Planning a Photo Roadtrip on a Motorcycle

Everything you need and nothing you don’t.

Planning a motorcycle ride is always a bit of a challenge. There is only so much room on a bike, and you have to preserve every inch and pound for the best ride and control of the machine.

THE WANDERER IS NEVER LOST… JUST LOOKING FOR ANOTHER WAY TO GO.

For this trip the goal was to get to Riggins, Idaho, as quickly as possible so I could ride the mountain road over to Lolo, Montana. After that it was anyone’s guess where I would go as long as I ended up in Cody, Wyoming on Saturday night, August 7. The 8th was my birthday, and I wanted to once again spend it on the top of Beartooth Pass. Probably one of my top 10 places to be on this planet.

Sunday morning I headed for Red Lodge and then up to the top of Beartooth Pass for my birthday lunch. A couple of cold tacos, a root beer, and a couple of Hostess Cupcakes. Yeah — that’s how I roll. Judge not, fair friends.

I would play it by ear for the rest of the ride. No schedule, no plans.

A good plan must have a map, right?

There is so much to share from this ride, but I will wait for further articles to discuss it. The road from Grangeville, ID, to Lolo, MT is a whole story in itself.

CHOOSING THE RIGHT GEAR FOR A LONG TRIP ON A MOTORCYCLE…

… requires knowing that bike inside and out.

And how much room there is inside directly impacts how much room you will need outside the bike.

I use a motorcycle backpack and duffle top that sits right behind me on the luggage rack. They work as a comfortable backrest as well.

The challenge is to keep the motorcycle balanced, so I try to keep as much as possible in line with the frame.

I have two saddlebags that hold far more than I expected them to when I first got the bike. These bags have doors that open out instead of from the top down and that presents some good aspects and some negative aspects as well.

What is good is that you can reach almost everything with the door down. The negative is that sometimes things can shift and fall out when you open the door.

Not a problem unless you are parked in mud.

Ya know.

My bike: 2008 Kawasaki Nomad 1600CC V-twin.

It is heavy, and not made for offroad of any kind. And yeah, sometimes I have to ride in gravel (I’m looking at you, Moki Dugway), but those times are rare and I carefully watch speed and hazards.

The windshield keeps the bugs off of my face, and provides a bit of a break from icy winds and blow-dryer hot deserts. The bike is liquid cooled, so it doesn’t overheat in high temps, and stays well hydrated no matter where we are.

The bike has throaty pipes. Sometimes I worry that it is too loud for the adventures I do, but they are what they are. And I go slow when I am around other folks trying to enjoy nature.

Early morning east of Riggins, ID. The trunk is covered in stickers (even more now) and when I stop riding I will replace the trunk and put this one in my office filled with little treasures and things I have gathered over the years and miles of my journeys.

As you can see, it is a big motorcycle. And notice the extra trunk on the back.

That is where I put my cameras. It is lined with two layers of bubble wrap to keep the vibrations down, and the camera bodies and lenses are also dampened with bubble wrap.

There is a lot of vibration on a motorcycle and I don’t want anything coming apart. I have had a pocket knife come apart in every way from being in the trunk unprotected.

I have removed the passenger seat and replaced it with a luggage rack so my overnight bag sits there. I ride alone. I don’t ride with buddies, nor anyone ever on the back seat. I like the aloneness of it all.

The clothing I am taking reflects the possible highly diverse weather I may face.

Warm weather:
One long-sleeved tee-shirt.
One long-sleeved “Fishing” shirt to prevent sunburn.
One short sleeve tee-shirt.
One button-down western shirt.
Motorcycle jeans (with Kevlar sewn in).
One pair of regular jeans for when I am washing the other pair.
One pair of swim trunks/shorts in case I need to wash both pairs of jeans at the same time..
Two pairs of warm weather socks.
Sneakers for wearing off bike.
Baseball cap and crushable Harley Cowboy hat.

Cold weather:
One long sleeve wool sweater.
One pair of cold weather socks.
One cold-weather jacket.
One cold weather face mask.
One cold-weather Ascot for keeping the neck warm.
I use packing cubes to keep all of the stuff organized.

Riding gear:
One pair of riding gloves for warm weather.
One pair of riding gloves for cold weather.
One warm-weather riding jacket with kevlar.
Wolverine boots.
Rain gear and boot covers.
Neckerchief.
Full face helmet with a visor to keep out the cold air and rain.
Three pairs of sunglasses: one pair is very dark, a pair for riding normally, and a spare.

Camera Gear:
Nikon D750.
Nikon F5.
Lenses: 24–120MM, 50MM 1.8, 180MM f2.8 (maybe)
Lumix DC SZ70. Video and stills.
Small tripod.
Very small tripod for a selfie stick and video.
iPhone 7 for video.
Gimbal.
Rode mic for iPhone.
Lavalier mic.
Tascam Audio Recorder for ambient sounds
Action camera. (Never used it.)

Miscellaneous
Satellite Emergency Phone/Texting with GPS tracking
Battery jumper and USB charging battery unit.
2 very bright flashlights.
Assorted chargers and cords and such.
Pocket knife.
Waist knife.
Mini-camp chair.
Umbrella.
Hatchet.
First Aid kit.
Mini road flares (2).
Two USB chargers for iPhones
Toiletries bag.
Bike cover.

Communications:
iPad with a USB keyboard.
MacBookPro 13″
iPhone Max S

Waterproofing rarely works 100%, but every attempt should be made to keep your gear as dry as possible. My MBP is in a water-proof dry-bag, and all of the camera gear has a dry-bag for it to go into at the first sign of wet weather. The packs have their own waterproof covers (not water-resistant…. there is a difference.)

Packing also means hierarchy. Which side of the motorcycle is important. Anything I need to get to when riding goes on the right side — away from the traffic on the road. The only stuff on the left side of the bike is gear that I need in the evening or when making a longer stop away from traffic.

South of Rock Springs, WY, heading toward Flaming Gorge.

I also have a couple of waterproof bags in case it rains torrents. Fits all cameras and electronics.

That may seem like a lot, but I do indeed have space in both of my saddlebags for something I may need to purchase along the way. I also have to have room for water bottles and a small bottle of single malt.

Some things are just too good to not have.

I would imagine that if I was packing to go on a camping trip! I have two more packs that fit on top of the saddlebags for camping gear, but I would probably have to rethink a lot of above to get all the gear on. It ends up piling very high, being very heavy, and really worries me when I have to leave the bike sitting alone somewhere.

Yellowstone Lake. The weather forecast was 67 degrees. It was just about 41 degrees when I took this shot. That is why I pack for all sorts of weather.

All the gear goes into saddlebags, the trunk, and the travel pack I have on the seat behind me. It is covered with a waterproof cover and is bungee-corded from both sides to hold it stable.

The camera gear is protected in the trunk. It is also easy to get to when a photograph is to be made. The tripod is bungeed along the side of the pack so grabbing the camera and tripod takes mere seconds. The trunk is locked, and I use a bike lock to wrap it when I have to leave it sitting unattended. (Although it still makes me very anxious to do so.)

Here are a few shots from the road.

Top left, in Yellowstone.
Top right, Blackbear Pass near the summit.
Lower left, Just south of Ouray, CO.
Lower right, an often seen sight in the west in the summer.

Thanks for reading.

You can find me at www.dongiannatti.com and www.project52prosystem.com

(All photos in this essay were made on iPhone Max S.)