There is a Husky in this ride report but please allow some Hondas and KTMs too! Went on two rides, back to back in June. This one is the first 6 days with some Washington friends starting in Fields, OR. We all trucked our machines and stashed the rigs with permission of the gracious owners. Started out the day with a healthy breakfast, new tires, fresh machines and cool temperatures headed for Jarbidge, NV. We saw some country for sure! more . . .
Left to right - Myself (XR650R 6.5 gal tank), Jeremy LeBreton (Husky 650 Terra), Ken (KTM 690 w/ Rotopax aux.), Jim (XR650R 6.5 gal tank), Colin (KTM 525 EXC 6+ gal tank), Tyler (XR650R 4.5 gal tank), Tony (XR650R 6.5 gal tank) MotoZ Tractionator on my XRR. Gonna give this thing a workout and see if it’ll do both trips. Rode a few miles of pavement south from Fields to the dirt up into the mountains. The weather is forecast to be warm later in the week but today is pleasently cool and we make good time until I look back and no dust. Tony’s XR sounds like it has an exhaust leak but is running fine so we continue to roast dusty tracks upward. Much of this territory we’ve ridden prior but it has been several years since I’ve done it this direction. It’s dusty but there’s a breeze. All of these fellas are fast. They mostly work in the city and still ride a lot, this is a major get-away for all of us and no throttle is spared. We come up over a rise and stop to chat with a friendly OSP officer enjoying the sub-alpine desert morning before continuing higher. Always a treat to see flowing water in the mountains along this OR/NV border country. It’s early for us to be seeing these conditions but Nevada didn’t recieve snow like they used to this past winter. This should allow us to take the highest routes to Jarbidge and not worry too much about the water that we will be crossing getting there and back. Plus, a good friend helped us with routing info so we had a plan with some alternatives. I’d never ridden with Tyler or Tony and didn’t know what to expect - Jeremy I have ridden with but not a multi-day unsupported thumper trip. Jim, Colin, Ken and I have several thousand miles together out here and are a tight crew. I took a wrong turn but it was time for a break and everyone is fine with that as we are all getting used to the new luggage and riding with 20+ pounds in fresh tires. A little skatey but we let a little air out and things settle down. Back on track, we’re headed to McDermitt, Nevada for fuel and perhaps lunch. Everyone is getting used to the bikes with gear on and we’re moving pretty quick now. Nice and cool up here in the mountains of eastern Oregon. Jeremy’s never been to this part of Oregon and his Husky is a very civilized bike for this trip. It was involved in a fairly major crash earlier in the year at ‘Taste of Dakar’ down in Pahrump, NV. He was up late prior to the ride installing a custom Yamaha fork and triple clamp set up - Yamaha front wheel, brake, etc.. Kenny on his well-equiped 690 was not having to navigate - YET! Easy ride into McD for a break in the shady grass with Jim and Colin. Tony went for the soft serve. His XRR is still leaking exhaust but no one wants to take that tank off to investigate and it doesn’t seem to be hurting anything, yet! Tractionator is working great for me so far. Jim brought some maps, we looked at them and figured we would sort out the ride to Owyhee River as we went along. I kinda fumbled the departure from McD but we got onto the correct road that took us upwards and out of the desert slowly. The cows are down near the water as the grass up high is already drying up so we are all reminded that there’s always the possibility of a cow/calf lurking in the sage right next to the road.
Some high clouds creeped across the sky from the west but it didn’t look like much and kept the temperatures comfortable. This ranch was a lonely place, no one around and a failrly steep ramp to exit the interesting valley. Jim- Kenny charging the slope. Doesn’t look like much and really isn’t but it was loose and rocky. Ken got a bad stone re-direct into the sage. Tyler is a great rider and picked up this XRR for the trip. He was planning on using that one gallon can on the back there as aux fuel but as you can see, the lid popped off somewhere. I was riding behind him and could smell the gas wondering who or what was leaking. Jeremy coming up Colin Interesting canyon on top. Ken and Colin brought GPS units and we had a vague idea of what we wanted to route towards plus some borrowed info and recent knowledge of the conditions. We grumbled along the rocky top country towards the breaks of the Owyhee canyon when it came into view. These guys ride through water all the time and never seem intimidated by it in the least. I’ve had some ‘aqua experiences’ and am always a bit cautious. Tyler just rolled down there and hit it like nothing. Cow and pig Jim and Tony come down to size up the river. JIm about to enter the ‘deep’ part. After crossing the river we decided to spend the night here as we had plenty of water (obviously) and there were almost zero bugs. Knowing that there was only rocky desert between us and the fuel stop in the town of Owyhee made that decision easy. Had a discreet little fire. These side X side guys came rolling down the hill and BS’ed with us for a while. Kenny had a light painting shoot with Jeremy’s Husky and a horse skull then we all hit the hay. A measly 154 miles but mostly quality. See? There's the Husky! Next - day 2 . . .
DAY 2 - The side X side guys told us that wild horses would come down to water about 11 pm and make a bunch of noise. Right on que, they did just that. Didn’t get up to see how many but you could hear them snuffling and communicating with each other, splashing and taking on water. Our camp site below, this is how we deal with wire gates. If it had to be opened, leave it all messy in the road and just enough room to get a bike through. The last guy will know to put it back together closed up tight. The side X side camp on the other side of the river. 44 miles of rocky top country and as yet undisturbed silt beds was a great way to start the day. We left the river at 8:am in cool air and high clouds. Jeremy did some other mods to the Husky like a 2 into 1 exhaust to try and get this thing below 400 pounds. Colin - We hit the pavement just south of the fuel station in Owhyee and saw these bachelor buttons (?) blooming proudly. A big pack of snarling, assless panted road pirates were at the pumps. Tried to chat with them but we didn’t quite ‘connect’. My computer must’ve gotten wet in the river and is displaying code like the arm device in the movie Predator so my data is out the window for the rest of this trip. Rolled south of town to the first dirt road on the left and headed up into the mountains immediately. Things are going smooth, all the new gear is working perfectly and we are smashing flowers on tracks that have been untraveled so far this year. Jim - Temps are perfect for riding through glorious drainages choked with flowers! What evil lurks amongst that foliage and greenery? We had become separated navigating these ridges and hillsides when Tony came back to say Jeremy had a pretty major get-off and thinks he might’ve broken his leg!!!?!?!?
Tony warned me about a huge stone hidden in the left lane ahead and went back to gather the rest of the group. I went to see how Jeremy was doing and waited for the group to arrive. Looks like nothing in Jim’s shot here but Jeremy hit this stone super hard and got pitched 15 feet off the track. Wind knocked out of him and both ankles/ legs are damaged - hard impact to both on the lower calf. Probably the passenger footrest brackets which are welded onto the sub-frame but who knows? Holy shit I’m going bald! You know how it is after a stack like this. You need to cool off, assess and get your wits back. Jeremy says he can make it to Jarbidge so we get back on the right track and head east. We had a spectacular ride through some high country that was fragrant with lupine and those daisy-like flowers. Boot polish? After a rocky descent we hooked onto a more established road and took a break. Comfy spot to spend a few minutes. Jeremy is in some pain but says he can make town no problem. Tough Mofo. We had an option to ride that ridge top down into town but chose an easier line. There’s weather ahead but isolated and not really a threat. Yes, I’d like the yellow daisy polish job please. The track deteriorated but Kenny was certain we were on route.
Down to cross the Bruneau river (on a bridge!) Jeremy’s walking kinda funny but seems OK Everyone can ‘smell the barn’ and we roast down into town. The weather is predicted to rain or snow. Confession: I actually forgot my one-man tent and only had the rainfly off my North Face VE25 (which alone is bigger than my moto tent) so we split a room at the Red Barn. Iced up, Jeremy looks like he’ll be fine. More about that later. The rest of the crew pitched camp up the road by the river. Some nice gal loaned us her qwad to cruise around on. Good thing too as her stupid boyfriend wrecked her truck and this thing was ready to fall apart, so Kenny and Tyler put the wrenches on it. Lost track of the mileage for this day but it was quite a ride through and over some amazing Nevada high country. more . . .
Day 3 - Our original plan was to take a day and circumnavigate the mountain above Jarbidge without all the gear. We immediately got separated climbing up out of the canyon. I can hear bikes but no one comes along for awhile. Tyler went for an extra credit hill climb. Everyone gathers up and we continue. Gotta cross this one little stream. Last time through here it was raging but nothing today. Riding out of Jarbidge is excellent, rocky, steep and challenging in places but also rewarding! We also want to visit the basin beneath the snow up ahead and figure we’ll just start poking up until we find the right track. Jeremy seems fine to ride just sorta beat up from yesterday. Jeremy and Tyler follow a track up into the pines that peters out but they keep going. I gotta pace myself as this is only the 3rd day of a 12 or more day rip. I doubt it will go where we want but hear those bikes WAY above and choose to stay put. Kenny and Colin arrive and it starts to rain so we take the opportunity to put on the rain gear and wait for those other fellas to come back down. Sure enough they return and Jeremy’s telling us it goes man! Let’s hit it! It’s now raining and snowing above - June what?!? We descend that mount and roast around looking for an actual ‘road’, super fun ripping through the damp forest at treeline until we hit big drifts of impassable snow and turn around. more . . .
It’s raining steady now but it’s not cold and we have an idea where we are. Ripping down towards Murphy, Jim and I both hit a cattle guard on the gas and the rear tire spins slipping sideways a little bit. Guess metal pipes are extra slick went wet. Wish my computer was still working. Down into Murphy we parked under a tree before heading back towards Jarbidge. Nice duct tape repair job on the Froggtoggs Colin! The guy with the umbrella was a trip. Don’t know if what he was saying was true but even if it was HALF true . . . probably not. Funny how some little towns are completely different than others. Like Jarbidge has a welcoming vibe and it’s only been fun to visit the community while Murphy is just weird and not a place to hang out. Plus, the hot spring is closed and doesn’t sound like it will open up again anytime soon. More steady rain, can’t really tell where we are going, nobody wants to get out the map and it looks socked in all around so we decide to head back towards Jarbidge.
Almost forgot this part - before we took off that morning Tony investigated his exhaust leak and found the culprit. This breather was blowing hot exhaust right onto the portion of his Acerbis tank that was facing the engine. It had developed a seeping fuel leak!! He brought some old school ski shop technology to the repair by carefully melting some plastic bags into the hole and it held the rest of the trip! Nice one Tony! Everyone headed out before I could get my helmet on so Tony and I had a blast catching up the group. Figured they were the ice breakers for any vehicular traffic that might be coming the other way. Saw one rig and flat tracked the dust free road back to town. Oh that’s where those ear plugs ended up. Waterproof! Three other riders came cruising in from Elko. Can’t remember their ADV handles but nice fellas making big miles and staying in motels. They gave us some excellent local knowledge which we put to good use in the next couple days. Note the barefoot prints on the deck. The power in Jarbidge is out but the bar is open! It’s not cold and there’s only us dirt bikers in the house. We’re hoping the power comes back on which it does. We threw a bunch of soaking wet gear in the dryer, there’s nothing like putting on warm, dry gear! I was not here for this happening but was told it was spectacular and hilarious! The rain let up a bit but the forecast was for snow if not down here then certainly on the mountain above. End of day 3. more . . .
Day 4 It rained hard during the night. We gathered up for fuel in town before heading up over the hill towards Elko. Conditions are prefect with the heavy rain and we’re all looking forward to seeing if it snowed above. This could an epic day and everyone is stoked to get back on the trail. The big gravel road out of town was a blast to ride upwards. Light snow and hail was falling but it should probably lighten up before long. Jim bombing up the hill Colin - Seven bikes are hard to keep moving especially when some of the guys have not seen this part of the country, we also want to savor this summer snow. A few guys went up to see the view westward from this little summit Eventually, we’ll be down in that desert country which should be soaked and fast. Some old codger in the cafe this morning told us there’d be 2 feet of snow up here and another foot of mud beneath that - not quite. Jeremy’s injuries aren’t slowing him down too much, at least I can keep up with him - sorta.
The dirt is delicious! Looks like squalls will be rolling through our progress to Elko Jim - Armed with those other guys’ route input we rode fast and fun dirt toward our lunch stop. Ken is navigating us pretty much error-free. Tony’s XRR sounds way better and he’s riding that thing as intended This has never happened to us before. We were kind leap-frogging and lost track of who was ahead and how many guys were behind. At one point, I closed a gate thinking I was last but Tony was still coming behind - oops, sorry about that Tony. I saw Jim stopped to snap a pic and turned around just in time to see his flash go off.
The Tractionaters are not loving the mud or perhaps I’m not riding fast enough for them to clean out but they became the TractionHaters for a section. We will need to get fuel in Carlin, NV before the big reach to Elko. It’s raining again and believe it or not, this the ‘road’. Don’t remember if this was before Carlin or after as there are no shots of that fuel stop but look at that soil! Jeremy - That was a particularly fun section eh?
Really inspiring soils today! Had a little break in the weather before Elko I think we could see the highway down there The weather has more in store for us we are headed back into it. This was kinda funny as a couple bikes ahead of me had blown this corner so I waited to snap a pic but Jeremy didn’t fall for it. Lush, green desert - is there such a thing? Today there is! What a treat to ride all this without dust, plus it’s easy to see where guys in front of you have gone. Another squall is descending upon us. It’s moving in fast now Somehow we became separated again so Colin, Tony and I waited up on this little bluff top and it started snowing pretty hard (for June). The precipitation was accompanied by wind and lightning. I do not like lightning. Tony rolled back to see where the other guys were. Colin and I stayed and waited. Apparently, we had closed another gate and the snow had covered tracks and those guys didn’t know to continue through. Thanks for the retrieval Tony! We got everyone together, the squall blew over and back to the project. More gates Excellent riding this morning as we made it into Elko.
We actually knew right where to go for damn good taco truck food. We could see another big blow coming towards town and found a Starbucks to hang out in for a bit. That place needed a serious mopping from our muddy boots - sorry about that. We need to find a place to camp so take off out of town for a few miles on Hwy 225 north to an obscure road that goes right through a ranch headquarters and skirts some pastures and hay fields. It sure looks like we were trespassing but according to the map it’s legitimate. It doesn’t look too bad here but it is a rocky mofo in places - plus, it’s raining again. Those with tents set up in the drizzle near a nice stream that we could filter water from. Got a warm sage brush fire going as the sun went down. Only 129 miles today but it was a classic day on the bikes through some incredible country that topped out around 8500' but mostly above 5500'. more . . .
Thankfully I kept a cryptic journal and even with that I’ve screwed up some of the details and left out a couple of flat tires that happened days earlier. Jim got one about the same time Tyler flatted but everyone took care of that and we kept rolling. DAY 5 - The sun came out warm and bright this morning and we took our time drying stuff out before roasting some righteous tracks towards Carlin, NV for fuel (unlike what I reported the day before, Carlin was the fuel after Elko). Not a cloud in the sky! Well, at first it was cloudless. We had camped just up stream form here. Saw an otter (?) swimming here while we waited for everyone to take off. Jeremy must be OK as he’s wheelying around while we waited for the rest of the group. The temps are still comfortable and the forecast was for warm weather the rest of the week. Coming over a low pass, Jim spotted our campsite from a couple years ago. It was pouring down rain on that trip too. We are actually on a track that we’d ridden and recognized this cool hunting cabin in the middle of nowhere. Even though this is familiar country, it looks different year to year and season to season. That Husky did some landscaping. Last time we came through here, we were headed for Battle Mountain and got a guided tour of the Newmont Mine but were told there’s no way they let us through there again. We did ride a big mining road down into Carlin. It popped out by this Nevada prison camp - YIKES! After fueling in Carlin and getting some sketchy local route info, we had to ride 11 miles of mind numbing, rubber wrecking pavement to hopefully avoid the Newmont mine and get over towards Battle Mountain. We’ll need fuel again and won’t be able to achieve our goal for the next day without it. Since we got a late start, everyone is ready to balst some big gravel to get west. Along the way we came upon this shepherd and his sizable flock of sheep. He was probably from South America as our Spanish didn’t really help. He had several nice dogs and some really cool boots. Big dust devil amongst his herd.
We has stopped to talk to a rancher who told us there was gas possible in Midas but we didn’t know for sure. Many high speed miles later, Tony stopped into a random BLM office right about 5:30 for some intel. They said there in fact, is gas in Midas so we took the 3 mile diversion up into a valley at the base of some nice looking mountains to investigate. What’s this? Cool little community that I had no idea existed - I thought it was a ghost town or some weirdo place like Tuscarora but about 20 people live here year ‘round. Interesting lady runs the ‘saloon’ and not only sold us some fuel but had frosty cold brews and a decent wine for sale too. Do not count on gas here - she could only part with 10 gallons and said she does not normally stock it for sale. The MotoZ is tough and holding up well. The old cowboy sitting on the porch originally told us the road through town doesn’t go anywhere but then when we said we were headed for Paradise Valley changed his story - ‘Oh yeah, that road goes over the mountain will eventually get you right into PV’. Great, thanks! On the way up the hill, we saw a spring and some firewood so after camp was all set up, we rolled back down for water and the wood. Baby horny toad Midas is down in that valley behind Ken’s tent. Jeremy and Tyler went down for more firewood - he's gotta be fine as that road was not particularly easy to ride especially with a load like this. This was a great campsite, no bugs, no wind and not likely that anyone is coming up the road. As it does, the sun went down and we enjoyed this peaceful scene Had a little fire, finished up the libations and hit the hay. 150 miles today. We could’ve gone further but this puts us in a strategic position to complete our trip and route through some new to us country tomorrow. more . . .
