Damtour Continues!

[Fontanaman]

Here is my Memorial Day weekend ride report. The point is to pick off the Damtour dams and spend a bit of quality time with my wife. Well we got the dams done - with temps in the 50's the quality time with my wife got bit nippy.

 

[Mount Rainier]

:clapping: Good to see you guys sharing the fun Jim. Oregon's roads are the best in the PNW!

I noticed the a new top case. You'll like it, but be careful, they hold a lot of stuff. Cheese, salami, good breads and even oysters if packed right, but you already know all that. Oh, and the backrest thing works well also. :drinks:

Congrats on the Dam snags so far.

Keep Going!

 

[leedavis]

Nice report and pictures...thanks! It's an interesting point you make about the monotony of primitive roads and adventure bikes and one I'm debating with myself. I recently moved to the NC mountains, so do I want a KLR or the like for all these gravel roads through the forests around here...not sure.

 

[Fontanaman]

I have been to Copper Canyon in Mexico. It was a very cool ride. I have been on gravel roads in Washington, Utah, Oregon and Idaho and find them to be mostly the same. Many miles of blandness with occasional areas of scenic beauty.

I gave it a lot of thought and realized most of the scenic roads, especially those in National Parks, were built 80 to 100 years ago before we started to worry about the environment. As a result most scenic places in the US of A have a paved road leading to them.

I prefer the open road on the Feejer where 40 miles is about 40 minutes away not 1.4 hours away. Don't like where you are now? At 60mph it will soon change. There are many places I can ride to on a paved road where I have not been before and have a grand time.

So with that in mind I am selling my Vstrom. On my bucket list is the CD but that is for after I retire on a bike that is more off road worthy than the portly Vstrom.

PS many KLR riders get tired of the on road abilities of the KLR get a Vstrom. I guess we are never happy, eh?

 

[escapefjrtist]

Another nice ride Jim!!

Good luck knocking off the remainder of the damn dams...

--G

 

[GeorgiaRoller]

TFS! Nice pics of the area. The 300 mile day ride with stops at scenic spots is a very relaxing & enjoyable pace, nice to see your wife coming along and enjoying it with you as well. Its funny to hear about riding in the 50's and needing "heated gear" in late May. :blink: Actually those temps sound awesome to me right now as we're riding in the low 90's in my neck of the woods now. Pretty neat idea to make some routes to all the Dam's as well, looks like a good excuse to go riding! :yahoo:

 

[Willie]

Got your blog marked as one that I am following...thats for the RR. We really enjoyed the scenery out West (it is so much different than the NE), the NE has the west beat for interesting roads thou.

WV is the offset and balancer on earth for the straight roads in general out West. However I do recall RT 12 and the sign Winding Road next 99 miles.

Willie

 

[Ally House]

Looks like a fun ride. Your lighthouse is Coquille River lighthouse in Bandon; Umpqua is a tall white lighthouse that isn't nearly as nice as this one! Smith River Rd. is a fun one to ride.

Curiously, are any of the Eugene/Springfield damns on your damtour??