Olympic Peninsula on Tiger 900’s

Words: Tamara Raye
Photos: Tamara Raye & Jorma Vik

Over the course of the last few years of riding big bikes in inappropriate places, I’ve come across the following Captain John Cook quotation more than once: “Just do once what others say you cannot do, and you will never pay attention to their limitations again.” That phrase has never been more appropriate than while riding motorcycles alongside the Straight of Juan de Fuca, which leads to Puget Sound. Ironically, Captain Cook emphatically stated that this straight did not exist after it was initially discovered by de Fuca in the 16th century. Later maritime explorers proved him wrong by re-discovering the straight. Juan de Fuca had indeed done what others said he could not do – which very much mirrors the feeling of riding a 500lb Triumph Tiger in varied terrain through inclement weather.

Last weekend, Jorma Vik and I had the great pleasure of taking a Tiger 900 Rally Pro and a GT Pro for a quick 450 mile trip around the Olympic Peninsula, by way of Seattle up to Olympic National Park.

While much of our public lands are still closed due to COVID-19 concerns, we had to get creative to find our way around and (responsibly) enjoy the serene muted colors of a gloomy spring backdrop in Mt Olympus. While it can be sometimes hard to respect a closed gate leading to a fun trail or to an iconic road like Hurricane Ridge, we managed to find a lovely legal loop around Lake Crescent to Pysht, the northwestern-most point of our route.

After snaking along the coastline, we found a home for the night in the small Victorian-era seaside town of Port Townsend on the Quimper Peninsula. Being that the bikes were armed with heated seats, heated grips, a very capable rain mode, and with our wet-weather gear, we had a comfortable southward scoot through the rain over the Tacoma Narrows Bridge (former home of Galloping Gertie, RIP). After a quick reprieve from the weather aboard the Point Defiance – Talequah Ferry, we found ourselves in the midst of a lovely sunset at Lisebuela Park near Jorma’s childhood stomping grounds on Vashon.

Albeit a short trip with adverse weather conditions, we were able to canvas a good portion of the Olympic Peninsula over the course of two days on the Triumph Tigers. In the spirit of not setting limitations on ourselves, we will be back soon to continue exploring the Pacific Northwest.