Jim and Kermit's Big Adventure (well, big to us)

Tell Us About Your Rides!

Postby gardner17756 » Fri Jul 25, 2008 4:29 pm

BMRGirl wrote:that would be hilarious! and you can see them on the spot so you'll know when they'll be there!!


Oops! my faux paux assuming that they were crossing at the Falls and following the traditional tour bus route to the DC area that would bring them down Rt 15. I went back and reveiwed the postings, found the original map, and took the time to fiqure out the 'spot'. (Quiet day at the office.) At three o'clock the guys were in the Syracuse area running South on 81. (I ought to hide a 'spot' in the Smart car so I know where my teenager ventures.)
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Postby JimVonBaden » Fri Jul 25, 2008 9:05 pm

Blaster229 wrote:Jim.................. this BEAVER store, I'd like the lat lon please :wink:


I brought home the flyer just for you Mike! :lol:

Jim :brow
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Postby Rick F. » Fri Jul 25, 2008 9:21 pm

Jim & Kermit,

What a great trip! What great pictures (especially this one)!!

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Keep ridin' safe and having a great time--and thanks for reporting, so we can all enjoy it vicariously.

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Postby jskene » Fri Jul 25, 2008 11:16 pm

Jim & Kermit's route, 7-25:

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Postby JimVonBaden » Fri Jul 25, 2008 11:56 pm

Sitting in the Super 8 motel in Scranton we met at for the 07 MOA in Vermont. Pics and more tomorrow when I get home.

Thanks for the updates Jerry!

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Postby Ben_Ricci » Sat Jul 26, 2008 6:13 am

Looks like you guys had a great trip. I enjoyed being along for the vicarious ride. Thanks for the memories.

As you travel south on your way home if you go near Gettysburg as you cross into MD, that's roughly the area where I live--just a point of reference. I'm two miles north of being a Marylander. :lol: :lol:

Have a safe ride home.
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Postby Deano » Sat Jul 26, 2008 8:15 am

JimVonBaden wrote:Sitting in the Super 8 motel in Scranton we met at for the 07 MOA in Vermont. Pics and more tomorrow when I get home.

Thanks for the updates Jerry!

Jim :brow


Is that the Super 8 at exit 175 off I-81 (Pittston)? If so, I stayed there on Tuesday night. What a dump. But cheap. Hope you guys did not get delayed in the I-81 construction.
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Postby JimVonBaden » Sat Jul 26, 2008 3:30 pm

We're home!

I'll post some pics from the last two days later.

Great trip with a great friend!

Jim :brow

PS Yes, same Super 8, second time we had the misfortune of staying there. :cry:
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Postby Flash! » Sat Jul 26, 2008 3:46 pm

:D WELCOME HOME!! Since we weren't able to make the trip West this year, we traveled along with you and Kermit. Canada was as beautiful as I'd imagined. I'm really glad you didn't have any mechanical problems to speak of, and enjoyed yourselves.

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Postby RJP3579 » Sat Jul 26, 2008 3:58 pm

JimVonBaden wrote:We're home!

I'll post some pics from the last two days later.

Great trip with a great friend!

Jim :brow

PS Yes, same Super 8, second time we had the misfortune of staying there. :cry:

Welcome back! I enjoyed all the photos and ride reports. Glad you had a great time and safe rides.
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Postby JimVonBaden » Sat Jul 26, 2008 4:19 pm

Flash! wrote::D WELCOME HOME!! Since we weren't able to make the trip West this year, we traveled along with you and Kermit. Canada was as beautiful as I'd imagined. I'm really glad you didn't have any mechanical problems to speak of, and enjoyed yourselves.

Jody


Thanks Jody and Rick!

The only mechanical issues were a self caused broken GPS power wire, and two H7 bulbs on Kermit's bike. We even made it back on te original tires with tread to spare. :D

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Postby jskene » Sat Jul 26, 2008 4:47 pm

Whew! So that means I don't have to keep posting these maps? :D

Jim & Kermit's route, 7-26:

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Actually, I enjoyed traveling along with you guys. I have been on many of the Canadian roads myself, in 1971, riding my 1970 BSA.

Unlike you guys though, I had nearly daily breakdowns - sheared bolts, innumerable electrical problems (some involving smoke), screws falling off (I eventually lost the whole rear fender, including tail light and license plate, after the vibration created a fatigue crack in the metal).

Sounds like you had a dream trip.

Welcome home.

Where are you riding to tomorrow? :wink:
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Postby JimVonBaden » Sat Jul 26, 2008 6:32 pm

Thanks Jerry, nothing bad at all, and though the two instances of rain we had were pretty damn hard, they were a total of mayby 2 hours of rain in the whole trip. Not one serious issue with the bikes at all. They were perfect as far as I am concerned, and both with over 50K miles, and Kermits over 60K miles.

Jim :brow

PS I think Jim and I might go to Carlisle tomorrow for the bike show, just 400 miles. :D
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Postby JimVonBaden » Sat Jul 26, 2008 6:38 pm

Day Fifteen July 25, 2008.

From Toronto to Scranton, PA we rode, from beautiful areas such as the Thousand Islands region to the industrial region of the US.


The ride from Toronto was uneventful and quick, just 110 miles or so.

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We crossed over the bridge onto Hill Island, which is split with Canada on the north side, and the US on the south side.

To get the shot above we scaled the Skydeck tower on the Canadian side. It is only 400 feet high, but great views of the Thousand Island area.
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Well, we actually took the elevator.

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A view of the bikes from the tower.

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Here is a shot of us crossing the bridge, and

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The bridge after we crossed. The American side has an identical bridge crossing the St Lawrence River.

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But, before we could cross that bridge we has to go through US Customs. There was a little line, but it was pretty fast. The only delay was talking shop with one of the officers that I know from my Customs training days.

After crossing the river we entered Alexandria Bay.
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I have spent several months here from my training days, and knew a great place to have lunch. This is a great place to eat, with excellent food, and a nice view of the bay.
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Alexandria Bay Sign, from the pier.

Lot’s of famous people come to Alexandria Bay in the summer, and this town hops on the weekends!

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Some very cool ships in the little harbor. There are several more, with even bigger ships around the bay.


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Another attraction is the Bolt Castle is a great example of early 20th century American opulence. Check out the history here. Though tragic, the castle has some interesting features, and is worthy of visiting.
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If I remember correctly, this “outbuilding” is the bath house.

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The region is called the Thousand Island Region for a reason. Many of the islands have small to large houses on them. Very cool, and in winter you can sometimes walk to the houses on the ice.

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A very cool lighthouse on a tiny island.

Alexandria Bay is one of my favorite places in Upstate NY.

Heading out we rode on towards home, expecting to stop around Scranton, PA. We did, but found this guy pushing his cool Purple Sportster along I-81. (Cool, right Tina?)
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Not a safe place to be, we stopped and offered help.

Turns out he had run out of gas. So I popped off my side panel and my return fuel line and donated half a gallon to get him down to the next station. We followed him to make sure he got there and headed on.

Turns out Pennsylvania has it’s own traffic issues with construction, and after several delays, and GPS guided detours, we made our destination nearly two hours later than we expected.

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Dinner at Arby’s and a crappy Super 8 Motel, and an anticlimactic last night on the road. We had a much better hotel and bar in Toronto!

Jim :brow

PS Stay tuned for the wrap-up post, maybe tonight.
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Postby Hello Kitty » Sat Jul 26, 2008 6:53 pm

NICE! Welcome back Jim and Kermit!!!

Glad you guys had such a great trip with decent weather. Can't wait to see the full write up in the BTS! :wink:
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