Trip Planning

March 7^th 2009

June 1^st cannot come fast enough! It was 62 degrees out yesterday and I pulled the carburetor off of my bike and cleaned it. I put everything back together and she roared to life. I was grinning ear to ear and couldn't help but go for a ride! It is amazing to think that this can make me as happy as it does. Nothing else mattered while I was riding and it took everything I had to turn around and come back home.

Today I was looking around online at different scenic routes to South Dakota. The plan is to meet my friend Dave somewhere in Illinois and head west from there. We will be staying the night at campgrounds along the way. This will be my first road trip staying in a tent as well as the longest I have been on the road. We will be traveling around 350 – 400 miles per day which I consider a pretty leisurely pace as we plan on stopping often to take in the sights. The main attractions are the Badlands National Park, Mt. Rushmore, Crazy Horse Monument and the Peter Norbeck Scenic Byway. I have read some pretty amazing things and seen some really cool pictures of the Badlands so I am really looking forward to this part of the trip. The scenic byway is another destination I am excited to see as this is a favorite route for travelers. It will take us past Mt. Rushmore and is also close to the Crazy Horse Monument. A hotel stay is planned in Deadwood, South Dakota which will be a welcome rest after four days on the road. An entire day will be spent traveling the scenic byway (150 miles) so that we are able to take in all of the sights this route has to offer. When we leave Deadwood, we will head back east towards Minneapolis and finally to Dave's place in New Richmond, Wisconsin.

Having a definite and tangible plan set makes me very eager to ride! I am working on getting all of the gear I need so that I can test everything out next month. I have a short weekend trip planned with my girlfriend from Jackson to Bay City with a stay at Bay City State Park. We will then head northeast via MI-25 to Port Austin and then southeast to Lakeport where we will camp for the night. Sunday will take us west back to Jackson through several State Recreation Areas including Island State, Pinckney and Waterloo. This will give me a chance to make sure that the gear I have is going to suffice for the trip out west plus give me an excuse to get out of town for the weekend and ride!