On with the weekly summer camping trips. this trips location was decided on based on the 600 mile service that i needed. being the beginning of summer it was really hard to get an appointment at any of the local places. the soonest appointment was 3 weeks out, and at the rate i was going, id have over 2000 miles on the bike by then. i found an earlier service appointment at max bmw in Southbury CT for this past tuesday, which happens to be 3 hours from brooklyn.

I picked a camp site an hour south of max bmw to serve as a mid way point, kettletown campground. I booked in advance via reserveamerica.com, and got what seemed to be a waterfront camp site.

For this trip i got a new dry spec duffle for the back of my bike to be more space efficient. it fit my inflatable mattress, extra blanket, clothing and misc camping gear. fits great, looks great.

I stopped by REI in yonkers on the way up to pick up some small items i needed. small straps to make it easier packing up my tent and tarp, a small soft little REI food cooler, and a plastic protective egg carrier.

On the way up, the roads were really nice and twisty. I finally got off the highway exit around 10pm, and from there it was around 2 miles of tiny back roads to get to the state park. I got in, met the after hours park ranger who signed me in, and sold me two bundles of wood. I left the wood at the office, went down to my site to unload. usually when at a camp site the table and fire pit are within 20 ft of the dirt path. this site, the table and fire pit were about 80ft in, and there was a 10ft drop in height to get to it. i rode down the hill, unloaded my duffle and top case off the bike, and went back up to the office to get my wood bundles. Then back to site, built tent, started the fire, made dinner and relaxed.

The next morning, i didn’t have access to any breakfast foods, so i made my remaining burger for breakfast, packed up my gear, and headed out to max bmw. next time ill have eggs with me in my new fancy egg carrier. when i got to max, they took me in and told me i could sit in the waiting area for a few hours, and while i waited i could take one of their demo bikes out. meanwhile, i was at 1300 miles when i got there for my 600 mile service :o

I met a lot of really cool people while i waited, got some work done on my laptop, and took an R1200GS out for a spin. that 1200 was a dream. the power was unexpected, twist the throttle and you are going to hit 100 within seconds. i got to take it out on the back farm roads that were long and windy. besides the awesome speed, the bike was comfortable. the stance was more upright then my 700. what i really noticed was the windscreen. Zero buffeting, i had my helmets screen up at 60mph without issue. It was something i was lacking on my 700 and i loved it. i needed it. more on that later..

I met a dude named gary who was also getting his 600 mile service at the same time. we ended up riding south together at the end of the day for about 45 minutes. he had a beautiful K1300S (pictured above), he also had a sena headset, so both of us were able to test the intercom feature for the first time. riding using an intercom was a great experience. being able to communicate.. what lane to be in, what exit to take, talk about getting around traffic, and just general bull shit about life was cool.

The ride home was fine, mostly big highway. The wind was a pain in the ass, and all i kept thinking of was that windscreen on the 1200. The 3 hours was pretty easy on my legs, as I’m really learning how to utilize the crash guards as leg rests. I now have 3 riding positions which helps. I also stopped in the middle for an iced coffee, a donut, and some gas :)

Looking forward to next weeks trip. Hopefully with my brothers if they rent some bikes and come out with me.

SUMMER CAMPING 2014