When I arrived in Radium Hot Springs, BC, I decided that the Alaska portion of my trip had come to a close. The next phase was to join the Vagabond Tour of Unimaginable Beauty, a group of Road Glide Riders, as they journeyed to Shark Week VI in Canmore, BC. I decided to surprise the group when they arrived in Bend, OR, so I didn’t publish my whereabouts during the three days it took to get to Bend.

Wednesday July 27 – Radium Hot Springs to Pasco, WA

As usual, I packed up early and headed to a Tim Horton’s several miles down the road. It was a cool, sunny, morning. I rode a few miles after breakfast and decided I needed to remove one of my jackets. As I was doing so, I noticed oil dripping off my right caliper.

I looked up the nearest Harley dealer on my GPS and found Harley of the Kootenays just a few miles away in Cranbrook, BC. The service writer checked me in and the tech said the banjo bolt on the caliper was loose. He tightened it and said I was good to go. They washed off the oil and everything looked good.

I crossed the border without any trouble.

By evening, as I was heading for a KOA campground in Pasco, WA, I noticed more oil on the caliper. Again I consulted the GPS and located Rattlesnake Harley in Kennewick, WA, just a few miles from the campground.

These are a couple of pictures taken of and near the Franklin County Courthouse.

Thursday July 28 – Pasco, WA to Bend, OR

Bright and early this morning I headed for the Harley dealer and was there as they opened the parking lot gate. A tech looked at the caliper and said it wasn’t covered with brake fluid; it was covered with fork oil.

He took it in the shop and confirmed it needed a new fork seal. There was one problem: they didn’t have any fork seal kits in stock. Not to worry, their sister dealership in Bend had the parts in stock. The service writer there set me up with and afternoon appointment. So I zipped down the road 250 miles to Bend.

They took the bike back and started working on it. Besides fork seals, it needed brake pads (one set was ruined by the spilled oil) and new bearings in the front wheel.

Some of the group came into the dealership shopping for Harley stuff. After the bike was fixed we met at the hotel and had dinner with the whole group.

Friday July 29 – Bend, OR to Enterprise, OR

In the morning the Vagabond Tour headed in a generally northeast direction toward Enterprise, OR.

The route took us through rolling hills with mountains in the distance. There were farms with irrigated crops and a lot of cattle. In the higher elevations the road was surrounded by large pine forests.

We stopped for a break in a little town, Mitchell, OR.

We had lunch at The Outpost in John Day, OR.

We spent the rest of the afternoon riding to our hotel in Enterprise, OR.

Saturday July 30 – Enterprise, OR to Missoula, MT

The group left Enterprise at 8:00 a.m. and rode to Lewiston, ID through a deep canyon. The first stop was the Hells Canyon Harley shop.

In Lewiston my friend, Neil and I decided to go on to Missoula, MT on US-12. That route runs beside the Clearwater River and later the Lochsa River. We had lunch in Syringa, ID.

The route took us over Lolo Pass, which wasn’t very high or impressive. We ere past it by the time we had gone over it.

We had dinner at the restaurant next to the hotel and turned in early.

Sunday July31 – Missoula, MT to Whitefish, MT

Neil and I got on the road early in order to arrive at Glacier National Park while it was still morning. We arrived around 10:30. When I crossed through the park a couple of weeks ago, it was foggy and rainy. Today the weather was sunny and clear and warm. I got to see the mountains and the valley from many turnouts.

When we got to the visitors’ Center I hiked about 1-1/2 hours to a hidden lake and back.

From the Visitors’ Center we returned to West Glacier and went on to our hotel in Whitefish. Others rode in today and joined the group. We all went downtown to a restaurant that serves good burgers. I ordered their House Salad, which was good, too.

Tomorrow we cross into Canada and the start of Shark Week VI. For those who are interested, I’ve traveled about 13,000 miles since leaving home.