Has anyone ridden the lower 48 perimeter? : V-Twin Forum: Harley Davidson Forums

BigD · 10-25-2008, 10:57 PM

My daughter has asked for a cross-country tour together for her college graduation present. How can I say no to that?!

One ride idea was to do the perimeter of the lower 48. I was wondering how long that would take? Does anyone have experience or a resource for that information?

Thanks, BigD.

jerry34208 · 10-26-2008, 01:03 AM

It could be done in ten days. No thanks, I'd like to do this trip in three to four weeks. Nice and easy.

http://maps.google.com/maps?f=d&sadd...648437&t=h&z=4

sloxl · 10-26-2008, 06:03 AM

Do a google search, several years ago I read a ride report by somebody who did it on a Sportster. It was one of those Iron Butt type rides, not sure if it was IB themselves though. There were 4 spots he had to hit to qualify for a certificate. Seems like it took him 3 or 4 weeks.

BigD · 10-26-2008, 07:52 AM

[quote=jerry34208;1464509]It could be done in ten days. No thanks, I'd like to do this trip in three to four weeks. Nice and easy.

Lucky for us, we are planning a three to four week trip together. I must admit I am really looking forward to spending that much time together before she "starts" her own life (in other words, gets so damn busy I never get to see her!)

jerry34208 · 10-26-2008, 02:24 PM

Hope you get to do it BigD, that'll be a trip with a lifetime of memories.

BigD · 10-26-2008, 09:04 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by jerry34208

Hope you get to do it BigD, that'll be a trip with a lifetime of memories.

We're comitted to a trip. Whether it will be to circumnavigate the lower 48 or a more concentrated tour of the Northwest, who knows? We're pulling together ideas now and will make a decision at Christmas. Then the real planning begins!

I've started marking a large US map in my garage with national parks, points of interest, landmarks, and those really bizarre oddities who have to see because they're there things and figure that will eventually lead us in a direction.

Thanks for the info on the circle tour. I'll keep ya'll up-to-date.

route66paul · 10-26-2008, 10:04 PM

Be sure to do a weather check, Start in the hottest places(southwest) in May, 2 weeks make a huge difference in the deserts here. There are places, even in Calif, that have closed roads through the middle of June, by then, Death Valley is too hot for a pleasent time.

FXR2 · 10-27-2008, 12:58 PM

Take a look at this. This is a rider who did the lower 48 perimeter--has photos and narrative about the various legs of the trip.

http://www.ridingtherim.com/

BAGN1T · 11-26-2008, 09:20 AM

I've never even thought of making that trip...I guess thats something to add to my list of stuff I want to do...

Of course I probably won't be able to do it until after I retire (in 6 million years) b/c I don't see any job I ever have letting me take a month off to ride around the country (literally)

rgterry · 12-01-2008, 04:53 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by BigD

My daughter has asked for a cross-country tour together for her college graduation present. How can I say no to that?!

One ride idea was to do the perimeter of the lower 48. I was wondering how long that would take? Does anyone have experience or a resource for that information?

Thanks, BigD.

Hi Big D. I did the "Rim" during the spring and summer of 2007. You can read about my trip at www.ridingtherim.com. I went approx 16,500 miles and it took me a little over 3 months. I did go off the route and went up into the Maritime Providences which I highly reccommend. You can probably make it in a shorter period of time but as you will see from my sight I had scheduled media stops along the way.

Call me if you need more info. My number is on the site.

RGTerry

FXD-Tim · 12-01-2008, 09:32 PM

Take a look at the USA Four Corners ride sponsored by the Southern California Motorcycle Association. You have 21 days to ride to the four corners of the lower 48. You can start at any corner and go in any order. I did it in 16-1/2 days plus the time to get to the first corner and home from the fourth. Take a look at my website, http://www.fxd-tim.com for more details.

BigD · 12-02-2008, 10:26 AM

Hey thanks guys for all the great info. I'm collecting it all and plan to sit down with my daughter over Christmas and make some decisions about the trip (route and all). Keep it coming. The more info we have the better decisions we can make!

BigD

Rollin' · 01-15-2009, 11:13 AM

Hi Big D
Here's another route you might be interested in. This route hits all lower 48 states in
8200 miles.
I posted a story and map at this link. I did this route for a Iron Butt ride. 48 states in less than 10 days.

http://www.advrider.com/forums/showthread.php?t=376925