From Portland to Jackson Hole and back

*SEE UPDATE BELOW!

Well boys and girls, after MUCH anxiety as to how I and the bike would hold up on my first ever long ride (by a long shot I might add) the '85 VF700 and I lived to tell about our Portland to Jackson Hole to Yellowstone and back.

True to the geniuses on this site, I had some trouble at the top of the 8500+ ft elevation of the pass over the Tetons, about 20 miles from my destination (Jackson Hole). Fouled the plugs after bogging down behind some 15 mph crawlers (I just didn't downshift fast enough). Coasted down about 5 miles to a flat spot, changed the plugs, and was home free, never having a hint of a mechanical problem from there on.

The best ride: through the Sawtooth mtns east of Boise

A couple of pics from the trip:

 

Wow that must have been an awesome trip! Glad to see you and the viffer make it back in one piece each!!

 

Very nice, now where's all the other photos? and a detailed write up? Surly Reg isn't the only one that knows how to do that.

 

Awesome photos. Thanks for sharing!

I am riding to Banff and Jasper very early September, so I should have something to contribute, which will make Jay happy.

 

Congratulations on your first long road trip, I do agree were going to need more details on this epic adventure.

 

UPDATE: Full trip breakdown PDX to Jackson Hole

Alright, here goes...

Coming out of Portland I took advantage of my extra-flexible schedule (I'm a high school teacher) to take the incredible eastern Oregon roads through Fossil and John Day and saw some killer rock formations. I only did 250 miles the first day; the most I had done previously is 90, so I was hyper-anxious and I think it tired me out..







The town of John Day is kind of cool (and the girls that work in the restaurant are smokin' hot btw)..



ha, ha

The second day was straight, windy, and hot. I ended up stopping in Mountain Home, ID, as it was a seemingly solid middle point between Portland and Jackson Hole. They could have called Mountain Home *something* Hole. The hotel though was suuuper retro, kind of cool, the AC worked great and the guy that worked there was a motorcycle guy. He was shocked I was taking my 23yr old bike from PDX to WY.











Day three saw my only real mechanical trouble, as previously mentioned. I made it to Jackson Hole where my incredibly wealthy friend grew up and where I spent the next four days partying, rafting, hiking, and generally having a kick ass time. Again, great girls...great.











My first day out was up to Yellowstone. As far as I'm concerned, Yellowstone is made for parking, camping, and fishing. Just riding through was tedious, due to the traffic. It was certainly beautiful but you really have to be careful about wildlife and pulling out is kind of treacherous because nobody is really looking at the road. I did see some bitchin' stuff though..













I stayed in West Yellowstone the next day; surprisingly, it was a dump. I figured being that close to a national treasure would inject a lot of money in to the small town.

So after a fitful night sleep (bad bed and worries that my bike wouldn't be there in the morning) I started steaming through for Boise. It was a 500 mile day and hot as hell, so I didn't get a lot of pictures but it was actually the prettiest ride I took. I highly recommend the Sawtooth Mtns as a riding destination, just beautiful and friggin' empty.





The last day was a straight steam along the Columbia river. If you have to do a straight highway stretch, you won't find much prettier. But DAMN I felt like I was beaten with a pillowcase full of soap bars after 450 miles in that wind.



Well, that's it. The best part about this trip is that I know now that I can do it. That I can have a little mechanical trouble and not freak out. That other bikers are friendly as hell. That my bike is as good as the love I lavish on it.

 

Nice ride report and pics.

Living in Boise, I concur about the Sawtooths and the surrounding area. You missed another fine road, the Lowman-Banks highway, which would have connected you with hwy 55, where heading south would have also led you to Boise. But hwy 21 down to Boise is sure a blast and a regular ride for us in the area.

That I84 run from Boise west is a drag, with heat, wind and lots of leos. Not to mention the ridiculous speed limits in Oregon. I try to avoid it.

+1 on John Day and some of the cuties there. Small town, but nice scenery.:smile: And the roads in NE Oregon are about as good as it gets.