Who says you have to be on some fancy pants adventure motorcycle to have an adventure ride? How about travelling over 2,000 miles on a vintage Norton Commando motorcycle? Deby and I are back from just such a ride, true grit riding on the most basic of motorcycles. Shift right (1 up 3 down) brake left (It doesn’t really work anyhow). Oh yea, KICK START. That’s right no wussie push button to start this man’s motorcycle. We had a saying back in the day, “If you can’t kick it, don’t ride it.” Continue reading
Category Archives: Motorcycle Adventure
Home after long days on small bikes
Our short stay in Loreto was um, interesting…
When we arrived well after dark, after a hard day of long riding in strong winds we immediately found our way to the hotel restaurant pausing only long enough to swap our smelly motocross boots for more comfortable shoes. Looking bedraggled and somewhat filthy we were led by the host to a table with white linens next to a window. Continue reading
Mountains, Sand, Wind
I learned something new…. according to Wikipedia (Link Here) The southern tip of the Baja Peninsula was an island in prehistoric times. Looking at the relief map below I can see where that could be. Our goal for the day was to ride from Todos Santos over the Sierra de la Laguna mountain range.
The Southern Offroad Reaches
It feels good to be back onto the blog. A million thanks to everyone for all their well wishes. Now – let’s see how this ride wraps up!
On Saturday we decided we had enough luxury at the La Concha Beach Club and decided to ride south towards Los Barriles for a landing spot while we made a much anticipated stop to visit my buddy Doug.
Unexpected Ride Home
On February 6th we received word that Deby’s mom’s health took a downturn so we decided to cut the trip short and ride north. We made it home in time to spend a last few days with mom before she went home to be with the Lord on February 15th. Helen was 94 and lived with us for the past 18 months. Below is a picture of Arieta, her caregiver, Deby and Deby’s mom Helen. She will be missed.
I should have posted this sooner since I’ve received many e-mails wondering what happened to the posts and if we were ok. Yes we made it home safe and in record time. We arrived home yesterday from the funeral in Wisconsin and are settling into the changes in our household.
I’ve gone through all the pictures and am ready for the final ride post. We had some great riding and whale watching to report. Hopefully I’ll get that out soon.
Donn and Deby
Wrong Turn = Long Day
It’s hard to get an early start when staying at the San Ignacio Springs Resort. The sign says it all. “An Oasis of Hospitality!”
Sand – Schmand
This was the day we were going to ride south from Bahia de los Angeles on the dirt road to San Francisquito. It is a well worn route for ADV motorcycle riders with a certain reputation for having some tough sections. I had contemplated doing this route on previous rides but decided against it on the bigger bikes. It turns out that was a good call…
Deby ready to ride: 
The Hard Way Out
The road out of the back side of Mike’s Sky Rancho heading West was tough right out of the parking lot. 
Baja – The Ride to Mikes
It feels good to be back in Mexico. This is our 5th year in a row in Mexico and our 4th time back to Baja. It’s much more fun to be on the small motorcycles as we return to some of the classic Baja offroad routes and a few new tracks we didn’t want to dare on the bigger motorcycles. 
Death Valley Part 2 – The Ride
Day 1 plan: South through Panamint Valley past the ghost town of Ballarat then over Mengel Pass to visit the ruins of the last hideout of Charles Manson. Down Warm Spring Canyon and into Badwater Valley then over Jubilee Pass into Shoshone for lunch. Sounds easy right?