Cinco de mayo y el Colombia Gorge

[pdedse]

My wife is visiting my son for Mom's Day at Oregon St. Univ. so it was time to take the CB1100 out for its first extended ride. Just finished the 600 mile oil change last night, but I thought I'd do today's run before checking the chain tension and lubing it...supposed to rain again tomorrow.

Portland always has a 5 de mayo celebration--fun with my wife, but not so much alone...besides the Columbia Gorge is nicer than the crowds of Portland. Got away by noon and headed east on 84 towards Bridge of the Gods, crossed into Washington and headed east on 14 to Stevenson, WA. Stopped for lunch and met an eldery gent named Brad who was having the same idea, only he started early morning and was just finishing up his ride on his Honda NT700v. Pretty bike. He admired the CB1100, seemed to know the basics about it. We ate lunch together and swapped bicycle and motorcycle ride stories before heading our own ways...

Right after lunch, from the north side of the Columbia

Spring wildflowers are doing their thing

Fisherman cleaning his boat

Paddle boat!

I love riding through the tunels on hiway 14...there's about 5 or 6 of them within a couple miles of each other

Mt Hood. Ski season ended this weekend at Timberline where I like to go. I made it up there 4 times this year. It's nice from down below as well...

Love the beauty!

The Gorge starts drying out heading east of the Mt. Hood area (Hood River and The Dalles on the Oregon side). Rocky...less forest...

 

[SportsterDoc]

Great pics!

 

[pdedse]

Still on the WA side of the Columbia...

Mt. Hood in the background

My brother works for BNSF...no lights, no swingarm coming down...look before you cross the tracks, just like mom taught 'ya...

hieroglyphics

I like to visit cemeteries...they make me feel alive

Lots of fruit orchards and wineries...

That's hiway 84 on the other (OR) side of the river

Back over to OR...

The spillway at The Dalles Dam

Since it was EL CINCO DE MAYO. Sol is a much better beer than Corona and Pacífico and Tecate and Victoria

Do you want to know the best beer slogan ever?
"Hasta los vampiros tomal Sol"
(Even vampires drink Sol [sun])
The play on words is that "tomar sol" means to get a tan and the same verb "tomar" means to drink...so the beer SOL tastes so good that vampires are willing to risk it all and drink...SUN. Ok, maybe something's lost in the translation...

Heading back home...if you're ever on 84 heading west, get off the hiway and take 30 west towards Mosier (or if heading east on 84, take 30 at Mosier which will take you to The Dalles where you can get back on 84). You want regret this 12 mile jog...

 

[pdedse]

A few more shots from hiway 30 between The Dalles and Mosier...

Much better up here than down there on 84

Too bad it's only 12 some miles

Time to connect back up with I-84 and head on home...

Just over 200 miles and 7 hours on the road with lunch and dinner and lots of photo stops.

 

[Cormanus]

Lovely photos, pdedse. Thanks for sharing.

“I like to visit cemeteries...they make me feel alive”, is a great line.

 

[Nortoon_imp]

Your picture of your CB1100 EX with all the flowers behind it made me groan. Winter has been an extra month long this year (7 months). I haven't even put the battery back in my bike yet.

However the forecast for my birthday Tuesday shows 60F at 11 AM and 70F in the afternoon. This is date I had planned for my first ride. There won't be any flowers, and trees have not opened their leaves yet. But I won't freeze!

 

[pdedse]

Your picture of your CB1100 EX with all the flowers behind it made me groan. Winter has been an extra month long this year (7 months). I haven't even put the battery back in my bike yet.

However the forecast for my birthday Tuesday shows 60F at 11 AM and 70F in the afternoon. This is date I had planned for my first ride. There won't be any flowers, and trees have not opened their leaves yet. But I won't freeze!

I hope your forecast come true so you can make your birthday special! Happy one at that.
Having done the oil change, moved on to the chain...my goodness! What does a dealership oil the chain with...roofing tar? After 600 miles there was tar gunk all over the spokes, wheel, hub, under the chain guard, on chain...whatever it was, I think they put way too much on so that it splattered everywhere. Spent a good two hours cleaning it all and now it's re-oiled.

That's a bit better...

Chain was slack at nearly 40mm of travel, tighted to just under 30mm.

Oil and filter, chain tension, chain clean and lube...what else is there at 600 miles?

 

[the Ferret]

Awesome report and pictures pdedse looks like a beautiful place to ride

 

[el duque_imp]

Nice!
I got to get down there.

 

[klink49_imp]

Beautiful pictures and great write up. Can I ask what camera you used?