I get on the road before Brian, Dwayne, and Ben on Friday, but they pass me when I take a break at Auburn. Dwayne’s Impreza is slow pulling three bikes uphill and I pass them in the Sierra Nevada. Gas and lunch in Fernley, then continue onto Highway 50. Fallon, Dixie Valley, and Middlegate pass by. Austin is farther than I remember. The others are far behind so I take a long break east of Austin. When I get to Eureka Brian texts that they are twelve minutes away. I doze off before he sends the text that they have checked in. There’s plenty of parking behind the Eureka Gold Country Inn. I unload Effie and set up my cot. I have a relaxing evening watching Working Moms and eating left-over ribs.
This is Ben’s first moto-packing trip. He just bought Weston’s bike, but doesn’t have the right luggage yet. He’s wearing a large backpack to supplement his motorcycle luggage. It takes some time for him to load up his bike in the morning. We get gas next door, then hit the road. When we turn off Highway 50 onto the dirt road, Dwayne’s clutch stops working. Ben goes back to Eureka for brake fluid, while the Dwayne, Brian, and I open the gate to the dirt road and discuss our options. When Ben returns we try to bleed the clutch line. There’s no pressure and the brake fluid leaks out slowly. We finally give up and shove Dwayne off so he can get his bike in gear. He rents a U-Haul trailer in town and transfers Brian’s trailer to Vanna.
Ben, Brian, and I start riding a little before noon. We only have 125 miles to cover today. Most are on nice dirt roads, so we can go fast. I keep thinking that this is a ride that George would like. We come across old mines and new dump truck mid-repair in the desert.
We pass a large, active gold mine on a busy road frequented by large trucks. Often we come across clusters of critters crawling across the road. When we stop, we see that they are shiny, dark red-orange Mormon crickets that jump a foot or two in the air. We ascend Mt Lewis at the end of the day. It’s steep. As the air cools the crickets disappear. One hairpin after another, through some snow, we reach the white orb at the peak – the Battle Mountain FAA Long-Range Radar Facility (used by the USAF in the 1960s).
The road down the other side is blocked by snow, so we go back the way we came. We ride up along Lewis Creek to look for a camp spot. There are trees here and water running down the road at times. Really different from the sage brush valleys we’ve ridden through most of the day. There are a number of good camp spots to choose from and plenty of dead wood for a fire. Ben eats Dwayne’s dinner portion. Even though we got a late start we get to camp around 5pm.
First stop Sunday is Battle Mountain for gas, groceries, and lunch. The road out of town turns from asphalt to nice gravel. We encounter crickets and cows again. A left takes us to more remote range land.
The cows and babies eye us as we ride by. We approach cautiously – not wanting to spook large animals. Usually they run away from us off the road. However one cow and baby run down the road ahead of us. We follow them slowly at 15 mph. After a couple minutes they finally run off the road to a meadow. We ride along Rock Creek. There are a number of water crossings: some deep, some rocky, some long, and some easy. My boots get soaked during a rocky bit, so I scout the hard crossings going forward since the others have dry feet. As we climb, the water crossings are replace by snow. Sometimes we need to push each other through because traction is poor.
Eventually our path is blocked and we need to turn around. We detour up a steep hill, next to a barbed wire fence. At the top we find another road. We start to descend, but there’s still a lot of snow. A steep snowy climb, surrounded by dense trees, stops us for the day. It’s 7pm. We’re at a good camp spot, though 50 miles from the hot spring we were planning on camping at. The ground is damp and mushy, so I lean Effie up against a tree. Lots of green growth push up through the ground. The moon is full and red – it’s a total lunar eclipse. We’re at 7900′, but it’s warm today, so hopefully the night won’t be too cold. It’s 55 degrees at 10pm when I get in my tent.
Monday morning we start our day running uphill pushing motorcycles in the snow. It’s hard work. Since we live at sea-level, we need a few minutes to catch our breath after each bike. We get all three up the slope though. We ride through and around a few more snow patches. Finally we descend. Fortunately there is only one creek crossing before we get to a main dirt road. The fields on the way to Owyhee are green with yellow, orange, pink, white, and purple wild flowers. Fluffy clouds hang above in a blue sky. In Owyhee we resupply, then head into Idaho and Mountain Time. Thunder clouds move in. We see lightning and rainbows plus a touch of hail.
Ben’s tent bag is deteriorating quickly and the rocky road shakes a pole loose. It gets caught in his rear wheel and breaks into multiple pieces. I take the tent remains on my bike. The road into the Bruneau Jarbidge Wilderness Area is narrow, steep, and rocky. I stop to give Ben space to start his descent, but watching him makes me nervous and I fall over even before I start down. Luckily I make it ok.
At the bottom of the canyon Indian Hot Springs pours hot water down the rock mountain face. It’s a nice surprise to make up for missing Rizzi Hot Springs the night before. The hot creek is shrouded in steam and the water is too hot to soak in. We’re too tired to haul hot water in a bucket to the two tubs by the creek-side. Instead Brian and Ben wade into the water where the hot creek meets the Bruneau River. There’s an eddy, but the waters are running too fast to mix well. They bathe in alternating blasts of hot and cold water, while I enjoy the hot steam.
Tuesday morning we ride out the East side of the canyon. This way is steep and rocky too. At least there’s no hairpin though. The ride takes us north along the canyon. We have lunch at a canyon overlook spot. The view reminds me of Moab. The rock isn’t sandstone though, so it probably took the water longer to carve this canyon.
We gas up in Bruneau, then take a long, boring gravel road South toward the snow-topped mountains in Nevada. A few clusters of cows keep us on our toes. Sometimes they stare, sometimes walk across the road, and sometimes run. Pronghorn antelope pass by as well, the fastest land mammal in the Western Hemisphere.
After Murphys Hot Springs we take a break by the East Fork of the Jarbidge River, fifteen miles north of Jarbidge. We’re a week early for their tourist season – the store is closed and Jase needs to turn the water heater on in our room. Ron, an 87 year old at the bar/restaurant, shows us some photos of him and his Model A Ford by the plowed snow on the road to Charleston in June. Even standing on the running boards, the snow is higher than his outstretched arm. Normally they don’t plow it, but there was a project that needed the road that year. Now the road is only open July-October, depending on conditions. A couple rounds of cards after dinner and I’m ready for bed.
Breakfast is at 8am Pacific Time/9am Mountain Time at the Red Dog Saloon. Jase makes us breakfast and sandwiches for lunch. Then gives me feedback on my route. Jane has a Red Dog Saloon sticker for each of us.
We head back through the canyon to Idaho before riding out the west side. At Jase’s suggestion, we take the road that follows the Bruneau River in a canyon. The road drops down to river level and we come across a long flooded portion. The road bends and we can’t see the end. Brian goes first. Ben and I can still hear his engine when he’s out of sight. When his engine shuts off, Ben goes next. I go last. It’s a long water crossing – about 200′. When I turn the corner I see both Brian and Ben stuck in the mud. I’m stopped off on the left side with a foot on dry land. Brian suggests I go to the right bank, even though it looks like there’s a steep lip. Sometimes there are no good options. I get close, but am bogged down by mud. Ben props his bike up with a log and comes to help drag my bike out. It takes all three of us to get Brian’s bike out of the mud. Ben’s bike is only half stuck in the mud, so that wasn’t too hard. Our boots are soaked and it’s time for a lunch break. Brian is sour and blames some beavers for the flooding. Fortunately none of the other water crossings are as challenging.
Ben shares an observation with me. He says that Brian and I are people who like to solve problems. This kind of trip offers us ample opportunities to do so since there is much unpredictability. He doesn’t particularly enjoy solving problems, but wants to push himself occasionally to do new things.
We leave the canyon for rolling hills with more cows. After an unsuccessful detour to find a hot spring, we camp in a grassy meadow with a few aspen trees lining a creek. One of Ben’s tent poles is broken, so he’s securing his tent to trees with rope. There’s a lot of dead wood around, so gathering firewood tonight is easy. Croaking frogs provide us extra company for the night.
Thursday the weather changes. It’s overcast, chilly, and windy. I wear all my layers of clothes. Over and over we ride up sage brush mountains and into canyons with creeks lined with aspens. The cross wind makes keeping your line difficult, especially in tight, rocky sections. On one peak with a 360 view of the surrounding mountains, Brian’s GPS says it’s 37 degrees. I’m glad I brought enough clothes and am not cold. Fresh grass makes it hard to find the road sometimes.
We encounter more water crossings. Grumpy Brian has been with us since the muddy crossing yesterday afternoon. One muddy crossing triggers Grumpy Brian and an argument with Ben ensues. Eventually we get to faster gravel roads. With the cross wind we can ride closer together since the dust is blown away. My neck gets tired holding my head/helmet up against the wind. Montello is shrouded in dust as we approach. We pick up some food and gas, then head up Patterson Pass to Mt Patterson.
Several jets fly above as we climb. They fly low and are very loud. The route has a way point marked “steep downhill.” The climb is gradual, making the steep downhill very obvious. It’s loose and long. The steepest part is up at the top, which makes going up this slope much more difficult than going down. Ben goes first, a little too fast. He can’t steer around the obstacles, looses the rear, and falls over. I go slow and make it down fine. The road on the other side is fast. We get to Wendover before 5pm. After gassing up and getting supplies, I check the weather to see when the wind will die down. It says 25 mph wind with gusts up to 35 mph until midnight. This doesn’t bode well for camping, especially since Ben’s tent is damaged. We decide to get rooms instead across the street at Montego Bay Hotel and Casino. We’re in the Nevada side of town (thus there’s a casino) but my phone still shows Mountain Time. Ben and Brian have dinner downstairs and bring my food up to me in the room.
My hands are dry from the dust and I scratch my right eye when brushing an eye lash out. The bump is gone and the scratch hurts less Friday morning, but my eye tears when I have it open. We have a long day today, 190 miles. Brian is outside and loaded up when Ben and I start bringing our luggage down. Usually Brian is the one we wait for in the morning. It’s cold today 40-50 degrees, but not windy like Thursday. We’re riding fast and we’re all chilly. Morgan Pass takes us through the Goshute Mountains. On the way down into Goshute Valley, we see a dozen wild horses. In the valley there are about 80 more.
Across the valley we take a lunch break at Ruby Lake. We ride a portion of the Pony Express trail, then hit the asphalt.
Brian misses the turn to the last dirt section of the route, so we just take Highway 50 to Eureka. I’m really cold riding over the last pass at 7800 feet. We make it back to the Country Inn around 4:30. We were worried that Brian would run out of gas since he has the shortest fuel range, but it turns out that riding conservatively really helps his fuel consumption rate. I have one pair of clean socks left to change into. The rest are crusty with mud water. My boots have been wet for days now. We go to dinner in town.
Saturday morning we load up the bikes and drive home. Ben does work on his laptop. Brian chats a little. I give them the speaker, but neither wants to play music for the drive. By 7pm we’re in SF dropping off Ben, Brian, their bikes, and Brian’s trailer. When I get home, I finish my Vietnamese spring roll and head to bed.