2025 - Ride to West Coast

Looks like you'll be passing really close to Joliet. You can swing by the prison gates. This is the prison (and gates) in the early scene of the Blues Brother film.

I wanted to say slide thru Michigan City (Indiana) because their is a train that runs thru the town streets like a streetcar. Squeeze and I were lucky enough to have one pass us as we were going down the street. However I checked and the train no longer runs thru town.
 
The wrecked locomotives and a bus from the filming of "The Fugitive" are still beside the tracks in Sylva North Carolina but it looks like you're not headed that far east. Squeeze and I stopped in and initally they were reluctant to let us in. (Aw shucks we rode our motorbike all the way from Canada) but then we end up getting a private tour of them by a railroad employee who took six months off work to help film the scene.
 
One thing to consider is a northern route if the summer heat becomes an issue. One year I decided to head north and cross at Sault Ste Marie and make my way through Michigan, Wisconsin, Minnesota using smaller hwy 28 and then 2. Hwy2 through MN is wide open and higher speed. The highlight was seeing the “mighty” Mississippi River about the size of our Don River here, not the huge size it becomes as it wanders south.
There was less traffic and although still hot and humid it want as bad as being more south. Just in case it is hotter than usual.
 
We looked at doing the ferry across Michigan to get west but did not seem to justify the cost. Especially in June I'd rather enjoy the long sunny days on the bike than spending on a ferry.
Chicago can be avoided most times...the worst was having the GPS insist on sending us through the construction zone at rush hour. :eek:
 
Sunday Rider said:
One thing to consider is a northern route if the summer heat becomes an issue. One year I decided to head north and cross at Sault Ste Marie and make my way through Michigan, Wisconsin, Minnesota using smaller hwy 28 and then 2. Hwy2 through MN is wide open and higher speed. The highlight was seeing the “mighty” Mississippi River about the size of our Don River here, not the huge size it becomes as it wanders south.
There was less traffic and although still hot and humid it want as bad as being more south. Just in case it is hotter than usual.
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Good point and thanks - I'll keep it in mind for sure.
 
West coast solo I decided to take the Northern TransCanada leaving the mountains on a bit of whim from Jasper to Hinton AB instead of heading south to Banff.
That was a treat ....it was spring and there were hundreds of thousands of birds in the many wetlands and lakes that dot the prairies.
 
This sounds like it will be an incredible trip. And stopping to do hikes each day in unfamiliar areas sounds lots of fun. I wish I could join you but I can't get that much time off work. :( Only a few more decades till I retire then I'll be doing these kinds of trips every year. :D
 
danp said:
This sounds like it will be an incredible trip. And stopping to do hikes each day in unfamiliar areas sounds lots of fun. I wish I could join you but I can't get that much time off work. :( Only a few more decades till I retire then I'll be doing these kinds of trips every year. :D
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Well I still want to ride to Newfoundland for a 3 week trip in 2026 if you are up for that :)
 
Just wanted to give my $0.02 on the ferries across Lake Michigan, having ridden across that neck of the woods a number of times and having lived in Chicago for a bit back in the day.

I like the ferries. Don't underestimate traffic in the Chicagoland area, IMHO the ferries are worth the cost if you have the time especially when you consider tire wear and gas spent idling in stopped traffic. Both have their charms. Both are a godsend when, on the way home, I'm exhausted and need a break for a little bit. I personally don't like fighting traffic, especially at the tail end of a tiring trip.
 
oomis said:
Just wanted to give my $0.02 on the ferries across Lake Michigan, having ridden across that neck of the woods a number of times and having lived in Chicago for a bit back in the day.

I like the ferries. Don't underestimate traffic in the Chicagoland area, IMHO the ferries are worth the cost if you have the time especially when you consider tire wear and gas spent idling in stopped traffic. Both have their charms. Both are a godsend when, on the way home, I'm exhausted and need a break for a little bit. I personally don't like fighting traffic, especially at the tail end of a tiring trip.
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When you rode to Utah on your FZ1, was that in the summer?

I’m a little leery of the Death Valley area and southern Utah at the end of August, even with a hydration knapsack and good gear.
 
Pitching in on going around Chicago versus taking the ferry. Last year in August I went to Vancouver (and back) , and on my way there I decided to go around Chicago , as the ferry time estimation seemed similar, but you also had to align timing for ferry departure , boarding time, etc. things not accounted by google maps. There is a toll hwy around Chicago , that just seems partially finished that I could take, and wasn’t that bad. No toll booths, licence plate recognition like 407, but I ended up with no charge on my plate.

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too much said:
Pitching in on going around Chicago versus taking the ferry. Last year in August I went to Vancouver (and back) , and on my way there I decided to go around Chicago , as the ferry time estimation seemed similar, but you also had to align timing for ferry departure , boarding time, etc. things not accounted by google maps. There is a toll hwy around Chicago , that just seems partially finished that I could take, and wasn’t that bad. No toll booths, licence plate recognition like 407, but I ended up with no charge on my plate.

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Looks familiar.
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