Interesting places to visit

[Stormswift]

I have several on my list that I would like to visit by scooter

1. Yosemite national park
2. Lake Cuomo, Italian and Swiss sides
3. Rome, by all means Rome.
4. French riviera
5. Chernobyl
6. Thailand
7. Holly Land

Anybody else has places to want to visit?[/b]

[bigbropgo]

I'd say that's a great list. I don't really have any places I'm dying to scoot. But no better time than the present to get a list going.

[TVB]

5. Chernobyl

No thanks (and I don't think it's permissible). It might be safe for a look-but-don't-touch drive through in a cage with the vents closed and a few stops to walk around and take pictures, but I wouldn't want to breathe the dust for as long as it takes to scoot into and out of the Exclusion Zone around Chornobyl If you saw the report going 'round the net a few years ago about a Ukrainian woman who'd ridden her motorcycle through the zone, it was mostly untrue; she went there, but the ride didn't happen.

As for places I would like to scoot, I've already been to a bunch of them 'round abouts here. There are few places up north (especially in the UP) that I'm still looking forward to. One of these years I'm going to visit Rocky Mountain National Park and work a scooter into the activities along with some hiking.

[Stormswift]

It is terribly cold and windy outside. Got to think pleasant thoughts to get through this winter. Dreaming up trips sounds good to me

[Stormswift]

5. Chernobyl

No thanks (and I don't think it's permissible). It might be safe for a look-but-don't-touch drive through in a cage with the vents closed and a few stops to walk around and take pictures, but I wouldn't want to breathe the dust for as long as it takes to scoot into and out of the Exclusion Zone around it. If you saw the report going 'round the net a few years ago about a Ukrainian woman who'd ridden her motorcycle through the zone, it was mostly untrue; she went there, but the ride didn't happen.

That was Filatove. She used to ride big ninja with sizable windshield. There was much talk about whether she rode in to the Zone or took a tour. I think both are likely scenarios and safety-wise it makes no difference which. Any car or bus has vents, else passengers will not be able to breath It is not a short trip from the capital and they do get outside the vehicle so it is pointless to close vents.. I don't think it will make a whole lot of difference if someone rides in the bike or travels by car (especially some of those old Soviet era clunkers they still have around). Truthfully it is more dangerous to drive in one of those cars on the streets of the capital then riding motorcycle to Chernobyl.

[TVB]

It is terribly cold and windy outside. Got to think pleasant thoughts to get through this winter. Dreaming up trips sounds good to me

Ah, well if you're thinking of warm places, next week I'm going to be on a cruise ship stopping at Curaçao, and I'm looking into renting a scooter for the day.

[TVB]

No thanks (and I don't think it's permissible). It might be safe for a look-but-don't-touch drive through in a cage with the vents closed and a few stops to walk around and take pictures, but I wouldn't want to breathe the dust for as long as it takes to scoot into and out of the Exclusion Zone around it. If you saw the report going 'round the net a few years ago about a Ukrainian woman who'd ridden her motorcycle through the zone, it was mostly untrue; she went there, but the ride didn't happen.

That was Filatove. She used to ride big ninja with sizable windshield. There was much talk about whether she rode in to the Zone or took a tour.

Yeah, there was talk, but the tour guide who saw Elena Filtaova taking the pictures on a guided tour seemed pretty sure that she took a tour.

I think both are likely scenarios and safety-wise it makes no difference which. Any car or bus has vents, else passengers will not be able to breath It is not a short trip from the capital and they do get outside the vehicle so it is pointless to close vents.. I don't think it will make a whole lot of difference if someone rides in the bike or travels by car.

I can assure you that I breathe in a lot more pollen, dust, and other allergens on my scooter than I do in a car. In terms of exposure to fallout-contaminated dust, I am confident that it would make a great deal of difference.

[Howardr]

Interesting you mention Chernobyl. There was an article today about tourism getting started there:


http://www.thirdage.com/news/chernobyl- ... 12-13-2010?

Howard

[BootScootin'FireFighter]

It is terribly cold and windy outside. Got to think pleasant thoughts to get through this winter. Dreaming up trips sounds good to me

for once, I'll agree with you on that front. Flurries today, still no problematic ice, so my trips on days like today are short and sweet.

I want to ride pretty much everywhere, but the more probable North America rides...

1. Pacific Coast Hwy, from Vancouver straight to the Cabo San Lucas (Baja California Sur)

2. Loop around Nova Scotia

3. Florida Keys

4. South Dakota Badlands

5. Pikes Peak, CO and Mt. Washington, NH

6. Loop around Maui and (big island) Hawaii.

and #7, coming in June on the way to Amerivespa... Skyline Drive, Blue Ridge Parkway, Deals Gap, and Natchez Parkway.

[ericalm]

1. Pacific Coast Hwy, from Vancouver straight to the Cabo San Lucas (Baja California Sur)

Yup. Definitely on my list. Possibly at the top of it.

A bunch of cities in Texas. Weird, I know, but I think it'd be fun to go back to my hometown (Ft. Worth) and other cities I'm familiar with and see them again on a scooter.

Philippines: My Dad & brother live there. There are some very active clubs there and they do some great rides/rallies every year.

And just about anywhere else I'd want to visit: Italy, Japan, SE Asia, Australia, South America and on and on. If I go there, I want to ride there!

[Skootz Kabootz]

1. Pacific Coast Hwy, from Vancouver straight to the Cabo San Lucas (Baja California Sur)

Or from Cabo to Alaska. Actually, it might be better to do Alaska to Cabo now that I think about it... margaritas at the end!

An east coast ride would be great too, New England up through Maine into Canada, Nova Scotia, Newfoundland, PEI, Labrador. Beautiful.

Really hoping circumstances will allow me to ride to Amerivespa in NO. It's a long shot, but I'm hoping...

[killbilly]

Wonder if we saw the same mefi link, Howard?

http://www.lupinetravel.co.uk/chernobyl ... idays.html

Chernobyl is apparently generating some real revenue...

[Hwarang]

Man, the list of countries I've wussed on scooting in is large. Shamefully large. I find it really intimidating. I've visited many places in Europe, and everywhere is pretty "scoot friendly" in comparison to Anytown, USA. The whole road system there is the same but different. At times it appears highly ordered and very busy. Other times it appears to just be madness where people drive on sidewalks.

I've wimped on scoots in Paris because the traffic there is insanity that has to be seen to be believed.

I've wimped on scooting in Nice and Monaco because there were too many Lamborghini's tearing up the roads.

I've wimped on scooting in Split and Amsteram because the pedestrian traffic is a literal wall of humanity.

I've wimped on scooting on Santorini because a 4 wheeler
was just more convenient. And I was drinking most times there

The fiancee and I are talking about a honeymoon in Italy, with the latter half going down to Sicily. I'll probably have to man up and make Sicily a scooter adventure, or I wouldn't be able to ride my Buddy with a head held high.

Make sure you ride safe if you ride in a different country's road system, it can be nutty!

[ericalm]

Hwarang, Honestly, I'd be happy just to have visited all of those places. Scootering there would just be a bonus!

The missus and I have had a scootering in Italy trip on the back burner for far too long. It was on the front burner until I lost my job a couple years ago. Now, as a freelancer, I get no vacations or holidays without losing potential income. Yay.

[Kaos]

1. Pacific Coast Hwy, from Vancouver straight to the Cabo San Lucas (Baja California Sur)

Yup. Definitely on my list. Possibly at the top of it.

to that! I've only done the northern Oregon coast by scoot, but its one of the best scoots I've ever done. Its fantastic to roll out of the Cascade Range to see that sorta scenery!

[cheez37]

...Make sure you ride safe if you ride in a different country's road system, it can be nutty!

That's the reason I'm debating on wheather to ride in Viet Nam when I'm there next week. Going there last Summer was a factor on getting me to start riding. The traffic there is crazy with all of the scooters, and I've only been riding for a little less than a year.

[trackpete]

I'm heading back to South America in February because I absolutely fell in love with so many places in Peru and Bolivia and can't wait to go back and see the rest. After that I'm still dying to head through China and Mongolia. Wonder how far I can stretch my savings...

Around here, I'd say the Southwest (especially around the Grand Canyon/Zion/etc.) is the most amazing road trip area I've encountered in the Northern US. You can spend weeks exploring and never get bored.

PCH has some beautiful spots, but having ridden it in entirety, most of it is really boring (it's surprising how much is inland). It's mind blowing in some areas though.

Philippines: My Dad & brother live there. There are some very active clubs there and they do some great rides/rallies every year.

I really want to do this as well (I grew up there but haven't been back since I left at 14). In my research it seems to be very tough to pull off because you can't buy a moto if you're not a permanent resident and renting opens up a huge can of worms. I guess you have an advantage with your dad & bro living there - now that I think about it, I bet I could find some locals to hook me up... hrm...

[ericalm]

Philippines: My Dad & brother live there. There are some very active clubs there and they do some great rides/rallies every year.

I really want to do this as well (I grew up there but haven't been back since I left at 14). In my research it seems to be very tough to pull off because you can't buy a moto if you're not a permanent resident and renting opens up a huge can of worms. I guess you have an advantage with your dad & bro living there - now that I think about it, I bet I could find some locals to hook me up... hrm...

My brother knows the Vespa dealer in Manila.

There are actually some good, well cared for, not-bodged vintage scoots available in the Philippines. They also get some interesting models that we don't—Malagutis, Italjets, some of the Asian market Hondas, etc. I could just go there, buy one to ride, then have my bro resell it. Or something like that. I dunno. Dreaming.

Check out the Vespinoy club/forum:
http://www.vespinoy.com/forum/

[Stormswift]

Hwarang, Honestly, I'd be happy just to have visited all of those places. Scootering there would just be a bonus!

The missus and I have had a scootering in Italy trip on the back burner for far too long. It was on the front burner until I lost my job a couple years ago. Now, as a freelancer, I get no vacations or holidays without losing potential income. Yay.

Lake Cuomo is absolutely perfect I think. Lots of really winding roads, tour buses that inch up and down streets too narrow for many cars (and get stuck ).
Capri. I would not mind taking the ferry to Capri and riding there. Santorini is not a place I would choose for riding anything. Rhodes is more flat and looked like a better place for scooters, but then I only saw a very small part of it.
France - only maybe countryside. At least some of the travel channels showed places that looked appropriate for riding
Crimea. That would be awesome but dangerous. Too many thugs around.
I wonder about Great Britain but the "wrong side of the road" driving would likely scare me off from driving, not just riding.
Hawaii - THAT would be beautiful
Alaska - yes but in the summer. Loved it when we took the cruise some years ago but I am sure riding would be fantastic.

[BootScootin'FireFighter]

France - only maybe countryside. At least some of the travel channels showed places that looked appropriate for riding

Paris, would be way too stressful and chaotic. I'd really enjoy to follow the same route as the Tour de France bike race!

[wifiducky]

Chernobyl will always be my #1 <3 i always have my Geiger counters on hand >;3 collecting radioactive things and all is fun hahaha

[TVB]

I wonder about Great Britain but the "wrong side of the road" driving would likely scare me off from driving, not just riding.

I'm sure you could adapt. A friend and I went on a bicycling trip there many years ago, and found it was an easy transition to make.

[trackpete]

I'm sure you could adapt.

For sure - I spent around six months in parts of Asia where we drove on the "wrong " side this year and it felt quite natural to drive on the wrong side within moments (to the point where I could not tell for sure at times whether or not it was the same as at home without thinking about it for awhile).

I never did get used to looking the right direction when crossing streets though... such habit to look left as you walk out into a street. Not a good idea when crossing a busy road in India or Thailand though.

[Hwarang]

...Make sure you ride safe if you ride in a different country's road system, it can be nutty!

That's the reason I'm debating on wheather to ride in Viet Nam when I'm there next week. Going there last Summer was a factor on getting me to start riding. The traffic there is crazy with all of the scooters, and I've only been riding for a little less than a year.

Hey, that's awesome! I am also going to Vietnam next year. A friend who is Vietnamese goes home regularly, and has invited 20 of us to go with! It should be exceptional - strange food, weird people, things that are not like what I am accustomed to! I can't wait.

I am not sure if I will get any scoot time, with such a large group there will be logistics and agendas n' whatnot. For me, scooting in Vietnam has two things to keep in mind.

1. The traffic madness there is OK - less ordered might equate to more forgiving when I don't understand a sign or whatever.

2. It's a communist country. If I run afoul of any traffic laws or get in an accident ... well, I'd rather not find out.

[jrsjr]

Man, the list of countries I've wussed on scooting in is large. Shamefully large. I find it really intimidating. I've visited many places in Europe, and everywhere is pretty "scoot friendly" in comparison to Anytown, USA. The whole road system there is the same but different. At times it appears highly ordered and very busy. Other times it appears to just be madness where people drive on sidewalks.

I've wimped on scoots in Paris because the traffic there is insanity that has to be seen to be believed.

I've wimped on scooting in Nice and Monaco because there were too many Lamborghini's tearing up the roads.

I've wimped on scooting in Split and Amsteram because the pedestrian traffic is a literal wall of humanity.

I've wimped on scooting on Santorini because a 4 wheeler
was just more convenient.

Hahaha! Hwarang, I totally appreciate the humor behind "wussing" out on riding in those places. I rode a motorcycle through all of those places except Santorini where I took the blue bus. Let's see, a car rammed me on the Peripherique in Paris because I wouldn't let him in front of me (bent my cylinder head guard). In Amsterdam, thieves tried to steal my bike by wrenching the steering lock until it broke. As you can see below, the lock mechanism bent but didn't break (which required a 3 extra day stay while the local BMW shop disassembled my bike and extracted that bent lock piece). Nice and Monoco were interesting, but I have to give the nod to Marseiille for the craziest traffic in the south of France (due to crazed Peuguet driver anarchy rather than flying Lamborghinis, which were more abundant in Switzerland back then). And finally, what can you say about Santorini except that the blue buses are so scary that it's maybe wiser to join them than fight them?

Notably missing from your list is driving in the UK. There's nothing like that coolio feeling when you roll off the ferry on your bike at 2 AM while groggy with Dramamine and the lanes immediately cross over so you're riding on the wrong side of the road.

Hwarang, thanks for the great post! It brought back a bunch of great old memories!

Cheers!

-John

[Hwarang]

Ha, good times, man. I know the thieves in Euroland can be very tenacious! Glad your ride didn't get swiped! I didn't post anything about the UK because it's one of the places in Euroland that I have not visited! /shame.

I know what you mean about the blue buses on Santorini, loool. We rented an ATV and tooled around the island, which was great. The only sketchy thing is that they all had a governor or something that capped out their speed much slower than the rest of the traffic - that road that goes along the rim of the caldera is nutty!!!

I'd think about scooting in Switzerland, everything is so ship-shape there. Last time i was there, though, we had a car and it was winter (Zurich/Davos/St. Gellen)

[KABarash]

Awww HELL.....

Right now I'd like to just get outta Pennsylvania to ANYPLACE warm with my scoot!!!

[rablack]

I have several on my list that I would like to visit by scooter

...

7. Holly Land

Anybody else has places to want to visit?[/b]

All great places. Holly Land is particularly nice around Christmas time.

[jrsjr]

I'd think about scooting in Switzerland, everything is so ship-shape there. Last time i was there, though, we had a car and it was winter (Zurich/Davos/St. Gellen)

Don't forget the alpine passes. I like the Susten, Grimsel, Furka triangle. The last time I was up there a snowstorm chased me down off Susten pass. Good Tiimes!

[iMoses]

Atlantis is where I want to scoot... perhaps in a dozen years or so when global warming catches up with us

[ericalm]

Every time I go somewhere different or new without my scooter—even around the city—I think about riding there. Riding to new places is one of the most rewarding things about being a new rider, even when they're places you frequent. A few years later and those are still the best feelings I get from scootering: experiencing places for the first time by scooter, discovering places and routes I never would have seen unless I was riding, the feeling of accomplishment from going places and distances on a little vehicle.

This weekend Mike from NoHo Scooters led us on a winding route up into the hills for our annual Holiday Lights night ride and few of us had ever taken it. Immensely fun.

So, basically, I want to ride everywhere.