Ps. Great to see some some roped on shoes and gear.. I felt very ramshackle in comparison to your sleek set up till now!

 @buspilot: ... ah yes, the shoes. I packed very diligently for this trip, but forgot about the clothes I wore on the plane to pick up the bike. There was a light jacket, shoes, and pair of socks that I hadn't planned on, and they took up any spare room, so the shoes needed to be strapped on. Also the pole for my tent (an aging Black Diamond Megamid) was too long to fit in the panniers, so it got zip-tied to the tail bag. Lastly, the heavy-duty tubes that were in the tires I had a shop replace before I picked up the bike, were still in decent shape, so I lashed them to the handles of the panniers... just in case. I figured, 'if I don't take them I'll need them, if I do take them...' (I didn't need them).

 Don't get me started on the number of times I saw signs that warned me to 'stay on designated roads' while herds of cows wandered all over the place. Love that cows have greater freedoms in the national forests than do I, and I have yet to see a cow pay taxes.

 Yes there is always at least one item that doesn't quite fit in the available space and needs to be strapped on top! Sounds like you have the same problems with access to gazeted roads and over zealous cattle farmers that we have here!

 Never too late. I just visited again last week. Dropped one of my daughters off at a camp on Lake Coeur d'Alene in Idaho for a week, and rather than drive the 8 hours home, I drove another 6 hours east and spent the week in and around Bozeman Montana, visiting Yellowstone and also riding my mtb in the Crazy, and Tobacco Root Mountains.

 Oh yes sounds like a splendid adventure! I live in a mountain region here in Japan and it would be fun to cruse the hills on a smooth motor bike like yours packed with tons of goodness!

 @nikoniko: is there really any region in Japan that is not either a mountain region, or very close to a mountain region? Ok, maybe some spots in Hokkaido are pretty flat... In my last two years of high school in Japan (81-83), I rode a Yamaha RD 400 all over the Kanto, Tohoku and Chubu/Hokuriku regions. So many fond memories of amazing mountain roads, generous hospitality... Would love to tour there as an adult.