Adventure Motorcycle Blog

We woke up to a brisk morning, a fantastic desert sunrise, and enjoyed some of Jeff’s instant coffee. A couple of years back, I stayed in an old stagecoach turned into an Airbnb in TN, but the Yurt was up there for unique places I’ve stayed at – I highly recommend it. When we first arrived, it was like a sauna in there, but once the sun went down, the temp dropped, and by the time we all got up, it was pretty brisk. We loaded up all our gear, snapped some pics, and went to a gas station 5 minutes down the road called Bode’s. This is the exact spot my friend Matt and I stopped at in Aug 2022 when we rode our bikes on trails from Mexico to Canada – we even took a pic on the same bench. We were in a hurry to get going this morning, so we grabbed burritos, ate them outside, and hit the road. Most of today’s trip consisted of gorgeous twisty mountain roads/trails and some blacktop. The highlight of the day had to be the tens of thousands of Aspen trees that had started to change color. We rode for hours on end between 7,000 and 10,000 feet, and it was interesting to see how the vegetation reacted to the season and the elevation.
I captured some fantastic GoPro videos, but after reviewing the files, I’m guessing I got a bug early in the day because the left side of the screen has a smudge. I haven’t had time to review the other camera. We will edit our videos and push them out into the ether as time passes. As the day continued, the colors grew in brightness and volume. Still, we also encountered some extremely rocky roads, hundreds of cattle, horses, occasional ranchers, and incredible mountaintop views. Before we left the Yurt this morning, we discussed and opted out of taking the expert section that started near the Yurt. The reason was that we didn’t have any spare rear tubes, and a flat in anything incredibly remote technical wouldn’t be in our best interest. We played it safe and went around that section, but there was plenty of fantastic riding. I don’t recall how many hours we spent zipping around the mountain passes. Still, we were thrown a curveball as we descended or perhaps once we hit lower elevations. Due to me utilizing a really nice Garmin (ZumoXT2), I led the majority of the rides – just easier to see than looking at a phone. Jeff jumped on the radio and told us it felt like he had a rear flat. He pulled up to Ron and me; sure enough, he had a flat. The section we had just completed was full of jagged rocks, larger rocks, big ruts, numerous dips, and other terrain issues, all at steep downgrades. Jeff thought he had a pinch flat due to all his bike’s abuse, but it turned out to be a big nail. We were out of spare tubes, so he left Jeff on the trail with his bike, dozens of curious cows, and his thoughts. 😂 Me and Ron dropped all of our gear from our bikes, minus tank bags/radios, and hauled ass to Antonito, CO, to get Ron’s truck that we had propositioned there 7 days prior. We were within 16 miles of completing the route when that happened. We pulled up to the truck/trailer, loaded our two bikes on the trailer, and then left the trailer there. We took the truck to a Sinclair gas station, grabbed some Gatorade, and headed back to Jeff to get him, his bike, and all our gear. The dirt road was extremely rough, and we had to go slow to get there. Once there, the three of us picked up the bike, strapped it in the truck, threw our gear in the bed, and headed back to Antonito. We finally reached the trailer, hooked it back up, and went straight to the cabin. Once there, we decided against a restaurant for dinner and agreed it would be steak on the grill night. We took the truck to a local grocery store, bought 6 steaks, potatoes, and charcoal, and headed back. Once back at the cabin, we fired up the campfire and grill, walked by the stream, and tried to relax. Tomorrow, I’m returning to High Rolls, NM, and Jeff/Ron will return to Fort Worth.

Final thoughts – DO IT!

We had an absolute blast on this trip and can’t wait to plan the next one. It’s a combination of mental focus, physical stamina fighting a 500 lb. machine over ridiculous terrain (when in doubt, throttle out and hope for the best,) and the know how of what to do when things go sideways while keeping a cool head all at the same time. Yes, it can be a dangerous pending route, but keeping focused is vital to keeping the rubber side down. I think another part of it for me is it, in some ways, “scratches” that itch of experiences I’ve had in desert environments on the other side of the planet. Being self sufficient, knowing curveballs are coming, staying focused, watching out for your team, knowing there’s an end game to the story, dirt, sand, heat, rain, and cold are all common components of these off-road motorcycle trips. I no longer have the privilege of serving overseas, but taking these trips checks the fulfillment box. FB marketplace is full of used adventure bikes for $ 4,500 up. It’s an addictive sport, and I can’t wait to share the GoPro footage.

Kevin – Jeff – Ron

Animation of the day

https://www.relive.cc/view/vYvr199oJxq