Well, I snagged my first two dams for the season, but it wasn't exactly according to plan and learned I've got a laundry list of bike and farkle maintenance before I go do more riding.
I had grandiose plans of scooping up Mill Creek and Lower Granite last weekend, but just couldn't get my new HID lights set up in time and the nose back on my FJR. I did get them sorted out Friday morning and pointed the bike east from the Tri-Cities around 2 p.m. and figured I'd snag them and them by sunset...then spend the night somewhere on the way to some in Oregon on Saturday.
I did get Mill Creek at 3:30 and pointed east through Dayton and Deadman's road. The GPS suggested a gravel road with a grade, but I thought better of it (a wise move I would later find out) and added the 5+ miles to arc down via tarmac and go by an area I had mispent some of my youth back in WSU days.
The Columbia was glassy as the shadows grew long. I arrived at Lower Granite at 5:06. I tried park in the visitor area for a close-up, but was shoed out by a very cranky man that wouldn't even let me spend minute to take a picture. Oh well, it was Friday and he probably was headed to Moscow to party.
My picture ended up being outside the fence, but captured the spillways pretty well.
Feeling good I plugged in Wolf Creek into the GPS and pondered the suggested route....which probably naturally wanted me to cross the dam and go towards Amota and Pullman. But, I knew that the same hurried dam guy also probably closed the gate across the dam....if it was open to the public anyway.
Dam this dam!
I looked upstream and saw more road, but wondered if it continued. The GPS grudingly did show an alternative to Clarkston, but as I married up the squiggly line on the Garmin with a "Primitive Road" sign I knew this was going to be sketchy.
And for those considering this as an option...let me dissuade you from trying what I did (unless you're sketchier than I am) Wawawai Grade is not a very good option for those wanting to save time, miles, or explore.
https://maps.google.com/maps?f=q&source...077162&z=14
First there's a "Primitive Road" sign near the dam. That doesn't scare me and my dualsport FJR!
Then some vaguely placed "No Trespassing" signs that I chose to interpret as not the road itself, but side drives to who knows where.
Then a fence with a sign that says the road has been closed by order of the County....but plenty of room to ride by about a mile in. OK, I admit at this point I probably should have turned back, but did I tell you my FJR is really a dual sport and the goat trail looked fun?
There were a couple ATV tracks and that quickly yielded to no tracks and vegetation across the whole trail. That gave way to steep pitches with horse hoof marks and then those gave way to game trails crossing the path.
Then 3 miles in a fence with padlock and what I'm sure was a No Trespassing sign the other way. Bummer was that the road looked much better past it, but since I'm not so sketchy that I carry bolt cutters with me I turned back in the fading sunlight.
Riding past the dam I stopped at breathtaking sunset and remembered that Lewis and Clark floated by this very spot a little over 200 years earlier.
As the sun faded and dark set in I realized my new High/Low HID Conversion lights were aimed horribly. It would take me hours and many a flash from oncoming traffic to get them right, but once I did I was able to check off one of my items for this ride.
It's when I got into Clarkston that wheels started to fall off this extended ride. I stopped for dinner at a Chinese restaurant, but about 15 minutes after I ate I realized I had made a bad choice. Chicken Tsu Yuk or whatever it was named.....didn't agree with my stomach.
As I summoned my inner Iron Butt self I started up the grade out of Asotin and felt the tail squirm...and squirm worse and worse. I pulled over as close the guard rail as I could on a clear stretch and checked the rear tire. Totally flat...it had thrown a plug I put in back in November.
This was the first time I've had a plug go bad and tried another, but aimed the bike back towards Clarkston just in case. Good thing I did because 1/2 between Asotin and Clarkston it went flat again...this time an even sketchier guard rail area leaving my bike across the white line.
Fortunately, a WSP literally was oncoming and followed me as I got off the bike and jogged along-side under minimal idle power to a turn-off and street light a few hundred yards around the corner.
Winded and stomach tied in a knot the Chicken Tsu Yuk was REALLY unagreeable at this point. I barely made it through thank yous with Mr. Trooper and as he was driving off I promptly expelled dinner into the weeds. Fried rice is pretty bad coming back up.
Taking some time I tried another plug, tried to tilt the bike away from the wound, and made it 4 miles to a motel across the street from Mac's motorcycle shop. Although the plug stayed I could see it was working itself out and the glue wasn't curing. So, I checked in, pulled the plug, and tried one more setting overnight.
Once morning came I got rid of the remaining parts of dinner that didn't get expelled and rode the bike a it for a couple miles, but saw the plug moving out. No way I'd make it back 130 miles so I stopped at Mac's and got a new tire.
Defeated I decided to head back home afterwards and chalk up the two dams as a shake-down cruise. Good thing I did because as they mounted the new tire they observed a set of bearing going out....so I rumbled home on a sketchy set of bearings and now headed to find some replacements.
Two dams down, 18 to go!
I had grandiose plans of scooping up Mill Creek and Lower Granite last weekend, but just couldn't get my new HID lights set up in time and the nose back on my FJR. I did get them sorted out Friday morning and pointed the bike east from the Tri-Cities around 2 p.m. and figured I'd snag them and them by sunset...then spend the night somewhere on the way to some in Oregon on Saturday.
I did get Mill Creek at 3:30 and pointed east through Dayton and Deadman's road. The GPS suggested a gravel road with a grade, but I thought better of it (a wise move I would later find out) and added the 5+ miles to arc down via tarmac and go by an area I had mispent some of my youth back in WSU days.
The Columbia was glassy as the shadows grew long. I arrived at Lower Granite at 5:06. I tried park in the visitor area for a close-up, but was shoed out by a very cranky man that wouldn't even let me spend minute to take a picture. Oh well, it was Friday and he probably was headed to Moscow to party.
My picture ended up being outside the fence, but captured the spillways pretty well.
Feeling good I plugged in Wolf Creek into the GPS and pondered the suggested route....which probably naturally wanted me to cross the dam and go towards Amota and Pullman. But, I knew that the same hurried dam guy also probably closed the gate across the dam....if it was open to the public anyway.
Dam this dam!
I looked upstream and saw more road, but wondered if it continued. The GPS grudingly did show an alternative to Clarkston, but as I married up the squiggly line on the Garmin with a "Primitive Road" sign I knew this was going to be sketchy.
And for those considering this as an option...let me dissuade you from trying what I did (unless you're sketchier than I am) Wawawai Grade is not a very good option for those wanting to save time, miles, or explore.
https://maps.google.com/maps?f=q&source...077162&z=14
First there's a "Primitive Road" sign near the dam. That doesn't scare me and my dualsport FJR!
Then some vaguely placed "No Trespassing" signs that I chose to interpret as not the road itself, but side drives to who knows where.
Then a fence with a sign that says the road has been closed by order of the County....but plenty of room to ride by about a mile in. OK, I admit at this point I probably should have turned back, but did I tell you my FJR is really a dual sport and the goat trail looked fun?
There were a couple ATV tracks and that quickly yielded to no tracks and vegetation across the whole trail. That gave way to steep pitches with horse hoof marks and then those gave way to game trails crossing the path.
Then 3 miles in a fence with padlock and what I'm sure was a No Trespassing sign the other way. Bummer was that the road looked much better past it, but since I'm not so sketchy that I carry bolt cutters with me I turned back in the fading sunlight.
Riding past the dam I stopped at breathtaking sunset and remembered that Lewis and Clark floated by this very spot a little over 200 years earlier.
As the sun faded and dark set in I realized my new High/Low HID Conversion lights were aimed horribly. It would take me hours and many a flash from oncoming traffic to get them right, but once I did I was able to check off one of my items for this ride.
It's when I got into Clarkston that wheels started to fall off this extended ride. I stopped for dinner at a Chinese restaurant, but about 15 minutes after I ate I realized I had made a bad choice. Chicken Tsu Yuk or whatever it was named.....didn't agree with my stomach.
As I summoned my inner Iron Butt self I started up the grade out of Asotin and felt the tail squirm...and squirm worse and worse. I pulled over as close the guard rail as I could on a clear stretch and checked the rear tire. Totally flat...it had thrown a plug I put in back in November.
This was the first time I've had a plug go bad and tried another, but aimed the bike back towards Clarkston just in case. Good thing I did because 1/2 between Asotin and Clarkston it went flat again...this time an even sketchier guard rail area leaving my bike across the white line.
Fortunately, a WSP literally was oncoming and followed me as I got off the bike and jogged along-side under minimal idle power to a turn-off and street light a few hundred yards around the corner.
Winded and stomach tied in a knot the Chicken Tsu Yuk was REALLY unagreeable at this point. I barely made it through thank yous with Mr. Trooper and as he was driving off I promptly expelled dinner into the weeds. Fried rice is pretty bad coming back up.
Taking some time I tried another plug, tried to tilt the bike away from the wound, and made it 4 miles to a motel across the street from Mac's motorcycle shop. Although the plug stayed I could see it was working itself out and the glue wasn't curing. So, I checked in, pulled the plug, and tried one more setting overnight.
Once morning came I got rid of the remaining parts of dinner that didn't get expelled and rode the bike a it for a couple miles, but saw the plug moving out. No way I'd make it back 130 miles so I stopped at Mac's and got a new tire.
Defeated I decided to head back home afterwards and chalk up the two dams as a shake-down cruise. Good thing I did because as they mounted the new tire they observed a set of bearing going out....so I rumbled home on a sketchy set of bearings and now headed to find some replacements.
Two dams down, 18 to go!
uke: . 2 down and 18 to go, it's going to be a looooong glorious ride![/SIZE]
![Decrum Motorcycle Jacket Men - Mens Leather Jacket | [1100065] Austin Brown, XL](https://m.media-amazon.com/images/I/41HqZSRj6LL._SL500_.jpg)
