When we first started travelling by motorcycle, all we had for storage space were our saddlebags and a small pack for the back of each bike.  Not a lot of space when you have to carry rain gear, extra shoes, clothes, a purse, extra gloves, etc.  Add to that the thought that I might want to buy something while we’re out and about.  And then came the “last ride drawer”.  And what is that?  Well, let me tell you…..

As pieces of clothing were nearing end of life, I would tuck them away in a little used drawer.    This became known as the “last ride drawer”.  Things that went into that drawer would go on their last ride and never come home.  Sometimes it was socks or underwear.  Sometimes it was a t-shirt that had seen too many washes.  On occasion even a pair of jeans has made their way into the drawer.  As these things got left behind in a hotel room somewhere, it freed up space in our limited luggage for any purchases.

One trip to Quebec I didn’t buy anything but left behind a lot of items.  I came home with an almost empty bike and very little laundry to do.

As our travels have expanded to include vacation rentals, the last ride drawer has expanded to include some things we can use at a rental.  There is almost always a well used cutting board and egg lifter in the drawer.  Other items include dish clothes, tea towels, kitchen hand towels and oven mitts.  Anything that we find vacation rentals to be lacking can end up here when they’re ready to replaced at home.  Some vacation rentals are stocked with everything you can think off; some are not – so this gives us a supply of some of the items that we’ve found some vacation rentals to be missing.

Our last ride drawer started out as a way to save space but now it is also a no cost way to make sure a vacation rental has the things we’re going to want while we’re there.

As this is being posted, we are getting ready for a ride through upper Michigan on our way to a cottage in Quebec.  The last ride drawer is close to empty again but we’ll start restocking when we get home in September.  Watch for my post in September about the Michigan portion of the trip.

Vanessa