Back from my trip to Canada (hi Rob!)

I’m back from my most recent ride and thought I’d ramble on about it for a bit.

Day 1:
My riding buddy (2023 Spyder F3) and I left from my hometown of Chelsea, MI. We take back roads as the freeway tends to bore me greatly.We stopped in Mackinac City for a stretch before going over the bridge.  I had checked the bridge authority website and all lanes were supposed to be open.  I hate riding on the grating in the middle of the span as it tends to shake the bike more than I like.  As luck would have it I was able to stay on the paved bit the entire way.Crossed into the upper peninsula and stopped for lunch.  After that we continued to Sault Ste. Marie where we stopped for the night.

Day 2:
Left SSM in around 7:30 am and crossed the bridge into Ontario.  That bridge is a single lane in each direction and offers nice views of the locks below.After dealing with the grump border guard we turned SE and headed to Thessalon.  Stopped there for a stretch and then turned north on the 129 heading towards Chappleau.So here’s the thing.  The 129 is frequently called ‘Canada’s Tail of the Dragon’.  Having ridden the actual Dragon a few times I can honestly say it is not the same.  I will say that the 129 is a beautiful ride that I recommend but it lacks the technical requirements that the Dragon demands.About 55 minutes north of Thessalon we had an ‘adventure’.  For about 12 miles (20k) the paved road that we were riding (129) at 55mph (90kph) suddenly became gravel.  There was only 1 construction sign and it was small and not well-placed.  I was looking ahead and wondered what all the ‘smoke’ was up ahead.  No wildfires and no fog.  Then I saw the road turn to gravel and knew I was seeing dust.  While I was still on the paved road I hammered the brakes and slowed waaaaayyyy down.  This isn’t the well-packed gravel like the road I live on.  No, it’s the 2 inches of fresh limestone with sand that hasn’t been compacted.That bit of the ride was terrible.  The bike did not care for the loose gravel and mixed it where long sections of washboard that shook things badly. Bikes coming the other direction looked very unhappy but we pressed on hoping it was a brief inconvenience.We got through that and stopped to destress at the Blackcreek Outfitters.  Nice place but bring cash as they don’t accept CC.After that we pressed on to Chapleau where we got gas. Hung out with a dozen other bikers who had passed us along the way.  They were mostly on adventure-type bikes so I imagine the gravel didn’t bother them as much as it did me.  My buddy was fine as he has 3 wheels.  Cheater!!!After a rest at Chapleau we headed west to Wawa.  That’s the only bit of the ride that we encountered any rain and it was just drizzle and just a few times.  Very nice views along that road as well.Spent the night in Wawa just south of town at a cool place called White Fang Motel.  I really liked it and recommend it.

Day 3
We headed back to Michigan.  Crossed both bridges.  Border guy on US side was very chill and loved the bike. We rode back across the mighty Mack and this time there WAS construction on the paved bits so I had to ride on the grating.  Grumble….We stopped for the night in Charlevoix.  My buddy was done for the day but I wanted to check out Boyne City so I rode 15 miles or so there, had dinner, then road back to Charlevoix for the night.

Day 4
We headed back to Chelsea via the back roads.Nothing too exciting on that bit other than we were in a straight stretch of road with nobody else around so we may have accidentally been going 70 in a 55.  Oops… These things happen.I checked my mirrors out of habit even through nobody was around and to my surprise there was a black SUV with some type of light bar across the roof closing quickly.  Uh oh…I told my buddy we needed to slow down as I think we picked up a cop.  We have intercoms in our helmets.We were approaching a curvy section anyway.  The SUV got up on my ass and then just as suddenly he dropped back and quickly turned onto a side road.  I got a quick glimpse of the passenger door and saw a ‘SHERIFF’ decal.   Yikes.  But he didn’t stop us so all is well.We got home safely and his trip meter confirmed my tabulations minus the extra bit I rode the night before to Boyne.  The trip was about 1,250 miles in total over 4 days.  Not bad and so far my record for a long ‘ride’.  Mine was an additional 26 miles but…meh…Bike ran great and other than the unexpected construction on 129 it was a great trip.-  W 

Great report—sounds like a good amount of fun!
It’s nice to see someone sharing a story here again!
(... sometimes I think I’m one of the few people left who actually still ride a motorcycle, and of course, except SWest, who let us also know, that he´s still  a rider !!!.-
Let the engines and wheels turn and run, folks! 
(( I’m already dreading the approaching end of the biking season here—just another 5 to 8 weeks left... Damn wintertime here in Germany... I’m definitely living in the wrong country... In my next life, I need to be somewhere else, where I can ride all year round in warm weather on dry, paved roads. ))

Thanks for the ride report, it sounds like a good time was had. Sounds like your machines made the trip without issue, which is always a good thing.

Hwy 129 is a secondary highway through the interior of Ontario.  A more scenic ride would have been Hwy 17 around the big lake.  Very nice scenery up to Wawa.  Spectacular scenery on the way to Duluth.  

We rode 17 from Wawa back down to Michigan.  I agree it was very nice with Superior to the side a lot of the way : - )

MFP-Joe wrote:

Great report—sounds like a good amount of fun!
It’s nice to see someone sharing a story here again!
(... sometimes I think I’m one of the few people left who actually still ride a motorcycle, and of course, except SWest, who let us also know, that he´s still  a rider !!!.-
Let the engines and wheels turn and run, folks! 

(( I’m already dreading the approaching end of the biking season here—just another 5 to 8 weeks left... Damn wintertime here in Germany... I’m definitely living in the wrong country... In my next life, I need to be somewhere else, where I can ride all year round in warm weather on dry, paved roads.

))

Joe, I am just wondering if we are allowed to post "Ride Reports" from non-KZ motorcycles? What section should we use to ride our "Ride Reports"? 

Kofla wrote:

MFP-Joe wrote:

Great report—sounds like a good amount of fun!
It’s nice to see someone sharing a story here again!
(... sometimes I think I’m one of the few people left who actually still ride a motorcycle, and of course, except SWest, who let us also know, that he´s still  a rider !!!.-
Let the engines and wheels turn and run, folks! 

(( I’m already dreading the approaching end of the biking season here—just another 5 to 8 weeks left... Damn wintertime here in Germany... I’m definitely living in the wrong country... In my next life, I need to be somewhere else, where I can ride all year round in warm weather on dry, paved roads.

))

Joe, I am just wondering if we are allowed to post "Ride Reports" from non-KZ motorcycles? What section should we use to ride our "Ride Reports"? 

I guess "wet kawas" for your 1400 or "other marques" for anything non Kaw