I took off last Saturday with a loose plan of riding up to Banff on the BMW.  The crushing heat in Oregon and Washington made me change my mind.  Instead I rode up to Seattle to visit some friends and came back along the coast. 



Saturday - SJ to Grants Pass, OR, taking 101 to 199.  If you haven't ridden 199, you're really missing something.  It's a great road with amazing views and, at least when I was on it, wide open.  I put on about 520 miles, which is a pretty long day on a stock seat. 

Stopping for a break in Leggett, CA.  They charge $5 so you can drive through a tree, but they seem to have a monopoly on the only restroom in town. 



Reaching Oregon:




Sunday - Grants Pass to Seattle, ~400 miles.  Was in a bit of a hurry to get up to Seattle so I took I-5 north.  I-5 isn't a bad road when you start, but eventually Oregon turns into Kansas and road becomes insufferable.  Coupled with the heat, I was ready to find a hotel with a pool and call it a day but I pushed on to Seattle, where sushi and loads a booze would be waiting. 



I honestly don't remember much after sushi.  Went a few doors down and ended up drinking furiously with some of the bar staff.  Eventually made it back to my hotel.


Monday - Seattle to Newport, OR, ~350 miles.  My plan was to make more distance on Monday but the construction delays on 101 in addition to just getting to 101 from I-5 slowed me down.  I cut over on 12 to reach 101 more quickly but this backfired.  In retrospect, I should've gone farther south on I-5 and taken 30 west along the Columbia River to 101. 

At the Columbia River:



The Oregon coast really is beautiful.  It reminds me of the Maine coast but on a larger scale:



In the end, I made it to Newport, OR and paid far too much for a hotel room:



At this point the stock seat on the K is a cruel joke.  Looking forward to replacing it with something more comfortable, like a nest of fire ants or some broken glass. 


Tuesday - Newport to San Jose, ~630 miles.  Not much to say about the final push.  After three long days, the stock seat on the K has become the devil's throne and I have stop every 2 hours for a break.  Once I got back into California I got to look forward to 101 as a highway with all of the fun that entails.  I made it home at 22:30.



Overall I'd say it was a good first long ride on the K.  Other than the seat, the bike was outstanding and handled everything very well.  Having cruise control was a huge bonus and heated grips helped along the coast when temps dropped into the upper 50s.  I didn't really have any equipment problems.  I need to get better about being less destination oriented and more about the trip itself.  I had 9 days off and only used 4. 

Next up is the 1500 mile Iron Butt ride, hopefully later this month. 

Quote from: sugarcrook on August 02, 2009, 01:09:39 PM

At this point the stock seat on the K is a cruel joke.  Looking forward to replacing it with something more comfortable, like a nest of fire ants or some broken glass. 

  Perfect! I've had that same feeling myself, although about the stock monster seat.

Great write-up. Yeah, definitely stop and smell the roses more. That said, I tend to be like you. Take Hwy 1 down to LA and then realize when I get there I never stopped for pictures. 

Looks like a great time    [moto]

That's great!  Way to break-in the new bike .

nice ride

Thanks for the comments. 

Yeah, it was a good ride.  At the very least I saw some new stuff and was reminded how much I really like Seattle. 

wow what a ride. How was riding on I5?    That whole area from the Oregon border through Eugene is pretty gorgeous. But the trucks/ Winnebagos etc?

Quote from: Desmostro on August 03, 2009, 09:59:44 AM
wow what a ride. How was riding on I5?    That whole area from the Oregon border through Eugene is pretty gorgeous. But the trucks/ Winnebagos etc?

I think "insufferable" was the word he used. 

I-5 has to be the most soul-sucking, mind-numbing way to get from A to B ever invented.  Plus if you ride in the truck lane the pavement is like the surface of the moon. Yeesh.

I-5 Northbound is reasonably fun from Grants Pass until you hit Eugene.  Then it gets flat, straight and completely boring.  Also lots of construction going on.  

If you try a trip like this again, hit up the back roads east of I-5 and come stay with Mother and I on Mt. Hood. We'll feed you and give you a place to sleep.

I'll take you up on it, although you have to admit it sounds like a plot to a horror movie. 

Quote from: sugarcrook on August 03, 2009, 01:31:37 PM
I'll take you up on it, although you have to admit it sounds like a plot to a horror movie. 

Well....there are a lot of good places to bury a body out here...and Mother is a weird dude....

Quote from: sugarcrook on August 03, 2009, 01:31:37 PM
I'll take you up on it, although you have to admit it sounds like a plot to a horror movie. 

I hear they need cheap dog food.

Quote from: JBubble on August 03, 2009, 11:22:05 AM
If you try a trip like this again, hit up the back roads east of I-5 and come stay with Mother and I on Mt. Hood. We'll feed you and give you a place to sleep.

Watch out for all the boring and sandy areas!

Wow - we just did Mill Valley to Seattle and back (about 2400 miles over about 9 riding days - up the coast and down through Rainier, Hood then cut over at Grants Pass back to the coast) and I was going to post a report and pics shortly.  I really love your pics.  The focus of our trip seemed to be beer (there had to be a brewery within walking distance from our evening lodging, and Newport OR was actually our favorite brewery) and cheese.  We did a little more stopping and smelling the roses than you did, but we had our 13 year old daughter on my husband's bike on the return trip from Seattle.

I was thinking the same thing about the Oregon coast being a lot like Maine.  Funny.

Great report!!!