Issue link: http://trailridermagazine.uberflip.com/i/110132
mine a Suzuki DR350 and Russ���s, an XR250 into Russell���s midsized pickup truck. These are the perfect gas sipping bikes to have on a cross country/mountain trip like this as there are no convenient gas stations high up in the Rockies. We scheduled our fuel stops with care, planning to drop down out of the mountains to the small towns that were spread out off on the side trails along the way. We needed to get about 100 miles out of each tank to not run out of gas. We loaded up our motorcycle gear, a few articles of clothing, some food, maps and flashlights, a few tools and whatever else that could fit into our backpacks. 48 Trail Rider Russell and I arrived at the trail head staging area a few miles east of Beaver Utah where the mountains burst skyward out of the surrounding valleys. The sky was a bright blue with huge puffy white clouds casting shadows as they raced over the orange colored earth and green trees. We unloaded the bikes and made ready for the ride. We headed east up South Creek Road towards Puffer Lake at around 9 in the morning. The trail started out in deciduous trees, Oaks and Quaky Aspens but soon morphed to Cedars and Pines as we rose up the mountain. The trail was wide enough for two jeeps and was well graded with banking curves that made you want to power slide through them. After a half hour we arrived at picturesque Puffer Lake and stopped to enjoy a snack and the views. Continuing east out of Puffer Lake the trail rises from 7,900 feet to 10,200 feet over the next 12 miles. The last 4 miles are the more challenging part as the road is steep, narrow and there are switchbacks with sharp steep overlooks. At the end of this eastward trail it intersects with the Main Piute Trail Loop. We turn left and head north. This section of the trail, the Tushar Ridge, is like adventure motorcycle touring as this route is a road and traverses along the high ridges with 100 mile views to the east and west. After about 10 miles and continuing to climb, we arrive at one of our favorite parts of the trail, the high mountains. Here, within 4 miles of each