• Welcome to the Two Wheeled Texans community! Feel free to hang out and lurk as long as you like. However, we would like to encourage you to register so that you can join the community and use the numerous features on the site. After registering, don't forget to post up an introduction!

"Rusk to Bean's" leg of the East Texas 450

BADTEX

0
Joined
Oct 4, 2010
Messages
349
Reaction score
0
Location
LINDALE TX
First Name
STEVEN
Ok guys and gals. I've been wanting to do this ride report :rider:for some time now and I got laid off about 5 weeks ago :doh:.... so I thought this would be the perfect time to do it. This also is my 1st time to EVER post a ride report, so I'm doing a little testing to see who things/photos show up.
So here go's....... In a land far far away, there lived..... oh wait wrong story!:rofl:
It starts as 99% of you guys would start, early morning, at the house.

100_0608.jpg
 
Last edited:
It was about 6:30-7ish and a cooool morning, VERY VERY NICE!:clap: when I headed up my street.


100_0609.jpg


The first part of my journey is VERY boring! :yawn: Highway!!!!!

100_0610.jpg


Coming out of Lindale on Hwy 69.

100_0612.jpg
 
Like I said it was a cooool morning, but you couldn't tell it by the temp. But the humidity was right at 90 something %, so the wind chill was up there.

100_0614.jpg


And the wind was blowing "90 to nothing".:eek2:

100_0615.jpg


The big hill before Loves look out in Jacksonville.

100_0617.jpg


And more freaking hwy going into Rusk. Took a little less than 50 mins.

100_0618.jpg
 
Now we get to the real start of the story!:clap:
For those of you that don't know, we have a LITTLE ride that we like to call the "East Texas 450" (even thou its more like 500+ miles).
This last year we had a start from the South & from the North. Two groups, one rides counter clock wise,(the south group) and the other rides clock wise, (the north group). We meet at Beans campground at Toledo bend on Friday night. I lead the north group last year.
The route is made up of as much dirt road/trail that we can find. We try to stay off of the hwy as much as possible. It is also made up of three legs. (From the north) Rusk to Beans, Beans to Livingston and Livingston back to Rusk. (Just reverse the order for the southern group).
The Rusk to Beans is he longest at 220 miles.
Last year the north group called our ride at beans on Friday night/Saturday morning because of severe weather moving into Livingston on Saturday night. (and we we're tent camping.) So we rode the same leg back to rusk and this time didn't skip any of the route. I clocked 220 miles.
So here is our start point, the KOA just south of Rusk.

100_0620.jpg


It starts off with a little pavement, but it has nice scenery and is pretty windy.

100_0622.jpg


100_0623.jpg
 
Just around this corner.......:pray:

100_0625.jpg


you get to why we came......DIRT! :dude:

100_0627.jpg
 
subscribed....

..I want more.
 
About 100 yards, are so, down the road it takes a hard 90 to the right and then a hard 90 to the left at about 60 yards and at that turn I saw this little guy..... a roadrunner.
Saw about 4 of them on this 1st day. Sorry for the poor photo. Its the cheap little camera I've got. Zoomed all the way in to get this little booger.

100_0629.jpg


This is the normal shot.

100_0630.jpg


These roads are all public and you jump from one to another. Connecting dirt, oil top, 2 lane pavement, Hwy, back to dirt and any combination in between. 1st dirt section was not long before it pops out onto pavement, go's a very short way and back to dirt. This is repeated over and over.

100_0631.jpg


100_0632.jpg


All day long I would be riding along and ride thru sections like this and have to pull a "uie" (That is some east texas twang fur ya!) to get a good photo. Doing this ate up my day, as you will see.

100_0633.jpg


Others like this I'd just stop before I went thru it.

100_0634.jpg


Then you get to great places like this one. "Y" in the road, deep sand. Doesn't bother me much. Raised here in East Texas I've been ride'n/racing in this stuff since I was 10. But THIS day (Saturday) it was "PERMO"! It had just had a good rain on Thursday.

100_0635.jpg

100_0636.jpg

100_0637.jpg


There are a lot of different "Dirt" road surfaces here. Here is sand with iron ore base. (I'm sure that's not the real terminology for the road surface, but that's what I call it) Awesome hook-up!

100_0638.jpg


And very little clouds in the sky.

100_0639.jpg


The morning of the E.T. 450 last year this little hay pasture was all fogged in. It looked awesome! Here it is in the light of day.

100_0640.jpg

100_0641.jpg


Then back on pavement.
At the top of this photo the road takes a 90 to the left and we take the right leg. It turns to "oil top" or some call it "oil sand" (because that is what it is...oil mix'ed with sand).

100_0642.jpg


On that oil top you'll see this log cabin. I love it!

100_0643.jpg


This is from that house, nice windy country road.

100_0645.jpg

100_0646.jpg
 
Off the oil top, down the pavement, turn off to oil top again.

100_0648.jpg


Improved oil top, one side of the road.

100_0649.jpg


Other side of the road.

100_0650.jpg


OK, you see these all over (AND SMELL'M TOO!) Chicken farms!

100_0651.jpg

100_0652.jpg


These too, one lane bridges! I love'm.

100_0654.jpg


Nice pine tree row.

100_0655.jpg


Then too dirt back to pavement. There is also a lot of these... road runs down and just turns to dirt!

100_0656.jpg

100_0657.jpg


Nice red clay, freshly surfaced.

100_0658.jpg


Good old one lane bridge.

100_0659.jpg

100_0660.jpg


Nice back roads.

100_0661.jpg

100_0662.jpg

100_0663.jpg

100_0664.jpg

100_0666.jpg

100_0667.jpg

100_0668.jpg

100_0669.jpg

100_0670.jpg
 
Hadn't seen you at the Skyline Breakfast get together in awhile, we got people using motorcycles, cars, and planes (!) to make the meet.

Good first ride report. Your 2nd photo:

100_0612.jpg
\
is about a mile south from my place on CR 461.
 
Thanks for posting all the pics, although its been 2+ years since I last rode the ET450, I recognized most of the places in your pics.. Sorry to hear about the job situation, but glad to see you are making good use of the newly found free time, hopefully another job will come along shortly.

Gary
 
Thanks for posting all the pics, although its been 2+ years since I last rode the ET450, I recognized most of the places in your pics.. Sorry to hear about the job situation, but glad to see you are making good use of the newly found free time, hopefully another job will come along shortly.

Gary

Thanks Gary
Yes I still tell the story of your avatar photo that you told us at the Mexican restaurant that night. LOL!!!!:rofl:
 
Here is some more to wet your appetite.

100_0671.jpg

100_0672.jpg

100_0673.jpg

100_0674.jpg


These are the last two for that day. You see I had planned too ride the whole way to Bean's but stopping to take so many photos it ate up my day, so I stopped in Mt. Enterprise at about 1:30 to eat and decided that I would make it a three day ride. So I rode back to the house and got back a little after 3.
So I will post the other two days in the next two days.

100_0675.jpg

100_0676.jpg


P.S. I took photos of the what-a-burger at the end of this ride...but don't know what happened to them.?:doh:
 
You know how I said at the end of my last entry that I could not find the what-a-burger photos?.......Found'um!

100_0685.jpg

100_0684.jpg


This start is the very next weekend. I rode down to where I ended last Saturdays ride, Mt Enterprise. It was a lot cooler this day, around 42 when I left the house. So it was GREAT riding weather, lower 7o's for the highs.
Gas was higher down there, about 15-20 cents higher.

100_0686.jpg


The "Trail" comes out on Hwy 259 about 3-4 miles south of Mt. Enterprise, runs south for about 1mile and turns back off into the country side.
Because of this, Mt. Enterprise is a very good Starting/Stopping point.

100_0689.jpg

100_0687.jpg


And you know it wouldn't be Texas unless you had some of these.....

100_0690.jpg


And these....

100_0691.jpg

100_0692.jpg

100_0693.jpg

100_0694.jpg


Ok back to the "Trail".

100_0697.jpg


Just a mile or two down the road I found this old church, maybe school, but I think church.

100_0698.jpg


There is the new church in the back ground.

100_0699.jpg

100_0700.jpg


right next too...

100_0701.jpg


down the road...

100_0702.jpg

100_0704.jpg

100_0705.jpg

100_0706.jpg


Here, I was looking for the devil with that guitar.... you know :confused:... cross roads...?!?! :rofl:

100_0707.jpg


These things are ALL OVER down there. That's way most of these dirt roads are there.

100_0708.jpg


where are we? Here!

100_0709.jpg

100_0710.jpg

100_0711.jpg

100_0712.jpg

100_0713.jpg


Same as the previous Saturday it had rained on Thursday. It made all the green pop and all the flowers pop.

100_0714.jpg

100_0715.jpg


The obligatory self portrait.

100_0716.jpg


This section is not on the track and is not very long, about 1500-2000 yards.

100_0717.jpg

100_0718.jpg


If this doesn't look good to you, you need to check your pulse! :drool:

100_0719.jpg

100_0720.jpg

100_0721.jpg


And I have been lacks in getting you this mandatory Texas photo. :rofl:

100_0722.jpg


Wisteria popping out ....... and killing a few pines.

100_0723.jpg

100_0724.jpg


Out of Garrison down the rail road.

100_0725.jpg


And back to dirt.
100_0726.jpg

100_0727.jpg

100_0728.jpg


Told ya! See these all over...

100_0729.jpg


ok back to the heart racing..

100_0731.jpg

100_0732.jpg

100_0733.jpg


Need a truck?

100_0735.jpg

100_0736.jpg

100_0737.jpg

100_0738.jpg

100_0739.jpg


This section ends day two. I rode back and got home about 4ish this Saturday. The last section to come, but I'll leave you with this obligatory mandatory Texas photo. :rider:

100_0741.jpg
 
Ok, last leg of the story.
This day started out just like the previous 2 days, even thought I had to skip a week because of other family activities. Got luck again #1 it had rained again on about Thur and #2 was in the lower 40's when I started. This time I rode down to Center TX and thru to pick up the trail just off 147. This is JUST turning of the hwy.

100_0770.jpg


Turn's into the good stuff about 200 yards down the oil top.

100_0771.jpg

100_0772.jpg

100_0773.jpg


Down in this part of the country you see a lot of these roads. White rock. Just like riding on marbles. This one not to bad because the tire track have them pushed down to a solid base.

100_0774.jpg


Don't know what plant this is but is was gorgeous! Deep purple, some kind of vine. The cheapie camera I have did not do them justice.

100_0775.jpg

100_0777.jpg

100_0778.jpg

100_0780.jpg

100_0781.jpg


Here is another one of the many road types, green'ish gray clay. Can make some nasty dust.

100_0782.jpg

100_0785.jpg


Another wild flower shot.

100_0783.jpg


Beautiful day!

100_0786.jpg

100_0788.jpg

100_0789.jpg


Stop to shed some clothes

100_0790.jpg

100_0791.jpg


This old barn is just feet of the old single track dirt road. You can see the edge of the road in the lower part of the picture.

100_0792.jpg

100_0793.jpg

100_0794.jpg

100_0795.jpg


Here is the end of the 1st lag of the E.T. 450 for the northerners and southerners, Bean's campground.

100_0797.jpg


This is a really fun ride. I have added some section sense this ride report, trying to cut out some more hwy and add more dirt or oil top. If you would like to ride it and want a riding buddy just let me know, I'd love to show it to you.
My neighbor/riding buddy went with my last weekend and we saw, not in the same order, 1 roadrunner, 4 deer, 1 rabbit, 2 lizards (big ones), and 2 snakes (rat snakes).... like this one. :rofl: That's Sam by-the-way. He got to it first, so he gets to hold it. :rofl:

100_0799.jpg
 
i want to do this ride! how many fuel stations along the route? my husky has a smallish 2.4 gallon tank, probably only 120mi per fuel up.
 
Is this a route I can do in Tacoma 4wd so my wife can come along? Can someone post map, thanks.
 
i want to do this ride! how many fuel stations along the route? my husky has a smallish 2.4 gallon tank, probably only 120mi per fuel up.

Sorry for not posting till know, been looking for a job and doing "honey-do's".
There are plenty of gas stop we can do or not do. The last ride we did was exactly 100 miles on my ODO on the longest leg between gas stops.
 
Is this a route I can do in Tacoma 4wd so my wife can come along? Can someone post map, thanks.

YES! I've been wanting to do the same with my wife. Its a great ride, bike or 4wd but would have to be 4wd in some places.

http://www.twtex.com/forums/attachme...6&d=1315313409

OK, I can't get the above link to work, so, search "East Texas 450 (500 + actually) October 12 - 13 -14 2012" and look at page 8, thread #146
 
YES! I've been wanting to do the same with my wife. Its a great ride, bike or 4wd but would have to be 4wd in some places.

http://www.twtex.com/forums/attachme...6&d=1315313409

OK, I can't get the above link to work, so, search "East Texas 450 (500 + actually) October 12 - 13 -14 2012" and look at page 8, thread #146

sweet, ive been riding dirt for 20 years, but the Husky is my first street bike so i have to take the course and get the license cert. I cant take that course until the first weekend in june, then i should be ready.
 
Back
Top