Barry and I have a Frankentrip on tap for our annual winter escape to Tucson. We're both eager to get on with Spring training for the next bike tour. Weather and holiday stuff held me to five rides in December, a real comedown from the biggest bike year I’ve ever recorded at 5470 miles. He logged more rides than I did last month, riding the rollers in the basement. We’re ready to bail from the dreary Midwest winter.

The trip is already complicated enough. We'll live in our travel trailer at an RV park west side of town. It's right by all the lovely singletrack in Tucson Mountain Park, so the mountain bikes are perched on top of the car for the ride out. Barry's gravel bike is up there between the mountain bikes; mine rides on the rack behind the trailer. The gravel bikes are coming along to explore the forest service roads and other gravel routes. They're good on paved roads and trails too, but Barry can't be parted from his beloved recumbent so it takes the other spot behind the trailer.

Four wheels on the Subaru, two on the RV and ten on the bikes get us to our record of 16, two more than last winter. We feel like the Clampetts trucking down the highway with everything hanging on the rig.

Heart

2

Comment

2

Link

Patrick O'HaraAwesome. Have a great trip. Looking forward to following along and learning some tips about RV'ing it somewhere warm. Susanna and I think about doing this one day; escaping the dreary and wet Vancouver BC winters, taking our time exploring stops along the way with an RV.
Reply to this comment
2 days ago

Janice BranhamTo Patrick O'HaraI imagine you'll find as many tips on what not to do when traveling with an RV here Patrick. Four years and 38,000 miles in on our journey with the little trailer, we are still finding lessons to learn. Our mistakes have been worth the trouble. We love having the comforts of our rolling home and the means to transport our favorite rides for exploring wherever we find ourselves. A tip before you buy - consider renting a rig on RVShare a time or two. It’s a good way to find out your non-negotiables for what you do and don't want.
Reply to this comment
1 day ago

Log in to comment or reply

Once we roll in to Denver we'll abandon all the wheels for a detour to Portland and meet up with longtime friends to ski at Mt. Hood for a few days. It’s cheaper, easier and quicker to fly to Portland from Denver than from St. Louis. The ski junket adds a duffle full of jackets, bibs and paraphernalia to the cargo, and the detail of finding a place for the RV to hang out in Denver. 

Our son Danny lives in Colorado Springs. Once we get back to Denver, Luke will fly out to meet us for what's becoming a January family tradition in the Centennial State. It's been a few years since we skied with the boys so while we're at it, might as well put the ski gear to use in Colorado too. 

A cloud on the horizon promises to pile on to the undertaking – a winter storm brewing in Kansas. The plan has the makings of what my friends would call a Janvalanche.

I wasn't sure about doing a journal this time since we're not technically traveling by bike. For our last trip to Tucson a year ago I blew off the notion of doing one and now wish I had a record of all the fun rides we did. Almost a week into this year's journey we've racked up enough adventure already to push me over the edge on doing a 2025 edition. I promise not to dwell too long on the skiing. Staring down a few days of journal backlog is an all too familiar situation. Let's catch up.