stop on a
steep, very loose
hillside with moving water behind me. I savagely nailed the throttle again
and steered
towards my left, the fully loaded bike started to cross-up, the rear visible
out of the corner
of my left eye and I thought I was going down for sure, and then I put
everything I had into
shoving the left handgrip forward, the tires grabbed and I roared
triumphantly over the top.
I am still getting used to traveling rougher roads on this bike with a full
complement of
camping gear on board. The rest of the ride up was the roughest I had
experienced on the
650, really feeling the travel working. Also understanding why some wish for
a lower gear
for slow, technical uphill in first gear. It was difficult to modulate
between lugging and
going too fast (for me). A more skilled rider could pound up this road easily
at higher
speeds. I could have made it way easier by lowering the tire pressures.
Possibly the
drinking water, fishing equipment, beer and rum created some questionable
weight factors.
It really wasn't that bad after that first stream crossing, there were 2
more, with one being
about 15', easy to cross, with water flying all over the place, yeah!
I pulled up to the lake a half-hour before dark, there were a few 4X4 fishing
camps
around, with a quarter mile or more between campsites. I set up camp quickly
and heated-
up dinner on my campstove. Later, in between sips of Bacardi, it hit me,
"Oh God, I forgot the coffee. Wait, I'm going to just forget that I even had
that thought."
But it kept resurfacing and there was no denying-it. I suspect there may be
those amongst
you who could appreciate the gravity of this situation. Oh sure, you brought
all the tools
you could ever need, food, yes, booze, check. Mellitta and filters, 10-4.
You're an idiot.
You get over it, but fall asleep a bit perturbed nonetheless. Final thought
before drifting-off
"there is coffee at this lake, it's just you that doesn't have any."
Clear blue morning, brilliant sun creeping-up over the mountains. Birds
chirping, how
peaceful. You forgot the coffee, hmm. Pace back and forth for awhile, walk
over to nearby
fishing camp and casually introduce yourself. After pleasant conversation it
is casually
dropped in an offhand manner that you wonder if it might be possible to
purchase a small
amount of coffee (this is terribly embarrassing at first) and lo and behold
they have plenty
of it and can fully sympathize with the situation. In fact, they took it from
their last hotel
and would be glad to share their booty. Back at camp you brew a single cup so
strong there
are sparks flying off your spine as you straighten-up and look at the day
anew. Oh yeah.
Things being as they are, you clean up the camp and grab your fishing gear.
The lake is
good sized for an alpine lake and takes about an hour to walk around. I cast
a few lazy
lines and get a few follows from some golden trout. One nibble, but no bites.
Actually, that
is the story of this season, I've never been skunked so often. Its payback
for all the ones
caught in the past. They're scared away from the shore and are in the middle,
a small
inflatable raft would be fun. The truck campers have some and are catching. I
don't mind,
its just great to be here. There is a pass one can hike up to and attain
10640'.
After spending some time lazing around the camp and checking nuts and bolts,
I pack-up
and head-out. I remember to take some air out of the tires. The difference is
night and day.
The ride down is much easier, although at the same stream crossing I start to
lock the
wheels going down towards the stream, I just let go of the brakes and when I
hit the water
gassed-it hard, it worked, and I was back at the highway in no time.
I stopped for the view at Sonora Pass, and then headed down the west side.
This road is
incredibly switchbacked, 1st gear turns and very steep grades. The rock over
here is just
scoured from eons of wind. I pull-into Kennedy Meadows and stop at the
general store.
The tourists are gone and the locals have taken-over again. Just people
sitting on patios
enjoying the peace and quiet (and a lot of beer). I purchase some food and
adult beverages
and continue down a few more miles to a more remote campground. I chose a
campsite, a
difficult task since there are 45 of them and _no one else_. I grab a
beautiful site in a
corner where two granite shelves meet and kick-it hard. Budwieser, Bacardi
and Top
Ramen, it just doesn't get any better then this ; )
In the morning I break camp and head back down the road towards the town of
Sonora.
This is a beautiful drive, with almost no one on the road. From the 108 I
take the 49 back to Mariposa and head east to the 152 for home. The ride back
is relatively dull and uneventful and I have plenty of time to think about
where I was and where I will go next. Home, shower, girlfriend, that was fun.
The next weekend, it snowed down to 5500' up there.
Charles
Santa Cruz, CA
free food nklr
-
Backroad Bandit
- Posts: 94
- Joined: Fri Oct 13, 2000 7:02 pm
nklr - trip report, sierras
--- In DSN_klr650@egroups.com, GRESKCDE@a... wrote: Great ride report Charles. I ride the same territory, see you out there. Bill Wishing it weren't winter in the Sierra. As much as I like to ski, I can't afford to ride and ski. We all know which would have to go first.
-
Russell Scott
- Posts: 1083
- Joined: Thu Apr 06, 2000 6:16 pm
nklr - trip report, sierras
Excellent prose! You must be an english or journalist major. If your
occupation does not include writing, it should.
Russel'r ----- Original Message -----
From:
To: DSN_klr650@egroups.com>
Sent: Saturday, November 18, 2000 9:47 PM
Subject: [DSN_klr650] NKLR - Trip report, Sierras
>
>
> Hello, it's nice to be on-line again. I like the egroups setup. I have
been
> enjoying shooting
> straight east from the coast through Yosemite and exploring the areas
north
> and south off
> the 395/108. Here is a report of a trip I took late this fall.
>
>
> I am roasting in my riding gear. The ride down the coast and over Heckor
> Pass is always
> nice, but that shot across the Central Valley is brutal. How can it be so
hot
> at 70 mph? And
> its fall.
>
> Pulled into the Frostee Freeze in Mariposa and ordered my burger. What's
> this, an A-15
> pulling in next to my bike. Guy checks-out my rig and comes over. His
buddy
> was on a
> Harley, and there were a few cars following them. They had been in
Yosemite
> and were
> headed home. I hadn't seen this years model with the new tank color until
> now. Chowed
> down and waved good bye. Gassed-up and headed into Yosemite.
>
> Flashing my Golden Access card, I climbed out of the Valley and attained
> Tioga Pass.
> What a blast, effortlessly cruising along with enormous granite formations
> towering
> overhead. Glaciation eroded these mountains relentlessly, but they stood
firm
> and punch
> defiantly into the cobalt-blue sky.
>
> Though Yosemite is usually a circus, the road is noticeably empty now.
Just
> trees, rocks,
> and water rolling by. I pull over every few minutes and shut it down just
to
> take it all in.
> This is a long ways from the sterile environment I work in. I get back on
the
> road and lean
> into one effortless curve after another, what a blast. It's going to take
> surgery to remove
> this Joker-Gas 'esque grin from my face.
>
> The drop down towards Mono Lake/Lee Vining removes the grin, actually. Or
at
> least one
> should concentrate. The road is great, perfect pavement with huge
drawn-out
> S's you can
> see all the way through, but the drop-off on your right is sobering. A
very,
> very long ways
> down. A definite no-recovery situation. But the road tempts you to go
fast.
>
> Getting groceries in Lee Vining, there are several heavily loaded
R1100GS's
> and a Honda
> Hurricane out front. They are headed-into the Park to camp in Tuolumne
> Meadows. I buy
> water and a few groceries, gas-up and hustle-off because its already past
5pm
> and the dirt
> portion is still coming-up. I still take the time to check-out the tufa
> formations at Mono
> Lake. I pass the turnoff to the ghost town of Bodie, a living museum which
> preserves the
> former gold mining town. On an earlier trip, I rode from Bodie to
Bridgeport
> on a 20 mile
> dirt road which kept you above 8000 or so. I saw nobody, and the views of
the
> Eastern
> Sierras and into Nevada were huge.
>
> Last spring, a buddy and I attempted to attain Leavitt Lake in his 2-wheel
> drive Ranger.
> The turnoff for the lake is just below the south/east side of Sonora pass,
> off the 108, and
> then it is only about 3-4 miles of dirt to the lake. You're at
approximately
> 8500 feet to start,
> and the lake is just below 10,000'. It's in the Emigrant Wilderness, where
I
> have been
> backpacking for years. My buddy gave it a heroic try, hammering his truck
up
> this road
> over huge puddles, ruts, loops around puddles that were too big, and
> generally beating the
> shit out of it. I walked ahead and stuck sticks into the puddles. But when
we
> came to the
> first stream crossing, the ride was over. The snowmelt had made the water
> high over large,
> slick cobblestones and the attack on the other side was steep, rutted and
> loose. We drank a
> couple of beers and turned around.
>
> I hit the dirt road just before dark, and being in a hurry to beat the sun
> and make camp,
> didn't hesitate at all. I should have, my tires were inflated to the max
for
> high-speed travel.
> The first parts that had given us so much trouble were nothing on the KLR.
> Additionally,
> most of the water had dryed-up and it was easy to simply go around the
> obstacles. Oh, but
> here's that stream crossing again. "Hmm, waters way down, but that other
side
> is ugly
> looking, in even worst shape from a summer of 4X4's."
>
> I eased downhill towards the stream, tires getting good traction on what
> looked like slippery
> rocks and mud. When the front wheel entered the water, I started to give
it
> some gas, the
> rear wheel slipped a bit, but found purchase and I bumped across. The
steep
> uphill started
> immediately, and I gassed it hard. But despite my fullest intentions to
not
> let-off on the gas,
> I was drifting off towards the right side, where there were bigger, ugly
> rocks poking-up. I
> let-off on the throttle, "Oh shit," I was immediately coming to a stop on
a
> steep, very loose
> hillside with moving water behind me. I savagely nailed the throttle again
> and steered
> towards my left, the fully loaded bike started to cross-up, the rear
visible
> out of the corner
> of my left eye and I thought I was going down for sure, and then I put
> everything I had into
> shoving the left handgrip forward, the tires grabbed and I roared
> triumphantly over the top.
>
> I am still getting used to traveling rougher roads on this bike with a
full
> complement of
> camping gear on board. The rest of the ride up was the roughest I had
> experienced on the
> 650, really feeling the travel working. Also understanding why some wish
for
> a lower gear
> for slow, technical uphill in first gear. It was difficult to modulate
> between lugging and
> going too fast (for me). A more skilled rider could pound up this road
easily
> at higher
> speeds. I could have made it way easier by lowering the tire pressures.
> Possibly the
> drinking water, fishing equipment, beer and rum created some questionable
> weight factors.
> It really wasn't that bad after that first stream crossing, there were 2
> more, with one being
> about 15', easy to cross, with water flying all over the place, yeah!
>
> I pulled up to the lake a half-hour before dark, there were a few 4X4
fishing
> camps
> around, with a quarter mile or more between campsites. I set up camp
quickly
> and heated-
> up dinner on my campstove. Later, in between sips of Bacardi, it hit me,
> "Oh God, I forgot the coffee. Wait, I'm going to just forget that I even
had
> that thought."
> But it kept resurfacing and there was no denying-it. I suspect there may
be
> those amongst
> you who could appreciate the gravity of this situation. Oh sure, you
brought
> all the tools
> you could ever need, food, yes, booze, check. Mellitta and filters, 10-4.
> You're an idiot.
> You get over it, but fall asleep a bit perturbed nonetheless. Final
thought
> before drifting-off
> "there is coffee at this lake, it's just you that doesn't have any."
>
> Clear blue morning, brilliant sun creeping-up over the mountains. Birds
> chirping, how
> peaceful. You forgot the coffee, hmm. Pace back and forth for awhile, walk
> over to nearby
> fishing camp and casually introduce yourself. After pleasant conversation
it
> is casually
> dropped in an offhand manner that you wonder if it might be possible to
> purchase a small
> amount of coffee (this is terribly embarrassing at first) and lo and
behold
> they have plenty
> of it and can fully sympathize with the situation. In fact, they took it
from
> their last hotel
> and would be glad to share their booty. Back at camp you brew a single cup
so
> strong there
> are sparks flying off your spine as you straighten-up and look at the day
> anew. Oh yeah.
>
> Things being as they are, you clean up the camp and grab your fishing
gear.
> The lake is
> good sized for an alpine lake and takes about an hour to walk around. I
cast
> a few lazy
> lines and get a few follows from some golden trout. One nibble, but no
bites.
> Actually, that
> is the story of this season, I've never been skunked so often. Its payback
> for all the ones
> caught in the past. They're scared away from the shore and are in the
middle,
> a small
> inflatable raft would be fun. The truck campers have some and are
catching. I
> don't mind,
> its just great to be here. There is a pass one can hike up to and attain
> 10640'.
>
> After spending some time lazing around the camp and checking nuts and
bolts,
> I pack-up
> and head-out. I remember to take some air out of the tires. The difference
is
> night and day.
> The ride down is much easier, although at the same stream crossing I start
to
> lock the
> wheels going down towards the stream, I just let go of the brakes and when
I
> hit the water
> gassed-it hard, it worked, and I was back at the highway in no time.
>
> I stopped for the view at Sonora Pass, and then headed down the west side.
> This road is
> incredibly switchbacked, 1st gear turns and very steep grades. The rock
over
> here is just
> scoured from eons of wind. I pull-into Kennedy Meadows and stop at the
> general store.
> The tourists are gone and the locals have taken-over again. Just people
> sitting on patios
> enjoying the peace and quiet (and a lot of beer). I purchase some food and
> adult beverages
> and continue down a few more miles to a more remote campground. I chose a
> campsite, a
> difficult task since there are 45 of them and _no one else_. I grab a
> beautiful site in a
> corner where two granite shelves meet and kick-it hard. Budwieser, Bacardi
> and Top
> Ramen, it just doesn't get any better then this ; )
>
> In the morning I break camp and head back down the road towards the town
of
> Sonora.
> This is a beautiful drive, with almost no one on the road. From the 108 I
> take the 49 back to Mariposa and head east to the 152 for home. The ride
back
> is relatively dull and uneventful and I have plenty of time to think about
> where I was and where I will go next. Home, shower, girlfriend, that was
fun.
> The next weekend, it snowed down to 5500' up there.
>
> Charles
> Santa Cruz, CA
>
>
>
>
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