Here are some pics from our weekend ride on the TN section of the TAT. We had great weather and saw some beautiful country. Covered 728 miles in three days on dirt, gravel, backroads, and interstate. The Sweet Cheeks seat and windshield were the most important things I put on the bike. At the end I didn't feel much different than if I'd made a similar length trip on the Goldwing. I went w/ a 6.5" Sweet Cheeks and this is the best $40 (counting walmart foam) you can spend on your bike.

Day one (Fri). We started w/ four bikes from Lenn's cabin on the west end of Norris Lake. Took back roads over Jellico mountain to get to the entrance of the TAT. Unfortunately one friend(black KLR) and his wife(CRF) had to turn back mid-afternoon because it was too much for her(new rider, several get-offs). Lenn and I decided to cover the remaing 120 of 190 miles even though it was already 3pm. We ended up riding well after dark which was pretty cool thru remote gravel roads and back woods. Spent night in Cookeville, TN. ~265 miles covered.

Day two. Cookeville to Columbia to Nashville. Rode 184 miles of the TAT from Cookeville to Columbia and then went north to Nashville to spend night w/ friends. More beautiful roads, rode thru Catoosa, terrain becomes flatter and more large farms. Covered about 275 miles all together.

Day three. 188 miles of two lane and interstate to meet buddy/wife with the truck and trailer.

As is well known, the TN section could be done on street bikes and was an easy ride on our bikes. The difficulty becomes doing the TAT in short pieces as the transit to and from becomes time consuming. We will probably do the next two/three days in TN and MS this fall and then we'll have to see.

As far as the KLX goes....I love it! It is the perfect setup for me and works better over the road than a 250 dirt bike has a right to. The KLR650 "mother ship" would just be too much bike for me. The only thing I need is the 3 gal IMS tank. I could go about 125-150 miles max on a tank. Putting along on back roads I got 72 mpg (gps miles), running 7000rpm (65mph) on the interstate about 55mpg.

 

 

Should really put a spacer between the tire and the fender so you dont compress the forks so much. Looks good though.

Got my fog lights on, ready for my trip to the PA grand canyon.

 

 

 

Wow!! looks like you guys had a great time and some really nice weather for your trip!
Are you thinking of doing more of the trail next year?

 

Absolutely EPIC!!! That is my all time fav type of riding, thanks for sharing with us.

 

@ redpillar,.. We definitely want to do more of the trail. At some point we'll have to devote one to two weeks or more non-stop to the trip because of time lost to travel.

 

Nice pictures...thanks for sharing,always nice to see somewhere different

 

One thing I forgot to mention is the charging system was capable of continuously running my gadgets, lights, and my 70 watt Aerostich heated jacket. This was a concern I had. Voltage was 12.9 with or without jacket on.

I was also happy to see that the bike didn't use any oil on the trip.

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