Colorado Cruiser: 2019 Pacific Coast Highway Day 1

2019 Pacific Coast Highway - Day 1 - Kingman AZ to Ridgecrest CA

Last night while having dinner with Kevin and his wife Diane, we got to talking about my first day of riding. I was just planning to get on interstate 40 and head West until the GPS told me to turn North at Barstow.

Then Kevin mentioned that there was a large chunk of the old Route 66 that would cut across a big loop in the freeway, taking me over a mountain pass and through the town of Oatman. He described the road as very twisty with allot of climbing and narrow road. All of his descriptions convinced me that it would be a perfect way to start the trip.

I spent the evening getting everything sorted and ready for the ride. Here's a list of the things I'm taking with me.

4 changes of clothes. I'll do laundry a couple of times.

laundry soap & dryer sheets

Drone, 3 batteries, charger, and controller.

Pocket camera on a lanyard to take pictures as I ride

Cell phone and charger

CPAP machine, hose, etc

Laptop, charger, mouse, lots of cables & SD cards

Gopro video camera, mounting hardware

Plastic windshield washing compound

Micro fibre cloth

Motorcycle washing spray

sunscreen

Toiletries, tooth brush/paste, comb, shampoo, soap, razor

Gloves (warm and mesh)

Heated jacket & gloves (always on the bike)

rain jacket & pants (always on the bike)

Motorcycle boots

flashlight

tools

3 liter insulated hydration bladder & hose

Once I was happy with the way things were setup I went to bed. It was 9:00. I set my alarm for 3:45.

I woke up a few times through the night and felt frustrated that I had to go back to sleep because it was 11:30 and then 1:30. Finally my alarm went off and I slowly began to wake up.

I loaded the bike, then went back in to fill the water bag. I was trying to hard to be quiet, but the clink of ice woke up Kevin. He thought his dogs were fussing and came out to yell at them. Maybe I should have used the ice dispenser and made more noise, then he would have known it was me.

I was fully loaded and ready to roll by 4:30. The sky was clear, the air was a cool 82, and some dumb rooster was crowing every 5 seconds.

I started the bike and began the first challenge of getting off the hill. Kevin's house is at the top of a very prominant hill. His driveway is a few hundred yards long and all gravel. It's really not bad, but on a 1200lb bike in loose gravel it gave me a pucker factor of 6 out of 10. Plus it was still pitch black. I made it down without incident.

I gassed up the bike then headed for Andy Devine avenue and route 66.

The first 20 miles is pretty standard surface road through sparse houses and trailers, but once I approached the mountains the road got fun. Nothing really challenging. The road wound around the hills and canyons rather than cutting through the way we do roads now.

The sun was just starting to come up behind me with a beautiful glow one the horizon. I could see it occasionally in my rear view mirror and it grew steadily brighter. I was nearly to the top of the pass when I caught sight of the sun peaking through the clouds and right over the top of a little mountain peak behind me. I stopped as quick as I could to grab a few photos of the view.

I crossed over Sitgreaves pass and was a couple miles down when it occurred to me that I had a drone with me. Videos of the sunrise from the pass just might make for some good footage. I keep forgetting about that drone and only later remembering it. But not this time. I turned around and spent 30 minutes playing with the drone. I still haven't really processed the footage yet but I think I have some good shots.

Back on the bike and continuing the fun ride down off the pass was great. There were beautiful rock formations and stark landscape all the way down to Oatman, and here's where I made another blunder but this time I didn't correct it.

I had a car behind me the last mile or so, and I let the car fret me into driving straight through Oatman rather than stopping to look and take some photos.

Oatman was very unique. It's known for all the wild donkeys that roam the town. There was a whole lot of donkey pool along the streets. The shops all had board walks with wood railings, maybe to keep the donkeys out.

There were a couple guys with brooms and shovels sweeping up the road apples. I don't know if they were doing the whole town or just in front of their shop.

I barely got one photo as I zipped through town but now I wish I'd stopped for some better pictures. The shops weren't open at 7:00, but I still could have walked around.

Once I left Oatman, the fun part of the ride was over.

I followed the highway out to the town of needles and stopped for a breakfast sandwich. I think it was 8:00 by the time I left.

The temperature over the pass and through Oatman had dropped into the 70s, but now it was rapidly climbing through the 80s, and once I left the greenery around Needles, it climbed up to 96 and stayed there for the rest of the ride.

I stopped once for gas, but other than that, I just rode. I drank allot of water from my hydration pack.

While driving across I-40 I suddenly remembered that I had been on this road once before. On my honeymoon with Nan.

We had a wedding reception on Saturday night in Showlow, then the next morning (Sunday) we took I-40 west to Disneyland. I think I got a speeding ticket on that drive. I remember being pulled over but I can't remember the outcome.

We stayed the night in the "Jack & Jill Motel", then bright and early Monday morning we drove over to Disneyland. The parking lot was empty. It turns out that Disneyland used to close on Mondays in the winter. I had a good chuckle remembering that first experience with my lovely wife.

Other than that wonderful memory, the ride was a bit of a chore. I'm just not used to the heat anymore. I was slathered with sunscreen on all the skin that wasn't otherwise covered, so I didn't burn, and all that water kept me hydrated. But I sure wouldn't call that ride enjoyable.

I pulled into Ridgecrest at noon and rode straight to a McDonalds. I got an order of fries and cold soda. I just sat there in the blessed cool and tried to get some salt back in my body.

While I was enjoying my salt and starch, the rest of my riding group was headed over from Phoenix. My friend John got a flat tire just outside of 29 Palms which lead to a tow truck, someone riding 50 miles to pick up a new tire, and a 2 hour delay while a tire shop changed the tire. Then that tire wasn't really working, so they stopped yet again at a regular Harley dealership and bought a "new new tire". I think John is starting a "GoFundMe" account to pay for his trip.

Most of the group arrived at the hotel around 3:00. Everyone was hot and exhausted. 2 other couples arrived at 6:00 with John and Angela arriving at 7:00.

That is a very tough ride out of Phoenix.

Leaving Kingman on Route 66