[goldenhtr]

Last few years my son and I have been taking this birthday weekend to ride and camp. This year he was unable to make the trip , so my buddy Peter stepped up and came. His first camping trip on the bike. He is an avid hiker though so he had everything needed for the trip. He decided to ride his new to him DRZ 400 instead of his TW. While he did ok , he did say he wished he had brought his TW. If you look at the map. We never did make it up to Myrtle Lake. Maybe next time. Friday and Saturday the weather was hot, but the rivers cool. Sunday had a few clouds a couple sprinkles but nothing enough to get you wet. NOte some of the pics may be a little fuzzy because of the fires going on to the south of us.







My buddy Peter and I are headed out tomorrow. Will check back in on Sun. night.

8-17-12

Started out at Thousand Trails in Plain,Wa. Used their storage yard to leave the truck and trailer, and it helped that it is right next to the 6100 road we needed to start from.



We headed up to Maverick Saddle. and then on to Sugarloaf lookout

A couple stops to see Lake Wenatchee and Fish Lake below. Lake Wenatchee is the large one.

This area burned in 1994

Here's Peter on his DRZ400

Here we arrive at Sugarloaf Lookout.

Some views from the lookout.

 

[goldenhtr]

Back on the road.

Next stop is at the 4 way intersection of French Corral.

Only 11 miles to Ardenvoir. Taking the Moe Ridge road. Stopped at the store and got something to drink. Then headed up the Entiat river road and find a camp site.



Found a site at Lake Creek camp.

So Peter found a friend right after sitting down after making camp.

Dinner is ready.

The mighty TW ready for another day.

Off we go on road 5900 Shady Pass. Headed to Big Hill first.

 

[goldenhtr]

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Big Hill Cabin 6770'

Views from the top of the Hill.

Back on the road we stopped by Junior Point Lookout. Only the base of the lookout is left. You can see our road below that we will continue on.

Last year this Yert was setup for those that needed a place to stay. They must be late setting it up this year. Complete with a wood stove and table. My guess is that it is used by the snowmobile crowd as is the Big Hill Cabin.

Onward we start to get some views of Lake Chelan. You can take a ferry ride form the town of Chelan up to the far end of the lake,about 3hr ride.



In a region filled with lakes, Lake Chelan stands out. Fed by glaciers, this skinny lake is over 50 miles long and reaches depths of close to 1500 feet.

Lady of the Lake Ferry to Stehekin

From the town of Chelan you can enjoy a scenic 50-mile Lake Chelan cruise to Stehekin. Fast and slow options are available, depending on whether you want to savor the tour or just get to Stehekin as efficiently as possible. Once there, you can get out and hike the area's many trails, check out Rainbow Falls, take a bicycle or kayak tour, or relax and enjoy Stehekin's small town charm. The Golden West Visitor Center and Ranger Station of the North Cascades National Park is located in Stehekin; it offers a book store, guided walks, and other programs. The Stehekin Landing Resort offers a full-service restaurant and overnight accommodations.

 

[goldenhtr]

The town of Chelan is at the far end. Sorry about the fuzze pics here. The fire south of here in Cle-Elum has the smoke headed north



Back on the road I spy cougar country up high. We saw about 12 ravens circling something , maybe a kill????

More wide open country.

Made camp Sat. night on the Mad River. Both times we stopped to camp we made sure to cool off in the river. The Mad River was a little warmer than the Entiat River. The MAd River was only about 15in deep where we setup camp.

UP the next morning and headed to Tyee Lookout. Road 5700. This road is paved 1 lane until you meet up with road 5713 and turn right to get up to the lookout. I forgot just how rocky this road is. Peter 's bike decided to take a nap on one of the corners. He was ok and was able to get it picked back up and continue on.



Here we are at the Lookout.

You can see they built the foundation right into the bedrock.

 

[goldenhtr]

Room with a view.

random TW pic.

On the way down, not wanting to stay on the pavement all the way down. I see on the map that road 5711 meets 5703 and then back to the main road 5700 so we take it. Aw better to be on dirt. DRZ thought it needed a nap again. Here is Peter waking(picking) it up.

After getting back to the Mad River road we headed back up the Moe Ridge road and start our way back to the truck. But not without a detour. Who wants to go back the same way we came. So I tell Peter I think I know where this road goes. So I guess at 54 I still have some memory left as we made it up to the Entiat Ridge Road.



Stopped to take this pic. Not sure why, thought it looked cool.

After telling Peter ya I know another way back to the truck, and a couple of stops to get my bearings(I think I got lost a couple of times, but I didn't let him know that) I continue on and we pop out right where I thought we would. Slabbed it back to the truck on the Chiwawa Loop road to the truck.



214 miles 12:03 hours of moving time

Max Elv. 6760ft

Loaded up and ready to head home. Had a great time riding with Peter, looking forward to more rides.

 

[joeband]

beautiful area! i know western washington along the olympic peninsula, but not much of your area. thanks for the ride along, and happy birthday.

 

[mdmead]

As I was looking at some of these pics, I was thinking the area looked familiar. But when I saw this one, I knew it was!



The Lake Chelan Snowmobile Club worked with the Forest Service to put a warming hut here. The Forest Service wouldn't let them build a permanent structure, so they went with a Yurt. The Club puts it up in the late fall and takes it down in the early spring. It's a nice place to get warmed up and maybe eat your lunch while out snowmobiling.



Great pics and write-up! Thanks for sharing.

 

[TundraManDan]

That's a beautiful area. Thanks for sharing the great pictures.



Dan

 

[woody]

Cool pics. I love that area.

 

[B-dub]

Man, you sure have some beautiful country to ride, and it looks like you had a great ride. Your bike is well set up for camping. What kind of panniers are you using, if you don't mind my asking? I liked the shot of the map, and of course the beautiful pictures you shared. Thanks for taking us along!

 

[lower al]

Thanks for the report an pictures

 

[ronnydog]

Wow what a great place to ride and camp, around water, trees and shade. Much better than Death Valley, thanks.





Ronnydog

 

[ronnydog]

Whats with the color around your side case?????



Ronnydog

 

[admiral]

Great ride. I love lookouts. Seems as though you're able to ride at a high elevation for quite a bit of this ride. If I'm ever that way I'll have to look you up so you can play tour guide!

 

[goldenhtr]

Great ride. I love lookouts. Seems as though you're able to ride at a high elevation for quite a bit of this ride. If I'm ever that way I'll have to look you up so you can play tour guide!

Anytime Admiral