​SMOG WEEKEND

Star Trek Original Series Set Tour

August 22-23, 2026

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​Fellow Rogues and Scoundrels:

 

Want to get out more this year? Do you have an appetite for exploring great roads and new destinations with your motorcycle and friends, but never seem to find the time or opportunity?

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Summer Motorcycle Overnight Getaway (SMOG) Weekends are the solution!  Each monthly trip has a unique destination and a related theme.  We depart Gaby’s Café (gabyscafe941nj.com) in Frenchtown, NJ on Saturday mornings, travel great roads with uncommon objectives to unusual destinations, enjoy exceptional company at dinner on Saturday evenings, and then wander home on Sundays.

 

The SMOG Weekend of August 22-23 will take us to the Star Trek Original Series Set Tour located in Ticonderoga, NY.  When the Star Trek television series was canceled in 1969, the original sets were dismantled and largely destroyed.  About 15 years ago and in collaboration with Paramount Pictures, superfan James Cawley began the process of rebuilding the sets just as they would have appeared 50 years ago in the Desilu Studios when the series was in production.  This has resulted in the most accurate rebuild of the original Star Trek sets anywhere.  Visit the Set Tour's website (click here) and you will be impressed.

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You may want to purchase you tickets soon.  I know that sounds absurd, but be warned that Star Trek fans routinely purchase tickets up to a year in advance of when they visit this attraction.  Admission is $24 and click here to purchase your ticket for the 4:00PM or 5:00PM timed entry to the sets on Saturday, August 22nd.

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However, the real reason we will be going there are the roads that will be taking us there.  Similar to the roads selected for our other weekend adventures, the ones throughout the Hudson River Valley region are a motorcycle magic carpet ride consisting of smooth ribbons of pavement with sweeping turns through rolling countryside and sleepy little towns that time has forgotten.  They will take you from warm summer sunlight to cool forest shadows and provide occasional twists and turns that will delight and challenge both you and your machine.  These roads are the reason motorcycles were invented and why you have one.

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We will be staying Saturday night in Ticonderoga, NY at the Circle Court Motel, a small family owned establishment described as "a hidden gem" by one reviewer (click here for all the details) and located just a 10 minute walk from the Star Trek experience.  If it is full, then book a room at the Stone House Motel located literally directly across the street (click here for all the other details).

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We will enjoy dinner on Saturday evening at either Madden's Pub (click here for the menu) or the more upscale Paper & Pencil restaurant (click here for the website) located about a 10 and 20 minute walk, respectively, from the motels where we will be staying.  There are other dining options in the area, but none within walking distance and I don't know the availability of taxi or Uber service in the area.  We will figure out where we are going for dinner while we visit the bridge of the Enterprise.

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Be prepared for a prompt "kickstands up" departure at 8:00AM (one hour earlier than usual) on Saturday morning at Gaby’s Café (gabyscafe941nj.com) in Frenchtown, NJ.  The ride to Ticonderoga will be a pleasant excursion totaling approximately 300 miles on the backroads of New Jersey and New York.  (Route details will be provided to participants as the date draws nearer.)  Naturally, we will stop for lunch along the way and have the opportunity to relax at the hotel before dinner. 

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If you are flying solo and want to share a room on Saturday night, let me know and I will put you in touch with other solo riders.

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"How do I participate in this experience?" you ask.  Here are the three simple steps:

 

• Advise me that you will be joining us (just send me an email at the address appearing below);

 

• Make your hotel reservation (remember to select the refundable option if you are sensitive to the whims of the weather gods); and

 

• Arrive at Gaby’s Café (gabyscafe941nj.com) in Frenchtown, NJ that Saturday morning with a full tank of gas and, as previously indicated, be prepared for a prompt "kickstands up" departure at 8:00AM (one hour earlier than usual due to the distance we are travelling).

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Is there a rain date?  Think positively.  However, we do occasionally reschedule our adventures when we encounter tempests, typhoons, cataclysmic seismic events, the Borg, and other Armageddon-type inconveniences.

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If you plan to join us or have any questions, email me at WanderlustRidersNJ@gmail.com.  (Be sure to include the "NJ".)

 

Fred Larcombe

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