Trip report: 1300 miles through Michigan (w/ Pics and maps!)

Over the July 4th week I took two long trips totalling about 1300 miles through the Manistee National Forest, the Leelanau Peninsula along scenic M-22, the Lake Michigan coastline, and the historic M-119 north of Petoskey, a narrow, winding, one-lane State highway known as the "Tunnel of Trees". Except for one user-induced issue, my XJ650 performed perfectly and was surprisingly comfortable.

It started July 1st, as I rode from Lansing to Northport to visit my parents. I decided to take the freeway about an hour west, then use M-37 north through the Manistee National Forest to connect to M-22 in Traverse City. This trip took about four hours, twenty minutes.

https://www.google.com/maps/ms?msid=208 ... 4.551335,-

I encountered this sign from the National Forest Service as the entrance to the Manistee National Forest. I decided to take a picture. You have no idea how hard it was to get the bike positioned correctly for this picture on the soft, sandy earth in front of the sign. It involved a lot of back-and-forth pushing and pulling, and at one point the bike was laying flat on its right side. *sigh*


Further north I stopped at a roadside park and found a very scenic view of Hodenpyl Dam Pond, which is next to Mesick, at the intersection of M-37 and M-115. I'm quite happy with the way this one turned out.


I was very worried about a break-down on this 30 year-old bike. Alas, my fears were unfounded. I arrived at Northport without issue. Here's a view from the scenic overlook west of town. Northport is down there in the woods somewhere.


I did some leisurely riding around the peninsula from July 1st through 4th, taking the very lovely M-22 around to Leland, then the shortcut of M-204 back. I tried to visit the Northport Lighthouse, but found I needed to pay and have a State recreation passport to enter the park, so I turned around.

Woolsey Memorial Airport on the north end of the peninsula; nothing more than a nicely-maintained grass strip in the forest with the only facilities being a port-a-potty and a small cobblestone "tower" containing a folding desk and chair.


It was hot. Gosh it was hot. The hottest I ever remember it being in Michigan. Temperatures in Lansing were just over 100 degrees and not much cooler in Northport. While I was up there I learned that my choice of oil weight, 10w40, is just too light for this hot weather. I didn't want to drive four more hours with oil that might not be doing it's job correctly, so
I searched around for a parts store that had motorcycle oil. All I found was a the Napa store in Suttons Bay: 20w50 Amsoil. JASO-approved for wet clutches, so I should be good, right? And so begins the aforementioned user-induced issue.

No, it wasn't the primary clutch. It was the starter clutch. I'd read about this before, where the starter clutch will not engage firmly enough on these old bikes with worn alternator brushes if you use a too-slippery oil. The slippage wasn't a big problem, as it only occurred when starting in gear with the extra drag from the wet cluth discs, even though the clutch
is disengaged. The bike ran and shifted smoother, so I didn't worry about it. More on this later.

I worked the afternoon shift on July 5th, then got up the next morning and met a friend to go on an even longer trip. We planned to go west until we hit the Lake Michigan coast, then follow that all the way to Mackinac City at the northern tip of Michigan's Lower Peninsula. The route:

https://maps.google.com/maps?f=d&source ... W+State+St

451 miles in one day. We started at 6am, me on my XJ650, and him on his Kawasaki ZX-14. Along the way, my starter clutch problems got worse and worse, until it was just luck that I was able to re-start my engine at fuel stops, even in neutral. I knew I needed to get that Amsoil out. We stopped in Traverse City and found an Auto Zone. All they had in 20w50
was Valvoline, and I got the last three quarts! I bought a catch-can for $3 and changed my oil in the parking lot. Good thing I packed a tool kit in my bag. The manager at Auto Zone was happy to dispose of my very hot oil for me, and I gave the catch can away to somebody in the parking lot since I couldn't really carry it on the bike. Starter clutch problems improved immediately, and went away completely shortly after the change.

The highlight of the trip was far and away the very twisty M-119. This incredible road stretches 27 miles from Petoskey to Cross Village. it is notable for its lack of a center-line, it's incredible scenery, and the fact that it's so darn narrow two cars can barely pass each other.

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/M-119






Fifteen hours after we started we arrived at the Riviera hotel in Mackinac City. The view from the room was spectacular:







The next day we headed back to Lansing, taking a more direct route through the center of the State. We were more in a hurry than on the way up, but we still stopped for a few pictures.

 

+1

 

Re: Trip report: 1300 miles through Michigan (w/ Pics and ma

Looks like a good time. Nice pictures. I'll give this a +1 as well.

 

+1 on the Tunnel of Trees, It's not really a road, more like a paved trail.

 

Any roll on acceleration contests?

 

Of course! We did a few starting side-by-side at about 30mph. I lost all of them. Then I tried "sneaking up" on him by getting a good run on him from behind. I lost all of those also, without getting so much as a front wheel ahead of him. Maybe I'll go to pod air filters and open headers for more power, then run him again!

 

amazing man i wish i could i could come along

 

Wish we had something like M-119 in Ontario!

 

According to Google Maps M-119 is only 7 hours away from you. It's well worth the trip, I assure you.

 

Awesome looking trip, and I must say your maxim looks great as well!

 

Awesome looking trip, and I must say your maxim looks great as well!