Part VIII - "Heading North"

No need for the alarm this morning, I'm up and ready to go.

Last night I was experiencing some difficulty with network latency preventing me from uploading any photos so this morning I head over to the lobby where the signal is far better and the coffee and bagels are fresh and plentiful. Just as I thought the photos upload in a snap and I get to publish the last two days' postings.

Lori joins me and we chat with another guy who was seeking better wi-fi performance too. Packing up we chat with another rider, Tim, from Olympia riding a Triumph Explorer which he has seriously decked out in off-road riding equipment, Givi bags, rugged tires, driving lights and the general appearance of a no-nonsense adventure riding machine. A recent trip to Alaska left Tim's bike with the same white splash marks that my friend Allen Stowell got on his V-Strom on a similar tour. Tim's problem went a whole step further with the 'white stuff' penetrating into the suspension and doing major damage. What is is with the Alaska Highway and this white slop? I'm curious if other riders have experienced the same issues. Tim's a nice chatty guy and I'd like to hear more of his Alaskan tour but we all have places to go so we bid safe riding and turn our attention to hitting the road.

First order of business is throttle it on I-80 West to Winnemucca where we stop for fuel and some coffee. This is a good opportunity to give the drive chains a quick lube and clean the windshield and headlights with the foamy glass cleaner I always carry with me. While all this is going on I'm chatting with another rider this time from Missouri. This guy is wrapping up a two week ride to tick off the last two states on his "must ride" list. He was beaming that he had now ridden his Harley Dyna in all of the lower forty-eight states which is quite the accomplishment. Anybody that rides a motorcycle knows how easy it is to strike up conversations with other riders, something you never seem to get with automobiles, however; I suspect the RV owners are like motorcyclists and more forthcoming in matters of conversation amongst themselves.


Bye-bye to I-80 and we turn north onto Hwy 95 with a heading for Burns, Oregon, our destination for the night. Once clear of Winnemucca the road empties out and with a speed limit of 70 mph the dry desert hills are flying past and soon we're at the Nevada-Oregon state line and the hamlet of McDermitt where we pull over for a bite and a can of RockStar. In the parking lot it's chat time again; this time with a fellow from Battle Mountain on a big Harley 'glide. Another friendly guy on his way home from somewhere in Northern Idaho. After a quick visit to the post office we're back on the road gobbling up the miles.

Hwy 78 Oregon

The countryside is still desert-like, dry brown hills, some rocky mesas and lots of scrubby sagebrush. I've previously mentioned how much I like the beauty of desert and today's views are no exception. I have a genuine feeling of comfort in the desert and it will carry me throughout the trip. At Burns Junction we stop at the weigh station which is closed, for a stretch and an apple. Here is where we turn off Hwy 95 and head north-west on Hwy 78 to the town of Burns. This leg of the trip is sixty-four miles long and it is nothing short of wonderful. The road is in excellent condition with wide sweeping curves, long climbs to the hilltops followed by dramatic downhill Giant Slalom runs to the desert floor. Traffic? You gotta be kidding. The road was deserted. About twenty-five miles along a small convoy of maybe five cars goes past, all in a row and we didn't see another vehicle until we were approaching Crane, twenty-four miles from Burns.  As a side note all this open landscape is prone to high winds and although we only experienced the odd turbulent gust the winds can be hazardous so rider beware. If your travels take you to this part of the state I highly recommend you give Hwy 78 due consideration.

There's an apple in here somewhere.....

Hwy 78 Oregon. Too much fun! 

 

Yikes! A quick glance at the fuel gauge and it's telling me I have about 59 miles before I have to start pushing this beast. Not to worry, Burns is only another twenty miles and there's lots of gas stations to choose from when we get there. It's now 4:30 PM, we 're feeling pretty good but decide to call it a day nonetheless. We find a Best Western with a pool and we check in pronto. Hit the pool, do some laundry, steak dinner at the restaurant next door and we're done like dinner.



We'll go through the map and plan some routing for tomorrow as there a few options available to us. Not a hard task at all.

Good night from Lori and Steve

Burns, Oregon