by: Bruce Hansen
Paperback: 288 pages, color illustrations and photographs
Publisher: Whitehorse Press (June, 2005)
ISBN: 1884313531
Whitehorse Press has recently released a new motorcycle travel guide for the Pacific Northwest, “Motorcycle Journeys Through the Pacific Northwest” by Bruce Hansen.
The book is one of the Whitehorse Press series of regional “Motorcycle Journeys” series.
These books are designed to showcase great motorcycle rides in the U.S.A., and are written by veteran motorcycle journalists who have lived and/or traveled extensively in the various regions.
Motorcycle Journeys Through the Pacific Northwest details rides through mountains, volcanoes, deserts, and seacoast areas of Oregon, Washington, and British Columbia.
The book is sure to entice visitors to the region and reacquaint locals with the beauty and uniqueness of their home territory.
Written by veteran motorcycle journalist Bruce Hansen, Motorcycle Journeys Through the Pacific Northwest details twenty-five trips through this motorcycle paradise.
It includes colorful commentary, clear topographical maps and some very nice color photographs taken by the author.
Each tour includes clear route directions. The author suggests that the directions can be “torn out of the book for placement in a tank bag window”, but who wants to ruin a perfectly good book?
I suggest using a copier to reproduce the directions for use in a tank bag.
Each trip takes one to two days to complete and is designed to lead riders to new places of interest on lost roads that may not be obvious to non-locals.
The author’s purpose is to showcase the Pacific Northwest’s “best-kept secrets and most famous rides, the very things that make motorcycle travel so special.”
Hansen is a resident of the area, and he recommends restaurants, diners, places to stay (including campgrounds) and interesting things to see and do from an insider’s perspective. His tips could save precious vacation time for the visiting motorcyclist.
The book is also a decent read; the author suggests that the book was designed to be “good reading on wet winter nights, not just a list of recipe style directions.”
Helpful sidebars provide information on where to rent a motorcycle, how to get lower rates on accommodations, up-to-date, post-9/11 regulations on crossing the border and riding in Canada, and tips for hot weather and desert riding.
Trip 25, called Deuce-and-a-Half, shows how to cover the whole Pacific Northwest in 14 days and 2,500 miles. If you have just two weeks available and the determination to see it all, this book can help to make the best use of your time and money.
Review Date: July 2005
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