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Insanity - Big Bend in July!

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Jory

Jory

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Location
San Antonio, TX
All -

My brother and I will be heading out to Big Bend from San Antonio on 30 July to ride our WR250R and CRF 300L. The plan is to take a dip in the newly reopened pool at Balmorhea on Friday on the way out. Get a room in Terlingua for two nights and ride the morning on Satuday and the morning on Sunday while it's still cool (relatively).
So the question is - if we're going to do two rides (4-5 hours each morning) Which two challenging rides should they be?

I'm leaning to Old Ore Road & Top of the World, but open to this groups experience for better roads.

Certainly open to other places to ride too (Big Bend Ranch State Park?)

Logistically, what am I not taking into account?
  1. Mileage from motel to start of the road?
  2. Gas? I've gassed up at Panther Springs. We have 2 gallon tanks and will be carrying an extra gallon (150mile range)
Any tips and experince appreciated.

Thanks,

Jory
 
If you are staying om Terligua then the NP is 3? miles away and you'll be on dirt
once you get on Old Maverick Rd.
Day 1 - follow Old Maverick Rd (take the off shoot roads) to St Elena Canyon (go take a hike)
Take Castelon Rd to Castelon
Take River Road and all the off shoots to the Rio Grange - head towards Rio Grande Village (talley ?)
Spend some time riding around
Take the main road back though Panther J and fill up before getting back to Terlingua

Day 2 - Back to Panther J - fill up; Take Main Road (view the Fossil Farm) to Old Ore;
Ride it to Rt 12, turn right and get on Glen Spring/Black Gap Road and Ride River Road
in the opposite direction to Day 1

(btw there is a back way to get to Old Ore by going north on 118 and heading towards Terlingua Ranch
which is all dirt and some challenging uphill tracks)
 
Last edited:
Jory said:
newly reopened pool at Balmorhea
Click to expand...

Aahh, i hadn't heard. That's EXCELLENT news...

Maverick -> River Road -> Old Ore -> home: that makes a nice, but can be long day, depending on the amount of sand, riders, involved, etc. You can add Black Gap in there if you need an additional challenge. This will only be feasible if there's gas at Rio Grande Village, so check that the day before the ride.

Big Bend Ranch: It's feasible to ride to from Terlingua, into the Ranch, then on over to Solitatrio, ride around there a bit, then back - all in one day. Decent amount of pavement, but that pavement is FUN. Detour for gas in Presidio, the Ranch doesn't have any.

It could be crazy hot by the end of July - pay close attention to this. You might end of riding two half-days to stay out of the afternoon sun. Of course, there's no shade in the desert...
 
Insanity yes, dangerous absolutely...sorry to be a wet blanket. A breakdown in BBNP in July could prove deadly and risks the lives of others tasked to extract you. I spent 4 hours trailside there one Spring day when temps only got into the 90s & even with 3L of water, got a glimpse of how easily this could become a serious problem.

I've seen the gas literally boil out of my filler cap on Old Ore.
 
FitzPA said:
If you are staying om Terligua then the NP is 3? miles away and you'll be on dirt
once you get on Old Maverick Rd.
Day 1 - follow Old Maverick Rd (take the off shoot roads) to St Elena Canyon (go take a hike)
Take Castelon Rd to Castelon
Take River Road and all the off shoots to the Rio Grange - head towards Rio Grande Village (talley ?)
Spend some time riding around
Take the main road back though Panther J and fill up before getting back to Terlingua

Day 2 - Back to Panther J - fill up; Take Main Road (view the Fossil Farm) to Old Ore;
Ride it to Rt 12, turn right and get on Glen Spring/Black Gap Road and Ride River Road
in the opposite direction to Day 1

(btw there is a back way to get to Old Ore by going north on 118 and heading towards Terlingua Ranch
which is all dirt and some challenging uphill tracks)
Click to expand...
Perfect - this is just what i was looking for. I'll study this route and see how much is feasable to do in 4-5 hours before noon. Thanks!
 
Jeff S said:
Aahh, i hadn't heard. That's EXCELLENT news...

Maverick -> River Road -> Old Ore -> home: that makes a nice, but can be long day, depending on the amount of sand, riders, involved, etc. You can add Black Gap in there if you need an additional challenge. This will only be feasible if there's gas at Rio Grande Village, so check that the day before the ride.

Big Bend Ranch: It's feasible to ride to from Terlingua, into the Ranch, then on over to Solitatrio, ride around there a bit, then back - all in one day. Decent amount of pavement, but that pavement is FUN. Detour for gas in Presidio, the Ranch doesn't have any.

It could be crazy hot by the end of July - pay close attention to this. You might end of riding two half-days to stay out of the afternoon sun. Of course, there's no shade in the desert...
Click to expand...
Thanks Jeff - That's exactly the plan is to ride two half days and be done by noon.
 
So I did the River Road Saturday and Sunday camping at Talley TK2. It was nice with many MUDDY sections getting more frequent the further west we rode. I assume that monsoons hit there and not us while we slept. Never got above 85 while on the trail, but that was still enough for us to blow through 7 liters of water between us. About 7 miles from the end the road disappeared for about a mile. We had to ride about 500 yards apart until we found the road. He found it first so I had to bust brush through a waddy to get to the road. After refinding the road it was fun again.
 
Hope it's going well! I'm looking at planning a trip out that way in mid August and was curious about how much of the park is feasible to explore with the heat vs. just seeing the sights and keeping moving.
 
Vrenlos said:
Hope it's going well! I'm looking at planning a trip out that way in mid August and was curious about how much of the park is feasible to explore with the heat vs. just seeing the sights and keeping moving.
Click to expand...
None of it on a motorcycle! Even riding through (at the mandated & heavily enforced 45mph) will be akin to opening the door of a blast furnace. There is no shade in the park beyond man made awnings.
 
philipbarrett said:
Insanity yes, dangerous absolutely...sorry to be a wet blanket. A breakdown in BBNP in July could prove deadly and risks the lives of others tasked to extract you. I spent 4 hours trailside there one Spring day when temps only got into the 90s & even with 3L of water, got a glimpse of how easily this could become a serious problem.

I've seen the gas literally boil out of my filler cap on Old Ore.
Click to expand...
^^^ This!

I’ve done a lot of trail time out there but it has always been in the winter months. Only summer trips were for rafting and I can’t imagine being there in the summer heat without a means to cool down. Another issue is that it is the monsoon season that time and of year so flash floods can land lock you and then there is the chance you’ll have to fight a long muddy stretch in the extreme heat and humidity.
 
Tom said:
^^^ This!

I’ve done a lot of trail time out there but it has always been in the winter months. Only summer trips were for rafting and I can’t imagine being there in the summer heat without a means to cool down. Another issue is that it is the monsoon season that time and of year so flash floods can land lock you and then there is the chance you’ll have to fight a long muddy stretch in the extreme heat and humidity.
Click to expand...
To add to the misery the mud is caliche which has a friction coherence of > zero. Ulybrad & I did an extraction there after some storms and we both went down about 50 times in 4 miles (he was on a 690, I was on an XR400 too).
 
It was June of 1978 the first time I went to BBNP. It was also the last time I went in June or for that matter any month that doesn't end in R.
Even then some days can still get a little toasty.
 
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Well OP...at least you did title your thread most appropriately. :mrgreen:

Honestly, that whole deal sounds horrible. While it may be a dry heat, it will be microwave level.

No kidding on the River Road. Normally that's a pleasant cake walk ride...unless...it rained a fair amount a day or few before. It doesn't happen often, but when it does it is like riding the Blackwater 100 in smaller bites.
 
To all the nay sayers about the heat….. you should stay in the AC🥵

Jory—-
Sounds like you all are going to have a blast …. If you go this route …
FitzPA said:
(btw there is a back way to get to Old Ore by going north on 118 and heading towards Terlingua Ranch
which is all dirt and some challenging uphill tracks)
Click to expand...
Plan on doing breakfast or lunch here:

Bad Rabbit Cafe at Terlingua Ranch Lodge: Best of Big Bend Restaurants

The Bad Rabbit Cafe at the Terlingua Ranch Lodge resort is one of the best Big Bend restaurants with meals worth the drive even if you're not staying there.
terlinguaranch.com terlinguaranch.com

The state park is nice but far … I would save it for your next trip
 
As far as the 45 MPH speed limit being enforced, we averaged about 70MPH on the hard ball without issue. It was warm, but much cooler than Baghdad or Tikrit this time of year.
 
Yep, I've only got one block of time this year for an uninterrupted long-ish trip and it happens to land smack in the middle of August. I'm going to try and avoid anything that'll chance serious danger but if it means less time in the park then that'll just have to be that. I got to TX just before COVID, have a new(ish) bike, and am itching to get out and explore.

Right now I've planned out the first couple of days and started making gpx tracks. Day 1 should be heading out from Austin, part of the TX overland route, twisted sisters, and camp at Governor's Landing. The next will be a lazier day of just getting over to Terlingua... haven't decided on lodging options yet. From there, either a couple of days in the parks or more exploring depending on if the heat is as bad it's being made out.

Either way, getting excited!
 
Quick update y'all ... We're still going to stop in for a dip at Balmorhea, but have decided to press on to Truth or Consequences, NM and ride Monticello Canyon on Saturday morning and Chloride Canyon on Sunday morning.

In 2017, I rode the Rubber Chicken Dual Sport ride they have in October in T or C (on a WR450F) and it was a ton of fun.

I also picked up another 2014 WR250R last week for my son. Although it has less miles and more farkles, so may keep it for myself and give him my WR250R.

Will post pictures and a ride report when I return.

Appreciate EVERYONE's input on this!!!

Jory
 
Good plan, Jory. I just returned from 3 riding days in NM with @RoverT, including NMBDR section 3 with Chloride Canyon. It was superb. We rode maybe 20% of the time in rain, including some real downpours.
 
randypower said:
Good plan, Jory. I just returned from 3 riding days in NM with @RoverT, including NMBDR section 3 with Chloride Canyon. It was superb. We rode maybe 20% of the time in rain, including some real downpours.
Click to expand...
That sounds great - sounds like you ran into rain, so I'll assume not too hot...but how was the mud?
 
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