West Texas Loop

Hey, the middle of next month I'll be returning to Texas from Istanbul for an extended stay. My plan is to buy a bike and celebrate my 69th bday by taking at least two long rides. The first will take me from Houston NW past Austin, the Three Sisters, down to Big Bend and SE to Del Rio then back to Houston. I hope to spend around two weeks on this leg and plan on camping each night. Any advice on sites I shouldn't miss, roads that need to be rode, especially on the return would be a great help. My second trip will take me to New Mexico, Colorado, Utah, Arizona, possibly Oklahoma, and back to Houston.

Ideally, I hope to find a cheap but reliable bike capable of doing some long miles, many of them unpaved. Other than Craigslist, any recommendations on where to find the bike and also the gear I'll need - tent and related equipment - would be invaluable.

My goal is to see Texas up close by avoiding major highways and see things most people never think of. I'm a retired history teacher and love to discover places that have made a difference. Scenic beauty and the unusual also get high grades. I look forward to receiving help you may offer and hope to meet many of you on the road.

Greg

That's a whole lot to cover...
But start by taking a look at CannonShot's Big Bend thread on ADVrider. Bit of a history buff there - http://advrider.com/index.php?threads/a-cannonride-around-the-bend-big-bend-region.769973/

Patrick, that's an excellent suggestion.

Leftfield, many here can give you some good pointers.

Good luck with your trips. We will want a Ride Report with pix!

Thanks both texaspatrick and SpiritAtBay. Any and all help is greatly appreciated. I read through Cannonshots RR and enjoyed it. I'm looking forward to the Big Bend area but am hoping to spend most of my time exploring around Austin and San Antonio and between their and Houston.

Naturally I assume you will be shopping for "quite possibly the best bike ever built" i.e., a v-strom. All day long comfort and can handle gravel and "easy dirt".


(No, mine is not for sale.)

Gina, funny story that. I've ridden, off and on, for over 50 years and owned several bikes. In '07 I picked up a used '05 and rode the heck out of it until swapping it for an FJR 1300. I really enjoyed the Yamaha, but no bike has ever grabbed my like my Wee. Another and the KLR are at the top of my list because of their ability to do everything. Oh yeah, the funny part. I'm now riding a Yamaha YBR 125. Don't laugh, the beast puts out just short of eleven horses. I honestly don't know what I'm looking forward to more, seeing family, seeing the country, or getting back on a "real" motorcycle.

Lots of bikes can do what you need, it's all about needs and compromises.

For a couple of trips, even if they are long, it's less important to me than a bike I will ride on a daily basis.

Since you are on a small bike now, here's a suggestion - Jim is selling a 2005 Ninja 250 for $1500. I'll bet he would get it road ready for you too.

http://www.twtex.com/forums/showthread.php?t=113781

My main suggestion for the rides are to stay out of Austin and Houston by 50 miles or more.

Good luck,

Mike in Dallas (Mesquite TX)

Thanks Mike, I have no problem with a smaller bike. I little Ninja is on my list because of it's reliability and economy. I plan to avoid the interstates as much as possible and take my time. One question I would have with it would be how well it could handle fire/gravel roads.
I pan to ride several of these in BBNP and also in Utah. I know I can change the tires to something more aggressive but don't know about how capable the suspension would be.

I can't say I have ever ridden a Ninja on rough roads but I do see them on YouTube videos all the time. It just depends on just how rough the road is I suppose.

Hey Mike, I'll take a look at You Tube and see what I can find. I'm about 180 and will try to take the minimum about of gear I can get away with so that type of bike would probably handle whatever I throw at it.

Well the Vstrom is going to do it better but the $ are a bit more. Then again, you would probably get more when you sell it so....

You are so right. Everything with bikes involves compromise. The only bikes I won't consider are rice rockets, and maybe cruisers. Reliability and economy are key for me. At the same time, when I think of putting 5k miles on a bike in four weeks comfort starts butting in.

"butting in". You said that right, lol

I think Gina is trying to be punny!

I've been looking at my map of Texas and thinking of spending a few days in the area southeast of San Antonio on my way back to Houston. I've never been in that part of the state before and don't know much about it. I know Goliad has historical importance but need ideas of other places that are interesting/fun/unusual.