2024 Pashnit Touring on a Hayabusa

[dcnblues]

Highway 96 is known for being very long - it's 150 miles of endless curves. It's also the closest paved road to the Oregon border and follows the contours of the Klamath River. It's known as a fast road with broad sweepers.

People from the rest of the world really don't know what they're missing. California has some weird combo of geography and history that funded long roads over twisty terrain at the right time of the 20th century. Oregon and Nevada have gorgeous scenery but the roads are relatively straight in comparison.

I think i saw Bigfoot, downtown Happy Camp

This region of NorCal is so remote, there's nothing up here.

Nothing commercial, this used to be all logging for industry but since the 90s, a lot of the logging mills, every town had one, are long gone.

Yeah and the people are pretty bitter about it. Even the pizza place at Happy Camp is gone? You will overhear conversations that are way over into paranoia land and will readily return towards seceding. They want to carve out their own state which would be a chunk of Northern California and Southern Oregon.

Highway 96 follows the contours of the Klamath River matching the curves and turns of the river, No people up here, a few tiny towns, but very little other traffic if any.

The Klamath River recently made national news with the removal of dams further up river near the Oregon border. Native tribes fought in the courts for years to get 100-yr ol dams removed and restore the salmon population. The dams were recently removed and the intent is to restore the river to the way it was prior to the dams.

Thank God. By the time the water gets to Happy Camp, it can have algae blooms from all of the agricultural runoff that turns it into foaming green muck. And the weather can get really hot, enough so that you can wade into the river up to your knees, and have your skin dyed green, no charge. Nobody would want to swim in it. And for sure no salmon can survive in it. Seasonal flooding may help with the agricultural fertilizer runoff, but there's no question that farming needs to change in the US. In a world where any news seems to be about civilization circling the drain, I really like the YouTube channel CarbonCowboys. It actually gives you hope (and in the same vein I highly recommend the movie The biggest little farm). I know a guy with some property up there on the river, and on that property, 50 ft away from each other, grow a California Redwood and a Ponderosa pine. Which is totally mind blowing as their overlap is supposed to be zero!

Sorry for the thread hijack. But if you haven't been, you should take one of these tours. In between the Golden Gate Bridge and the Oregon border is the sweet spot for the best roads in the world.

 

[pashnit]

I gotta get back for a tour. Space available for April 4th?

@Lodi Parkfield tour is open Matt to more riders. About half full right now. We had 23 bikes on the April 2024 Parkfield Tour.
It was a huge group of veteran tour alumni. Just let me know & I can pencil you in.
I expect to have all 17 motorcycle tours nearly sold out by end of January.

Parkfield | Central Coast Motorcycle Tour | Pashnit Tours

Ride Coast Range & San Luis Obispo County with Pashnit Motorcycle Tours based from the tiny ranching town of Parkfield

www.pashnittours.com

 

[Lodi]

@Lodi Parkfield tour is open Matt to more riders. About half full right now. We had 23 bikes on the April 2024 Parkfield Tour.
It was a huge group of veteran tour alumni. Just let me know & I can pencil you in.
I expect to have all 17 motorcycle tours nearly sold out by end of January.

Parkfield | Central Coast Motorcycle Tour | Pashnit Tours

Ride Coast Range & San Luis Obispo County with Pashnit Motorcycle Tours based from the tiny ranching town of Parkfield

www.pashnittours.com

Put me down Tim. I added to my calendar. Wow, 2019 was the last time I was there. Looking forward to it.

 

[pashnit]

Put me down Tim. I added to my calendar. Wow, 2019 was the last time I was there. Looking forward to it.

Sounds good Matt, I added you to the 2025 Parkfield Tour.

 

[pashnit]

As soon I learned about Bald Hills Rd, I knew I had to go ride this mystery road. All I had to go on was a couple photos of the road from 10 years ago and an outdated 45-word description on some random website. That's it. Paved? Not sure. Has anyone ridden it? Nope. Couldn't find anyone who knew anything about it. My Benchmark Road Atlas of California that I have copiously studied 135 pages of grid squares like others study the Holy Bible said not paved. The all-mighty AAA Sectional Map of Northern California said maybe, but we’re really not sure.

Even the Google Street View Car made it a couple miles, then gave up & turned around as soon as it reached the gravel section. Another source said 15 miles of gravel. Satellite imaging showed paved but six miles of gravel. No one could agree on what to expect. It took seven months of patiently waiting to plan a ride to this far northern corner of Humboldt County, California, located moments from the Pacific Ocean and a few miles from the Oregon border.

 

[pashnit]

Bald Hills is single lane climb to the top of the Coast Range through thick forest, tree tunnels and multiple switchbacks. Getting closer to the ocean and the marine layer is high above us. No shadows or sudden light dark sections.

 

[pashnit]

This road has multiple personalities. Soon as we reached the summit, wide open vistas

 

[pashnit]

New personality - suddenly the goaty single lane switchbacks transformed into a smooth two-lane with a center line.
What just happened?
Wiggling across the flat summit of the range, perfect fast curves and recent logging had opened up broad expansive vistas across the NorCal Mountain Ranges. Awesome ride!

S-Curves atop the flat summit of the range - Nice!

 

[pashnit]

 

[pashnit]

Getting closer to the ocean - all that blue in the distance

 

[pashnit]

Surprise. Gravel. Yep, three miles of this road is not paved.

 

[pashnit]

After all the uncertainty of paved or not paved, there's a three-mile stretch of road that hasn't been paved yet.

See the fire lookout? What a view.

 

[pashnit]

 

[pashnit]

Gravel is not what this bike was designed for. But it'll handle short sections just fine.

It's only 3 miles - you're gonna live. Just slow your roll and enjoy the scenery.

And no, we don't do gravel roads on these tours. But there are very rare exceptions.

Bald Hills Rd | California Motorcycle Roads | Pashnit

Best Northern California Motorcycle Rides - Bald Hills Rd

www.pashnit.com

 

[LC4CARL]

As soon I learned about Bald Hills Rd, I knew I had to go ride this mystery road. All I had to go on was a couple photos of the road from 10 years ago and an outdated 45-word description on some random website. That's it. Paved? Not sure. Has anyone ridden it? Nope. Couldn't find anyone who knew anything about it. My Benchmark Road Atlas of California that I have copiously studied 135 pages of grid squares like others study the Holy Bible said not paved. The all-mighty AAA Sectional Map of Northern California said maybe, but we’re really not sure.

Even the Google Street View Car made it a couple miles, then gave up & turned around as soon as it reached the gravel section. Another source said 15 miles of gravel. Satellite imaging showed paved but six miles of gravel. No one could agree on what to expect. It took seven months of patiently waiting to plan a ride to this far northern corner of Humboldt County, California, located moments from the Pacific Ocean and a few miles from the Oregon border.

View attachment 1689808

View attachment 1689805

View attachment 1689806

View attachment 1689807

Nice! I also enjoy the research and planning stage of a ride. Despite best efforts, sometimes it's not what I expected. I suppose that's why they call it an adventure.

Beautiful photos as usual.

 

[WuzzaCBXRider]

The Moki Dugway is only three miles too and the bikes handle it just fine. Dirt is better than gravel.

 

[pashnit]

The short 3-mile gravel section doesn't last. And the reason for the varied predictions of how long the gravel section would last was due to it's been recently paved over- except the last 3 miles. Go figure.

 

[pashnit]

Bald Hills Rd | California Motorcycle Roads | Pashnit

Best Northern California Motorcycle Rides - Bald Hills Rd

www.pashnit.com

But the highlight of Bald Hills Rd is the magazine cover shot

Looks better with a Hayabusa in the shot

 

[pashnit]

 

[pashnit]

Descending in elevation into the thick forest