bikesncats
Senior Member
One weekend, a BMW R1200GS and 3,600Km - 2,400Km of which on what some consider North America's worst Highway...that's what I call my Trans Labrador Highway adventure
Starting in Baie-Comeau ishighway 389 which turns into the Trans Labrador Highway, considered one of North America's worst highways and to us, one great neverending “off-road” ride and a unique experience.
My new travel companion on its virgin ride (only 1,500km on the clock and fresh from its 1st service)
I had seen it on the maps when searching for new locations, I had herd about it from several sources and I had it on the back of my mind somewhere so late on a quiet Friday morning in August I decided that I would go for it that very afternoon. The bike was ready as always, gathered the maps, a quick glance revealed roughly 2,200Km off-road and1,400Km of paved roads with around 1,000Km being main highways...yup, quite feasible I figured, just have to make it to Baie-Comeau by night fall and a get a good night’s rest...that means hitting the last ferry in Tadoussac by 19:00hrs,“better get dressed and head off”
For those with time on their hands, Tadoussac has breathtaking scenery to offer
View attachment 28646
For those with time on their hands, Tadoussac will offer a great opportunity for a break during some upclose whale watching and of course, when approaching from the south, the Riviere-de-Loup to St.Simeon ferry is an excellent alternative to cross the St.Lawrence without driving through Quebec City.
Map positioning the Trans Labrador Highway (taken from mappoint.com for the trip)
When reaching the town of Baie-Comeau look for a Hotelor a Motel, there are quite a few, since this will be your starting point on anawesome journey of curve carving, skid plate denting and alternating ridingtechniques. An initial 200Km (125miles) paved section, varying betweenamazingly fast cornering and equally amazing extreme curves, precede another 300Km (190miles) of curvy and hilly dirt roads with acouple of short paved stretches in between, which offer a welcome and neededrest from the dust filled workout.Thiswill lead to what is considered the worst highway in North America, connecting LabradorCity to HappyValley- Goose Bay, a 600Km (375miles) of pure andrugged dirt road which is definitely NOT for the beginner.
Manic5 hydro dam
View attachment 28649
Exiting Baie-Comeau on 138 east, a left turn-off pouts you onto 389 towards Manic5, aquite imposing hydro-dam worth a contemplation stop.The 212 Km (132 miles) of winding road areextremely hilly, with alternating fast stretches and tight corners.An absolute delight of a sporty ride which myR1200GS just excelled at, making me feel that my two wheeled travel companion waspurpose engineered for this kind of fun. The rarity (or pure absence) of lawenforcement in these, literally speaking, necks of the woods allowed forseriously good timing along with a whole lot a pleasure.The stretch of highway is a pure delight forthe experienced sports riding enthusiast as for the relaxed traveleralike.The signalisation is very goodand the road is in good condition and very intuitive, no hidden traps orsurprises, just watch out for the occasional truck.Thegas station at Manic5, situated approximately 2 Km (1 ¼ mile) from the majesticdam, is an absolute must gas stop for those with less than 320Km (200miles)range.
Winding dirtroads are on the menu
As soon as you pass the Manic5 dam you will get a first idea of what lies ahead as an extreme hill climb with hairpin curves, compacted dirt with foot deep washboards partially filled with loose gravel, greet your entrance.The ride will continue on loose gravel covering compacted ground in seriously bad conditions, if you can't handle this first quarter mile you better turn around, it only gets worse.The dirt road continues long enough to let your off-road technique get warmed up before switching to an endless str8 paved stretch about 80Km (50 miles) long. For those with autopilot planning to take a nap on this cruise, don't forget that there are a few abrupt changes of direction before dirt hits again.Check your consumption because about 110Km (roughly 68miles) passed Manic5 there is a rest area with gas and food (no accommodations though) but the following one will only be in Fermont, a little over 200Km (almost 130miles) further. Once this paved aberrance is over the road becomes increasingly winding and very hilly, visibility is short but not quite a concern since the ground is mixed sand and coarse gravel, deep and loose, turning this stretch into a fairly slow ride and a serious workout, but an absolute pleasure for the rally enthusiast of course.This will be pure off-roading and goes on until the Fair Lake mines where pavement greets the wicked who made it this far and escorts them into Fermont, or Labrador City, the choice between the two is definitely your own butt's decision. Beware that this stretch preceeding the paved section is not for the beginner as even the expert rider needs to be ready for a serious workout. Let me put it this way, this section was bad enough for me to seriously question my decision, and my sanity, to be riding it with the original GS tires instead of switching to knobbies.
The 389 between Manic5 and Fermont
In my case it had been a few years since my last extreme off-road adventure and it seemed that the paved portion had come,although as a welcome break, just as I was refreshing my rusty rally technique. Back in the dirt, the second portion required extreme concentration and every off-road skill I ever learned just to be able to keep up half a decent riding speed. A short chatting pause, as I stopped for an exchange of mundane chit chat with three KLR riders from Maine, further escalated the doubts about my tire selection when the trio riding their off-road hammers on rough Sahara ’2s mentioned they had decided to turn around in Labrador City because of the road conditions.
FairLake mines
Either the Shell in Fermont or the Ultramar in Labrador City will see bikes adventuring this far gassing up because Churchill Falls is the only gas stop located pretty much in the middle of the 600Km (375miles) dirt separating the rider from Happy Valley - GooseBay. An excellent treat awaits the fast off-road rider just a few miles past LabradorCity, the Trans Labrador Highway. This is, alternatively, a 2 day nightmare for the unprepared and inexperienced, or a 6 hour extreme ride with loose gravel the size of your fist and "putt-holes" big enough to swallow Civics (that's why we luckily don't see any).
Better get used to it; not many intersections but “the cut-off to nowhere (well the mines really)” is alwaysin better condition
There are soft portions of sand at times foot deepfollowed by hard dirt sections with foot high rock-ledges sticking out of theground, just sitting and waiting for you to loose your concentration.Some seem to have the ability to move and nomatter how alert and quick you are, they just have their way to get you to jump them. Although the Trans Labrador Highway is extreme, it is definitely not as treacherous as the previous portion, curves are longer and visibility is good, making it a true pleasure to fly along, jumping the ledges and fly over the holes. Look out for the graders, when they "stand" in the middle of the road as you come along it can get ugly. Especially nasty are the hideous sections where they just passed once or twice.These guys specialize in laying traps for bikers as they push the gravel towards the middle from both sides before spreading it (done in three operations) and in the process create a 3 to 4 foot wide and very deep gravel line in the middle of the “road” before spreading it. The finished product yields loose gravel with nasty deep tracks from the following trucks and serious debris scooped up from the side and subsequently spread out.
Breathtaking scenery awaiting those who make it here
View attachment 28655
Guess who won the pissing contest (I never zipped up so fast) althoughI managed a pic
Breathtaking scenerybetween Labrador City and Churchill Falls
Especially dangerous are the big chunks of ragged-edged rocks which seem to be quite abundant. About half way to Churchill Falls I passed over an SUV's spare wheel, that's right, an entire wheel with tire and all, which almost threw me out of the saddle. Why didn't I avoid it? It was like the rocks, quick and agile.This highway does not leave any doubt or way in between about riding it to those who adventure on it. Either you have an off-road capable bike and keep your speed up as you would on any serious open desert trail, or, you do plan a few days for the trip and take it nice and very easy. In my case, I was able to keep a decent cruising average despite my tire selection and ended in GooseBayby night fall. Quite honestly, after reaching the hotel, I seriously asked myself what I was thinking about to undertake this trip in one day with those tires. My aching legs, shoulders and back muscles were sore enough as to remind me of my aging body and slap in my face how out of shape my increasing hours behind a desk got me.
No comments needed.
The Aurora Hotel was quite accommodating (the only accommodations available in Goose-Bay, for more options one needs to visit Happy Valley) but the food at the Midway Restaurant was … well, just don't adventure there. A&W and Subways are in town, as well as a Tim Horton's and frankly, I should have known better since some local kids mentioned the last three as the "more fancy restaurants" in town. A little walk down the wharf, while lighting a nice cigar and gazing at the stars in those amazing surroundings, made all my aches and pains simply disappear.
GooseBay from the wharf
As I lay may head to rest, the thought of having toride the same road back to Baie-Comeau AND another 700Km of highway to get home on time for work Monday morning, made me temporarily question my sanity once more.
The next morning, up bright and early, time for a picture and a gas fill, and off towards Labrador City. I was surprisingly free of muscle pains and my off-road skills seemed to have improved over night to the days where my technique was at its finest.
Typicalground condition
View attachment 28652
Cruising at “a nice speed” up the dirt road got me some decent timing, of which I lost some to fix a flat and to readjust the handle bars. I did not fall btw, those nasty rocks and deep crevasses I mentioned earlier exposed one engineering lack on the German “machine”, insufficiently pronounced ridges on the handle bar fixtures, but other then that, a superb ride.
Some amazingviews await the traveler adventuring on this Highway
Sadly enough, before I knew it, I was back at the Manic 5 dam, the dirt was over and behind me. A shift in technique and a few hours of curve carving came as a nice consolation before hitting the highway homebound.Having left GooseBay at 07:30 (Labrador time-EST +1) in the morning and reached home, just over 1,800Km away, 18hours later, puts me just within the legal average. In the end, every ache, every pain, every dent in the skid plate and a bent main stand … was all worth it.
BetweenGooseBay and Churchill Falls
And by the way, as far as the pretend to be off-road capable tires is concerned, these turned out to be a good compromise tire.A lot more work for sure when off-roading and not quite your “slick” when curve carving, but they did an astounding job overall and were surprisingly solid and versatile.During the three day abuse only one flat was suffered, although it did require three plugs to fix.
Some overall tips on this ride:
-As always BE PREPARED; a pharmacy and tire repair kitsare a must.
-Use off-road tires, be well rested and alert.
-Do not attempt this ride if your experience is limitedand/or your bike is not off-road capable, unless you do have plenty of time …and money for repairs.
-At least 320Km (200miles) autonomy is a must,otherwise plan to take a gas can.
Starting in Baie-Comeau ishighway 389 which turns into the Trans Labrador Highway, considered one of North America's worst highways and to us, one great neverending “off-road” ride and a unique experience.
My new travel companion on its virgin ride (only 1,500km on the clock and fresh from its 1st service)
I had seen it on the maps when searching for new locations, I had herd about it from several sources and I had it on the back of my mind somewhere so late on a quiet Friday morning in August I decided that I would go for it that very afternoon. The bike was ready as always, gathered the maps, a quick glance revealed roughly 2,200Km off-road and1,400Km of paved roads with around 1,000Km being main highways...yup, quite feasible I figured, just have to make it to Baie-Comeau by night fall and a get a good night’s rest...that means hitting the last ferry in Tadoussac by 19:00hrs,“better get dressed and head off”
For those with time on their hands, Tadoussac has breathtaking scenery to offer
View attachment 28646
For those with time on their hands, Tadoussac will offer a great opportunity for a break during some upclose whale watching and of course, when approaching from the south, the Riviere-de-Loup to St.Simeon ferry is an excellent alternative to cross the St.Lawrence without driving through Quebec City.
Map positioning the Trans Labrador Highway (taken from mappoint.com for the trip)
When reaching the town of Baie-Comeau look for a Hotelor a Motel, there are quite a few, since this will be your starting point on anawesome journey of curve carving, skid plate denting and alternating ridingtechniques. An initial 200Km (125miles) paved section, varying betweenamazingly fast cornering and equally amazing extreme curves, precede another 300Km (190miles) of curvy and hilly dirt roads with acouple of short paved stretches in between, which offer a welcome and neededrest from the dust filled workout.Thiswill lead to what is considered the worst highway in North America, connecting LabradorCity to HappyValley- Goose Bay, a 600Km (375miles) of pure andrugged dirt road which is definitely NOT for the beginner.
Manic5 hydro dam
View attachment 28649
Exiting Baie-Comeau on 138 east, a left turn-off pouts you onto 389 towards Manic5, aquite imposing hydro-dam worth a contemplation stop.The 212 Km (132 miles) of winding road areextremely hilly, with alternating fast stretches and tight corners.An absolute delight of a sporty ride which myR1200GS just excelled at, making me feel that my two wheeled travel companion waspurpose engineered for this kind of fun. The rarity (or pure absence) of lawenforcement in these, literally speaking, necks of the woods allowed forseriously good timing along with a whole lot a pleasure.The stretch of highway is a pure delight forthe experienced sports riding enthusiast as for the relaxed traveleralike.The signalisation is very goodand the road is in good condition and very intuitive, no hidden traps orsurprises, just watch out for the occasional truck.Thegas station at Manic5, situated approximately 2 Km (1 ¼ mile) from the majesticdam, is an absolute must gas stop for those with less than 320Km (200miles)range.
Winding dirtroads are on the menu
As soon as you pass the Manic5 dam you will get a first idea of what lies ahead as an extreme hill climb with hairpin curves, compacted dirt with foot deep washboards partially filled with loose gravel, greet your entrance.The ride will continue on loose gravel covering compacted ground in seriously bad conditions, if you can't handle this first quarter mile you better turn around, it only gets worse.The dirt road continues long enough to let your off-road technique get warmed up before switching to an endless str8 paved stretch about 80Km (50 miles) long. For those with autopilot planning to take a nap on this cruise, don't forget that there are a few abrupt changes of direction before dirt hits again.Check your consumption because about 110Km (roughly 68miles) passed Manic5 there is a rest area with gas and food (no accommodations though) but the following one will only be in Fermont, a little over 200Km (almost 130miles) further. Once this paved aberrance is over the road becomes increasingly winding and very hilly, visibility is short but not quite a concern since the ground is mixed sand and coarse gravel, deep and loose, turning this stretch into a fairly slow ride and a serious workout, but an absolute pleasure for the rally enthusiast of course.This will be pure off-roading and goes on until the Fair Lake mines where pavement greets the wicked who made it this far and escorts them into Fermont, or Labrador City, the choice between the two is definitely your own butt's decision. Beware that this stretch preceeding the paved section is not for the beginner as even the expert rider needs to be ready for a serious workout. Let me put it this way, this section was bad enough for me to seriously question my decision, and my sanity, to be riding it with the original GS tires instead of switching to knobbies.
The 389 between Manic5 and Fermont
In my case it had been a few years since my last extreme off-road adventure and it seemed that the paved portion had come,although as a welcome break, just as I was refreshing my rusty rally technique. Back in the dirt, the second portion required extreme concentration and every off-road skill I ever learned just to be able to keep up half a decent riding speed. A short chatting pause, as I stopped for an exchange of mundane chit chat with three KLR riders from Maine, further escalated the doubts about my tire selection when the trio riding their off-road hammers on rough Sahara ’2s mentioned they had decided to turn around in Labrador City because of the road conditions.
FairLake mines
Either the Shell in Fermont or the Ultramar in Labrador City will see bikes adventuring this far gassing up because Churchill Falls is the only gas stop located pretty much in the middle of the 600Km (375miles) dirt separating the rider from Happy Valley - GooseBay. An excellent treat awaits the fast off-road rider just a few miles past LabradorCity, the Trans Labrador Highway. This is, alternatively, a 2 day nightmare for the unprepared and inexperienced, or a 6 hour extreme ride with loose gravel the size of your fist and "putt-holes" big enough to swallow Civics (that's why we luckily don't see any).
Better get used to it; not many intersections but “the cut-off to nowhere (well the mines really)” is alwaysin better condition
There are soft portions of sand at times foot deepfollowed by hard dirt sections with foot high rock-ledges sticking out of theground, just sitting and waiting for you to loose your concentration.Some seem to have the ability to move and nomatter how alert and quick you are, they just have their way to get you to jump them. Although the Trans Labrador Highway is extreme, it is definitely not as treacherous as the previous portion, curves are longer and visibility is good, making it a true pleasure to fly along, jumping the ledges and fly over the holes. Look out for the graders, when they "stand" in the middle of the road as you come along it can get ugly. Especially nasty are the hideous sections where they just passed once or twice.These guys specialize in laying traps for bikers as they push the gravel towards the middle from both sides before spreading it (done in three operations) and in the process create a 3 to 4 foot wide and very deep gravel line in the middle of the “road” before spreading it. The finished product yields loose gravel with nasty deep tracks from the following trucks and serious debris scooped up from the side and subsequently spread out.
Breathtaking scenery awaiting those who make it here
View attachment 28655
Guess who won the pissing contest (I never zipped up so fast) althoughI managed a pic
Breathtaking scenerybetween Labrador City and Churchill Falls
Especially dangerous are the big chunks of ragged-edged rocks which seem to be quite abundant. About half way to Churchill Falls I passed over an SUV's spare wheel, that's right, an entire wheel with tire and all, which almost threw me out of the saddle. Why didn't I avoid it? It was like the rocks, quick and agile.This highway does not leave any doubt or way in between about riding it to those who adventure on it. Either you have an off-road capable bike and keep your speed up as you would on any serious open desert trail, or, you do plan a few days for the trip and take it nice and very easy. In my case, I was able to keep a decent cruising average despite my tire selection and ended in GooseBayby night fall. Quite honestly, after reaching the hotel, I seriously asked myself what I was thinking about to undertake this trip in one day with those tires. My aching legs, shoulders and back muscles were sore enough as to remind me of my aging body and slap in my face how out of shape my increasing hours behind a desk got me.
No comments needed.
The Aurora Hotel was quite accommodating (the only accommodations available in Goose-Bay, for more options one needs to visit Happy Valley) but the food at the Midway Restaurant was … well, just don't adventure there. A&W and Subways are in town, as well as a Tim Horton's and frankly, I should have known better since some local kids mentioned the last three as the "more fancy restaurants" in town. A little walk down the wharf, while lighting a nice cigar and gazing at the stars in those amazing surroundings, made all my aches and pains simply disappear.
GooseBay from the wharf
As I lay may head to rest, the thought of having toride the same road back to Baie-Comeau AND another 700Km of highway to get home on time for work Monday morning, made me temporarily question my sanity once more.
The next morning, up bright and early, time for a picture and a gas fill, and off towards Labrador City. I was surprisingly free of muscle pains and my off-road skills seemed to have improved over night to the days where my technique was at its finest.
Typicalground condition
View attachment 28652
Cruising at “a nice speed” up the dirt road got me some decent timing, of which I lost some to fix a flat and to readjust the handle bars. I did not fall btw, those nasty rocks and deep crevasses I mentioned earlier exposed one engineering lack on the German “machine”, insufficiently pronounced ridges on the handle bar fixtures, but other then that, a superb ride.
Some amazingviews await the traveler adventuring on this Highway
Sadly enough, before I knew it, I was back at the Manic 5 dam, the dirt was over and behind me. A shift in technique and a few hours of curve carving came as a nice consolation before hitting the highway homebound.Having left GooseBay at 07:30 (Labrador time-EST +1) in the morning and reached home, just over 1,800Km away, 18hours later, puts me just within the legal average. In the end, every ache, every pain, every dent in the skid plate and a bent main stand … was all worth it.
BetweenGooseBay and Churchill Falls
And by the way, as far as the pretend to be off-road capable tires is concerned, these turned out to be a good compromise tire.A lot more work for sure when off-roading and not quite your “slick” when curve carving, but they did an astounding job overall and were surprisingly solid and versatile.During the three day abuse only one flat was suffered, although it did require three plugs to fix.
Some overall tips on this ride:
-As always BE PREPARED; a pharmacy and tire repair kitsare a must.
-Use off-road tires, be well rested and alert.
-Do not attempt this ride if your experience is limitedand/or your bike is not off-road capable, unless you do have plenty of time …and money for repairs.
-At least 320Km (200miles) autonomy is a must,otherwise plan to take a gas can.
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