Wyoming Motorcycle Ride: Cloud Peak Skyway, Buffalo to Ten Sleep

[@RobertMerz]

If you enjoy my videos and want to help me out with the time and expense that I take to create them please visit my page at Buy Me A Coffee and consider making a small donation. Thanks so much, Robert. www.buymeacoffee.com/lgEFpyZjs

[@HaveMotoWillTravel]

I hadn't seen this one. I like to go through your archives and find these little gems. As always Rob, thanks for the ride.

[@RobertMerz]

The Bighorns in Wyoming are just so good. You might have already seen these rides also in the Bighorns, but if not checkout these two vids. kzbin.info/www/bejne/i32VZqKlbJyWaLs kzbin.info/www/bejne/qKrLk3eIqN6Yg5I

[@timlillard390]

Mr. Merz - I'm 73 years old and am in the middle of writing a novel. One of the parts of my book is a drive from Thermopolis to Rapid City. Chances are I will never be able to make that trip myself, so I searched KZbin for trip videos. Yours was by far the best I've encountered; clear, crisp, nice editing -- gave me just the info I can use for the "scenic" part of this section. Thank you for posting your video. Great work.

[@RobertMerz]

Thanks Tim! Glad to hear that my video is helpful, as wwwell as enjoyable!

[@outdoorbobby7148]

I could watch this every day. Same route we take when we backpack the Bighorn Mountains! I can't wait to ride it for my first time!

[@RobertMerz]

Thank you for watching and commenting. Yes it is some beautiful country and a great ride! Enjoy!

[@mrtannguyen1122]

I live in Cheyenne, WY. Thanks for showing our beautiful state ☺

[@RobertMerz]

I have a lot of Wyoming videos, what a great place to visit, to live, to explore. I need to get back and do more, particularly the southern half of the state. Thank you for watching!

[@peaceone786]

Nice video.

[@RobertMerz]

Thank you. It's nice to hear that you enjoyed it.

[@johnniewelbornjr.8940]

Nice vid and a beautiful day for the ride over the southern end of the Bighorns. I used to drive down to do landscape photography in this region when I was driving trucks in the North Dakota oilfield and obtained some nice shots on the descent into Ten Sleep. It makes me glad I moved to Casper late last year so I can go play in this region when I've time. I'll have to browse your other vids to see where you explored. There's a lot of incredible scenery and history in the Basin and Bighorns. As I recall, Ten Sleep got its name in the early days because it was "ten sleeps" from Cody.

[@RobertMerz]

Wyoming has such great scenery, and of course everyone thinks particularly of the North West corner when they think of Wyoming scenery, but I think my favorite part is the Bighorns and the surrounding basins. The area has great roads to explore, awesome scenery, and way fewer people.

[@johnniewelbornjr.8940]

@@RobertMerz I agree 100%... I made the drive into Jackson Hole from Cody and almost didn't complete the return trip the following day because of the people. I was glad I did but it was tempting to "escape" southeast instead. I vowed never to return to Yellowstone or Teton simply because of the people and their attitudes. I learned quickly that the Bighorns, the Basin, Wind River Canyon, Beartooth Pass, and northeastern regions were the "real" Wyoming without so many people.

[@trudytrowbridge8268]

Ten sleep was name after the native American cause it toke em 10 nights to get to ten sleep from where they was . I remember reading a western post in tensleep how it got its name , also just outside of town there is also Native American Indian roadside talking about a maiden Indian that her warrior was killed in battle n she couldn't go on living without him so she went up on a high cliff n jump off so she could be with him in the afterlife.

[@ObeyJesusOurLord]

Wow! Loved the clouds!

[@RobertMerz]

I had to rewatch the vid to check them out, perfect for Cloud Peak right? The Bighorns are really pretty, often overlooked, and offer a lot of good rides!

[@ObeyJesusOurLord]

@@RobertMerz They sure are! PS: Love your videos! God bless you & the Mrs.

[@jimbeau2803]

Made this ride numerous times (on our Road Liner....) -- always and in all ways, beautiful. Thanks for sharing with the world.

[@RobertMerz]

Nice! It is a nice ride on a Roadliner. Thank you for watching.

[@mynxl]

Enjoyable as always. Thank you for taking us with you.

[@RobertMerz]

And thank you for coming along, glad you could join us.

[@williamjohn8404]

Yet another great quality film,all the more appreciated looking back to warmer days now that it is wet cold and dreary here in N.Ireland.Thank you and kind regards to you and yours.

[@RobertMerz]

Hey Thank you very much! Winter will be over eventually, until then stay warm ( and watch my vids)!

[@lizmagu3189]

Omgosh, that canyon was gorgeous.. 👍💯

[@RobertMerz]

It really is a spectacular canyon. Thanks for watching my videos, and for taking the time to comment.

[@lizmagu3189]

@@RobertMerz Def a pleasure! 🙂

[@rustyjohnson2659]

I love watching your videos ! My wife and I have rode a couple of the routes you've video'd. We live in Illinois and are ready to head west again and again !

[@RobertMerz]

And I love to hear it! Thank you! Stay tuned, I have a few more videos scheduled for this winter!

[@mrtequilashooter]

Awesome ride it makes the colder months go by a lot easier.

[@7452]

On my way through Yellowstone I passed that little roadside church (at 7.25 minutes) and stopped to enjoy some self-serve refreshments. Very nice video

[@RobertMerz]

When I am editing it is always a hard decision what to cut and what to keep, and then how to make it all fit smoothly. The church was one of those pieces I wanted to keep, it contrasted the rock canyon nicely, and maybe because it symbolized a resting place in the harshness. Glad to hear that you took advantage of that resting place! The canyon is great scenery and a great road to ride, happy to hear that you enjoyed the ride and the video, thanks for your comment!

[@IceManOregon]

congratulations on a great production, just the right mix of sound and visual cues to make it fun to watch. thanks for sharing

[@RobertMerz]

Thanks Dan! I always appreciate comments like yours!

[@jthowson]

Out of all the V_logs and riding videos I subscribe to, yours are the most inspirational for me to keep riding and filming. Great stuff. Thank you

[@RobertMerz]

Wow, thank you very much!

[@reginamattis9689]

Another great video! We drove parts of ths route in 2016, (not on a motorcycle), it sure was great to relive the trip.

[@RobertMerz]

Glad you enjoyed it!

[@bobgraham4970]

I always love watching the videos you make

[@RobertMerz]

Thanks Bob! Nice to hear from you again.

[@theramblingsoflarry9290]

I was stationed in Mt Home ID back in the late 90s. Rode a motorcycle all over the west. I miss the big blue skies

[@flyingdutchman0072]

That was a great video, and ride. Looked like the weather was perfect also. good job !

[@RobertMerz]

It was great weather, and a great ride! Thanks for watching, and commenting!

[@Cayoot]

Great video! I'm hoping to ride my Victory out that-a-way this summer. The music was ok, but honestly, I'd much rather just hear the beautiful throb of that engine. That's one of my favorite sounds.

[@RobertMerz]

Hey thank you, for watching, for taking the time to comment, and for your diplomatic honesty. I agree with you, I love the sound of a nice engine being put through its paces, a bike, a car, a vintage tractor, a big truck, with the right exhaust can be such a beautiful sound. I also do like the music I add, and I do it to set a mood or a tone to the video. Also the engine sound is actually something I create, it is a lot of work, literally hours and hours go into creating my engine soundtrack. Take a listen to what other bike videos sound like, what I do is strip out that awful noise that the GoPro records and then dub in prerecorded engine sound to work with the video. But sometimes there is little defects (let's just keep that a secret between us) , and I can use the music to mask the areas that are not quite to my liking. I do also have a few videos without any music, just the sound of my 113 V Twin, and those have come about as I have improved with my audio editing skills and in part due to comments such as yours. Here is a link to an example of my videos without music, a little ride in British Columbia: kzbin.info/www/bejne/iZayemlsl6-njZI Enjoy. I am hoping we all get some good rides in this summer, with the present conditions I am on a wait in see, but hopefully for all of us..... Wyoming has some really spectacular highways, I have really enjoyed my times riding there, and I am sure you will too. Stay tuned for more of my vids, and again, Thank you!

[@HaveMotoWillTravel]

I hadn't seen this one. I like to go through your archives and find these little gems. As always Rob, thanks for the ride.

[@RobertMerz]

Thanks for tagging along on the ride!

[@weslynn8905]

GREAT COUNTRY GOT IT ON MY LIST NOW. THANKS FOR SHARING.

[@csxhogger1]

As is always with your vids another great ride and views and the sound of your bike!

[@davidpiper2276]

The scenery is gorgeous, and the weather/season makes it more so! Thanks for sharing eh :)

[@RobertMerz]

You're welcome eh!

[@ThomasOzOsburn]

That is a nice ride. Rode that same route once in 2010 when going to Yellowstone.

[@mdondie]

That is a beautiful drive. My wife and I stayed at the Occidental and drove to Thermopolis. It's an amazing area.

[@fredsw6738]

Hi Robert, Thanks for this video, lovely place to visit

[@RobertMerz]

Hi back Fred, I am glad you enjoyed. Thanks for the comment.

[@csxhogger1]

Oh yeah the tunes were a nice touch to the scenery.

[@RobertMerz]

Glad to hear that you enjoyed it. It's always nice to get comments from you!

[@eliasaxelson1411]

my big dream is to ride these roads!

[@RobertMerz]

It is a good dream, and hopefully something that you can attain. Wyoming and South Dakota are fairly central in the U.S., if you live in the U.S. you can get there! In the meantime, while you plan that trip, thanks for watching my vids, and for taking the time to comment.

[@tocr6259]

Great stretch... never heard of this area... nice quiet highway it appears you had the road to yourselves!

[@RobertMerz]

There are three different crossings of the Bighorn Mountains, all of them equally good! As for quiet highway, Wyoming has a very low resident population, so about the only traffic congestion to be found is in and around Yellowstone

[@tocr6259]

Have you gotten up to Glacier Nat'l Park yet?

[@RobertMerz]

I have not. It is on my list, but I do expect it to be very busy from what i have been told.

[@tocr6259]

I vacationed thru there as a teenager with the family, but have not been on a bike YET. It is way up there, as it appears to be yet another 450-500 miles northeast of Yellowstone. Busy or not, have to just make the time to get up there, the weather is hit or miss, which I love the elements that way (shoulda been a storm chaser!/LOVED your Mt Evans video!) Anxious to ride the Road to the Sun stretch.... as a kid our family funny was dad taking us on Road to the Sun pass in the car, and said... "Get a good look, because we're not coming back"... LOL. A buddy of mine road thru there and on up to Calgary/Banff/Lake Louise and said there's NOTHING like that beauty and the Canadian Rockies on a bike.

[@RobertMerz]

The scenery will be incredible for sure, but timing it for a not too busy time for filming will be the trick. By the way, it would be "down" in direction for us. I can highly recommend the Icefield Parkway between Banff and Jasper as a great Canadian Rockies ride, the Trans Canada through the Rockies also offers great scenery however it is a very busy commercial corridor with not much courtesy being shown by the other travelers. Another very scenic mountain pass, and closer to you is Beartooth, which I am editing the video of at the moment.

[@scottmatzke1198]

Awesome ride I was there in the end of June 2016

[@RobertMerz]

Lots of fine rides in Wyoming, thanks for watching!

[@pedrooliveros3085]

Thanks for sharing

[@andyzwilling2215]

Awesome video!

[@RobertMerz]

Thank you!

[@BonVoyageBrenda]

Loved this! Would you recommend taking 16 over 14?

[@RobertMerz]

That would depend on what you are looking for in a road, but in general no I wouldn't, they are both equally spectacular! 16 has more amenities, more traffic, and Ten Sleep Canyon makes it more spectacular. 14 is a little bit quieter, a little more remote, and the entrance to Shell Canyon from the west makes up for the canyon not being as colorful as Ten Sleep. But 14 also has 14A, with even less traffic, a more remote feeling, the medicine wheel, and spectacular views of the basin to the west. If you do 14A also be sure to take the short drive up to Five Spring Falls (just trust me on that or check out my Five Spring Falls video).

[@Hendrix.]

Nice job my friend..As always.

[@brucesmith9144]

Another great video, Robert. BTW, wonder if sometime you may comment about your production assistants Shay Cat and Miss T. Fier. Get the idea of a cat who likes to sit on the lap or by the computer while the video is edited ;-)

[@RobertMerz]

Thank you Bruce. Something I really like is when someone actually watches my videos from start to finish, which includes reading the end credits. A big thank you for being one of those people! Yes my 3 post production assistants take turns visiting the office and sitting on my lap. They assist in a variety of ways, such as sound checks, pressing all the keys on the keyboard at once by climbing up and laying on them, and head butting hands that should be doing more important things like petting them. The head butts are always fun when I am drawing my second map! Generally there most important function is to make me take a break. So now that you know about Shay Cat and Miss T. Fier you will have to find a video with my third P.P. Assistant's name!

[@brucesmith9144]

Robert Merz thank you for the reply and confirming my theory that some fine felines were helping the production along. I got quite a laugh from your description and I know that all too well. Had a couple Siamese cats in my life who were very good to make sure I stayed stationary doing homework or writing code. I always felt guilty, however, when I had to disturb their siesta on my lap when it was nature-break time. I will have to look for P. P. in the credits 😺 All the best; really enjoy your work! Regards, Bruce

[@RobertMerz]

Some creatures just have a way of making us feel guilty, don't they? P.P. is post production, and her name is........

[@jeffgill8248]

Love the video,turn up the exaust a little bit!lol

[@albertosbrolla8424]

Beautiful scenery, what time of year did you film this video?

[@RobertMerz]

Thanks, and we did this in early August.

[@juhajarvinen3349]

All right here we go.

[@ridinginthe4064]

what editing software do you use to add the sign's and map's love that ?

[@RobertMerz]

I create the map in Adobe Illustrator and Cam Studio first, then I use Adobe Premiere Pro to add the signs and map.

[@loyd5171]

the best motorcycle roads are south of the border.You and your wife must have ridden them all.How many kilometers have you got on that Yamaha now?

[@RobertMerz]

In fairness there are some pretty good rides on the north side of the border too, but maybe not quite as spectacular. We do have much more riding to do south of the border still. If we ever ride them all it will be time to start over and do them again. We are right around 80,000 on this bike.

[@loyd5171]

yes there are some good rides in b.c. as well.I live in the lower mainland and have ridden all over b.c.My preference is still western u.s.Turned 100,000 K on my ride last summer.Going to use some of your vids as possible rides in future.Ride safe.

[@RobertMerz]

That is great. I do try to entertain but also include information for people to make decisions about and plan future rides. Glad to hear that I could help.

[@popridesamerica5411]

You've probably been asked this 30 or 40 times already, but how do you have your camera mounted?

[@RobertMerz]

Yes, I have been asked this a few times for sure. I have it mounted on a mount I built and attached on the left hand mirror stem. The mount includes a piece of rubber to isolate vibration, and a weight to reduce inertial changes. Here is a link to a pic on my Facebook page that gives you some idea of what the mount looks like: facebook.com/dryrockstudios/photos/a.453336891456077/1651565828299838/?type=3&theater

[@jeffgill8248]

I ride a 06,star tour deluxe with a Texas sidecar, trouble free bike,.

[@guloguloguy]

....IMHO: You really should've shown more of the views, from the wayside stops, (such as at the tops of the passes, and around the bends, along the descent, toward Tensleep!.... Merely viewing the shaking camera's view of asphalt, (just looking straight ahead at the yellow lines), isn't very interesting!..... Your passenger should've held the camera steady, and taken video shots around you, as you moved along!....

[@cdneh0412]

Need some narration

[@RobertMerz]

My feeling is that there are a lot of vids on KZbin with tons of narration, I offer something a little different, the highway, the scenery, the sound of the bike, no opinions, a few moments of Zen. Take a moment, pour yourself your favourite beverage, click the link to another of my videos, and sit back and lose yourself in the ride. But if that isn't for you there are lots of other vids out there that do have narration of one type or another. Hey thanks for watching and giving my video a try, and for taking the time to leave a comment. I do hope you watch more of my vids and can lose yourself in the ride for a few minutes!

[@bbaker777]

Videos would be so much better without the music. The sound of the bike and the visuals are all that's needed. I understand everyone want to be a DJ but... reconsider.

[@RobertMerz]

Thanks for the input Billy. I appreciate your taking the time to watch and to leave a comment. I do try to please everyone and to that end I have a few videos I do without music. Here is a link to one of them. Enjoy: kzbin.info/www/bejne/h2nclGireNGHpLs

[@supersafarisurfer4489]

I get it now why non harley people bitch about the biker crowd constantly revving the bike at gear shifts. That is annoying as hell. I ride a RG and have done it myself not knowing why they complain about it, now I do. Couldn't finish watching the video.

[@RobertMerz]

By rev matching your engine to the drivetrain speed before engaging the clutch you reduce drivetrain shock substantially. By reducing this shock you reduce the chance of drivetrain failure somewhere down the road and you also have a much smoother ride when decelerating with downshifts. On older automotive transmissions operators learned to do this as it was non optional, you just could not shift down without rev matching. Modern engineering has recognized that the skill level and mechanical understanding of the average operator is quite low and have compensated for that by making things more and more idiot proof and idiot friendly, but in so doing have also further lowered the average operator's skill level. On the slower rpm, big displacement 2 cylinders rev matching for a down shift is more important then on the higher rpm 4 plus cylinder engines as the inertia of these big 2 cylinder engines will produce considerably more drivetrain shock then your RG will. So there really is a couple reasons why you might not rev match; The first reason is your bike is a high rpm multi cylinder with high horsepower and low torque and does not generate any great amount of drivetrain shock. This type of bike is generally designed to be operated in more of a "sport/racing" fashion such as your RG. The second reason would be that you don't know how and/or don't care about taking care of your equipment and/or the smoothness of your ride. Oh and by the way, my bike isn't a Harley, something that is quite obvious when listening to it as it doesn't make the famous signature Harley Davidson sound.

[@nikreikalas6886]

Background music sucks 😊

[@RobertMerz]

So you don't like my choice of music or you just would prefer no music so that you can better hear the excellent motorcycle audio that I created? I do have some vids with no music, just the bike audio, perhaps you could check them out and see if they are more to your liking. Thanks for watching, and for taking the time to leave a comment.