Tuesday 17 Oct 2017
Slept in this morning and got going around 1000. Started out overcast and slight drizzle but this changed some 50 miles north of Eureka. Beautiful scenery as we headed north along the coast.
To let everyone know that I have left the state of California, here is a picture to verify:
I am NOT giving the finger to California, wrong digit.
Continued up the Oregon coast and the scenery was spectacular:
Stopped at Klamath Falls and did the Tour Through The Tree:
Made it to Coos Bay for the night of 17 October - short riding day.
So far some 1560 Kms (969 miles) since leaving LA. Making good time.
Wednesday 18 Oct 2017
Had breakfast at a small Mom and Pop diner called Mom's Kitchen. Lots of locals and regulars, and good food. There was an older gentleman in the diner who asked about the GW and we had a good chat. We also learned that the rock formations we saw coming up the coast are called "murals" (we checked this out when we got home). Learn something new every day.
Left Coos Bay under cloudy, ominous looking skies. It never did clear up. There was also a weather advisory for the coast as we went north.
Stopped at the Sea Lion Cave on the way. Interesting spot, but no sea lions:
Apparently the sea lions are out feeding during this time of year, and are more likely to be in the cave during December to February time frame. Since the sea lions were out and about, we were given rain checks (good for a year) so we can come back and view.
There are 2 different sea lions that use the cave. The largest are the stellar sea lions that can be upwards of 2000 pounds and the size of a small car. This is the sea lion cave, sans sea lions:
Here are a picture to describe the day's riding:
The coast was still spectacular, the waves were quite majestic. The wind was a bit brutal, lots of buffeting and every now and then we'd get thrown around so to speak. Paid good attention to the road and speed limits during this ride north.
Made it without incident to Astoria. Went across the Megler Bridge into Washington State. Lots of wind and were subjected to cross winds which are no fun even at sea level.
Stopped at the Columbia River Roadhouse in Chinook, WA, and warmed up with coffee and chowder. The waitress there mentioned that the weather forecast was for winds in excess of 50 MPH further up the coast and a bad storm was coming in. We had planned to continue up the coast but decided to instead head inland to the I5 on route number 4. Good decision as there was very little wind buffeting us, and the ride was much more enjoyable.
Once we hit the I5 we were going to ride to the north side of Seattle to get a head start on the last leg home, but the rain started and driving in the rain at night is not enjoyable so we pulled into Centrailia, and yes, to stay at another Motel 6 for the night. Only had about 30 minutes of wet work, but that was enough.
Thursday 19 Oct 2017
Morning wasn't pleasant, still raining. Since we only had some 200 miles left to go we were not in any hurry. Had breakfast and fortunately the rain stopped. Got on the road and headed into Seattle expecting rush hour and traffic to be light, but this was not the case. Even at 1000 hours there is still a significant amount of traffic. There was also a lot of road infrastructure work being done.
Even with the traffic and road work we made good progress getting through Seattle by 1200. The rest of the way was uneventful until Mount Vernon and the rain began. Had a run of about 40 miles to the border all in the wet. Riding a Goldwing in the wet is not that bad because you really don't get wet as long as you are moving. The stop at the Peace Arch for the border was where we got wet becasue the line up was a 20 minute wait.
Got through quite quickly, fellow was surprised when I mentioned I went to LA on the bike and back.
Quick 50 Km run to the BC ferry terminal and the rain stopped en route. Good to be back with only a ferry ride to go:
Got home about 1700, unpacked the bike and put her away for the evening.
All in all a good ride. Met some very fine folks, had a lovely evening at Big Sur, and an enjoyable, but short visit with Dan, Anita and family.
There was lots of roadwork going on on the coast highway in Oregon. Was very fortunate not to have to wait too long when stopped.
Other than an alternator issue in Redding CA, the bike ran flawlessly. It cruised all day long at 3400 RPM – approximately 65 MPH – solo or two up. On the way north riding two up, other than having to change fuel to a higher octane, the bike again ran well. Noticed that the ride with two up, rear shock springs adjusted to the max setting (Progressive non-air Series 12 shocks 14.5” eye to eye), the ride was very smooth and no bottoming at all regardless of road condition.
Have maintenance to do now, fork oil change – have Race Tech springs and emulators installed – expect to use the same amount of oil as per OEM. Remove rear and lube all splines. Looking at a mod to the rear wheel rim so that a CT can be put on, and the possibility of machining the bearing cavity to use a two bearing setup. Also be looking at wiring (never satisfied with routing and what is on each new circuit), and adjusting the new alternator to fit better. Will be taking the old alternator in to determine what went wrong.
Some stats from the trip.
Travelled 5346 Kms (3322 miles)
Average fuel consumption: 47 IMPG (39 US MPG)
Maintenance work: one new alternator in Redding California – 1/2 quart of oil at the half way point – used no oil after this
The odyssey is now complete - I'm very glad that I did it and that Sonya was with me on the way back home. Starting to think of trips for next year. Still going to ride as much as possible, but it will be local. Looking forward to next year.
Cheers