- Ride Reports

My 2026 Riding Adventures

Thu, 12 Feb 2026 19:37:33 -0600

A another new year, together with a new Grand Tour. All we need now is a new blog.

My 2026 Riding Adventures - Planning & Decisions

As always, please feel free to skim, read, comment or just ignore as you feel appropriate.

Lapchik's '25 GT

Sat, 22 Feb 2025 16:08:47 -0600

I gave myself a week before the grand tour starts to get my bike updated and repaired. "Oh no, gotta hurry or we'll loose the shop and the TV show!"

Most of this is stuff I could have done over the winter, but it has been below freezing for 2 months. It was finally above freezing today so I went out and started on it. That table in the back of the garage is full of stuff that needs to go on the bike.

I started with a thermostat gasket and removing the handlebars which are bent. While I'm in there I'm going to grease the steering bearings, but my 3D printer doesn't print anything strong enough to remove that nut so I'm going to have to build a socket because I'm not paying $120 for something I'll probably only use once.

I was going to do tires today, but my bucket of lube is frozen solid.

Chain, sprockets, tires front and rear, I should probably grease the swing arm bushings/bearings, remove gas tank and put bed liner on it, check valves, spark plugs, refill coolant, run power to new GPS, put it all back together again with new handlebars and grips. Carry tools around for about the first three or four rides to make sure I get all the controls back in the right spot. I also need to build a new luggage rack, but that can wait.

There is still two feet of snow everywhere and I don't know how long it's going to be just a couple degrees above freezing, so it's not like I'm going very far anytime soon.

My 2025 Grand Tour Activity

Fri, 31 Jan 2025 15:09:01 -0600

A new year, with a new Grand Tour, so we need a new blog.

My 2025 Grand Tour - Planning

As always, please feel free to skim, read comment or ignore as you see fit.

Game on, clutch out, let's ride

My 2024 Grand Tour Actiivity

Wed, 17 Jan 2024 23:32:28 -0600

For better or worse, I have decided to once again record my Grand Tour activity in a Blog.

The link to my Blog is . . . My 2024 Grand Tour Activity - Announcement and Preparation

As always, please feel free to skim, read, comment or just ignore.

My 3G Trinity Ride

Sat, 04 Nov 2023 03:35:33 -0500

Now that the 2023 Grand Tour has been concluded, 2 friends and I undertook a 3G Trinity Ride.

The link is :- My 3G Trinity Ride

As always, please feel free to skim, read, comment or ignore, as you feel appropriate.

T.W.A.T. [Trans Wisconsin Adventure Trail]

Wed, 23 Aug 2023 09:08:35 -0500

Friday [Aug 25th] at noon I am heading out for the Trans Wisconsin Adventure Trail. It's sort of like the TSDAT that Sleddog made, G.R.E.A.T. that I made, or BDR routes where someone went and did all the scouting and pre-running of a route and then put the files out there so anyone can ride it. T.W.A.T. runs from Point Detour, WI to Galena, IL running through many of the state's forests and natural preservation areas. It even hops over into Iowa for a few miles, because, really, who could resist Iowa.

The plan [lol yeah, lets see how that goes] . . .

---Day 0.5 [250 mi] I am going from Douglas County, MN to Herbster, WI and camping near Lake Superior.
---Day 1 [280 mi] is up to Point Detour, then backtrack a bit before heading south to Chippewa campground in the Chequamegon Nicolet National Forest.
---Day 2 [300 mi] is CNNF to Soldier's Grove where I am staying in a hotel.
---Day 3 [680 mi] is SG to Galena, IL. After that I'm looping back around to Cassville to take the ferry across to Iowa and then heading home.

http://transwisconsintrail.com/wordpress/

My SPOT will start tracking at departure time Friday.

https://maps.findmespot.com/s/3F6H?fbcli...ory/assets

Odder Otter

Fri, 09 Jun 2023 22:04:15 -0500

After putting together a ride I called G.R.E.A.T. (stands for Glacial Ridge Excellent Adventure Trip), I wanted to do another one but this time go North of Alexandria, MN. Lots of Otter themed stuff up that way, and there are some fun road side oddity stops. Hence the name, Odder Otter. Which I might refer to as O².

G.R.E.A.T. is a prairie and farm route and is about 70% gravel, but O² is a Northwoods and lake route and is about 60% paved. O² does have some good minimum maintenance roads and trails as well as plenty of scenic gravel.

I did Odder Otter in 6H40M. . . .at a very rapid pace. I did 240 miles, but had to do a little backtracking and the finished route has a few corrections in it that will shorten it slightly. I only stopped for gas/food once (15 minutes). I did not climb up Inspiration Peak (25-35 minutes + time you spend up top). I did not stop very long for pictures/stretching at any point; usually 2 minutes or less. For people that have a sense of self preservation and for sure if there is more than one person, expect 10 hours.

I picked Alexandria because it has the most lodging and food options in the area. There are a million resorts in the area and on the route but during prime time (Memorial day-Labor day) they usually require a full week or full weekend to rent a place.

There are weather condition related water crossings near waypoints OO08, OO09, OO10, OO10 DE1, OO10 DE2, OO50, OO51, OO52. Be cautious and use a stick to measure depth/check for rocks if the water isn't clear.

A note on the dead-end trails: These waypoints are denoted as OO## DE#. They are in parks or are access roads for private land, so stay on the road. All the trails in Maplewood are for horses or walking, not vehicles. Respect the signs and trail markers, of which there are many. Turn around at the obvious "end of the line" markers you will see (I placed many of the OO## DE2 waypoints near them). All other waypoints are just OO## for navigation points. If there is a description after them, it was a stop I planned in.

OO08 to OO09, this road does go through. Google shows it but Garmin doesn't. Skip these two waypoints if you are doing this in a passenger vehicle, because you probably won't fit or you will smash your oil pan. Watch for the big rocks. Oil pans without skid plates and cast rims use extreme caution.

OO10 Folden wildlife management area only allows travel in the park when it is not hunting season.

OO10 DE1 is the start of the dead end spur to explore the WMA and OO10 DE2 is the far end. I didn't go any further because there isn't really a trail past this waypoint. There are two small creek crossings to get to the open field in the back; about as deep as the foot pegs on my CB500X. Watch for the big rocks on the entry hill and in the first water crossing. Oil pans without skid plates and cast rims use caution.

Skip all OO10 waypoints if you are doing this in a passenger vehicle, because you probably won't fit. Downed trees are a big issue on this road, but it was passable by motorcycle on June 8, 2023.

One stop where you will be wandering around on foot for a bit is the Nyberg sculpture park. Ken's shop is also on the route, but he's not always around. The Bigfoot gas station has food, so grab lunch while you walk around the sculptures. The beef jerky/meat selection there is pretty tasty too. OO15 is the waypoint. OO17 is the statue of the Big Foot, Ken's first statue that was so loved by the town they started putting them all over. The frontage road OO16 waypoint has a few more of his creations, too.

OO22 and OO23 NW of Ottertail is a two-track lane. Skip this if you are in a passenger car, unless you don't care about trees scratching it up.
A note on the road after Maplewood state park: 260th is not marked as a street on the park end, but it is there and it does go through.

OO40 is an old mill dam. I don't know anything about the abandoned building at the site, but that is where people tend to park. You can walk on/across the dam.

OO42 DE1 and OO42 DE2 is an access road to private hunting land. The access is a public minimum maintenance road that is open other than during hunting season. Skip these two waypoints if you are doing this in a passenger vehicle, because you probably won't fit and will likely get stuck in the very soft gravel past the turn to the North.

OO46, OO47, OO48 are in Maplewood State Park. Technically.... you should have a state park pass.... but this is not in the main part of the park, is not normally patrolled , and is a through road with no signs saying you have to stop at the office to buy a pass. There are only state park boundary signs and then a few trail maps along the road. That being said, if you have the time, go off route and explore the whole park. It's a really nice place.

OO50 OO51 OO52 is a public minimum (more like zero) maintenance road. Garmin does not show the North end of this road, but it is there. It connects to the spur shown on Garmin at OO52. This is basically a tree tunnel over a dirt road. There is some gravel, but it washes out with rain. When I was there, a few spots looked like solid gravel but were almost like quicksand.

OO60 Phelps Mill was recently renovated/restored. The bridge on the route will be closed for construction in June 2023, but you can use 288-290-340 gravel roads to get around it and back on CR-1 to the next waypoint.

Between OO63 and OO64 there is a small dam on the outlet of Ottertail lake. It's a nice spot to stop if you want to relax a minute, or go down the road another mile or so and stop at Zorbaz for food/drink if you need it.

OO70 is the parking lot for Inspiration Peak. I took this from their website, because Sinclair writes way more gooder than me can:
[Inspiration Peak] rises to 1,726 feet, about 400 feet above the surrounding countryside Making it one of the highest points in the county and also one of the higher points in the state of Minnesota. The vista was well-known to Sinclair Lewis. From the prairie-covered crest of the hill, he wrote, “there’s to be seen a glorious 20-mile circle of some 50 lakes scattered among fields and pastures, like sequins fallen on an old paisley shawl.” Lewis chided Minnesotans for not knowing the “haunts of beauty” in their own back yards. And generally speaking, the overlook might as well be a secret, it is known by so few people outside the immediate area. The site was designated as a Minnesota State Wayside in 1932.

South of the peak is a big statue of the Virgin Mary. There is a guest book and free plastic rosary necklaces if you are into that sort of thing. The story is on the plaque, so I won't re-type it here.

Next is OO72, a neat sheet metal mill dam. It creates a cool pattern on the falling water.

On the way back to Alexandria, you will pass Leaf Valley. Leaf Valley Mercantile is very much a small local bar, but the food is good. Otherwise, the final waypoint on the trip is at the Depot, which has good food too. It's right across from Copper Trail brewing and the Big Ole viking statue. CT is a decent place, but the beer is hit or miss. They like to experiment. Interlachen Inn is my favorite place to eat in Alexandria, but it's a little spendy. There's no shortage of food options and you all know how to use google.

Route names and descriptions:
--Odder Otter Adventure - the whole route
--Odder Otter Lite - dead ends and sketchy gravel removed for big bikes or less experienced riders
--Odder Otter Automotive - for passenger vehicles with no trees to scratch paint or rocks to smash oil pans

.gpx files click here

My 2023 Grand Tour Activity

Wed, 25 Jan 2023 20:15:33 -0600

For better or worse, I have decided to again record my Grand Tour activity in a Blog.

The link to my Blog is . . . My 2023 Grand Tour Activity

As always, please feel free to read, skim, comment or just ignore.

My 2022 Grand Tour Activity

Sun, 20 Mar 2022 03:15:14 -0500

A report on my GLMC Grand Tour activities.

View, skim, read, comment or just ignore as you see fit.

myglmcgrandtour.blogspot.com

Winter Shenanigans

Wed, 28 Nov 2018 14:16:04 -0600

Who else is out riding in the cold?

Found out the balance point of my sidecar rig today.

Also found out that handlebars are tougher than my lower leg is.

Sheding Light on Rhode Island - A Ride Report

Mon, 03 Sep 2018 10:20:19 -0500

Out getting some light houses and picked up a few ST places as well.

http://nomadwillie.blogspot.com/2018/08/...sland.html

Willie

Getting Intimate with Ann - A Most EST RR

Sat, 18 Aug 2018 07:48:19 -0500

A day on the Grand Tour. View, skim, read, or ignore.

http://nomadwillie.blogspot.com/2018/08/...-anne.html

Willie

Belated and unfinished ride report from Baja California

Wed, 16 May 2018 09:20:29 -0500

While passing through Spearfish on a DakAL dual sport ride last September Bigjohnsd asked if I would like to ride dual sport / Adventure bike in Baja California in February. I probably could've pointed out Baja California on the map but had no knowledge of or had ever given thought to riding there. I had just retired from my job that week, I was in the middle of a 8 day Black Hills ride, had plans of riding to EOM in a couple weeks, and was not able to wrap my head around a Baja ride, or even think it was in my future. December rolled around and John sent me a message asking if I had given any more thought to Baja. I hadn't, but started to give it some serious thought and two days later I told John I was in.

The plan was to hook up my pickup to my enclosed four place trailer with my Tenere in it, stop at Spearfish to pick up John and his KLR, continue on to Colorado to pick up a friend of John's and his infamous Buell Ulysses. Yep, the Buell Ulysses that accompanied John to Alaska last June and broke down nearly daily. After picking up Kip and his not so trusty Buell, we would continue on to El Cajon were we would meet up with FrankD riding his BMW GS650 Dakar, who is a fellow FJR owner and member of this forum, along with an old Navy buddy of John's, Mark, who rides a BMW GS1200 Adventure.

I had two months to prepare so it was now sweat. John's planned route had plenty of back road routes with some reports of sand and rocks so the first order of business was to order tires for the Tenere. I ordered a set of Continental TKC 70s but I had a nagging doubt that they would be good enough in the sand so I ordered another set of more aggressive tires. $500.00 in tires and I'm not even getting started yet.

The next order of business was pickup tires, trailer tires and getting them both serviced and ready to go. Now we're getting deep into this trip pretty good and its still a month away but the Tundra, trailer, and Tenere are ready to. Tuesday February 13th is go date and I'm uncharacteristically packed and ready the day prior. Here's the Tundra packed and ready to leave the frozen tundra.

First leg is to Spearfish, where we throw Johns KLR in the trailer, have a little dinner, and get an early start to Alamosa CO to pick up Kip and the infamous Buell. KLR with a freshened up engine and suspension ready to go.

We got an early start on a sunny gorgeous day but it was windy as hell. I drove the first leg and the thirsty Tundra was ready for fuel in no time. John volunteered to drive the second tank and that's when the wind really cranked up and the roads become covered with snow and ice along with about a 50 mph cross wind. We could see the trailer was visibly going sideways down the road behind the pickup. While crossing through Colorado we found the HP was stopping all semi traffic on I-25 but the brave or foolish Dakota boys pressed on.

We Spent the night at Kip's house and the next morning we loaded up the Buell and headed out to a light dusting of snow and a beautiful hoar frost.

Our plan for the next day was to make it as far as Flagstaff which would leave us with an easy day on Friday to get to our meeting spot in El Cajon on Friday. We were making good time going through Albuquerque and we couldn't find AJ, so we decided to stop for lunch and John suggested we swing in to take a look at the Uncer Racing Museum to kill a little time.

The next day was a nice drive into El Cajon were we met up with a cool retired firefighter (you gotta like them guys) who offered to let us park the truck and trailer while we were away. While we were leading up to the trip, FrankD was reporting that he was super busy and didn't have much time to get ready. FrankD got a late start from Orange county, but we all met up at a steak house for dinner where we found out that Frank had broken his gas cap and left his Passport back in Orange county. :lol: Let the adventure begin. We all discussed and searched for a new gas cap while our food was coming but we just decided to Jerry rig a repair in the morning and after dinner, John and Frank back tracked to Orange county to retrieve the passport returning around midnight. The next morning we were at the hardware store where Kip and Frank purchased a chunk of metal and with the help of the retired Firefighter they were able to Jerry rig the gas cap and we were off. We were going to enter at the Tecate border crossing so we stopped to purchase pesos and buy some expensive California gas before crossing.

Frank and I with a pocket full of Pesos and ready to hit Baja.

John's Sailor buddy Mark and the big GS

Mark's brother Kip on the famed Buell Ulysses

Day 1 After fueling up the bikes, buying Pesos and and uneventful entry through the border we were on our way. The first day was broken up about 50/50 paved and dirt. It was a beautiful sunny morning, around 70 degrees, and after a few u turns trying to get out of Tecate BC we were on our way. We met our first Mexican Federales military road block shortly down the road. It was a little weird traveling through a military check point with a roof turret machine gun equipped Humvee staring down at you. They stopped our group and asked one of our group to open their bags. We all prepared to open our bags but after a quick peek at the first bag we were all waved through and never got another sideways look by any of the many military check points we encountered. After a sort drive we turned off the pavement and started off on a gravel road. The road kept getting smaller until it turned into some two track trail. I was loving it until we hit some deep sand and the trail was really petering out . John, our leader took the first nose dive into the sand to break the ice. Then the big GS went down in the sand four times with the last one being the worst with Mark going down hard breaking the windshield, and and smashing a Clearwater light mount. a little while later Kip on the Ulysses picked a poor spot to turn around to help someone and he went down after we all drove by him. We finally got out of the sandy section and found a small store along the road for some cold drinks.

John took a selfie

After a cold drink FrankD and I were ready to ride.

When we hit the blacktop we found a Pemex gas station and fueled up. The Pemex stations are all full service at around 19 pesos per liter so that works out to over $4.00 per gallon. Mark informed me that it was customary to tip the gas station attendant so that makes the gas price a little higher.

We arrived in San Felipe after dark, found a hotel room at Hotel Sky Blue with a nice little restaurant next door, we purchased a couple six packs and had dinner and Tecate beer. I slept like a baby and woke up ready for the days ride. The morning was beautiful and warming up quickly. After a cold shower (no hot water) we were all geared up. Kip and Mark were antzy to go leaving us slowpokes to hit the gas station and begin our day but the mighty KLR would not fire. We tried everything but the KLR wouldn't come to life. So it was time to tear into it and figure out the problem. After pulling the plug we determined that it was fouled, running too rich and needed rejetting. Since John had just recently did engine work and jetting changes we changed out the jets and plugs and she fired right up. While the rest of tore the KLR apart, Frank made a couple runs to an auto parts store for fuel line and spark plugs. We got the KLR running but it was late in the morning before we got on the road.

John and Kip rejetting the KLR

Day 2 While John was rejetting the KLR, Mark was replacing a Clearwater light mount and taping up the sharp corners of his windshield that had taken a beating from repeatedly being thrown at the ground the first day. We had four more days planed with dirt involved but Mark was through with deep sand after the first day. John dinged up his leg on one of his falls so we decided to modify our routes to eliminate heavy sand.

While John was buttoning up the blue mule Mark was thumbs down and Kip was thumbs up and just happy that he wasn't working on his Buell for once.

With all the bikes fueled up and running we were on our way to Bahia De Los Angeles with lots of smiles again.

We followed along the Sea of Cortes stopping for a little photo shoot and later getting gas and a cold drink along the way.

Next stop was the famous Coco's corner were we had to stop for a cold beer and visit with Coco. He's an old bachelor who provides various services along this crappy stretch of road, cold drinks, and gives dumb gringos on the motorcycles shit. He also likes to decorate his yard with oddities.

Coco's humble abode where he lives and sell cold drinks.

Checking out the plumbing fixtures / slash lawn ornaments.

The inside of Coco's house is decorated with fine panties and memorabilia. Coco has both legs amputated at the knees but they say he gets around pretty good. Every one has to sign the guest book and purchase a cold drink. Coco acts grouchy but I think it is all part of his thing.

As we were leaving Coco's we stopped for one last picture.

After leaving Coco's and finished with the worst road construction bypass I had ever seen, Mark, Kip and myself were feeling the need for speed once we got up on the black top. We cranked the big 1200s up accross the desert and left the KLR and GS 650s in our vapor trail. At the next corner we waited and waited and waited for them to catch up and along comes John on the KLR reporting that Frank had a flat along the road. An adventure motorcycle company chase vehicle came along and picked up Frank and was going to haul it into Bahia De Los Angeles where we would meet him and assist with making repairs in the dark.

Evidently Frank's tire found a nail while we were on the gravel visiting Coco. The inner tube wasn't salvageable but the tire appeared fine. John had a spare tube so Kip, Frank and I made repairs while John and Mark went to find us a room for the night.

After the repairs were made, we checked into the Hotel Villa Vitta and walked down to eat at Guillermos and have a couple of beers. When we got back to the hotel, John went to take a shower and reported that he got electrocuted in the shower. I was brushing my teeth and was also getting shocks from the sink. This was beginning to suck. No hot water the first night, electrified water the second night. We were going to really start to stink if this kept up.

Day 3 The next morning we had planned about 150 miles of unpaved back roads with reports of 2 to 3 inches of sand in spots. Mark said no way and John and Frank thought they should skip it since they had used their only spare inner tube. We all huddled around the KLR and willed it to start and after a little difficulty it fired to life. We split up into two groups with plans to meet at Mulege that evening.

Kip and his mighty Buell and I decided to split off and take the originally planed dirt, gravel and sand back roads. The first 50 miles was rocky gravel but the road was progressively getting sandier and deeper. Kip and I thought we were kicking a** rolling down the sandy trail about 25 mph when come up to our turn off. This is were we met the three dick BMW riders from the hotel that reported a couple of inches of sand on our proposed route. We made a little small talk and they rode off onto a road that appeared to be much deeper sand. We followed and the sand quickly become deeper and deeper while the road was getting narrower. I had read before leaving home that when riding through cactus that you should always have your visor down in case of a spill. Kip didn't read that got caught up in a deep sand rut face planting on a cactus. Where the f*** was my camera! We continued on for about 50 miles of deep sand. Kip fell five more times and I dropped my Tenere twice at very low speed. The last time I tried to catch myself and dropped the Tenere on my foot pinning me under the bike. Kip was unable to lift the bike off me by himself so we had to dig out until I could release my leg. We finally came up to a small mountain ridge leaving the desert floor and deep sand. We were highly relieved to be out of the foot deep sand it was short lived because as soon as we went over the mountain we were right back in the deep sand desert floor again. After taking about 6 hours to go 150 miles of off road Kip and I finally hit the black top.

We stopped for a snack and a drink and checked our phone to find that John's KLR had crapped out along the road and another Adventure motorcycle chase vehicle had giving him a ride to Guerrero Negro.

The KLR hitches a ride to Guerrero Negro

We headed to the Los Caracoles Hotel to find John Balls deep in the KLR again trying to diagnose a no start no spark condition. We screwed around untill about 1 AM with the help of a couple of young locals who brought another coil but we had no luck. The next morning we found a small engine repair shop and the guy was going to see what he could do. This shop was very primitive with not much for parts and I didn't have much hope of a quick repair.

When we meet back up in Guerrero we find John head first in the KLR again.

The next morning the local repair shop guy was having a look and John's dead KLR.

Day 4 Well, it wasn't doing much good for all of us to sit with Johns dead KLR in Guerrero Negro so it was decided that we would continue on and when John got his bike fixed we would come up with a plan to meet up again. It was a hard decision but we left John and pressed on. Before we got to the next town we got word that the mighty KLR was running again. The repair shop said there was a poor ground on the ignition box or something. We rode to San Ignacio to spend the night at Rice N Beans Hotel where we were happy to see John roll in to join us. It was a short days ride so we checked in and hit the bar for food and Margaritas.

After some refreshments John tore open the KLR again to secure some wires that had been loosened the night before. I forgot to take a picture of John buried head first in the KLR, but I think you have the point by now. FrankD and I decided to go check out the town of San Ignacio and look into a whale watching expedition. While down town by the town square, we ran into a Spanish mission.

Afterwards we gathered up in the Rice n Beans restaurant for more food, margaritas, and Tecates.

Somehow while finishing this ride report long after midnight, I lost the last couple days. I'll have to redo it and get it posted up.

Summer Trip to Seattle (and points in between)

Tue, 29 Aug 2017 21:37:16 -0500

Hi everyone.

When we met everyone in LaCrosse last May, we were planning for our big summer trip to Seattle.

Here is a link to the planning page.

A description of each day's highlights are also listed under "2017 Rides and Planning" and then under "Summer in Seattle - 2017"

https://mtnestadventures.com/2017/01/22/...e-july-17/

I hope you all enjoy it as much as we did.

Dale

Marching to the Beat of a Different Drummer

Thu, 03 Aug 2017 05:15:22 -0500

Another read or just picture looking

http://nomadwillie.blogspot.com/2017/07/...ummer.html

Willie

Running out of Light, Running into Rain, Running on Empty

Thu, 27 Jul 2017 08:16:09 -0500

A read about the Americana Extreme Tour

CLICK HERE

Hope you enjoy

Willie

In Search of Dinosaurs RR

Fri, 23 Jun 2017 05:50:27 -0500

For a read or just look at the pics or just ignore...all works

http://nomadwillie.blogspot.com/2017/06/...saurs.html

Hoops, Mills and Pollution

Wed, 14 Jun 2017 15:59:08 -0500

Another one of them ride reports

http://nomadwillie.blogspot.com/2017/06/...tiion.html

Pony Express The Connecticut Way

Thu, 08 Jun 2017 07:04:23 -0500

Another ride report for those that like to read this stuff. Thanks to those who do

http://nomadwillie.blogspot.com/2017/05/...ticut.html

It's About Time

Mon, 22 May 2017 20:29:00 -0500

that the weather has made it enjoyable for a ride. Click the link for the read. Lots of Americana Extreme Stuff.

http://nomadwillie.blogspot.com/2017/05/...-time.html