2006 Road trip

I would like to start this off by thanking all those that encouraged me and allowed for me to take this trip. Without them this page would not be possible.

Many things occur on trip of this magnitude: physically mentally and spiritually. During the course of this literary exercise I hope to cover them in more depth. Long solo trips by whatever means of transport allow for much reflection interrupted by periods of activity that we normally share with others. I intend to self disclose on this story more than I normally allow others to see. People that truly know me already know that I am a rather shy individual that does some things that are out of character.

The trip started like most others. Weather was beautiful albeit on the toasty side as I left Wisconsin headed for my nieces wedding in Orange Park, Fl. I left on a Tuesday for a Sunday wedding. Therefore not being in any type of rush I was able to enjoy the ride and take in some sightseeing on the way. After traveling though Northern Illinois ( a state that is best for traveling through and not spending much time in my opinion) I picked up I-74 and headed for Indy. During this trip I quickly remembered my disdain for large cities. Indy however was very tolerable. I cannot say this for some of the others. Indiana was not traumatic and soon found myself in Kentucky.

I have to say that I have always found Kentucky to be a very pleasurable experience and this was no exception. Hence I spent more time than  perhaps necessary putting me a little behind any perceived schedule I might have had. The people there were hospitable but perhaps a bit introverted. After traveling through Lexington I decided to traverse most of Tennessee. Tennessee is one of the most beautiful states in the nation but no surprise there and therefore I will not dwell on it here either. This however was the first time I had been in Gatlinburg. Pretty as the area is I will not be going back any time soon. Please refer to my disdain for large cities. The population is not the only determining factor here but also the amount of congestion. Harley baggers are not made for stop and go traffic. After spending some time in the Smokies it was time to continue the trip and do the family thing. Never having been much of a boy scout directions are not my forte. To put it bluntly I got lost alright. Get over it. I knew damn well that I still needed to south or southeast. It seems the damn roads were not designed with my needs in mind. I ended up going southwest back to Atlanta. Remember what I said about big cities. Then on to Macon. Echo the big cities thing again. That's right you might as well get used to it as this will be a recurring concept for this trip. Well needless to say I had enough of this happy horseshit by this time to last me for the next few lifetimes. I got off the interstate at this time and started taking the back roads of Georgia to head over to Jacksonville and the Orange Park area.

This story is not going to be a bitch session. I did see some of the most gorgeous scenery and had many pleasant experience along the way but when something bothers me I am not shy to share it. One of the main reasons for leaving Florida last year is that I have a very hard time dealing with the oppressive heat. The heat in Georgia was very bad and Florida wasn't much better. Nothing however compared to the heat I experienced further into the trip.

Finally arrived in Orange Park on Friday. Did the family thing and attended the wedding. Some of you know about my wedding which was a large affair but shall I say this was a gala event. 14 attendants, 50 singers, bell ringers and 3 dogs (dressed in tuxes. Did I say dressed in Tuxes) The pictures of those however were very blurred and were not suitable for inclusion here. This was a problem that repeated itself many times during the trip but then at least I could blame it on excess amounts of alcohol. I cannot use that excuse here. All I can do is blame it on poor photographic skills. I did get to laugh at my brother for having to wear a monkey suit. As for myself I have never been forced to submit to such lavishes of sartorial splendor. Nancy my sister in law looked very nice in her outfit. My apologies for the blurry image. I guess my career as a photographer will not be getting off the ground anytime soon. Grand dad Bob also had to wear a tux and looked very elegant. I hope I do as well as him if I live that long. He celebrated his 92 birthday the day I arrived. Michele (2) (3) looked lovely as always.

Upon leaving Orange Park it was time to spend a day and night at Lake Como. No pictures allowed here.

I then traveled to Sarasota to spend some time with friends before heading on the second part of the journey. I particularly wanted to go bike night at Mel's Diner but rain forced the cancellation of that event and unfortunately the event is being terminated and moved to another venue on a different evening. For me no trip to Sarasota would be complete without spending some time at Carlie Brucia's Memorial (1) (2) (3) (4) (5) (6) (7) (8) (9) (10). For those of you that have not had to time to visit the Garden. MAKE THE TIME!

My original plan was after leaving Sarasota was to spend another day or two at Lake Como and then head home. I'm glad that instead of crossing I-10 I made a sharp left. Tallahassee brought a brief respite from the OPPRESSIVE HEAT if only for about 1/2 hour at a rest stop. Then it was Horace Greeley time, and I went West. Even though I am not a young man.

I have started before that I do not like large cities. Mobile, AL is definitely one of them. Ugly seems to be the best word for it. Not much else for Al as far I'm concerned. That goes for Biloxi, MS as well. The only good thing there was being able to see what remains of Beauvoir, the home of Jefferson Davis. Katrina did a whole bunch of damage there. The structure is heavily damaged and not open to the public at this time. So heavily damaged in fact that in my opinion if it were not for the historical significance this structure would have been leveled. New Orleans was next on the big cities list that I will not likely being through again. I decided to take the trip over Lake Pontchartrain. To me that was a waste of a toll. The best thing about it was watching some lady having a domestic dispute in a crossover with law enforcement watching. Discretion being the key I felt it best to continue riding. For those of you that have never had the (pleasure) of this route I will digress a moment. The road takes you into New Orleans and drops you in the middle of nowhere. Street signs are minimal at best. At least the ones pointing the way back to I-10. Lots of swampland. Then came Texas.

Now I will be the first to admit that I have a fondness for Texas and Texans. Beaumont is acceptable on the big cities list as well as Houston. I knew that Texas was a large state as well as all of you. I did not realize however that it is 882 miles across on I-10. the first stop of any significance was in San Antonio. Up until then it was just a matter of putting on miles, burning up fossil fuel and enjoying the scenery. Very worthwhile endeavors I might add.

While on the way I spotted a sign for the Alamo and thought why not. I'm a tourist doing the tourist thing. Missed the turn and wounded up on mission row. First stop was Mission Conception. 1 2 3 4 5 6 7 8 9 10. This was a nice diversion from my usual balls to wall racking up miles. I would have to give this place a recommendation for all travelers to stop by, educational, entertaining and much less commercial than the Alamo. While looking for a place to park, I hooked up with another rider who turns out to be a chief of police somewhere close to Memphis. Good thing as he talks this cop into letting us park our bikes inside the compound. Pix at Alamo 2 3 4. Remember what I said about big cities. Downtown San Antonio rates right up there and soon it was time to leave. Remember what I said about OPPRESSIVE HEAT. Definitely time to split. The chief of police and I parted company, him heading to Laredo and me heading to points west. After getting lost on the double-decker interstate ramp system I found something pleasant. The speed limit between San Antonio and El Paso is 80 mph. This is nice as there a whole lot of nothing going on here except beautiful scenery. Yes I had to go 80, at least for a short while then returning to my comfy economical 60. If you know me you already know I'm a cheap SOB. Let's see, 60 mph equals 55mpg, while 80mph equals 38 mpg. Tough choice there. Somewhere along the way after fueling up I once again missed the ramp. It seems like all the interstate ramps combine ingress and egress together to a frontage road. Therefore while riding on the frontage road as I stubbornly refused to turn around I made the foolish mistake trying to jump a curb into a rest area in my attempt at rejoining I-10. The story goes about everything being big in Texas and let me tell you the curbs are no exception. Therefore while my bike was going West, the kickstand spring took off in another direction and useless to boot. This was on a Sunday and several hundred miles (Texas is a big state) from a Harley shop. To my good fortune a small church group had been camping and saved my day with a spare bungee cord.  The next morning after staying in a Super 8 (very luxurious and inexpensive wish I could remember the name of the town) I spoke with another biker who informed me that the closest open (Monday) Harley shop was Barnett's in El Paso. Now this was about 300 miles and in the wrong direction as I had wanted to Roswell. Oh well, that will have to wait for another road trip. The guys in El Paso were great, they brought my bike right in and fixed it and was back on my way at no charge. That is except for the $125 I dropped on t-shirts and things. El Paso, remember what I said about big cities, this one had about the worst traffic I had encountered thus far. It was time to split again.

After checking with the HOG atlas, I-25 through New Mexico seemed like a good idea. That is until I reached just a little north of Las Cruces. I feel a need to digress here and get on my soapbox. You may have noticed that no mention of going through Mexico has transpired on this trip. In fact at this point New Mexico does not even share a border with a foreign country. In fact this was at least 2 hours away from the border. Therefore when traveling by motorcycle obviously not carrying illegal aliens, in 100+ temperatures I was confused and very angry to be forced along with all northbound traffic into a customs border patrol checkpoint. Further upset was I as watched my oil pressure slowly drop while in line waiting for the customs agent standing under a canopy with a 60 inch box fan to keep him cool. All I could think about at the time was if the Bushman's popularity rating was so bad that he had to create a diversion like this (illegals crossing the border) it is a very sad time in America. Back on the road.

I spent the night in Truth or Consequences, NM. Pleasant enough little town. Nothing much to report here. The next day found me headed north on I-25 again getting over the border patrol situation. On the way about 30 or so miles I spotted a sign for the National Radio Astronomical Observatory. Underneath the sign it said very large array. At first I thought this to be a little pompous until I found out there are about 10 of these observatories in the western hemisphere all interconnected and this one is named Very Large Array. After having breakfast in Socorro, I asked some of the locals about this site. They all said that it would make for a very interesting stop and off I went. Along the way I was told that to get there just go through Magdelena 1 2. All this is along the same US 60 that runs through Wisconsin. Now picture this, riding along minding your business taking in the sights not a care in the world when you spot it. You can't understand what is happening right away then shear panic sets it. Headed straight towards you at speeds I have never seen is a fighter jet not more than 100' off the ground. This constitutes pucker factor to the nth degree. Then he's gone. I must say this is a rush that I really don't want to experience again in the near future. Upon entering the VLA grounds I found that jets were not the only source of pure terror. A more dangerous adversary exists. I spooted two deer about a mile ahead who decided at the last second to bolt in front the bike. More pucker factor. VLA itself is located such that there are  27 dishes which are located on railroad tracks in a 'Y' pattern. Each arm is13 miles across. The dishes themselves are 25 meters across. 1 2 3 4 5 6 If you ever get out that way check it out. I'm glad I did.

The next stop on the way was at the four corners monument. This is where Colorado, Utah, New Mexico and Arizona intersect. No comments please on my interstate girth.1 2 3 4 5.

As I started this out mentioning that long distance solo rides allow for much reflection. I came to greatly appreciate that I have been very fortunate to have been able to see and do the many things that I have. When this trip was complete I had ridden my motorcycles over the years in 42 states. This country is so vast and diverse not only in geography but culture as well that this biker has no real desire to travel outside its boundaries.

The next major stop of the trip was in Durango, Colorado.  I must say that the road from the Four Corners Monument to Durango is a scenic road without very much traffic. This makes for a biking heaven. My intention of going to Durango was to ride the narrow gauge railroad to Silverton. Unfortunately I should have done some research before going. The train departs at several intervals in the morning and I had missed it by several hours. Rather than spend another night in a tourist town and then a whole day on the train I pushed on. The road to Silverton was under construction with a bad storm rolling in. This is not what any biker wants to see. After getting back ahead of the storm, I found the road to be very entertaining. This is a flat lie. The road in question is US 550. The Harley Hog atlas lists the as a scenic highway. They lie. From Silverton to Ouray this is the twistiest road I have ever been on. This road makes 'Deals Gap' look like a walk in the park. As all motorcycle riders should know, the preferred method of negotiating tight turns is by counter-steering. There are several hairpin switchbacks marked as 10 or 15 mph turns which if you are not negotiating with counter-steering methods will at best find you in on-coming traffic, or worse proving the laws of physics cannot be ignored. As far as scenic is concerned, I would not know as I found it too difficult to pry my eyes off the road. While stopped at one of the wide spots in the road I did manage to take these pictures.1 2 3 4 5 6 7 8 9 10 10a 10b .

The road changes demeanor dramatically once reaching Ouray. In retrospect I would have enjoyed spending more time there but after the ride on US 550 to that point I was enjoying the much tamer road.

My next stop was Monarch Pass, CO. At over 12,000 feet, this is not for the faint of heart. It is from the observation deck, (one short aerial ride away) that you can actually stand over the top of the continental divide. I must explain something at this time. Not only do I have a mild fear of heights, but I am extremely claustrophobic. The ride up to the observation deck is in a small enclosed capsule suspended from a cable. Most people would have no problem with this as you are only 20 or so feet off the ground. The ride takes you 700 feet vertically and 1400 feet horizontally. I joked with the operator in the tower that all I would have to do now is have someone put a snake in the capsule so I could confront all my fears. The view from observation is truly awesome. From the top you are able to see twelve 14,000 foot peaks.   1 2 3 4 5 6 7 8 9 10 11 12 13 14 15 16 17 18. Upon leaving Monarch Pass I encountered some very nasty weather namely sleet. This is not a pleasant experience and one that makes you understand that sometimes a skid lid does indeed serve a beneficial purpose.

After leaving Monarch Pass it was time to push on to Leadville, CO. Normally I would spend more time in Leadville owing to the history of the area sightseeing and the rest. However, at this point in the trip I was becoming very tired. Many days away from home, hot temperatures, high altitudes and the miles had taken it's toll on me physically as well as breaking my spirit somewhat. I guess you could say that I getting homesick and just plain tired. I did not even stop in Leadville. I just enjoyed the scenery and kept going. Heading east and north I finally came to US 70. Ready to rack up some quick miles heading into Denver and make my way north on what was becoming the infamous US 25 pain in the ass interstate again. It was after going through the Eisenhower/Johnson Memorial that I-70 came to a standstill. Construction once again slowed the trip to the point I could not even keep my feet on the floorboards. Now I can enjoy a good slow race at a campground as a spectator but what I have a difficult time dealing with is slow race pace on an interstate. Finally reaching Denver, which is only about sixty miles away but over two and a half hours I got off I-70 only to find that I-25 had so much traffic the speeds became even slower. The good news is that once back on I-25 I knew I would be away from big cities for quite some time. The big city would be Cheyenne WY. I can handle this.

Cheyenne is a true western city that I would like to spend more time in the next time around. I may not have been treated very well at the first hotel, which is okay by me. They did not get my business. I did find an adequate place to stay with MUCH more reasonable rates. The downside was that I had to take a smoking room, but it was not too bad. From here after having breakfast it was on to Montana. There several options here for roadways and I chose to take US 59. This route passes through Thunder Basin National Grassland (WY). After the long and often arduous riding to this point, traveling through a grassland with mountains visible on both sides and a relatively straight road in the center was a pleasing relaxing experience. It is roads like this that allow for just taking in scenery and simply enjoying being alive. Don't get me wrong, all the areas on the trip have their own beauty, even the big cities I'm told. This area and time on the bike allowed me to recharge my spiritual batteries. This was a good thing because after spending the night in Montana. It was off to North Dakota.

To put it bluntly the weather sucked. Rain and cold are not a friend to the biker. I-94 takes you past Theodore Roosevelt National Park. the weather did not allow for much sightseeing here but it was warm, dry and offered a place where I could put on more clothes. It also informed how President Teddy was a staunch supporter of preserving our country for future enjoyment. At this time I found out that he was a close friend of Seth Bullock of Deadwood fame. More on Seth later. Due to the weather and homesickness I was facing a strong dilemma. I could have continued on I-94 east and gotten home sooner or take US 85 down to Spearfish. I chose the latter. It was good. Now at this point I had been traveling in the rain and cold for several hours. Bell Fourche, which is the geographical center of the United States saw the weather starting to turn pleasant. When I got to Spearfish the sun was shining and a beautiful day it turned out to be. After losing the extra clothes it only took a few miles and the remaining clothes were nice and dry. It was then time to head to Spearfish Canyon. 1 2 3 4 5 6 7 8 9 10 11. It was then on to Deadwood.

Now, I have been to Deadwood before on 2 separate occasions. Both times however were camping during bike week in Sturgis. I had never spent much time in Deadwood itself except to play a few slot machines and for meals. The town has so much more to offer and this time I partook of some of it's history and nightlife. The town has a central reservations office which I highly recommend. Not only are they courteous, they saved me money. I think I stated at the outset that I am notoriously cheap. After checking in at the Bullock Express I decided to take the Harley up to Mt Moriah Cemetery.
1 2 3 4 5 6 . Those were the generic pictures. Now for the well known tombstones: Wild Bill 2, Calamity Jane 2, Reverend Smith 2 3. These were the easy ones to get to. When you enter the cemetery you are given a map which shows the location of many of the permanent residents. This map is shown to scale. That is until you make the trek to the final resting place of Seth Bullock. His grave is located at the top of hill which at the time of burial overlooked the city of Deadwood. Pine trees have grown up since then obscuring the view. I don't think he minds. I know I'm not in very good shape these days with bad legs and lungs. I'm glad I went once but future trips to the cemetery will most likely find me skipping this final grave or I may have to join him in the great beyond. Before taking this picture it was necessary for me to make use of the bench located by the site, otherwise the picture would have been way too blurry. The following pictures are from lower in Mt Moriah overlooking the town. 1 2 3 4. After stuffing my lungs back into my chest I slowly walked back down to the main cemetery and cautioned several visitors about the task ahead and the shoes they were wearing if they wanted to see old Seth.

Deadwood offers a trolley service for fifty cents that is not only well worth not having to travel, find a parking space and then find the vehicle after several adult beverages, but also entertaining as well.

The nightlife in Deadwood has even more to offer than the STILL LIFE. I was able to view the shootout in the street.2 that occurs nightly. Deadwood is not a static town. 1 2.

As I knew I would not be biking anywhere drinking seemed like a very appropriate activity for the evening. Now Deadwood has more than it's share of watering holes. The first stop was the No. 10 Saloon. It was an obvious choice to me. Remember how I said before I was shy. With a few beers that goes all to hell. Wild Bill Hickok comes out an requests the assistance of three volunteers from the audience. You guessed it. My hand shot up and I found myself reenacting the shootout in the bar. The pictures are somewhat blurry. 1   2    3    4    5.

Then came the Trial of Jack McCall. Lucky for me the people that took the pictures in the barroom were also going to the trial and saved a front row seat me. Now I honestly thought my acting career was over for the night even though I secretly hoped it was not.

The cast of characters for the trial was: Foreman 1 2 3, Charles Whitehead; Judge,  1 2 3 4 5 Judge W. L. Kuykendall; Prosecutor1 2 3 4 5 , Colonel George May; Judge Miller for the defense1 2, Charlie Rich, and the assassin Jack McCall1 2. The jury, sheriff  2 and several witnesses were all selected from the audience. My role was that of Captain William R Massey. The actors give you a script to work from. My script was one of the larger speaking roles.1 2 3 4 5 6 7 .

Various pictures during the evening. 1 2 3 4 5 6 7 8.

Alas my time in Deadwood was coming to a close. It was time to take the trolley back and get some sleep. The evening had been the best time I have ever had in Deadwood.

Next stop was to be Sturgis as the Harley needed some additional lubrication in its system. While there and playing the tourist role I checked out the Motorcycle Museum. 1 2 3 4 I had more pictures but can't seem to find them.

After a quick stop at Wall Drug for a bite to eat and it was back on the road. I was going to ride through the Badlands and get back on I-90 east, that is until they wanted $15.00 to drive through on a motorcycle. A quick turn around and it was back the way I came. Sometimes you just have to say enough is enough. Gouging is just not acceptable.

After spending the night in Mitchell SD, the Corn Palace was the next stop on the agenda. 1 2 3 4 5 6 7 8

All in all I was gone just over three weeks and had ridden over 6800 miles. Conclusion: I am extremely fortunate to have the support system that allowed for this trip and all the others that I have had and will take in the future. America is vast and beautiful. I hope you have enjoyed following this trip even a small fraction of how much I enjoyed being able to share it with you.

FLFLHTC