January weather

[MOVFR]

Hello, Region 3 riders  

I am tentatively planning a road trip for January 1-15 that will roughly follow this route:

Southwest MO, northern OK, west TX, central NM, most of AZ, So Cal, straight north thru NV, Boise area ID, central MT, southern WY, most of CO, central KS and return to MO.

I would very much appreciate some input on what type of weather I can expect and also what roads I can count on being closed. I know that this is hardly the ideal time of year for this type of trip, but what can you do ...

Any and all input is much appreciated!  

[mtrider16]

Interesting route.  I was following you until you went from Boise to Central Montana.  I'm not sure if there is a route I would plan on taking between Jan 1-15.

Beartooth pass is closed
Yellowstone and Teton is closed

About the only way from Boise to Billings is to take I-84 to I-15, and take the Dillion cutoff to Whitehall, and then I-90 to Billings.  Once your in Billings you can take I-90 south, I-25 South to Denver.

If there are any snowstorms, these roads can get snow packed and icy quick.  Temps are low, ranging from -20F to 30F.

Best way to dress, bring your suburban.

If this is a troll thread.  
David

[bikerfish1100]

going over any of the mountain passes in any of those states could find you in balmy 50 degree weather. but more likely you would be in below freezing temps and nasty nasty snowy roads. possible chain laws in effect for 4 wheel drive vehicles- no idea what they'd say about bikes (actually, i do have a pretty good idea what they'd say, and you wouldn't like it).
not enough time to do all that you laid out at this time of year. just go to AZ and enjoy the likely warmth. save the rest of the trip for another time.

[MOVFR]

Thank you for your replies.

This is exactly the type of information that I am looking for: road closures, tire chain requirements and so on. I have no intention of riding on snow and ice nor when temperatures are much below freezing as mentioned in the post above.
I have never been to ID, MT and WY so I have no real idea of what to expect. I have been at the higher elevations in NM, AZ, NV, UT and CO in October and November and the weather was perfect. I also read a thread in ride reports of a February trip from OR thru NV into UT and the pictures show clean roads and not much snow beside the road ...
Anyway, as much as I would like to avoid the interstates I may have to resort to some slabbing or as suggested simply stay further south and lower.

I appreciate the routing for Boise to Billings.

Thanks again and please keep the ideas coming.


Oh, btw ... what road is Bear Tooth Pass on? Streets and Trips drew a blank on that.

[Eric308]

Beartooth is on US 212. As stated before is closed from early October until late May. Anyplace you go in the areas you mentioned is "iffy" at the very best. You could go to sleep in Jackson, WY on a clear night and wake up with a foot of snow on the ground. I was all over that area last July and there were mornings at the higher elevations in the 20's. The suggestion of taking a Suburban has got it covered. Jump on I-17S at Flagstaff and ride the 130 or so miles to Phoenix area. That is if Flag isn't snowed in. I think you need to re-think all this. No offense.

[Tombstone]

Eric308 says you need to re-think your ride, and I heartily agree.  I rode to work in somewhat warm weather Friday, and now there is 3 - 4 inches of snow outside.  Its been snowing here steady since around 11:00 last night and still snowing.  (I'm in Utah at 4300 ft elevation)

You never know what weather you will get in this region from day to day, but its best to plan on ugly roads.  If you can, I would suggest you re-schedule to a warmer time of the year.

[mtrider16]

If I lived near the interstate passes, or even some of the 2 lane passes, you can make a run at them during the winter time.  You usually need some good weather information and good road reports, but locals can get this type of info easily.  Thus the pictures that folks post, especially the Denver area where it sometimes gets warmer during the days, than further north.

The problem is trying to tour through the states with a limited schedule.  Odds are your going to hit some snowstorms or icy road conditions.  MT and WY don't have chain requirements like OR, but they do make 18 wheelers chain up sometimes.

I have lived in Bozeman before moving back to Eastern MT, and one winter I was driving on snowpack for 3 months, another I had clear roads and only had a month that I couldn't ride the motorcycle that I had at that time.  Another winter, 89-90, we had 2 weeks of -40 weather statewide, they were closing some of the schools because we were not prepared to travel in that extended cold snap.

One route that would be nice to take to get away from the slab, would be Hwy 20 from Idaho Falls to West Yellowstone, then Hwy 191 to Bozeman.  However, according to The Weather Channel it is -8 in West Yellowstone right now at 8:30 pm.

You know how variable the weather can be in the mountians, now reduce the average temperature to 20F.

I'm not trying to be mean, but I have been reading about the climbers at Mt Hood that didn't respect the weather.

David

[blakebird]

I lived in Las Vegas for 8 yrs, and even though it's the desert, a good deal of it is around 6,000 ft. I've been hung out on rides in Jan-Feb before around Tonopah, etc and been snowed on. Nevada is the most mountainous of the lower 48 as a % of mountains to total area. (check a U.S. relief map). Going N-S you're in basin, but going E-W is all range crossing, with summits over 7k not uncommon.
Desert cold is cold, too.
I only mentioned NV because it might be the last place you'd expect to have to watch road conditions. I've been all the other places you've mentioned, and each has it's potential. Flagstaff, AZ has screwed up more bike trip schedules of mine than any other place in the southwest...

[helodoc]

Colorado is closed! As is most of Wyoming. Stay south.

[bikerfish1100]

ahh, we only got 2 feet from 6am Wed to about 5 am Thursday. clsoed? not nearly. unless you want to get somewhere outside your house.

[swalterj]

A January ride in Colorado?  Normally, I get out year round.  It's been nearly 2 weeks since I've been out and I think I'll be lucky to be out in another 2 weeks.  This is a real winter after so many dry ones lately.

On the other hand, it could be 50s and nice soon enough.  Still, lots of gravel to contend  with even if it dries out!

I'd plan your Colorado journey for the spring/summer.  Too iffy, and I'm sure points north are the same or worse!