St. George to Oregon...to Alaska?

[pdedse]

Honestly it would probably be the right price more than the right bike since the whole segment seems mostly capable.

If the Himalayan came in a 650 that might be the ticket to start price wise. Any if the DRs seem to really hold their value.

I like the KLR but not sure how good they are for the long highways since I have to go a few hours in either direction just to get away from the city/suburbs. So im almost forced to have a road bias in whichever I end up with.

A GS800, T7, or Triumph tiger 800 is probably more of what I need for the longer touring between campsites. Any of the big boys like the Africa twin or GS1200 would prob be out of my price range for a long time even on the used market.

I wanna do the Dalton up to darkhorse real bad, gotta get to Anchorage from NY first though so lots of highway lol.

2014 CB1100, 1981 KZ440 LTD, 1993 Yamaha XJ600 Seca, 1994 Yamaha XJ600 Seca

There is a lot of truth to that...mostly capable, so if price is an issue, then a less expensive bike allows one to spend on luggage / panniers, camping gear and getting that all set up.

Honestly it would probably be the right price more than the right bike since the whole segment seems mostly capable.

If the Himalayan came in a 650 that might be the ticket to start price wise. Any if the DRs seem to really hold their value.

I like the KLR but not sure how good they are for the long highways since I have to go a few hours in either direction just to get away from the city/suburbs. So im almost forced to have a road bias in whichever I end up with.

A GS800, T7, or Triumph tiger 800 is probably more of what I need for the longer touring between campsites. Any of the big boys like the Africa twin or GS1200 would prob be out of my price range for a long time even on the used market.

I wanna do the Dalton up to darkhorse real bad, gotta get to Anchorage from NY first though so lots of highway lol.

2014 CB1100, 1981 KZ440 LTD, 1993 Yamaha XJ600 Seca, 1994 Yamaha XJ600 Seca

The Honda XL650, the KLR650 and the Suzuki DR650 have been linked together as carberated singles that "can do it all", the honda is the best of the 3 for off road, the KLR is the best for paved surfaces, and the DR is in the middle. The new KLRs are fuel injected...and they are the cheapest if you buy leftovers, which there are a lot of. I think the KLRs do decently on the hiway for long travel. Took mine on a month long, 7k mile trip, a couple of 700 mile days...it's willing if the rider is. It had 53k miles on it and still a lot to give when I traded it in on the DR650. A new base mdel '24 KLR is at $6800...I've seen new '22 / '23s n my area discounted at $5500-6000.

Honestly it would probably be the right price more than the right bike since the whole segment seems mostly capable.

If the Himalayan came in a 650 that might be the ticket to start price wise. Any if the DRs seem to really hold their value.

I like the KLR but not sure how good they are for the long highways since I have to go a few hours in either direction just to get away from the city/suburbs. So im almost forced to have a road bias in whichever I end up with.

A GS800, T7, or Triumph tiger 800 is probably more of what I need for the longer touring between campsites. Any of the big boys like the Africa twin or GS1200 would prob be out of my price range for a long time even on the used market.

I wanna do the Dalton up to darkhorse real bad, gotta get to Anchorage from NY first though so lots of highway lol.

2014 CB1100, 1981 KZ440 LTD, 1993 Yamaha XJ600 Seca, 1994 Yamaha XJ600 Seca

All 3 great bikes. If I were to buy a bmw, it'd be the GS800, but I do like that T7...nearly went that way instead of my '23 DR650, but my cheap side won out. Actually, I wanted a lighter bike to do some local riding in the desert and mountains. But a little heft is good for long-distance, wind-blown hiway travel.

Honestly it would probably be the right price more than the right bike since the whole segment seems mostly capable.

If the Himalayan came in a 650 that might be the ticket to start price wise. Any if the DRs seem to really hold their value.

I like the KLR but not sure how good they are for the long highways since I have to go a few hours in either direction just to get away from the city/suburbs. So im almost forced to have a road bias in whichever I end up with.

A GS800, T7, or Triumph tiger 800 is probably more of what I need for the longer touring between campsites. Any of the big boys like the Africa twin or GS1200 would prob be out of my price range for a long time even on the used market.

I wanna do the Dalton up to darkhorse real bad, gotta get to Anchorage from NY first though so lots of highway lol.

2014 CB1100, 1981 KZ440 LTD, 1993 Yamaha XJ600 Seca, 1994 Yamaha XJ600 Seca

Oh my, so starting point is NY? Yep, that's a lotta acerage to cover, but what a trip. If that's the plan, I think I'd spring for the GS or T7--they'll cover that ground more readily than a KLR, DR or Himalaya...but some of that is the rider's attitude, time and money. I think the smaller displacement bikes will do the job, but there'll be less fatigue on a GS or T7.

Good luck with the motorcyle musings.

The KLRs are typically not considered good long mile bikes long term because they burn so much oil. The T7 is raucus fun off road but isn't quite as comfy on long miles. The smaller GS bikes and the smaller Tigers are a great all round choice.

There are better bikes for long distance than a KLR for sure. The oil usage issue is there, worse for the 2008-09 versions when they first made changes, but I've read on forums that later versions don't have the same oil usage problem. Mine was a first generation '07 and it started to burn some oil when the bike got into its 20k mile range. The oil usage would only happen when I'd maintain 70mph plus over several hours of riding. I'd always carry a quart with me for long trips, and if I remember right, I'd add about 1/2 quart after 1500 miles. After the next 1500 miles it would be due for a change, so no need to add more.

The positives about a KLR or a DR650 is that they are so well known, are relatively easy to work on, and there's oodles of online help for any issues that may come up. My KLR...a blown fuse, a gas cap vent issue and a rear shock replacement during 50k miles...that's it. I never had to take it into the shop--and I'm no mechanic! If you can follow youtube videos, you can do all the maintenance.