Friday, June 29, 2012
Wednesday, June 27, 2012
Wading Thru the Stuff
Hopefully I can get an update here at some point. I've unloaded my motorcycle but have not even unpacked yet! First order of business was to get my brake line replaced on the truck, which entailed removing the bed, fabricating and installing the line and getting the bed back on, none of which was straight forward. I also cleaned up and undercoated the frame while the bed was off.
I had to replace an exhaust manifold gasket, fix the rear plate lights and replace the inner and outer tie rod ends on the passenger side. I would still be at it if it wasn't for Jay, thanks for all the help! He probably had as many tools dragged out of his garage as I did mine, in order to get it all done. We got to play with 22 caliber explosives in the process, which made the whole thing very worthwile - who doesn't like blasting stubborn parts apart? With any luck, I should have a valid inspection sticker before noon tomorrow. If so, it will be for the first time in about 3 years, woohoo!
I also spent about 5 hours cleaning the bike which realistically leaves about 3 hours to finish that job.
Need a little time to get unpacked, do laundry, visit Harry & Mary and pay some bills, but I'll be back soon.
I had to replace an exhaust manifold gasket, fix the rear plate lights and replace the inner and outer tie rod ends on the passenger side. I would still be at it if it wasn't for Jay, thanks for all the help! He probably had as many tools dragged out of his garage as I did mine, in order to get it all done. We got to play with 22 caliber explosives in the process, which made the whole thing very worthwile - who doesn't like blasting stubborn parts apart? With any luck, I should have a valid inspection sticker before noon tomorrow. If so, it will be for the first time in about 3 years, woohoo!
I also spent about 5 hours cleaning the bike which realistically leaves about 3 hours to finish that job.
Need a little time to get unpacked, do laundry, visit Harry & Mary and pay some bills, but I'll be back soon.
Friday, June 22, 2012
June 22, Friday
Home. Did around 1,100 miles over the past 2 days to get here because it was like a magnet, the closer I got, the more I wanted to get here. That, and I have to fix the brake line on my truck so I can get to work!
Thanks Jay! I should take a vacation more often, the yard looks great! I appreciate you keeping your eye on things while I was gone. And Harry and Mary, thanks for dinner and a beer - what better way to end a trip?
What a great trip and experience. I wrote this all on the road, on an anemic netbook, whenever I could scrounge up a wifi connection and it does not even begin to scratch the surface. The pictures are okay but they too fall way short of reality - I'm talking way way way short. I'll try to clean this all up, tie it all together and add some pictures and video, which I have quite a bit of, in the next few days.
For now, thanks for all the support, comments, emails, texts, calls, FB support etc. There were just about 5,000 hits on the map, plus another 1,200 or so hits on the blog, which is way beyond what I thought it would be. Next time (yes, there is a trip in the back of my mind ... Dan?) I will be much more organized, which of course comes with experience.
I'll be back in a bit,
Thanks Jay! I should take a vacation more often, the yard looks great! I appreciate you keeping your eye on things while I was gone. And Harry and Mary, thanks for dinner and a beer - what better way to end a trip?
What a great trip and experience. I wrote this all on the road, on an anemic netbook, whenever I could scrounge up a wifi connection and it does not even begin to scratch the surface. The pictures are okay but they too fall way short of reality - I'm talking way way way short. I'll try to clean this all up, tie it all together and add some pictures and video, which I have quite a bit of, in the next few days.
For now, thanks for all the support, comments, emails, texts, calls, FB support etc. There were just about 5,000 hits on the map, plus another 1,200 or so hits on the blog, which is way beyond what I thought it would be. Next time (yes, there is a trip in the back of my mind ... Dan?) I will be much more organized, which of course comes with experience.
I'll be back in a bit,
Thursday, June 21, 2012
June 20, Wednesday
Yesterday was a long day. Had to physically fight the wind all day and it was a 500 mile day. And Hot. Everyone was giving me reports of severe thunderstorms coming and 8" of rain up in Minneapolis that was coming this way. I started out in overcast skies but was able to outrun it. I could actually see the line where the weather front was. If I put my hand in front of my face at arms length, the clear skies were about two fingers high and ran the length of the horizon. It took a couple hours to reach that line, but when I did, the temp went from 68 degrees to 84 degrees within about a mile. It did eventually go up into the high nineties.
I was so tired that I was yelling at the top of my lungs and shaking my head and anything else I could think of to keep alert (and awake). I finally pulled off into a little gas station to get a coffee, but then saw that 18 oz Monster drink that I have never tried. I guzzled the whole thing and was thinking to myself that this isn't working, but then hit the road. I have to tell you that it worked excellent and I was wide awake and ready to go until at least midnight, which was 8 hours later. No rush, no side effects, I will probably be having my second one ever this afternoon.
Took a detour to check out the Wall Drug Store. Very cool place and Wall is a very cool town.
I was woken up this morning by the sound of rain on my tent, bent fortunately is was just a brief shower and I was able to get out of town before it turned into anything. That meant that I hit Chicago at about 8:30 am, not what I wanted to do! It was okay though, slow going for about an hour, but I'm through and sitting in a McD's in Gary Indiana.
I don't know if Gary is a black town or not, but every person in here (and there are about 30-40) are black. Except me. It really is awesome to see. There are people here that I know have been here for well over an hour sitting with an empty coffee or juice cup, chatting. There talk about college basketball, get a job, politics, etc. A guy came over and was talking about my bike and how long I had been riding and where I was from and going to. I told him about the trip and then he asked what my longest trip was besides this one. I told him it was about 200 miles and he almost dropped his coffee.
While I have been typing this, we've had the police here and there rescue wagon is here with a stretcher about 5 feet away from me. The guy is refusing to go, don't know what happened, but I thought I'd be stealth and sneak a pic with my iphone. Oops, did know the flash was on, so much for stealth.
I've been sitting here for a while, very comfortable, but I better get going.
I was so tired that I was yelling at the top of my lungs and shaking my head and anything else I could think of to keep alert (and awake). I finally pulled off into a little gas station to get a coffee, but then saw that 18 oz Monster drink that I have never tried. I guzzled the whole thing and was thinking to myself that this isn't working, but then hit the road. I have to tell you that it worked excellent and I was wide awake and ready to go until at least midnight, which was 8 hours later. No rush, no side effects, I will probably be having my second one ever this afternoon.
Took a detour to check out the Wall Drug Store. Very cool place and Wall is a very cool town.
I was woken up this morning by the sound of rain on my tent, bent fortunately is was just a brief shower and I was able to get out of town before it turned into anything. That meant that I hit Chicago at about 8:30 am, not what I wanted to do! It was okay though, slow going for about an hour, but I'm through and sitting in a McD's in Gary Indiana.
I don't know if Gary is a black town or not, but every person in here (and there are about 30-40) are black. Except me. It really is awesome to see. There are people here that I know have been here for well over an hour sitting with an empty coffee or juice cup, chatting. There talk about college basketball, get a job, politics, etc. A guy came over and was talking about my bike and how long I had been riding and where I was from and going to. I told him about the trip and then he asked what my longest trip was besides this one. I told him it was about 200 miles and he almost dropped his coffee.
While I have been typing this, we've had the police here and there rescue wagon is here with a stretcher about 5 feet away from me. The guy is refusing to go, don't know what happened, but I thought I'd be stealth and sneak a pic with my iphone. Oops, did know the flash was on, so much for stealth.
Monday, June 18, 2012
June 18, Sunday
A few stats:
trip so far 19 days
yesterday 223.9 miles
overall 6424.4 miles
avg speed 55.0 mph
max speed 90.9 mph
distance home ~2,000 miles
I stayed at the KOA park at the foot of Devil's Tower in Wyoming Saturday night. I was going to make it a 2 night stay, but I had my tent pitched in a gravel RV spot so I could have electricity, and it was all just a little bit awkward.
At the 11:00 AM checkout time, I made the decision to take off. I paid the 5 bucks to take a ride up the 3 mile road to the base of Devil's Tower and then did a 45 minute hike out near the bolder field. Very impressive piece of rock. If you ask a geologist how it was formed, he would tell you from the surrounding sandstone eroding away. If you asked a native Indian, he would tell you it was from a rock and a tree and a buffalo helping a young girl escape from an Indian who had transformed into a bear and killed the rest of the tribe. I like the second version.
Wyoming was beautiful and the ride thru the red sandstone formations very nice. It was a bit windy, as seems to be the case anywhere west of the Mississippi, at least for me. The South Dakota ride on the other hand, probably can't be beat. The road thru the Black Hills is amazing, and I am sure when I hit the badlands it will not fail to be impressive.
I stopped at the Crazy Horse Monument and at first glance it was a little underwhelming. After sitting through a 20 minute orientation movie, checking out the visitor's center and looking at the monument again, I was very impressed. It is after all, a complete mountain they are carving, and doing a lot of the carving with dynamite.
I then headed to Deadwood but just did a drive through. It was very cool how they preserved the old west feel with the architecture and brick streets. The hills surrounding Deadwood have a medium to light covering of pine trees and they are all dead. I'm not sure if that is how they got the name for the town, but it seemed very fitting.
The temps yesterday hit 100+ degrees and the roads were up and down the hills, with tight and sweeping curves. Very nice to ride, but I was a little concerned with the tires due to the heat, the speed, the weight and the stress of the constant cornering, along with the substantial wear they have now. I had a couple font end wheel wobbles, but I think it was due to the wind, the tires are okay. They are both wearing a flat band around them now, more like a car tire than a bike tire, but I'm pretty sure they are going to be able to get me home.
I had some time to kill so I headed south through Custer City, Pringle, Hot Springs and the Wind Cave national Park scenic wildlife drive but didn't see any wildlife. The terrain and view on the other hand was well worth the trip.
I finally made my way back north to the Mt. Rushmore area and found a KOA about 5 miles from the park. Just sitting at the entrance, I knew this would be my first (elective) two night stay. I'm not sure how big the campground is, but wouldn't believe it is under 100 or more acres. It is a community as much as it is a campground and much larger than a lot of the towns I stopped in up north. There are pools and restaurants, pavilions, off-road vehicle rentals, overnight horse and chuck wagon excursions, golf cart rentals, stores, and on and on. My cabin sits on a little ridge, about 25 feet above and overlooking the front part of the park, very cool place.
When I first pulled in the park, I met Bill, one of the attendants cruising around on golf carts, which are very necessary for them to get around. Its a good thing I met him because he was a great help in helping me find my cabin, or rather the road to it. His fist attempt failed which made me feel a little better for not finding it on my own. Later that evening I was able to hitch a ride with him back to my spot with a bundle of wood and a bag of "supplies". On the ride back he told me that there is a must-see light show at Mt. Rushmore after dark. A bus leaves the campground at 7:30 and brings you back after the show. It would be quicker and more timely if I just took my bike, but I have been trying very hard to stay off the road after dark. I've seen about 20 deer and animal strikes on the road so far, and have had deer run in front of me during the day. I don't want that at night.
I think I may make the stretch run home tomorrow - I'll hit the freeway and take the most direct route. Man, I'm going to miss these roads I've been on ... a lot.
trip so far 19 days
yesterday 223.9 miles
overall 6424.4 miles
avg speed 55.0 mph
max speed 90.9 mph
distance home ~2,000 miles
I stayed at the KOA park at the foot of Devil's Tower in Wyoming Saturday night. I was going to make it a 2 night stay, but I had my tent pitched in a gravel RV spot so I could have electricity, and it was all just a little bit awkward.
At the 11:00 AM checkout time, I made the decision to take off. I paid the 5 bucks to take a ride up the 3 mile road to the base of Devil's Tower and then did a 45 minute hike out near the bolder field. Very impressive piece of rock. If you ask a geologist how it was formed, he would tell you from the surrounding sandstone eroding away. If you asked a native Indian, he would tell you it was from a rock and a tree and a buffalo helping a young girl escape from an Indian who had transformed into a bear and killed the rest of the tribe. I like the second version.
Wyoming was beautiful and the ride thru the red sandstone formations very nice. It was a bit windy, as seems to be the case anywhere west of the Mississippi, at least for me. The South Dakota ride on the other hand, probably can't be beat. The road thru the Black Hills is amazing, and I am sure when I hit the badlands it will not fail to be impressive.
I stopped at the Crazy Horse Monument and at first glance it was a little underwhelming. After sitting through a 20 minute orientation movie, checking out the visitor's center and looking at the monument again, I was very impressed. It is after all, a complete mountain they are carving, and doing a lot of the carving with dynamite.
I then headed to Deadwood but just did a drive through. It was very cool how they preserved the old west feel with the architecture and brick streets. The hills surrounding Deadwood have a medium to light covering of pine trees and they are all dead. I'm not sure if that is how they got the name for the town, but it seemed very fitting.
The temps yesterday hit 100+ degrees and the roads were up and down the hills, with tight and sweeping curves. Very nice to ride, but I was a little concerned with the tires due to the heat, the speed, the weight and the stress of the constant cornering, along with the substantial wear they have now. I had a couple font end wheel wobbles, but I think it was due to the wind, the tires are okay. They are both wearing a flat band around them now, more like a car tire than a bike tire, but I'm pretty sure they are going to be able to get me home.
I had some time to kill so I headed south through Custer City, Pringle, Hot Springs and the Wind Cave national Park scenic wildlife drive but didn't see any wildlife. The terrain and view on the other hand was well worth the trip.
I finally made my way back north to the Mt. Rushmore area and found a KOA about 5 miles from the park. Just sitting at the entrance, I knew this would be my first (elective) two night stay. I'm not sure how big the campground is, but wouldn't believe it is under 100 or more acres. It is a community as much as it is a campground and much larger than a lot of the towns I stopped in up north. There are pools and restaurants, pavilions, off-road vehicle rentals, overnight horse and chuck wagon excursions, golf cart rentals, stores, and on and on. My cabin sits on a little ridge, about 25 feet above and overlooking the front part of the park, very cool place.
When I first pulled in the park, I met Bill, one of the attendants cruising around on golf carts, which are very necessary for them to get around. Its a good thing I met him because he was a great help in helping me find my cabin, or rather the road to it. His fist attempt failed which made me feel a little better for not finding it on my own. Later that evening I was able to hitch a ride with him back to my spot with a bundle of wood and a bag of "supplies". On the ride back he told me that there is a must-see light show at Mt. Rushmore after dark. A bus leaves the campground at 7:30 and brings you back after the show. It would be quicker and more timely if I just took my bike, but I have been trying very hard to stay off the road after dark. I've seen about 20 deer and animal strikes on the road so far, and have had deer run in front of me during the day. I don't want that at night.
I think I may make the stretch run home tomorrow - I'll hit the freeway and take the most direct route. Man, I'm going to miss these roads I've been on ... a lot.
Sunday, June 17, 2012
June 15, 16 Friday and Saturday
I left Jasper, Banf and finally Canada. It really felt like coming home when I crossed the border into the lower 48 again. The wait at the border was very long and got all the same questions, and again, answered the majority of them correctly. After the official questioning, the border guard was actually very nice to talk to!
Montana is big. BBS - big beautiful state. If your child ever asks you were wind comes from, just tell them, child, wind comes from Montana. There were 2 occasions were I was caught completely off guard and a gust of wind blew me from the middle of my lane almost all the way over into the other side of the lane next to me - that will get your attention, but quick!! I made it into Billings and stayed at the first KOA in america. I thought it was pretty nice until I got to the KOA at the Devils Tower (the mountain in the movie close encounters of the third kind) The KOA is awesome, as well as the view. Strongly considering staying here for an extra day, just to get some much needed sleep.
Montana is big. BBS - big beautiful state. If your child ever asks you were wind comes from, just tell them, child, wind comes from Montana. There were 2 occasions were I was caught completely off guard and a gust of wind blew me from the middle of my lane almost all the way over into the other side of the lane next to me - that will get your attention, but quick!! I made it into Billings and stayed at the first KOA in america. I thought it was pretty nice until I got to the KOA at the Devils Tower (the mountain in the movie close encounters of the third kind) The KOA is awesome, as well as the view. Strongly considering staying here for an extra day, just to get some much needed sleep.
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| hay in Montana |
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| Montana |
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| near Billings Montana |
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| Custer's 'last stand' battlefield The battle field is littered with grave markers on the spot where soldiers fell and died. It is quite different seeing it in person then it was reading about it in school. You can feel the despair when you are standing on the battlefield. One of the natives on the ferry had said to me that when you read the history books, they always call the white mans victory a valiant or brave battle, and call the indian's victory a massacre. When I walked into the visitor center, there were books all over the place with massacre in the title. |
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| The ridge - last defense |
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| three bikers from Maryland These guys were going to eventually make it up to Alaska. I asked them how long they had and one guy said, matter-of-factly, until the end of summer! |
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| Devil's Tower from the campground I am staying at |
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| Wyoming |
Once I hit Wyoming, there was a lot of this red, including the roads.
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| Wyoming |
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| Glenn |
I think this was an accidental picture in Banf.
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| on the sidewalk in Banf |
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| storm |
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| same storm |
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| still the same storm This was the storm that I had to call an audible on, so I never made it to Calgary. Took a hard right on exit 22. |
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| road closures I pulled this off a gas pump in Alaska. |
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| Montana |
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| Monana |
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| Billings Monana |
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| aorund Billings |
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| gas station in Sheridan Montana down the street from the Custer Battlefield |
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| Banf |
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| Banf |
Saturday, June 16, 2012
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