7 days, 5 states and 2,800 miles on a KTM 990 Adventure

Greg@RME

Adventurer
I went for a solo ride on the KTM 990 Adventure... 7 days, 5 states to the Canadian border and back, with over 2,800 miles... :Wow1:

I left Grand Junction, CO early Friday morning for 7 days of solo riding exploring Wyoming, Montana, Idaho, Utah and Colorado. The plan was to ride the most scenic backroads and avoid the freeway as much as possible. I wanted to try and ride some dirt every day and most days that happened, some day's it did not. I had plans to visit my old neighborhood in Montana then ride thru Yellowstone, Glacier NP and to the Canadian border.

On the way out-
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Day 1 took me North of Grand Junction headed towards Yellowstone... I rode over Douglas Pass, into Vernal and continued on North-East passing in & out of Idaho and Wyoming a few times. Some of those roads were excellent riding, curve after curve and amazing sights along the way. My route took me thru Starr Valley, Wyo where we have some family history and distant relatives. As I came into Idaho I ran thru a decent sized storm and the rain stirred up the heavy scent of sagebrush... I was loving the trip and experiencing the feeling of rain, the temperature swings from mountain passes, smells like sage brush, fresh cut hay and pine forests, all in a way that you can't quite experience while sitting in a car. That's the kind of thing that will make someone a rider for life! Finding a cheap hotel semi-close to Yellowstone was hard, so I ended up in Rexburg, ID for the night. 500 miles for the first day and no pics, but it was a great ride.

Day 2 took me thru Jackson Hole, WY and into Yellowstone NP. I've been to Yellowstone a few times before and knew it would be busy on a weekend day, but wanted to ride thru there anyhow. Once in the park the traffic was stupid, plus there was road construction!! I tried to make the best of it, but couldn't wait to be away from all those people! I didn't stop and see as much as I wanted to, but still saw plenty. At one point I parked to see a big herd of Buffalo and take pics. After getting back on the bike and heading up the road, a big RV was coming the other direction slowly... with a massive male Buffalo in front of them, walking right down the center of the road... coming my way. There were cars parked on the right side of the road and I didn't have anywhere to go, so I just rolled by... ready to crack the throttle if he decided he didn't like KTM's. He glanced at me as I rode past... we were close enough that I could have reached out and touched him.

The rest of the trip was uneventful, I did ride the only legal dirt road in Yellowstone, Blacktail Plateau Drive. The description makes it sound like a pretty rough road and lot's of animals... I didn't see anything special animal-wise and the road wasn't rough at all. I passed many cars, splashed thru a couple mud puddles and really enjoyed riding the big, loaded bike in the dirt. I escaped out of the park by way of Gardiner, MT and hauled *** towards Helena, MT for the night. Another long, 500 mile day with a near 9 PM arrival at my hotel. I wasn't hungry, but didn't really have lunch so I stopped at the Silver Star Steak Company for the best filet mignon and risotto I've ever had! I should have take a pic of the food, it looked amazing... and it was, I cleaned my plate quickly. Helena seems like a nice place, I could live there... at least in the Summertime!

Tetons-
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Day 3 took me out of Helena headed towards Kalispell, MT. Not long after leaving Helena I came across a turnoff for the Gravely Range Road into the mountains. After consulting the map and seeing that it made a big loop into the mountains and connected back to the highway I was already on, I was sold, into the dirt we go! The road was rocky and rough, but good riding... it climbed elevation into some massive pine trees and at one point the road was nothing more than a rough, overgrown 2-track. The loaded bike, still running 30 PSI in the tires, was a handful at times but it handled the dirt well. After a dozen miles or so we connected back with the highway. The pavement at that point was incredible! High speed highway riding with tons of curves and mountain passes to climb and drop... not to mention the scenery! Massive pine trees, lots of rivers and lakes... and again, the sweet scent of pine trees filled the air. Came across some road work and they had removed the asphalt for a dozen miles or so... fine by me, more dirt! Had a suicidal Grouse try take me out at 70 mph... I had just enough time to duck my head behind the windscreen when the bird struck my left hand and the top of my helmet. Glad I ducked or i would have taken a bird to the face/shoulder and it wouldn't have been good!

I rode around Flathead Lake and LOVED the East side, many of the people had their own little Cherry orchards and were out in front, selling fresh picked Cherries. I used to come here when I was young and have pretty fond memories learning to skip rocks. The most amazing part about Flathead Lake is how clear the water is, it's beautiful! Eventually found a highway and blasted to Kalispell, only 450 miles today! :bike_rider:

The chain had been worked quite loose and was starting to show that it was on it's last leg and the rear sprocket had seen better days. I believe these were the original parts, with 15k miles on them. I didn't think it would make it back to Colorado so I started looking for options. I tightened the chain & lubed it again in the motel parking lot and called it good, for now. Had a rough nights sleep, thinking about how I was still headed North, with a bad chain.


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Greg@RME

Adventurer
Day 4, into Glacier National Park, Polebridge, MT and the Canadian border! This morning I made arrangements to get a new chain and sprockets with Carls Cycles in Boise, ID and felt much better knowing that I had a plan to get the bike back in good riding shape. The parts had to be ordered in, but I had a few days so that was fine. Several friends recommended I stop at Polebridge, Montana so after entering Glacier NP that's where I headed! Polebridge is about 7-8 miles up a dirt road thru some amazing country! At one point the dirt road is nice & straight with lots of visibility... opened up the loaded 990 to 75 MPH for a short bit, just for the hell of it! It's really an impressive bike. The Polebridge Mercantile is the main attraction in town and they are known for the incredible bakery and pastry's, when you walk in the door the smell will make you start drooling instantly... it was still early and I was hungry, so I bought a big Huckleberry Bear Claw and it was amazing! I wanted to take a picture of the wall of pastry's, but it was pretty busy inside. I picked up a few gifts, including some Huckleberry Jam and hung out for awhile.


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Next up was to backtrack into Glacier NP and take Going to the Sun road over the mountains. There are big wildfires burning in Canada so unfortunately the skies were pretty smoky, not really helping the photo ops. The sights were still amazing... the road construction and all the people were a bit of a turn-off.


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Next up for today was Canada!! At least the border.... I haven't renewed my passport, so couldn't enter Canada. :( After leaving the park, it was a short 15 min jaunt to the Carway Border crossing. I wanted a picture at the border itself and actually stepped over the physical line... :elkgrin: The way the US border entry was set up, turning back meant bypassing a blockade that routed everyone that was Southbound thru the US border checkpoint. Rather than cause an international incident, I decided to go thru the US inspection point and explain that I was just there for a few pictures. No biggie, but it did take 45 min to wait in the line.


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Headed to Missoula, MT for the night... don't remember how many miles, but it was a lot. I was SPENT, rolled into town late and had dinner out of the snack machine... Doritos, a beat-up Snickers that had been with me since I left and a Sprite. :(
 
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Greg@RME

Adventurer
Day 5....? They're starting to blend together. Headed South now, out of Missoula and towards Idaho. I need a short day's ride and less time in the saddle... the destination for the day is McCall, Idaho. Rode thru the Lolo National Forest, by way of Highway 12. Ends up being 120 miles of EPIC road riding, super windy road next to a beautiful river and surrounded by massive pine trees. Lots of wilderness surrounding the road and it feels like presence of mankind is very insignificant here. Love the riding, lots of high-speed riding around the curves... traffic is pretty light too. As the ride progresses you start smelling, then seeing smoke from a nearby wildfire. Eventually ashes are falling like snowflakes. Not a lot of pics, but plenty of video to come. Made it to McCall around 5 PM and had an amazing burger at a place called 'My Fathers Place'. McCall is nice, a little high-mountain vacation town on the edge of a big lake.... nice enough that I could live here. As the evening winds down a thunderstorm moves in with an impressive display of lightening and rain. Looks like I'm going to get wet tomorrow...

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Day 6... it's lightly raining in McCall as I pack up the bike. Temps are in the low 50's, coolest they've been on this ride. Destination is Boise for the day, it's not far but I try to drag my feet and let it warm up a little. I put on my waterproof & cold weather gear and feel quite grateful that I have heated grips that work WELL! I was kind of dreading the cold ride, but I stayed dry and warm and ended up loving the ride out of McCall... something about riding in adverse weather in such a beautiful location makes me feel ALIVE! I honestly wouldn't want to be anywhere else, I was having a great time. I ended up finding a National Forest road and went exploring... I turned back after a massive hill climb that would have been a bit much for the loaded 990. Rode past the 45th Parallel and stopped for a pic, because I thought it was neat. Ended up in Boise just after Noon... parts weren't all in yet, so it was time to do some laundry and wait for tomorrow to come. Spent some time with an old friend from what seemed like another life, it was great to catch up.



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Day 7... Boise to Grand Junction... 650 miles.

Parts came in about 10 AM, but there was some miscommunication with the service dept... they're booked solid for 2 weeks and have no idea that I wanted to get these parts installed TODAY, in order to get home. After a little explaining, they get the 990 in for a new chain & sprockets. Just after Noon I'm leaving town... I wanted to take backroads like planned, but I was homesick and missed my wife. I gave up on the backroads, hit the freeway and set the cruise in the mid-80's Southbound. Came into SLC at 6 PM, just in time to hit bumper to bumper traffic... lost an hour working my way from Ogden to Provo. Got into Spanish Fork as the sun was setting, was very glad that I upgraded my headlight and added axillary LED lighting to the bike. It got dark and I was on a mission to make it home before midnight... as I passed Woodside I was treated to a powerful display of lightening, lighting up the Bookcliffs and massive clouds in the sky. It was awesome to be riding in the dark and have a huge thunderbolt strike the ground not far away and light up the entire area for a split second. Got into just a little rain, but with the temperature of the desert it wasn't worth worrying about. Ended up rolling into my driveway about 11:15 PM on Friday night...

Video! -

 
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Greg@RME

Adventurer
Just a few notes about the trip...

Riding solo, covering big miles over long days at speed is pretty dangerous... my situational awareness was cranked up to 11 at all times. Scanning the shoulder for animals, watching the road for rocks, blown tires, watching cars coming at me, entering the road I was on, etc, etc. Several times I had deer run out in front of me, and each time I was on the brakes HARD, plus the horn when they were close. No real close calls, but it was enough that you didn't want to drop your guard. When I hit the bird on Day 3 that was a great reminder to be prepared to make a move and know what you were going to do. I didn't have time to hit the brakes, but knowing that I could duck behind the windscreen and doing so without hesitating probably saved my ***. Taking a bird to the face at 70 MPH wouldn't have been good. A few nights I had trouble falling asleep, after being on edge all day.

When in traffic, riding thru the National Parks or on the packed freeway the key phase for me was 'Head on a Swivel'... relates to situational awareness, but it's always good to know what's going on far ahead of you, next to you and behind you. You can even watch the heads & eyes of people around you to know what they're thinking about doing, before they do it.

Standing on the pegs... I do this to straighten out my back and legs, rest my hindquarters and make myself more visible. When I'm riding thru a small town and I have the right of way or in heavy or slow moving traffic I'll get up off the seat and on the pegs. It's amazing how much more visible you become... people stare, but at least they're watching. Especially with being 6' 4"... standing on pegs that are 12" off the ground my helmet is almost 7 1/2' high.


Some items that made the trip easier;

Butler Motorcycle Maps - http://www.butlermaps.com/ - I put the entire trip together when these maps and LOVE them!

Omni-Cruise throttle lock - http://www.omni-cruise.com/omni-cruise-1/

GPS loaded with a few hundred of my favorite songs.

Highway pegs... best investment for long rides!

Comfy seat... could be better, but it's not bad.

Motorcycle-specific tool kit


Gear;

I took 2 jackets and 2 pair of riding pants, 3 pair of gloves and my one helmet. 1 jacket is waterproof and fairly heavy, it's a Joe Rocket Ballistic Revolution Jacket. It has good ventilation, but the inner liner makes it hot if you're not moving or it's too warm outside. It kept my dry in the rain and was comfortable 90% of the time. The other jacket it a First Gear mesh jacket... awesome when it's hot out, feels like you're not wearing more than a t-shirt when you're moving. The main pair of pants I wore were Joe Rocket Phoenix 3.0 mesh pants... lots of ventilation, with protection where you want it. The 2nd pair of riding pants were more for adverse/cold weather... Icon Device Textile Pants. They kept me warm the day I rode out of McCall in the rain and 50* weather. My boots for the trip were Forma Adventure boots and they were excellent, kept my feet dry and warm in the rain and decently cool in the heat. They're not nearly as stiff as MX boots, still offer good protection and have a great tread pattern, making them comfortable to walk around in.

I coated the face shield of my helmet with RainX and it worked well....


The Bike; 2007 KTM 990 Adventure

The bike performed flawlessly, I was impressed with how capable and reliable the big Adventure was on this trip. The only problem was more of a maintenance thing, with the chain going bad. Since I just bought the bike a few months earlier I didn't know how many miles were on the chain and now think that it was the original. This bike got flogged HARD over long days, hundreds of miles daily, pushed thru amazing curvy roads like a sport bike, over rough dirt roads and didn't once falter. IMO the 990 Adventure is a very capable, impressive bike... comfortable enough for big rides, but capable enough to ride some dirt. It has plenty of power for passing too... running at 80+ MPH for hours at a time didn't scare the 990 at all.

It was also fun to pass the big, lumbering Harley's on the curvy mountain roads... on a big 'dirt bike' sporting knobbie tires... :bike_rider:
 
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Greg@RME

Adventurer
Nice pics and trip report. You should renew your passport so you can get into Canada and enjoy some more great scenery.

Thanks, no doubt on the passport... earlier this year I wanted to take this ride to Banff, but with the area being on fire I abandoned that idea and put the passport on hold. Still, I need to get it renewed so I can get back to Baja. Hopefully next year I can get to Banff and more of Canada.
 

Backroad Explorer

Adventurer
Greg what a beautiful Trip. Love the pictures. Glad you had a nice stay in our little town :REOutCampFire03:
If your by this way again stop by NAPA Auto Parts a have a Chat.

Glad you made it Home Safe
 

Greg@RME

Adventurer
Greg what a beautiful Trip. Love the pictures. Glad you had a nice stay in our little town :REOutCampFire03:
If your by this way again stop by NAPA Auto Parts a have a Chat.

Glad you made it Home Safe

Thanks Brian, appreciate it! Yeah, I loved McCall... I could see spending much more time there in the future!

I did notice that someone was in the NAPA parking lot with a van and trailer, probably loaded with motorcycles!
 

xjaugie

Adventurer
Great trip enjoyed the write up. I love the country out there and am beginning to make some plans to head out that way in September.
 

Greg@RME

Adventurer
Great write up! Thanks for sharing! That is one nice ride you have. Some day!

Thanks, it was a quick & dirty writeup... but it works! The KTM 990 Adventure is an impressive bike, very capable in the dirt for a 'big' bike and quite sure-footed on the highway... and it LOVES curves. A couple weeks earlier I was riding curvy roads with fast friends here in Colorado and ended up dragging the pegs and hard bags several times! I pushed the bike pretty hard on this recent trip with some high-mile days and hard riding and it didn't flinch at all... it really proved itself to me.

Don't wait too long on your 'some day'... ;)


Great trip enjoyed the write up. I love the country out there and am beginning to make some plans to head out that way in September.

Appreciate it, you can't go wrong in the Rockies!
 
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gringo m

Observer
I didn't read every line.....but I'm very envious of your trip. I love to ride, maybe someday. Great report, thanks.
 

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