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Arctic Circle Journey (USA Southeast / Midwestern states)

41K views 75 replies 37 participants last post by  JMS 
#1 · (Edited)
First off apologies about taking so long to come out with this trip report. At first I started off trying to write one big long trip report but my writing skills are below average on a good day. So I figured it would be best to write it out in chunks and answer questions along the way :).

Day 4: I start out on Day 4 because I didnt take any photos on my ride through Alabama so the trip report will be starting in Nashville Tn



So there she is my mighty steed, all two hundred and fifty cubic centimeters of thunderous fury. Just fueling up for the day in Nashville ready for the challenges of the great white north.
Before I get too far into this I'd like to give you guys my packing of list of what I took along with me

Gear:
Scorpion helmet
alpinestars artic gloves
alpinestars messenger jacket
alpinestars boots
dragon jeans

Clothes:
wind breaker
three long sleeve micro fabric running shirts
One pair of sweat pants
One pair of regular shorts
One pair of running shorts
Three pairs of socks
Three pairs of underwear

Tools
24mm wrench
12mm wrench
14mm wrench
10mm allen wrench
duct tape (a must have)
jb weld

Motorcycle gear
Tea bag with tool pouch top
two cheaply made walmart saddle bags for holding my fuel cans.
(report continued in next post)
 
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#2 ·
(..continued)

So after a few hundred miles or so of riding I am now in.....

Kentucky!





I really enjoyed land between the lakes. I've been through here before on other motorcycle road trips but this is always a fun peaceful ride in the early fall after a lot of the tourist have gone home. It was a good warm up for the mark twain national forest on highway 19 in Missouri.

and speaking of missouri......




 
#3 ·
(...continued)
The southern side of Missouri (winona and hwy 19 in paticular) was very enjoyable lots of high speed sweepers with a nice facade of green all around me. However soon the state of Missouri turned into a state of misery and the rest of my ride through was a boxing match with a rain system.
I ended up getting soaked to the bone (should've brought rain gear with me) but whatever i'm a florida boy riding in the rain is what I do 6 months out of the year anyways.

After spending a night just outside columbia using an Iron to dry off my soaked clothes it was on ward to Iowa/Nebraska







Now I have to explain I decided to cheat a little and take I-29 (interstates yuck!) north to south dekota or so that was the plan. However flooding as you can see in that second picture had me frequently detouring into and out of both Iowa and Nebraska.
Eventually I become a little annoyed by it (although the adventure was welcomed) and went straight into the middle of Nebraska and made my way north to Murdo South Dekota





Then I spent the next morning riding the badlands which are really cool.I also rode by this HUGE field of sunflowers; its stuff like that I enjoy running into on my road trips. Its like all the rock formations were just laid on top of the land. Its interesting that in such a huge flat state this little corner just suddenly pops out of nowhere.
I have to wonder what the first settlers thought of this when they first found it.






Racing through the black hills.....


and its onward to Wyoming....
 
#7 ·
(...continued)

Okay so I've got time for one more small chapter of photos then its off to bed with me (work at 8am tomorrow)

Wyoming is a state where everybody immediately thinks "yellow stone" well I learned that about 50% of the state is as flat as South Dekota (although there was still some good views). Funny enough I met a guy from a town not far from mine who was moving to Gillete Wyoming. For now I'll spare everybody pics of the flat stuff (we already got plenty of that from south dekota) so here's all the yellow stone pics.










I ended up not getting out of yellow stone until nearly 8 o clock at night. With a dead camera battery I sadly didnt capture any pics as I raced down Washburn mountain with the sunset behind me. The experience of riding up down and around those twisty mountains with the animals and scenery was almost a religious one.
As a result of getting out of yellow stone so late and with the bear tooth highway under construction I had to ride the chief joseph highway at night back to cody wyoming. Look up the road and you will realize how dangerous of a ride that is lol.

.....and a teaser for tomorrows report........
 
#12 ·
(...continued)
As a result of getting out of yellow stone so late and with the bear tooth highway under construction I had to ride the chief joseph highway at night back to cody wyoming. Look up the road and you will realize how dangerous of a ride that is lol.
Chief Joseph is spectacular (as is Beartooth). I don't want to hijack your ride report again, but I can supply pics of both CJH and Beartooth. We stopped at the summit of the CJH - 9000ft just as the sun was coming up. Breathtaking, especially at 28F!

I'm afraid of heights, but you don't get that sensation on the CJH. You DO on Beartooth! I almost pee'd myself and cried like a little girl breaking over the summit and looking straight down at switchbacks below.
 
#11 ·
Yes fantastic pics Owl and a stunning adventure it must have been. And wow on that Chief Joseph Way at night!

Which brings me to my question for all you USA CBR'er. How bad is the animal hazard riding at night? Do Bison or Deer etc walk out onto the road? Over here riding in any bush surrounded area, or even outback scrub of a night just about anywhere across the continent is risky at best!...as in Roo's everywhere.
 
#15 ·
Depends on what part of the country you are in you will find anything from alligators, rattlesnakes, deer, coyotes to bison, bears, wolves, and more. Of course this isn't limited to night riding, but you encounter animals on the road much more often at night than during the day.

Just the other day I encountered a 5 foot rattlesnake crossing the road on my way home for lunch.
 
#16 ·
I thought I might feel the same way crossing west on my first trip through the Canadian prairies and Rocky Mountains. You'd expect the flat land to be dull. However, it really has a charm of its own - if you look for it. The wind on the prairies can be pretty incredible. Not boring at all. The sunsets can be absolutely stunning. Nothing dull there. The wheat fields - as they undulate with the breeze like cilia responding to sound waves on the organ of corti. Mesmerizing. The wonderfully fresh smell of cow $hit - um well.... Seeing a city emerge out over the horizon - so many miles away. Inspiring.

Mike
 
#19 ·
(continued..)

Right so we did the sight seeing thing in yellow stone and learned a new respect of riding mountain highways at night (read:chief joseph hwy) At this point in the adventure I'm getting road weary but Montana/glacier national park breathed some new energy into me. Alright now for the cool part...PICS!





Now for glacier national park (probably one of my favorite parks on the entire trip)

Zooming along.....



^^
The guy in this pic probably didn't realize how useful he was to be there. I think his presence gives the photo a better size perspective of just how epic the scenery is.

Everything was going smooth and fast until......

Construction......No big deal I'm patient it just gave me more time to take photos and the gravel riding was good practice.







and then canada shows up.....
 
#20 ·
That was an awesome trip report Owl. Please give us some more info on how you did on the bike and how the bike did.( mileage, vibration, wind protection, comfort, seat time, speed, etc...) My wife and I are contemplating some trips and I'm wondering how the 250 would do on such a long ride. She's so comfortable on her's I'd hate for her to change just for a bigger motor.
 
#21 ·
That was an awesome trip report Owl. Please give us some more info on how you did on the bike and how the bike did.( mileage, vibration, wind protection, comfort, seat time, speed, etc...) My wife and I are contemplating some trips and I'm wondering how the 250 would do on such a long ride. She's so comfortable on her's I'd hate for her to change just for a bigger motor

The bike did EXCELLENT. In terms of overall cost it was much cheaper then my old yzf600r especially gas. I ended up only changing out a chain and front tire on the entire 12,000 mile ride (the trip ended up being 11,998 miles i believe)

Gas mileage wise it was still giving me a good solid 70mpg even loaded down with 20lbs of gear (i pack really light and I'm also only 138lbs)
I kept the bike stock for the most part no modifications at all but if I had to do it again I would get a cramp buster or some kind of throttle lock.
Climbing mountains.....well that was kind of an adventure lol. Lets just say the only things I could out climb were the semi trucks and bicyclist haha.

If your wife is small like me; comfort even on a long day shouldn't be too bad but I would deff get a better seat (a corbin perhaps?)
My longest day on the bike was a 670 mile day so you can deff knock out some miles but I would say anything over 300miles and you will start feeling a little tired (fighting wind turbulence mainly)
As far as speed goes I mostly stayed on secondary roads I dont think the little 250 motor likes to go over 65mph for extremely long periods of time.
 
#22 ·
"i'm a florida boy riding in the rain is what I do 6 months out of the year anyways"


just rode in light rain today.

that trip sucked (just kidding that just internet talk for: that trip was awesome !)
600+ miles in one day ! you must have sleep'd good that night.my personal best is 300+ on a kawi. i was beat.how much was your avg. spending money per day ? basic stuff like food , gas & sleep.
& has any one else driving this bike in the rain because that downshift to first is slippery !
if you are still reading this-what is your personal best in one day ?
300+on the kawi
almost 200 on the cbr250
 
#23 ·
how much was your avg. spending money per day ? basic stuff like food , gas & sleep.
& has any one else driving this bike in the rain because that downshift to first is slippery !
My average spending per day varied depending on what state/country I was in. In some places food and gas were really cheap and so my daily budget was as low as 40 bucks and as high as 130 dollars per day.
The trip cost me a total of 3800 dollars so my cost per mile was 31 cents. I deff should have budgeted better but I like my creature comforts at the end of a long day (AC, shower, buying a few friends dinner, ect)

if you are still reading this-what is your personal best in one day ?
My personal best day is the one where I arrived to my destination safely. Keeping track of mileage is fun but keeping track of sleep is more important :)
 
#27 ·
My average spending per day varied depending on what state/country I was in. In some places food and gas were really cheap and so my daily budget was as low as 40 bucks and as high as 130 dollars per day.
The trip cost me a total of 3800 dollars so my cost per mile was 31 cents. I deff should have budgeted better but I like my creature comforts at the end of a long day (AC, shower, buying a few friends dinner, ect)



My personal best day is the one where I arrived to my destination safely. Keeping track of mileage is fun but keeping track of sleep is more important :)
thank you.very useful information.sorry mongoose but there is a new screen saver in town. that picture of the cbr coming up on the arctic circle is sick !
pictures of the bike with nice scenery are :cool:
 
#24 ·
(continued..)

Alright its my day off so that means I have time to bring out some more pics/thoughts.

Anyways canada was really awesome the speed limit was 100 and gas was only 1.25 ;)

The first thing to greet me after an hour or two of riding was lake columbia





and then after a night in Radium I rode through banff/jasper national park.




I ended up getting turned around in prince george and instead of taking the cassier I ended up at mile 0 of the alaska highway so I followed that from dawson creek to fairbanks




*sigh* more construction.....


After a good day of battling dust, construction and gravel I'm finally in the yukon...








(coming up alaska and the artic circle....)
 
#29 ·
(continued..)
and then.....
The big grin says it all.

Well done, and thanks for taking us along through your pictures.

An inspiration.....

Now, to get hold of a digital camera and keep a record of my trips in future.

I still have not replaced the 35mm Nikon I gave to an ex girlfriend's brother when he started studying journalism a few years back.
 
#32 ·
I am super impressed. I thoroughly enjoyed the post journey you took us on. I live right by Banff and have rode the Banff/Jasper parkways many, many times. I recognize the mountain in one of the pics you took on highway 93, on way to Jasper. Beautiful ride and many opportunities to see wildlife which is always more thrilling when seen from a bike. Once I was a stones throw from a black bear scrambling across the shoulder into the bush. I "wahoo'd" inside my helmet lol Some nice twisities as well. Thanks for sharing your journey and congrats on the successful ride. You're wee 250 was a reliable ride. Awesome hey? :D
 
#33 ·
How often did you end up using your auxiliary fuel cans? Lots of bugs on your face shield? The guys at ADVrider will appreciate your accomplishment if you wanted to post a link over there.
I actually ended up never needing the extra fuel. The little cbr just has an excellent fuel range. I did almost run out of gas on the cassier highway on the way back to the united states but otherwise no problems.
I think if you use a little common sense and fuel up when you know the next fuel stop could be another 150 miles the cbr250 can handle an expedition level tour.

I am planning a more permanent side case hard luggage for use on my next big road trip. I would like to go to the southern tip of south america next and I really think the little cbr is the ideal bike for it.
 
#36 ·
I am planning a more permanent side case hard luggage for use on my next big road trip. I would like to go to the southern tip of south america next and I really think the little cbr is the ideal bike for it.
Tierra Del Fuego on a CBR. Ride the Darien Gap and laugh at those GS riding wannabe's!

Seriously though, a tip of the hat to you and a high five. Epic journey on a small bike. I'm jonesing for a set of hard bags for the CBR. Somebody posted a pic form Thailand of a CBR with a set of Givi V35's on it. It looks awesome! So much so that I'm considering fabbing up a set to my bike. But I'll wait over the winter to see if anybody else comes up with a kit.

I'd shy away of a top case on the CBR. My Givi (V46) is VERY noticeable on the back of a 650lb FJR areodynamically speaking (invokes a low amplitude weave at hwy speeds. Throw on a passenger or a camping gear and it goes away). I can't imagine what it'd feel like on the CBR at nearly half the weight.

For touring, hard bags are the way to go! Secure, waterproof and reliable.. I got spoiled on my FJR with it's bags.
 
#34 ·
[Owl, how are those tires looking, last another 12K?/QUOTE]

Before the trip I switched out the stock tires for michelin pilot actives. The only reason i had to replace the front was because a rock lodged its way into the tire. The rear still had rubber even at 12k but it was looking really squared off.

I just had the tires replaced with IRC road winners again but I went with a larger 150 rear and it really smooths out some of the chatter I would get on the 140.
 
#37 ·
Before the trip I switched out the stock tires for michelin pilot actives.
Hum.. I was looking at what's available in CBR sizes and found Michelin PR2's are available in CBR sizes. I've been running these on my big bike for the last 2 years and typically get 25,000 km out of them. Keep in mind the FJR absolutely EATS tires, it's typical on regular street sport bike tires to only get 5000km out of a set! It actually costs more in tires than it does in gas!

Their spendy to be sure, but I think they'd be pretty much a lifetime tire on the CBR. They handle great, stick VERY well (dual compound), are great in the rain, ride well. I pretty much guarantee when the time comes, I'll be swapping the road winners (who named those things!) for the PR2 or PR3's.
 
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