San Diego to Texas to Colorado to Washington State

[Ray Mooney]

After 21 years in the Navy, I'm retiring in May. My whole life I've wanted to take a motorcycle trip across country and now's my chance. I'll be riding from San Diego to Houston (probably stopping in Austin to see the Alamo -- I'm a Texan and I've never seen it!), then up to Dallas, then Colorado Springs, then Bremerton, Wash., then down to Portland, Ore., and finally back down the coast and back home. I've got friends or family at each stop, and I'll probably be doing the motel thing in between destinations (I don't camp!).

I'd like to avoid interstates as much as possible, of course, but I don't want to get too terribly sidetracked while going from point to point. I've never done much touring before, and when I've made cross-country drives in the cage, it was all about the destination, so it was interstate all the way. The only exception is a motorcycle ride I made from Bremerton to San Diego years ago, so I'm familiar with the 1 and the 101 coming down the west coast. Great trip!

Anyway, I'm looking for advice on routes and must-sees along the way. I've driven to Texas before, and down from Washington, but the rest of the route is completely foreign to me. Country highways and byways are pretty much what I have in mind. I've got about a month to do it, with probably two or three days at each stop, so that's about two weeks actual riding time. I'm just starting to plan and I'll be able to adjust on the fly, but I thought you guys might be able to offer some insight.

Thanks.
Ray

[dhcolesj]

I thought the Alamo was in San Antonio.

That's where I saw it, anyway.

[Ray Mooney]

That's quite a faux pas for a Texan.     You're right, of course. Capitol is Austin, Alamo is San Antonio.

[pmackie]

Hi Ray

I'm not sure of your route from Colorado Springs to Wahsington, but if you head far enough North to get to Wyoming/Montana I would suggest the Chief Joseph Hwy #296, off Hwy 120 North of Cody and connects to another great road, Hwy 212 Bear Tooth Pass. Depending on your route, you can also pick up some of Yellowstone, which is absolutely beautiful as well.

To do justice to most of this area, you will be a little off any kind of straight track, but for example, you could come up Hwy 191 into S Yellowstone, take 14 out to Cody, then 120 to 296. The decision comes whether you want to take 212 west into N Yellowstone, or go North over the Beartooth into Red Lodge. Or...even better, do the Beartooth both ways, and then head into the Park.

As for heading west, I would suggest Hwy 12 Lolo Pass south of Missoula, MT to Lewiston, ID is great!!

Also, if you're prepared to go a little farther North, all of Hwy 20, from Ione (north of Spokane) right through to the coast is excellent.

If you have some idea of what route you want out of Colorado, I can give you some other suggestions. Not to mention that Colorada has some of the best roads in North America, I'm told.

[Red01]

As for heading west, I would suggest Hwy 12 Lolo Pass south of Missoula, MT to Lewiston, ID is great!!

Also, if you're prepared to go a little farther North, all of Hwy 20, from Ione (north of Spokane) right through to the coast is excellent.

+1 

Just be sure to take the Old Spiral Highway out of Lewiston. 

WA's SR20 is one of my all-time fav's in this state... and definitely the best way to traverse the state from east to west (or vice-versa) from a ride-for-fun (and scenery) point of view.

When do you plan on leaving for this ride?  May can be a little early for the Rockies & Cascades on lesser traveled routes.  SR 20 is closed in the winter... it usually re-opens around the mid-April to early May, but has been as early as March 30th and as late as June 14th, depending on how severe the winter has been.  Keep in mind this area is famous for world record snowfalls in winter and it's not at all uncommon for the road crews to have to plow through 12-14' of snow in the spring.  To give you an idea of the rugged country that SR 20 (aka North Cascades Hwy) traverses, this was the first east-west route proposed by the young Washington state, way back in 1893, yet three other routes (now US 2, US 12 & I-90) were completed long before this highway finally opened in 1972, 79 years after it's first proposal.

[Ray Mooney]

A big priority on that leg of the trip is to see Yellowstone, so I'll be heading northwest from Colorado Springs. On Google Maps it looks like the best bet is up toward Denver, then the 287 up to Yellowstone. Good? Bad? Options?

Probably up toward Missoula from there and start wandering west. The 12 up there looks promising, but it looks like there's a whole lot of empty between Missoula and Lewiston. Gas? Motels?

Probably leave May1. Am I really risking snow and ice that late in the year? Of course, I can always shift routes on the fly. My schedule is my own, although I'd like to keep it at just a month. Six weeks might cause the wife and my bank account some heartburn. 

[andrewsw]

Yes, snow and ice is an issue in May, especially if you get off the slab, and especially if you get north of I-90, more or less. A little planning and maybe scouring some regional boards for ride reports should help a lot though. And if the roads are through natl forest or other govt land, call them. they're usually happy to help.

If you come anywhere near spokane, which it sounds like you will, let us know. We'll have to try and get a bunch of folks together to follow you for a little while. ;)

A

[pmackie]

The 12 up there looks promising, but it looks like there's a whole lot of empty between Missoula and Lewiston. Gas? Motels?

Lots of hotels and gas at Missoula, and gas and lodging at Lolo as well. Only a 1/2 day ride from there to Lewiston, with gas at several points. Just make sure you're full at Lolo and you'll be fine.

Remember, many of the passes in Rockies, Purcells and Selkirks as you head north are above 6000 ft, and can often still have potential for snow in May, depending on the weather. (We ran into snow on the Lassen Rd in California this year in late May (May 26th), however, Lassen goes to 8500 ft.) Yellowstone will also have lots of snow around, even in mid May, most years, as all the roads are above 6500 ft and some go to 8000 ft. Same with the Chief Joseph Hwy. The Bear Tooth would be out of the question in May, as it goes to 11,000 ft.

May can be a super time to see the area, but bring your electric vest...