Route 66 Trip - Anyone done it?

[longwayfromhome]

Got any recommendations re the Chicago to LA trip?

Who to go with?

Mrs Cat and I looking at it for next Dec.

I did 240k km in the US over 10 years. Been back 5 years. I would be pleased to give you some route advice if you wanted as I only missed Rhode Island and Alaska (I know, the two best bits ). I would not recommend Rt66 for the reasons already given. The US is God's gift to motorcycling and my recommendation would be for you to enjoy the bounty and not be taken in by the Rt66 saga. If you must, then do sections in the mid-West out from Chicago... where the story is more about the people and places rather than the riding. When you get to the spectacular country out west, there are many different places to go that leave Rt66 for dead.

One other thing... best not to go in December. Latest is September, possibly October. After the leaves fall in mid-October, the land slowly settles in for winter by turning grey, misty and everything closes. People turn inward, not outward. They just had a mild week in Chicago, but things are changing... " Intensifying low pressure is forecast to pass west and north of the region on Wednesday, drawing mild, rainy weather into the Midwest, on howling south winds. Polar air massing across western portions of Canada and the U.S. is then forecast to begin spreading east. By Friday, a large amplitude dip in the jet stream is expected to develop, allowing polar air to reach the Midwest. Temperatures next weekend are forecast to remain well below freezing. " They just had big storms in November that killed a number of people with the freezing rain - not good conditions for riding. I have ridden in 19F - this was OK, but I wouldn't do it day after day and you can only do it if there is no moisture about. Any defrost/refreeze will cause you to be stopped because of ice. Weather is serious in the US, much more so than here.

Jeez, if you could do the canyon country (Grand, Zion, Bryce,Arches, Canyonlands), up to Wyoming (Yellowstone, Beartooth Pass, Chief Joseph Scenic Byway) and then have the pick of Glacier/Banff/Jasper to the north, or Rocky Mountains NP/Gunnison/Santa Fe to the south or Crater lake or the redwoods/Tahoe/Yosemite to the west, finishing with highway 1 from SanFran to LA... wow, there a brilliant 1-2 months - time of your life.

As I said, happy to work with you.

[Theantidote]

my son has been bitchin at me to take him for the route 66 experience after seeing that scottish fella on tv (sorry mind fart and can't remember jack at the mo)
i have just finished the backblocks...gareth (cat lover) and his wife thingo morgan doing mexico, the states, canada and alaska...it all sounded like a really good trip with so much variety in a single day...so i'm sure what ever you decide you'll forge memories for sure...
hei everyone else...keep up the really good feedback...it makes for a good read and future reference for all of us...

[rastuscat]

Have gone off the idea of 66 but looks like a USA trip in about mid 2015.

Is it a better idea to take my own bike? Seems harder than it probably is.

[longwayfromhome]

Have gone off the idea of 66 but looks like a USA trip in about mid 2015.

Is it a better idea to take my own bike? Seems harder than it probably is.

Having warned about the winter, I should warn you about the summer - July and August. I saw 107F on the way to the Grand Canyon a few years ago last week of August... I drained the camelback several times during the day and we were quite listless lying in the pool that night in Kingman, AZ. The heat is pretty extreme (100F+ very regularly in the mountain states during the day) and while many can handle it with suitable hydration, many can't. After a few days of it you can get quite sick, very knocked about, very tired if you aren't careful. Many accidents on bikes are attributed to guys blacking out due to dehydration.

I did ride with a guy who flew a K1200LT from the UK into Philly and back again, he had a blast, but money was no object for him. I would think that the bike will take about $1k each way, so you have to set that off against buying and having to wait around at the end to sell it. RT's are a dime a dozen, but with the new water cooled RT available by then I suspect it would be easy to buy and difficult to sell. California is your best bet. I rented at ~$100/day for a GS/RT/GT from San Jose BMW a few years ago for an extended rental.

[Gremlin]

Have gone off the idea of 66 but looks like a USA trip in about mid 2015.

Is it a better idea to take my own bike? Seems harder than it probably is.

I took my GSA, but then, it was perfectly set up for the trip, and as part of the group above, shipping was NZ$3k return. We got the bikes to Wellington, then crated them and into containers. Kiwi Shipping USA side handled landing, Ken (organiser from link) made sure we filled in appropriate carnets etc. Being part of the group is excellent like that, he told me exactly what he needed from me, where I needed to be etc. He usually does a trip a year, so also keeps dealing with the same people, which makes things all business as usual.

Pros of shipping: You ride your own bike, photos have your own bike in it. It's setup exactly how you like. Foreign plate in a friendly place like the USA makes an excellent starting point (I also put NZ flags each side of the bike just under the screen) for conversation, and I figured drivers would cut me a little slack seeing a foreign plate. Extended trips of multiple weeks (I was there for 6-7 weeks) makes rental expensive. A Hardley for example was around $7500 for the trip ie, more than twice the price of shipping.

Pros of renting: Insurance is inclued in rental (arranging insurance was US$660 I think) and should you have a break down, the rental company sorts you out. With your own bike, you're very much on your own (I hoped reciprocal AA would assist should anything happen). Harley has massive support in the USA. Couple of guys had issues with their rentals, one was mid-trip, and the local dealership boss lent them his personal Harley, saying he'd sort with insurance and caught up with them a day later, their rental in tow and swapped bikes back. The support is impressive.

As for heat, Ken was good like that, plotting a course north from LA into Canada and then back around through the states. Throughout the trip we slowly acclimatised to higher altitude and more heat. It topped out heading through Death Valley, the bike air gauge hitting a maximum of 53 degrees, or 127F. Not recommended though, the suggestion was to leave Las Vegas at 0600, I left at 1100, and went through at pretty much the hottest part of the day. Only time I've ever felt in real danger, as it wasn't about fun, it was about survival. I could feel the dehydration taking effect, and people have died on trips like this in lower temperatures, when you catch the dehydration too late.

Whatever you do, don't make the mistake of heading out of town on the Interstate, you will miss all the good stuff.

[Old Steve]

I've just started reading Mike Hyde's Twisting Throttle America. Mr Throttle can write a good book, seems to have a little bit of Bill Bryson in his blood. I've just got to where he rides over the Rockies on the Going to the Sun road in Montana, bit of a thrill cos I drove over it when we did our OE back in '77.

I'd love to ride across the States one day, but wouldn't do Rt66, I'd like to ride further north and go over the Going to the Sun road again. Head west and north a bit after Chicago, there's lots of little towns we dropped in on that I'd like to ride through, Butte (big hole there), Bozeman, Helena, Missoula, Spokane.

[Murray]

I've always wanted to follow the route done in Zen and the Art of Motorcycle Maintenance.
Book by Robert Persig more on philosopy than actual riding and a Tough read - but sounds a really good trip!!

[Kickaha]

Book by Robert Persig more on philosopy than actual riding and a Tough read

Tought read? I would have said fucking rubbish read

[skinman]

Couple of people worth talking to are: Noddy (organises the Beach Hop) go to the website. He does a tour most years.
Roger & Dawn Kemp. I think they have a Bike custom shop in Te Kauwhata, they go on shopping trips over there. Propably easiest to get hold of them on F Book or through your work contacts. Have a great trip

[Laava]

Tought read? I would have said fucking rubbish read

Yep, one of the few books that was too fucking boring for me to concentrate on! Yawn!

[Smifffy]

Have gone off the idea of 66 but looks like a USA trip in about mid 2015.

Is it a better idea to take my own bike? Seems harder than it probably is.

It could pay to do a wee section of 66 so that:

1. You can say you've done it.
2. You can see for yourself that it's not worth following all the way.
3. You won't regret not doing it for the rest of your life.

[Zedder]

It could pay to do a wee section of 66 so that:

1. You can say you've done it.
2. You can see for yourself that it's not worth following all the way.
3. You won't regret not doing it for the rest of your life.

Lol, a guy I knew had a "wee section" of it displayed in his lounge as a conversation piece.

[Old Steve]

Lol, a guy I knew had a "wee section" of it displayed in his lounge as a conversation piece.

And that's probably why the surface is so bad and in other places it's been sealed over - people keep nicking it!

[Zedder]

And that's probably why the surface is so bad and in other places it's been sealed over - people keep nicking it!

Nope, he was part of the road gang that used to patch the roads up.

[merv]

We did a different take on it and travelled the Arizona part of Route 66 (said to be the most original) between Flagstaff and Kingman in January in the middle of Winter in 2011. We didn't go by bike but did it by RAV4 instead. The snow lying about at high altitude is classic but that disappears as you head towards Kingman. Here's some examples of a few pics at that time of the year.