So, I've been planning a bit of a ride for a couple of weeks while my wife was away in Boston for the week and finally, this past Thursday, the day came. The goal was to ride the thruxton (weather permitting) over
Tioga Pass (through Yosemite National Park), back over Sonora Pass (a little farther north in the Sierra Nevada range) and head back home
via Hwy 49 to take on
the Little Dragon. Here's the scoop.
Day 1: San Luis Obispo, CA to Lee Vining, CA via Tioga Pass (300 miles)
Thursday morning at 10am I pulled out the choke, hit start and rolled out. The destination for the day was Lee Vining on the east side of the Sierra Nevada range. I would get there
via Hwy 41 to Yosemite Valley and then Hwy 120 over Tioga Pass. The ride to Coarsegold was uneventful: long, straight, flat and lots o' bugs. Of course, any chance I get to ride is good time, but I didn't expect much. Once in Coarsegold the real fun began. Not only was the ride into "The Valley" wonderful---clean roads, few cars and lots of sweepers---but the sights were unbelievable (the leaves were changing colors from green to bright yellows and reds). It was pretty chilly heading into Tuolumne Meadows and the snow on the ground definitely left me a bit nervous about ice on the road. There was never any ice, only a continual set of sights that take the breath away. Once in Lee Vining, I stopped for some gas and a killer cheeseburger at the world renowned
Whoa Nellie Deli at Tioga Gas Mart. (If you've never eaten there...it's a must. It's a
New York Times reviewed, gourmet restaurant in, yes, a gas station food mart.) And then some "zee's" before a
long second day.
Day 2: Lee Vining, CA to San Luis Obispo, CA via Sonora Pass and the Little Dragon (500 miles)
The next morning, a bit tired, I drug myself to breakfast at Nicely's. After two or three cups of black medicine and a Denver omelet, I double-checked the conditions over Sonora Pass and once I heard it was good, I took off north on Hwy 395. Oh, was it ever cold! I got to the turn onto Hwy 108 toward the Pass and went for it. Once past the Marine Corps' Winter Training Center, the road narrows and starts to get nice and twisty as it begins to climb toward the mountain pass. A handful of decreasing radius corners and lots of constant radius corners (did I say 'lots'? Let me reiterate...
lots!) bring you to the high point on the road. Just like the day before, the tarmac was perfect, there was no more than one car and three motorcyclists (traveling the opposite direction), and mountain landscapes that take your breath away as if you were running up the hillsides on foot. It quickly became clear to me that that road is a serious contender for the best motorcycle road in California (or at least that I've ridden). (Of course, that was what I was thinking before I started heading south out of Coulterville!) The descent into the "gold country" gets less technical and turns into a constant set of strung together "million mile per hour" sweepers that make you break out in songs of merriment. Hwy 108 to Sonora provides nothing less than pure, unadulterated good ol' fashion motorcycling fun! After having lunch at a great little deli in Sonora and fueling up, I left for Coulterville to hit the Little Dragon. Unfortunately, I failed to notice that I was on Hwy 49 West rather than Hwy 49 South. When I finally realized my error I was 30 or so miles off course in San Andreas. Oh well, at least the road between Sonora and San Andreas had some fun sections. Once back on track, I approached the turn onto Hwy 49 South, yet to my dismay there was a CalTrans sign reading "Hwy 49 closed." I couldn't believe it! How could that happen?! My heart sank as I thought "I want to ride the Dragon..." But then the sign changed to read "10/22/07-10/26/07," and , after a quick reminder that it was only 10/19, my spirits rose and I turned to go to Coulterville. (I know this is dragging on and on...sorry.) Leaving Coulterville, I starting running through my checklist: don't spend your whole ten dollars, look through the corners, make sure you got a smile on your face and can sing a song, apex late, remember you'll have cliffs with up to 1000 foot drop offs on your right much of the way, don't be a hero, etc. Before I knew it, I was in the first corner, then the second, the third, the forth and I was screaming "Wowwie...wow...wowwie...wow!...this is the greatest road of all time...I can't believe I get to do this...you oughta have to pay to have this much fun...yahoooooooo!!!!!!!!" And it didn't stop for fifteen miles! I don't think I've had a smile on my face that big since I first time I experience "the big O." The tarmac is perfect, the camber is ideal, I saw only two cars (going the opposite direction), it was akin to riding on rails and my speed was definitely much faster than I planned to run on it. When I came to the end in Bear Valley, I was in heaven. Of course, I still had to ride the other 200 plus miles home, but that didn't matter. Between Sonora Pass and the Little Dragon, nothing could go wrong. And thankfully nothing did. Apart from
a lot bug splatter on the face shield and dealing the Friday night racing toward the coast cagers, I made it home tired and hungry by 8pm.
So, 34 hours, 800 miles and the best roads that I've ridding to date later, there's only one thing I can say...you oughta have to pay someone to have that much fun...no really, you should have to. If you ever have the chance to do the same routes, I cannot say strongly enough how worthwhile it will be. Until then, keep the shiny side up and live the passion.
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