The “before” picture. Probably the only one that will not have helmet hair in the photo

The idea for a motorcycle road trip to the Redwoods came last fall when I read an article about the Lost Coast in the October 2015 issue of Sunset magazine.  With the purchase of my “new” 1987 BMW K75S in March, it made the trip even more necessary.  No better way to break in a new bike than a road trip.  Unfortunately, a shorter ride just two weeks prior to departure revealed a mechanical issue.  But the problem was fixed by mechanic extraordinaire Dirty Nick, and the repaired bike was delivered the night before departure.

My sister and I left her house in St. Johns, Oregon at 9 am on the first day of the ride, headed to Lake Oswego to pick up the three other members of our touring group.

There were the two of us, on my 1987 BMW K75 and my sister on her 1978 BMW R80.  We met up with her sweetie Joe on his 1983 BMW R100C, Jerome on his 1983 BMW R100RT, and Lance on his 1990 Kawasaki ZR550 Zephyr, the youngest bike on the tour.

The first part of the first day was banging out some mileage on Interstate 5 southbound.  I don’t enjoy riding the bike on the interstate, but it was the best option for getting some miles under our belts headed to our campsite at Bullards Beach, Oregon.

We followed I5 southbound to 38, a little south of Eugene, and turned west towards the coast.  The smaller roads are always more fun, and this one cruised along a river through a valley and was very scenic.  As we approached the coast, the fog bank hugging the Pacific Ocean coastline was in evidence before we even hit 101 and turned southbound at Reedsport and Winchester Bay.

The cooler temps and low hanging fog forced a roadside garment adjustment, a not uncommon occurrence.  Highway 101 runs along the coast, or just inland, passing through small towns and tourist destinations alike.

Our touring group makes it to Bullards Beach State Park campgrounds

We were headed to Bandon Oregon, and the Bullards Beach State Park campground.  We had reserved two yurts for the night.  I’m not a big fan of camping, unless it glamping, but the yurts were nice.  It is only mild camping, as they have a small heater and electricity.  We arrived right at 5 pm, having been on the bikes from 9 to 5, with a few stops.  I have a two hour bum, so need to stop stretch at least once every two hours.  The K bike has a large tank and gets great mileage, so the fuel stops are more frequent than the K bike would need.

The bikes parked outside the girls yurt

The yurt interior. We rented these for $40 per night.

The five of us split into two yurts, a girls and a boys.  Once unpacked we headed the two miles into Bandon for dinner.   Bandon has a cute very small old town where we enjoyed a seafood dinner on the harbor.  I tried another Oregon Pinot Noir which I found very smooth and to my liking.

Clam chowder at The Loft

Wine in a can and chocolate by the campfire. Wine in a can travels much better in a motorcycle saddle bag than a bottle.

Back at the yurts a campfire brought out the usual assortment of campfire stories, with the addition of canned wine, not on my regular wine list.

Joe, a former Boy Scout leader tells stories by the camp fire

We covered approximately 250 miles on our first day.  Gas receipts showed we ranged between 40 and 60 mpg.  My K75 was averaging about 55 mpg.