Anyone considering the Tour of Idaho (T1) this summer?

Hey fellow ADVers, I'm turning 50 this year and am planning on taking a dual sport trip of some sort, probably on my KTM 525. I've done the WABDR already (on my 250 2 stroke), it was pretty fun but I want to do a ride that I haven't done before and preferably one with a lot more single track. I'm leaning towards the T1 (http://motorcyclejazz.com/TID.htm) and thinking of doing a mix of camping and motel.

Anyone else planning on doing the T1 this summer?

If so, what are you riding and when are you planning on going? I'm thinking mid to late July depending on snow and fires.

The TID has to be my all time dream ride. Definitely on the bucket list. Congrats for deciding to do it, and I for one would love to follow along with your research and preparation for the trip. Keep us posted!

I'm not the best at prep. I just tend to gas her up and go for it. I do have a couple of fuel options if I take the 525, I could use the 3.2 gal Clark tank along with the 1.2 gal # plate tank and a 2 gal rotopax on the back rack for a bit over 6 gal total, or I could put on the 6 gal acerbis tank with the # plate tank for just over 7 gal.

what's holding you back from going?

Hmmmm.. What is holding me back from going. This summer might actually be a possibility. Still reading up on the routes and other info on the TID site. What kind of time frame to complete the whole thing? Seems like you could be back home in ten days, driving included. Does that sound right?

The wheels are starting to turn.

I am planning on it, but I would be camping the whole way

If you want a panhandle detour through some gnar, let me know.

It is really a shame that this tour jumps from Wallace to Athol on mainly FS roads, bypassing some of the most amazing single track this country has to offer. These trails would drop you out in the same area, but it might add another day to the trip.

State Line Trail, just north of Wallace:



State Line Trail, about 40 miles north of Wallace

Shoot, I'll just skip the tour and come ride with you

You know the invite still stands.... I'm just waiting for the word!

ill come ride with you too! I'm not set on doing the exact tour and getting a t-shirt, I'm more about the ride and the more single track the better. If you could post the trails you'd recommend to bypass the FS roads id greatly appreciate it.

as for camping the whole way, I figure ill camp most or all of it, I deserve the right to whimp out and take a hot shower and sleep in a bed one or two nights if I want.
I figure 10 days including travel time ought to about do it.

if you Washington guys want to get together for some local warm up rides id be game, I'm looking for compatible trip companions

Ooh ooh ooh I do I do!!!

I'm plotting a ride this summer that will include the TID route from Challis to Priest Lake.
If some extreme single track costs an extra day we can make it up somewhere else.

And on that subject, anybody know any good routes from Priest Lake to Twisp, WA? I've got a dirt road path laid out, but if any of it can be replaced by trails going East to West that would be pretty sweet...

The sky is the limit on possibilities; it just depends on how worn-out you want to be at the end of your day/trip.

Just as an example, if you hopped on the St. Joe River Rd somewhere west of Black Peak on the ID/MT border (where the T1 picks up the State Line Trail and heads north) and ride east into Avery, here are your options:

The first map is from the T1, D6. Find the red line on the first map and the solid black line on the second map that corresponds (where the faded Montana part meets the ID part). See all the dashed lines? All Single Track. Avery is south of there, so pick your poison. From Avery, all routes north lead to Wallace. I have been riding those trails hard for 10 years and haven't scratched the surface.





North from Wallace, in stead of heading up 9 mile, go up the next gulch to the east, through Burke. This is a wicked, rocky, Erzburg-esque trail (with amazing scenery) that will drop you out near Murray. From there, head up to Thompson Pass and head north on the Centennial Trail (see my Centennial Trail thread). 36 miles of ST, then a little FS road, then a little more ST, then you can link back up with the T1 and fuel up in Athol, ID. Just let me clear the trees after the snow melts sometime in mid-July.

If this is too confusing, I guess I could be talked into being a guide.

I sure hope to but obligations/snow/fires will determine when I can go. Sure would like to camp the whole thing too even though it's said it can't be done with gear on the bike -

I like where this thread is going.


I've been looking at the T1 maps over the last couple of days, geeking out on the GPS files. Looks good, but I can't say no to gratuitous extra single track.

xr4ever u are my new best friend!! Last year I did the WABDR on my 2 stroke KTM with camping gear, I added a lot of single track like Mission Ridge etc and didn't have an issue, I assume most of the single track that is on that map is similar to what we get over here in WA.

I think the key would be to camp light and take a lighter bike. 2 strokes are great for that but gas and 2 stroke oil are always an issue.

as for xr4ever guiding at least this section of the trip, sounds good to me, I'm willing to buy gas, beer and food

...a link to his thread but this is a really good RR that includes what you're planning.

http://advrider.com/forums/showthread.php?t=933042

I'd love to do this ride but not in the cards this year.
Have a great trip.

That is a great RR. Don't let the lack of pictures at first slow you down.

I was planning to do T1 this summer but plans have changed. It will take more than 1 week to do the route and then to ride back down to the start and I do not have enogh PTO. Instead I am going to go check out Jarbidge this summer.

master marine, I imagine that after riding the length of Idaho I'm not going to want to ride back, I'm planning on renting a truck from someplace like uhaul and hauling bikes back south, should be quicker too. 1 guy did most of the T1 in under 32 hours, ill look for the ride report, but I think that the whole trip including to and from Washington could be reasonably done in 9 days (a work week with 2 weekends)

This is one of the dotted lines on that map...

<iframe width="640" height="360" src="//www.youtube.com/embed/cSsx27srVNI" frameborder="0" allowfullscreen></iframe>

I don't need gas, beer or food. Just convince my wife I need to be gone for a day or two! Plan the dates as early as possible so I have time to wear her down. Or hopefully she will have her new Beta by then and she can come with us!

A great vid of north Idaho single track.

I'm out of breath just watching.