An hour later, and feeling slightly foolish, I trudged back to my bike to continue to the empty Simpson Springs campground. Feeling like Ansel Adams with my new camera, I crept across the desert floor. As soon as I dismounted my bike they took off running.

Yes, one of the great traditions of the American west is shooting road signs up with shotguns.Īlong the way I spotted a mother and baby antelope. The route is clearly visible and also well marked with bullet riddled signs. Meaning that every 20 miles you have these spectacular views both east and west. The Great Basin is bifurcated with low mountain ranges every 20 miles. The state of Utah maintains this section of the Pony Express and so I proceeded at a good pace with occasional climbs of 300m through low passes. Fortunately, the problem was as simple as an almost invisible loose battery cable. With totally unwarranted confidence, I told him I was fine. At least give me a chance to figure out how crazy you are! It was a Saturday, so four trucks hauling ATVs passed me while I tried to figure out the problem. It was like my tequila drinking friend had offered my shot to another man. Nothing like chasing an electrical problem in 40C heat. I had ridden the first part of this route before and was feeling good. The resulting ‘adventure’ left me with a vehicle full of 12.7mm bullet holes and a strong dislike of certain navigation technologies.įrom Vernon, the route goes due west on a graded gravel road. I also once had a GPS unit fail on me in the burning oil fields of Kuwait. To me, adventure entails uncertainty, and there is no greater uncertainty than navigating.

You will notice I have not mentioned GPS. As for provisions, I carried 4.5 litres of water plus a water fi lter, food for a week, extra nutrition bars and, of course, a full tank of fuel plus the extra seven litres provided in my Camel Tank. I think we worry way too much about what we ride instead of where we ride. Wolfman Bags and Touratech skid plate and bars. Th e only change I made to the bike was changing the front sprocket from 27 to 26 teeth and adding a Camel Tank, Enough said! The problem with riding the western US is that there are days you wish you were on a big 1200 and other days you pine for a 250. I have a garage full of 2016 F700 GSs but I still prefer my 2012 F650GS Twin. The bike, everyone always cares about the bike. It’s important to set expectation on a ride like this. and set the expectation of one text a night on the Garmin, plus checking in when I hit a town. I started the ride outside of Vernon, Utah where there is a small diner and gas station run by three pretty sisters. The Pony Express runs right through the middle of it. That big dark spot on the left side of the picture that is the Great Basin. Punch ‘night view of United States’ into Google and click on the satellite image. A good adventure ride gets you off the grid. Why is it so good? First off is the desolation. High in elevation and desolate, the Great Basin has some of the best adventure riding in the United States. Passing through a low pass in the Rocky Mountains, it drops down south of the Great Salt Lake and into an area geographically referred to as the Great Basin. Think Dances with Wolves, the classic Kevin Costner movie. Joseph, Missouri, the Pony Express follows the valley of the Platte River in eastern Nebraska as it gradually ascends to 1,200m and the Great Plains of the upper mid-west. Th e eastern United States had been settled to the Mississippi River and a fast, reliable mail service was needed to ensure adequate communication between the eastern United States and California. In 1848, gold had been discovered in California leading to the California Gold Rush and a population explosion. Ever the cautious one, I say “Let me choose the tequila and you are on!”įounded in 1860, the Pony Express is a 1,900-mile historic mail route that follows wagon trails along the ways used by people immigrating to California. Personally, the sign reminded me of a beautiful woman with a raspy voice that I met in a dingy bar, challenging me to do tequila shots at two in the afternoon. Have they ever seen any real dirt? Scared of a little heat and sand? Th ink you can go eight days without phone signal?’ For others, it may seem like a challenge: ‘Hey, you on the fancy bike, nice knobblies. But to those in the adventure riding community, a sign like this is a siren song saying ‘come hither, follow me. What a beautiful sign! Most people would call it foreboding, a dire warning of danger ahead. “Travel Ahead is through Extensive Desert Regions Extra Fuel, Water and Provisions Recommended”. John Hax finds solitude as he rides the Utah and Nevada sections of the historic Pony Express Route

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