2024 Pashnit Touring on a Hayabusa

[pashnit]

Views from summit on Mount Diablo

You're gonna ask.... well, okay...

In case you were wondering how I got shots like this. 10 years ago, GoPros didn't have internal Image Leveling like the current ones do. To get a shot like this, a tour alumni built me a gps powered camera leveling device out of RC car components. The camera stayed level no matter what the lean was. Had a lot of fun playing with this setup pictured here using RAM arms to get the camera right behind the 200-series tire.

 

[pashnit]

The hand-made image leveling setup produced some interesting shots.

 

[pashnit]

You are here.

 

[pashnit]

Dropping down off Mount Diablo and headed south for the next peak - Mount Hamilton, our second peak of the day

Morgan Territory Rd on the east side of the peak starts off like this, but quickly narrows to single lane through a canyon. Super fun road.

Morgan Territory Rd

 

[pashnit]

The two peaks are about two hours apart, but all super twisty roads to get there

 

[pashnit]

Welcome to the top of Mount Hamilton - its all observatories up here.

 

[pashnit]

There's a small village atop the mountain. People used to live up here year-round, a tiny school, their own zip code and even barracks for the astronomers. Present day, all the telescopes are operated remotely.

Lick Observatory

There’s an astronomical observatory at the summit, currently operated by the University of California. But the best part is it was all built in the 1870s. The observatory was financed by James Lick, a wealthy San Franciscan and philanthropist. But, the observatory atop the mountain is only bonus, the real highlight is the road to get there.

James Lick negotiated that Santa Clara County construct a "first-class road" to the summit, completed in 1876. This road to the summit was built for horse-drawn wagons. All of the construction materials had to be brought to the site on wagons pulled by horse and mules which could not negotiate a steep grade. To keep the grade below 6.5%, the road had to take a very winding and sinuous path, which the modern-day road still follows. Tradition maintains that this road has exactly 365 turns in 18 miles.

The same road that once was a wagon road still offers up a purity of happiness, endless frivolity, numerous switchbacks, and bonus… banked corners. It’s a motorcyclist’s delight. And once at the top of the peak, you’ll have a view on a clear day of the entire San Francisco South Bay Area, well, the South Bay really.

 

[pashnit]

I've been inside the observatory one time to view the huge telescope in person. I never seem to time my visit with when the observatory is open to the public.

 

[pashnit]

What Mount Hamilton Rd really looks like - there's 365 turns in 18 miles - it's as fun as it looks.

This road was originally built as a wagon road to the top of the peak. It was designed for horses.

 

[sixpack577]

What's the average tour day distance?
200-300 miles?

 

[pashnit]

What's the average tour day distance?
200-300 miles?

@sixpack577 Exactly. Our max is planned at 300 miles. While a sport-touring solo rider could easily do 300-500 mile days, the bigger the tour group, the slower we go as a group. I plan tour routes at a benchmark of ~250 miles/day, sometimes less, sometimes more. These tours average 10-12 bikes, sometimes more, sometimes less. Planning for that distance is a perfect balance of time off the bikes to relax and kick tires, chat with one another, stop at historic stuff or viewpoints, fuel stops and meals. Organized tours are as much a social experience with like-minded riders, as they are about riding super twisty roads. The goal is to always be on the bikes at 8am, hit lunch at noon-ish, and arrive at our lodging exactly at around 5pm-ish. It's a bit of a science to pull that off, and a bit of a predictive math problem in my head, depending on how twisty the planned route is, how many backroads, and how many roads in the planned route. I'm a stickler for timing, maybe that's just me or it's a military thing, the timing has to be perfect. I've had a bit of practice to perfect this science, in August 2025, I'll be leading my 250th organized tour which is a fun milestone. The vast majority of these 250 tours have been led with my Haybusa(s).

 

[Bumblebee]

Did you keep and ride your blue bike as well?

I kind of thought you moved it along once you've got your Gen3.

 

[sixpack577]

@sixpack577 Exactly. Our max is planned at 300 miles. While a solo rider could easily do 300-500 mile days, the bigger the tour group, the slower we go as a group. I plan tour routes at a benchmark of ~250 miles/day, sometimes less, sometimes more. These tours average 10-12 bikes, sometimes more, sometimes less. Planning for that distance is a perfect balance of time off the bikes to relax and kick tires, chat with one another, stop at historic stuff or viewpoints, fuel stops and meals. Organized tours are as much a social experience with like-minded riders, as they are about riding super twisty roads. The goal is to always be on the bikes at 8am, hit lunch at noon-ish, and arrive at our lodging exactly at around 5pm-ish. It's a bit of a science to pull that off, and a bit of a predictive math problem in my head, depending on how twisty the planned route is, how many backroads, and how many roads in the planned route. I'm a stickler for timing, maybe that's just me or it's a military thing, the timing has to be perfect. I've had a bit of practice to perfect this science, in August 2025, I'll be conducting our 250th tour which is a fun milestone.

Cool, I still love looking through all these pictures.
If I were closer I would do multiple tours with you every year.

 

[pashnit]

Did you keep and ride your blue bike as well?

I kind of thought you moved it along once you've got your Gen3.

I did sell my '08 to a good buddy of mine and moved on to the Gen3.

I paid $15k for the brand new (1000 miles on it) Gen3 but sold a bunch of stuff to come up with that kind of dough - including my '08.
A bit bittersweet, as I put a lot of miles on my two Gen2s and loved those bikes.

 

[pashnit]

To get to our next and third peak of the day, we headed down and around the San Francisco Bay Area. We could ride across the city to get to our next peak, but no fun in that. That's too easy. I wanted to ride the long way for this dry run so it's was down into the Redwood Forests of the Santa Cruz Mountains and circle all the way around the southern edges of the SF Bay Area.

Redwood Forests in the Santa Cruz Mountains

 

[pashnit]

And out to the ocean via single lane goaty roads

Alpine Rd

Alpine Rd

 

[pashnit]

Yours Truly planning my next Iron Butt ride.

I was planning to do my first Iron Butt Ride - rode 1000-mile day on this bike two months later after this shot.

Pigeon Point Lighthouse - our first lighthouse of the day

You meet the nicest people on a motorcycle, Wandering around the Santa Cruz Mountains, Mark n I ran into a buddy of ours & Pashnit Tour Alumni Tim and asked if he wanted to join us for lunch along the ocean.

 

[pashnit]

Mid-day stop for eats, Tim joined us for a lively lunch

 

[pashnit]

Mark n I head for our third peak - and second lighthouse of the day, it was closed when we got there. Didn't plan that one too well.

After crossing the Golden Gate Bridge into Marin

Yes, there's a lighthouse down there beyond this big rock.

 

[pashnit]

Point Bonita Lighthouse (#2) has hours that don't work for us and I've been there once, like 20+ years ago. Haven't figured out how to integrate this location into these tours.

Point Bonita Lighthouse overlooks the Golden Gate Bridge & San Francisco

My very pregnant wife with our first, this kid is in college now tells you how long it's been since we've been to Point Bonita Lighthouse, and how old this photo is.

To get to it, you walk a rickety bridge looking straight down at the ocean. The ranger lets just one person at a time walk across the bridge.
Point Bonita Lighthouse