Travelling and road trips

[Wheels]

Okay time to start a new thread here with summer on the way again and bikes getting dusted off.
Just want to toss this out there about travel times, distances, destinations or just road trips.

How often do you take long trips other than weekend runabouts?   Do you plan a certain distance every day to travel or even pick a destination to reach by days end, weeks end etc.
Do you pack light and hotel it or load up and tent it or mix it up a bit?
Do you cook your own meals on the road or go to diners or of course mix up a bit of both.
How much seat time are you comfortable with each day?  Some of us discuss this quite often and fuel range and lower back seems to be a factor.
I for one can ride a couple hours at a time before stretching out and taking a break.  Fortunately most of June and my bikes are good for about 100 to 150 miles per tank so this works well for my body but often I feel that I might be holding up other riders with my frequent stops, not that any one has personally complained to me although sometimes the jokes come on at night about stop frequency and bodily functions that need attended to.
Just tossing this out there to see what everyones unscientific input will be.

[Steve G.]

  Motorcycle touring for me, has changed since the 1980's-2000's. While bike tours then and now involve a destination and a 'theme', there have been important changes.
 
  1]  The days of touring on sportbikes, with backpacks and dufflebags bungee corded on the back, riding hard, fast, and partying hard at night are kind of done. I still do big miles, but 'boomers' have migrated to machines that are more capable, faster, easier, with higher payload, so the sum distances are kind of still the same.
  2]  The ratio and use of hotels versus tenting is still about the same. I don't like tents, I find the sleep quality to still be miserable, noisy, cold and then hot, but still do it when rally sites are tent themed. I understand the cost differences between hotels and tenting. But I also recognize the increased use of governments in the Western countries housing low ebb and mentally challenged humans using hotels as permanent homes, with the side shows of theft, open drug use, prostitution, and all 'those things' that not surprisingly are linked to humans like this.
  3] I used to ride in big groups, sometimes up to 20 bikes, usually around 6-8. They were fun, but the 'alphas' in the group usually always dictated the pace, the stops, the route, and the choice of hotels. Pace wasn't usually a problem as there was usually an agreement to wait for slower rider at main intersections or route direction changes. I got tired of this group riding, because high testosterone mixed with lesser capability meant there was always guys crashing, and having to pick them up, take them to hospital, push their bike to the nearest farm. Guys who wouldn't bother gassing up their bikes where gas stops were taking place, only to need gas syphoned off of somebody's tank to get them to the next gas station, then not bothering to reimburse the guy who saved them. Often, the 'alphas' would not stop until 2pm for lunch, then nobody would be hungry at dinner time. I like to have breakfast, lunch mid day, and dinner at civilized times. Riding in small groups allows input from all, without a single 'alpha' dictating, and less need to 'herd the cats', which is a waste of everyone's time except for the stupid ill prepared cats.
  4]  My last tour was pre- bat flu lockdown 2019, 2 weeks into Bella Coola, and far inland. great rip, saw the things I wanted to see, stopped and stayed longer at places I wanted to. 80% hotels. If health is on my side, i'll be at a big bike rally in central Oregon mid June, 4 days in tent at the rally, probably hotels there and back.

[kilowop]

Never enjoyed the "JOYS" of camping.  Sleeping on the ground, under a flapping tent is NOT fun.  Cheap motels (Are there any still?), wth an outdoor pool, hot showers, and proximity to places to eat, sounds about right to me, then and NOW.  Too damn old to NOT pamper myself.

[hardrockminer]

Never enjoyed the "JOYS" of camping.  Sleeping on the ground, under a flapping tent is NOT fun.  Cheap motels (Are there any still?), wth an outdoor pool, hot showers, and proximity to places to eat, sounds about right to me, then and NOW.  Too damn old to NOT pamper myself.

Same here, although Sweetums loves it.  I've done my share of camping, including a week kayaking on Murtle Lake and a week on Morice Lake, both in the last decade.  But nowadays I like my indoor biffy because I get up at least twice during the night to pee and don't want the hassle of fighting with a tent zipper, particularly if it's raining.  I guess there's the option of peeing into a bottle and dumping it in the morning, assuming I don't roll over in the middle of the night and tip it all over my sleeping bag.

All of our camping nowadays is with our RV.  We drive to a camping spot, get the bicycles out for some trail riding and then camp overnight.  Rinse and repeat.

 

[Twisted_Twin]

I've got all the tent space you could want, great sunsets and you can even see the curve of the earth!