[Eric]

Hi all, We have a couple of questions re our planned trip through Utah, Arizona, New Mexico & Colorado, March/April 2012. Is anyone able to tell us of a common chain(s) of motels that are common in those states which would give us a place to eat, comfy beds and hot showers each night? Here we can get a membership for motel chains which give discounts and free nights every 6 or 7 nights in the chain. Is there anything similar in these states?
In regards to entering National Parks... is there some sort of multi-park pass so we do not need to buy separate tickets to each park? If a park has interesting geology ie Grand Canyon, Bryce and Walnut Canyons we are planning to visit there. My wife is studying geology at present and plans to use this trip to assist in some of her assignments/papers. Any info would be enormously appreciated. Thankyou from Eric

 

[Chopin]

You might want to talk to " fossil92 ". He just tripped through those states a few months ago. Your plans look like you'll be in high country, bring some long underwear and woolies. Here is a thread with a comment by fossil92. Send him a message. He's a good egg and likes to share. Tell him I sent you :http://www.goldwingowners.com/forums/showthread.php?t=4997

 

[Eric]

Thanks Chopin114 no doubt Fossal92 will see this link.I am new to the computer world and dont know how to contact him directly. There will be a time in the near future when I can do that. It is still a challange to post photos but I am getting there.

 

[fossil92]

Eric,

I will gladly share some info with you. I am appreciative of the kind words of chopin114.

This could really be a long post so be patient.


My little lady & I believe roughing it is when the Hotel doesn't serve a Hot breakfast. We primarily stayed in Hampton Inns. You can join Hilton Honors & collect credits for stays to use for merchandise or upgrades. Nothing very great. I checked with other brands as well, most of them are the same. The free nights usually kick in after several stays in the same location. We did really like the comfort of the Beds of the Hamptons. My wife said that Holiday Inn Express had better breakfasts but they seemed close to me. Best Western has some nice things geared to Harleys but I would assume it would apply to bikes in general.

Item next. Use the link below & get one of these passes (America the Beautiful). We were in at least 10 parks & it saved us about $80.00.

http://www.nps.gov/fees_passes.htm

We made it to Grand Canyon, had problems with the bike & had to skip Bryce. In Colorado there is Mesa Verde which we really enjoyed however that would be more of an Anthropology trip not Geology. Google it & see what you think. I would think she may enjoy the Petrified Forest/Painted Desert, Vermillion Cliffs & Monument Valley in AZ. There are some really beautiful rock formations in New Mexico as well along Rt 104 between Las Vegas NM & Tucumcari NM.

Here is a link to our trip topic on the forum. If you need any other info let me know.

http://www.goldwingowners.com/forums/showthread.php?t=3540

Hope this helps.

 

[Eric]

Thank you Fossil92. It took a bit of time to read all links. You had your moments as you some times do. But what a trip. We will not be covering big distance as you both did.By myself I dont mind putting on big miles .....But. My wife has not been on a bike before and I will have many things to get use to as well. A bike that I am not use to and I will probable be lost more than I know where I am going. We are so looking foward to doing this trip. Me the bike riding Vanessa the geology. Sometimes its sad when you meet such great people and you know you may never see them again. We had such a great time when we have been there before. Sometimes it has been funny with the Australian accent. You guys do talk funny. Just kidding. One question; On that link on 6/25/10 ther was a photo of the layers. Was that near Cameron. Thanks for the info Eric.

 

[Snoopy]

You can buy a National Park Pass for $80 that gets you in all national parks & monuments & natulal areas. If you are 62 you can get a lifetime pass for $10 & half off camping. Get it at the first park you get to. You can get it on line but it take several weeks.

 

[fossil92]

Eric, The 6/25 striation photo was taken on Rt 104 between Las Vegas NM & Tucumcari NM. Great road with equally great scenery that is why I mentioned it. I would imagine that the Geologist Vanessa will really enjoy the landscape.

Check out this website as well for the areas of our country that you are in. I use it frequently. Just click on a state then click on a region. Roads are highlighted in different colors based on their topography. Let me know if you need anything else.

http://www.motorcycleroads.us/

 

[Eric]

$80 for the parks is a good deal and we will make sure that we get that. The site with the roads will be handy. Thanks. We will keep getting as much info as we can and get a list going of must see and would like to see and plan a trip to see as much as we can.

 

[fossil92]

How many days will your trip be Eric? The reason I ask is we were on ours for 29 days & averaged a little over 350 miles a day. I wish we would have had enough time to do only about 200.

 

[Eric]

Fossil92 We plan to be there for 4 weeks. As it get closer I will try to get things planed a bit better. As of now we will fly in on the west coast and buy a 85/86 wing and if Vanessa likes the traveling on the best bike for comfort we will bring it back to Australia. Because she hasnt been on a bike I want the days to be about 250 miles. We love stopping into places and see the history and nature at its best. As much as posiable I wil stay out of the cities and at very best just go through them. A must will be a GPS unit because I have been to the USA twice and have managed to get so lost that it has taken about 2 hours to find my way out of it. So one of my saying now is that I have not been on a holiday until I have been lost. The driving on the wrong side of the road was not that big of a problem, the only time I seem to forget was the car parks. I will have an Australia and USA flag and maybe my USA mates will be a little bit fogiving of an Australian on a wing and lost. I am watching all of the rides and getting some must see things. Hopefully we will see some of the USA and cover it good. Thanks for your input,the locals know best.Eric