motorcycle camping questions

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tweeker43

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for those of you with motorcycles, do you camp?

what do you pack?
how long are you on the road?
what are your favorite (and least favorite) manufacturers? (coleman, etc...)
do you cook on the road or do you eat out?

i've got tens of thousands of miles on bikes, but when i've gone on long rides before i've stayed with friends, family, or at hotels.

my plan this year for one long trip is to ride through michigan, indiana, illinois, wisconsin (go packers!), back through the u.p., across the bridge and home again. kind of a circle tour of lake michigan. i used to camp a lot when i was young and i'm looking to get back into it.

thanks,
 
when i was not born yet, my father went on a motorcycle trip from florida to alaska. he used a tent and a small charcoal grill and slept on the side of the road in his tent, or at rest stops. he said the trick is to travel as light as possible. bring 2 pair of clothes, and wash one pair every day in a rest stop sink. shower at a truckstop (they have showers), and buy youre food the same day you plan on eating it, if possible. you dont even need one of those funny looking motorcycle trailers if you travel light enough.
oh and awalys bring lots of cash. you never know if you will break down and need cash at the local hillbilly repair shop.
 
Geez...when I go camping I have trouble fitting everything into my cherokee and the boat behind it!
grin.gif
 
florida to alaska would be infinitely cool, but i think i'll save my iron butt membership ride for later.

i dream of going to alaska on my bike.
cheers.gif
 
thanks! that's a site i didn't have (and i have a lot). some people seem to recommend the EBTKS approach, and i'm not up for that.

there's a lot of cool info on her site.

do you bike tour?
 
quote:
Originally posted by tweeker43:
thanks! that's a site i didn't have (and i have a lot). some people seem to recommend the EBTKS approach, and i'm not up for that.

there's a lot of cool info on her site.

do you bike tour?
Click to expand...
No, after sleeping on the ground in the military for 8 years, I just can't get into it. I'd rather stay in a hotel nice and warm!!

What do you ride?? BMW by any chance, it seems that a vast majority of Motorcycle camper/tour's ride Beemers.
 
I do bike/camping trips but only for 2-3 days. If I went longer, I'd stay in a hotel every third night to do laundry and get a decent night sleep.

Packing the bike is the hardest part for me. Since I have a sport bike, it can be a challenge. A tent with short poles, ie 16", is a real help.

I don't pack food. I buy it as I need it.

PM me and I'll send you the check list I use.
 
i have a 1995 kawasaki vulcan 800. saddle bags, new floor boards (i'm so excited!), and best of all, a belt drive that makes cruising pleasurable.

most of the touring sites seem to have a lot of beemer guys on them. i'd get one but there are no dealers within an hour of me, and the kaw dealer is in caro. my rule is - buy close to home if possible. if it was a harley dealer in town, i'd ride one of those. i do a most of my own work, but i like having backup close. the shop manual can't keep up with the mistakes i can make.

satterfi - i'll try to pm you tonight when i get home. i'm looking for all the input i can get. i haven't bought a tent yet, but it's on the list. i figure if i spend one night out of three in a hotel i may not be so offensive
freak2.gif
when i get back home.
 
quote:
Originally posted by tweeker43:
i have a 1995 kawasaki vulcan 800. saddle bags, new floor boards (i'm so excited!), and best of all, a belt drive that makes cruising pleasurable.
Click to expand...
Problem is that Kaw will beat you to death after a 600 mile day. If you are just cruising and doing 200-300 miles you will be alright.

With a BMW, 600 mile days are easy 1000 mile days are also no problem. As far as being 1hr away that's okay, you will find 1 hr is not a long enough ride.

Try this site. http://www.bmwrt.com/


I have a eureka tent that works in all weather, I think that is probably the #1 choice for most mc touring.
 
Here's an affordable tent that would be great for M/C camping.
Eureka tent

Personally I think you can go M/C camping on almost any bike. An RZ350?? No, probably not. A bike without a wind screen would limit how far I would go in a day. Sitting out there like a parachute all day will take its toll.

I've done 3,200 miles in eight days and for me, 400 mile/day average was enough. But, I was on a VTR1000.

-
 
the belt drive really helped out the gearing, so i'm not getting vibed at speed. there are times i actually forgot to shift into 5th it's so smooth now. on the other hand, maybe you can talk me into a beemer. i'm not averse to sleeping in the garage for a few months.

the new floorboards will give me some wiggle room as well. i have a little tombstone windshield for just scurrying about, and a big windshield for longer rides.

my 24 hour longest ride was 700+ miles. that involved leaving bay city michigan at 11pm, riding to alma to meet about 2000+ other bikers (goldwing association midnight ride), and riding to the mackinaw bridge. from there we came back down the east coast of the state. my arse was quite sore, but i'm going again this year. it's amazing to see miles of taillights ahead and headlights behind.

if i had a vr1000 i'd have a chauffer because i'd lose my license. hence the cruiser - keeps me at reasonable speeds. every time i hop a sportbike..
nono.gif


did you guys see the dude who ran the iron butt rally on a kawasaki zx250? now that's nuts.

[ January 28, 2004, 05:09 PM: Message edited by: tweeker43 ]
 
quote:
Originally posted by jsharp:
I used to take a lot of long mototcycle trips. I always figured I was saving enough in fuel to stay in a nice hotel...

cool.gif

Click to expand...
yeah, i thought that until this summer when i had a hard time getting a room for just one night and had to pay $140 to sleep. hell, i've seen hookers advertise for less.
 
quote:
Originally posted by tweeker43:
the belt drive really helped out the gearing, so i'm not getting vibed at speed. there are times i actually forgot to shift into 5th it's so smooth now. on the other hand, maybe you can talk me into a beemer. i'm not averse to sleeping in the garage for a few months.
Click to expand...
You would talk yourself into that bike. When it gets nice, ride your scooter over to the BMW shop, BMW has demo bikes, ask to take 1,2 or more bikes out for a spin. I've known guys to take a bike on a 50-100 mile ride before they decided or purchased a bike. Tell you what the BMW will sell itself.

I had one of the naked roadsters with an aftermarket screen, the BMW hard bags. It was comforatable for 700 mile days no problem. Now the RT is the King of long distance riding, heated grips, motorized adjustable windshield, good protection for cold and rain.
 
quote:
Originally posted by tweeker43:

quote:
Originally posted by jsharp:
I used to take a lot of long mototcycle trips. I always figured I was saving enough in fuel to stay in a nice hotel...

cool.gif

Click to expand...
yeah, i thought that until this summer when i had a hard time getting a room for just one night and had to pay $140 to sleep. hell, i've seen hookers advertise for less.
Click to expand...
I hear you. You'd think a room for that many $$ would come with "attendants"...
wink.gif
 
quote:
Originally posted by jsharp:

quote:
Originally posted by tweeker43:

quote:
Originally posted by jsharp:
I used to take a lot of long mototcycle trips. I always figured I was saving enough in fuel to stay in a nice hotel...

cool.gif

Click to expand...
yeah, i thought that until this summer when i had a hard time getting a room for just one night and had to pay $140 to sleep. hell, i've seen hookers advertise for less.
Click to expand...
I hear you. You'd think a room for that many $$ would come with "attendants"...
wink.gif

Click to expand...
nope, just me and a couple cans of beer.
gr_eek2.gif
i had spent the previous night in luddington for "only" $80, but the best i could find around mackinaw was high dollar. and they look at you strange when you pull up on a motorcycle, like "you're not gonna keep that in the room, are you?"
 
quote:
Originally posted by tweeker43:
nope, just me and a couple cans of beer.
gr_eek2.gif
i had spent the previous night in luddington for "only" $80, but the best i could find around mackinaw was high dollar. and they look at you strange when you pull up on a motorcycle, like "you're not gonna keep that in the room, are you?"
Click to expand...
I've done a trip similar to yours 2up on my old GPZ-1100. From south of Chicago, up through MI to Whitefish point, across the UP and back down through WI but I don't remember the hotel costs. I know Mackinaw is expensive though.

We did a similar trip in my car a few years later but went up into Canada at Sault Ste. Marie. Nice summer trips that aren't too far from home for me...

[ January 28, 2004, 06:02 PM: Message edited by: jsharp ]
 
i'm planning a similar trip this summer. down through chicago, into wisconsin (have to stop in green bay!), up through the u.p., and back home via the east coast of michigan. probably going to do it july 4th weekend as we have 4 days off.

drooooooool.

fruit.gif
 
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