So where is the perfect summer riding climate ?    That we haven't been to yet ?  

It's always more fun to have at least a few riding companions along.    Does anybody think of a place to go try out ?

Dave you did a wonderful job leading us to Arkansas.   Twice !!  

MMRanch wrote on 01/03/24 at 19:10:34:


We enjoyed Arkansas - the little town of Jasper is like going back in time 50 years!  The mountain roads are very different than the Smokies - they are the oldest mountains in the US and very eroded with large plateaus on top....they tend to only be recognizable as mountains on the steep eastern sides.  I love seeing the signs that warn:  "CROOKED AND STEEP".  The roads are fun to ride on and traffic is light.....the sharp aggregate used on the roads is great for traction but brutal to tire life - even when riding at reasonable speeds.  The spring months are very wet and the area is taken over by folks who kayak on the Buffalo River - once the summer months arrive the river folks leave and the motorcycle riders show up in larger numbers.  The year that the Beer, BBQ and Bikes festival was in progress while we were there.....I saw way too much leather/chrome/V-twins on the highway and the normally peaceful calm of the area was gone.

For summer riding it makes sense to go to the mountains for cooler weather - or go north.  Deb and I have ridden in Michigan once - the rural roads are nice around the Traverse City area where there is some small elevation changes and lots of Cherry orchards.  The Tunnel of Trees is a nice road along lake Michigan - however the trees are no more of a tunnel than the trees that we ride while on the Tail of the Dragon.  The curves on the Tunnel of Trees can often have sand washed out onto the pavement - so you do need to ride it carefully.  The rides here are for scenery - they really aren't loaded up with curves and elevation changes like we are used to in the mountains......the Meteor 350 would like this terrain!

I am just starting to explore the area of southeast KY near Virginia - I took one ride with my neighbor a few months ago and discovered some nice riding areas.  It takes half as long for me to drive there as it does to the area in TN/NC where we ride - so that is a big plus for me!

I have been to the mountains in Colorado west of Denver for winter skiing, and I am sure that is a great area for riding in the summer.  There are plenty of rural roads through the mountains, and lots of small towns to explore.  Getting there for me is a 1,300 mile drive - equal to the drive to visit Youzguyz in Texas.    

Well it seems to me that YouzGuyz has hit the nail on the head with the spring rides in Texas so many times I've lost count of them.  
I believe we are all in your debt YouzGuyz , and I'm more than glad to get even deeper in debt with the spring ridding season this year too !   Theirs's a lot of  magic in them Texas Hills .  

I've been watching U-tube videos from Utah's Moab area .   There seems to be a lot of "Things to see" and "Places to go" ... maybe more than one years worth ?  
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=3sIc9UjW25s

So 100 degrees with 50% humidity = 13? degrees or passing out ... witch-ever comes first ?  

Maybe going North in the summer is a good idea ? .

Where is everyone staying?  I got a little lost in this thread...  Dave - are you and your wife staying at Kerrville-Schreiner Park?  Did someone reserve a house nearby?

April 14th-22nd date range?

If I make it for a night (couple days), I'll probably just bring a tent and air mattress and camp.  I'm retired but my wife still likes working, so I'll probably be solo.  It's about a 4 hour ride from Houston, so I'll probably wimp out and haul my bike.  Springman - are you riding there?

Cool.  You got the Ranch House in the park.  There is still lots of availability for tents and RV sites.  

If I make it, I'll probably still get a tent site and spare y'all my snoring and bathroom trips (TMI)...  Kinda depends too if my wife wants to take a few days off work.  We've already got an extended camping trip planned for Memorial Day week so she may want to save her vacation days for that and then later in the year.  I definitely have this on my radar though!!  Would really enjoy meeting y'all in person while in Texas!

Paul the tent idea may be saving yourself from somebody else's snoring  !  

Well , who starts it is hard to say ??? when everybody is making night music it's hard to tell where its coming from ???    but its not so bad once everybody get in time together ?  

One of the first years for Kerrville I got there a day early .   It takes me two days to ride the over 1000 miles there so I had my tent anyway.   So I enjoyed their tent sites area for an evening.   The have nice soft grass and level sites close to the bath house.

If there is room in the Ranch House would be the best option but , The camping cabins where we usually stay are nice and low cost enough too.
We've never got the Ranch House before ?  

ThumperPaul wrote on 01/18/24 at 06:52:05:


Deb and I are staying at the Kerville Schreiner Park, near the river in our RV.  Deb has some health issues that make it impossible to sleep in a tent anymore.....so we reinvented ourselves and now travel in the RV.  If you had told me a few years ago I would be owning/driving something like this I would have thought you were crazy.....but here I am - it is a necessary vehicle for us to be able to go places and enjoy our senior years.  We are hauling the bike in a trailer and unload the bike when the fun starts.......riding a motorcycle 1,000 miles down the interstate just isn't my idea of having fun.  The highway around Dallas/Ft. Worth is especially scary to those of us who are not familiar with the ON/OFF ramp shenanigans that Texas drivers are accustomed to making at high speeds!

Even if you ride with somebody up to Kerrville - you are going to be riding back alone.  There is no shame in towing to get to the fun riding area.  

We had a toyhauler camper (Grey Wolf 19RR) prior to buying the RV.  We found it used locally at a good price and we bought it to see how hauling a trailer and camping was going to work for us - at the prices we paid for it we knew we could resell it with little or no loss in funds.  It did provide us with a couple of years of camping and traveling - and proved that that traveling and camping would work out for us.  The toyhauler was not ideal however for a few reasons:  1)  My 1/2 ton truck could haul it - but it struggled on the hills and mpg was bad...the 2002 technology and 195hp, 5.3 V8 was really not powerful enough.  2)  The limited access to the bed was inconvenient for making the bed, and I had to crawl over Deb to get in/out of the bed.  3)  And the biggest issue was the floor height of the toyhauler was around 27" I believe - and this made it impossible to load/unload safely with the ramp door......the ramp was horribly steep and my feet could not touch the ground when the front wheel started up the ramp and the back wheel was still on the ground.  While loading could be done with only a bit of trepidation - backing the motorcycle down the ramp and having your feet come off the ground was just not acceptable. 4)  We really needed a bathroom that was accessible while we were still driving.

Eventually I resolved the steep ramp issue by building a portable ramp extension that had folding legs and could be stored inside the camper.  I have attached a YouTube video of a similar ramp that another fellow made.  This ramp is necessary if the ramp gets too steep - but it does add to the amount of time it takes to load/unload and requires you to figure out how to store and haul the ramp.

If you buy or build a Toyhauler, it is important to keep the deck height down around 15" or so.  That will allow you to load the bike safely using the rear ramp/door and make the affair less stressful.

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=acmm-31vuDU&t=348s

 

Steep ramps are no fun!

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=XRvuuCzckJU




It is really easy with a wide ramp and low trailer floor.

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=7Q6LD9Gyv9E