Tenere700 front wheel Lock-Up on West Pavilion Road June 19, 2024

[Randaroo]

Tenere700 front wheel Lock-Up on West Pavilion Road June 19, 2024

Here’s a mssg I sent to the riders I’d just left in Vanderhoof, they went North, and I went South. David and Mike heading to the Arctic and me dreaming of something interesting on my way back home to the coast.

Riding alone, the bell went off in my head to cross at the Big Bar ferry and ride the west Pavilion road to Lillooet where I could do some visiting before heading down the Duffy to Pemberton, Squamish, Horseshoe Bay ferryboat and finally to Halfmoon Bay, my crib. Didn’t work out quite as planned…

“Dave! Yea Note: front fender way too low, Scorpion tires suck, in mud! After saying G’bye I scooted to (Big Bar Totally forgettable campground) and next morning took Big Bar Ferry to comfortably head to Lillooet on the West Pavilion Road. Sounds good until, kilometer 97, mud, front wheel locking/blocking… Grrrr… fgg’n mud!

First crash someone came along but after that… nobody. I crashed 3 times up-hill and 5 times down-hill. (Total 8 front wheel tire lock-up face plants!) And I was only on the first glue-muddy hill. (never got to the top) Took 3 hours, 2.5 hours of that were falling, wrestling and slithering, lifting bike( 8 times, souper tough in the mud) and heading back to the ferry to git the heck out-a-there.

So, I learned, West Pavilion has hell-mud on some places when the conditions are right (wet) and the damned Tenere700 front fender is great at stopping loads of rocks and glue/mud throwing you on yer face, over and over. The bike doesn’t get any lighter either. The scorpion tires suck in mud, damn. I hope you don’t suffer the mud story as I have, learned. I’ll be researching quick jacking the fender and getting decent tires. Talk soon. Randy”

At the Big Bar ferry, ferryboat captain commiserated with me and mentioned that the local farmer “chained up” for those hills, 4x4 pulling a trailer.

“Mud from Hell experience” can be had on the Chilcotin Plateau as now myself and riders I know have suffered at or near “Gang ranch”, the “2600 road” from Dash/Churn creek and now the “West Pavilion” road. (My old KLR had High Fender and knobbies)

So, I’ve ordered the Altrider High fender kit and am to change out the tires to D606 or MT21’s as soon as these Scorpio’s show thread. Next time, and there will be a next time, I wanna be a tractor not a squid out for a mush on the ground. How embarrassing.

 

[Randaroo]

Update, yea… return to the West Pavilion, revenge… I told ya I’d be back!

I’d replaced the fender for the Altrider High Fender and headed back in the direction of my muddy scramble as mentioned above. This time, warm dry weather and nothing to go pear shaped fer me there. The actual hill was at km92 not km97 of the West pavilion Road, if you’re wondering… now though the mud had all set up as concrete ruts where attention was required to not eat shat, as it were. The hill down to the ferryboat now though seemed squishy and muddy now too, but no worries.

New Ferryboat crew person from New Zealand, cheerful chat up and off we go.

This loop ride was 3 nights 4 days, Horsepooh bay, Sea to sky to Pemby, Hurley to Goldbridge-Gun creek visit Cheeseburger, Lillooet to Big bar ferry, Jesmond, Canoe Creek, Dog Creek, Alkali lake, Chimney lake(s), Williams lake, Farwell Canyon, Gang Ranch, Jesmond again, Kelly lake, Pavilion mountain, Lillooet again, Carpenter lake Lajoie(?) dam, Mission pass, Mission mountain( microwave towers), Seton Portage, Pemberton again then boogy home to the coast. We camped at Seton Hydro(free) campground twice, and at Chimney Lake once. I woke up to 2 pinch flats(fronts) on 2 mornings. Thankfully KLR-Eric was with me to souper help the Daytona pitstop tire fix(s).

Relieved to get that summer round trip done of some the old haunts from yester year, the Chilcotin’s and the Fraser backroads are extra special tho when wet and muddy, wowzer they’re a beast. (in places, otherwise crazy good fun)

That’s a wrap, ‘till next time, I guess.