Elkhorn Loop - Oregon Scenic Byway

Yesterday we rode the 110 mile Elkhorn Loop from Baker City, OR; elevation reached 7,400 feet; visable patches of snow; lots of bear signs; mild pine smell; beautiful scenery; comfortable temperatures; very remote. Today Jim replaced/installed missing O-ring on RV's hydraulic pump so levelers and slides should work OK; tomorrow we leave for Yakima, WA in route to Mt. Rainier.

Wallowa-Whitman National Forest Baker City OR

Yesterday we rode into Wallowa-Whitman National Forest and through Sumpter. The weather was perfect for the first time since we left Bastrop (not too hot, not too cold). It was so quiet; no traffic; kinda scary if you ran out of gas or broke down miles from anything. We loved it!

Baker City,Oregon

Tuesday we drove from Pocatello, ID to Baker City, OR. We saw potato fields and large fire-burned areas along the highway. Baker City's mountains go from the brown high desert to more treed greener mountains with snow. We are in a nice RV park with shade trees, mountain views and scenic byways. Good thing; we may be here for a while. Jim diagnosed a problem with our RV's leveling system. It's leaking fluid and, at this point, we don't know our next step. Jim has begun communication with Forest River.

Pocetello Mountain Range, Pocatello ID

Yesterday we rode the east side of the Carribou Forest in Pocatello. Today we travel to Baker City, Oregon in route to Mt. Rainier in Washington state.

Carribou Nat'l Forest, Pocatello ID Ride #2

Yesterday we returned to Carribou Nat'l Forest. We enjoyed the trails, esp. the switchbacks and manuevered deep gravel without incident. We experienced a variety of terrain including farms high amid plains between mountains. Everywhere we go the topography differs from previous. We continue to be pleased with the performance of our Hondas, CRF230Ls.

Carribou Nat'l Forest, Scout Mountain Pocatello, ID

Yesterday we explored Carribou Nat'l Forest and found various kinds of terrain and views. There are farm fields high in the mountains; about 8,000 feet. The high plains were planted with hay in various stages of growth and harvest, depending on altitude, along with free-range cattle. We will go back tomorrow to continue exploring the many trails.

Pocatello, ID

We are in Pocatello, Idaho. The bottom picture is on the road, the top is our spot in Cowboy RV Park in Pocatello. We think there will be lots of riding opportunities!
Another Vernal?

Adjustments

The last 2 days we have been making adjustments to our towing package.
We sold the trailer and bought a carrier that holds 2 dirt bikes. Now we can go to Washington, Oregon, and California (triple towing is illegal). To accomodate the carrier we had to install helper airbags for the extra weight.

Jones Hole, Diamond Mountain Vernal Utah

Yesterday we rode to Diamond Mountain and onto the fish hatchery in Jones Hole. This ride, and Vernal in general, goes from desert to mountains taking us through gorges, ravines, passes, overlooks, cliffs, giant rock formations, dinosaur trails and multiple weather conditions; all in the same day! We really need a helmet camera to better capture Vernal's incredible scenery.

Red Cloud Loop Day 2, Vernal Utah

Today Jim did some service on the bikes; oil change, throttle adjustment and cleaned the chains. So, we went back up Taylor Mountain to continue Red Cloud Loop. Today we experienced thunder, lightning, pouring rain and freezing temps as shown on the attached picture of snow. It was all worth it as the many free range cows would concur. The scenery was breathtaking. We were high in the mountains with a stronge smell of pines. Dirt biking turned into mud biking. It does not get much better!

Red Cloud Loop Day 1, Vernal Utah

Yesterday we attempted Red Cloud Loop in Vernal. First, we were acccosted by free range cattle then rained on and frozen so took the shortcut home over Taylor Mountain.

Sheep Creek Canyon Geological Loop

For Joellen's 57th birthday July 3rd we rode about 140 miles round trip on our Dual Sport Bikes up to Sheep Creek Canyon Geological Loop north of Vernal Utah. The terrain was awesome and varied greatly. This ride deserves an encore!

Vernal, Utah

Who knew that Vernal, Utah would turn out to be so special. The scenery is so varied and extreme. Vernal boasts many dinosaur fossils and history. There are many dirt bike trails to explore. Route 191 North goes from giant Utah rock formations into giant wooded Pines. We hope to be able to extend our 4-night stay here into a week+. We are in Fossil Valley RV Park that is very shaded by huge Oaks and Aspens. More to come on Vernal ...