#  >  > Non Asia Travel Forums >  >  > Travel the World Travellers Tales Forum >  >  Father and Son Epic US Summer Motorcycle Roadtrip 2013 on BMW K1200LT

## TonyBKK

Woohoo! Another fantastic summer with my boy!


Flew to JFK to pick him up near the end of June-


Catching up over pizza at the airport while waiting for our flight to Seattle.




A happy reunion! 


Pleasant enough flight to Seattle on Jet Blue, but we got there too early and there was no gate so we had to chill on the plane a bit longer than planned...




My good friend Dave was kind enough to drive all the way down from Bellingham to pick us up. 

We were happy to see Dave's wife Pon again as well as their Chesapeakes Mocha and Grace-


That evening, once my little guy was asleep, I went to work on our K1200LT, aka, the Land Yacht, which had been sitting mostly unridden at Dave's house since the previous fall. First task was to install the new EBC rear brake disc, as the OEM floating disc was loose on the rivets and making a terrible racket, which K-bike owners call the "cow bell" 

The new EBC disc was pretty sexy 


The old disc, pretty tattered- 






That was easy!


Next task was to service the final drive-


Uh oh- this does NOT look good... 


A little bit of metallic "fuzz" on the magnet is normal. Chunks of metal like this are not... 


Dave has an awesome workshop and had the tools I needed to split the final drive case open-


Lots of metal in the final drive...




Hmmm, this looks expensive!




Fortunately, we're not so far away from one of the biggest BMW dealers on the West Coast- Ride West BMW of Seattle...
 (not my pic)

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## bsnub

> Ride West BMW of Seattle


Minutes from my house! Looking forward to the thread.

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## david44

Great pix keep em coming

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## S Landreth

already some great pictures and I am sure story to follow

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## TonyBKK

The broken bike was going to force us to adjust our summer plans, but we couldn't have picked a nicer place to break down than Bellingham! 

What a beautiful town! I'm thinking seriously about moving there when my younger son reaches school age.

There are a bunch of parks within walking distance of Dave's house, our favorite would have to be Elizabeth Park-


Taking Mocha to Elizabeth Park became part of our daily routine while we were in Bellingham-


Elizabeth Park in Bellingham has a nice playground where Kristhawee made many friends-




I spent some time on the phone with Ride West and they told me a new Final Drive would cost $1600 and would have to be ordered from Germany, or that they could rebuild my drive for ~$1200 and that they had all the parts on hand to get the job done and they'd do their best to have the drive rebuilt before the 4th of July. Sounds good! Dave lent us his car and we drove down to Seattle to drop off the drive, then do some shopping. 

After Ride West we hit up REI to get outfitted for our summer adventure!


Kristhawee got a nice new sleeping bag-


I picked up a new camping stove and some other odds and ends, then we hit a nearby Toys R Us where Kristhawee picked out some dinosaurs- ha ha! Look at his face!

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## astasinim

Looks like the start of a great thread. Thanks Tony

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## TonyBKK

Another highlight of our stay in Bellingham was a visit to Whatcom Falls Park with Dave and Mocha-


Gray, rainy and cold, but still quite beautiful!


Kristhawee was tickled pink that the park is full of Banana Slugs 


Good fun chucking sticks into the rapids and watching Mocha launch fearlessly into the icy cold water-


So green!


Dave helping Kristhawee out onto some slippery moss-covered rocks- Yikes!


Mocha wanted to get in the picture too  :Wink: 


Bellingham always seems to start off cool, cloudy and rainy in the mornings, but as the day wears on the sun usually breaks through and warms things up nicely. Father and son at Whatcom Falls, Bellingham, WA-


In fact it warmed up to the point that Kristhawee wanted to get wet!


Good times!

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## nigelandjan

Bloody hell mate ,, your old mate Dave is a sure footed guy , I have made a complete twat of myself on more than one occasion trying to do similar crossings , just on my own ! 

Great thread again Tone , loving the pics ,, you say the waters icy cold , yet your littlun only has his shorts + flip flops on , is the air temperature warm ?

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## natalie8

Nice start to another fantastic thread. You can see the change in Kristawee since last year. Bellingham and area look gorgeous. I really miss the west coast of Canada and the US. I'm so jealous but really looking forward to seeing it through your eyes (again).  :dogrun1:

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## Satonic

^ I don't want to spoil the surprise but you'll see quite a change in Tony throught this thread too  :Wink: 

Great pics as usual mate, thanks for sharing

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## TonyBKK

As we're driving back to Dave's house we spot a familiar looking FZ1 parked in front of the Kulshan Brewery-


Sure enough, it's GT-Rider member Feejer who's stopped by for a few pints on a beautiful sunny afternoon!

We've corresponded for years via GT-Rider but this is the fist time we actually met. Thanks again for the beers mate!!! 

A new riding buddy and a fortuitous meeting as Feejer used to ride a K1200LT and also suffered a Final Drive failure and had some good advice to share.

There was a BBQ trailer in the parking lot making awesome pulled pork sandwiches so we settled in for some fantastic beers and great food!


Kristhawee seemed to like Eric's hotted up Fizzer too!

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## slackula

> The new EBC disc was pretty sexy


Clearly our dictionaries have differing definitions of what defines "sexy"!  :Very Happy: 





Just joking, all the makings of an epic travelogue thread. Please proceed!

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## beerlaodrinker

Great stuff tony, keep em coming

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## ltnt

Great story and pic.'s tony, looking forward to hitting the trail.

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## Dead Metal

Great to see you and your boy back and on the road again Tony.
 It's been like waiting for another "Lee Child's" novel.
Looking forward to a new adventure unravel,.. now where's the popcorn 'n beer...

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## t.s

lee childs novel. funny but true

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## TonyBKK

Some more pics from Bellingham- this is in the Maritime Heritage Park, also walking distance from Dave's house-






Respect to Ride West because they are crazy busy but have a policy to put out-of-town riders at the front of the queue. I got a call from them on the 26th that the Final Drive was ready, so blasted on down on Dave's VFR to pick it up. Throwing down ~$1200 for the rebuild was a bit of a bummer, but it is what it is! Got the bike put back together, made new footpeg risers and readjusted the harness for the little guy as he's grown a lot since last summer-

He's looking eager to ride!

Finally we are ready to hit the road!!!


We're going to meet my aunt and uncle and cousins in Olympic National Park!


Let's hit the road!!


Super happy that Dave is joining us, and Eric will meet us along the way too!

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## patsycat

This is going to be good!!  If it's anything like last years!!

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## TonyBKK

Gorgeous ride through Deception Pass State Park and down Whidbey Island, with the snow covered peaks of Olympic National Park beckoning in the distance-


Riding past Ault Field-


Working our way down to Fort Casey State Park where we'll catch the ferry to Port Townsend-


Cool weather, no traffic!


Perfect timing- arrived at the Coupeville Ferry terminal just in time to catch the next ferry to Port Townsend-


Bikes go to the front of the line 


Loaded and ready to sail!


Doesn't look it, but it was very cold and windy on the deck-


Popcorn for the kids  :Wink:

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## TonyBKK

Woohoo! We're on the Olympic peninsula and making good time!


When we reach the 101 we take a right to head west towards Port Angeles-


Elk crossing!


Welcome to Olympic National Park!


A quick blast up to Hurricane Ridge!


The road up to Hurricane Ridge is awesome on a bike!


We are excited to see snow!




Welcome to Hurricane Ridge!


What a view!!


Little guy want to play in the snow!


Interesting mix of bikes, eh?




Ha! You know where this is headed...


Snow ball fight!!


Hurricane Ridge is aptly named- very very windy up there! We ducked in to the Visitor Center to warm up and check things out-


Grabbed a Junior Ranger workbook for Kristhawee and then we headed back down the mountain. 




Cool road with a bunch of tunnels-




Eric, riding his DR650, decides to take us on a "short cut"  :Wink: 




Hmmm, that was fun on the heavy Land Yacht... NOT!  :Wink: 


I was happy when we got back on pavement  :Smile: 

We grabbed a quick lunch at the golden arches in Port Angeles, then pressed on!


The views along the shore of Lake Crescent are amazing!









After a long day in the saddle we finally made it to Lake Quinault! What a nice spot to camp!




Sunset-






Here's Kristhawee with "Timo", the Olympic Chipmunk that I got for him at the Visitor Center-


Here's Dave testing out his new camping hammock that I picked up for him at Cabelas. Not so easy to find a hammock for a guy his size!


Kristhawee and I were very happy to see my aunt and uncle and cousins who had driven up from San Francisco and were heading to the St Juan Islands. Fantastic dinner of locally caught salmon then we lit off some fireworks as the 4th of July was fast approaching-


Firing off "Bootle Rockets" as Kristhawee called them  :Wink: 





Sparklers are always good fun-








My cousin Rochelle showing off her slack line skills!


Dave was ready to pass out but Kristhawee decided to sneak in to his hammock and the ensuing struggle had us all rolling with laughter-


My cousin Sean showing Kristhawee how to walk a slack line- it's WAY harder than it looks!!


It was getting late and we'd had a long day, so we called it a night!

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## TonyBKK

Good morning from Lake Quinault, Olympic National Park, Washington, USA!


Kristhawee got busy picking wild Salmonberries and Huckleberries- a nice snack before breakfast!


Even our bikes are enjoying the view!




After a hearty breakfast we packed up and hit the road-


We headed back up the coast in the direction of Hoh Rainforest, making some stops along the way to check out the beautiful coastline-




Kristhawee and Marcia, or "Baby Kitty" and "Momma Kitty" as they like to call themselves  :Wink: 




Some pretty cool formations!


Kristhawee hitched a ride with Sean. It's funny; I used to carry Sean on my shoulders when he was Kristhawee's age!


Kristhawee and Sean at Ruby Beach, Olympic National Park-


A little further up the coast we head inland, following the Hoh River to the Hoh Rainforest-


So green!!




This place gets over 200 inches of rain every year and is cold and wet most of the time, but we've lucked out and hit it on a warm sunny day!




Moss everywhere!


My little guy is pretty good at catching rides- here he's brought Timo along for a ride on Rochelle's shoulders-


I have never seen mosses and lichens in such abundance and volume!


We set off down the Hall Of Mosses Trail to take in the sights-








I brought along Kristhawee's Junion Ranger workbook and we worked on it as we hiked-




Unbelievably clear water in this small stream-


Rochelle and Kristhawee spotting fish-


On the road again we headed north to the little town of Forks, once a logging town, more recently it's been made famous by those shitty Twilight movies  :Wink: 


We picked up some camping supplies there and then rode west to the Mora campground near the coast-


The campground was quite full but we lucked out and got two spots together.


Kristhawee and Rochelle really seemed to connect- too cute-


Dave and Kristhawee and always competing to see who can be more naughty  :Wink: 


Good times around the campfire-


When Dave was ready for bed he discovered that someone had already taken his hammock  :Wink: 


It took a bit of coaxing, but eventually we were able to relocate Kristhawee to my tent-


Good Night!!

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## TonyBKK

In the morning we packed up and rode the short distance from Mora to Rialto Beach-


Wow, that is a big chunk of driftwood! Imagine the size of the wave that deposited it this far up on the beach!


Kristhawee and Dave at Rialto Beach, Olympic National Park-








Heh heh, somebody's gonna get wet!!


Somebody made a little driftwood shack at the base of this huge tree-






Our destination today is Sol Duc Hotsprings! We stopped at the Hungry Bear Cafe to grab some brunch along the way-




We cross the Sol Duc River many times-


Another gorgeous day! Not a cloud in the sky!


Welcome to Sol Duc Valley


We scored a great campsite under huge trees right on the bank of the Sol Duc River-


Kristhawee was very eager to check out the hot springs!


Dave and Kristhawee at Sol Duc Hot Springs Resort, Olympic National Park!


Next to the spring fed hot tubs is a big pool and we spent a good part of the day swimming and relaxing at this beautiful spot-


Kristhawee's swimming seemed a bit rusty, but he still loves water!


Good times!


When the big pool got too cold we'd return to one of the hot poos to warm up again-


My boy loves butterflies  :Smile: 


There was a small store at the resort and Eric grabbed an ice cream for the little guy on the way out-

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## bsnub

Thread is off to a good start. Toured the 101 and Olympics many times. Truly beautiful.

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## misskit

Great to see you and Kris on another summer bike adventure.

Kris' legs sure have gotten a lot longer since last time he was on the back of that bike!

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## ltnt

Amazing!  Love looking at America the way I remember it.  Clean!  I almost get homesick viewing your pic.'s  Great adventure for the boy and you.  Something you'll both remember for years to come.

The white bike looks like an enduro or dirt bike?  What is it exactly?

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## Loy Toy

Thanks for sharing your experience with us Dave. Kris is a very lucky young lad to have a dad like you.

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## terry57

Love your thread tony, bloody ball biting stuff.  Using the same great little camera I see.

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## TonyBKK

Eric took some nice pictures which I hope he won't mind me sharing here  :Smile: 

At the Hurricane Ridge Visitor Center:


Could not have asked for a nicer spot to camp!


My beat up old REI Halfdome was to be our home for the next couple months!


All the fixings for dinner of the BBQ- fresh local salmon and burgers! 


Fun after dark-




A beautiful sunrise over mirror-still Lake Quinault-




Kristhawee and Sean-


Rochelle showing off her climbing skills-


Father and Son at Ruby Beach-

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## TonyBKK

> Amazing!  Love looking at America the way I remember it.  Clean!  I almost get homesick viewing your pic.'s  Great adventure for the boy and you.  Something you'll both remember for years to come.
> 
> The white bike looks like an enduro or dirt bike?  What is it exactly?


Yep, have to say, I'm glad my son is growing up in the US- great schools, parks, libraries, etc. I reckon when my younger boy hits school age it might be time for me to move back...

The white bike that Eric is riding is a Suzuki DR650, a big dualsport thumper. 


He's trying to figure out if it would make any sense financially to bring it over to Thailand on temporary import for a season... Damn tempting as there's nothing quite like it available here unless you want to spend upwards of 600k baht on a KTM...

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## bsnub

You guys passed by the worlds largest cedar tree so where are the pics?

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## patsycat

It's great that your friends and family can enjoy this adventure with you.

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## Dillinger

Good stuff, love the adventures

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## ltnt

> The white bike that Eric is riding is a Suzuki DR650, a big dualsport thumper.


Way nice bike, so noted and recorded for future reference...KTM dealer is nearby....Thai taxes on imports are ridiculious.  I suppose they gotta make some tax dollars somewhere since the majority of Thais pay Zilch! Zip! Nada!

Back of my mind on every purchase here...what's this cost in America now?

Thanks for the info.

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## david44

Great for adults and a super experience for the little one.
Did you stop in Sequim my ex used to live there and said it was a very nice place,though whole area looks wortha visit on next trip.

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## bsnub

^ Sequim is a very nice town with lots of retirees. It is in a rain shadow so it is sheltered from a lot of the rain that the Olympics get. Cool little town.

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## TonyBKK

Once we got back to our campsite we tried to help Dave find a tree big enough to support his hammock  :Wink: 


After trying a few different spots he eventually anchored himself to a large dead tree, which promptly fell over when he got into the hammock, almost landing him in the river below  :rofl:  You had to be there- it was damn funny!!

Kristhawee and I wandered down to the river and he got to building cairns out of stone and making a whole backstory to go with them  :Wink: 




Quality time with my boy  :Smile: 


We discovered that the rocks were full of these cool little spiders. Their abdomens blend in perfectly with the surrounding stones-




Scrambling around along the banks of the Sol Duc River- there were a lot of deer wandering around here-


You can just see the Land Yacht and Dave's hammock in the upper right-


Spotted a cool looking centipede-


Bushwhacking!


Poor Dave was trying to take a nap, but Kristhawee put an end to that plan! 


Later that evening we attended a Ranger talk about Cougars-

Pretty interesting stuff, though smart arse Dave did his best to try and piss off the ranger by asking questions like, "What do they taste like?"  :Wink: 

(You gotta understand that Dave is a hunter, and taking him to a national park where he can't shoot stuff really messes with his head!)

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## TonyBKK

> You guys passed by the worlds largest cedar tree so where are the pics?


Ya know, I heard that there was a huge tree just off Lake Quinault, (I think it's a Spruce?) but I must confess we didn't see it this time... Something for a future visit!!

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## TonyBKK

> Great for adults and a super experience for the little one.
> Did you stop in Sequim my ex used to live there and said it was a very nice place,though whole area looks wortha visit on next trip.


Sequim... yeah... we rode through it on the way to Port Angeles, but to be honest, from the 101 we couldn't see much of the town... 

We could easily have spent a couple weeks exploring the Olympic Peninsula, and in fact we could very easily have spent the entire summer just in Washington State- there is just so much to see and do there!!!

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## TonyBKK

> Originally Posted by TonyBKK
> 
> The white bike that Eric is riding is a Suzuki DR650, a big dualsport thumper.
> 
> 
> Way nice bike, so noted and recorded for future reference...KTM dealer is nearby....Thai taxes on imports are ridiculious.  I suppose they gotta make some tax dollars somewhere since the majority of Thais pay Zilch! Zip! Nada!
> 
> Back of my mind on every purchase here...what's this cost in America now?
> 
> Thanks for the info.


The Suzuki DR650 is a no frills work horse of a bike and is really really cheap! You can get one brand new for around $6400!

Very similar in price and performance to the Kawasaki KLR650, which, interestingly enough, is manufactured right here in Thailand, but not sold here  :Sad:

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## TonyBKK

Good morning from Sol Duc, Olympic National Park, Washington, USA!




After a quick brekkie Kristhawee wanted to go check on his towers before we set off on a hike to the Sol Duc Falls. A bit chilly this morning!




His cairns were still intact  :Smile: 


Don't fall in little dude!


We set off with Dave for the relatively short hike to the Sol Duc Falls-


It's a pretty easy trail through beautiful old growth forest, though muddy in spots-


Beautiful!!


Father and son on the Sol Duc Falls trail, Olympic National Park-


Almost there!


A cool old shelter that was built by the CCC way back in 1939!


Sol Duc Falls straight ahead!


Kristhawee pointing the way  :Smile: 


The Sol Duc Falls aren't terribly big, but they are incredibly beautiful!


There is a constant spray that keeps everything incredibly green-


And creates countless rainbows!


My old point and shoot camera barely does justice to this magical place-


We settled down on a perfectly placed bench to enjoy a small picnic next to the falls. Life is good!!!

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## Looper

> Later that evening we attended a Ranger talk about Cougars-


Treat with extreme caution...!!!



Another crackling travel thread with the 'not so wee anymore' fella!

*Onya T!!!*

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## TonyBKK

After we got back from Sol Duc Falls Kristhawee wanted to hit the pool and hot springs again; who am I to argue with such a good plan?  :Wink: 




Then it was time to hit the road and head on back to Bellingham. Bye bye Sol Duc!


Amazing views and a fantastic road around the south shore of Crescent Lake-






We stopped at the Olympic National Park Visitor Center near Port Angeles so that Kristhawee could earn his Junior Ranger Badge-


Congratulations Kristhawee! I'm very proud of you!


National Park Visitor Centers are always a lot of fun to explore-




Just managed to squeeze on to an early evening ferry back to Whidbey Island-


Eric and Kristhawee on the Kennewick Ferry-




Popcorn for the kids again  :Wink: 


Zoomin north-


Riding down had been cool and overcast, but today was sunny and warm. Passing Ault Field again-


Dave lookin tough  :Wink: 


Crossing Deception Pass again which returns us to the mainland-

And so ends our visit to Olympic National Park! Hope you enjoyed it; we're just getting started!!!

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## Aberlour

Another real treat Tony. It's already one of the most interesting and enjoyable threads for ages and you've only just got going. Cheers mate.

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## ossierob

Well done Tony I thoroughly enjoyed reading your post. A great family story

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## ltnt

> The Suzuki DR650 is a no frills work horse of a bike and is really really cheap! You can get one brand new for around $6400!  Very similar in price and performance to the Kawasaki KLR650, which, interestingly enough, is manufactured right here in Thailand, but not sold here


That's not fair.  You dangle the eye candy and then dump on me with "Solly, but you cannot buy in Thailand."  Thanks, but ....

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## bsnub

Tony no pics off the side of Deception pass? Its a hell of viewpoint!

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## Satonic

^^ If you don't mind paying over 500,000b Red Baron BKK imports them and has them for sale -

RED BARON BANGKOK : PRODUCT : 2013 KLR650

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## TonyBKK

> Tony no pics off the side of Deception pass? Its a hell of viewpoint!


You aren't kidding!! Wish we'd had time to stop and take it in as it's an amazing spot, but I only got a couple half-arsed pics as we rode across-

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## TonyBKK

> ^^ If you don't mind paying over 500,000b Red Baron BKK imports them and has them for sale -
> 
> RED BARON BANGKOK : PRODUCT : 2013 KLR650


Absolutely obscene price for a KLR650 tho. The whole appeal of these bikes is that they are ancient technology, pretty much unbreakable and dirt cheap. 

In the US they go for around $6500 new (~208,000 baht at today's exchange rate) and I was so very tempted to grab this barely ridden low mileage KLR650 that they had for sale at Ride West for the paltry sum of just $4490!! (Just ~143k baht!)


I like Red Baron but they are totally taking the piss asking for half a million baht for a KLR650...

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## bsnub

^^

Here are a couple pics I took off the side of Deception. For context of course.  :Smile:

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## TonyBKK

> ^^
> 
> Here are a couple pics I took off the side of Deception. For context of course.


Yep! Simple breathtaking, but we really didn't have time to stop. I'm confident we'll revisit Whidbey Island again in the not too distant future!

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## terry57

The great thing about the States is the never ending scenery, simply stunning.

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## TonyBKK

Good morning from Bellingham, Washington!!

Haha! Kristhawee slept with his new Junior Ranger badge and Timo the Olympic chipmunk 

Life is good! Until, fingers crossed, I drop the drain plug from the K1200LT Final Drive... 

Once again it's full of metal!!!?! 

FUKC ME!!!!  

The bike had performed flawlessly over the weekend and I thought the Final Drive had been sorted... This is really starting to get on my nerves! 

Quick call to Ride West then I tear the Final Drive off the Land Yacht and cruise on down to Seattle on Dave's VFR again...


The Ride West service manager is sincerely apologetic and promises that he'll get the drive sorted asap. But today is July 2nd so I don't have much expectation of anything getting done before the 4th of July holiday, but, it is what it is...

I need to cool off a bit (and I'm beginning to think perhaps it's time to get rid of the Land Yacht) so I take some time to admire the selection of second hand bikes that Ride West has out on the pavement-

I've always found the F800GT an intruiging bike. Sporty but with a belt drive. Interesting-


This Ducati StreetfighterS is pure sex on wheels-


And considering all the upgrades and low mileage the pricetag seems pretty reasonable-


And, as mentioned before, this dirt cheap low mileage KLR650 really caught my eye-


I rode back to Bellingham, stopping along the way to pick up some fork seals for Dave's VFR as one of the forks was leaking-


Our poor Land Yacht isn't going to go far in this state  :Sad: 


Can't thank Dave and Pon enough for their wonderful hospitality- we ended up staying with them a lot longer than expected and I can't think of a nicer place to get stranded 

Kristhawee took all in stride- he loves Dave and Pon, the dogs and Bellingham and probably wouldn't have minded spending the entire summer there  :Smile: 






I'd tried to teach him to tie his shoes last summer when he was five, but he couldn't quite get it. It looks like he might get it this summer!

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## TonyBKK

I wasn't expecting to hear back from Ride West until after the 4th of July holiday so imagine my surprise when my phone rings on July 3rd and Ben, the Service Manager tells me that they split the drive, inspected it, and can't find any damaged parts... 

I can tell he's embarrassed when he goes on to explain that perhaps the technician who rebuilt the drive had failed to clean all the old metal out of it before he put it back together... 

Grrr! How is that possible I wonder out loud. One would have thought that a shop that charges over $100/hour for labor would have mechanics who would not make such mistakes. What a phenomenal waste of time for both me and Ride West. I can tell Ben is pissed too. His mechanic's sloppy work has cost them a lot of billable hours.

Ok, deep breath and relax.... Get suited up and blast on down to Seattle AGAIN. It's about 90 miles from Dave's house to Ride West, so I've already racked up a lot of miles and wasted a lot of time and fuel going back and forth...

Pick up the Final Drive and explain to Ben again that I'm riding with my 6 year old son on the back and that we're headed all the way to Minnesota. I need to know, no bull$hit, if the bike is going to make it. I do not want to risk a breakdown in the middle of nowhere with my 6 year old on the back.

Ben does his best to assure me that the drive is solid and will not fail. I sure hope he's right!!!

A plan is hatched to get out for a 4th of July blast with Dave and Eric to see if the drive holds together and spits out any more metal. Thinking that the bike would be out of commission for some time I'd stripped it down a bit to do some other maintenance- it's a strange looking beastie once the "tupperware" is taken off!  :Wink: 


So, I stayed up late on the 3rd putting the bike back together and come Thursday it was again ready to roll!

Happy Independence Day!


Perfect day for a ride! Beautiful weather, not much traffic and no cops (thank goodness!)

He we are on the Diablo Dam in North Cascades National Park-


Kristhawee wanted to spend the day with Pon and her daughter so I was able to wring the K1200LT's neck a bit. I'm not used to riding the Land Yacht solo and unloaded. It's pretty darn quick when you get the revs up!




A bit further east we pulled off at a viewpoint to take it all in. Wow!


We continued on to the funky little western town of Winthrop where we enjoyed a fantastic meal at Three Fingered Jacks before blasting back over the Cascades. 

Eric let me take his Fizzer for a bit- wow, what a bike! I saw triple digits on the speedo a few times and am thankful that we didn't cross paths with any law enforcement officers

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## Marmite the Dog

> am thankful that we didn't cross paths with any law enforcement officers


Are they like the police?

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## TonyBKK

4th of July in Bellingham was nuts! There are signs all over town saying  No Fireworks Allowed, but it became evident even before the sun went  down that no one follows the rules and everyone was in the mood to blow  stuff up! 

Add to that the fact that pot is legal in  Washington now and it was hard to tell is all the smoke was from  gunpowder or ganga. And what a trip to be able to walk down the street  past the coppers with a joint in your hand!

Pon stayed home to avoid the mayhem while Dave, Kristhawee and I wandered down to Heritage  Park to enjoy the fireworks over Bellingham Bay. It was a fun 4th of  July! Happy Independence Day!

I had dropped the oil out of the  final drive earlier and it came out nice and clear, so it seems Ride  West had finally sorted the Final Drive. Yippee! 

It was finally time for us to hit the road! Thanks again Dave and Pon! You guys are awesome!!! 




We're headed to North Cascades National Park! Gorgeous day for a ride!


Through  the oddly named town of Concrete and then the little village of  Marblemount, Highway 20 follows the Skagit River up into the Cascades-


Welcome to North Cascades National Park!


We  pulled off at the Newhalem Campground and found ourselves a really  fantastic walk-in campsite deep in the woods and within earshot of the  Skagit River-




Set  up camp and then we set off for a short hike on the River Loop Trail  which would take us to the Visitor Center where Kristhawee could pick up  a Junior Ranger workbook-


Always feels good to stretch our legs after sitting on the bike  :Smile: 


A very nice trail through thick forest and moss-covered hills-


There would be a ranger talk later in the evening. Tonight's topic was about Wolves!


Fantastic Visitor Center at Newhalem!


Books, toys, puppets, arts and crafts supplies- a kids paradise!


If  you've followed our previous adventures you'll know that my kid loves  Banana Slugs. So imagine his joy when he found one he could "ride"  :Wink: 


We both learned a lot about North Cascades National Park during our time exploring the Visitor Center-


It was getting late and we needed to head back to camp and cook up some dinner before the Ranger talk-


Discovered a "drinking fountain" that could easily have doubled as a shower  :Wink: 


Dinner is served!  :Wink:  Yeah, Spagettios with meatballs, I know, pretty terrible, but he simply adores this stuff!


S'mores for dessert! 


Kristhawee is still a pyromaniac  Like father, like son! 


We  hiked up to the Amphitheater to catch the Ranger program and I must say  I was very impressed! The Ranger was a hottie, and while I would have  expected her to be 110% pro-wolf, she actually did a really good job of  presenting both sides of the debate. At the end, when I asked Kristhawee  if he thought wolves are good or bad he surprised me by answering  "Both!" Wow, my kid gets it!!

It was pretty late and time for  bed. Last year we read Rudyard Kiplings "Jungle Book" and Kristhawee  loved it. This year I brought some other classics- Call of the Wild and  White Fang by Jack London. Wow, I forgot how brutal Call of the Wild  is... But Kristhawee is pretty mature for his age and quite enjoyed it,  though as usual, he passes out after a few pages  :Wink: 


Sweet dreams my little prince! We have a full day planned for tomorrow!!

----------


## TonyBKK

North Cascades National Park has tons of great hiking trails. I'd asked at the Visitor Center the day before for some recommendations for a good hike for a 6 year old and one of the suggestions was the 3.8 mile (7.6 miles round trip) hike from Diablo Dam to Ross Dam-



A short ride with lots of vertical brought us to the Diablo Dam-


Bright sunny day! Not a cloud in the sky!


Diablo Lake Trailhead! Let's go!

Kristhawee's got his bear bell and no, that's not a bottle of Crown Royale around his neck, it's a Crown Royale "sleeping bag" for his pet Chipmunk "Timo"  :Wink: 

Fantastic trail with lots of shade through dense forest-


We cross ice cold crystal clear streams-


Find a nice spot for a break and a snack-


There are some challenging bits, like picking our way through this massive rock slide-


The higher we go the better the views!


Little guy is motoring along, but getting tired; there's a fair bit of vertical on this hike and it's quite warm in the bright sun-


Take a break little guy, we've got all day  :Smile: 


Onwards!


Watch your step, it's a LONG way down to the bottom of the gorge!


A bit further and we catch our first glimpse of Ross Dam with Ross Lake behind it-

----------


## TonyBKK

We've almost reached the end of the Diablo Lake Trail-


Ross Dam is an impressive structure!


Interesting footnote- Seattle gets close to 20% of it's electricity from these hydro dams and that's the primary reason why Boeing first set up shop in Seattle- cheap electricity!

Father and Son near on the Diablo Lake Trail, North Cascades National Park-


We hiked down to the base of the dam where there's a pretty cool suspension bridge-




With a bit of effort we managed to swing the bridge (probably a bit naughty, but there was no one about)


Boat dock at the base of the Ross Dam-




This looked like the perfect spot for a picnic  :Wink: 




There had been a big landslide that blocked the Ross Dam access road and trail and they were in the process of cleaning it up-


Kristhawee filled his hat with pinecones, then started chucking them at me! :mrgreen:


It was getting late and it was about 4 miles back to the bike, so we headed back-


This year I brought my MSR water filter and we ended up using it a lot. Much easier than carrying a lot of water, we'd simply refill our hydration packs as needed and there was never any difficulty finding water-

----------


## TonyBKK

On the way back to our campground we stopped at the historic Seattle  City Light company town of Newhalem to grab an ice cream and take in the  sights-


Kristhawee really dug this old steam engine, which, prior to the construction of Highway 20, was the only way to reach Newhalem!




Kristhawee  had a huge ice cream cone, then had me spin him on the merry go round  in the town park. Probably not such a good idea!



Yeah, you guessed it, that was a waste of ice cream! 


Haha! Poor kid! We chilled at Newhalem for a while until he was feeling better. Early evening and everyone else had already left-


Back at camp Kristhawee was still feeling a bit green and went down for a nap-

I built a fire and enjoyed the quiet relaxing silence of the forest and a six pack of Scuttlebutt Porter

----------


## TonyBKK

The following morning we rolled over to the General Store in New Halem and grabbed breakfast at their deli-


Then we went back to the Visitor Center so that Kristhawee could complete his Junior Ranger workbook-




Another ride on the Banana slug  :Wink: 


And here's Kristhawee being sworn in as a North Cascades National Park Junior Ranger!


A shiny new badge! Good job Kristhawee! I'm very proud of you!

----------


## misskit

Kristhawee looks serious about that swearing in ceremony!

----------


## TonyBKK

Today we would ride east over the Cascades to the funky little western-themed town of Winthrop. Here's the Gorge Dam, the lowest of the three hydroelectric dams that make up the Skagit River Hydroelectric Project-


A bit further on we pulled off at the Diablo Lake overlook to take in the amazing views-




Starting to look like rain...


I'd heard that Rainy Lake was a nice easy hike and very beautiful so we stopped just past the highest point of Highway 20 to stretch our legs with a short hike.

It's quite chilly up here at ~4900 feet


Beautiful trail to Rainy Lake-


Rainy Lake!


Stunning!




Father and Son at Rainy Lake, North Cascades National Park, Washington, USA


I ask Kristhawee if he wants to go for a swim  :Wink: 




It started to rain so we hustled back to the bike. Fortunately our riding jackets are waterproof, so the rain didn't really bother us.


Rain pants on, let's go get some lunch in Winthrop!

----------


## Looper

Scenery is just epic!

What a great experience to share with your lad.

 :goldcup:

----------


## ltnt

I take it 'Trout fishing is out?"  All those lakes and not one fishing pole?  License and fee's for non-residents to costly no doubt?

Still nothing like cooking freshly caught trout over an open fire under the pines when its raining.  Salt, pepper, garlic and butter wrapped in tin foil...ummmm Good!

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## TonyBKK

> I take it 'Trout fishing is out?"  All those lakes and not one fishing pole?  License and fee's for non-residents to costly no doubt?
> 
> Still nothing like cooking freshly caught trout over an open fire under the pines when its raining.  Salt, pepper, garlic and butter wrapped in tin foil...ummmm Good!


Hold your horses, we're only a few days in to our summer adventure! Plenty of fishing to come, though I have to tell you, those damn trout are great to eat but tough to catch!!

----------


## TonyBKK

We arrived in Wintrop in the late afternoon and enjoyed walking around this quirky little western themed town-


In front of Sheri's Sweet Shop-


Sheri's Sweet Shop had a big bucket of sidewalk chalk out front and Kristhawee went to work!


Kristhawee loves to paint and draw- he'd have been happy to spend several hours here!


We had dinner at Three Fingered Jacks, Washington's oldest Saloon!

(^ not my pic)

Kristhawee was HUNGRY! 


Kristhawee made some more sidewalk art after dinner-


Looked  like we'd get some more rain so I had Kristhawee put his rain pants  back on. Why sit on a bring old chair when you can sit on a saddle!


Little guy talked me into buying him some cotton candy for dessert-


I made him promise he would not spin!!! 


Rain  was on and off, looked like it might stay dry for a bit and I wanted to  get to the nearby Pearrygin State Park and set up camp before dark.

----------


## ltnt

> Plenty of fishing to come, though I have to tell you, those damn trout are great to eat but tough to catch!!


Ahhh!  Holding out?  Must be Russian Browns...sneaky little turds, but great fight and great eating as well.

----------


## Marmite the Dog

Epic ride, I'd love to do similar with my lad, but is it really that difficult to get proper food there or do they only serve deep-fried stodge & sugar over there?

----------


## beerlaodrinker

Really enjoying the thread tony, your little bloke is having an experience he will remember for the rest of his life, hope im in a position to do something similar with my kids in the future , By the way how do you find the cost of things in the states these days ? fuel, food, beer etc

----------


## TonyBKK

As soon as we left Winthrop it started to rain again and out popped one of the most vivid rainbows that I've ever seen!


It was so big that there was no way I could get it all in one picture. Simply amazing!

Pearrygin Lake is on the other side of that hill, pretty much right where that rainbow ends!

Pearrygin Lake State Park was very pleasant, though a bit damp from all the recent rain. 


A gorgeous sunset, but more clouds loomed on the horizon. 


We got the tent set up just in time before the next storm rolled through! We read some more of Jack London's Call of the Wild and Kristhawee fell asleep while I stayed up as the rain bucketed down and the lightening and thunder flashed and echoed across the hills and lake. 


My old tent was leaking in a few spots but we stayed mostly dry.

----------


## TonyBKK

Good morning from Pearrygin Lake State Park, Washington, USA!


Kristhawee has befriended some really nice kids the evening before and was eager to hang out with them again. Harrison was my son's age and he had a collection of Ninjago books and it was fun and heart warming watching these six year olds reading together. Kristhawee had told me on a couple occasions that he can't read yet, but as you see, it just takes an interesting book to give him the motivation. 


And here's Kristhawee showing off his shoe lace tying skills to Harrison 


He's got it figured out! I'm very proud of him!


I'd seen the evening before that Sheri's Sweet Shop in Winthrop bakes fresh Cinnamon rolls every morning and that sounded like just the thing for breakfast so we jumped on the Land Yacht for a short ride back in to town- Father and Son in Winthrop, Washington!


The cinnamon rolls were just out of the oven and oh so good!


Check out what I found in front of Sheri's Sweet Shop? Chiang Mai, only 7208 miles away!


Kristhawee wanted to play with the sidewalk chalk again. Go for it!


It was getting warm so we headed back to Pearrygin Lake to cool off!


Come on in, the water's fine!


Kristhawee had a great time playing with all the kids and their parents were super nice and invited us to join them for a BBQ lunch that really hit the spot!

Harrison and Kristhawee looking pensive after lunch-


Back in the water!


It can't be summer without dandelions! Make a wish and blow!


Kristhawee didn't want to go, but finally I had to drag him away from his new friends and get him ready for our short ride to the quirky Bavarian-themed town of Leavenworth a couple hours to the south-


Time to hit the road!

----------


## S Landreth

I do miss these. And if they were served that large I would cut it in half and toss the bottom half.  :Smile: 




> The cinnamon rolls were just out of the oven and oh so good!

----------


## Dead Metal

it's been 5 days now. I'm going "cold turkey". Read it all again though. I don't know you from adam, but, one thing i do know, your one hell of a great father...

----------


## natalie8

Any more pics, Tony?  :Smile:

----------


## Retro

Looks like a great trip. Reminds me of that book *Zen and the Art of Motorcycle Maintenance. *

----------


## TonyBKK

Sorry for disappearing on y'all! I just got back from Malaysia where I was assisting some Around-the-World riders with relocating some bikes to Thailand. It took a lot longer than expected!!








I'll bang out a ride report for the KL-BKK journey soon!

----------


## TonyBKK

We enjoyed a pleasant afternoon ride south to Leavenworth, following the eastern edge of the Cascade mountain range-


Another beautiful day!




Hang a right onto 97 south-




Very little traffic and great views!





The highway follows the Columbia River-


Approaching one of the many Columbia River hydro dams-

----------


## TonyBKK

Approaching the Azwell Dam-


Wells Dam-


Approaching Lake Chelan-




Lake Chelan is a huge reservoir with the Cascades reflecting off the water, but the sun was getting low making it hard to get a decent pic of the lake-




South of Chelan we continue to follow the Columbia River-


Yet another hydro dam! The Columbia River must generate a heck of a lot of juice!


We reached Leavenworth shortly before sunset and found a really nice tent site in a KOA. I needed to do laundry and Kristhawee loves the KOA's for their pools, hot tubs, play grounds and kids to play with. He collected pinecones while I set up camp-


A very nice KOA- we had a nice tent spot under big trees near the very bottom of this pic:

----------


## TonyBKK

We rode in to town and picked up some food and firewood, enjoyed a quick dinner at our camp site, then hiked down to the river where they were showing a kids movie, "Escape from Planet Earth" on a big screen outside.


Sleeping bag, camping mattress and beer! 


It was a cute movie and I'm glad we had the sleeping bag, because once the sun was down the temperature dropped fast! We enjoyed the bright stars as we hiked back to our tent and fell quickly asleep. Good night!

----------


## TonyBKK

Good morning from Leavenworth, Washington!


We rode in to the quirky Bavarian-themed town of Leavenworth for breakfast-


Every building in town is done up in "Bavarian" trim, from gas stations, to banks to hotels and even the McDonalds! I guess it must be a town ordinance? Looks kinda weird on a hot summer day but I image it might be kinda cute in the winter when the town is blanketed in snow.


I was looking for the Wells Fargo Bank- it didn't look like any Wells Fargo I've ever seen!


We headed up into the Wenatchee Wilderness via Icicle Road-


The Icicle Road was a fun ride- a bit rough in spots and it gets smaller and smaller the further you go-


Nice views! 




Eventually Icicle Road dwindles down to a steep dirt track-


Crossing Icicle Creek 


This loose dirt road wasn't much fun on the heavy Land Yacht, but we made it to the Eightmile trailhead in one piece! 


Almost there!


Welcome to the Eightmile Lake Trail! Let's go hiking!!

----------


## TonyBKK

The trail to Eightmile Lake started out quite steep and we made slow but steady progress, stopping a lot to "smell the roses" as it were  :Wink: 


These mountains experienced some big forest fires a few years back so there are large open areas full of wildflowers where young trees are beginning to grow back-


A warm sunny day!






In certain areas the plants are threatening to overrun the trail-


Lots and lots of wildflowers!




As we climb we reach groves of forest that survived the fires (though it's apparent this area was logged once upon a time)-


It's nice to have some shade! 


We crossed lots of small alpine creeks and rivulets. Kristhawee is checking out some tadpoles and water bugs-


More wildflowers


Lots of vertical on this hike! Working our way up some steep switchbacks-


C'mon Kristhawee! You can make it!!


Entering the Alpine Lakes Wilderness in the Okanogan - Wenatchee National Forests!


New life springs from the ashes of the burnt forest-


Beautiful rugged country- our destination is Eightmile Lake, a large alpine lake nested high in the mountains-


Up and up we climb!






We catch our first glimpse of "Little Eightmile Lake"!


Little Eightmile- a beautiful spot to take a rest and enjoy a small picnic-

----------


## TonyBKK

Kristhawee spots trout in the water and chides me for not having brought along fishing gear...


Gorgeous spot, but we still have a little ways to go to reach Eightmile Lake.




Up we go, leaving Little Eightmile Lake behind-


As we climb I realize that "little" Eightmile isn't really so little-


Kristhawee is getting tired and giving me a "look" 

I promise it's not much farther Kristhawee! And it will be worth it!!

Unconvinced perhaps, Kristhawee presses on-


The steep trail follows Eightmile Creek- we can't be far now!

I'm still getting "the look"  :Wink: 





We made it!!! Eightmile Lake dead ahead!


What a gorgeous spot! We went for a quick swim in the icy cold water- shocking cold!! Kristhawee talked me into jumping off a big rock-

The funny little dude- I told that if I jumped he had to jump too, and he replied, "But dad, I'm just a little kid!!" 

(Photos by Kristhawee)


Splat! Man that water was COLD!!! 


What did I tell you Kristhawee- worth the hike, wasn't it? 


Can't remember what we were talking about, but love the look he's giving me-


Kristhawee at Eightmile Lake, Alpine Wilderness, Washington, USA!


We hiked along the shore a ways and discovered some really nice camping spots... We should come back here some day and spend a night or two!




We had a lot of food and I didn't particularly feel like carrying it all back down the mountain, so we stopped for another picnic  :Smile: 




Father and Son at Eightmile Lake, Alpine Wilderness, Washington, USA!

----------


## ltnt

No fishing tackle!  You're fired!

----------


## TonyBKK

A gorgeous spot but it's time to head back down the trail-


Wildflowers and a funky beetle-




More wildflowers-


We make much better time going down than we did coming up, though the little guy is tired and does lag a bit-


Cool bridge- don't fall in Kristhawee!




We made it!! 


Riding back down Icicle Road to Leavenworth in the late afternoon sun-




What a cute and quirky town. Are we in Canada?  :Wink:

----------


## bsnub

Great pics! I know that hike well. I have spent many summer days and nights up in the Alpine lakes. A true piece of paradise.

----------


## dexlowe

Good lord! What a thread. Has me as spellbound as the "farm photos" thread on that other board. My respects, Tony, to you and your adorable son. I did a similar 5-week tour (in a van, though) with my daughter of my country (famed for its beauty), but it was spoiled by relatives who wanted to meet my lass, forcing me to set an exhausting agenda. And then I lost my camera when I got back to Bkk (with half of the pix). So I'm delighted to follow your adventure. The northwest of America has always fascinted me - sparked, strangly enough by stories about the Trident subs in Puget Sound. Plus one of my protegees is the son of Prof Keyes, the famed anthropologist, of the Uni of Washington. 

Will go there one day, thanks to you. I'll have to practise driving on the wrong side of the road, though.

You and your son - go well.

----------


## terry57

^

Yes brilliant thread that show cases the stunning scenery of the States.

I love to do a road trip there but unfortunately cant get my head around driving on the wrong side of the road.

Nearly had a head on with a bus in Hawaii , that was me done.

----------


## TonyBKK

We spent another night at the Leavenworth KOA and Kristhawee made full use of the facilities  :Wink: 



Sure, he's 18,,, almost!  :Wink: 


Tons of kids at this KOA and Kristhawee really enjoyed himself.


Finally time to hit the road! Another beautiful day for a ride!!

----------


## patsycat

The thing about your threads, which are wonderful, is the fact that i forget that Kristhawee is only six.  What an adventure.  My dad would never have taken me on a 20 mile hike when i was six.  I would have crumpled in a tantrum after a mile and he would have had to carry me screaming.

----------


## TonyBKK

We left Leavenworth in the early afternoon and are headed to Walla Walla on the Oregon border, but I know we can't make it before dark, so our destination today is the Gingko Petrified Forest State Park and Wanapum National Recreation Area. We ride south on the 97 towards Ellensburg-


The 97 is a fantastic road as it winds through the mountains in the Wenatchee National Forest-




What a gorgeous day!


I generally prefer to avoid the Interstates but we need to make some time if we're going to reach the Wanapum National Recreation Area before dark-


Riding east on I-90 through wind farms with the sun at our back-


16 miles to Ellensburg


We stopped in Ellensburg for food and fuel and then hit the road again for the final push to the Columbia River.

More windfarms!


Cruisin 


The windmills are quite beautiful in the setting sun-




We're almost at our destination- descending down into the Columbia River Valley-




We made it to the Wanapum National Recreation Area campground just as the sun was setting. It was very very windy and the Ranger kindly directed us to a site that had a grove of trees that gave us some shelter from the gale. We snuggled up in the tent and read a few pages from the Call of the Wild before calling it a night (-_-)Zzzz

----------


## TonyBKK

Good morning from the Wanapum National Recreation Area on the Columbia River, Washington, USA!


I was thankful that the wind died down and it was a beautiful morning!

We decided to explore the area a bit. Watch out for snakes!! 


Some posters let us know what kind of critters we might find here-
 

We hiked down to the Columbia River- it's very wide and more like a lake at this point on account of the Wanapum dam that's just downriver.


Kristhawee had fun collecting shells on the beach but wasn't in the mood to swim-


We had the place all to ourselves!


There's the I-90 bridge that will take us across the Columbia River on our way to Walla Walla-


Kristhawee is eager to get to Walla Walla and see his little friend Perrin from last summer so I load up the bike and take a farewell shot-


Kristhawee is fond of quoting his favorite Autobot, Optimus Prime- "Let's roll!"  :Wink:

----------


## TonyBKK

We don't have far to go today, but it is getting very hot!


Riding towards the I-90 bridge that will take us across the mighty Columbia River-


We'll only travel a few miles on the Interstate today-


East on I-90, another gorgeous day!  :Very Happy: 


We'll exit off the I-90 and follow the east bank of the Columbia River towards Mattawa-




Highway 26 to Mattawa-


Approaching the Wannapum Hydro Dam-


I'd quite like to check this out but Kristhawee wants us to go straight to Walla Walla- he's really excited to see his buddy Perrin 


I content myself with a drive by of the Wannapum Dam-


Beautiful expansive views as we continue riding south and east- looks more like the Southwest than Washington, doesn't it?


A cool old railroad bridge crosses the Columbia River south of the Wanapum Dam-




Bikers love signs like these! 


36 more miles from Othello, but we won't go that way  :Smile: 


Once we climb up and out of the Columbia River Valley the roads become straight and the views immense-


On approach to Walla Walla, Washington! The town so nice they names it twice  :Wink:

----------


## natalie8

> I'll have to practise driving on the wrong side of the road, though.





> I love to do a road trip there but unfortunately cant get my head around driving on the wrong side of the road.


You mean the right side!  :Smile:  So neither of you have ever been to a country where people drive on the right?  :Confused:  You'd be surprised at how quickly you adjust. Before moving to Thailand, I had been to Singapore, Brunei and Indonesia, where they all drive on the left. It takes a bit of getting used to, but once you are, you're all good.

I never drove in BKK but I did drive in Phuket when I lived there for a year. Again, once you're in the flow, you don't even notice it anymore. The tricky part is when you go back to North America, or here in The Gulf, and you have to switch your brain back to right-side driving. I'm proud to say that I can do both.  :Smile:

----------


## TonyBKK

We arrived in Walla Walla in the early afternoon. Perrin was still at pre-school. It was a hot afternoon and Kristhawee was keen to blow up Perrin's kiddy pool and cool off. 


It took a while to inflate but Kristhawee stuck with it!


Don't worry Kristhawee, I won't post any embarrassing pictures of you  :Wink: 


The water was shockingly cold!!


What's that Kristhawee? You want me to splash you some more?  :Wink: 




Don't feel too sorry for him- he gives as good as he gets! 


But finally the water was just too cold for him  :Wink: 


Let's get you warmed up and go pick up Perrin from pre-school-


My goofy kid scammed a ride in Perrin's stroller  :Wink: 


Fortunately Perrin didn't seem to mind  :Wink: 


Good times!




Bath time  :Smile: 


Story time  :Smile: 


Good night!!! (-_-)Zzzzz

----------


## TonyBKK

Good morning from Walla Walla, Washington!


Kristhawee and Perrin are Ready To Roll!  :Wink: 


We've been invited to a big picnic / party put on by Erin's workplace. Let's go!

Kristhawee and Perrin picking dandelions  :Smile: 


There were some guys who made air powered rockets out of old soda bottles. These were a hit with kids and adults alike!


I only had my Sony Experia for pics on this day and I was messing around with the exposure settings so I apologize for the poor quality of some of these pics...


When the pressure reaches a certain point, it's time to launch!




Perrin is up next- such a cute kid!


Kristhawee comes back for another launch-


Pull! We have lift off!


These rockets travel quite far, powered only by air and water!


Good job Kristhawee!


Perrin's mom also had a go-




Next it was time to check out the water slide!


It was a warm day but the water was freezing. They probably should have put the slide in the sun...






Kristhawee played on that slide until his lips were blue! Next it was time to take a swing at the wiffle ball! 


Go Perrin!




Kristhawee's turn- batter up!


A solid hit, but I should probably tell him to keep his eyes open!




Soccer next-


Then it was time to meet Sparkle the Clown 


She was quite a character and held the kids' attention- I thought she was a bit freaky 



I swear she couldn't have been more than 4 feet tall. She told the kids that every time she pops a balloon she gets shorter 



The kids loved her-

----------


## TonyBKK

There was face painting but Kristhawee only did his arm-


Serious affair, apparently  :Wink: 




On the way back to Perrin's house after the picnic we hit a Big 5 sporting goods store and got Kristhawee a fishing pole. Of course the kids had to try it out back at Perrin's house  :Smile: 


Adults too!


Watermelon!


Ooops! Kristhawee caught a tree!  :Wink: 


Love Walla Walla! Shame our friends are moving to Missouri. Walla Walla will always hold a place in our hearts.


Tomorrow we ride to Oregon!!

----------


## natalie8

Thanks for the latest pics and I'm really looking forward to Oregon.

----------


## TonyBKK

The following morning we packed up and hit the road! Leaving Walla Walla, headed south:


It's a short easy ride to Lake Wallowa State Park in Oregon-


Scott's dusted off his Suzuki V-Strom 1000 for the ride. Nice bike!

Last time we went riding together was on rented dirt bikes in the hills around Chiang Mai in the late 1990's!

South to Pendleton-


The road gets good once we exit onto the West Elgin Highway 204 which climbs up into the mountains past the Spout Springs Ski Resort-




Woohoo! I'm loving it! 


Scott's wife has the kids in their ute and is pulling the pop up camper. Stop for a potty break and to make sure the kids are doing ok. 


I ask Kristhawee if he wants to ride with me but he's happy hanging out with Perrin. All good  :Smile: 


Gorgeous day for a ride!


We stop in the quirky little town of Elgin for lunch-


Not much further to Lake Wallowa now!


After Elgin we ride East on the Wallowa Lake Highway 82- 


Hells Canyon Scenic Byway! Kristhawee and I will continue on this road tomorrow-




This is just the edge of Hells Canyon- it gets more and more impressive the closer you get to the Snake River and He Devil mountain.


We follow the Wallowa River-


Beautiful countryside!




Approaching Enterprise-


A brief stop in the tiny town of Enterprise to let Scott's wife catch up with the kids-


Lake Wallowa is nestled somewhere at the base of the mountains ahead-




Almost there!




Entering Joseph-


We coast thru at a gentle pace  :Smile: 


Our first glimpse of Lake Wallowa!








Welcome to Wallowa Lake State Park!

----------


## TonyBKK

The State Park Campground was full but we lucked out and found a spot in a private campground just up the road. Got the camper set up, then we went exploring.


This place is FULL of deer. Mighty tame too! Feeding the wildlife is against the rules, but look at my kid's face-


Handsome young buck-


Lake Wallowa was freezing cold and the sun was setting behind the mountains, making for a chilly dip!


Not much of a beach really, but still a nice spot-


Perrin is travelling in style on his daddy's back  :Smile: 


Kristhawee is keen to try his new fishing pole-


Once the sun went down the temperature dropped quickly! By the time we made it back to the camp we were both freezing. Fortunately they had nice hot showers which really took the edge off. Story time before bed-


Good night!

----------


## TonyBKK

Good morning from Lake Wallowa, Oregon! 


I was COLD last night but we stayed nice and warm in Scott's pop-up camper.


Kristhawee lecturing Perrin on the dangers of sharp sticks  :Wink: 


Perrin didn't seem impressed, but what an awesome Dr Seuss shirt, eh?  


The kids had fun running around the campground while we worked on breakfast-


After breakfast we headed over to catch the Lake Wallowa Gondola up to the top of Mount Howard-

(not my pic, obviously  :Wink:  )

The  gondola climbs 3700' and drops you near the 4000' summit of Mount  Howard, offering spectacular views along the way.  (Wallowa Lake Tramway)

Kristhawee and Perrin were pretty excited to find snow at this elevation and of course snow balls went flying  :Wink: 


Spectacular views in all directions!





There  are a number of trails that head off into the mountains or loop down  and bring you back to Lake Wallowa. No time today, but would be good fun  to go hiking here in the future!

Kristhawee and Perrin were enjoying themselves immensely. So was I! 


More  amazing views- can you see the trail that climbs up the ridge on the  right side of the picture? Must return here for a backcountry hiking  trip some day!!


Scott and Perrin-


Perrin taking a rest- the air is a bit thin up here!


Kristhawee and Perrin discovered a large family of ground squirrels living in burrows under the trees-


Cute critters! They certainly looked well fed!


Extremely tame! I told Kristhawee not to get too close; he pretty much ignored me  :Wink: 


These critters were everywhere!


The kids did their best to lure them in-


We went for a short hike that loops around the summit of Mount Howard. Red pinecones- never seen that before!


Kristhawee the naturalist capturing grasshoppers  :Smile: 


I'll never get tired of these spectacular alpine views!


There were some parasailers taking advantage of the strong updrafts on the north facing slope of Mount Howard-

Kristhawee seemed more interested in the not-so-wild "wildlife though  :Wink: 


All fun and games until someone gets bitten!


Kristhawee you are really pushing your luck little man!


Safety in numbers??


These rodents are damn cute though!


Para-sailing looks like a lot of fun!


And he's off!


Bon Voyage!


He must have an amazing view from up there!


Alright kids! Time to say goodbye to the chipmunk!


Or not...


I was quite relieved that these rodents don't seem to care for the taste of man flesh  :Wink:  My son escaped unbitten  View from the window of the Lake Wallowa Gondola during out descent:


And we're off! Good bye Lake Wallowa! Hope to visit again soon!

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## TonyBKK

We stopped in the cute little town of Joseph, Oregon for lunch-


Popular biker destination!


Lots of American metal here!


Found a nice Mexican restaurant with outdoor seating and a beautiful garden-




Kristhawee was HUNGRY and made quick work out of a quesadilla with rice and beans- I'm so happy to learn that he now loves Mexican food!


Perrin and Kristhawee really enjoyed the pond, and thankfully, no one fell in!


Popsicles for dessert!  Are you gonna share one of those with me??  :Wink:

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## natalie8

Nice update, Tony. Looks like you had great weather!

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## TonyBKK

Our friends needed to get back to Walla Walla so we said farewell in  Joseph and headed East Northeast on highway 350 towards the tiny town of  Imnaha on the Snake River drainage-


Another gorgeous day for a ride! You may recall I have a thing for abandoned buildings-


Hard to imagine skiiing on a warm sunny day like today!


Yet you can see the ski slopes off in the distance at the base of Mount Howard-


The  ride to Imnaha on the Little Sheep Creek Highway is fantastic and I was  kind of surprised how few bikes we saw along this stretch-


Expansive views as we slowly descend towards the Snake River-


The  only thing that kept me from really whacking it was the thought of deer  popping out of the shrubbery- this is prime deer habitat and we spotted  a lot!


Zoomin! 


Mile 25; we've almost reached Imnaha-


Ha!  Now I know why there wasn't so much traffic! After Imnaha the Little  Sheep Creek Highway ends and after we cross the Imnaha River the road  turns to a "Primitive Road" aka gravel and dirt!  

26 miles of gravel and dirt... 

This  is the Upper Imnaha Road and it looks like it'd be a ripper on a dirt  bike, but on the fully loaded Land Yacht this is not fun at all... 


I  rode south about a mile in 2nd gear before I decided this probably  wasn't a smart or safe way to go. The road was completely deserted, it  was getting late, and if I dropped the bike I'd have to unload it before  I'd be able to pick it up. I decided we'd turn around and return the  way we came, but first we stopped to stretch our legs and see if the  fish were biting 

Kristhawee fishing on the Imnaha River, northeastern Oregon

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## TonyBKK

> Nice update, Tony. Looks like you had great weather!


Thank you kindly 

We enjoyed quite fantastic weather in June and early July but later in the summer we did have to contend with some extreme heat, big thunderstorms and even hail. All part of the adventure!  :bananaman:

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## TonyBKK

We backtracked about 20 miles on the Big Sheep Creek Road, eventually  turning south onto the smaller National Forest "Wallowa Mountain Loop"  road-


The Wallowa Mountain Loop Road is simply gorgeous- narrow and twisty, winding through thick forest and deep canyons-


It was getting late so after about 15 miles I pulled off at a small National Forest Campground on Lick Creek- Satellite view:


The campground was nearly deserted and grabbed a nice spot right on the creek-


There was one other couple in the campground and they came over to say  hi and Kristhawee was quite taken with their friendly cat, named  DUMPSTER!  :rofl: 

(He got that name because that's where he was found- in a dumpster!)

Another look at our spot:

Some kind soul(s) left us a nice pile of chopped firewood- thank you very much, whoever you are! 

Kristhawee and I splashed around in Lick Creek for a bit- it had been a  warm day and the ice cold water was very refreshing! There were lots of  small fish but nothing big enough to warrant getting out the fishing  pole.

We'd worked up an appetite with the hiking earlier in the day and a full  afternoon on the bike- tonight's dinner was beer stroganoff and corn! 

After dinner we relaxed around a nice fire, chatting as we watched the stars come out. It doesn't get much better than this!!

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## TonyBKK

Good morning from Wallowa-Whitman National Forest and the Hells Canyon National Recreation Area!

Wow, the Wallowa Mountain Loop Road is just awesome!


Super twisty and in great repair, a real ripper of a road!


We ride to one of the Hells Canyon overlooks and what should we see- another Bavarian Land Yacht!

Their K1200LT was SOOOO much cleaner than ours  (but looking at their luggage I'm pretty sure they were not camping...)

Welcome to Hells Canyon National Recreation Area!


Kristhawee at Hells Canyon National Recreation Area 


Some day when my boy is a bit older and can ride his own bike it would  be a blast to come back here on dirt bikes and explore this area  further!



Miles and miles of seasonal roads and trails! A lot more than what you see on this map-


I haven't figured out a good way to stitch these together into a panorama, so use your imagination 










Hells Canyon is so deep that you can't actually see the Snake River. Time to hit the road- another look at the twin LT's 


Bye bye Hells Canyon! See you again!


The amazing Wallowa Mountain Loop road continues!


Just beautiful!


Eventually the Wallowa Mountain Loop Road ends at a T junction with  Highway 86 and we hang a right, heading west towards the tiny little  town of Halfway. 

Halfway to where? I'm really not sure!

Highway 86 is also a fantastic road!


We stopped in Halfway for gas and a picnic lunch in their historic town park.


Then back on the road headed west towards Baker City-


Highway 86 winds through the hills, offering amazing views along the way-


41 more miles to Baker City!


Clear skies, empty roads, just me and my boy, life is GOOD! 


Seems no matter where you go, just about every road in Oregon is a Scenic Byway!


Elkhorn and Journey Through Time Oregon Scenic Byway-


Bye bye Wallowa Whitman National Forest!

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## TonyBKK

I didn't really have a destination in mind today- we were just headed in  the general direction of Crater Lake since I'd promised my son we'd  re-visit his favorite National Park. By the time we reached Baker City  it was mid afternoon. We topped up the Land Yacht and grabbed some food  for dinner and breakfast the following morning and rode south and west  on  Sumpter Stage Highway 7 until we reached Philips Lake where we saw  signs for camping- let's check it out!


There are a number of campgrounds around the lake and we checked a few  out before choosing a primitive campground on the south side of the  lake. Somebody wants to go fishing! 


Kristhawee fishing in Phillips Lake, Oregon 


My happy boy! Life is good!!! 


This "lake" is really more of a reservoir, so the water wasn't so very cold. Somebody wants to go for a swim?


The sun stays up so late this time of year but the shadows are getting long. Our campground shortly before sunset-


On the menu tonight: Pasta Alfredo with tuna and mixed veggies- wow, that's two healthy dinners in a row! 


We scrounged up some wood for a fire and watched the stars some out.  Kristhawee is so adorable- I'd taught him this little poem last summer  and he repeated it every night at the first star:

"Star light, star bright,
The first star I see tonight,
I wish I may, I wish I might,
Have the wish I wish tonight"

----------


## TonyBKK

Good morning from Phillips Lake, Oregon! Bacon baby! 


Kristhawee has totally mastered the art of tying his show laces; good job boy! 


Kristhawee was keen to earn another Junior Ranger Badge so we decided  that today we would visit the John Day Fossil Beds National Monument! 

We had driven past the John Day Fossil Beds National Monument the  previous summer but we didn't stop on account of the extreme heat! This  year was also hot but Kristhawee was a year older and wanted to check it  out. Good for you son! 

Here's a picture I took of Kristhawee near John Day Fossil Beds National Monument the previous summer when he was just 5


A brief description of John Day Fossil Beds National Monument from the National Park Service site (http://www.nps.gov/joda/index.htm):

Colorful rock formations at John Day Fossil Beds preserve a world class   record of plant and animal evolution, changing climate, and past   ecosystems that span over 40 million years.  Exhibits and a working lab   at the Thomas Condon Paleontology Center as well as scenic drives and   hikes at all three units allow visitors to explore the prehistoric past   of Oregon and see science in action.



Leaving Phillips Lake we spotted an eagle on a nest! 


We rode west on the Old West Scenic Bikeway, also called the John Day Highway and followed a K1200LT trike for a while-


Another beautiful day and gorgeous ride!!


Small house, American flag, horses 


Continuing west on the "Journey Through Time" Oregon Scenic Byway-


Rode through the cute little town of Dayville-


Continuing west!




We're getting there!

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## TonyBKK

Riding to John Day Fossil Beds National Monument! Almost there! 


Welcome to John Day Fossil Beds National Monument!


This is a brilliant road!


It was getting HOT! We pulled in to the Thomas Condon Paleontology  Center so that Kristhawee could pick up a Junior Ranger workbook and we  could start learning about the John Day Fossil Beds.

My happy boy at the Thomas Condon Paleontology Center in John Day Fossil  Beds National Monument with Sheep Rock in the background-


The Thomas Condon Paleontology Center was quite fascinating and we spent a long time exploring and learning-




This fascinating tree shows the evolution of the horse species- the original horse was about the size of a small dog!


Hands on learning! Checking out fossils:


Kristhawee went straight to work on his Junior Ranger book; I'm so proud of my boy! 


A map and some information about the Sheep Rock unit of the John Day Fossil Beds National Monument:


For any who might want to learn more about this fascinating National  Monument here's a link to the National Park Service website for the John  Day Fossil Beds National Monument:

*John Day Fossil Beds National Monument*

It  was about 100 degrees outside (you can see the sweat stains on my boy's  shirt), so I was more than happy to chill out in the air conditioned  paleontology center and let Kristhawee do his thing-


Coloring is fun! 


While Kristhawee colored I spoke with a friendly Park Ranger to get some  advice on camping in area. There is no camping or lodging within the  John Day Fossil Beds National Monument, but the Ranger kindly  recommended we continue north on Highway 19 and then further north up  into the mountains to the campground at Bull Prairie Lake:


Back out into the heat, examining Sheep Mountain through a high powered telescope-


A gorgeous new R1200RT boxer had parked up next to the old Land Yacht-


Let's Roll!

----------


## TonyBKK

We rolled out of the Thomas Condon Paleontology Center and rode north on  the John Day Highway, passing Historic Cant Ranch and the National  Monument headquarters-


Highway 19 is a fantastic road that passes through some amazing country-


The colors are amazing, though my on-the-fly pics with the old point and shoot don't really do them justice-


Zoomin! 


I believe you can raft down the John Day River in the spring when the water level is higher-


More trees the further north we go-


Beautiful!


We hang a right and ride north on the twisty 207, aka Heppner-Spray Highway, that climbs up into the mountains-




We have the roads pretty much to ourselves!


It was very hot back in John Day Fossil Beds National Monument but the temperature dropped as we rode up into the mountains-


A fantastic ride on a roller coaster of a road! Paved all the way to the campground. Welcome to Bull Prairie Lake!

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## TonyBKK

Bull Prairie Lake, Umatilla National Forest, Oregon!


The Bull Prairie Lake campground was pretty empty and we grabbed a nice big spot close to the lake-


My little guy was eager to go fishing so I set up camp as quickly as I could-


Some info about the campground-
 

I told Kristhawee to be bear aware! 


We explored the south shore of Bull Prairie Lake-


Found the PERFECT spot!




What a gorgeous spot! Hard to see him, but Kristhawee is at the end of the dock fishing 


Catch anything buddy??


I laid down at the end of the dock and watched my boy fish-


Are you sure you don't want me to throw you in??? 


Kristhawee snapped a pic of dad chillaxing on the dock-


Quality time with my boy- this is what it's all about!


The fish weren't biting so Kristhawee wandered off-




Tonight's dinner- hot dogs and baby carrots 


Gorgeous weather- I left rain fly off the tent-


Woohoo! Smores for dessert!


Roasted marshmellow right off the stick- Yum! 


Good night!!!

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## Satonic

Wow, that backdrop at Hells Canyon is beautiful, looks almost fake!

Really enjoying this journey you are taking us along Tony, thanks for making the effort to share  :Smile: 

(And Kris looks better with long hair  :Wink:  )

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## TonyBKK

Good morning from Bull Prairie Lake, Umatilla National Forest, Oregon!


Cold  and a bit grey this morning, but as the sun climbed in the sky it  warmed up quickly; another beautiful day! Kristhawee wanted to try his  luck fishing again-


My son befriended an old timer fishing on the dock and got some fishing tips :mrgreen:


Back at our camp site Kristhawee worked on his Junior Ranger workbook while I broke camp-


I'm  very grateful to the Ranger at John Day Fossil Beds National Monument  who recommended this campground- Bull Prairie Lake was a lovely spot!

Time to ride back down to the National Monument! Let's hit the road! :happy3:

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## TonyBKK

We're headed back to the John Day Fossil Beds National Monument via the Journey Through Time Oregon Scenic Byway-




Another hot sunny day!


As part of his Junior Ranger program Kristhawee needs to hike one of the  trails in the National Monument. It's getting really hot but  fortunately all the trails here are quite short. We decided to check out  the Story In Stone and Flood of Fire trails:


We had the place pretty much to ourselves-


Kristhawee on the Story in Stone Trail, John Day Fossil Beds National Monument-


It's pushing 100 degrees and there's not a bit of shade out here-


End of the Trail! You made it little dude! 


Heading back; amazing geology here!




An amazing landscape-




My little guy got a second wind and we hustled up the Flood of Fire trail. I'm glad we did!


Otherworldly, isn't it? You can't get a sense for the scale of this feature- it's HUGE!


Flood of Fire Trail panorama-


Only 11 am and already 102 degrees! Gonna be a HOT one today!!


Riding back to the Thomas Condon Paleontology Center we pass more eye catching formations-


Once again, very little traffic, beautiful road! 


That dark peak is Sheep Rock; the Thomas Condon Paleontology Center is on the opposite side of the road-

----------


## TonyBKK

Kristhawee has completed his Junior Ranger workbook so we've returned to  the Thomas Condon Paleontology Center to present it to a Ranger.

First we watch a paleontologist working on a fossil that has been brought into the lab in a plaster cast-


Then Kristhawee is sworn in as a John Day Fossil Beds National Monument Junior Ranger! 

Bravo kiddo! I'm so proud of you! 

We'd been seeing an unusual amount of BMW's in recent days. A large  group pulled in next to us and we struck up a conversation. They asked  us if we're headed to the BMW MOA (Motorcycle Owners of America) Rally  that would kick off in Salem, Oregon in a few days.

What's this? The 41st Annual BMW MOA International rally is kicking off  only ~260 miles to the west just a couple days from now?! Who knew?!


I ask my little guy if he wants to go check out a biker party. Without pause or hesitation he says "Let's go!" 

Ha! I guess we're headed to Salem!!

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## TonyBKK

Bye bye John Day! We ride south on Highway 19, aka, the Old West Scenic Bikeway!

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## TonyBKK

We rode west on the beautiful Ochoco Highway (26) to Prineville where we stopped to grab some lunch-




The landscape gets greener the further west we go. Ochoco Pass:




Approaching Prineville we can see the snow-covered Cascades off in the distance!


Roll in to Prineville and my little guy is sound asleep on the back, drooling like you wouldn't believe! 


He gets a new nickname: "Droolmonster!" 


I found a golden arches with a hamster run; little guy is happy! 


We'd settled into a nice routine, echoing the previous summer, where  we'd camp at primitive sites for 4-5 days and then, when we ran out of  clean clothes, we'd treat ourselves to a full service campground,  usually a KOA, so that I could get some laundry done, charge up the  phone, camera, iPad, check my email and Kristhawee would have lots of  kids to play with, a pool and other amenities. We were well out of clean  clothes at this point so I did a quick search and found a KOA just  north or Redmond:


Let's go!

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## TonyBKK

It's a short ride from Prineville to the Redmond / Central Oregon KOA. (Redmond / Central Oregon KOA | Camping in Oregon | KOA Campgrounds)  Nice campground set in rolling hills east of the Cascades- we could see  the snow-covered peaks of Mt Jefferson and Mount Hood off in the  distance. It's been a hot day and they have a nice pool- little guy  can't wait to jump in!


We enjoyed a nice relaxing afternoon around the pool-


Happy Hour 


As with most KOA's this one has a well stocked store, free WiFi, hot  showers, playground, etc. The staff were very friendly and there were a  lot of kids for my son to play with-


We ended up sharing dinner with some kids that Kristhawee had befriended  then Kristhawee and I played the classic game of Sorry as we waited for  the laundry to get done-


Good night! Tomorrow we ride to Salem!!

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## TonyBKK

We rode down to Redmond, then west on Highway 126 towards the little  tourist town of Sisters. The snow covered peaks of the Cascades beckon  off in the distance-


Is Oregon beautiful or what??!?


Llamas or Alpacas? Goofy looking critters whatever they are!


Cascades dead ahead!


We stopped for lunch in Sisters where we found a pretty good Mexican joint-


After lunch we hit the good stuff! Highway 242, the old McKenzie Highway  to the McKenzie and Santiam passes is a narrow twisting road that's  only open in the summer. 


The 242 follows the path of an old 1860 wagon route and is so narrow  it's off limits to big trucks and RV's, a perfect road for bikes! I  usually take pics as I ride, but this road really required full  attention and both hands on the bars at all times 


It was an exciting whack up the twisty 242 and I pulled over at a  viewpoint so that we could take it all in! Kristhawee on the Land Yacht  with Mount Washington in the background and an ancient lava flow in  between-


Mt. Washington, Oregon! The sea of lava you see is only about 1500 years old- hard to imagine this area covered in red hot lava!


The Sea of Lava, explained:


Back on the bike and we motor along until we reach the 5,325 feet (1,623  m) McKenzie Pass and discover this bizarre structure built completely  out of lava rocks:


It's the Dee Wright Observatory! 


This Dee Wright Observatory was built by hand during the Great  Depression by the Civilian Conservation Corps, completed in 1935 and  named for the construction crew’s foreman who had died the previous year  after serving 24 years as a Forest Service packer and crew foreman.  Read more about Dee Wright Observatory here: Dee Wright Observatory - Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia

Looking east, the way we came-


Looking south at the Sisters- closest to us is North Sister and the further one is South Sister-


Up on top of the observatory is this cool brass "peak finder", cast in 1937, that points to all the surrounding peaks-


Kristhawee with the Sisters behind him-


Hand cast in 1937- Very cool!

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## natalie8

Very cool!

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## TonyBKK

The windows in the Dee Wright Observatory are cut to specifically  highlight the neighboring mountains. My point and shoot couldn't capture  the inside of this structure very well at all- 


Here's a much better picture I found on the net:


Kristhawee with Mount Washington in the background; the snow covered mountain on the right is Mount Jefferson-




Pretty cool isn't it little dude?


Father and son at McKenzie Pass, Oregon!




A final look at the Sisters before we jump back on the bike and hit the road!


What a gorgeous road- reckon the McKenzie Highway should be in the top 20 motorcycle roads in the US 


The 242 ends at a T-junction and we hang a right and ride north on the  126, aka McKenzie Pass and Santiam Pass Oregon Scenic Byway 






Who comes up with these road names?! The "Over the Rivers and Through the Woods Oregon Scenic Byway"?! 

Turns out this is the South Santiam Highway 20; I missed the turn to the  North Santiam Highway 20, but no matter- this was a beautiful road and  great ride!

Some people hate signs like these, but bikers love 'em! 




We made good time to Salem; I knew that the BMW MOA Rally was taking  place at the Fair Grounds but didn't know how to get there. Wasn't too  hard to find tho!

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## TonyBKK

Welcome to the 41st Annual BMW MOA International Rally in Salem, Oregon!

Beemers, Bigfoot and Blue Skies! :mrgreen:

Kristhawee  at the Oregon State Fairground in Salem, Oregon! He is a happy camper-  coming here was totally unplanned; I just love how easy going he is  :mrgreen:


First order of business was to get registered and figure out where to camp. 


Tons  of space at the Oregon State Fairgrounds- we chose the "Oak Grove" on  the south side of the fairgrounds as it was close to the entrance, the  folks there seemed quite friendly and there was plenty of shade under  the big oak trees. A panorama taken from our spot; Kristhawee is playing  with our neighbors dog  :Smile: 


Inside the fairgrounds, Beemers galore! (But if you look closely you'll see that there are other brands mixed in)


Wow, who knew BMW makes a 250cc dirtbike?!  :Wink: 


So  much to see at this rally! A huge list of vendors and tons of seminars  plus a full entertainment schedule and more! The Vintage BMW Display and  Contest was a highlight for both of us-


I don't know anything about these old bikes, but they sure are a pleasure to look at!




Did BMW actually make bicycles? I couldn't tell if this was genuine or a nicely done fake... I suspect the latter though...


Drum brakes, shaft drive, hard tail- awesome!


Not only vintage bikes, there were a lot of vintage riders at this rally!  

This  old timer rode all the way from the east coast on his 1975 BMW rat  bike. He was pulling a home made trailer that looked like a torpedo on  wheels- that was his camper! Mad respect to him for making the journey  and I sure hope he makes it home alive!!

So much to see and do! Can't go to a State Fair without enjoying a snow cone! :mrgreen:


The  first night there were some great bands on the stage at the  Amphitheater, with old school CANNED HEAT headlining! Yes! Canned Heat!  

The very same band that played at Woodstock back in 1969 is still going  strong! Amazing!

----------


## TonyBKK

Good morning from the 41st Annual BMW MOA International Rally at the State Fairgrounds in Salem, Oregon!

Ha ha! Looks like someone partied a bit too hard last night! 

Some bikers from mainland China moved in next to us- they had shipped  their bikes all the way from China and were touring the US and Canada  for the summer- Respect!


Eventually the little guy woke up and we wandered back to the rally and enjoyed some big breakfast burritos- 


There was a children's pavilion where we met Dee, a retired science  teacher from Minnesota who had driven all the way to Oregon with a car  full of Monarch Butterflies! 


She's actually rather famous and breeds thousands of Monarchs every year  for the University of Minnesota and schools all over the country. While  traveling Dee's Monarchs spend most of their time in wax paper  envelopes, but they need to feed twice a day and in captivity their  favorite food is watered down honey. Who knew?!

Monarchs aren't as fragile as I thought- who knew you could store them  in envelopes and actually hold them by the wings and not damage them?

How does Dee keep track of her butterflies? Look closely at the picture  above and below and you'll see that Dee has numbered them!

How does a butterfly eat? Kristhawee's word of the day: PROBOSCIS! 

If the monarch is hungry it will eat all by itself, but sometimes you  need to take the toothpick and manually unwind their proboscis and dip  it in the honey water- then they feed until they are full.

Once full they wind up their proboscis and then Dee puts them in a  butterfly tent so they can stretch their wings and chill for a while,  before going back into their wax paper envelopes. 


Dee taught the kids (and me!) everything we ever wanted to know about  the Monarch Butterfly! Their life cycle, how to tell the males from the  females, their amazing migration patterns, why they only lay their eggs  on Milkweed, etc!


The kids were tested on their knowledge of the life cycle of the Monarch- Kristhawee passed with flying colors 

Do you know the difference between a cocoon and a chrysalis? Kristhawee does! 

Really impressed by the kids pavillion- Dee and her friend had set up a ton of activities for the kids. Arts and crafts-




I could tell that Kristhawee was in good hands and most of the parents  left their kids at the pavillion all day while the parents attended  seminars and whatnot, so I wrote down my number just in case of  emergency and told Kristhawee I'd be back in a few hours.

First order of business- take advantage of the DIY bike wash station and clean the beast!

Very nice of BMW MOA to supply the sponges, towels and simple green! 

I had a number of other things that I needed to get done- first and most  pressing were new tires for the Land Yacht- never have I owned a bike  that eats front tires the way the K1200LT does!


Usually I average 1 front tire to two rears, but on this bike it's  pretty much the opposite. I guess it's the extreme weight that wears out  the front tires so fast? I asked around amongst the more experienced  BMW riders and it seems it's not unusual on these big heavy bikes to  wear out your front tire well before the rear. My front tire was badly  cupped and got noisier over time. It was definitely time for a  replacement!

Fortunately there were a lot of tire vendors on hand and I spoke with  several reps before deciding on some Metzeler ME880 Marathon tires. I  was running the OEM Bridgestone Battleax's and other than the relatively  short tire life of the front tire I was happy with them, but these  fellows at NoMar recommended the Metzelers, claiming they would perform  just as well but last longer.

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## natalie8

> simple green!


I remember Simple Green!  :Smile:  Great pics and info yet again. I'm not quite sure about the difference between a cocoon and a chrysalis except for the appearance. I'll have to look that up.  :Confused:

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## TonyBKK

I picked up Kristhawee from the kids pavilion in the early afternoon;  got there just as they were giving the Monarch butterflies their  afternoon feed-




Sounds  like my boy had had a fun day- Kristhawee won another animal, this time  a moose to go along with the turkey he'd won the day before! 


There was a fun "shuttle" that made the rounds of the rally grounds at  the Oregon State Fairgrounds- it consisted of hay bales on a trailer and  Kristhawee jumped on the shuttle every chance he got 


Kristhawee really wanted to ride the chair lift, but looks to me like it hasn't run in years...


Lots and lots of bikes!!


I took advantage of the DIY oil change station to service the Land Yacht-
 
Thanks BMW MOA! All I needed was oil and a filter; the BMW MOA volunteers supplied everything else! 

That evening Kristhawee and I decided to take a break from the rally and  go for a walk in Salem. A quick peek at Google Maps revealed a large  park nearby and the one thing missing from the Oregon State Fairgrounds  was a proper playground. We walked about a mile south of the fairgrounds  to Englewood City Park and Kristhawee burned off some of his incredible  energy-


Nice park full of big old oak trees and a nice playground. Lots of kids for Kristhawee to play with too! 


Around sunset we decided to find some dinner. We wandered east on Market  Street until we came to the very welcoming Willamette Valley Grill-

The lot was full of bikes and we hadn't enjoyed a proper sit-down meal in a real restaurant in a while so this was a nice treat.

After a big dinner my little guy was falling asleep on his feet and I  ended up carrying him for a good chunk of the long walk back to our tent  at the Oregon State Fairgrounds 

Going to the BMW MOA Rally was an unexpected treat for my son and me.  Everyone we met there was friendly and welcoming, and it was an eye  opening introduction to the BMW scene and culture.

I'm hoping Kristhawee and I can make it to the 2014 BMW MOA Rally in  Minnesota this coming summer, though timing wise it might be a bit tough  to get there in time...

----------


## TonyBKK

Stumbling across the BMW MOA Rally in Salem was a real treat, but it was time for us to get moving again! 

We  headed south on the Pacific Highway I-5, through Eugene and exited  at  Cottage Grove, riding east towards Dorena Lake where I'd heard there  was  a very nice campground. 


Unfortunately  it was full, but we still had some light left so  continued on until we  entered the Umpqua National Forest where there  were many primitive  campsites to choose from.


Found  a great spot next to a beautiful clear running stream just as the  sun  was going down. We'd had a late lunch / early dinner in Cottage  Grove so  I only cooked up a light meal for dinner, then we hit the  sack, read a  few pages and called it a night!

Next morning my little guy wanted to see if there were any fish biting-


Didn't catch anything but he had fun all the same 


Gorgeous spot!




We enjoyed a bit of a lazy morning as it wasn't very far from here to  Crater Lake National Park. Time to load up the Land Yacht! 


A quick pic before we hit the road!

----------


## TonyBKK

Good morning from Umpqua National Forest, Oregon, USA!

Wow,  what a cool road- single lane, with occasional pullouts in case  you run  in to any oncoming traffic, which we didn't. Had these roads  all to  ourselves!



We're  taking the road less traveled to Crater Lake National Park! Tight  and  twisty- a motard's dream, but we take it nice and easy on the Land  Yacht  


This "road" is more like a footpath. Quite unusual for the US-


Started off in excellent repair and got rougher the further we went-


Gorgeous views in the Pacific Northwest!


This itty bitty road twisted through thick pine forest-


There were several sections that were unpaved...


I  didn't have a proper GPS and many of the forest roads aren't well   marked, but the occasional sign helped keep me going in the right   direction towards the Willamette State Highway 58-


Man it would be fun to come back here with a big dirt bike and really explore these mountains!


Eventually we reach the beautiful Hills Creek Lake and the small town of Oakridge-


Along the north shore were ripe blackberries as far as the eye can see! We stopped here and pigged out! 


We stopped in Oakridge for food and fuel, gorgeous day and we're in excellent spirits!


It's  here that I learned that the Willamette State Highway 58 is closed  for  contruction to the east, so I jump on google maps and plot a new  route:

I thought this route was all paved... Ooops!

----------


## Mid

> The very same band that played at Woodstock back in 1969 is still going strong! Amazing!


Not quite .

RIP _Blind Owl_ Wilson 

July 4, 1943 - September 3, 1970 .

----------


## TonyBKK

Just east of Oakridge we headed south towards Hills Creek Lake and the "Diamond Drive"- sounds promising! 


Hills Creek Lake- beautiful!


National Forest 21 is a thing of beauty!


The highway follows the west shore of Hills Creek Lake-


Apologies for picture overload, but it's hard to leave any out!


A cool bridge across Larison Cove-


We soon leave the lake behind and are once again in thick forest. We've  transitioned from the Umpqua to the Willamette National Forest-


Tons of beautiful and deserted campgrounds along this road- Secret Campground above and Campers Flat below-


Indigo Springs certainly has a nice ring to it! Wow, tempting to stop  along here somewhere, but we're quite keen to get to Crater Lake...


Big Swamp Road... Don't recall seeing that on Google Maps...


A bit further and the pavement ends... 

Love the look on my son's face- he's like, "Dad, do you know where you're going??!?" 

Not sure if I missed a turn or what. These forest roads aren't well  marked. I pull out the iPad- even though I get no data signal here the  device has cached the google maps and the GPS still works. It appears  we're still on track? Ask the little guy if he wants to turn around or  push on. He votes to push on. Good on ya little dude! 

The gravel road is in quite good repair, but where the gravel gets deep I  struggle with the heavy K1200LT! There is NO ONE out here so I take it  nice and easy. Don't want to risk a break down or flop out here!

From the 2153 we eventually connect to the Timpanogas Road, NF2154-


The shadows are starting to get long. It's real slow going on these  gravel roads. I'm not too worried as we have food and a water filter, so  we can always camp if we need to. Still, it would be nice if we could  reach Crater Lake today-


Zoomin 


Off in the distance a peak! That looks vaguely familiar. I think we're approaching Mt Bailey?


Snow!!


Finally we're back on a real road! The Rogue Umpqua Oregon Scenic Byway,  aka the North Umpqua Highway 138, another road that's now on my short  list! http://traveloregon.com/trip-ideas/s...-scenic-byway/

----------


## TonyBKK

Highway 138 will take us to the North Entrance of Crater Lake National Park-


Passing Diamond Lake, we are getting close to our destination!


Almost there!


We're in! Great road up to the lake-


I decided to ride around the lake clockwise as we'd not actually gone  all the way around the previous summer. Our first glimpse of Crater  Lake:


Even though the hour is late, it certainly merits stopping to get a better look!


Kristhawee is tickled pink that we've returned to his favorite National Park-


Continuing on- I think this was taken somewhere on the East Rim Drive-


The bright green lichen on the cliff face makes a nice contrast to the  striking blue of the lake. Not bad for an ancient point and shoot Canon,  eh? 


This is Mount Scott, the highest point in Crater Lake National Park. If  you look closely you can see the old stone watchtower on the peak-


Continuing on we spot the "Phantom Ship" island-


And there, on the far side of Crater Lake is Wizard Island, a volcano in a lake in a volcano!


We make another stop to take it all in-


Beautiful pine forest as far as the eye can see and you can just see the  road snaking through the trees below. Not sure what sharp peak that is  off in the distance-


4 miles from the junction to the Pinnacles Road which would take us to the Lost Creek Campground-


Happy Days! 


I'd hoped to camp at the Lost Creek Campground where we'd stayed the  previous summer, but we were informed by the Ranger at the entrance that  the campground was closed due to drought and associated fire risk. The  only other campground in the park is Mazama, so off we went! Arriving  there with no reservation I wasn't optimistic, and there was a long line  of people in front of us, all looking for spots to camp... Struck up a  conversation with the nice couple in front of us, Sean a student from  California, and his friend Sarah from the UK. Asked them, semi-jokingly  if they'd want to share a campsite with a well behaved 6 year old and  his naughty dad and they surprised me by agreeing immediately. When our  turn came they staff informed us that there were only RV sites left,  but, beggars can't be choosers, so we took one all the same. And what a  spot it was! Wow- did we luck out!!

The spot was HUGE and very secluded. Not at all your "typical" RV spot  at all. Wonderful! Sean and Sarah were the nicest people we met all  summer- we became friends almost immediately and continue to stay in  touch. 

Kristhawee sure has a thing for bear boxes 


It had been a LONG day! After setting up camp and throwing down a simple  meal and tipping back some beers with Sarah and Sean we crashed out  pretty early. Tomorrow will be a full day of exploring in Crater Lake  National Park!

----------


## TonyBKK

Good morning from Camp Mazama in Crater Lake National Park, Oregon, USA!

The lights are on, but is anyone home?

Ah- that's better!


First order of business is breakfast! One nice thing about camping here  is there's a general store walking distance from our campsite where I  pick up some fresh eggs and coffee. Kristhawee is getting pretty good at  whipping up cheddar cheese scrambled eggs 




After breakfast we all jumped in Sean and Sarah's car to drive to the   Cleetwood Cove Trail which is the only trail that leads to the lake. To  say Kristhawee was excited would be an understatement! 


Crater Lake is such a vivid and surreal blue!


There's the boat landing, way down below:


Sean, Kristhawee and Dad 


Kristhawee is motoring along! He's been dreaming of visiting Wizard Island for a year now!


Amazing color and clarity!


You can't make them out in this picture, but the water is so clear that  we could see the trout swimming around and regretted not bringing a  fishing pole.


Loading the Umpqua for a cruise around Crater Lake-


We were hoping to take a boat tour to Wizard Island, but they were all  booked out. Kristhawee was heartbroken that we couldn't go to Wizard  Island today- he was so excited to go!


Full house, no room for us today... 


I bought tickets for the next day and tried my best to console my boy. Oh those silent tears! 

A Crater Lake panorama taken at the Cleetwood Cove boat launch-


Sean and Kristhawee on the shore of Crater Lake-


We decided to test the water-


OMG it's COLD!!!   Crater Lake is the deepest lake in North American and the 9th deepest  lake in the world. Due to it's immense size and altitude the water  temperature averages only 38°F (3°C)! To be fair, on a warm sunny day  like today the surface water is warmer than that, but it's still REALLY  REALLY COLD!!!


Kristhawee went to far as to get his feet wet, but that's about as far as he'd go!


There goes the boat to Wizard Island!


Some other boys showed up and they all had a good time chasing crawfish-




The lake is full of them- they are considered a non-native species, as  are the trout, all introduced by the white man around some time in the  early 1900's


Hey! You caught one! 


Picnic lunch of the shore of Crater Lake-


Some eye candy too 


There's a cliff where you can jump into the lake- pretty exhilarating  when you hit the water. Sean jumped and is now swimming back to us-


I got a pretty good video of Sean jumping too-

----------


## natalie8

Thanks for the (as always) amazing updates, Tony!!!!! One thing, among many, about your threads is that they serve as a fantastic chronicle about you and Kris. It will be interesting to see the changes in him every summer and I'm sure he'll love to come back to these when he's older. Pretty soon it will be time for Summer Excursion 2014. I'm waiting with bated breath to see more of 2013's pics, then 2014's.

 :bigbike:

----------


## beerlaodrinker

Excellent stuff as usual tony, what an amazing part of the world. Lucky kid young khristawee.

----------


## TonyBKK

After a fun day at the lake it was time to head back to camp. The 1.1  mile hike from the short to the rim is a tough one and Kristhawee  enjoyed a nice nap on the way back to camp-


Sean gave him a balsa wood glider which Kristhawee really enjoyed building and flying-


For dinner we picked up a few cans of chili and some fresh veggies from the general store and Sean whipped up an awesome meal-




After dinner we all piled back into Sean's car for a sunset hike to the Watchman, the highest viewpoint on the caldera rim-


Kristhawee at the base of the Watchman Trail with Crater Lake and Wizard Island in the background-




Kristhawee is super excited to visit Wizard Island tomorrow! So am I! 


Snow on the trial! You know what that means- Snowball fight!!


My little guy is developing a pretty good arm- incoming!


We hustle up the trail but it doesn't look like we'll make the summit before the sun sets-


This trail isn't very long but climbs a lot of vertical; my little dude is running out of gas 


Gorgeous colors in all directions-


Sarah gives Kristhawee a helping hand-






With the sun setting to the west I reach a switchback in the trail and  discover that the moon is rising just as the sun is setting! Wow, simply  spectacular!




Moonrise over Crater Lake!


And there goes the sun!










With the sun set we still have a little way to go to reach the summit. Kristhawee gets a lift from Sean- 


It's not hard to understand why this is a sacred place for the local Native American tribes-


We made it to the top! 


Sean and Sarah at the Watchman!


The bright moon reflected off the surface of Crater Lake-


Kristhawee doesn't want to pose for a picture, but I love this one all the same!


We stayed up here long after everyone else had left. I'm glad we did 


With the sun set it got chilly in a hurry- fortunately we came prepared-  warm clothes, drinks and snacks (sorry Kristhawee, you'll have to wait a  few more years for the beer) 


Finally it was time to head down, with flashlights and the moon to light  our way. We discovered that with the sun down a lot of weird and  interesting bugs came out in the moonlight-


Some kind of weird cricket?


Back  in the car Kristhawee fell fast asleep on the drive back to Camp  Mazama- sweet dreams my little prince! More adventures await us  tomorrow!

----------


## TonyBKK

> Thanks for the (as always) amazing updates, Tony!!!!! One thing, among many, about your threads is that they serve as a fantastic chronicle about you and Kris. It will be interesting to see the changes in him every summer and I'm sure he'll love to come back to these when he's older. Pretty soon it will be time for Summer Excursion 2014. I'm waiting with bated breath to see more of 2013's pics, then 2014's.



Thank you Natalie and BLD  :Smile: 

Indeed it's fun to see how my boy has grown and I imagine some day he might like to look back on these adventures with his dad- here we are at the same spot when he was 5:


And again at age 6:


He's 7 now and still a sweet kid. This summer we're going to tour New England and next summer he really wants to come to Thailand, so I reckon it will be time to get him his first dirt bike- can't wait!!  :bananaman:

----------


## natalie8

Ahhhh, New England should be good. It would also be great for Kris to go to Thailand too. Maybe next year.

----------


## beerlaodrinker

Some kind of weird cricket?

Bring some back to thailand and cross breed em with the local ones, Could be a nice earner if they are bigger and tastier :Roll Eyes (Sarcastic):

----------


## TonyBKK

Good morning from Crater Lake National Park!


First order of business- coffee and breakfast!


No such thing as too much cheese!


Kristhawee the cheesy eggs master!


Then it was back in the car for the drive to the Cleetwood Cove Trail  down to the boat launch and all aboard for our cruise to Wizard Island! 

This ranger was awesome- incredibly knowledgeable about Crater Lake and with a great sense of humor too!

And we're off! (yes, Kristawee is wearing pajama bottoms... )


I'm bummed I can't remember the ranger's name- he was a real class act  and did an excellent job of engaging and interacting with everyone on  the boat-


Sean and Sarah-


Bright and sunny out on the lake!


Here Kristhawee, put on your shades- that's better isn't it? 


The ranger points out some of the more spectacular geological formations along the caldera rim-


Kristhawee really enjoyed chatting with the ranger-


Cruisin' 




Who can identify this rare geological formation? 


PJ's and pink socks! I kind of dig that my kid doesn't care one bit what people think of his attire 


Good shot of Kristhawee with Wizard Island in the background-


Our destination:


The Cleetwood Cove Trail is the only trail to the lake. The rest of the caldera is steep, slippery and dangerous-


Another very cool geological formation-




Apologies for picture overload, but as a Geology Minor I find this stuff fascinating!


Cool colors on this steep pumice slope-




Almost there!


Kristhawee is so excited 




The Ranger gives us a run down on the island, safety rules and reminds  everyone not to be late for the return trip a few hours later-


Looking back the way we've come-


Approaching the Wizard Island landing-




Woohoo! We've made it!

----------


## TonyBKK

Woohoo! We're on Wizard Island! 


We've got a few hours to explore Wizard Island before we have to catch the boat back to Cleetwood Cove. Let's hit the summit!


It's a rocky slippery trail and it's all UP!


Kristhawee motored along pretty well-


Chasing lizards!


Onwards and upwards!


Hiking in PJ's- you rock little dude! 


This island looks small from the crater rim, but once we're on it we get  a better sense for the size and scale- Wizard Island rises some 755  feet (230 m) above the surface of Crater Lake and the peak is 6,933 feet  (2,113 m) above sea level! We're huffing and puffing in the thin air up  here!


The higher we climb the more beautiful the views!






The trail switch backs up the volcanic cinder cone, offering amazing views at every turn-


Getting close to the top!


My point and shoot doesn't do the colors of Crater Lake justice-


Amazing blues, greens and turquoise!




We made it to the top of Wizard Island! :clap:


Hard  to get a sense of scale- Wizard Island's volcanic crater is 500 feet  (150 m) wide and 100 feet (30 m) deep. The crater was named  the "Witches Cauldron" by Will G. Steel in 1885, who also gave Wizard  Island its name at the same time.


Descending into the witch's cauldron!


And here we are! Sitting in the Witch's Cauldron- a volcanic crater that's in a lake that's in a crater! Mind blowing!

----------


## natalie8

Amazing!!! Love it!!!!!

----------


## mustafa goze

WOW! My computer orgasm with the download of this thread. Epic indeed. Congratulations on many a lifelong memory for you and your boy! Nice looking
kid. What do you do far an encore?

----------


## TonyBKK

We'd slid down into the Witches Cauldron from the north and hiked up and out to the south-


Here comes Kristhawee!


Amazing views in all directions from the crater rim-


This looks like a nice spot for a picnic!


Omnomnomnom 


A final look into the Witches Cauldron before we head down-


Let's hit the trail!


Wow, the colors!!




Apologies for picture overdose!


Kristhawee is motoring along- down is easier than up, but you have to be careful as this is a cinder cone and quite slippery-


I never get tired of looking at the colors of Crater Lake!




I keep telling Kristhawee to slow down and be careful... He gives me "the look" 




Some nice thick forest and shade towards the base-


We've got just enough time for a quick visit to Fumarole Bay-


Fumarole Bay- that-a-way!


It's a bit of a challenging trail over rugged volcanic rock-


Which way??


An interesting volcanic landscape!


Can you see the "trail"? It's easy to lose it!


Watch your step! It would be easy to twist an ankle here and I'm glad we've both got decent hiking boots-


Fumarole Bay! The colors here are amazing and my camera does not do them justice-


This trail is a workout!!


Not sure the purpose of this steel cable with loops in it... Perhaps a place to moor boats?


Another look-


Crater Lake has some of the cleanest clearest water of any lake on the planet-


Love the bright green fuzzy moss on the north sides of the trees-


I'd brought Kristhawee's fishing pole all this way as a ranger had mentioned there is sometimes good fishing in Fumarole Bay-


Kristhawee fishing in Fumarole Bay, Wizard Island, Crater Lake!

----------


## CalEden

Tony, been to Crater Lake many times as child and adult with my late father. Your thread brings back many fond memories. Your son will have those memories all his life. Thanks for sharing your adventures with us.

----------


## TonyBKK

I wish we could have stayed on Wizard Island longer, but overnight  camping isn't allowed and it was time to catch the last boat back to  Cleetwood Cove-

Look like Kristhawee had a good time  :Smile: 

Someone is not in the mood to smile for the camera  :Wink: 


This will have to do :mrgreen:


Bye bye Wizard Island!


The  boat doesn't take us straight back to Cleetwood Cove- we enjoy a tour  of some more prominent geological features of Crater Lake-


From the Crater Lake Institute: (Crater Lake Institute - Enhancing Your Crater Lake Experience)

"Much  of the beauty of the walls of Crater Lake comes from the delicate  coloring of the rocks, notably on Garfield Peak and the Eagle Crags and  beneath Hillman Peak, where they have  					been affected by solfataric action. Here the normally somber colors  of the andesites give way to shades of yellow, buff, brown, and orange  which contrast pleasingly with the deep  					blue of the adjacent lake and the bright reds of the slaggy lava  crusts."








These  green-covered hills are pieces of the crater rim that have fallen into  the lake! Geologists are able to match the rock layers in the hummocks  to those in the rim above-


Lots and lots of waterfalls!




Very dry this year, but there are still a few patches of snow-




Wow that's steep!


Phantom Ship!


From the Crater Lake Institute: 

"The  Phantom Ship is a remaining section of the filled conduit of a fissure  from which probably poured many of the lower layers of lava constituting  Dutton Cliff. The island is about 500 feet long and reaches a maximum  width of 200 feet near the east end. Its east-west ridge of spires,  towering 170 feet above the water, sharply  					divides most of the island into two slopes, one very steeply  sloping to the south and the other less steeply to the north"

Eye of the needle-




Phantom Ship looks so small from the crater rim, but is anything but!


Coming  around the Phantom Ship you can see the clear line in the water that  marks the spot where the depth of the lake plunges dramatically-


More amazing scenery- I believe this is Dutton Cliff?


Pumice Castle!


From the Crater Lake Institute: 

"Of the many colorful volcanic formations in the walls surrounding  		Crater Lake, The Pumice Castle, on the east wall, attracts the attention  		of many  		visitors.The Pumice Castle is part of an extensive lenticular bed of  		fragmental pumice outcropping on the crater wall about 1,300 feet above  		the level of the lake, or 400 feet below the crater rim just south of  		Cloudcap. The bed of pumice has a maximum thickness of 190 feet"



Pumice Castle up close-

----------


## TonyBKK

Let me back up to Wizard Island for a moment- I forgot about these  panorama shots that I took using a cool app called Photosynth  (Photosynth - Capture your world in 3D.)


The Witches Cauldron-


From the crater rim of Wizard Island looking in the direction of Fumarole Bay-


One more-

----------


## TonyBKK

Continuing on our boat tour of Crater Lake we passed Redcloud Cliff-

From the Crater Lake Institute: "Located  near the center of the eastern  Crater Lake caldera rim, Redcloud Cliff  takes its name from the  reddish-yellow tuff or tuffaceous dacite that  underlies it's principle  flow.                                                    [_Cloud Cap Dacite Flow, The Geology and                  Petrography of Crater Lake National Park (1902)_]                       Redcloud Cliff is a dacite flow overlain by pumice  and glacial till  and underlain by an older dacite flow. Beneath the  older dacite flow  lie thick deposits of pumice and welded                   tuff, and then a succession of andesite flows."


A few more random shots before we arrive at Cleetwood Cove-




Haha! My little guy passed out 


More impressive and imposing cliffs-






Looks like there's a cave at the bottom of this cliff-


Would be cool to canoe around this lake, except that you'd have to portage your boat all the down the Cleetwood Cove Trail...


Finally we arrive back at Cleetwood Cove. If you look closely you can see the trail switchbacking up the steep face-




As we're heading back up to the Crater Rim one last shot of Cleetwood Cove-


The nap seems to have revived Kristhawee and he enjoyed racing some other kids up the trail-

(He beat 'em by a mile) 

We made it!!! What a brilliant day cruising Crater Lake and exploring Wizard Island!


Got back to camp around sunset and enjoyed hotdogs over the fire and S'mores for dessert-


Kristhawee had had a LONG day and passed out early!

Good night!

----------


## MeMock

Love this thread.

----------


## TonyBKK

We had a wonderful time at Crater Lake National Park and made some  wonderful new friends, but it's time for us to hit the road again! It's  already mid July and we've only covered two states! Still a long way to  go to reach Grandma's house in Minnesota!

We bid farewell to our new friends Sean and Sarah and the funny kid who was camping nearby and hit the road.

A quick stop at the Crater Lake Post Office to mail on some toys and  Junior Ranger books as we're running out of room on the Land Yacht.  Kristhawee was sad to leave and was really missing Sean and Sarah...

I'm happy to report we've stayed in touch and I'm looking forward to catching up with Sean and Sarah again some day!

Today we will bid farewell to Oregon and ride to Idaho!!!

----------


## TonyBKK

It feels good to be back on the road again! 


Exiting Crater Lake National Park we turn right and head east on Volcanic Legacy Oregon Scenic Byway 138-


Approaching Dalles-California Highway 97-


We ride east on the 138, then north on the Dalles-California Highway 97  through Deschutes National Forest and Bend, Oregon, turning right and  riding east again on the Central Oregon Highway 20 towards Idaho!


One thing I really dig about Oregon is it seems to have a lot more mom  and pop businesses and has somehow resisted the invasion of the big  national chains.


Bigfoot Tavern- the yeti features prominently in the folklore of the Pacific Northwest! Even bigfoot likes beer apparently 


Just me and my boy and the open road- life is good!


Riding east on the Central Oregon Highway I think we might get wet...


This is some wide open country! Lots of OHV trails too. Some day when my boy has got his own bike!


106 miles to Burns, Oregon and from there it's still a good ways to Boise. It occurs to me that we won't reach Idaho today... 


Selfie 


When people think of Oregon they usually think of mountains and pine  trees. Central and eastern Oregon remind me more of the great plains in  the midwest-


Rest areas are few and far between out here-


Lots of abandoned buildings out here-


Cruisin along 


Feel pretty small out here!


Lone backpacker / hitchhiker out in the middle of nowhere. Hope he can get a lift!


This is Hampton, Oregon, population 41! 


We've got the road pretty much to ourselves-


Whole lotta nothing!


Doesn't look terribly dry, but fire restrictions are in effect-


Was that someone's home once upon a time? I can't imagine what it would  be like to live out here. Must be brutal in the winter...


Haha! I can't remember what we were talking about, but what a face! 


Still smilin' 

Kristhawee is such an awesome kid. Never complains and is always up for adventure. I feel blessed to have such a wonderful son!

The small town of Burns, Oregon has got a Golden Arches. Kristhawee is  psyched and I can finally check my email. Someone needs a haircut!! 


While we're hanging at McD's I do a search for campgrounds and discover  there are a bunch not far to the north in the Malheur National Forest,  so after picking up some supplies in Burns off we go north on the John  Day-Burns Highway 395-


The 395 is a nice road- nice to see some curves again!




I take it easy as it's getting late and this looks like deer country-




Devine Canyon Scenic Corridor 


Welcome to Malheur National Forest. "Malheur" is French for misfortune  and strikes me as a rather depressing name for such a beautiful forest. I  wonder if there's a story behind the name...


We spot a weathered sign for the Idlewild Campground, pull in, and it's pretty much deserted-




What do you think Kristhawee? Want to stay here?


He picked a good spot! 

The gentleman managing the campground was a real nice fellow and told us  that there might be some severe weather headed our way and that if it  got ugly he didn't mind us moving our bike and tent under the big picnic  pavillion you can see off to the right in the above picture.

Idlewild Campground, Malheur National Forest, Oregon- if you're looking for some peace and quiet, this is a good choice!


We wandered about and I quite enjoyed this hand carved wooden map of the area-


Lots of people told me I NEEDED a GPS for these tours, but honestly,  paper maps do me just fine. Kristhawee seems to enjoy them too-


Dinner and a few pages from the Call of the Wild and we were soon fast  asleep. The nasty weather never did materialize. Life is good!

----------


## TonyBKK

Friday, July 26th and we're on the road again, headed east to Idaho!


11 am and the temperature is climbing quickly. Gonna be a hot one today I think!


Zoomin! 


The Central Oregon Highway has got some nice curves east of Burns-


As well as long stretches that are dead straight-


Modest living out here-


It gets drier and hotter the further east we go-


Drinkwater Pass, elevation 4212"


Now we're into some rolling hills and the road is more interesting-


An "Oasis" in the middle of nowhere 




Gorgeous road and completely deserted!


Following the Malheur River-


Hotter and hotter! 99ᵒ degrees Fahrenheit (about 38ᵒ C)




102!


At least it's a dry heat, and the views remain spectacular-












31 miles to Idaho! 




Huge harvester!


Big agriculture around here-


Approaching the town of Vale, Oregon-


Welcome to Vale!


Lunch at a fantastic Mexican joint on A Street-


If you're passing through Vale, Oregon, Chavelitas Mexican Restaurant has got some awesome grub!

----------


## TonyBKK

Welcome to Idaho!! 


I didn't want to ride through downtown Boise so we skirted the city and  followed the Payette River to the north, riding east towards the Boise  National Forest-


A pleasant albeit slow ride through some small towns north of Boise-


East on country road 52-


Following the Payette River-


A pleasant ride and we avoided all the heat and traffic of Boise-


We stopped for food and fuel at Horseshow Bend at the junction of highways 52 and 55 and I consulted the large map on the wall-


Kristhawee talked me into buying him a rather nasty looking icecream. Turns out it was just as gross as I thought 


On the road again! Now we're riding north on Highway 55, still following the Payette River-


Highway 55 is a fantastic road!


A bit further north we hang a right onto the Banks-Lowman Road and and follow the South Fork of the Payette River east-


Smokey the Bear warns us of high fire danger, and I hear there are some  large forest fires burning in the Boise National Forest, but so far the  air is clear and no sign of smoke...


A fantastic ride and zero traffic! 


Wildlife Canyon Scenic Byway-


What a road! What a view!








A few short sections were under repair, but well marked and no drama-


Motorcyclists love these signs 


Some serious earth moving equipment!


It's getting late so we should pick a spot to camp soon. There are many  National Forest campgrounds to choose from along this road and we chose  Pine Flats on account of it's attractive location right above the  Payette River and the fact that there are some wild hotsprings nearby-

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## natalie8

Looking amazing again!!!

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## TonyBKK

We set up camp in record time and hit the trail from the Pine Flats Campground to the nearby wild hot springs-


Came across this little pool... Lukewarm and unimpressive, this can't be it; let's keep going!


The "trail" takes you through the Payette River- COLD!!


Cold and slippery but nothing my little guy couldn't handle 


Another small pool, not terribly hot, this can't be it...


We found it! Wow, it's a hot spring that's fed by a scorching hot waterfall- how cool is that??!?


This amazing wild hotspring is right above the beautiful Payette River- what a spot!


A look up at the waterfall- it was scalding hot- I could stand under it only for a few seconds at a time!


Relaxing in one of the most beautiful wild hotsprings I've ever enjoyed with my beloved boy; as good as it gets! 




The closer you sit to the waterfall the hotter it gets!




Hotspring selfie 


The shadows were getting long but neither of us wanted to leave!


Fortunately I'd brought along food, drinks, warm clothes and flashlights  in case we ended up hiking back to camp in the dark. Ah, here come some  more people. Guess we'll have to share our hotspring 


But, as it turned out, those kids were afraid to follow the trail  through the river so we still had the hotspring all to ourselves 

When we'd get too hot in the main spring we'd wander down to some of the cooler ones below-


Splish splash life is good!


Just before sunset a couple joined us- they were cool and friendly-


Dark now but it looks like me little guy is in no hurry to get back to camp-


I asked the couple to snap a picture of us- father and son enjoying the  hot springs near Pine Flats Campground, Boise National Forest, Idaho,  USA!


Finally it was time to head back to camp. A simple dinner and marshmallows over the fire for dessert, then straight to bed. 

After soaking in the hotsprings for several hours we were so relaxed  that sleep came quickly and easily. Sleeping under the stars and pine  trees with the soothing sound of the rushing river below and by boy  beside me, I never want this to end...

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## natalie8

Very nice!!

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## TonyBKK

Good morning from Pine Flats campground, Boise National Forest, Idaho!


From Pine Flats we enjoyed a brief whack east on the Banks Lowman road-


The Banks Lowman road ends at the junction with the Ponderosa Pine  Scenic Route 21. We hang a left and ride east in the direction of  Stanley-


Another beautiful road!


We hadn't had much of a breakfast yet so stopped at the first restaurant  we came across at the Haven Hot Springs resort for an early lunch-


A unique and quirky little greasy spoon with friendly gun nut owners and more hummingbirds than I've ever seen!


Talking to the owner she said they've had these hummingbird feeders up  for some 17 or 18 years and as a result the area surrounding the  restaurant is thick with beautiful little hummingbirds!






"My President is Charlton Heston"  Yeah, we won't be talking politics here! 


Kristhawee is tickled pink by the hundreds of hummingbirds buzzing around-


Lunch is served!

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## TonyBKK

As we were getting ready to leave the Haven Hot Springs a big group of Porches pulled in- a club from Boise out for a drive-


We continued north-east on the Ponderosa Pine Scenic Route 21-


From Boise National Forest we enter the Challis National Forest-


So many campgrounds along this route!


Sawtooth National Recreation Area-


Cruisin' 


Some impressive mountains off to the south-






Welcome to Stanley, Idaho, population 63! 


We motor on, following the Salmon River in the direction of Challis-


Yet another fantastic motorcycle road!






Green valleys, brown hills, dilapidated buildings-


Abandoned service station-


Smokey the Bear tells us the fire danger is only moderate here, yet they are fighting a big fire nearby...


US Dept of Ag. Yankee Fork Work Center. Wonder what they do here?


What a gorgeous day!!






Crossing the Salmon River-


Zoomin'!


Clayton, Idaho- population 7!!


Now we're riding north on the Salmon River Scenic Byway 75-


A cool old single lane bridge across the Salmon River-


79 miles to Salmon, Idaho!


Hmmm, clouds are getting thicker- looks like we might get wet...


Rain off in the distance-


Here's a sign you don't see every day- Caution- Bighorn Sheep on Highway!


I tell Kristhawee to keep his eyes open for bighorn sheep-




By sheer luck we're still dry-


Wow these are some rugged mountains!


The Salmon River Scenic Byway 75 ends at a T-junction with highway 93.  The sky to the west is dark and threatening. We stop here for fuel and  some food and to assess the weather and our route-


It looks like the storm clouds have passed. As we're getting ready to  hit the road a group of guys pulls in on an interesting mix of bikes-  Ducati Multistrada, Honda VFR, Suzuki V-Strom, and there was a BMW in  the group too-


They're really friendly, it turns out we're all riding in the direction of Salmon and they don't mind at all if we tag along

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## TonyBKK

Let's hit the road with our new friends and push on to Salmon, Idaho! Riding north on the Salmon River Scenic Byway 93-


What a name for a service station! 


Idaho 93 is yet another fantastic motorcycle road!


We may have exceeded the speed limit a bit on this stretch 


This road takes us through some seriously rugged country!


Signs like this mean good times ahead! 


Zoomin'!






An interesting junkyard full of antique tractors-




Continuing north on highway 93-


Storm clouds all around but we never got wet!


Woohoo! We've reached Salmon, Idaho!

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## terry57

Hey Tony. I'm looking at your fuel prices. They are around $4 a gallon.

That's not bad, on my last road trip in Australia a few weeks ago I payed up to $1.88 per liter.     :Confused:

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## TonyBKK

> Hey Tony. I'm looking at your fuel prices. They are around $4 a gallon.
> 
> That's not bad, on my last road trip in Australia a few weeks ago I payed up to $1.88 per liter.


Fuel prices vary a lot from state to state. Prices tend to be higher on the east and west coasts (California is always the most expensive) and cheaper in the west and midwest. 
A real interesting fuel price map at this link:
USA National Gas Price Heat Map - GasBuddy.com

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## TonyBKK

Salmon, Idaho is a trippy little western town- the Owl Club's owl has been peppered with arrows-


Had to stop and get another shot of the owl-


Riding down Main Street-


Lots of deer wandering about- here's a doe and her fawn-


Didn't see any beemers, but plenty of hogs-


Thought about camping at the Lemhi Hole but it was deserted, there were  no facilities and I imagined it could be a bit creepy there after  dark...

While we were there Kristhawee was able to connect with his mom on Skype-

Can you see the three large juvenile birds in the nest behind  Kristhawee? Not sure what they were. Every time we'd get close they  hunker down and hide so never got a very good look at them...

And we checked out the Lehmi Hole fish ladder-


A large nest with some eagles or hawks?



Did a quick search and discovered a nearby full service campground that was perfect- Welcome | Century 2 Campground & RV Park

You can't see it, but this big oak tree is covered in giant cicadas which my son enjoyed catching and playing with 

Century Campground, immaculate grounds, a friendly, if a bit quirky  owner, right on the Salmon River, hot showers and laundry- what more  could you ask for? 




I wasn't in the mood to cook so we went in to town and treated ourselves  to an excellent meal at a Mexican joint right on the river- Fiesta En  Jalisco



Quite decent food, a bit pricey, but what the heck, we deserve to treat ourselves from time to time, don't you agree Kristhawee?


Grand Teaton Brewing makes some mighty fine ales! Cheers! 


After dinner we rode back to the campground and decided to do a little fishing in the Salmon River before bed-


Tomorrow we ride to Wyoming and Yellowstone National Park!!

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## CalEden

I think the birds in the big stick nest are Osprey, your next to the river.

Osprey - Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia

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## TonyBKK

> I think the birds in the big stick nest are Osprey, your next to the river.
> 
> Osprey - Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia


I bet you're right! Cheers!

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## TonyBKK

Good morning from Salmon, Idaho! Found a good breakfast spot in town 

Pancakes and eggs for my little guy- man he can eat!


Overcast and a good chance of rain and thunderstorms today. Oh well, our  Tourmaster riding jackets are pretty waterproofed when you close all  the vents and we've got rain pants as well.

We head out of town on Idaho 28 in the direction of Leadore.

We are following the Lewis and Clark and the Nez Perce Trails-






Takes more than grey skies to dampen our spirits! 


Sacajawea Historic Byway, Idaho 28:


Sacajawea, an "Agaidika" Shoshone woman born around 1788, is known   around the world as a trusted and valuable member of the famed Lewis and   Clark Corps of Discovery. A lesser-known fact, however, is her   historical tie to Idaho's Lemhi Valley where she was born and raised   until the age of twelve. Captured by the Arikira Indians and forced to   live among them in the Mandan Villages of North Dakota, Sacajawea would   not see her home again until becoming part of the Corps of Discovery in   1805. It was during this expedition that she would help Lewis and  Clark  find the Salmon River and revisit her people.
Source: http://www.visitidaho.org/scenic-byw...istoric-byway/

A bit of rain, but that massive screen on the Land Yacht does a good job of protecting us from the elements 


We make good time to the tiny town of Leadore, population 105!


It looked like we could hang a left at Leadore and ride east over the mountains to Interstate 15 in Montana-


Once again we're on the Nez Perce Trail. 

A heartbreaking story accompanies this trail...

The *Nez Perce National Historic Trail* follows the route taken by a large band of the Nez Perce Indian tribe in 1877 during their attempt to flee the U.S. Cavalry and get to Canada, to avoid being forced on to a reservation.

A band of 750 Nez Perce warriors accompanied women, children and   elders; the entire band numbered more than 2900. They were not under any   treaty with the U.S. Government, and fought numerous engagements with the 7th Cavalry during their attempt to reach Canada and escape being forced into an Indian Reservation. Beginning near Wallowa Lake in eastern Oregon, the Nez Perce headed east into Idaho. They crossed Lolo Pass into Montana and fought a major battle at what is now known as Big Hole National Battlefield. After that, the Nez Perce continued traveling south and east, back into Idaho and then into Wyoming entering Yellowstone National Park near West Yellowstone, Montana. The tribe left the park crossing Sylvan Pass and followed the Clarks Fork River   back into Montana. From there the Nez Perce headed almost straight   north for Canada and almost made it. The Nez Perce were near starvation   and exhaustion after fighting their last battle north of the Bear Paw Mountains, less than 40 miles (64 km) from the Canadian border, when they surrendered to U.S. authorities. Chief Joseph   is widely credited with leading the Nez Perce on this journey. He   served as a camp supervisor and guardian, who was entrusted with   handling the logistics of camp and travel, and taking care of the women   and children.[1]
 At the time of the surrender, Chief Joseph was the most prominent   surviving leader among the group; he decided it was time to surrender. A   few members of the tribe did reach Canada, but the vast majority were   relocated to Kansas and Oklahoma for eight years before being allowed to relocate to the reservation in Idaho, near their ancestral home.
Source: Nez Perce National Historic Trail - Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia

Route 29, aka as Railroad Canyon Road climbs up the canyon that divides  Goat Mountain to the north and Elk Mountain to the south-


Just as you're getting into the mountains the pavement ends!   Oh dear, this is a problem I've noticed when route planning with Google  Maps and Apple Maps (TomTom)- neither map gives any indication of what  types of roads to expect... It was some 50 miles to Interstate 15 and I  didn't want to risk that distance on dirt with the Land Yacht,  especially with the possibility of rain, so we made a U-turn and headed  back down to Leadore-


Idaho 29 is better suited to a dualsport than a K1200LT! We continue southeast on Idaho 28-


Continuing south on Idaho 28 the clouds are getting thicker, rain in the distance...




Yeah, we're gonna get wet 


I didn't mind getting rained on, but what surprised me was how cold it got!

The heated grips and seats on the Land Yacht took the edge of though 

Push through the rain to find dry riding on the other side-


Kristhawee got a bit damp, but he's a tough kid and game to press on 


Idaho 28 follows a wide valley with mountains on both sides. I think this is Scott Peak off to the left-




A right on Idaho 22 will take us to Craters of the Moon National  Monument, but that will have to wait for a future trip. We're both  excited to revisit Yellowstone National Park!


We hang a left and ride east to Dubois on Idaho 22-


31 miles to Dubois, Idaho!




Cruising east on Idaho 22- Straight as an arrow!




There's a big service station just off the I15 in Dubois where we stop  for food and fuel and after lunch it looks like Kristhawee takes a power  nap on a pile of firewood 


But off to the west the sky is looking dark and threatening and the  weather is headed our way- best we press on before that storm catches up  with us!


We ride east from Dubois on Clark County A-2


This road is completely deserted and I whack it to try and stay ahead of the storm clouds that are trying to flank us-


No place to take shelter out here! Hopefully we can outrun the storm!


Black skies and lightening behind us!


Slow down... No, sorry, I don't think so 


As we continue east we pass some farms and ranches-

Those mountains off in the distance mark the border between Idaho and Montana.

Doh! I did it again! Once again we're on dirt!  Kristhawee looks rather amused... 


We ask some cows for directions and are rather surprised that they answer 


Well, we're too far along to turn around now. Better to press on!


Thankfully the dirt doesn't go on for too long. I'm happy to see pavement again!


We rode on to West Yellowstone, Montana, the western gateway to Yellowstone National Park!

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## TonyBKK

Welcome to Yellowstone National Park! 


Kristhawee and I are both very excited to revisit Yellowstone! Who's going to spot the first wildlife?


Bison!!


It's  late in the day and most campgrounds are full, but the Ranger at the  West Yellowstone entrance told us there were still some spots available  at the Pebble Creek Campground, which is at the far northeast corner of  the park:

If  Pebble Creek is full there are a bunch of National Forest Campgrounds  just outside the part on the fabulous Beartooth Highway. Let's go!  :happy3:

On the dirt road to the Pebble Creek Campground we spotted a Black bear!


Apparently this young black bear has been hanging around Pebble Creek a lot and the rangers are trying to scare him off-


Sadly,  if a bear loses its fear of humans they can become a nuisance and a  danger and may have to be put down... Hope this guy will make it!


This bear did not seem terribly frightened of the ranger...


But eventually he did wander off...




Well,  as I suspected, Pebble Creek was full, but some super nice folks  invited us to share their spot. Kristhawee was super happy to discover  their son Luca was his age and they hit it off right away-

Can't remember the little girl's name but she was glued to her book the entire time.

We were rewarded with an absolutely stunning sunset that evening!




Wow!


A nice background for dinner, eh? 


Good night!!

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## TonyBKK

Good morning from Pebble Creek Campground, Yellowstone National Park!


Wow, it got cold last night, and it was quite chilly in the morning as  well! Kristhawee and Luca hanging out next to the dew-covered Land Yacht  


Kristhawee went off to explore Pebble Creek-


Lots of cute ground squirrels running about-




Have fun little guy, but don't fall in!


I was so grateful to our hosts for letting us share their campsite, but  didn't want to wear out our welcome, so wandered about and found an  awesome spot that had just been vacated- Pebble Creek campsite 22 is a  peach!


We set up in our new site, saddled up, and hit the road!

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## TonyBKK

*Father and son ride to Mammoth Hot Springs, Yellowstone National Park!

*Good morning from Pebble Creek Campground in Yellowstone National  Park! Today we're going to ride to Mammoth Hotsprings and pick up a  Junior Ranger workbook from the Visitor Center. It's a beautiful day! 

We ride west through the Lamar Valley-

The roads are in good repair and traffic is surprisingly light-

Holy smokes! What is that brown animal on the yonder hill? Could it be?? 

A Grizzly Bear!!

Looks  like a young one, not that I've ever seen a Grizzly Bear in the wild.  (I suppose it might even be an oddly colored Black Bear?) Regardless-  it's magnificent!!


Kristhawee  and I were both so excited to have seen a Grizzly in the wild! Memories  I'll never forget! A little further on we saw a beautiful red fox  saunter casually across the road in front of us and then stop on the  shoulder to watch us ride by. I guess with no hunting in the park these  animals aren't so shy of humans. Motoring on-

Majestic Yellowstone!

Off in the distance- Mammoth Hot Springs!

Welcome to Mammoth Hot Springs! The place was packed, but no matter how _dickish_ the parking, we always find a spot to squeeze in the Land Yacht 

Mammoth Hotsprings has a really cool National Park Visitor Center. What kid doesn't like a sign that says "PLEASE TOUCH" 

A seriously pissed looking Mountain Lion... Guess I'd be pissed too if someone stuffed me and put me behind glass 

Bighorn sheep-

Beaver!

Time for lunch! There's a big general store in Mammoth Hotsprings where we picked up some beverages and picnic supplies-

 Man that Grand Teton Brewing Co. Sweetgrass American Pale Ale is good stuff!!
Bonne Appetit!

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## TonyBKK

After lunch and a fun time romping around playing tag with a really nice  family with a gaggle of kids Kristhawee was keen to go fishing, and the  Ranger at the Visitor Center recommended a nearby spot. Let's go!


I'm forgotten the name of this little lake, but it's a beautiful spot  and to get to it you have to ride through the Mammoth Hot Springs  maintenance area and employee housing, and it was kind of cool to see  all the huge winter snow removal trucks and tractors sitting out in the  warm sun.


We worked our way around the lake and could see a lot of trout, but as  usual, they mocked us and weren't interested in any of the lures we  threw at them...


Fish or no fish, I'm just happy to be outdoors with my boy and I think he feels the same 


We get a bit of rain, but nothing serious, and finally we admit defeat  to the trout and get ready to head back to camp where perhaps we might  have better luck in Pebble Creek. 


Bye bye gorgeous little lake and clever little fish! 


Riding east to Pebble Creek the sky is stormy and there are spots of wet  on the road, but somehow we manage to dodge the weather and make it  back dry-




The dirt road to the Pebble Creek Campground is in pretty good shape,  but there are some steep bits that would not be fun in the wet on the  big Land Yacht!


I wonder if we'll see that cute Black Bear again today?


Home Sweet Home

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## JBaker

> I think the birds in the big stick nest are Osprey, your next to the river.
> 
> Osprey - Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia


I think it might be a bald eagle. They nest exactly like that along rivers. The pic is back lighted so it's hard to tell, but it might (I think does) have white head and cape. I've seen lots of them when fishing from a drift boat.

Bald eagle - Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia

I'm traveling right now, in a motel in Ontario Oregon, just at the Idaho border. Tomorrow I go across S. Idaho on I-84 and drop down to the Great Salt Lake.

These pictures are really representative of the Western US, and the OP is doing a great job of showing and telling it like it is.

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## JBaker

Another thing - as you were approaching Crater Lake you took a picture of a steep, jagged and pointed mountain. It almost looks as though it's leaning. You mentioned you didn't know what it is. It's Mt. Thielson. 

LINK

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