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Dualsporting Western Wyoming (caution, lots of photos!)


DouglasR

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It's Summer in Wyoming so that means heading for the hills and camping. I can't think of a better combination than big dualsports and camping for a fun weekend!

 

My friend Jeff and I left Lander, WY Saturday AM 7/29/06 and rode 75 miles to Dubois where we tanked up on Kathy's Koffee and gasoline. Jeff was riding his Cagiva Gran Canyon and I was on my 1150GS, loaded up like two mini-moving vans. From Dubois we continued West on Highway 287 about ten miles to the Union Pass Road which crosses the Wind River Mountains. This is a view from the top toward the South across the high level erosion surface of the Winds, with our destination visible on the skyline. Apparently the Forest Service had graded the road very recently because it was loose gravel and rocks almost the entire way over Union Pass.

 

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I wanted to get a shot of the Absaroka Mountains which are behind me 180 degrees (to the North) across the Wind River Valley, but a fire in the Bridger-Teton Wilderness there put up such dense smoke the mountains were barely visible. Several large fires in the West have decreased visibility everywhere, but the up-side is it makes for nice sunsets!

 

They aren't kidding about this, I've seen lots of bears up here, both blacks and grizzlies. They aren't a problem if you keep a clean camp.

 

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This is Union Pass Road heading down into the Upper Green River Valley. Our destination is Green River Lakes (upper left of the photo). It was very hazy with flat light so I didn't take a lot of photos.

 

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I'm going to post this in chunks so if (when) my computer blows up I don't lose the whole thing!

 

Doug

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OK, now we're at Kendall Warm Springs which feeds the Green River. There's a cool little fish in the warm spring that is very rare. The warm spring has built terraces that the fish can't negotiate, so they became cut off from the Green River and evolved into a separate subspecies. I couldn't get any of them to pose for a portrait, and you have to wade out in the Green (a big river) to get a shot of the terraces, so you'll have to make due with a shot of the bikes in the parking lot:

 

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Jeff and I were thoroughly SICK of loose gravel and washboards after 75+ miles of it, but the destination is well worth the effort. This is Lower Green River Lake from the "beach" at a Forest service campground:

 

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There was a tree thinning operation going on in the campground that had the place kinda torn up, so we decided to backtrack a mile or so down the road and find a spot in the National Forest to camp. It was better than any of the formal campsites! We filled or Camelbacks and water jugs at the campground and set up camp in a great little meadow:

 

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Jeff the Pyro. Note how far away we parked the bikes! grin.gifthumbsup.gif

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I am soooo there! Oops, this isn't in Ride Planning is it? blush.gif

 

More please! smile.gif

 

Ask and ye shall receive!

 

The obligatory "hero" shots and scenery shots. I get a lot of grief from my non-motorcycling friends about always clogging up God's handiwork with my steel and rubber machine, so I now also take shots without the bike(s). I also like shots without humans in them, which can be tough to accomplish sometimes.

 

Yours Truly, on the Green River just below the Lake, and about 100 yards from our little camp:

 

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Happy Jeff. This was his first dirt ride on the Cagiva and it did great:

 

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Sans metal and rubber units:

 

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This is one of the prettiest places in Wyoming. The Forest Service CG is right on the edge of the Wilderness and it just gets prettier as you hike up the Green River from here.

 

Chunk post.

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Next day, coffee is brewing, no bear issues through the night:

 

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Jeff had to head home Sunday AM, but I had plans to meet some shady characters from this Board in Jackson. Jeff headed back over Union Pass and I headed for Hoback Canyon and eventually Jackson. About five minutes after I got my stuff packed it started to rain, and it was about 45 degrees, so I didn't stop for too many photos on the way out. Here's the Green River again, heading South toward Cora, WY:

 

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I got to test-fire the ABS on my GS on a wet dirt road (um, from about 75 mph to stop VERY QUICKLY blush.gif) when a herd of antelope blazed across the road in front of me. I never even saw them before the first one shot across the road (they can run flat-out at 60 mph!!!!) and was followed by about ten more. I puckered a core out of the GS's seat, but the bike never even twitched. I love ABS.

 

Brand new asphalt on Highway 189/191 between Daniel and Bondurant. After all the gravel and washboards the GS wanted to go fast, so I let her have her head for a few miles:

 

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Hoback Canyon is GORGEOUS, some of the finest high-speed sweepers in Wyoming:

 

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More to come!

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Once I got into Hoback Canyon the sky cleared and it got HOT and muggy, so I stripped off a bunch of clothing and decided to go exploring. The Shady Characters weren't due in Jackson until much later, so I had lots of time. This is Granite Creek, trib to the Hoback River, on the way to Granite Hot Springs (another incredibly rough road with washboards and loose gravel, but worth the ten mile ride in):

 

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Granite Tepid Springs Pool. It's about 93 degrees in Summer due to snowmelt and runoff cooling it off, but gets up to 106+ in the Winter (you can snow machine or dogsled in, it's really great!):

 

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Neat falls on Granite creek just below the Pool:

 

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From here I rode on into Jackson via Hoback Canyon, a bit of Snake River Canyon, then Fall Creek Road into Wilson. While having a bagel and cup of java in Wilson at 2:00 PM, the nameless the Leader of the Pack called and said they hadn't left Torrey yet! Hardware and software issues had put the Boyz way behind schedule, so I went into Jackson and checked into the motel. I showered and napped, did some shopping for rubber tomahawks and trinkets, rode out to Teton Village (Jackson Hole Ski Area), back to Jackson, attended the Demolition Derby and Streaking contest at the Teton County Fair, and finally got too hungry and thirsty to wait any longer. Off to the Snake River Brew Pub for dinner and you-know-what. The Gang finally got to Jax about 10:45 and barely made it to the Pub in time for dinner. They got fed and soused and we had a blast yakking until the bar closed, then off to bed.

 

No photos, sorry, we were too busy sampling the fine beers (Zonker Stout, yummmmy!!).

 

It's late now so I'm off to bed. I'll finish this post and reveal the identities of The Boyz tomorrow!

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This is a spectacular shot!

 

Why thank you, Mr. Wiener! thumbsup.gif I'm holding the best one in reserve for tomorrow's finale. G'night! wave.gif

 

Doug

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Fall Creek Road into Wilson.

OK, now you are REALLY in my old stomping grounds! clap.gifThe Crescent H Ranch is where I was Asst. Chef about 927 years ago, right there on Fall Creek. I can thank the Cowboy Bar and way too many of a little "commercial" (sponsored by Satan) called the "Branding Iron" for a good night's sleep on the side of the road! eek.gif

Still Jackson Hole rates as one of the most influential and wonderful places I have ever been. Good for you guys. My heart and part of my liver are right there with you! thumbsup.gif

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Still Jackson Hole rates as one of the most influential and wonderful places I have ever been. Good for you guys. My heart and part of my liver are right there with you!

 

You need to come back and at least visit! Give a holler and we'll set something up, finish off your liver and do some riding!

 

I found a photo of the Absarokas from the top of Union Pass (thought I'd taken one even though the smoke haze was really heavy):

 

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Nice hairdo, huh? It was hot already.... And here's the story on the leetle endangered fish:

 

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OK, back to riding. The Mysterious Evil Boyz from this Board were finally up and moving about noon, so we headed off to the North to catch a view of the Tetons. Some nice stranger snapped our photo as we lolligagged in front of the Tetons. Four gorgeous silver Beemers and one blue Yamaha scooter:

 

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Fun with photography:

 

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The Boyz on top of Signal Mountain. Outstanding views from up there, but the woodsmoke haze and overcast made for really flat lighting conditions so I didn't take too many photos.

 

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Unfortunately Chris's back was really hurting and he had to call off the day (and the remainder of the trip, I hear) short. Hope you're better, Chris!

 

After lunch at the Mangy Moose in Teton Village, we split up. Chris and Whip went to the motel to recuperate, Killer, Richard and I acted the hooligans riding up Teton Pass. About ten minutes after getting to the top, we saw a Sheriff and WHP cruise by slowly.... wondered if we'd gotten called in for our antics. Sorry if we upset anyone, but we weren't being unsafe..... blush.gif

 

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Back to town, some rest and clean-up, then to dinner at the brewpub again. Whip needed stronger libations so we hiked over to the Million Dollar Cowboy Bar for a while. We sat near several Hell's Angels from Switzerland, that musta been some ride! The worst band on Earth was playing at about 150 decibels, the place was mostly empty (cause and effect?), so we called it a night.

 

Woke up Tuesday morning, August 1st to steady rain.... Parked the bikes under the motel portico to load, said our goodbyes, then I took off. I stopped for a bagel and java at Pearl Street Bagels, yummy!, and by the time I finished the rain had quit and it was blue sky! clap.gif

 

I followed the storm out of Jackson, riding wet roads but only getting the occassional sprinkle. Pefect riding conditions, outstanding scenery. This is my favorite photo of the trip, the camera just can't do it justice:

 

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Sans machinery:

 

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I rode over Togwotee Pass toward Dubois in intermittent sprinkles, but otherwise just wet roads and perfect temperature. They have fourteen miles of the highway torn to crap on the Dubois side, it was awful with the recent moisture. This section had mag-chloride dust suppressant on it, then the rain came and traffic churned it to the consistency of pig snot. Seven miles of this....

 

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Things were OK after this until I hit a seven mile stretch of fresh chip-seal, my all-time favorite riding conditions. tongue.gif Got stopped in traffic for about 30 minutes while WDOT spread tar and ball bearings on the road. No photos, it was sprinkling and I didn't want to get the camera out.

 

I finally got home about 1:00 PM, put the bike in the garage and the heavens opened up and POURED for an hour! Great timing! The ride through the pig snot had blown that stuff up into everything! It was packed up under the tank, blasted into the cylinder fins and baked on, my headers and cat were ceramic coated with an inch of that crap. The mag-chloride made it almost impossible to hose off so I ended up using a toilet brush and soapy water to scrub it off. Two hours.

 

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I rode my RT back to Teton Village on Saturday for fun, it was a gorgeous day! When The Boyz and I rode the Moose - Wilson Road it was nice asphalt with the exception of a little 1.6 mile stretch of mag-chlorided dirt with loose potholes and gravel. There was endless whining about this from the Yamaha and K-GT riders.... Well, when I rode through on Saturday I discovered that the Park Service had put a fresh coat of chip seal on all the asphalt and regraded/re-mag-chlorided the dirt part tongue.gif. It was wicked! No photos since there was no way to pull over and take one safely.

 

On the way home I stopped for lunch at Signal Mountain Lodge, always great food, splendid view and really really good coffee. The camera was tucked away in the tank bag hiding from a rain shower, but this scene was taken a few minutes later from Jackson Dam. A stunning day!

 

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This is gorgeous country and I sincerely invite you all to come enjoy it. I'm always happy to take folks on tours of my "back yard", so c'mon down!

 

Hopefully The Boyz will post some more pics of this trip! That was a blast you guys! thumbsup.gif

 

Doug

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Dang that looks like a great trip!!

 

And great photos too!

 

Got to get that GS one of these days.

 

Thanks for sharing!

 

Cameron

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Thanks Doug for sharing the great ride........Your country up there is incomparable.......Wonder what "Special Rules Apply" means on the grizzly bear sign?....Carry extra shorts?.....Kathy saw one swimming the Blackfoot River a couple of years ago while fly fishing....I carry a small boat air horn in my fishing vest...Makes a lot of noise and never want to find out if it will really scare one...

Anyway, thanks for the ride...We'll be up there in God's country next summer...

 

Phil..........Redbrick

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It's been two years since my last visit and your pictures are just killing me. So, please stop....please. crazy.gif I've added one of your Teton shots as my desktop background. Thanks for letting us ride along.

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StretchMark

Outstanding!! thumbsup.gifthumbsup.gif

 

This is gorgeous country and I sincerely invite you all to come enjoy it. I'm always happy to take folks on tours of my "back yard", so c'mon down!

 

Gorgeous indeed! Careful what you ask for...Baker, Kenny, big-t...you guys listening cool.gif

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Outstanding!! thumbsup.gifthumbsup.gif

 

Gorgeous indeed! Careful what you ask for...Baker, Kenny, big-t...you guys listening cool.gif

 

Make yer plans and give me a few days' notice! September is the best time to ride out here, most of the kiddies are back in school and the traffic thins considerably. Sometimes you can even ride later, I've been through Yellowstone in October when I was almost the only person in there.

 

I mean it! thumbsup.gif

 

Doug

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Somebody explain to me why I don't live there??? dopeslap.gif

 

I'll try. cool.gif

 

This is Teton Pass in Winter:

 

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This is Lander in Winter:

 

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This is Togwotee Pass (between Lander and Jackson) in Winter:

 

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This does not work:

 

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Winter lasts six months or more. dopeslap.gif

 

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There's also that little matter of employment.... Wyoming is booming it's way through another oil/gas/coal economic bonanza, but there's always a bust to follow. We're like a Third World Country in a lot of ways, extractive minerals industry is the biggest driving force in the economy. Some other sectors are moving forward, for instance WalMart is building an absolutely MASSIVE distribution center in Cheyenne at the intersection of Interstates 80 and 25 (also Union Pacific and Burlington Northern Railroads cross there). Plenty of new jobs, but they won't be top-dollar employers, ya know? If you're a high-tech person and need highspeed communications, we just got fiber optics in this area LAST YEAR. If you want to fly someplace, it's either Denver (350 miles one way) or Salt Lake (300 miles) for reasonable fares. The list goes on and on.

 

There are always tradeoffs to everything. I live here knowing that my career opportunities are limited, but I choose it becasue I love being outside and playing in the mountains and deserts. Winters can get pretty long, but I also have a trailer! thumbsup.gif

 

Doug wave.gif

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Granite Tepid Springs Pool. It's about 93 degrees in Summer due to snowmelt and runoff cooling it off, but gets up to 106+ in the Winter (you can snow machine or dogsled in, it's really great!):

 

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Hey! I thought that looked familiar! We did a snowmobile tour there in 1999 ... I don't remember the wooden decking, but it was probably covered with snow. It snowed at least 1 foot every day for the week we were out there, made for tough skiing.

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Somebody explain to me why I don't live there??? dopeslap.gif

 

I'll try. cool.gif

 

 

Winter lasts six months or more. dopeslap.gif

 

grin.gifthumbsup.gif

 

There's also that little matter of employment.... Wyoming is booming it's way through another oil/gas/coal economic bonanza, but there's always a bust to follow. We're like a Third World Country in a lot of ways, extractive minerals industry is the biggest driving force in the economy. Some other sectors are moving forward, for instance WalMart is building an absolutely MASSIVE distribution center in Cheyenne at the intersection of Interstates 80 and 25 (also Union Pacific and Burlington Northern Railroads cross there). Plenty of new jobs, but they won't be top-dollar employers, ya know? If you're a high-tech person and need highspeed communications, we just got fiber optics in this area LAST YEAR. If you want to fly someplace, it's either Denver (350 miles one way) or Salt Lake (300 miles) for reasonable fares. The list goes on and on.

 

There are always tradeoffs to everything. I live here knowing that my career opportunities are limited, but I choose it becasue I love being outside and playing in the mountains and deserts. Winters can get pretty long, but I also have a trailer! thumbsup.gif

 

Doug wave.gif

 

Hummm......on second thought.......maybe I'll just visit. thumbsup.gif

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