I bought a dual sport.
I picked up a gently used 2020 Suzuki DR650. I researched D/S motorcycles and the DR650 is a very reliable bike with a strong following. I have a couple buddies that own this bike, and they helped me decide that this one is the right one for me.
I’m not interested in crossing roaring rivers, climbing shear vertical cliffs, or qualifying for the Dakar Rally. Rather, I just want to ride some gravel and easy 2-track roads, and eventually, do some back country camping.
So I bought a rear rack for the bike, and threw an old Givi 31L top box I had lying around on it. I bought a Garmin XT GPS and mounted it on the handlebars. I went online and found some gravel roads not too far from my house. And then I woke up and decided – “Let’s go see what’s over there”.
I discovered that there’s a whole new backyard to play in.
I hope you like the pics.
This morning was different. As a long time street rider, suffice it to say that I’ve seen everything around here. Or so I thought. Although there is always some excitement that comes with the anticipation of any ride, usually for me a local motorcycle ride is like the movie Shawshank Redemption: It’s a good movie worth watching, but I’ve seen it quite a few times before. I know that he escapes successfully.
But not today. For this ride, I’m going off the beaten path. On this day, for the first time in a while, I woke up excited with anticipation.
I packed some walking shoes and a lunch and took off after the morning rush hour traffic subsided. I skirted the city riding leisurely on the back roads.
Anywhere I found a gravel road, I would take it just to see where it goes. Turns out this was just someone’s abandoned driveway, but I stopped to take a picture of the Azalea bushes formally declaring that Spring is here.
And then it happened. I hadn’t given this moment much thought before, but I must admit, when I got to where the pavement ended, my fingers started tingling with excitement. Prior to then, for some 200,000 miles, this was the point where I usually turned around. No matter how inviting things looked ahead, I could or should go no further.
But not now. Today, nothing is going to keep me from moving forward.
I got a new GPS for the occasion. A self-prescribed “Tom Tom” man, this time I relented and bought the Garmin. I was having some issues with it and stopped to go through the “Settings” menus. As I scrolled through the map settings, I came upon “Avoid Unpaved Roads”.
Not today, Mr. Garmin.
Now let me be clear. I have absolutely no idea what I am doing with an off-road motorcycle. I’ve got a perfect day for it: great visibility, dry roads, comfortable temperature. So I’m taking my time and practicing techniques.
Whenever I find a road or a trail that I think I can ride, I take it.
I found some mud on this trail and decided to turn around and not risk a fall.
There’s a whole new world to discover where the pavement ends. My whole life, I’ve lived within 30 miles of this, and never knew it existed.
Found a crawfish pond. I suspect they are harvesting right now, but I didn’t see anyone.
The color in these fields is delightful.
This is bayou Portage, near it’s beginning. Here, it’s much smaller and narrower than where I’m used to seeing it.
What a day!
I get to Hwy 190 and turn east. I go about 1 mile and turn right at the first brown sign I see. These gents are dip netting for shad, which are used for crawfish bait.
I had a nice time talking to them.
This is a spillway set up by the Army Corps of Engineers, which dumps water from Bayou Cortableau to Bayou Portage. I’ve never seen water “falling” like this in south Louisiana.
I ate my lunch here and enjoyed listening to the white noise of the water.
After lunch I ran on the gravel back north to Hwy 190 and turned east again. I found a gravel track that led me to this cool place at the Atchafalaya River. I waited a little while to see if a train would come, but it didn’t happen.
Realizing that I have to get to the other side of the swamp, I relented back to the highway and road that about 6-8 miles. The DR 650 handles highway speeds just fine.
On the east side of the swamp, I turned into the Serburne Wildlife Management Area. About 4 miles south on the gravel road, I saw a simple sign that said “Nature Trail”, so I turned onto another gravel road and found the trail. I decided to take a walk.
Everything is green here.
It was a nice walk through the woods.
I got back on the bike and using my GPS, tried all of the gravel roads in the area.
The front tire was feeling a little loose at times, and I learned that I will need more aggressive off road tires going forward. None the less, I was enjoying it a lot and just slowed down a bit. For the most part, I ran about 30 mph in 3rd gear, just putt putting around.
The other thing I’m learning is that dual sporting is a very solitary experience. I hardly saw anyone all day.
I stopped at the river here to drink some water and be thankful for my blessings. A gentleman working on a camp next door came upon me and asked if I was OK. I told him I was never better, and then asked him if I was trespassing on his land. He told me I was but invited me to stay as long as I liked.
I told him that he has some beautiful property.
That was the last picture I took. I reached the interstate and rode it West for about 6 miles to get past the swamp. Again, the DR performed very well. I rode the paved back roads back to my house. After letting it cool off a bit, I washed the DR and put it away.
Sometimes we can’t see the forest for the trees. I learned that all we have to do is look harder. Having the right tool to explore with doesn’t hurt. I enjoyed wandering about my new backyard, and I look forward to many more adventures to come.
Stay thirsty, my friends…..
