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Motorcycling Adventures in the Big Bend

Very cool that you found someone to weld it up for you! :thumb:

Now... back to the story ;-)

:popcorn:
 
Spare levers are always a good idea, especially if you don't have really bulletproof hand guards protecting them. Spare shift level is a good idea to have handy too, or at least suitable vise grips.
 
Dyna,

I've got the bark busters like the hare scramble guys run, with the aluminum frames, on the KLR and am thinking that will provide suitable protection for the levers.

I was going to buy a spare shift lever, but now Scott has me thinking the chemical weld might be just as good of a solution and versatile enough for other things that might get broke.
 
Richard, I saw y'all heading back into Terlingua!

We have been camping at Grassy Banks from the 26th through the 30th of December for 16 years. We headed out and slept over at Big Springs, making Warnock at 10:00 AM on Monday.

I was standing there talking to the guys as we unloaded stuff and chilled with a few brews and zoom go two bikes heading south on 170. It made me wish I had brought my XR.

As I was the only one with a bike I opted not to take it and climbed Sawmill Mountain instead, recovering a USGS Benchmark that had not been verified since placement in 1934. We met Richard and Cindi, who live at the base of the mountain. They promised us a cold beer the next time we are in the area.

I think I will have to take my bike next year!

While I was there I had lunch at Ms. Tracy's and talked with a couple of guys on KLX650's that were exploring the park. That was on the 28th.

Todd in LC said:
BTW, did you ride Old Ore Road in the park or the road that runs from just South of Persimmon Gap entrance to Terlingua Ranch? I have done both in a cage and thought they would be fun on a bike.

Both of those are on the DS loop that begins at Terlingua Ranch that XR650Rocketman put together. Persimmon Gap Road has some long stretches that can be boring, but there are some 90 degree 50 foot radius curves often enough to keep the pucker factor up. Ore Road is more of a two track trail.

Have y'all ridden out South County Road to North County Road and 118 from 170?

I keep wanting to try some of the roads that head south out off of 170 towards the park between Terlingua and Lajitas.
 
Teeds,

I've ridden part of South County Road starting at 170, but not as far as Hwy 118. It's on my "to do" list for next time. The same goes for riding across Terlingua Ranch from 118 over to 385.
 
Thanks for your time and effort sharing the story and pictures of the trip.

It's always hard to believe that little ditch is a major international border.

Tom
 
December 28, 2005 - Day 6:

We took December 27th off from riding and went exploring. December 28th was the 4th and final day of riding. Today’s plan was to ride the famous Ft. Davis Loop.

Ft. Davis loop
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Take a look at the map. Alpine is in the lower right corner. 24 miles north on Hwy 118 is the town of Ft. Davis. Follow the squiggly line of Hwy 118 as it runs northwest from Ft. Davis. That squiggly line, running through the Davis Mountains, is custom made for motorcycle riding! It would be a sin to go all the way to the Big Bend region on your motorcycle and miss that squiggly line.

We rode Hwy 118 from Study Butte to Ft. Davis and grabbed a snack at The Drugstore. Brownie Pie a la mode. Mmmm.

Outside the drugstore.
TheDrugstore.jpg


Once our snacking was done, we ran Hwy 118, passing the McDonald Observatory in the process.

McDonald Observatory is a very cool place to visit. Built around 1968, they have a 107 inch telescope at this site. When it was first built it was the largest telescope in the world and today it is the 33rd largest in the world. They have tours during the day where they point their big telescope at the Sun and tours at night called star parties. Since you are in the area, I recommend you stop by, day or night, and take the tour. It’s fascinating.

Uncle working the twisties with McDonald Observatory in the background.
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One of the telescope domes at McDonald Observatory.
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The 107 inch telescope. 33rd largest in the world.
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At the intersection of Hwy 118 and Hwy 166, we turned left on 166 and ran it to Hwy 17. Here’s my FZ1 hanging out on Hwy 166. We passed 2 cars along the entire length of this road. Nice.

FZ1 on Hwy 166.
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Once we reached Hwy 17 we ran that into Marfa. From there it was a quick trip down to Presidio and then, of course, we had to run River Road one last time on this trip from Presidio back to the Rogerosa.

This ends my motorcycling adventure in Big Bend, for this year at least. Plans are already in the works for our 2006 trip. I’ll let you know how it turns out.

However, before I go I would be remiss if I didn’t tell you about some of the really cool things you can do in the Big Bend area when you aren’t on your bike. Yes, I know that it borders on sacrilege that there might be fun things you can do off your bike (and with your clothes on), but there are. Following are some of those things.

Hiking & Other Things

As much fun as motorcycling in Big Bend is, if you don’t get off the bike you will miss some unbelievable sights. Luckily, some of the more spectacular sights are just a relatively short hike from the road.

There are lots and lots of trails to hike in Big Bend National Park. In 8 years of visiting there, my family and I have only scratched the surface of available hikes. On the other hand there are some hikes we repeat every year because we enjoy them so much. Following are some of our favorite hikes, hikes that I highly recommend to you due to the spectacular scenery encountered during these hikes. They may be the most popular hikes in the entire park, but not to worry; Big Bend is the least visited national park in the entire national park service, receiving only about 180,000 visits each year. In comparison to 5 million or so visitors to Yosemite, 180,000 is a relatively small number. Big Bend is so large that even if you visited on the busiest day of the year the park will not be crowded.

Santa Elena Canyon Hike

This is probably the single most popular hike in the park and for good reason. The Rio Grande has cut a magnificent canyon, with sheer rock walls 1,500 feet high. Round trip it is only 1.7 miles. Sure, you can see Santa Elena Canyon as you ride by on your motorcycle, but you will miss the grandeur of it all if you don’t hike in.

Santa Elena Canyon
SantaElenaCanyon2.jpg


Santa Elena Canyon, crossing Terlingua Creek to reach the mouth of the canyon..
SantaElenaCanyon1.jpg


Hot Springs

This isn’t so much a hike since it’s only about ½ mile walk in, as it is a great place to hang out at one lazy afternoon. Bring your swim suit so you can relax in the hot pool. When things get a little too warm you can take a quick dip in the Rio Grande, but I’ll warn you in advance it’s gonna be cold.

People have been coming to the hot springs for a long time. One of the signs of this are the ancient paintings on the cliff walls. A historical marker discusses these ancient paintings on your walk in. In the 1920s this area was a spa resort. People believed that the water was medicinal. There remnants of the buildings are still in the area.

My boys hanging out at the Hot Springs.
HotSprings.jpg


The Lost Mine Trail

This may be the most spectacular hike and scenery in the entire park. It’s not an easy hike, about 5 miles in both directions, but well worth it. Get in shape before you try it though.

Looking west through “the window” about ½ way up The Lost Mine Trail
LostMineTrail3.jpg


Same view of “the window”, a little higher up the trail.
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View southeast from the Lost Mine trail.
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Looking south towards Mexico from the top of Lost Mine trail.
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The view south about halfway up the Lost Mine trail.
LostMineTrail2.jpg


Grapevine Hills Trail

This hike starts at the end of an unpaved road. It heads out through a valley and then climbs a good size hill, culminating in a great view of the mountains on east side of the park. It also has a very cool balanced rock you can climb on and around.

Balanced Rock, looking east.
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Balanced Rock, looking west, with Hammer and Mike.
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Honorable Mention: Boquillas Canyon

The kids love this hike, never tiring of it. What fuels their enthusiasm? The perpetual 100 foot sand dune that we let them play on for as long as they like. The pictures don’t do justice to how high this sand dune is. It’s great for the kids, but it gives the adults heart attacks trying to get to the top.

Playing on the big sand dune in Boquillas Canyon.
BoquillasCanyon.jpg


Other Cool Stuff To See and Do

Contrabando Movie Set: There is a movie set of a small Mexican village right on FM 170 west of Presidio. The sign says it was used for the movie “Contrabando” but I’ve been told it has been used for other movies too, including some scenes from the “Streets of Laredo”.

Sign letting you know you are there.
MovieSet1.jpg


Various shots of the site. The buildings look real, but you can see they are not when you get up close and look at them.

MovieSet2.jpg


MovieSet3.jpg


MovieSet4.jpg


See the fake rocks used to simulate a rock wall? The lower half has fallen off revealing the wood underneath.
MovieSet5.jpg


MovieSet6.jpg


MovieSet7.jpg


Ojinaga, Mexico

There is an international border at Presidio, TX and you can cross over into the town of Ojinaga, Mexico. If you are just going across as a tourist and are not planning on going into the interior of Mexico you don’t need a passport (as of 2006 you need a passport to travel into the interior of Mexico). Ojinaga is an interesting town to visit; it has a tourist flavor to it, but probably not as bad as the more popular international crossings at places like El Paso or Laredo. If you like tequila, there are some excellent brands available at a significant savings over the same stuff in the US.

I found the Mexican Postal Service motorcycle units to be particularly interesting.
PostalMotorcycle1.jpg


A closer look at the bike. The battery is held in by a piece of string. Not sure what kind of liquid residue that is on the gas tank. The chain is well oiled though. Mail was carried in a single saddlebag on the right side of the bike, not visible in the pictures.
PostalMotorcycle2.jpg


This ends my Big Bend report. If you haven’t been to Big Bend yet, I highly recommend it to you. My story and pictures not only don’t do justice to this wonderful area, it also only gives you a glimpse of all the things there are to do and see there. It really is a place you have to see with your own eyes. Finally, I recommend allotting some time to see some of the things that can’t be seen or fully enjoyed from the seat of your bike. The riding is great and so are the sights, so try and make time for both.
 
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hardy,

Oops, sorry. Wadi is an arabic term. Arroyo is the word I should have used. It's a dry gulch, intermittent stream, brook, creek. You could say it's the desert version of a big 'ol ditch.
 
Excellent report! Love the scenery pics there in the section about the hikes! Many many years ago, I did the horseback ride out there while spending Springbreak vacation in the park with a group from our highshool. We did a LOT of hiking and climbing. We spent the entire week camped in the Basin. It was in March and it was COLD!! The last night all of us were piled in the mens room and forcing the little heater in there to stay on by putting cold wet paper towels on the thermostat :lol2: Even the girls were in there with us, something a few guys returning from the window ride at 4:00am failed to notice as they were taking care of business :oops: There was ice everywhere outside. I love that place...
 
Richard_ said:
Dyna,

I've got the bark busters like the hare scramble guys run, with the aluminum frames, on the KLR and am thinking that will provide suitable protection for the levers.

I was going to buy a spare shift lever, but now Scott has me thinking the chemical weld might be just as good of a solution and versatile enough for other things that might get broke.

In my experience the water weld stuff is great for patching crankcase holes and things like that but wouldn't do at for a broken lever or something you put a stress on. I have had best luck with just a pair of vise grips for that on a shift lever and have found nothing that will do for a brake or clutch lever but a weld or a new one.
 
:tab Given the low cost, I would just buy the spare shift lever and control levers, especially since they are relatively small and easy to pack. JB weld or Waterweld might work in a pinch for a very short time. Once dry, the Waterweld gets very hard and potentially brittle. So I don't know that it would do under heavy loading for long periods of time. But it might do just for limping a bike home. It might also work better for something like the foot shift lever if you had anything to use like a splint to reinforce the point of the break and give the Waterweld something else to bond to for extra strength.
 
spare throttle, clutch too. at least drill your levers or carry spares, duct tape, jbweld or equivalent, radiator sealer in the bottle, tubes, tire irons and some kind of lube like ruglyde in a small bottle, master link(if needed).

cos if everybody crashes you'll need all that and more.

a most execellent and informative report.

we'll be there in march this year, and this little read has me feeling unusually aroused!:trust:

DAM
 
damalden,

"Drill your levers"? I'm not familiar with this. What does it mean?
 
:tab Richard, you can drill holes in the levers at strategic locations to intentionally create a weak point. Some people also just use a cutting wheel on a dremel to cut a notch. The idea is that the weak point is far enough out from the hinge point on the lever to snap off on impact and leave enough lever to still operate the clutch/brake. There are also just aftermarket shortie levers. I don't know that this would help so much on the shifter lever, but it might :shrug: Maybe drill or notch it about 2/3 of the way out from the shaft so that you still have enough left to work with in the event of a break. However, I don't know what affect the drilled hole or notch would have on the normal working of the lever.

:tab Another concern about the shifter lever is having it punch into the side of the engine case. My lever has a wide plate behind it to distribute the load if the lever impacts the case. This makes puncturing the case much less likely.
 
always carry a pair of visegrips in case you break your shifter.

myself i prefer the needlenose variety because they are handy for lots of other things too. perfect for holding onto those left handed cigarettes.

DAM
 
Tourmeister said:
:tab Richard, you can drill holes in the levers at strategic locations to intentionally create a weak point. Some people also just use a cutting wheel on a dremel to cut a notch. The idea is that the weak point is far enough out from the hinge point on the lever to snap off on impact and leave enough lever to still operate the clutch/brake.

My stock levers on the Strom have a notch on them, and when I dropped the bike it snapped there just like it should. When I got it home, I put the grinding bit on the Dremel and got it down smooth so it was no longer sharp. I still get 4 fingers on there solid, and if I want I can hang my pinky off "snoopster style". :mrgreen:

Now am I right in thinking that this new "custom shorty" lever has less chance of breaking since the bar end would contact the pavement first, or should I now dremel a new notch another inch or so in from the end so that there is a new weak point in the event of another tip-over?
 
Squeaky said:
My stock levers on the Strom have a notch on them, and when I dropped the bike it snapped there just like it should. When I got it home, I put the grinding bit on the Dremel and got it down smooth so it was no longer sharp. I still get 4 fingers on there solid, and if I want I can hang my pinky off "snoopster style". :mrgreen:

Now am I right in thinking that this new "custom shorty" lever has less chance of breaking since the bar end would contact the pavement first, or should I now dremel a new notch another inch or so in from the end so that there is a new weak point in the event of another tip-over?

Or just do a pre-emptive mod and cut it down to a 3 finger lever...
 
Now am I right in thinking that this new "custom shorty" lever has less chance of breaking since the bar end would contact the pavement first, or should I now dremel a new notch another inch or so in from the end so that there is a new weak point in the event of another tip-over?

Real handguards would help too. BTW the lever is a two minute swap and a $5 investment. Buy a replacement and two spares and still have change from a $20.
 
Hey Scott, I'm almost certain you were on the famous 02 Ranch. They allow no trespassing under any circumstances. Be glad you weren't caught or you would have gotten to meet Ronny Dodson or some of his deputies! All great guys BTW.

Randy

Tourmeister said:
:tab I would love to be able to contact any land owners on that road we took to get legit permission. It was an awesome ride. It had some rough technical stuff, smooth fast stuff, nasty creek crossings, silt, cacti in the road, cattle, goat trails, the works hehe. It was a lot of fun!

:tab If like like tighter more technical stuff, you need to get out to North Carolina! We did some great stuff out there. Mucho fun!
 
Hi Richard, Great report and pics! I met your uncle out there last year. He is really a nice guy. Thanks for the report.

Randy
 
You're right Randy.....Scott and the guys came out through 02 Ranch back onto 118....Like you I encourage everyone to be very careful to stay off private property...We ended up on a private ranch off Dove Mountain Rd one time and were met by a Ranch Foreman with a gun!!!!
As I've posted before.....Maps and map software do not show the difference between public and private roads in most cases....If in doubt....Ask!!!
 
:tab When were doing that ride, we made a point not to go through any closed gates, even if unlocked. Well... except the for one at the end of the road near 118 ;-) However, I also looked for No Trespassing signs anytime we crossed a fence line on the road. I never saw any. I am totally in favor of staying off people's private property but sometimes it is hard to know one way or the other even when you are trying to do the right thing :shrug: Is there somewhere to check other than riding up someone's driveway? I really have zero desire to have an unwelcome encounter with a ticked off property owner ;-)
 
I know your opinion on private property riding Scott....We're on the same page for sure....We've run the 02 ranch Rd West to East before "assuming' we were on private property and turning around....It's really not clear unless you try to run East to West and then there is no doubt....Brewster County maps show the road West to East for a short way but then it stops at a ranch gate...

The DOT issue County Road maps are reasonably good....They do not show any private roads so there is really no question.....But....The book is way to big to haul around on the bike...

And then there's the question of what to do on a street legal D/S bike when you come to the sign that says....."OFF ROAD TRAVEL PROHIBITED"...What does that mean???
 
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