Going through expenses after 16 days on the road I learned some things; 1 KOA’s are a good bargain, 2 hotels are expensive, 3 if you stay on the move you have to factor in gas expenses and 4 going out to eat and drink will add up. Prior to embarking I did have food with me and there were times I did not have to stop to buy any food, this expense was not factored in. Two of the hotel stays were  not typical, one was in a Resort Village, one was in Jackson Hole an expensive town and the one in Reno was reasonably priced but still more than a KOA. This is a breakdown of most expenses, it includes:

12 Stays at a KOA, 3 Stays at a Hotel, Food and Beverage, Cash and Gas

Taking the advice of an Iron Butt Rider I went to REI and got ExOfficio Boxer Shorts Briefs and at 25 dollars a pair I had my doubts if it was worth it, it was worth every dollar. During my 16 day ride I only used the two pairs and never had to use any of my cotton underwear. At the end of the day into the shower, wash out and hang to dry and unlike cotton this material dries in a matter of hours, they are made of moisture wicking quick drying material and have a Anti-Bacterial surface.

http://www.rei.com/product/694431

I started this trip thinking I would ride about 2600-3000 miles and I ended up riding more than 4600 miles. I never did use my tent like I thought I would after finding and enjoying KOA Kabins. I had no problems with the bike other than now needing a new rear tire and using a half a quart of oil. I went to 7 National Parks, 9 States and met some nice people along the way. Mainly had good weather but did have one day of driving rain that almost made me pull over, one day of being cold and I had my Helmet Face Shield come loose at 70 mph making me find the shoulder of the highway fast. I have more pictures to go through, more stories and will post more.

I stayed at 9 KOA Campgrounds for 12 days and enjoyed every single one, some had pools, all had stores, some sold Beer and Liquor, some had Hot Tubs, some even had air-conditioning and TV, all were clean. The basic cabins called Kabins in KOA lingo had a small desk, a porch, a barbeque grill and picnic table. The Deluxe Kabins had what the basic had plus a bathroom, kitchenette and were more spacious. Basic Kabins can be as little as 45 dollars a night and Deluxe Kabins run about 90 dollars a night, overall it’s still cheaper than most hotels. Even though the basic Kabins do not have a bathroom the communal bathrooms were all clean, had nice showers and I never had to wait to use them. What I liked the most about KOA was they were all quiet, designed around families it’s not a party atmosphere and by 10 pm all is quiet. Designed to pull your motorcycle/car right up to the Kabin unloading is a breeze. You must bring your own linens and I used my Big Agnes sleeping bag and cooked with my Jetboil Stove system.

Bozeman KOA, Montana

Laramie KOA, Wyoming

Estes Park, Colorado - Two Days

Cortez KOA, Colorado – Two Days

Richfield KOA, Utah

Cedar City KOA, Utah

Ely KOA, Nevada – Two Days

MT Shasta KOA, California

Culver KOA, Oregon

In route to Mt. Shasta, CA I went for a ride through Lassen Volcanic National Park on State Route 89. I planned on going to the summit and turning around and heading back the way I came but the road was so nice I kept going. Staying on 89 added an additional 75 or so miles but it was worth it to ride the twisty road.

I do not gamble so what to do in a town that’s whole existence is around gambling at least that’s what it looked like. Well the National Automobile Museum is located in Reno and that’s what I did. For ten dollars you get to see more old significant cars under one roof than any other place that I know of. I spent a couple of hours there and easily could have spent more time there.

http://www.automuseum.org/

Nevada’s roads can be completely desolate as I road some of these deserted roads I found myself searching for more gears on my bike I could ride flat out the bike had nothing left to give. Riding the Loneliest Road in America otherwise known as Highway 50 from Ely to Reno was a blast you feel completely isolated like you’re on another planet. I think some would find it boring and in a car I might be bored but cruising at 90+ nothing is boring, it seemed like I was covering ground at an airplane pace. Slowing it down I was able to take some pictures while riding thought not very good I think the pictures are somewhat interesting.

Courtesy of the Web

Road pictures in route to Ely, Nevada had a good two day stay there and had some really good Mexican food at a place called La Fiesta. Food was excellent and the Bartender Maddy was a lot of fun too. In Route to Ely I went for a ride through Great Basin National Park and I did a road side repair on the bike.

I entered Zion National Park with high expectations that quickly faded after sitting in the Sun for 20 minutes in traffic. Hoping it was a brief set back it occurred many more times and almost the entire road was under construction and then not far in front of me was a water truck making the road muddy. At the next stop and with a little cajoling I persuaded the water truck driver to let me in front of him, “what he said was do I prefer dust or a little water”: “I said I can wash the dust off easier than riding and sliding all over the road”. Since most of the road was under construction the lookout points were closed and the only one that was open I drove by not knowing it was going to be my only one. What I saw looked very nice and it’s a good thing I went to Bryce and spent time there.

Bryce Canyon National Park does not receive the amount of visitors that Zion does because of its remote location and because of that its traffic is much lighter and a pleasure to visit. I enjoyed my visit there and here are some pictures.

Grand Staircase – Escalante National Monument was not in my plans it was just in route to Bryce National Park I just got lucky. Here are photos that I took going through this National Monument.

Leaving Colorado heading to Richfield, Utah I got to experience some really wonderful landscape. It all looked so familiar because I’ve looked at the pictures in books a hundred times; it’s better in real time.

Here are some pictures I took before I got to Utah you can see my mileage count as well as speed averages and other bits of information. I also visited Four Corners where Arizona, Utah, Colorado and New Mexico meet.

I think most of us have looked at photos from this park and it’s just as impressive in real life. This is high desert and the park is located at an altitude from 6100-8400 feet. The dwellings were built somewhere around 1190 by Ancestral Puebloans and by 1300 the occupation of Mesa Verde by the Puebloans ended.  The park has really nice roads with lots of twists and hills and overall it’s just a nice park to cruise around.

As you leave Ouray, Colorado on U.S. Route 550 you are met with wonderful views and a challenging road it has it all great road and great scenery. There are a lot of sections that have no guardrails and nothing but a shear drop off, it's not a place you want to go off I'm not sure how long it would take to find you. Here are pictures that I took along the way.

The portion I traveled on Interstate 70 was spectacular with climbs and descents like I never have road; I observed altitudes of more than 10,000 feet a few times. Going through Glenwood Canyon you are surrounded by shear walls of rock you can’t even look up enough to see out of the canyon at times.  Glenwood Canyon is a twisty curvy road that’s a lot of fun on a motorcycle, completed in 1992 it’s the last completed section of the Interstate Highway system.

On I-70 I went through the Eisenhower Tunnel crossing the Continental Divide at an altitude of 11,158 feet it’s the highest point along the Interstate system, the longest tunnel built under the Interstate program and the highest vehicular tunnel in the world.

Highway 133 wow 71 miles of beautiful crosses over McClure Pass at 8,755 feet with a very steep climb as you approach the pass all I could think was wow is this going to keep going up, if you get an opportunity you should take a ride on this road.