Passes & Canyons Blog

I get the feeling a lot of people have stopped to take pictures with this sign.

Despite the blazing heat when we got to Missoula the day before on this OFMC 2023 trip, morning came in cool. Nice. I put on one extra layer.

We had to backtrack a little, to the town of Lolo, and then turn up US 12 over Lolo Pass. There was almost no traffic on the road so we had a nice cruise. And the higher we got the cooler it got. It was darn chilly!

Passing by Lolo Hot Springs of course brought memories of the first time I was there, back in about 1978, with a lady friend who was going to school in Missoula. Back then it was just a hot springs in the woods, no development at all, and we were the only ones there. We just got naked and got in the water. Then we camped there overnight. Now it’s totally developed, you have to pay to get in, and I suspect swimsuits are required. Big sigh.

We got to the top of the pass and of course we had to stop for photos at that famous sign. That one in the picture above. Is there any sign anywhere more attractive to a motorcyclist?

And it was cold! We put on more layers. And then, it was a dirty job but we were up for it. We tackled those 99 winding miles. It’s primarily sweepers that you just cruise along through, swaying left and right and left and right, in a nice easy gait. Sweet ride.

At Kooskia we stopped for lunch and then turned south on ID 13 (we were in Idaho now) and then picked up US 95 at Grangeville. The next town south after Grangeville is White Bird and our plan was to ride the White Bird Grade, which has been described as the Stelvio Pass of Idaho. But I blew it.

I had looked this road up before we went and I had it in my mind that you came down to White Bird, got off US 95, and continued south on the grade. That was wrong. I first started wondering when we reached White Bird Summit. This was marked as an historical site and I should have just pulled off to see what the situation was, but I didn’t. We headed on down the newer road and off to our left I could see a two-lane road with lots of sweeping curves over there and I figured it out pretty quickly. Dang! We got down to White Bird and there clearly was no big incline anywhere close ahead. I blew it. Next time. At least the newer road is in fact a pretty darn nice one, too.

We did some up and down and then started climbing. We were running alongside a river and the river kept getting smaller till there was almost nothing left of it. At Meadows we left US 95 and were on ID 55, climbing over a line of hills and down to McCall. Here we came into a huge alpine park, kind of like North Park or South Park in Colorado. Mountains on all sides. Beautiful area. And really big lakes.

Who knew McCall was such a huge tourist destination? Dennis said later his GPS was showing him a bypass around this massive congestion but I was leading and we don’t have communicators. I just followed the highway right through town. That took a while. From McCall we made it on down to Cascade, our destination for the night, and our nicest accommodations of the trip, at the Alpine Lodge. I highly recommend this place.

Altogether a beautiful day’s ride.

Biker Quote for Today

The three most dangerous words to a biker are “HEY… WATCH THIS!”

On the New Mexico ride.

If you only have one motorcycle then you have no issue, the bike you have is the best one for this ride. But I have three, so that requires some decision-making any time I go out.

On this recent RMMRC New Mexico ride I took the V-Strom and it ended up I was glad I did. It wasn’t in the plan and I’m not sure any of us knew what it was like, but we ended up riding US 191 which, as I mentioned previously, was a motorcyclist’s dream. On a road with lots of curves marked 15 mph and 10 mph it’s really nice to have a light, agile bike.

I was riding ahead of Charley and he really brought it home at one point when he told me it was just everything he could do to keep up with me. Now, Charley is a good rider but he has a really big BMW. Not one of the very biggest, but no small beast. So while he was really working that thing I was dancing.

I think the general tendency of a lot of riders is to discount something small like the 650 V-Strom I ride but then there are days like that one when they are forced to reconsider. It happened last year on the Great River Road ride. We did a day going through some hilly country and I was riding second, behind Dave, who is a very good rider, on a large machine. I was on the V-Strom.

Thinking about it at the time, I concluded that with Dave on that machine, surely my little bike was more agile and so if he could do it, I could do it. And I stuck right with him the whole way–a bit to his surprise I believe. That night as we walked to dinner he told me, “You did some fine riding today.” Yeah, it has a lot to do with the bike.

Later on this New Mexico ride we had left Grants but had to stop briefly to regroup at Milan. While there we talked with some guys on mid-sized dirt bikes. I watched one in particular who walked along the line of our bikes checking out each one. He came to mine, with me on it, and he broke into a big grin and gave me a thumbs-up. He came over and said this was his favorite street bike, that he used to have one just like it, even the same color. Then he leaned in and in a lower voice, conspiratorially, said “All these other expensive, fancy bikes . . . this one’s more fun to ride.”

So now the OFMC is getting set to take off on our annual trip and I’m torn. We’re going to be doing a lot of miles and the Concours is the better highway bike. But we’re also heading up to Lolo Pass, up near Missoula down into Idaho. At the top of Lolo Pass, heading west, there is a sign “warning” you that there is nothing but winding road for the next 99 miles. Please don’t throw me in that briar patch. And that’s the kind of road the V-Strom is best at.

I’ve ridden Lolo once before, and I was on the V-Strom that time. But my recollection is that these 99 miles don’t have the 10 mph and 15 mph curves that US 191 has. Whatever; I’ve already taken the V on a long trip this year and the Connie gets to have her chance.

Biker Quote for Today

Sometimes I wonder if my bike is thinking about me too.

Kevin coming down ahead of me into the Flaming Gorge area on that trip in 2015.

I’m the guy planning the OFMC ride these days and last week I sent out the route along with assignments as to who reserves motels in what town. It will definitely be the remaining three of us again this year, me and Bill and Dennis, plus we may have one or two others. We started at three, then ballooned to about 10 or 11, and have now shrunk back to three as guys hang up their helmets.

The two possibles include Bruce, who joined us for the first time last year, and Kevin, an old friend who it occurred to me that I ought to call. Neither of them can say for sure at this point but either or both may come along.

At Dennis’s suggestion, this year we will at least attempt to do the rest of the trip that got altered significantly a few years ago when Dennis inadvertently put diesel in his tank. We were headed for Missoula, Montana, that day, with intent of going over Lolo Pass. With fortune on our side we ought to get there this time.

We’ll be starting out this time headed for Meeker. We’ll take US 40 up to Craig and then CO 13 down to Meeker. If Kevin joins us he’ll probably meet us there; he lives in Gunnison.

Day two will be out of Colorado into Utah, north past the Flaming Gorge Reservoir, and into Wyoming to Kemmerer. Our first stay in Kemmerer many years ago was memorable because we eventually realized that several of the rooms just down from ours were gutted and had no roofs. Apparently there had been a fire. We probably won’t be staying at that motel this time. If Bruce joins us he’ll probably join us in Kemmerer, having made our two-day ride into a longish one-day ride.

From Kemmerer we’ll continue north through the Star Valley and then into Idaho. We’ll pass through Idaho Falls and go on to Arco, another town with some amusing memories from long ago. But I won’t go into that here; that’s a great candidate for my Tales of the OFMC series.

The next day we’ll run up from Arco, through Challis, to Missoula. I know this is a really nice ride so I’m looking forward to it. We’ll spend the night in Missoula and the next day double back just a few miles to the turn-off to Lolo Pass. This is actually a ride that Kevin and I did several years ago, along with his buddy Jeff. Those guys are pretty spontaneous so I was amused when we suddenly stopped and they both stripped naked and jumped in the river. It was a hot day, you know?

We’ll take US 12 down to Kooskia, then head south on ID 13 to Grangeville and there pick up US 95. At New Meadows we’ll get off onto ID 55 to Cascade, our stop for the night. This stretch will be the only new highway for us on this trip and it looks like it could be spectacular. I’ll let you know.

From Cascade we’ll head south to Boise and there we have little choice but to get on I-84. We’ll take that all the way down to Twin Falls and there turn south for our regular gambling/golf stop in Jackpot, Nevada. Along the way we’ll pass through Mountain Home, which is where Kevin’s buddy Jeff now lives, so we may lose Kevin there, presuming he’s with us in the first place. If Bruce is with us we’ll definitely lose him in Jackpot because while we stay there two nights, he will ride on after one night to get home as quickly as possible.

The big slog of the trip will come when we leave Jackpot, running south on US 93 to Wells, Nevada, and then east on I-80 to Wendover, across the salt flats to Salt Lake City, and then down to our destination that day, Spanish Fork.

Leaving Spanish Fork in the morning we’ll be on US 6 and then US 191 down to I-70 at Green River, Utah, where we’ll take the super slab to Grand Junction for our final night. The next day we’ll head home, presumably on I-70.

Should be a good trip. It will be a couple more days than usual because that is necessary if you’re going to get to Lolo Pass and not also do several long days. If there is one thing the OFMC does not like these days it is long days.

Biker Quote for Today

It is the unknown around the corner that turns my wheels.

Through Idaho along the Salmon River.

We rode the Beartooth. Kevin and Jeff were appropriately impressed. Spent the night in Cooke City so we could go up early in the morning, which is always a good plan. And that brought us down to Red Lodge with plenty of day left.

We headed out of town going north and then west. And there is extreme heat all over the west. I’m really enjoying on this trip that I’m on my V-Strom because these guys go off the pavement numerous times each day. On this particular one we were blasting along and Jeff suddenly hit his brakes, signaled a left turn, and we turned down a fishing access gravel road to soak t-shirts and cooling vests. That sort of thing does not happen with the OFMC.

We reached I-90 and needed to blast west about 70 miles on it so blast we did to get it over with. Then it was north again before connecting with a state road going west. Down a river valley and we came to Townsend, Montana. There’s a big lake here with numerous campgrounds around it but none well marked. We camped in a free campground with minimal amenities but at least we did have trains. All night long. Blowing their horns to let you know they were there.

Come morning we cruised into Helena and hit some shops to find things that had been lost. Then up and over a good sized hill and took another northward state highway to avoid doing 70 miles of interstate to Missoula.

Lunch in Missoula and then it was on up over Lolo Pass. I had last been up that pass, to Lolo hot springs, back in 1977 or 1978. The hot springs were natural and no one else was there. Now it’s a business. Sad but no surprise.

Going over the top of Lolo, however, we were all tickled to see a sign that read “Winding road next 99 miles.” We cruised down along the Lochsa River for that many miles, although not all at once. About 70 miles down we turned up the Selway River and found another nice, free campground. And this one did not have a train.

In the morning we went back to the Lochsa and on the rest of the 99 miles and then rode a lot of hours more on various winding roads down river valleys. This is Idaho and Idaho has a plentiful supply of motorcycle roads.

Jeff lives outside Boise so we made it on to his house, which is why I have wi-fi again, and tomorrow we’ll part company with him. But Kevin and I still have two days plus to get back to our homes in Colorado. So this ride is not over.

Biker Quote for Today

A touring bike is whatever you have in the garage when you want to go somewhere.