The Americas, a proper ride...
 

I've been lurking on this site for quite some time, looking for inspiration more than anything.

But I finally have something to contribute, I'm finally going on a proper ride.

My plan, so far is pretty basic, I'll be flying into Canada via a couple of months in Europe.

I plan on buying a motor bike in Montreal and then start heading south to Mexico. I have my international license and if I run into any problems in getting a motorbike sorted in Montreal, Nova Scotia is only a short bus ride away.

The actual motorbike I'd be looking for would be a DRZ400SM, but if that isn't possible, I'm not really fussed about it. I've traveled around Greece on a 125.

There are a few friends I will be visiting on the way, but it'll mostly be me going solo, just the way I like it.

The schedule so far is pretty flexible, I have to be in Tulum for a wedding in August of this year, and plan on leaving Montreal the first weekend of July.
A month to get from Montreal to Tulum, seems doable.
That is the only two dates I have planned, in between I plan on soaking up the East coast of the USA, and the north, north-east, and east of Mexico. Once the formalities of the wedding are over, I plan on just heading south, and seeing as much as possible before I either run out of money or time.

I'm basically throwing this out there to the well experienced community of this forum to hopefully fill me in on anything I should see and do, and if there are any suggestions on the best way to go down.

Here is a little Google maps magic to help you (and mostly me) visualize what I plan on doing so far.

Any help and/or suggestions would be greatly appreciated, it's going to be my first big trip with a motorbike, so I'm sure I've forgotten something.

Thanks

Angelo

I have one bit of advice. Instead of traveling down the East Coast of the US on what looks like Interstate Highway 95, consider traveling down a bit to the West, like down the Blue Ridge Parkway (Google it), and that will take you through some much more interesting scenery, including some small mountains. The interstate 95 route is boring, fast and you see nothing. I know because I have been forced to use it when traveling fast between NY and Florida.

Good luck with your trip, it sounds very exciting.

Larry

Perfect, thanks Larry, it looks like I can get on the Blue Ridge Parkway just after Washington.

Exactly why I started this thread.

curves ahead
 

Try the Dragon's back
Tennessee Motorcycle Roads & Routes - Ocoee/Tellico/Cherohala Skyway/The Dragon(129) | OpenRoadJourney.com


Sara

Wow, that looks intense, another road to add to the growing list.

Thanks Sara

I plan on staying off the main Highways, I'll have a month to get from New York to Tulum, more than enough time to take the scenic route

I know this route personally. Take 66 west from DC until you get to Front Royal where the blue ridge starts at the top of Shenandoah National Park. Take the blue ridge as far as you can go south. you won't regret it, but just make sure it's not the dead of winter. it's incredibly beautiful.

Suggestions
 

You can actually start the Parkway from Hershey, Pennsylvania if you don't have to go thru Baltimore (UG!) or Washington. Because you are starting in July, I wouldn't miss cruising the coastline of southern Maine!

In southern Mexico, DON'T MISS the Mayan city of Palenque and the Aguas Azules (mineral crytal clear river nearby). They are within 1 1/2 hours of each other and almost on your route.

Toby :mchappy::mchappy::mchappy:

Actually, it's the Skyline Drive that starts at Front Royal and then merges to the Blue Ridge Parkway. Be sure to do the Tail of the Dragon on route US129 at the bottom of the Blue Ridge. I did this two years ago on a 10 day outing from Montreal. Plenty of side roads to visit also.
My two cents: if your planning on buying a bike in Montreal, reconsider. Taxes are high in Quebec, plus the cost of the license plates will be around $650 CAN.
This is because Quebec has a public insurance plan that is included in the licencing. You might be better off getting a bike out of the province where it'll probably cost you around $50 for the license.