Willits and more!!

[Capn Ron]

Day 8 - Burns, OR to Meridian, ID (about 200 miles)

I left the lively town of Burns, OR and set my sights on Meridian, ID.  For the geographically challenged, Meridian is about 10 miles west of Boise, where my sister lives.  You would think that I'd just stay with her...sleep on the couch...on the living room floor...  Well, her place is so small, ("How small is it???")  Glad you asked.  It's so small, that you have to go outside to change your mind!  Okay...not really that small, but there isn't a free 6'2" horizontal space anywhere in that tiny apartment!    I was all set to grab some airport-esque hotel near the Boise airport when George (Movenon) graciously offered to put me up.  Now, I don't want George to get flooded with requests for hospitality, so all I'll say is this:  Very nice accommodations...He and his wife were gracious hosts and both made me feel right at home!  When I arrived, I got the run-down, "Come and go as you please, beer's in the fridge and tools are in the garage...Help yourself!"  It was great staying with you George!!!

I don't get to see my sister very often, but it was a nice visit.  She took a few days off from her *very* busy schedule to spend time with me...re-connecting with family is a good thing.  So, we got together for a great dinner and had some laughs.  Over the next few days, we went up to the old mining town of Idaho City for a walking tour:



Saw the "Pest House":



Which apparently comes from the word "Pestilence"



Complete with a patient in the bed in the corner:



I have a thing for old blacksmith shops...after all, it's where the first mechanics came out of:



It was a great day...we even stopped off at a museum there and learned a lot of the history of the town and surrounding mining operations.  We finished the day with a most excellent meal at a basque restaurant where you are genuinely made to feel as if you're part of the family!  During my remaining time in Boise, I saw a goose:



Walked some great city parks:



Saw some more geese and their little geeslings...



And even crossed over a gorge that was...wait for it...gorgeous!



What a great time I had!  It's easy to figure out where you are in life...but spending time with family reminds you of where you're from.

I puttered with the bike a bit on the last night in the garage with George...we exchanged FJ theory and stories while I lubed the chain and wiped the bike down getting her ready for the next leg of this journey...Heading off to Utah!

[movenon]

The pleasure was ours Ron . !  Mary and I really enjoyed your company.  Keep the posts and pictures coming. 
George

[Flynt]

I will soon be posting info for the Renegade Rally...

Hey Mark, any update on this?  Diane and I have a charity bicycle ride Sept 6th and a wedding in Fl Sept 20th, but I'm in for the 13th or 27th.  We're also happy to lead a tour of greater San Jose area on the 14th or 28th for those wanting a 2 day excursion and a visit to Alice's.

Frank

[X-Ray]

Your kidding! How have I only seen this thread now? Excellent trip report Ron, love it, and the scenery is just...... wow. 

[FeralRdr]

Capn?  I just noticed that you didn't post up about your journey through Utah.   

[Firehawk068]

Capn?  I just noticed that you didn't post up about your journey through Utah.   

Or his journey to Colorado..................

[Capn Ron]

Capn?  I just noticed that you didn't post up about your journey through Utah.   

Thanks for noticing and for giving me the swift kick in the ass.     A major piece of news when I got home from the WCR has set in motion a lot of life adjustments that have distracted me from finishing up the ride report.  It's always been in the back of my mind and enough water has gone under the bridge now to finish this one up.  For those who jumped in with support, advice...or even just a sympathetic ear (you all know who you are), I am forever grateful.   

Okay, let's see now...where was I?  Ohhh, yes, my wonderful stay with George in Meridian, ID and visiting with my sister for a few days.  That's a friends and family visit I won't soon forget!  So...I had a few route options to head east toward Utah.  The typical route mapping puts you on the I-84 basically super slabbing it through the desert heat.  NO THANK YOU!  I chose this route instead:



Well, that was the intention anyway.  To knock out 375 miles and camp in "Goodenough Creek".  Seemed like an out of the way place where I would likely be the only person around and it was just a few bucks.  Perfect!  So off I went heading up along the Payette and Salmon Rivers and the Sawtooth Mountains of Idaho.  Just simply gorgeous!  The road ran right along the river for nearly an hour...Spectacular!



From there, I gained altitude heading up towards the Sawtooth Mountains.  More great roads, nice cool weather and amazing views:



Putting on extra miles to avoid the interstates is always worth it and I was happy to be knocking out miles on the FJ!   

After descending out of the Sawtooth mountains, I knew I was in for a lot of straight desert type roads...just nothing I could do about that.  By the time I was nearing Pocatello, ID, I was getting road-weary and I started thinking that an inexpensive hotel would be nice.  I tooled around town a bit and the places at $65 were looking rough.  When you're traveling, you always have this decision matrix that includes:  price, comfort, showers, tiredness at the moment, whats my food situation?, miles to go and so on.  At $65 bucks, I decided to press on and find the Goodenough Creek camping area.  That was the plan anyway.  I rolled south for a while and headed off on West Goodenough Road.  I tried my best, but I could not find it after 30 minutes of riding around on dirt roads:



There was no creek and it wasn't "Good Enough"

As tenacious as I usually am when it comes to dirt roads, I gave up and plotted a route to a town called Soda Springs due east adding another 40 miles to my day's ride.  I got a hotel there for $40...yep.  It wasn't anything fancy, but it was a comfortable bed and a shower in the morning.  The owner was most kind and his wife ran the Chinese restaurant that was attached to the place, so I had dinner all sorted out.  I think my fortune cookie read:  "You will have many dirt roads in your future."

It was a great day and I covered a bit over 400 miles. 

[Steve_in_Florida]

...you always have this decision matrix that includes:  price, comfort, showers, tiredness at the moment...

You forgot the cockroach to guest ratio, or is that only a "southern" thing? (This COULD fall into the "comfort" category, I suppose.)

Otherwise, I hope things are working out for you.

Good report.

Steve

[Firehawk068]

The "Craters Of The Moon" National Monument looks interesting................

[FeralRdr]

Thank you sir for continuing the journey. 

[Capn Ron]

The "Craters Of The Moon" National Monument looks interesting................

I went back and forth on that one!  I was even thinking of staying the night in a campground there, but in the end I went for the more interesting motorcycle roads.

Next time I'm up that way I'll check it out...Hey a slight adjustment of the route from the 2015 WCR to the Black Hills Rally puts me right there! 

[Firehawk068]

The "Craters Of The Moon" National Monument looks interesting................

I went back and forth on that one!  I was even thinking of staying the night in a campground there, but in the end I went for the more interesting motorcycle roads.

Next time I'm up that way I'll check it out...Hey a slight adjustment of the route from the 2015 WCR to the Black Hills Rally puts me right there! 

I don't care how the F**K you get there, as long as you head back through Colorado on your way home, so we can tag-team some of these roads over here!

[Capn Ron]

As mentioned in the previous post, I rode the 40 miles from "Goodenough Creek" to Soda Springs to get a room for the night.  That bit of a ride was uneventful, but took me through some areas that looked like summer resorts.  There were quite a few campgrounds along the way and I wondered if I should have held off on my hotel reservation.  I was quite tired though and the thought of a bed at the end of this ride was appealing:



The next morning, I got up and rode around the little town of Soda Springs a bit.  I got breakfast at the Subway in town and then got on the road.  The next two days of riding took me 500 or so miles along this route to Bicknell, UT:



I looked for the squiggliest roads on the navigation app...and wouldn't you know it, I did another 20 miles of dirt ranch roads.  I loved it!  I focused mainly on the riding and didn't take many pictures...I did ride up and around Fish Lake.  If you're ever in that area, it's well worth the ride!



I found myself in Bicknell, UT at the Aquarius Inn for the night.  Nothing too special, but quite friendly and comfortable.  I had a route planned for the next day, but the stretch from St George to home (Los Angeles) was weighing heavily on me.  I knew that run was going to be well over 100 degrees for 400 miles and I didn't yet have a good solution around that.

[Capn Ron]

I was enjoying my ride up in the 9,000 foot range...mostly because this is a part of Utah I haven't seen before.  Gorgeous lakes, beautiful mountains, perfect roads...  A great place to be on a motorcycle!





It was the  perfect end to a great day of riding!

Waking up in Bicknell, UT this morning was nothing to write home about, but it was a pleasant town to be sure.  I stopped off at a local diner and had one of the best breakfasts I've ever eaten.  Maybe you could chalk it up to the perfect "scrambled soft" eggs...Maybe it was all of the locals asking me about my trip...where I was coming from...where would I end up at the end of the day.  Maybe...just MAYBE it was the perfectly crispy, thick-sliced, maple bacon...  Yeah, that must have been it!

Today's ride took me from Bicknell, UT to St. George, UT and looked like this:



That was 257 miles of SPECTACULAR southern Utah riding!

Now, anyone who has ridden the 12 through that area will understand...The pictures...as much as I tried, cannot possibly do justice to that road!  In places, it's a strip of pavement along the spine of a mountain peak...



Signs I LOVE to see:







As you wind your way around this surreal environment, you drop down into canyons and climb back up to have a good look at them:



Anyone who has even the slightest excuse to explore southern Utah...I highly encourage it!



As highway 12 goes, you get a lot of VERY interesting terrain!



One of the great roads in the southwest!!



On my way west to the I-15, I rode through some great mountain passes.  It's easy to see why this is my favorite part of the US!



I have a real problem to solve for tomorrow.  It's going to be well over 100 degrees in Las Vegas..as well as the 300 miles onward toward home.  I really don't want to endure that much heat in all my riding gear!  I'll figure something out I'm sure!

[FJmonkey]

Awesome dude....