October / November Weather ?

[Matt James]

Due to Eaglerider offering 30 days hire for about £630 from mid October I'm considering coming over starting in Florida, head up the east coast through Virginia etc. then across the northern States through to San Francisco, drop down West coast and back across to Florida.

Considering camping / campsites where possible to keep the cost down - this feasible for time of year ? I'm guessing more so in the South ? I've been around Flagstaff area end of October previously and certainly not cold by UK standards for time of year.

[Bill Ryder]

Mid october in montana can include that white stuff called snow. We live between yellowstone and glacier parks so hit us up for a weather report and road closures due to snow.

[pecha72]

Originally Posted by Matt James

Due to Eaglerider offering 30 days hire for about £630 from mid October I'm considering coming over starting in Florida, head up the east coast through Virginia etc. then across the northern States through to San Francisco, drop down West coast and back across to Florida.

Considering camping / campsites where possible to keep the cost down - this feasible for time of year ? I'm guessing more so in the South ? I've been around Flagstaff area end of October previously and certainly not cold by UK standards for time of year.

Every year could be different, and probably is. And don´t let the relatively low latitudes (from a European point of view) fool you – it can get seriously cold in the US, especially the northern parts, as well as all mountain areas. So, North + Mountains = I would seriously think twice about doing such areas on a motorcycle in later part of October. Or at least follow the forecasts very carefully, and not make plans too far ahead. It MIGHT be possible, if you get lucky though.

I rode some western / northwestern parts of continental US in Sept/Oct 2009 (about Sept 10th till end of Oct), and frankly I cannot recall another trip, that included such huge AND rapid variations in weather and temperature. First few weeks (starting from LA heading via the coast towards Seattle – very nice route BTW!!) was just glorious and hot, then right by the time I reached Seattle, it all turned completely around in 1-2 days, and areas further east (like Yellowstone National Park) were suddenly getting snowed in; I later heard, that parts of Yellowstone had got nearly 2 feet of snow! Had not even brought any cold weather gear with me – that in hindsight was very stupid – so I “escaped” back to California, where it warmed up a bit again.

Then I headed east towards Gulf Coast in Texas, and had a new cold spell in New Mexico, especially that one was bordering ridiculous. I booked an accommodation by phone from Santa Rosa, NM, and when they heard that I was on a bike, they warned me, that the next night could bring some snow. I was in Albuquerque at that time, where it was close to +30C. But sure enough, on the road to Santa Rosa, the temp dropped to about +10C like the flick of a switch (I have NEVER witnessed something like that in my life before!) and sure enough, by next morning, the motel roadway was covered with sleet, and partly icy. Then, getting closer to the Mexican Gulf, it rapidly got warmer again, and the Gulf coast was approaching +40C – all this in a matter of two days, and there were no major mountain areas along the way! This was in the early part of October.

I think another thing to consider is, will 30 days be enough to ride all around the Lower 48 (if that is your time limit)? For me, it would not be, although it could be technically possible, but it would mean choosing mostly the big, boring highways, and missing a LOT along the way. I would plan a shorter route for that timeframe (and probably stay in the southern half of the country at that time of the year as well..)

[Matt James]

Originally Posted by pecha72

Every year could be different, and probably is. And don´t let the relatively low latitudes (from a European point of view) fool you – it can get seriously cold in the US, especially the northern parts, as well as all mountain areas. So, North + Mountains = I would seriously think twice about doing such areas on a motorcycle in later part of October. Or at least follow the forecasts very carefully, and not make plans too far ahead. It MIGHT be possible, if you get lucky though.

I rode some western / northwestern parts of continental US in Sept/Oct 2009 (about Sept 10th till end of Oct), and frankly I cannot recall another trip, that included such huge AND rapid variations in weather and temperature. First few weeks (starting from LA heading via the coast towards Seattle – very nice route BTW!!) was just glorious and hot, then right by the time I reached Seattle, it all turned completely around in 1-2 days, and areas further east (like Yellowstone National Park) were suddenly getting snowed in; I later heard, that parts of Yellowstone had got nearly 2 feet of snow! Had not even brought any cold weather gear with me – that in hindsight was very stupid – so I “escaped” back to California, where it warmed up a bit again.

Then I headed east towards Gulf Coast in Texas, and had a new cold spell in New Mexico, especially that one was bordering ridiculous. I booked an accommodation by phone from Santa Rosa, NM, and when they heard that I was on a bike, they warned me, that the next night could bring some snow. I was in Albuquerque at that time, where it was close to +30C. But sure enough, on the road to Santa Rosa, the temp dropped to about +10C like the flick of a switch (I have NEVER witnessed something like that in my life before!) and sure enough, by next morning, the motel roadway was covered with sleet, and partly icy. Then, getting closer to the Mexican Gulf, it rapidly got warmer again, and the Gulf coast was approaching +40C – all this in a matter of two days, and there were no major mountain areas along the way! This was in the early part of October.

I think another thing to consider is, will 30 days be enough to ride all around the Lower 48 (if that is your time limit)? For me, it would not be, although it could be technically possible, but it would mean choosing mostly the big, boring highways, and missing a LOT along the way. I would plan a shorter route for that timeframe (and probably stay in the southern half of the country at that time of the year as well..)

I've been thinking Florida up through Carolinas and Virginias, New York, Boston .. swinging East, Maybe Chichago, down through Missouri, Kansas onto Utah before swinging South and back across towards Florida ... no further North than that for the time of year ?