975 Miles of Curves in 2 Days w/ Pics

DefyInertia

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I post this on a local forum where everyone is familiar with the roads, so forgive me for the details if you don't live around here.
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What a trip. Here is the MAP

All loaded up and ready to go
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I ate a large breakfast and pulled out of my driveway in SF at 6:50 am on Saturday. It was cool, but the sky was blue and the roads were EMPTY. I didn’t take any pictures for a while because I have seen the first 100+ miles of HWY 1 north of SF so many times and I was fresh and trying to get a good jump on my day. I did stop to get gas and eat a snack though.

That's point reyes over there
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Gotta love HWY 1 when it's empty
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I later stopped at this beach to take my first extended break and took this picture for Tyler. It was cold on the water, but the sky was clear and the sun was out.
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Not a bad spot to rest
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20 MPH?
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When HWY 1 came to an end in Leggett at HWY 101, I was very happy about the fact that it was still very early, I’d been having a great ride and was not too tired, and that the weather was getting warmer. I took Avenue of the Giants in its entirety and then took some other scenic 101 alternate (the one with the “BIG TREE” sign) that proved to be good and twisty as well (I despise highway).
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The FZ6 is so underrated
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Couldn't resist
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After somehow never stopping for a formal lunch (I snacked all day long), I made it to the park (Jedediah Smith Redwood SP) at 4 pm (about 25 miles into my reserve!).
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DefyInertia

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My friend, who had ridden down from Portland, was already there. I found him hanging out next to the river soaking up the sunshine and drying out his gear.
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His SV
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The campsite....can't complain!
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We set up camp, went and got groceries and beer, and were back at camp building a fire well before the sun went down which gave us a chance to check out the park and river a little more. Good times around the campfire ensued.
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I slept like a rock and was up at 7 am which gave me plenty of time to build a fire, cook breakfast, get cleaned up, pack the bike, and gear up at a relaxed pace.
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By the time I was thumbing the starter on my bike it was 9:15 am and getting warmer quick. Some more crummy scenery...
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I blasted down HWY 101 (which is actually pretty fun in a lot of places (very beautiful too)) to HWY 299. I stopped and got some coffee and fuel near the 101/299 junction (10:50 am), enjoyed the warmth for a few minutes and confirmed with myself that I did in fact want to stick to my planned route. My route was about to start heading EAST when home was SOUTH so this warranted a mental check to make sure this was still a good idea.

It was a great idea. The WEST end of 299 was a great way to ease into the highspeed twisty stuff. Still no traffic so I was able to really move.
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In case you didn't see the snow the first time!
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I stopped in Weaverville to shed my cold weather gear (it was really warm by then) and kept on moving. HWY 3 is one of my favorites but the placement of the tar snakes (they run parallel to the dblyellow) makes for some squirlyness at lean/speed. There were not many rocks in the road which was nice though.

There was some snow on 36 along the sides of the road but I just kept on riding without stopping for pics because I was fully enjoying myself (sometimes forcing yourself to stop and take pics can ruin the experience).

I reluctantly dropped off 36 to take a “short cut” back to 101 via a back/back road. For the entire 50+ miles, the road changed between nice new smooth pavement, to rough pavement, to dirt, and back again. Again, no traffic.
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If you're going to try and do 550 miles in one day, it's always a good idea to include some dirt.
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DefyInertia

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And then I took this road :)
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I coasted down onto HWY 101 on reserve (again) and filled up while a bunch of dirty hippies watched me waiting for the right time to ask for change – interesting town. I forgot to get lunch and headed on to HWY 101 headed for HWY 1.

I stopped for a meal right before getting back on HWY 1 (I again contemplated taking the highway the remaining 200 miles home but thankfully opted for the planned twisty route) and enjoyed some air conditioning for the first time all day (I was sweating at this point!).
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I much prefer the “good section” of HWY 1 that cuts from HWY 101 to the ocean when heading North to South (great 3rd gear road for my loaded FZ6). The North-bound lane receives more abuse from the logging trucks and has more debris in it; however, both lanes had quite a bit of gravel in some of the tight corner so I did some dancing which was fun.

It was cold but beautiful back out on the coast.
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Another horrible spot to take a break
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I made good time down to 128 and was just starting to get cold (still had my cold weather gear in the trunk) so the in-land path that 128 took me was VERY welcome. What a great way to end the day….this is such a nice ride. The temperature just kept rising as I threaded through the redwoods at speed only encountering maybe 5 cars (which were all easily passed) on my way back to HWY 101 (Cloverdale).

With about 90 miles to go, I blasted down HWY 101 to San Francisco with no drama. I arrived home at 9 pm sharp with only my wife, food, a shower, and sleep on my mind. As I pulled into the driveway the house was dark and as I hit the kill switch my mind started thinking about where I had stowed my keys. It’s pretty difficult to lose something on a bike that is packed as sparsely and tightly as mine was, so I quickly y realized I had not brought my keys with me. Long story short, my wife was out with friends but they were on their way back so I pulled out my sleeping pad, grabbed my tent for a pillow, and went to sleep in my driveway for about 45 minutes (still wearing all my gear).

All in I covered just shy of 1,000 miles. My neck got a little soar at times from the wind but other than that I was pretty comfortable the entire time. I certainly had fun the entire time. I hate slab but 101 way up north is pretty damn curvy (plus the views are good and I managed to find some alternates). With respect to fatigue, I didn’t really have any challenges. During the course of the trip I did have a few turns that snuck up on me because I was either looking around or deep in thought, but there was no drama and I was very pleased with my riding. I saw a ton of deer (some of which were in the road), slid around on quite a bit of gravel (front and rear), and even caught some air (dropping off a ledge on a beat up goat path (ok, don’t believe me)), but nothing got me spooked….maybe that was the fatigue or maybe my comfort on 2 wheels has reached a new height.

EDIT - HERE is the planning thread

Anyway, thanks to everyone who helped me plan, and gave me advice on how to be safe. I would do it again (and it was definitely worth getting to hang out with my friend), but if given the choice, I’ll stick to the 200 to 400 mile range for now. I love California and I love motorcycles.
 

Lefty

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Awesome ride report!:thumbup: I'm going to bookmark your map and try the same (or very close to it) ride this summer. Thanks for taking the time to share it.
 

maverick1970

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Thank you so much for sharing!!! Have you been down PCH from San Fran to Morro Bay? My wife has a wife that lives in Morro Bay and I've driving from there to San Fran in a car. Really nice ride.
 
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