Big West Ride 2023
Read More
So May 15th I bought back the 2008 KLR650 that I'd sold in 2011. I'd sold it to Pierre with an assortment of adds and mods and as far as I can tell he changed virtually nothing other than put about 11,000 KM on the bike, mostly commuting.
The "new" bike's first night at my apartment. My Kryptonite disk lock had not yet re-surfaced so I put a couple of bicycle U-locks on it and hoped for the best... it worked out fine.
I'd ridden it a bit but this is fairly close to the starting mileage for me on this re-aquisition.
One of the first things I did was set the bike up with tank bag and tail box. This box has been on this bike before back in the day so I didn't even have to drill new holes to mount it - they were all already there.
I tend to keep it covered at night mostly to keep prying eyes away but also just because. By now I'd found my proper Kryptonite disk lock and bought 25 lbs of Kryptonite security chain to lock the bike to the deck. A determined thief can still steal it but they'll make a helluva lot of noise for the minimum 10 to 15 minutes they'll be running their angle grinder.
This is my "workshop" all prepped to receive all my worldly possesions in a couple of days.
And this is how it looked when the movers left, I'd hoped it wouldn't be so full. Despite selling, giving away and donating a crap-ton of stuff, I still own way too much crap - and actually at this point there was still a small amount of stuff at the apartment.
Now it's a race against time to get the bike ready to leave. First mod done was the heavy Top Gun spring. I think the spring compressor tools were the scariest tools I've ever used (maybe the bandsaw in shop class was worse, though)
Same day and it's time to dump-n-pump the forks, install new Progressive springs with custom preload and new Motul fork oil. The ride has been transformed!
that precarious moment. it's 30 degrees and very humid. I think even my eyeballs are sweating - Ugh!
Job done!
Next thing that first day was a carb-out reset with new main jet, cleaned all the other jets, KLX needle install, long reach idle adjuster screw and alloy enricher cable attachment. New hex head screws too - it's like a new carb. The bike got a new NGK iridium spark plug as well this day. After all this the bike started right up once I got all the hoses in the right places. Good Ol' KLR!
Next day the bike got new Tusk luggage racks, which was a fairly long, tedious install.
And I got the new Nanuk cases all set up with the quick-release kit, this is going to work great. Also chased an electrical issue to get the grips and accessory power port working again as well as running a new, always-hot, power cable with an SAE tip up to the bars for just-in-case reasons.
A couple days later and with a bit of a late start it was 10:45 and time for more work, this time I did the drill-through frame reinforcement mod, a difficult and exacting task. Got it done without burning out my poor little hand drill but it took 3 batteries.
The frame mod also includes new super-hard lower frame bolts which went in easily. It's been raining all day and approx 17 degrees. I like the cooler weather for working on the bike but at times it's absolutely teeming down and it limits my work area, splashes inside and makes things miserable. How can it rain so much?
This is when I found out that both the old tire coming off and the new one going on were Tubeless spec... ugh! I don't know how long the old tire was on that wheel but it wasa lot of work breaking the bead and getting it off the wheel - over an hour just for that - never seen one so tough. I had neglected to get a new tube and my only spare was an unused Michelin reinforced tube meant for a 150 tire. I didn't think I'd be able to squeeze it in this 130 so re-used the old one. Huge job getting the tire mounted and of course for the first time in many tire changes I pinched the tube. I took it all apart and tried to patch it but my patch kit was old and wouldn't work (I hate relying on patched tubes anyway) so I put the oversized Michelin tube in and it worked all the way to Calgary. By the time I packed up and left it was 7 pm.
Once I finally got my place all cleaned up and I handed over the keys, I loaded up some travel essentials then headed out to Halifax for a couple of days.
When travelling to or from Nova Scotia I prefer to bypass the toll section and follow the original route through the Wentworth Valley. I stopped at the little picnic park to stretch my legs and check in digitally with my daughter in Halifax.
I had reserved a room at Howe Hall for two nights. It's part of the student residence facilities on the campus of Dalhousie University. It was a great experience. Although, it was spartan accomodations the price was great for a holiday weekend and had everything I needed. And I could walk to my daughter's place in about 20 minutes.
My daughter and I, with her Corgi spent the day doing Halifax things, starting with a great coffee and cinnamon roll.
All set to head back to Moncton, where I'll hunker down at my Brother's place for a couple of days. He'd kindly offered the use of his garage to complete preparations on the bike for the big trip.
toll-busting on the way home too, stopped for a stretch near the Wentworth Ski operation.
On the ride to Halifax I'd been thinking about the trip and for the first time in weeks, thought about my passport... where was it??? I couldn't remember the last time I'd seen it but assumed it was when I cleaned out my dresser to sell it. For the life of me I couldn't remember what I'd done with it and I hadn't come across it in all the packing and preparing I'd done during the move. I fretted and worried the whole weekend about it and could only come up with a vague idea of where I might have put it but I was not confident. Once I got back to Moncton and had a chance I looked in that spot and there it was, I'd seen and touched everything in that container during the move and ride prep but the passport wallet was invisible to me, I suppose because I hadn't specifically been looking for it. I almost exploded with relief!
took the Coles Island road to begin with, here I'm stretching my legs along on Rte. 10 near the TCH. I'd take the TCH to the other side of the Saint John river, then get back on the old highway for the ride to Fredericton.
Once on the "old road" I took a left and backtracked to where the old Jemseg bridge crossed. Then turned around and rode it to Fredericton. That stretch of highway holds so many memories for me, foremost in my mind was the first "road trip" I ever took on a motorcycle. It was my Honda CL350 and I was only going to a tiny lake just past Fredericton but I've always vividly remembered the feeling of riding this stretch that evening with an army surplus backpack full of essentials strapped on and a few days of adventure ahead. The freedom set the hook that I've never freed myself of.
it had been a tough day, fraught with last minute complications, sorting gear, loading gear, adjusting the load, readjusting the load etc. Even though I'd only ridden to Fredericton I was done for the day. Camping options were not great and after this 30 degree, high humidity day I booked the cheapest motel in Freddy at not much more money than a campsite and checked into one of the seediest places I've ever stayed... and slept like a baby.
did some motel sink laundry and hanged it to dry, mostly still wet in the AM.
road food
look over there; it's the bank I used to work at.
This used to be The Silvery Moon restaurant in Meductic. Mum used to talk about stopping here for a milk shake on drives with her friends to the big city (Fredericton) when she was a young girl.
Mum's grave again.
been here on many bikes, might be the last time for a while.
This is what the Simonds place (my mother's family used to live here in a big farmhouse, now gone) looks like now, looks like the new owners are refurb-ing the big barn. The smaller buildings have been there as long as I can remember - built to last.
First time camping in 3 years and I'm rusty. At the Paul Bunyan campground in Bangor. What a shithole - and after a long, 30+ degree day.
complete with broken glass on the site, I didn't have the energy to pick it up.
coffee first then getting the heck out of Bangor.
made it to Lake Elmore campground in Vermont, a favorite place.
a bit later
it's raining so I rigged a tarp to toast the trip with a ceegar!
looks like rain and more rain for the next few days here and I'm already sick of it. Had planned to stay two nights but I'm getting out of here (and I narrowly missed the major, severe flooding that swept over Vermont and New York over the next couple of days)
time to show this old chain some love, Pierre said he never changed the chain so it's OEM.
I commandeered the local park for the project.
and as I worked I lost my shade and it got really hot. (temp in the background)
crossing over Lake Champlain to NY state.
pretty nice day out.
I took a wrong turn and ended up back in Canada, found this campground in a place called Mountain, ON on iOverlander.
