Day 3 dawned cold and damp, but with the promise of clearing skies and warmer temps. We got busy packing up the tents so that we could set the table down and make breakfast. Once again, chef Bill came through with eggs scrambled with elk sausage, and some buffalo sausage with jalapeno thrown in for a bit of a spicy kick.
Graeme toasting a great day of riding...
The bikes loaded and ready to go...
On the agenda for today was more awesome roads with lots of dirt riding thrown in.
Bill having a stretch...
The first stretch of dirt was lots of fun, though there were some sandy and muddy parts. Graeme with his tire setup Bill described earlier seemed to have the easiest time of it, although he still got real loose a couple of times. The GS did fine most of the time, but the sandy bits were where I had the most trouble. Bill, thanks for your comments about my saves, but honestly, I think I got lucky. There were a few times where she tried to put me down and I don't exactly know how I kept her upright.
The bikes parked for a break after the first section of dirt...
Since I'm the one always taking photos, I don't have many of me. Thanks, Bill!
We rode some more pavement for a while to the next section of dirt. Somewhere in here we road FM 139 which is ranked by Ride Texas as one of the Top 10 roads through a forest in Texas. I would have to agree, it was one of the best roads I've ever ridden in Texas. Thanks Graeme!
We got to the next section of dirt and this where things went pear-shaped. We went through this crossroads and the other side was a deep sand pit. Graeme got through fine, and I was second, and got real wobbly going through. I got sideways a little but kept on the throttle and fought it, miraculously making it without falling. I looked in mirror and saw Bill go down. I got on the Chatterbox and told Graeme that he was down and found a firm spot to park it. Graeme found a spot to turn around and started riding back. By the time we got to Bill he was back on his bike riding toward us.
I found out that a fully loaded Strom with a semi-bald, 100% street front tire is no good in the sand. Don't ask how I came to find this out, but trust me, I know. And BTW, if no one got pictures of it that means that it never happened!!! But my back really hurts now from muscling up that stupid bike before Graeme and Bryan could come back around the corner.
Well, Bill, I may not have photos of your bike on its side, but there was evidence...
Since Graeme had ridden back down to the sand pit, there was no place for him to turn around, so he had to go back through it again before he could turn around to ride through it a THIRD time. Third times a charm...
We got his bike back up and we continued on our way. I'm not sure how much dirt we did in total, but I think it was somewhere around 50 to 60 miles. They were really fun roads, too, with only a few sandy spots besides the one we just went through.
Graeme on dirt...
My GS on the last dirt section...
We ended the day with a nice easy ride on FM roads into Centerville. Caught a nice view of a sundog as the day ended...
We stopped in Centerville to gas up before heading our separate ways and I got some BBQ to take home to Mollie. Graeme and I rode I-45 into Houston, and Bill headed north to Arlington. By the time we got home I had logged 986 miles according to the GPS.
Closing thoughts: Graeme's idea of a TKC-80 on the front and Tourance on the rear proved to be a great one. If he can get 6K - 7K out of the 80, then I might consider that set-up for Alaska as well.
Bill uses and old-school stove while I have a Jetboil, and his was much better for cooking. I used the Jetboil adapter this weekend to cook with a regular pot, but it doesn't have a diffuser to spread the flame out, so it is concentrated in the middle of the pot. Not real easy to cook with. May think about a different stove for Alaska.
The Chatterboxes worked very well for us, but it is sometimes hard to understand each other with all the wind noise.
I used the
SPOT messanger for tracking, and it worked beautifully. And we didn't have cell service at either camp site, so it was handy to send a check-in message and let my wife know when we got there and when we departed.
I think I've about got my packing where I want it. I do need to get a real rain suit, though. I used my old Frog Toggs, and they were functional, but I hate wearing them.
All in all, it was a fantastic trip and we each learned a lot. Doing these testing trips is going to really help us get ready for Alaska.