Earlier this week I spied a perfect weather forecast for Thursday, so I planned a solo day-ride in the Driftless Area of southwest Wisconsin. With a busy summer and four projects in the shop, I decided I was in need of a personal day on two wheels. Lacking a suitable VFR (!) I loaded the Triumph Bonneville onto the trailer for the 2-hour drive to New Glarus, WI where I unload, ride all day, and return in the evening for a relaxing drive home, avoiding four hours of boring saddle time. It all makes for a long day — 200 miles in the truck and, in this case, 320 miles in the saddle.
While enroute to New Glarus I came upon this surprise gas price in Janesville WI; below $4. Later that evening, on the return drive, it was even lower at $3.86. Interestingly, everywhere else on my travels that day prices were about $4.30. And, back home in Illinois, you can add about $.75 per gallon thanks to the state's higher fuel taxes.
The Driftless Area offers endless rural roads with light (often non-existent) traffic, hills, curves and long, pastoral views. I sometimes map out a route, but it's just a suggestion and deviations are common. Every intersection offers another teasing road curving off into the hills. This is Amish country, their clip-clopping buggies and neatly dressed children waving from grassy lawns adding to the charm of the ride. Just watch your lane positioning — their "horse emissions" can be a slippery surprise.
While enroute to New Glarus I came upon this surprise gas price in Janesville WI; below $4. Later that evening, on the return drive, it was even lower at $3.86. Interestingly, everywhere else on my travels that day prices were about $4.30. And, back home in Illinois, you can add about $.75 per gallon thanks to the state's higher fuel taxes.
The Driftless Area offers endless rural roads with light (often non-existent) traffic, hills, curves and long, pastoral views. I sometimes map out a route, but it's just a suggestion and deviations are common. Every intersection offers another teasing road curving off into the hills. This is Amish country, their clip-clopping buggies and neatly dressed children waving from grassy lawns adding to the charm of the ride. Just watch your lane positioning — their "horse emissions" can be a slippery surprise.
My first break was for a light lunch at one of my mandatory stops, the Log Cabin restaurant in Baraboo for a bowl of homemade chicken & rice soup, coffee and a slice of fresh, warmed pecan pie with ice cream. I prefer the quaint, shaded cemeteries along the route for butt-breaks — I found this one on a breezy hilltop outside Elroy, boyhood home of moto journalist Peter Egan. I like the peaceful setting and interesting history told by the grave markers and I could wander about for an hour, but I'm here for the roads, so I saddle up and move on.
The comfortable and easy-going Bonneville is well-suited for exploring these byways, and over the winter months I completed a couple of modifications that I was anxious to try out, including a "de-restricting" camshaft and re-flashed ECU. These woke up the 900cc twin, as promised, and deliver the extra bit of performance that the factory left on the table. Even so, there's many favorite twisties where I longed for the feel and music offered by the Interceptor's V4. Another day.
Here's a look at my hybrid navigation system, combining a paper route taped to the tank and a modern Garmin Zumo XT. But, I've ridden these roads for 50 years, so these are just nice extras, not at all needed. I have a map of the Driftless Area permanently etched in my mind, and these quiet counties have changed very little in those decades. I like that.
RSS Feed