Manawan Reserve ride: part 4, a maze of trails

See part 3 

The last part of my ride to Manawan.  I was pleasantly surprised when I deviated from my plan and took the path that led to Zec Collin.

 

There is something spiritual about adventure motorcycling – as one never knows what’s ahead, some faith is required to make the ride a success.  Of course, that depends on one’s definition of adventure motorcycling – mine is rather simplistic: ride and have fun – which does not leave much place to planning. 

 

Well, such an approach paid off as you can see below… 

A lot of nice trails, lakes, rivers and also some challenges.

Here is how I got there:  after I adjusted my bike suspension (see part 3), I continued on the Manawan road for a few miles.  However I was still far - 30 miles away - from the Manawan Indian reserve and I had no more business on this road.

As I was riding, I saw many road signs indicating ZECs (Exploitation of natural resources…Controlled…Zone: an area where you can do many outdoor activities like hunting, fishing, camping, riding…but have to register before - obviously something I had not done – I’m learning it as I write this review.)  So, to make the ride more exciting, I took the next path for the ZEC Collin.

That was a pretty good idea:  the road was a lot more interesting for adventuring and very quiet – no more SUVs or trucks. 

After a short moment riding on this road, the path forked into 3 branches.  So, how do I decide which one to use and also, will I get lost?  Only one way to find out!

So I went with the outer left fork.  I rode as far as I could on that path, crossing a wooden bridge, flooded roads (most of the time the floods were caused by a nearby beaver dam) and creeks.  Finally a bit of this, a bit of that – everything that makes a good recipe for an adventure ride.  In conclusion: a nice ride in the forest. 

Then I stopped at Herelle lake; it was a dead end.  After reading the signs, I wished I had known more about this place.  I would have paid for a day pass and brought along a fishing rod.  That’s what happens when you don’t know a sector – you miss out on a lot.  Anyway, something else to try in the future.

So I went back and I saw another fork.  I decided to go see where it led to and stumbled upon a potential mud hole.  “Oh…no!, not today thank you.”  I would have gone through it without hesitating with a smaller/lighter bike like the 350 EXC-F that I tried earlier in the season, but it was not the case.  I must admit from the picture on the right that this mud hole did not look that bad, but the path was already quite degraded even before reaching this place.  Anyway, I still had many trails to discover and it was not the right time to waste energy “playing” in the mud.

I used this strategy for the rest of the ride: I turned around each time there was a risk that could negatively impact the ride.  That gave me more riding time and more potential discoveries.  Since I was riding in a totally unknown area, the strategy paid off.
 

Then I discovered this bridge.  It was in very bad shape.  I could see the river flowing thought it, 10 feet lower.  There were also nail heads (visible from the picture) all the way along the bridge.  “Hmmm…not very inviting.  If I get a flat trying to cross that bridge, I’ll hate myself to death especially since I am 160 miles away from home in the woods.  It’s not worth it.”  I have an emergency tire repair kit and a bike hand pump under the seat but I sincerely wish I’ll never have to use it – touch wood.

The trail on the other side of the bridge, however, seemed very interesting.  I’ll probably never know what I missed!

I went back to check out the second of the three forks I had seen earlier.  It was a winding truck road with plenty of hills – a real rollercoaster ride.  It was a nice place to test my off-road riding skills.  The path became more technical, with big rocks and holes further on the way, finally ending with a forestry exploitation.  Trees were lying on the ground along the road– it looked like a war zone - but unfortunately we need wood to build our houses.  The road abruptly ended after a few miles and I had to go back.  The suspension adjustments I had done earlier were useful here as well and made the return pretty satisfying: I was able to push the bike much faster than I usually do in similar road conditions.

Then the last fork.  That section was not bad as well.  After a while, from the top of a mound, the road below snaked along the mountainside as far as I could see. 

I was looking forward to seeing where the road led to, but with a little stress as well.  It is difficult to explain the feelings that spark when adventuring: a mix of excitement and dizziness, irrational fear of the unknown and admiration when facing a nice panorama. 

Any fears of getting lost or running out of fuel vanished quickly when I finally got back on the main road at the 29 km milestone.  “Wut?!  That’s it?.”  I thought I was up further north, but that was fine.  After 2 hours of off-road riding, I was ready to go back home - some 3 extra hours to go. 

On my way back, still on the Manawan road, after 2 hours of off-road practice and a couple of energy drinks, I started taking chances passing SUVs.  I got the scare of my life when my front wheel started to uncontrollably oscillate after I hit a sand patch at 70 mph.  Ouch!!  I don’t know how I got out of this situation, but it was enough to cool me down until I got back on the paved road. 

Anyway, that was a pretty nice ride.  I would do it again, but there is so much more to discover in this area!  As an example, the ride around Taureau lake… certainly one of the most beautiful places in Quebec for trail riding as per an ATV rider told me…  I’m already dreaming about it!

Ciao!
DSAQ

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Manawan Reserve ride: part 3 The Manawan road

See part 2

Riding the Manawan road turned out to be a life-sized mechanical lab that revived recent painful experiences – and with some thought, older ones too…

If you ever ride a motorcycle on the Parent road, you will feel quite at home on the Manawan road.  Both roads have the same vocation: fast fire roads that have been tortured by loaded logging trucks.  Both roads send the same painful sensations to the rider: intense vibrations in the handle bars… strong enough that one cannot keep his hands tight on the grips – imagine yourself trying to stop a Harley Davidson engine from vibrating with your hands.

It was quite stressful to ride the Manawan road under those conditions with a pickup following closely at 45 mph (75 km/h).  I could not go any faster because of the intensity of the vibrations transmitted by the washboard-like road and I was under the impression that the guy behind me was losing his patience.  I let him pass as soon as I had a chance and I made a first stop.

If I had not brought along a ratchet with the appropriate socket that fits my suspension adjusting nub, I would have turned around without a second thought.  But fortunately, it could be fixed.

Time to experiment.  For this first stop, I reduced the preload on both sides of the fork by turning the adjustment nubs counter clockwise by about 2 turns (making sure to turn each of them equally.)

A few minutes and that was it!  So easy when you have the right tool.  I still don’t understand why there is no tool that fits the front adjustment nubs with the Versys basic toolset.  It would have saved me a lot of frustration.

Alright!  Back on the road.  Wow!  It was amazing how much smoother the ride felt!  But still, there was room for improvement.  So a second stop was required – 2 other turns off on each side and off we go.  Unbelievable!  The road that was almost impracticable a moment ago was now transformed – almost no vibrations at the handle bars!  Terrific!

Third stop.  Why not continue the experimentation.  I removed all I could: 2 or 3 more turns off.  Voila.  That was it.  All the vibrations transmitted by the road were filtered by the suspension.  Then the 4th stop…

I had to stop a last time.  The rear suspension was still pretty stiff and there were a lot of vibrations coming from the back wheel.  Fortunately Kawasaki had provided the required tool (a hook wrench) for the rear suspension adjustment nub, but it was not as efficient as I would have liked. 

Adjusting the rear suspension is quite a challenge as it is required to balance the bike on the kick stand to take off the the weight from the rear wheel, then use the dedicated tool on the rear nub – this tool, the hook wrench, grabs one of the teeth of the nub (I included a picture of a similar wrench on the left) and it is necessary to pull upward to reduce the preload.  It would have been easier if the kick stand had not sunk into the sand due to a very small contact area with the ground (a flat foot kick stand would have been appreciated!  See the picture on the right) and if the darn wrench did not snap off every 2 seconds – sincerely…Kawasaki could have chosen a better wrench to include in the toolset.  Anyway, with a bit of patience I got the job done.

The result: a pretty well adapted suspension for this type of road – no more vibrations no matter how deep the washboard peaks were or how fast I was riding.  Who would have thought the Versys had all the required qualities to ride in such conditions?  Pretty well hidden qualities, but the name fits the bike for sure.  After all those adjustments, I was able to follow any pickups or SUVs on the road but this time I was pushing on their back.

This experimentation revived the pain I went through at the engineering school understanding the theory on filters (mechanical filters as well as electrical ones).  All this theory I had gobbled 20 years ago, without realising its real life application is now much clearer in my mind – engineering schools should probably send their students to ride bikes on similar roads Braaap!

Next part: a maze of trails.

Ciao!
DSAQ

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Manawan Reserve ride: part 2

See Part 1

The Dakar ended a couple of weeks ago: congratulations to the winners and to all participants!  Now there are no more excuses to delay my ride report heading to Manawan, and hopefully I will be able to complete it before the Montreal Moto Show… many new adv bikes this year!

But one word about the Rally: it is fascinating to see the sand dunes and fantastic landscapes of South America that we discover through the Dakar- definitely something to add to my bucket list.

On the down side however, none of the Canadian TV networks – even sports channels – made any coverage of the Dakar. In MHO, such an event should show up at least on evening news, right?!

Right…back to the main program…Manawan…Dorwin falls…yeah, those falls were an unexpected discovery worth seeing!  I spent too much time there taking shots and videos.  When I left and realized how long I had been there, I took the resolution to stop stopping every ten minutes for a bloody picture!

I stopped at least 10 more times after taking that resolution...  I saw this windmill along the road and I was curious to know what it was used for.  No luck, the area was deserted and there was a for sale sign.

As one distraction led to another, I saw an advertisement along the road for a free visit day at “La Terre des Bisons (The Buffalos Land)”…

It was not easy to ignore this sign but I succeeded!  However, I turned around 1 mile further.  Well, Buffalos are not part of Quebec wildlife – I don’t remember having seen a Buffalo crossing sign in my whole life! – that’s my excuse for this other shot!

So in Rawdon, Qc there is a buffalo farm called: “La terre des bisons” and it seems well established.  I passed pretty quickly and I did not dare to visit inside the installation, but back home, I took a look at their web site and found all the information I needed to know: http://www.terredesbisons.com/

I’ll probably go back with my kids – they are eager to see this – and buy some goods: since my visit I can’t stop thinking about buffalo steak on the charcoal…

 

From a motorcycle adventure perspective, the ride to get to the farm is not bad.  I took this shot on the Parkinson road.

9:20 am.  Waterdome at Lake Cloutier.  I continued riding north and I crossed this Waterdome on the “Riviere Blanche” road (White River road).

***
So this was a brief outlook of the “La Pocatière” area in Quebec near Rawdon city.  I just scratched the surface of it but it was very nice to discover with many interesting roads.  An area that has many hidden treasures and deserves more attention.

I got back on track for a moment and followed my GPS to reach the 131 north which leads to St-Michel-des-Saints - and the Manawan road - through St-Zenon village.

10:23 a.m.   This picture shows a trail that I saw from the 131 road in St-Zenon. 

I went to see where it led, and I met a resident who was taking a walk.

He told me that he just saw a couple of bears in the area.  I had mixed emotions about that  – it would be nice to take a picture of a bear, but at the same time they have unpredictable behaviour.  Apparently they are easily spooked – so am I.

 

Next part – the untamed Manawan road.

Ciao!
DSAQ

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Manawan Reserve ride

When I came back from a test ride to Parent in July, I met a retired logging truck driver in Mont St-Michel.  He suggested I take the Manawan fire road instead of the boring Highway 15. 

Waste of time.  Despite searching around for a while, I never found the road in question.  I promised myself that I’d give it another shot eventually.

So, in September, I planned a ride to the Manawan reserve taking the road bearing the same name.   I brought a ratchet and a socket along just in case.  The last time I rode on a fire road, the Parent road, it was more than the Versys suspension could handle.  Most of the vibrations caused by the washboard sections of the road were directly transmitted to the handle bar.  So the ratchet could come in handy for adjusting the suspension and hopefully making the ride enjoyable.

The ride plan below (http://goo.gl/maps/gQYe0):

Note all the parks on the map, from the left: Papineau-Labelle, Mount Tremblant, Ouareau Forest, Taureau Lake, La Mauricie National Park and more.  It is amazing all the places I can explore just few hours away!  More to the east, there is the huge Laurentian Park.

To reach Manawan, I left early in the morning to have some spare time to take a few shots.  So at around 7:30 am I was off: 640 east, 25 north, 125 north, the 337 north.

9 a.m. The most beautiful site during this ride: the Dorwin falls in the Chute-Dorwin park along the 337 in Rawdon.

Quite a nice waterfall! I told myself: “How come I never heard of this place before?”  The picture does not really show how great it is: it is huge!

Accessing the park is not free, but when I got there, the gate was open and the booth was empty - I could access freely.

I went back with my family a few weeks later.  The ride is a little long with young kids from my place, but once there everyone enjoyed walking in the forest along the river.

To be continued.  See next part.

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KTM 350 EXC-F 2013: Papineau Labelle Wildlife Reserve Ride Part 4

See part 3

The teenager’s father that I had met earlier was right: Lake Croche road was great to ride.  It was a little more technical than Scotch road I had taken before getting there.  The 350 EXC-F, however, made this road pretty easy for the rider – the KTM off-road capabilities are far beyond everything I had ridden so far;  its stratospheric ground clearance freed my attention from anything on the road including large rocks on upward slopes – which makes off-road riding an even more satisfying experience.

KTM 350 EXC-F with Lake Croche in the background

2:04 p.m.  A stop near Lake Croche While I was riding in the area, I saw a small opening in the forest leading to the lake.  It was a small access to the lake with an area of about 200 square feet – enough place for a couple of tents.  I also saw traces of a camp fire. Camping and moto adventuring is probably something I’ll try in the future.

A nice section on Lake Croche road.

2:09 p.m. A little more rugged section.  As I was saying earlier, this is no challenge for the KTM – with its large wheels and long travel suspensions, the 350 EXC-F took only one bite of this road.

 

Forest trail near Lake Croche

2:20 p.m.  Forest trail.  At the end of the Lake Croche road there is a forest trail.  The contact with nature here was awesome.  I had the impression of being a little lost, but that is exactly what I like about moto adventuring: breaking the routine and filling my head with nice memories. I would have continued further on this trail, but there was a muddy section and I had had my dose for the day… (see part 2).

 

2:27 p.m. Another trail.  Turning around was the right thing to do -giving me the opportunity to follow a trail I had seen earlier from the road (on the picture). Once again, with the right bike, this section was a piece of cake!

 

2:33 p.m. On the bridge.  I should have brought along a patio chair and a couple of beers.  I would have stayed here for a while just looking around and appreciating the moment.

2:44 p.m. That’s it?!  I wish that trail had been 10 times longer!  On the picture on the left, you can see the signs on the main road. What a surprise: I had no clue I could reach Lac des Plages from the park – that’s what the signs read.  25 miles (40 km) of off-road riding.  It’s a date.

 

Another view of the area.  You can see the KTM further on the right side.

Then is there a challenge for the 350 EXC-F?

All the roads I tried so far were quite easy with the KTM.  The real challenge, especially for the driver…its the monotony of highways.  After I rode out of the park, I had to drive back on regional roads and highways for 90 miles (140km) non-stop to go back home.

The suspension of the bike was too softly adjusted to ride at more than 60 mph (100km/h) for a long period of time.  I would have needed a tool to temporarily adjust the front suspension for the occasion, which would have prevented the front wheel from occasionally jiggling - it was annoying.

There is no wind protection: going faster than 65 mph for hours is a prowess on a dual purpose bike in general – the KTM is no exception.

Comfort wise, it is ok as long as your brain is doped with adrenaline – that is, riding trails.  But on paved roads, the longer the trip, the harder the seat feels, and this is exponential… which probably explains why the 5 –6 hours I rode the bike off road seemed much shorter (and fun!) than the hour and a half I spent on the highway…

To be continued…the conclusion.

DSAQ

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KTM 350 EXC-F 2013: Papineau Labelle Wildlife Reserve Ride Part 3

See part 2

Maskinongé Bay

12:28 p.m. Commuting between Scotch road and Namur.  I left Scotch road heading towards the Namur gas station with less than half of the gas tank and about 35 miles (50 kms) to go. I was not too preoccupied, I knew I could do it without running out of gas. So, I left Scotch road, followed Harrington road which becomes the Maskinongé road – this fun road is in major part unpaved.  I enjoy this ride which runs along the Red river, crosses quiet rural areas and borders the beautiful Maskinongé Bay.

Then came Boileau road: a few curves and straight lines before reaching Namur.  It was particularity quiet on that Sunday afternoon, so I thought:  “Let’s check this baby out!”  80…100..120… still some revs…130…135…140 km/h (87 mph)…pretty good for a 350cc!  Really no issues on the highway – as long as it’s not too long!…

On the comfort side, it could be better: this becomes obvious when you have to sit still on the bike for a moment.  Of course, one needs to understand that this is a motocross with mirrors and flashers – it is almost a privilege to be able to legally ride this type of bike on paved roads and is a major advantage for connecting between trails - a must for adventuring!

35 miles (50 kms) later, I reached the Namur gas station…: “Phew!  The gas tank is almost empty!” I could see the bottom of it due to the white semi-transparent plastic it is made of… but the gas problem was not over yet:  Wut!?!?!  The gas station is closed?!

F…!  I had about 95 miles (150 kms) on the bike at that moment and really the last thing I needed was to run dry!  “How the heck is it possible for a gas station to be closed on a Sunday afternoon?!  Can’t they hire a student on weekends?”.  Well, after giving it some thought, it was the beginning of the hunting season: it was just bad timing.  I saw a resident not too far away, walked over to him and asked about the next gas station.  He gave me the directions: 5 miles (8 kms) south in Cheneville, in the opposite direction.  Well, I had no choice...  I decided I would fill up and come back to Lac des Plages (Beaches Lake) for the real bike test.  

So Cheneville, here I come!  I was riding slowly to save gas… I was getting pretty nervous.  15 minutes later: “Well! I made it!  So where is that darn gas station?  WHAT!?  Closed!!”  Damn!  The gas station was closed for a couple of weeks – my goose was cooked!  Once again a couple of local residents gave me the directions to the next gas station: 8 miles (12 kms) down the road in Montpellier.  “I’ll never make it… less than an inch of gas in the tank”.  Since I had no choice, I followed the 315 south to Montpellier… and most likely would have to give up my plan to head back to ride at Lac des Plages… going all the way back there seemed like a mountain at this point (I was running out of time).  

On my way to Montpellier I was riding at about 45 mph (70 km/h), following the car in front of me for the backdraft hoping to save gas… I was willing to try anything!  But, just in case, I got mentally prepared for having to walk a few miles to the next gas station.

Suddenly, I crossed the “Baie de l’Ours” road..Woot! Woot!  There was a flash in my mind: I went to Parc Papineau-Labelle last year and I remembered this road...  I would go for my offroad ride in the Park instead of heading all the way back to Lac des Plages - my day would be saved!  At the same moment the gas light turned on and I saw the gas station at the end of the road.  Phew!!  I made it!  That was a very close call!  My heart stopped cold when I saw no light in the gas station… but it was a false alarm: the door was not locked and there were people inside.. Thank God!!!

After 110 miles (179 kms), the tank was dry and I was able to put around 2.8 US gallons (almost 11 liters) of gas.  After a quick calculation, that meant about 40 miles per US gallon (6 l/100km) - not what I would call economic, but considering that I had been riding trails, going through mud, playing in a sand pit and running the bike at high speed for a moment… ok, add a couple of mpg.  Well, still not easy on gas.

Let’s get back to the point. So while I was inside the store to pay for the fuel, I noticed a teen with his parents around the KTM -needless to say he was very interested by the bike.  KTM has succeeded in making attractive bikes that capture the imagination…  In fact, earlier that day I crossed a bunch of dirt bike riders – they were all riding KTM’s.

I told the teen’s father about my “gas prospection” story and my intention to go for a ride in the park.  He knew the area pretty well  and recommended a couple of spots to try – particularly the Lac Croche road which is very appreciated by dirt bike riders.  I thanked him and headed back to “La Baie de l’Ours” road which leads to the Papineau-Labelle park.

Exploring Papineau-Labelle Park, 1:46p.m.

 

Lac Croche road entrance, 2 p.m.

To be continued…see part 4

DSAQ

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KTM 350 EXC-F 2013: Papineau Labelle Wildlife Reserve Ride Part 2

See part 1

Scarecrow near the former Kilmar mine railway.

10:30 a.m. No luck.  I do not know who put this scarecrow here, but one thing is certain: this person knew what they were doing: it is a clear warning – don’t! I walked to the middle of the flooded road to convince myself even more. I had knee-deep water ... and the water level kept rising. How very unfortunate! This section is the missing link to complete the loop around Black Lake: the view is nice there – probably a good (e.g. challenging) section to include in a rally ... Now that I think about it, a Panoramio user, Karlos Gibeault gave me more information about this road:  “...I went with my car last week (May 8, 2012) and we were able to cross with a Jeep YJ ... by the way, this is not a road, but the former railway that connected Kilmar mine to the processing plant at Marelan,  at each end, there's a factory, it is not for nothing!!”  So based on this affirmation, it should be possible to pass!

An overview of Black Lake and the railway …

An overview of the former railway from Google Map. The railway leading to Black Lake (Lac Noir) is almost completely flooded: see the zoom in the upper right corner of the image.

[At the same point] An alternative path?  It was not the first time that I saw this trail, but I had never dared to adventure in it before because of its apparent roughness a little further…but with the KTM it was different.  I was hoping that this path would lead to further discoveries in the area…

Not quite! There were many obstacles: deep mud, logs and trees whipping me on my way with their branches.  There were some nice sections, but too few.

On many occasions I had to push the bike through deep mud.  On some others, I had to lift the back of the bike to change its direction to be able to continue.

At least I learned something here: the 350 EXC is light enough to go through any situation.  I was tired after this experience, but I could not have done it with a much heavier bike.  Out of 10, I’d give the 350 EXC an 11 for its lightness.

Unfortunately, this path was a dead end.  I was totally lost in the middle of this forest.  When I looked at Google map afterwards, I was heading through Lake Cook – with no hope to connect to any other trails in the area.

The motorcycle was covered with mud at that point.  The folks at KTM Canada had given me their blessing a few days before –  allowing me to go through all those obstacles with peace of mind!

I took a moment to relax, take a few shots and appreciated the calmness far from everyday burdens.  Then I had to go back through all those mud holes backwards!

 

11:30 a.m. Out of the woods.  After my journey out of the woods: I rode the old railroad backwards, I followed the 6e Concession road (one of my personal favorite challenges); then connected to Scotch road.  A stop at the sand pit was a must to see how the beast would behave in such conditions.

I met “Le Bleuet” there:, a rider on RidAventure.ca forum.  He took this picture while I was starting the bike prior to diving into the sand pit.  I was hoping to have a short movie to share my “prowess”, but unfortunately it did not work out with the camera.

I had quite a blast with the KTM even if I have only had a few experiences in sand pits - the bike performs pretty well in this type of situation!  I let “Le Bleuet” - who used to ride dirt bikes - have a try.  Here he is in the video.

 

Entrez la légende de la vidéo ici

After this, I continued on Scotch road with “Le Bleuet” to the end of the road.  He was riding a heavier adventure bike.  I realized that I had quite an advantage with the small 350 EXC in rough road conditions – I lost him from sight a couple of times before reaching the end of the road.  Then “Le Bleuet” was heading East, I was heading West, we shook hands and left our separate ways.

To be continued…Part 3

DSAQ

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KTM 350 EXC-F 2013: Papineau Labelle Wildlife Reserve Ride Part 1

Sunday, September 16 2012 - Patience paid off. For 3 days I could only admire the snazzy KTM 350 EXC-F in my garage.  Other priorities prevented me to go for an adventure ride with the “Ferrari” of dual sport bikes.  But finally, the perfect day presented itself: no rain on the horizon, sunny and 64 F (18 C) degrees as a maximum - perfect conditions.

But before leaving, I made ​​some adjustments that were beneficial:

1. I removed the visor on my hybrid helmet - it has the effect of a parachute on the highway with a dual-sport motorcycle.  So much for the look;
2. I adjusted the mirrors - returning from St-Bruno, Qc where I picked up the bike a few days earlier, I realized on the highway that the mirrors were very, very well secured, which is a good thing, unfortunately in a position that did not suit me well;
3. As the bike is pretty high, I got used to removing the kickstand before sitting  - a lot easier!

With the 350 EXC-F, I had to use my imagination and all the pockets of my jacket and my pants since there is obviously no suitcase or anything to carry some goods in.  This way, I could carry my usual equipment: camera, iPhone, 2 cans of energy drink, cereal bars etc etc..

And finally, a precaution: the fuel tank on the KTM is 10 liters with the reserve, so I planned for refuelling along the way... I will get back to this.

8:45 a.m., departure, heading to Lac des Plages village, through:

• 344 along the Ottawa river, then
• head to Staynerville road,
• Montee Hall,
• Dumoulin road,
• Rawcliffe,
• 6e concession,
• Scotch road,
• Huntington road,
• Maskinongé road,
• …
• and a stop at Namur village for refuelling.  So I thought…

The planned ride, about 140 km from (A) St-Eustache to (C) Lac des Plages with a gas stop at Namur (B)

 

 

West Staynerville Road

09:53 a.m. A gravel road… woot woot!  After 40 miles (60 km), I finally reached West Staynerville road.  I could probably have done this faster, but the ride alongside the Ottawa river (344) is always nice. At last! I could try the bike on a path that sticks a little more to what it was designed for. I opened the throttle and some adrenaline  flowed through my veins. Finally! - This is the reason I worked so hard planning all the steps to get there - you can’t imagine – riding a KTM in the conditions where it excels, what a great start!

 

10:02 a.m.  On the Hydro road near Montée Hall. This road, I had looked at it often in the past: access is obstructed by concrete blocks, but the KTM is so narrow that it can sneak in everywhere. This is a major advantage! +2 I often wondered what was at the end of that road - I thought that somehow I would be able to join the Scotch road from here, but no... Crap!  The road is blocked a mile further with a padlocked fence. No way around it. WWHHHYYYY?! Hydro roads are interesting for motorcycle adventuring!  Those lands are supposed to be public!  Frustrating!

Chemin Hydro, près de Montée Hall

Anyway, continuing southbound on the Montée Hall, I joined another gravel road (Dumoulin road) along highway 50 and the path that leads to Rawcliffe road. One thing lead to another, I borrowed my usual trails in the area through the 6th concession.

I appreciated the lightness of the bike and its handling on hotter trails. Everything became so easy, it was night and day with my usual bike that weighs almost twice as much. Normally, I drive with caution in rocky trails, but with the high ground clearance of the KTM, its large diameter wheels (21 and 18 inches) and long travel suspensions, the same routes seemed to be made of pavers - fantastic!

This was a total bliss until I reached the next section of this awesome road:

 

To be continued…See part 2

Ciao!

DSAQ

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12oo GS Rallye 2012: Ride to Parent: part 3

See part 2

Sand pit, near Parent (47.75° N, 74.61° O).  Free camping area?

Nearing Parent (at about 11h20) on my first ride, a road leading to this sand pit got my attention.  The place was huge!  The picture on the left shows one third of the sand pit area.  Most likely a place where ATVs and motocross riders hang out.  I would have spent a lot of time here but I was on a tight schedule.  I will certainly have other occasions to come back. There was evidence of camp fire in the pit… probably a nice place for free camping near Parent.

Once in Parent, there are gas stations, restaurants, camping areas and hotels.  I had to refuel and eat something.  I was toasted and would probably have had a power nap in the restaurant after lunch, but hey!, the little restaurant was crowded!

1 p.m., back to Mont St-Michel

Heading home was more difficult than expected: the road from Parent to Mt St-Michel has more sand patches and the washboard sections are more pronounced.  I have my own theory on this: given that the logging trucks are loaded heading to Mont St-Michel and empty back from Parent, the road is subject to more strain and is more distorted. Here's how the return went on each of the bikes:

1- First with the Versys, it was a real ordeal. I stopped on the way, I could take no more of these vibrations: DrrrRRrrrRRrrrrr. I took off some pressure in the front tire. It was a good improvement for the washboard sections, but a big mistake for sand patches! The wheel had lost its bite in the sand and the bike slowed down more than before and easily shifted from left to right. The best solution, in my opinion, would be to further reduce the preload on the front suspension. In any case, it was a real relief when I finally left the path to Parent! But I still had 240 km to go ... ouch!

I decided to spend some time in the area and took some shots.  I saw this beautiful horse earlier on my way to Parent.  I stopped by and took this shot.

Palomino, on Principal road, Mt. St-Michel

From that point onward, the way home was pretty boring.  I made many stops to rest, drink and eat something.  I was toasted when I arrived at home, the adrenalineless road sucked up the rest of my energy.  Of course, the fact that I left home at 3 a.m. and got back at 7 p.m. weighed in the balance.

2- Now with the 1200GS Rallye.  The combination of both a thinner and larger diameter front wheel was a major asset in this mix of sand and washboard. The wheel was more incisive in the sand and was less prone to transmit the road waves but rather to fly (for lack of better term) over them.  By adding the positive effects of suspension and a set of TKC 80 (50-50) tires, the behavior of the bike was much more predictable.

However, there was a real problem: traction control. When I passed through the sandy sections, the bike began to hesitate: Brrr ... brrr.br.. Rrrrrrr .. brrr ... When I opened the throttle to compensate for the bike slowdown, I felt like I was riding a horse that did not want to jump a fence! Fortunately, this option can be disengaged – something I had not bothered to do before because the effect of traction control had never been a real problem, but now it was really time to disengage it.  For the time I had the 1200GS Rallye, I never experienced a situation where I saw the positive effects of traction control.  Its real benefit remains unclear on that kind of bike.

Beginning of the pavement after 120 miles of dusty Parent road, Mont St-Michel

Of course, I had to return home with the 1200GS too. Since it was still early in the afternoon, I stopped on the side of the road and searched on my iPhone for a route that could be more interesting than the 117 for the return. A resident of Mont St-Michel, a truck driver who knew the place, came by and suggested I take the Manaouane path: much quieter than the Parent road but also unpaved.  This road would lead to St-Michel-des-Saints, down South.

So, here I am at 2 p.m. seeking around for the Manaoune path, 140 miles (240 km) away from home.  Really, this old retired man kept a good secret…  since my Internet connection was bad, I could not find the said road with my iPhone/GPS!  Even after asking other residents, I was unable to reach this path.  Not an issue.  It will probably be my next destination: The Manaouane Indian Reserve through St-Michel-des-Saints.

Finally, I programmed my GPS to go home.  On my way back, I recalled a previous ride where I rode by the Labelle Lake and ended up about 20 miles north of Mont-Tremblant on the 117.  So I decided to make that previous ride in reverse (I was close to Labelle Lake.)

So I was riding south on the 117 looking for Labelle signs…Darn!  I missed the exit!  Oh well, I’ll take the next one.  I finally got out at the 323 South.  Let me say that providence made it quite enjoyable from then on…

One thing leading to another, I crossed this covered bridge on Prud’Homme road to take this unexpected picture.  Tires coincide perfectly with tire marks on the pavement, giving the impression I made quite a stunt to get there (my wife was the first to notice when I showed her my ride pics).

Funny coincidence!  Covered bridge, Prud’homme road

Then on the 327 South, I stumbled upon this beautiful creature:

Oddly enough, ever since I took a hunter safety course, deer keep popping up everywhere during my rides!  I like to stop and take pictures, but I can also understand hunters that like the challenge as well… could I shoot those beautiful animals?  There is a grey zone in my head.

The rest of the 327 south was a total frenzy. The road snakes through the mountains in successive curves, at times requiring to apply the brakes firmly (brakes on the Rallye are quite efficient) and then to accelerate to the next curve (and again quite sensational).

Heading through the 323 and 327 was the apotheosis of this ride with the Rallye.  I was able to enjoy the full potential of the bike on paved road, and it was absolutely awesome!

Lastly, I’d like to thank BMW Canada who accepted to lend me their brand new press bike (only 72 miles/120 km on the odometer) and Moto Internationale, on St-Jacques street in Montreal, who prepared the motorcycle.

Thank you for reading!
DSAQ

A condensed diaporama of the ride below. 

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12oo GS Rallye 2012: Ride to Parent: part 2

See part 1

Parent road at the 309 intersection

10:23 am  The famous road to Parent. After refuelling a few minutes beforehand in Mont St-Michel village, the signs indicating the road to Parent came into sight.  Looking at the blue sign, I realized right away that this road was unusual… it read: “Warning! This road is used by heavy trucks.  For your safety, use a CB on channel 10 to indicate your presence…”  Not very welcoming. I took some time to put on my motorcycle pants (which I recommend for this route).

What follows is a blend of my two rides to Parent: first with my Versys, then with the Rally. It's a bit unfair to the Versys, but it served me as a base comparison to evaluate the Rally. The Versys: an entry level crossover. The Rally: top of the line adventurer whose reputation is second to none. That being said, I learned a lot about the 2 bikes and I will try to transmit my observations as precisely as possible.

 

First contact with the gravel on Parent road.

When I took on Parent road with my Versys, I really did not know what to expect.

After a few moments of riding on gravel, I experienced something very, very troubling:

“DrrrRRRrrrrRRRrrrRRRrr”

Ouch!  What was that? ... For the first time in my life... at more than  45 mph (70 km/h),  it was a brutal contact with a section of washboard.

The transmitted vibrations to the handle bar were so intense that my hands where opening by themselves even though I was gripping the bar as tightly as I could. I immediately thought: "What the heck am I doing here with this bike?".

I was very tempted to turn around.  I kept thinking: "I can’t believe I drove all this way for nothing…not possible, I must continue."

I took out the mini tool box that came with the bike and turned the spring preload adjuster two full turns counterclockwise to reduce the suspension preload (there was no dedicated tool for adjusting the suspension, I had to work with a pair of pliers ... very frustrating).  Luckily, it was enough - I could have removed even more, but the operation was tedious and I scratched the suspension adjuster with the inadequate pliers.

***

With EAS, dust free drive shaft and a wide base kickstand that does not sink into the sand, this bike is well adapted for this type of road.

All this to highlight the option I liked most on the Rally: electronic adjustable suspension (EAS). This is simply genius! The first thing I did when arriving on Parent road with this bike was to adjust the suspension mode to "light off-road" and "Soft". That’s it! 30 seconds was all it took to make the adjustment. One must have lived both situations to assess this option at its fair value. When I went on washboard sections with the Rallye, yes, there were still vibrations transmitted to the handle bar, but the difference was huge - much smoother!

 

Over the 115 miles (178 km) to Parent, there are several stretches that are fast. It even becomes quite euphoric. One can get caught in the game, thinking it is a race and often noticing the speedometer is over 60 mph (100 km/h). Then suddenly, a sand patch…this is not a ride for the faint of heart!  I have noticed a few more white hairs on my head since the ride. On many occasions I told myself: “That’s it, I’m cooked, I’m gonna bite the dust.”  On those occasions, the only thing to do is to abandon the bike to the road and l let it work its magic. Finally, one realises that the main skills to develop are to keep a good balance standing on the pegs and do slight course adjustment when the road gets tough.

A straight section of the road after the passage of a vehicle.

Here the 110-80/19 front wheel of the Rallye had an obvious stability advantage over the Versys 120-90/17 wheel.  Most likely a thinner 21 inches wheel would have been the ideal choice.

Some pictures midway at the Longs Rapids

Signs indicating the direction of Parent, Lunic, outfitters, Lake Mary and so on.

 

Longs Rapids

 

Trucks and other vehicles on the road

Loaded logger truck.  There are many on the way.

The biggest source of stress is moving into the cloud of dust raised by these large vehicles in their path. One should slow down a lot, visibility is almost zero. Fortunately, the road is quite wide and there is plenty of space.

One of numerous blind turns

There are many blind turns where you cannot see what is coming from the other side. One must keep to the right of the road as much as possible in case an oncoming vehicle requires more space to take the detour.

 

To be continued...part 3

DSAQ

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