Trip Report - VA/WV/MD

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I went on a great, albeit short camping/road trip this past weekend. I rode from Richmond, VA to a campground called Elizabeth Furnace in the George Washington National Forest near Front Royal, VA. After an incredible ride on Saturday and a perfect night of camping I rode to Winchester to meet up with a bunch of folks for a ride.

The group consisted of 5 rides and 5 separate groups (none of which the Fazer fit into exactly.. .who cares.) There was a Concourse Owners group, FJR group, BMW group, Dual Sport and the catch-all Western Maryland Motorcycle Association. They weren't big group rides per se. We were given very nice detailed route sheets and struck off on our own. Each ride was about 250 miles.

I chose one that traversed some amazing twisty back roads in Virginia, West Virginia and Maryland. About 10 mins into the route the sky opened up and started pouring buckets. I don't mind the rain.. My gear keeps me and the rest of my stuff dry, but it was slow going. That 5 hour ride would have turned into 6-8 hours. Plus I had a 2.5 hour ride home after finishing the loop.

So, about an hour into the ride I was riding through Williamsport, MD when I decided to pull over and consult the map to look for a nice route home. Williamsport is sort of "Small-town, America." Nice main street with your usual stores, banks and restaurants. I pulled into a parking slot on the street and an older guy walking by and said "hey, nice Fazer." (In the US this bike is, of course, labeled as an FZ6, so I figured he knew what was what. Anyway he invited me in to his daughters coffee shop across the street for a cup of Joe and some car/motorcycle talk. Great guy. AND he owns a 1970 12-cyl E-Type Jag. Serious machine!

After leaving Williamsport the rain let up and I got to enjoy a nice ride home. I even stopped and spent some time in Harpers Ferry, WV. This is the mid-point of the appalachian trail and, not surprisingly, the headquarters of the Appalachian Trail Conservancy. It is more notable for it's role in the US Civil War. Harpers Ferry changed hands (between the North and South) thirteen times between 1861 and 1865.

I didn't snap many pics. I have this problem where I see some amazing landscape/scene and by the time a see a safe place to pull over / turn around I'm a mile beyond the photo op and decide not to backtrack. Oh well..

Continued...

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Packed and ready to roll



Outside of the Mineral Restaurant (Mineral, VA) - Killer breakfast served with attitude.



Sporting wood



Free Dino Testing

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Gear Notes:

Cortech Sport Saddlebags--
Great bags. The expandable design allowed them to swallow gear. The rain covers that come with these are garbage though. The seems were shredded after 200 miles. I am awaiting a response from Cortech regarding replacement covers. I am going to duct tape the insides of the seems of the new covers (assuming they didn't improve the design/materials.)

Big Yellow Dry Bag--
$16 at Wally World. Can't beat it. Tough, non-environmentally friendly PVC. Cheap and bulletproof... .well... waterproof anyway.

General--
Being a backpacker makes Sport Touring sooo easy. I allready have all of the small, light, packable gear I need for touring. I love it!

2006 FZ6--
What a bike!