Advice wanted Arizona to BC and back
 

Hi I am looking for some advice on an upcoming trip we have been debating/arguing about for a little while - I think we are kind of in loose agreement but I would appreciate some feedback. Three riders, all experienced and capable of 4-500 mile days if required. All English but two us have lived in the US and Canada so are very familiar, always got around on four-wheels there as opposed to two.
I will outline the plan and would be grateful for some feedback as to whether it is relatively sensible or whether we are biting off more than we can chew.

Plan:
25 days
September 07
All BMW GS's in different flavours
Mostly camping but interspersed with hotels/motels
$200/day each budget for food/fuel/camping etc etc

Basic Route with key locations
Start and finish in Phoenix
Phoenix - San Diego - Palm Springs - Sequoia NP - Yosemite NP - San Francisco - Seattle - Vancouver, BC - Prince George, BC - Fort St. John, BC - Grande Prairie, AB - Jasper NP, AB - Banff NP, AB - Calgary, AB - Glacier NP, MT - Yellowstone NP, WY - Rapid City, SD - Badlands NP, SD - Casper, WY - Salt Lake City, UT - Denver, CO - Albuquerque, NM - Grand Canyon NP - Phoenix. Looking to stay off the Interstates as much as possible.

We are looking to break the trip into three legs Phoenix - Seattle being one, Seattle to Yellowstone bring the second and Yellowstone to Phoenix being the third and allowing 7-8 days for each. Rationale behind this is that we can each take ownership of one segment and do all the planning relevant.

Any comments, observations, suggestions, advice would be greatly appreciated.

Thanks
Mike

How did you come up with a budget of $200 per person/per day?

AZ to BC
 

Think the $200 was for all three !
Sept is about three mounths to late to start this trip, you will be to dam cold in Canada.
Norm

$200 is an initial punt trying to capture gas, lodging, park entrance/attraction fee, tolls, food and any other incidentals (beer) that may crop up. Things are generally cheaper in the US than Europe. It really was no more scientific than that, please advise if we are way off track.

Norm
We would look to be in Fort St John mid September, when you say cold do you mean heated clothing cold or unbearable cold? Would ideally like to do it in August but it would mean being away from home for the whole of the kids school vacation - if that was the case it would have to be a one-way trip :nono: Can't really go any earlier in the year due to various work commitments. None of the route is cast in stone but we are pretty much nailed down to the time of year, the only reason for going up north in BC is to visit relations - that can always keep so if its not the smartest place to go.
Thanks

September will be fine!
 

I think September will be fine for your trip. Even in the Arctic the preferred travel times are September and into October. There will be fewer insects and travel trailer tourist. September is often a dry month in the Northwest and offers some great riding. I have been as far North as Dease Lake in September

Have a great trip and please feel free to call on me when coming through Seattle.

Will

Riding in BC
 

Hi, I'll just comment on the area I am closest to and leave the rest for the others.

Vancouver, BC - Prince George, BC - Fort St. John, BC - Grande Prairie, AB - Jasper NP, AB - Banff NP, AB - Calgary, AB

From Vancouver to P.G., you have a few options. As far as paved roads on the western and middle part of the province you can ride to Hope, up through the Fraser Canyon to Cache Creek or go through Whistler, Pemberton, over the Duffy Lake to Cache Creek. It's about 50 km shorter through Whistler but about an hour longer due to the narrow, windy road. It's much faster since they paved it a few years back and sees a lot less traffic. I would give it serious consideration. More of a mountain ride than a canyon ride but the first part from Vancouver to Squamish is along the ocean and is quite scenic.

From P.G. and heading to Jasper and Banff, I'm not sure that I would head all the way to Ft. St. John and Grande Prairie. North of P.G it is nice through the Pine Pass near MacKenzie but beyond that towards Grande Prairie it gets a bit more prairie-ish, as you can imagine. I would give serious consideration to riding east from P.G. to McBride, Valemount and then Jasper and over the Ice Fields Parkway to Lake Louise and Banff. If you did decide to go that way and really wanted more adventure, you can ride gravel roads for a lot of it but given the ground you are covering looks like you wouldn't want to slow down too much unless a very strong reason.

On the way south from Banff, the slower but more scenic route is stick close to the mountains rather than out on the prairie as there are some great roads through Kananaskis Park etc. A bit time consuming but really quite beautiful.

Mid September up north isn't a problem. You would only be there a short period and the mornings are cool but easily bearable. Watch for weather on the passes. If you need some tips on camping spots between Vancouver and Banff, happy to pass some directions.

September is a gamble in the Fort St John area .
2 years ago ago we had 2 feet of snow .
This year we had record breaking high temps and no rain .
Take in the road from Chetwynd via Hudson's Hope to Fort St John along the Peace Valley ,it's the most scenic part of this area .

Southern BC in Sept is usually no problem .

Thanks Will - what is the mosquito situation, I believe it is worse earlier in the summer, is that correct? I tend to be easy pickings for them no matter what factor spray I use and have been eaten alive on numerous occasions - i appear to be quite tasty!
Thanks for the info.

You listed 6 US National Parks. The fees for those parks would add up to $72.00 for each bike.

You should get the National Parks Pass for $50.00 for each bike. You get them at the first National Park you go into.

Once you have the pass you may as well go to as many as you can. I would add Bryce Canyon and Zion to your list.
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National Parks Pass
The National Parks Pass is an annual pass that provides admission to any national park charging an entrance fee. The pass costs $50 and is valid for one full year from first use in a park.

The National Parks Pass admits the pass owner and any accompanying passengers in a private vehicle if a park has a per vehicle entrance fee. Where a per person entrance fee is charged, the National Parks Pass admits the pass owner, spouse, children and parents. The National Parks Pass is nontransferable and does NOT cover or reduce use fees such as charges for camping, parking, tours, and concessions.

Thanks very much - seeings I am tasked with the Canadian bit of the trip I think you have pretty much nailed it for me. Only reason for heading up to Fort St John is that I have family there. Like I said in an earlier post we don't really need to go that far up, I chose it for the family connection. I will look in some detail at your suggestions and any camping information would be great.
Thanks for your time and detailed info. :thumbup1:

Bc
 

Well as Dodger says, the weather gets more variable as you go further north so the people in the John would have the most experience on that region. For Prince George and surrounding area, I would throw out a very unscientific estimate of likelihood of snow in mid September as very unlikely, 1 in 50 chance. If it helps in your planning, in the years of daily riding there, I don't remember being snowed on in September, first snowfall of the year typically happens sometime in October usually closer to Halloween, and it usually doesn't stick around. I always considered it fall riding, cool and cold at times which doesn't rule out the freak early season snow storm but rare. I would ride up there, check the weather and if it worries you don't head as far north. I would more so keep an eye on the weather in Jasper/Banff as the mountans and higher altitudes is where the chances of bad weather will increase, which is the same for all mountain ranges. Hope that helps.

That is as good a reason as any for heading even further north! It's all interesting, some scenery less dramatic than others but beautiful and the size of BC and the lack of population once you leave Vancouver make it a perfect place to ride. As your planning moves along, fire me an e-mail if you have any more questions.

John
Thanks for the information, you are not the first person to mention Zion as a must see. Bryce Canyon has always fascinated me looking at pictures of it - I visited the Grand Canyon briefly a good few years ago and am in Phoenix for a conference this coming May so have arranged an extra few days and will hire an 1150GSA and ride the south rim which should be a good taster.
Thanks for your help.

This is all great info, thanks for your time. I will certainly tap you up for more information closer to the time.