Some Ideas?

[09Classicman]

I need some ideas for a trip my wife and I are planning on taking in mid-July. We will have she says a full 9, I say 10 days to ride somewhere and I am looking for some more ideas. This will be the first vacation we have ever taken where we plan on actually leaving the area we live in. I have a couple of ideas, such as touring all the neat and historic places and cool motorcycle roads (there are a lot of them) in our home state of Ohio. I also have been seriously considering a trip east into Pennsylvania with a stop at the PA Grand Canyon, (Wellsboro, PA) and then moseying down towards DuBois, PA, home of the "most unique" (they claim) HD shop in the country with Punxatawney Phil t-shirts even, and then riding from DuBios towards Somerset, PA. We would take in the Flight 93 Memorial which is near by and mosey ourselves back towards home.

Our goal is to take our time, ride all the 2 lane State and Federal Routes we can, as we are not big fans of interstate riding, we prefer a slower pace, we also want to stay in helmet choice states. At most we will probably only be riding 200-300 miles a day.

Also, what are some of the better, low cost motel chains, we really love Hampton Inns, but for a 10 day trip, a c-note a night would be too pricey. Camping is not an option, neither of us like sleeping on the ground and I don't want try to pack all that gear anyway.

The reason I'm asking for ideas is because normally our day trips are usually not planned, we kind of just fly by the seat of our pants, or as my wife says, "You decide, I'm just along for the ride." I may start out with a general destination in mind but change my mind before we even get out of the driveway. But, with 10 days, I really want to see some awesome roads and scenery.

Thanks.

 

[09Classicman]

Thanks for that link. That looks pretty awesome.

 

[trvlr]

If it were me, and I was living NW Ohio, I'd head it up north into the Upper Peninsula of Michigan towards Ste. St. Marie. Get away from congested cities and get deep into some of what Mother Nature can offer up. Spend an evening there and check out the huge tankers hitting the locks in St. Marie. There's a pretty nice hotel directly across from the locks and pretty neat to have a front row seat watching those tankers come through.

And then again, if it was me, I'd then run the loop north around lake Superior, from Ste. Marie heading north, towards Thunder Bay, and then back down into Duluth, MN. Throwing this out as it was something I was "this close" to doing, but couldn't pull the time off from work for others in the party. This was a few years ago, so we just toured northern Michigan, which was some great riding as well.

And on the way back you might as well hit Milwaukee and check out the HD museum. Enjoy the ride. In the working world, its sometmes a challenge to get a straight 9-10days off from work. Ride safe

And as far as hotels, I've really come to like Country Inns and Suites. Make reservations online and you can sometimes get some pretty good rates.

 

[Dr. Dolittle]

I would plan a leisurely ride over to Milwaukee to check out the HD museum for a full day.

From there north to the UP or south along the Mississippi would be cool.

Hotels - sign up for the Best Western Ride Rewards program they have with HD and you can almost always find a nice, clean motel in the $60 to $75 range. Accumulate points and earn free stays, too.

 

[09Classicman]

Thanks for the ideas guys. We have been up to the bridge in Michigan, by car, we followed the east coast all the way up, beautiful country up there. The problem is my wife refuses to wear her helmet that long and I'm not real keen on it either. I will definitely check into the cabins at KOA's to compare. I guess I need to do far more research on motels, I haven't stayed in one for years until once last summer to have any idea about the cost. $75/night would make it a wash for a cheaper motel if it does not provide a full breakfast as the Hamptons do. Figuring $75/night for the room and another $25 for breakfast, we may as well stay at a Hampton. I HAVE to eat a full breakfast everyday.

We will not be using reservations as we will still kind of be flying by the seat of our pants somewhat and not positive on where we will be stopping for the day, because it all depends upon how we feel on any given day, how much sightseeing we do, how much hiking we do, etc. Since we still have a bit of time to plan, I can research the areas we do decide to go to make sure there isn't going to be a major event going on that will fill up the motels.

We will be trying to avoid big cities as much as possible as well, I don't play well with others:s and the point of the trip is to get away and relax, big city traffic isn't going to be on the itinerary.

Again, I appreciate the replies.

 

[glwilson]

You could always head down to North Carolina and base yourself out of Maggie Valley, NC. Once you get to the southern-end of Ohio and down into Tennesee and NC; you'll not be at a loss for great roads to ride in any direction.

However; if you "google" for maps of the area (Maggie Valley motorcycle maps) you'll find some great map resources for the area that will help you plan your rides -- without worrying if you missed the "best-rides". One of the map-resources you'll find sells the maps. They are worth it in my opinion if you haven't been there, and they are put-together so they are easy to use when on a bike.

Just an idea...

I am heading there for 10-days in mid-June from Northern-Illinois.

 

[cheap80z28]

always could do the old route 66 ride

 

[Breeze3at]

Whatever route you end up planning, I'd suggest setting the "middle" day of the trip aside just for her. What ever, where ever she wants to do.

 

[09Classicman]

Whatever route you end up planning, I'd suggest setting the "middle" day of the trip aside just for her. What ever, where ever she wants to do.

That's where I'm lucky because my wife isn't a shopper, unless she's at a HD dealership:s She's not a spa type gal either. She only had 4 requirements for this vacation, they were, and I quote,: "I don't care where we go as long as there are hilly roads to ride on, a decent motel to stay in for the night, we stay away from big/bigger cities, and we have to ride where helmets are NOT required". I even asked her if she wanted to go to the Hershey factory for a tour so I could weasel in a trip to York for the HD factory tour, but she said she had no interest in the Hershey tour. She told me she would go to York for me though. She enjoys riding and seeing natures beauty and historical sights as much as I do. She does enjoy seeing "haunted" sites that can and will be worked into the vacation.

Based on HER requirements, I think we will start planning our trip into Pennsylvania. We'll start by heading to the PA Grand Canyon, then if there is enough water, our vacation is in mid July, we'll head towards the falls, farther east, then back towards Punxatawney. Then we'll work our way down towards Johnstown, ride the incline, see the Flight 93 Memorial in nearby Shanksville, go to Somerset. We will have to suffer through Pittsburgh traffic for one day as, myself, a Steelers fan could not live with myself if I was near there on vacation and didn't go see Heinze Field:s Depending upon how much time we have left, we may take in some of the cool riding roads in southeastern Ohio on our way home.

Thanks for the replies and the ideas.

 

[09Classicman]

After a lot of talking and researching, it is official, we will head east into Pennsylvania for our 10 day vacation. I've posted some pictures of the places we are going. It looks like we will not be wanting for scenic vistas and incredible riding roads.