Bilco`s US Tour Part 3. Yellowstone and Glacier
After the fantastic ride up to Beartooth Pass I entered Yellowstone through the North East Entrance in cold damp weather. I was here in 2005 and the weather was cold then as well. I can’t imagine this place being anything other than cold and it seems to suit the environment which is simply stunning. It was getting fairly late so I went straight through the park and out through the West Entrance to the cabin we had pre-booked.
Fantastic cabin and much cheaper than the motels as long as there are a few of you!
James and Polly turned up on his new to him 1200 after I’d made myself nice and comfy. James is my cousin who lives just north of San Francisco and I got him into GS`s on my last trip over. He’s stuck in a time warp as he reckons his 1964 650 Bonnie is the best bike built!! Anyway, he’s only had his 1200 for 2 weeks and did the 1000 mile ride to Yellowstone in 2 days across Nevada and Utah so had done great. Polly hadn’t even been on it before and they confirmed that my advice to get Airhawks was probably the best idea I’d ever had!! Great to see them as we had been working a trip of some sort for a couple of years. Quick stroll into town followed by a few bottles of Moose Drool beer and a juicy steak.
Next morning dawned bright and cold. Plenty of caffeine sorted out the hangover and we headed back into the park. If you’ve ever been there, you’ll know how big the place is and our aim was to do a complete lap. I’ve been there before so took the lead and turned right at Madison and headed down to Old faithful.
Everywhere you look there are fantastic views and stopping points to witness the steam and sulphur which belch out of the landscape.
James and Polly enjoying the park
Hot mud bath anyone?
After much stopping we got down to Old Faithful. The place is Tourist central but not too busy as we were just out season. Can’t imagine what it’s like in the height of summer. Anyway, Old Faithful erupts every 90 minutes or so and everyone appears out of nowhere to watch. If you are expecting a huge geyser climbing into the sky you may well be disappointed but it’s still a very impressive phenomenon in my book!
James and Polly underwhelmed......
Nice warming cup of coffee before we headed off. Met this guy on a GSXR1000 who had ridden from Galveston, Texas to a party in Seattle and was on his way home. Jeez, some of these guys know how to ride distance and hat’s off to him. He reckoned his Gixer was a great touring bike. Note the big black raven in the pic that was trying to get into the tank bags and was completely unafraid of us!
We rode west past the huge Yellowstone Lake and up through Canyon Village looking for wildlife and was lucky enough to see a Grizzly Bear close up. They are just huge and this guy was just rooting for berries. There was a Ranger next to me who advised us to get moving when it got too close. “Would it attack” I said “you never know” came the reply “but I’m telling you to leave now”!!!
You have to keep your eyes peeled to see the wildlife but there are plenty of bison mooching around and can roam around in big herds. When they are crossing the road it’s wise to keep a big distance away on the bike! They are all shoulders and even the old GS wouldn’t stand a chance!!
Elk are also big beasts and best avoided on 2 wheels. Didn’t get too close so the pics aren’t great but check out the racks (antlers). Very impressive:
Time to meet the latest member of the gang, Morris the Moose. Hadn’t seen one elsewhere so decided he’d be a good companion. Probably starting to lose my mind at this point:
The road around to the North of the park toward Mammoth Springs is quite narrow and bumpy and didn’t get stuck behind any RV`s which is always a plus!
Great views of Yellowstone River and the area from this road:
The great views just keep on coming:
Quick pit stop in Mammoth for coffee and cake then head back toward the cabin in West Yellowstone passing this fantastic waterfall called Gibbon Falls and the Gibbon River:
Great days riding and covered around 200 miles just in the park itself!! Back to the cabin to meet up with 2 of James friends. Rob arrived from Seattle on his F650. It was his first ever big trip on a bike and he had more gear strapped to that bike than you can ever imagine and he hadn’t a clue what to do with it!! He made Snoopy look organised!! Rob from Spokane was due to arrive on his R1200C but managed to knock the RHS cylinder head off in a small accident on the way!! Needless to say he didn’t make it but did manage to show up later in the trip. More beer and Steaks that night!!
Bright and early start the next morning and time to head North on the R191 through Montana. Weather was glorious for the first 10 miles then really turned cold and wet. Typical of this part of the world at this time. Great ride though through the mountains despite the rain and stopped for breakfast in a small town on the way. It was a Sunday morning and I reckon the whole town was in there. Not surprising as the all you can eat Breakfast Buffet was $10 and we sure did it some damage. I’ve said it before but there in no need to go to a chain restaurant because these small local places are fantastic and the food is awesome!!
No pics because the weather was so cold and wet but we rode from Bozeman on the I90 for around 25 miles and turned onto the R287 to Helena. Great road again and stunning scenery. Out of Helena on the 12 before turning north into the mountains of Montana which is the most beautiful state in my opinion. The weather started to buck up and we stumbled upon a great little café called Trixies. Real local cowboy bar and they were unbelievably friendly in there and couldn’t work out why Brits would be riding out there. Moose and Elk heads on the wall:
Great sign and I don’t need to be reminded to eat more beef. Veggies, look away:
Happy diner:
View from the car park
From Trixies, we headed west for 10 miles before heading north again on the R83 past Seeley Lake. This is 100 miles of straight road with nothing at all on it but great scenery:
Finally get into a town called Bigfork for fuel and a cold drink because the weather has finally got better and it’s blazing hot!! Everywhere is great scenery even from a Gas station:
Refreshed and refuelled, we head off to Glacier National Park and to a fantastic cabin at Glacier Mountain Resort just west of the park entrance. James had booked this on line and I have to say it was an idyllic location and pretty cheap as there was a few of staying. Set amongst the trees, the cabin had various visitors during the night but not a grizzly thankfully!
First things first so a quick nip down to the store for supplies!! These GSs are so versatile and a case of Miller light fits perfectly!!
Up bright and early and the last few days cold weather was replaced by hot and sunny weather. James had to fly back to San Francisco for a meeting (these Yanks never take time off) so I tool Polly on the back of my bike for the ride into Glacier with Dave on his 650.
What confronted us was just unbelievable and this is the moment where my camera decided to play up so I didn’t get a lot of pics I took. Anyway, hope you get the idea from these pics. Glacier is very Alpine and has the same feel. The road up is called “the going to the sun highway” and is narrow and just like an Alpine Pass. There were a lot of roadwork’s on the pass but this doesn’t matter as the views are just perfect:
Roadworks on the way up and just to add to the Alpine feel, we followed a couple of classic Porsche’s up there!
Polly and Dave enjoying the view
GS on the way up
At Logan Pass, stopped for a breather and the inevitable happened. Polly got off the RHS of the bike when I was expecting the left and crunch.....over she went in front of a coach load of French tourists and a car park full of yanks. After a quick bow, I quickly picked the old girl up. No damage....phew!! Set off down the east side which is a lovely run down to St Mary’s for lunch. Down the mountain steadily and when I went to check the bike before corners with the back brake, there was nothing!! Somehow managed to split the rear braided hose which I’ve never seen before.
Views on the way back up were just as great:
The road down was very steady with only the front brake and we were 2 up. Good job I’d put new pads in before the trip!! Polly managed a couple of pics:
Stopped by this fantastic river and the water was perfectly clear:
Even Morris the Moose enjoyed the view:
Stopped at Lake McDonald on the way out of the park and yet again, breathtaking!
Had a day doing feck all the following day and just enjoyed the sunshine. Rob had turned up on his brothers very strange Honda Shadow 700 and James had got back from SF so they went back up to the park. Fashioned a repair to the brake line which gave me about 20% brake which was better than nothing. Helped out by a local guy who drove this great old truck.
Sat out that evening by the campfire and demolished another case of Miller and decided that Montana and Glacier were perfect places and although Miller High Life may not be the real champagne of beers, I was getting to like it:
Next morning, packed the bikes up and headed north for Canada. None of us had ridden there before so set off feeling very excited!! Worth one last look at that log cabin and we all promised we’d be back again:
Part 4 coming soon.....
After the fantastic ride up to Beartooth Pass I entered Yellowstone through the North East Entrance in cold damp weather. I was here in 2005 and the weather was cold then as well. I can’t imagine this place being anything other than cold and it seems to suit the environment which is simply stunning. It was getting fairly late so I went straight through the park and out through the West Entrance to the cabin we had pre-booked.
Fantastic cabin and much cheaper than the motels as long as there are a few of you!
James and Polly turned up on his new to him 1200 after I’d made myself nice and comfy. James is my cousin who lives just north of San Francisco and I got him into GS`s on my last trip over. He’s stuck in a time warp as he reckons his 1964 650 Bonnie is the best bike built!! Anyway, he’s only had his 1200 for 2 weeks and did the 1000 mile ride to Yellowstone in 2 days across Nevada and Utah so had done great. Polly hadn’t even been on it before and they confirmed that my advice to get Airhawks was probably the best idea I’d ever had!! Great to see them as we had been working a trip of some sort for a couple of years. Quick stroll into town followed by a few bottles of Moose Drool beer and a juicy steak.
Next morning dawned bright and cold. Plenty of caffeine sorted out the hangover and we headed back into the park. If you’ve ever been there, you’ll know how big the place is and our aim was to do a complete lap. I’ve been there before so took the lead and turned right at Madison and headed down to Old faithful.
Everywhere you look there are fantastic views and stopping points to witness the steam and sulphur which belch out of the landscape.
James and Polly enjoying the park
Hot mud bath anyone?
After much stopping we got down to Old Faithful. The place is Tourist central but not too busy as we were just out season. Can’t imagine what it’s like in the height of summer. Anyway, Old Faithful erupts every 90 minutes or so and everyone appears out of nowhere to watch. If you are expecting a huge geyser climbing into the sky you may well be disappointed but it’s still a very impressive phenomenon in my book!
James and Polly underwhelmed......
Nice warming cup of coffee before we headed off. Met this guy on a GSXR1000 who had ridden from Galveston, Texas to a party in Seattle and was on his way home. Jeez, some of these guys know how to ride distance and hat’s off to him. He reckoned his Gixer was a great touring bike. Note the big black raven in the pic that was trying to get into the tank bags and was completely unafraid of us!
We rode west past the huge Yellowstone Lake and up through Canyon Village looking for wildlife and was lucky enough to see a Grizzly Bear close up. They are just huge and this guy was just rooting for berries. There was a Ranger next to me who advised us to get moving when it got too close. “Would it attack” I said “you never know” came the reply “but I’m telling you to leave now”!!!
You have to keep your eyes peeled to see the wildlife but there are plenty of bison mooching around and can roam around in big herds. When they are crossing the road it’s wise to keep a big distance away on the bike! They are all shoulders and even the old GS wouldn’t stand a chance!!
Elk are also big beasts and best avoided on 2 wheels. Didn’t get too close so the pics aren’t great but check out the racks (antlers). Very impressive:
Time to meet the latest member of the gang, Morris the Moose. Hadn’t seen one elsewhere so decided he’d be a good companion. Probably starting to lose my mind at this point:
The road around to the North of the park toward Mammoth Springs is quite narrow and bumpy and didn’t get stuck behind any RV`s which is always a plus!
Great views of Yellowstone River and the area from this road:
The great views just keep on coming:
Quick pit stop in Mammoth for coffee and cake then head back toward the cabin in West Yellowstone passing this fantastic waterfall called Gibbon Falls and the Gibbon River:
Great days riding and covered around 200 miles just in the park itself!! Back to the cabin to meet up with 2 of James friends. Rob arrived from Seattle on his F650. It was his first ever big trip on a bike and he had more gear strapped to that bike than you can ever imagine and he hadn’t a clue what to do with it!! He made Snoopy look organised!! Rob from Spokane was due to arrive on his R1200C but managed to knock the RHS cylinder head off in a small accident on the way!! Needless to say he didn’t make it but did manage to show up later in the trip. More beer and Steaks that night!!
Bright and early start the next morning and time to head North on the R191 through Montana. Weather was glorious for the first 10 miles then really turned cold and wet. Typical of this part of the world at this time. Great ride though through the mountains despite the rain and stopped for breakfast in a small town on the way. It was a Sunday morning and I reckon the whole town was in there. Not surprising as the all you can eat Breakfast Buffet was $10 and we sure did it some damage. I’ve said it before but there in no need to go to a chain restaurant because these small local places are fantastic and the food is awesome!!
No pics because the weather was so cold and wet but we rode from Bozeman on the I90 for around 25 miles and turned onto the R287 to Helena. Great road again and stunning scenery. Out of Helena on the 12 before turning north into the mountains of Montana which is the most beautiful state in my opinion. The weather started to buck up and we stumbled upon a great little café called Trixies. Real local cowboy bar and they were unbelievably friendly in there and couldn’t work out why Brits would be riding out there. Moose and Elk heads on the wall:
Great sign and I don’t need to be reminded to eat more beef. Veggies, look away:
Happy diner:
View from the car park
From Trixies, we headed west for 10 miles before heading north again on the R83 past Seeley Lake. This is 100 miles of straight road with nothing at all on it but great scenery:
Finally get into a town called Bigfork for fuel and a cold drink because the weather has finally got better and it’s blazing hot!! Everywhere is great scenery even from a Gas station:
Refreshed and refuelled, we head off to Glacier National Park and to a fantastic cabin at Glacier Mountain Resort just west of the park entrance. James had booked this on line and I have to say it was an idyllic location and pretty cheap as there was a few of staying. Set amongst the trees, the cabin had various visitors during the night but not a grizzly thankfully!
First things first so a quick nip down to the store for supplies!! These GSs are so versatile and a case of Miller light fits perfectly!!
Up bright and early and the last few days cold weather was replaced by hot and sunny weather. James had to fly back to San Francisco for a meeting (these Yanks never take time off) so I tool Polly on the back of my bike for the ride into Glacier with Dave on his 650.
What confronted us was just unbelievable and this is the moment where my camera decided to play up so I didn’t get a lot of pics I took. Anyway, hope you get the idea from these pics. Glacier is very Alpine and has the same feel. The road up is called “the going to the sun highway” and is narrow and just like an Alpine Pass. There were a lot of roadwork’s on the pass but this doesn’t matter as the views are just perfect:
Roadworks on the way up and just to add to the Alpine feel, we followed a couple of classic Porsche’s up there!
Polly and Dave enjoying the view
GS on the way up
At Logan Pass, stopped for a breather and the inevitable happened. Polly got off the RHS of the bike when I was expecting the left and crunch.....over she went in front of a coach load of French tourists and a car park full of yanks. After a quick bow, I quickly picked the old girl up. No damage....phew!! Set off down the east side which is a lovely run down to St Mary’s for lunch. Down the mountain steadily and when I went to check the bike before corners with the back brake, there was nothing!! Somehow managed to split the rear braided hose which I’ve never seen before.
Views on the way back up were just as great:
The road down was very steady with only the front brake and we were 2 up. Good job I’d put new pads in before the trip!! Polly managed a couple of pics:
Stopped by this fantastic river and the water was perfectly clear:
Even Morris the Moose enjoyed the view:
Stopped at Lake McDonald on the way out of the park and yet again, breathtaking!
Had a day doing feck all the following day and just enjoyed the sunshine. Rob had turned up on his brothers very strange Honda Shadow 700 and James had got back from SF so they went back up to the park. Fashioned a repair to the brake line which gave me about 20% brake which was better than nothing. Helped out by a local guy who drove this great old truck.
Sat out that evening by the campfire and demolished another case of Miller and decided that Montana and Glacier were perfect places and although Miller High Life may not be the real champagne of beers, I was getting to like it:
Next morning, packed the bikes up and headed north for Canada. None of us had ridden there before so set off feeling very excited!! Worth one last look at that log cabin and we all promised we’d be back again:
Part 4 coming soon.....
