Utah Trip in September

[efforex]

I'm still putting together pics and video. But I went ahead and plotted out the whole ride.

Google Maps Route

-Location C was the first overnight stop, just outside Solvang.
-Location E was the Stony Creek Lodge in the Sequoia/Kings Canyon area. We spent the 2nd and 3rd nights there and road and hiked all over the park from there.
-F and G are significant locations, basically the farthest north and farthest south we went in the park, General Sherman Tree and the General Grant Grove.
-I is the overlook at Yosemite Canyon. Most amazing view I've ever experienced on a bike when we came around the turn right before the tunnel.
-K was the 4th night in Bishop after we rode through Yosemite. (Yes we rode all the way through the park in one day. Wish I had more time. Will the next time.)
-The road between K and L was probably the biggest and most pleasant surprise on the whole trip. Tight twisting canyon road with huge rises and drops, big banking in the turns, etc... Then it turned boring with miles of straight flat runs into Vegas.
-N over night in Vegas at Excalibur. Met up with a riding buddy who lives there now and works in a very hugh end restaurant at the Paris.
-O back home. The ride from Vegas was miserable. over 100ºF most of the way and very heavy wind. I've made that trip dozens of times in a car and it's not a fun drive even in a car. It was 10x worse on the bikes.

Today I'm just sitting back and relaxing, watching all the F1, SBK, and AMA racing that recorded while I was gone. I'm so sore, especially my neck. This was a real test of how my neck can handle long rides. The answer is not very well. But it was worth it. I'll get some more pics up, and I'm going to be doing a few videos.

I went to sequoia national park when i was younger was a awesome camping trip. Look like you had a blast that ride looks like it might of been tough on the fanny 1400 or so miles.

How was the heat during your travels ?

 

[JonKerr]

I went to sequoia national park when i was younger was a awesome camping trip. Look like you had a blast that ride looks like it might of been tough on the fanny 1400 or so miles.

How was the heat during your travels ?

Heat wasn't bad until yesterday. Malibu was pretty warm just because it was so slow and sitting in shitty traffic. There was a little stretch heading into and out of Fresno that was pretty damn hot. But nothing crazy until yesterday. I think Barstow was 105º. There were actually quite a few times that we got down right cold in the higher elevations. I did learn something about how my bike runs relative to the elevation. It effects the temperature more than anything. I put water wetter in it about a year ago and it tends to run pretty damn cool. 180º-190º in normal riding conditions. Freeway can be as low as 165º-170º if it's cool out. Riding through the 100º+ low elevation desert the bike sat around 190º. Riding 65mph in 65º weather @ 10,000 feet leaving Yosemite through Tioga Pass, it was around 210º. Not as much air running through the radiator at those elevations. I was riding along, actually a little cold, and wondering why my bike was running so much hotter than normal. (210 isn't running hot, but hotter than I'm used to after putting water wetter in.) When we stopped for gas at Mono Lake, I got to thinking about how high up we really were and put 2 and 2 together.

The changes in elevation were pretty insane with this trip too. Second day we went from about 500 feet heading through the orange groves before heading up the mountain on the 180 into the Sequoias. Half hour later we're at 7000 feet. I thought my sinuses were going to explode! lol. When we left the Sequoias to head to Yosemite, we went from 7000 feet, to 500 feet, to 10,000 feet back down to 6000 feet and back up and down a dozen times, finishing at 7000 feet in Bishop, all in about 9 hrs.

 

[JonKerr]

Dad at a stop just heading up the hill into Sequoia.

View outside our Lodge

Dad next to some baby Sequoia

Distant shot of Gen. Sherman Tree. Those people at the base are 15-20 feet away from the base of the tree. Hard to convey the sheer size of these monsters.

 

[JonKerr]

 

[efforex]

Man im jealous i have always wanted to do a trip like that. A awesome planned trip looks like you enjoyed it sequoia was mind blowing for me when i was like 10 years old still looks really pretty up there def need to go on a ride up there some time.

My bike runs a lot hotter then your i need to change out the radiator fluid by the end of this year never heard of the stuff you used but ill check it out. I wanted something that would make the bike run cooler since i tend to do 2hr plus ride at least once a week.