Three Corners of the USA

Oct 27th- the final leg and return home

2010-10-29T06:27:00.000-04:00

Heavy winds and rain were battering against the motel room window this morning. Did not feel like going out. So i waited a while as i wasn't ex\ctly a rush to get home I knew it would take me about 2 hours to get to today's final destination, and then another 9 hours to get home. I was looking at 11 hours of riding ahead of me, so i knew i'd have to be 'mentally' prepared for it.

It had stopped raining, but the winds were still there. I decided to forgo the rain pants and no liners in the overpants. Just a liner in the jacket should keep me warm.

There was an actual Tim Horton's in town, so i went to that. I had hoped it was better than the cup-at-a-time machine at the gas station i had last night.

The coffee was still a little 'off' and they didn't have herb and garlic cream cheese. meh.

I headed east to my final destination. I had mentioned Boston to be my 3rd corner on this trip. Sure, i could have gone all the way to Maine, but there was nothing there i wanted to see. I made Boston the 3rd corner for this reason:

a big rock.

A symbolic rock really, but an important one i believe. Plymouth Rock. This is where the Mayflower landed. A birthplace of America if you will. A birthplace, not 'thee'

From the motel to this point was about 75miles. not far, but it was severe winds and rain at times. Enough so that my boots had saturated and my feet were soaked. I hate that squishy feeling when you walk around with water in boots.

This is where it is currently housed. It used to be in different places i think... and it's just a fragment of the rock. Who knows, it's symbolic anyhow.

This is where i would assume the Mayflower would hand landed.

It's a big rock. You can't touch it and it's 20+ feet away. yip.

meh. corner done

The Mayflower II was currently docked. I was going to back to take some pictures of it, when i noticed that Beast was taking a nap.

lazy bitch.

That's #4 on this trip. 3 times due to wind on the same side. heh.
The worse of it was that i had left my helmet on the right handle bar. It was pinned under the bar /mirror between the ground. I didn't notice any damage, but this hit and the fall it took in El Paso makes me think it'll be time to get a new helmet when i get back. No other real damage i could see. A bit of fuel leaked out, and my earphones were in a puddle. meh.

Still raining, I picked it back up and decided to just leave, forgetting about the Mayflower II.

The monument to the forefathers. I found it odd that it was tucked in an out of the way place, surrounded by houses with no major road to it.

It's massive. I would have assumed there would have been more traffic, etc. but alas, i was alone.

I felt like riding up right next to the statue, but thought it might be rude.

Plymouth rock is just south of Boston, and north to Boston i went. I followed the GPS mostly, but looking for a starbucks. I needed coffee. Even if there was no starbucks at the first 2 locations i looked at, i still had a riot driving around the city.I absolutely love the traffic here. Not horrible drivers, and the pace isn't totally insane, but still quick. The way the roads are designed are awesome. out of a tunnel, into an overpass, through a park roundabout, then back around...

if i had to get anywhere i would have hated it, but i was just riding around. I almost lost the bike at one point though... I rounded a corner and the front wheel (and back) drifted a few inches. then the front again over and over. Wow.

Real men drift on 2 wheels. heh.

I thought i had a flat in the front the way it was reacting, as the back held it's ground. So looking down i saw it was still looking ok. When i put my foot down, i realized what the problem was.

Slime.Due to all the rain we've had, and that the road i was on was tree covered, over time algae must have formed n that side of the road.. No wonder the traffic was bad up ahead. accident up ahead. i guess i wasn't the only one with slime difficulties.

I got to some starbucks finally and had my coffee.

found this right outside:

How cool is that?

I left Boston before the rush hour would set it and with soggy feet (which were starting to get a bit cold) I went in search of food along the route out of boston. Somehow the GPS took me off the main interstates and i wound up in Leominster, MA.

No clue how the gps figured that one out as it wasn't a pure interstate ride across. Still a nice ride though.

Leominster is the birthplace of johnny appleseed, so in his honor, i went to Friendly's!

ok, i couldn't find a regular diner anywhere, so this was the best i could come up with and it's a chain i hadn't gone to before.

I took the chicken melt thing. no clue what it was called, and everytime the waitress asked me for an upgrade i went for it. heh.

Chicken melt, with waffle (cross cut) fries, with the upgrades. heh.

Waffle fries were delicious, smothered in cheese and bacon, also came with ranch dressing and sour cream

Filled with cheese and bacon. Delicious. A bit too much Dijon for my tastes, but at least it had flavour and wasn't dull.

This came with a sundae. I took mint chocolate chip and asked what her favourite flavor was. Peanut butter swirl it was.

loved it. I asked for gummi bears and it came with whipped cream and a cherry. They don't use cool hwhip. heh

gummi bears! went great with the chocolate chunks from the peanut butter swirl.
overall, i'd go back again... relatively pleased with that lunch

This was at 3:30 pm. GPS said about 8 hours ride from home. As it always takes longer, i figured i'd be home at about 1:30am. With the soaked feet, this was going to suck.

There's nothing more in the journal from that point on. I didn't stop very often after that, and the ride was from nice, to horrific. I don't think i had a chance to think about much during the ride.

Last picture on the camera. I was surrounded by dark clouds and wondered if it would start pouring.The rain was ever present, but it wasn't horrible. Light rains/ mist at most.

I stopped for coffee before dark and had to do something about the feet.

sitting there outside of Starbucks i took off my boots, and wrung out my socks. It's pretty bad when it makes a splashing sound on the ground. The wool socks (althought wet) still kept my feet warmish. If i would have changed socks, they would have become soaked in an instant, so why bother. This was in Keene, VT as i was still on the back roads.

Here on out was interstate riding.

At one point before it got full dark, the scenery was surreal.
wisps of clouds in the mountains which you'd ride through and it felt like you punched through a wall. clear as day on both sides of the small clouds but when you were in front, you couldn't see through well at all. was neat.

It got dark fairly fast and thought next time i pull over i should clean my visor as everything was blurry. Lifting up the visor i noticed everything seemed blurry. FOG!. it wasn't hard to see in most cases but there was a lot of construction on I-91 which i had to be cautious for. Why? All the signs that said "motorcycle danger" and "uneven lanes", "loose gravel"... those are not good signs... You can't see the uneven lanes (where one lane is higher than the other" at night.same with gravel, etc.
come to think of it, you can't see much at 85mph in the dark with fog.

I did get into a groove and didn't have many problems to speak of. A few uneven lanes made the bike flop around a few, but i just throttled out.

The interstates look straight on a map, but they aren't. when you're going through the mountains, it's a real coaster ride.

At some point i hit another starbucks right before it closed, and then needed gas along the NY/VT/Canada border. I needed a slight kick so i got a redbull. Meh. i don't get the crashes people say they have, and i don't think it does much in the way of affecting me.

The GPS wanted me to go all the way to cornwall to get back to Canada, and i saw a sign that said "Canada" 5 miles away. Why go all over when i'm right at the border?

Going through the border was normal. I start telling them the whole story and they wave me through. hah.
Good thing they didn't find the mexican in the trunk.

no troubles going through montreal, except there was a commotion on the highway i was on the onramp from.
police escort with a long line of rigs going fairly slow... 45 kph.

The truck sandwiched between the cop cars had a massive load. The single beam it carried was enormous. It must have been at least 10 feet tall, 10 feet wide and a foot and a half thick at least. it was about 3 tractor trailer lengths. When i could pass it, it took me a while. Enough time i could look at it. hah. neato

I finally had a regular tim horton's alongside the A-40 outside Montreal. Tasted like it should.

Since i didn't want to risk getting a speeding ticket, nor wiping out due to the heavy winds on the autoroute, i didn't go over 115kph all the way home.

It's odd that the majority of the winds stopped at the quebec/ontario border.

I made it home at 1:31am. heh. Off by one minute.
Time for vacation. I still want to work out some details, like what i wanted to do vs what i did, bike issues and the stats... like costs, miles, best/worse foods.. and a map of where i went.

No regrets on taking this trip. Not completely sure the journey is over... motorcycling is my therapy... i might need a bit more therapy. heh.

Oct 26th- big small things, hellish traffic and a taste of home

2010-10-27T00:23:00.000-04:00

With laundry done, and no pressing schedule to keep, I slowly got out of bed, and started packing. Who am i kidding. I stayed up too late and was dead tired.

I started packing up the bike and looked to see what they had for breakfast at the hotel. Not much at all. A bowl of fruit loops and bad coffee it was.

meh.

I hit the road and took some coffee stops along the way. I needed the caffeine today. No real pictures of the Pennsylvania landscape. rolling hills, trees changing color. More of the same. It was very windy, so i kept the camera in my pocket... until i spotted this place.

"be prepared to see more than you expect" Now THAT IS BOASTING!

I wanted to see the miniature village. Would i pay $7 to go see it? Hell yes i would. I'm not a fan of miniature village, but things like this attract me in the same way most people like to go to a freak show at a circus. Even if it's a let down, i just need to see it with my own eyes.

A panoramic of the whole thing. It's freaking huge...also all carved out of wood by hand except for the cars and trains.

big waterfall in the background

they played a night scene set to music of the sun setting, then going to full dark

it went back to full light.. .was neat... well done.

Composite scene of the Endless Caverns

was still neat to go see. someone took the time and effort and put this all together... i might as well take the time and effort to go see it. Trains were moving around (not too many, not obnoxiously), some work vehicles were moving a bit... small little details, which didn't overpower the scenes, but still added a touch of life to it all. Water flowed from the giant waterfall, there were streams, canals, etc. Again, well done...

I took off looking for food. There was a restaurant that boasted authentic dutch food. If there's a place in the USA that would have it, it would be in this corner... this is amish country.

so i went here.

only to find out the kitchen is closed.
BAH!

I went up the road to the blue mountain family restaurant instead.
I got this:

2 eggs, bacon, hash browns (thinly sliced potatoes, first on this trip to be seen) and i ordered a side of Scrapple.

What's scrapple you ask? It's that squarish thing on the plate by itself.

It's all the little bits of pig meat that's left on the bone after they slaughter one. They take all the little bits and it looks like they make some sort of meatloaf with it.
How did it take? surprisingly bland. She gave me some syrup for the Scrapple. Seems some eat it that way.
with the syrup, all you taste is syrup. meh.
it wasn't bad, but it wasn't impressive.

Back tire. hope it lasts the last bit home.

front is good as new. Sadly, this is due to all the weight on the back

More uneventful riding until a nasty smell hit me.

this is where the smell hit me.
New Jersey.

whatever you do... don't miss an exit or else you are screwed and it'll take you about 20 mins or 20 miles to get you back. Brutal. thankfully, the gps helped a) find a starbucks and b) route a way back to it when i blew the entrance to the place. stupid one ways.

some bridge in the new york area... i dared not go to through the city itself... traffic around it was insane. Sure way to not get killed is to just go faster than them.

3 toll booth later (one was $8!!) i was on my way out of the city... and into stop and go traffic. It took about 2.5 hours to cover something that would have taken about 45 mins. brutal.

After that run, i pulled over for fuel/coffee and noticed my back tire... after 10 mins it was still hot to the touch, and the rubber was all sticky. nice compound, but it won't last long. I could see a difference in wear from this morning to then. brutal. The front tire was cool to the touch. go figure.(this was in Connecticut )

It was starting to get dark... then got dark... and i decided to keep riding. Then it was foggy.

Fog doesn't bother me much... normally. the above is about as good as it got, and it got a hell of a lot worse... it was like driving through a cloud. well, that is what fog is... isn't it?

I saw a sign for a super 8 and thought i should stay there... then i saw a sign that helped my train of thought.

My little taste of home. It sucked. They have an automatic machine that brews it by the cup. This was at the gas station... if this is what home tastes like, home sucks.
it sucked. sucked ass hard. I'd rather have been drinking regular gas station coffee.

Blah. got a room at the super 8, and then went out looking for food. oh... looks like it rained when i was inside. I took off looking for food and noticed the bike handled totally different.
i was pretty much white knuckled it down the interstate and back. Seems that the added weight on the back stabilizes the bike.. i didn't have that nor the GPS...

After a useless ride around... even mcdicks and burger king only had their drive-thru open. men.
I settles on some pringles and a sub from a gas station.
What do you expect from a town that has like 5000 people.

oh well, you can't eat like a king everyday.,

Oct 25th - From Raining sideways to Amish country

2010-10-26T00:28:00.001-04:00

My plan today was to go directly home. I was a little downtrodden last night and said enough was enough.
I went to bed late, and didn't care for getting up early except to get to some emails and have their free breakfast.

I felt the whole building shake and there was some noise outside...
Looking outside, i could see only one thing.
It was raining sideways... debris was flying everywhere. brutal. The bike was still standing, so that's good.

I walked out the room and the owner of the motel was walking quickly past me saying "this is not good... this is not good"

I walked out to their breakfast... a couple of bagels, toast and cereal... they also had waffle mix.
meh. i went for the corn flakes and a coffee. no picture.

I spoke to the owners wife about the weather. "So, does this happen often" i ask...
her reply "This NEVER happens" WTF. brutal. There was debris in the parking lot, shingles were torn off the roof of the motel (just had it redone) and a sign was ripped off and broken.

I checked out the NOAA site and seems i was completely surrounded by crap. flood advisories, tornado advisories and severe storm watches all around. It put me in a down mood.
i decided to wait until the last possible second to get out of the room... after all, i was in no rush.

There are no pics in the morning as i packed the camera to be ready for the storm.

got out of the room and packed up the bike... hunh. no rain. no wind. odd. getting lucky i guess.
I took off and i couldn't get the bike off the center stand... i was literally moving the bike around n the stand like a tripod. The pavement as recently redone and it was like a skating rink with all the tar oils coming to the surface.

side note. my toe hurts like hell. The night before after filling up, i took the bike off the center stand, and the side stand landed on the joint of my big toe. Nothing like a 600+lbs hammer to hit you there. brutal.
This is the same toe/foot i hurt twice already... both times with the front of the bike slid out in soft deep sand (that i didn't see) and put my foot down. ah. biggest problem. It's my shifting foot and it's exactly where you put the shifter... swollen, but no change in color...bruised the bone maybe?

Off i went and found a Starbucks the next town over in Johnson city. lots of hotties and it was a busy Starbucks. must be a college town. remember friends. college towns have two things. Starbucks, and hotties in them.

The weather was actually nice. I had my jacket liner in, and just the suit. i was comfortable. onwards!
Oddly enough, the bike was running very well, except when i started it this morning and it backfired a lot.

Whenever the neutral light problem came up, the bike was running well. who knows, maybe i had bad gas gumming up the carbs, something else... but it's running like a champ. Yay Beast.

i'm not sure what all the speed limits were, but i tried to keep it between 78-85... and i still had some left to pass. heh.

I rode through Marion,VA and could not find a non-chain place to eat. I had nothing for supper the night before except a pizzaroni at a gas station. was ... gross, but it put my hunger at bay for a while and then cereal in the morning. I was hungry and i wanted good food.

I kept riding, certain i would find something along the road. I was not about to settle.
About 10 miles down the road or so, i found this place.

All i could see from the interstate was RESTAURANT
must be good then, right?

so... would you eat here? folding chairs, things that don't match... etc.
i looked at the menu and laughed. They had "hillbilly burgers".

They also have a lot of hikers that come to hike in the hills, and they have a monstrosity called the Hiker burger. It's 1lbs of beef. seriously. so took that and tater tots. I had never seen battered cauliflower before, so i ordered that too.

That's Beaucoup beef! me love you long time.
taters in the plate, cauliflower in the bowl.

that's a stack.
I spoke to the waitress and told her i never understood why people go to McDonald's when you have places like this. hate chains. The burger was good. Real beef, hand pressed and fried on the griddle... best way to eat a burger. the veggies on the burger were fresh too... not reconstituted onions!

now THAT's a burger. freaking awesome. I told the waitress what i thought about the food and chains... i think i put her in a good mood saying that i've been travelling all over, and i've been avoiding chains and looking for places like this.
Seriously, you're in the area and want good home cooked food. go there.
To note, the cauliflower was good... i liked it.. not even greasy... (also made by hand)
tater tots... they are always awesome...

total price of the meal? under $10. seriously.
I wanted to tip and there was a tip jar "Cooks Tips" and asked if they shared. She said to just put it in as it's her husband who's the cook.

my kind of place. We need more like these across the states. people need to stop being greedy and stop selling out to the major chains.

I took off and saw a horrific crash on the side of the road... the jaws were used to pull the roof off a car and there were a ton of emergency personnel there. hope the person behind the wheel will be ok.

There was debris everywhere... trees knocked down, signs knocked over, crap all over the highway. I seem to have let the storm pass before i left. good timing for once?

I love this one

all sorts of awesome

it was really windy, but i took some shots. not many turned out but it was to show the rolling hills. Virginia has some nice rolling hills.

is nice

but what... what do we there over yonder!

looking nasty and heading across my path.
uh oh.

purdy colors tho

blurry but a huge storm system moving in.

So i figured all i could do was try and outrun it. which i did for the most part of 2 hours... but i caught up to it.A few little drops of rain (not even enough to bead up on the visor) and that was it.

I didn't know if i should ride through the night or stop over soon. I got a hotel coupon book (3 actually) and scanned them for a cheap option. I found one for a town 10 miles up the road and headed there.

The place i got was cheap... but they had wifi.
$40, and i got a room with a king bed, a retro 80s lazy boy (in really good shape) two nice chairs and a table, Tv, Ac and Wifi.
No shampoo though. DAMMIT. now i have to wash my hair with the bar of soap again. pain in the ass.

Luckily for me they have a washer and dryer on the floor. woot. no soap. crap. I did a load of laundry with no soap. Meh, it'll smell a bit better anyhow, it's not like i sweat that much. heh. hot water alone can do wonders.

Hungry a little so i went off to denny's next door. As a client of this hotel, i get a discount. heh.
I'm in the states, so what else should i get?

The All-American Slam!
it's breakfast... stop making a big deal out of the names. jesus. I ate most of it. was... meh.

the greybeard is grey

yes. not that thrilled with it, but then again, you go to Denny's with high expectations, you go home disappointed. i had no expectations... i was tired.

To recap, i left Tennessee at 11am... passed though Virginia, West Virgina and Maryland and now in Pennsylvania. A little town called Chambersburg. I did 416 miles... not that great... i should have been able to do more, considering i was averaging 80 the whole time. Maybe Beast is ready for the stables. Maybe i am. One thing i know for sure.
It's not time for home just yet.

I'm shipping off to Boston in the morning.

Oct 24th - The taming of the shrew is easy as sunday morning

2010-10-24T22:44:00.000-04:00

I've been staying up too late these days. Not a good idea when you're about to ride the infamous "Tail of the dragon"

taken on the way to deals gap.
Be forewarned. It's leaf season. that's what all the hubbub is about. people like to see the leaves change color. Not i. It's nice to look at... but after a few hours of it, i got sick of it.
Anhow... lots of leaf pictures. lots. it's what i saw all day... so it's what you're going to see all day.

on the interstate heading southwest towards Deal's gap.

I took a little side road that had a dam. I rode over it and it's a dead end on the other side. yippie. road back. a little waste of time...

Finally got to deals gap. The speed limits are low and it takes time to traverse anywhere in the smoky mountains. Good reason as there are a lot of turns on every road and highway.

I was starved as i didn't eat yet and it was 12:30 already.
unfortunately they weren't serving breakfast. bah.

Got this instead

standard bacon cheese burger and fries...

went back out and chatted to a few people... one who has a 2009 KLR like mine and new to it too... he has the same panniers as mine, except his trunk is about 3 times larger.. i could have used that!
it's the blue KLR on the left in the pana below

of course who can forget the tree of shame!

for those who don't know... if you get bit by the tail of the dragon, you put your damaged goods in the tree.
a lot of non-lucky people there...

Everyone keeps telling me how insanely technical the Tail of the dragon is. People die all the time, crash a lot, etc.
I nerved up, put on some music, and started off...

Maybe because i've been on the road so long... maybe because i've already ridden on some pretty spectacular roads, some highly technical roads, and some pretty horrible roads already...
Big whoop.
The same length of road near Ft. Bragg California was harder. The Dalton Hghway on the cruiser was more challenging. The highway through the great basin in Nevada was more inspriing.

I will say that due to the high traffic, it is still quite dangerous. It is a highly technical road, but not once did my tires touch the lines. Another thing, as i was loaded up more than everyone else and more top heavy than dolly parton, i took it easy and stayed within the limits of myself and the bike. a few times i gunned it in the corner and the front wheel bounced around. Ya... the ass is heavy on this thing.

It was an ok ride... but the ft bragg piece in Cali was at least 3 times the length, with sharper corners, more inclines/declines and all blind corners. What the Tail of the dragon had, was people. lots of traffic.

Due to the massive sag of the bike, i managed to drag the centerstand about 4 times... heh.
I took no pictures... well, because it would be mental to try to do that loaded the way i was...

I popped out on the other side

On this side of US-129 there's a harley gift shop and gas station. I got fuel and took a break. An older biker was sitting there strumming his guitar and singing softly and stopped to talk to me. At first, i thought it was the radio or something. sounded nice...

We spoke a bit about the Tail of the dragon and how it's just a rite of passage more than anything else. I agree... I did it. got the sticker. yay.

We spoke about different roads in the area, etc. I told him my plans for going home and he said i might as well skip the Cherohala skyway. Yes, it's a nice ride and this time of year with the colors, it's really nice... but the tourists will be out in droves. I decided to skip it and make my way north to the Blue Ridge Parkway. The parkway stops somewhere in Virginia. It's about 450 miles long with nice scenery.
He introduced ourselves as we parted ways. He said to call him Goat. For good reason. Big white Goatee about 5-6 inches long. heh. awesome. Cool dude, not the typical 'Harley only' type... he was a rider, not a poser.

Off i went down a road he said i should take.
This was the Foothills parkway.

Bored yet?
Thankfully i had music, and it was a nice easy ride...

how about now? bored?

oh squiggly arrow, how i love you so

something different! water!

OK... I like this one... it turned out ok...

see those leaves in the bottom of the picture? they were being blown off the trees. This only helped to remind me how late in the season i was out. Doesn't help we've had snow back in Ottawa already.

as shown in the picture above.. .crap loads of traffic. it's high tourist season. probably why i paid $100 for a $30 dollar room last night.

images like this is what all the fuss is about. i seriously don't get it. Maybe i've been spoiled and recently saw mountains in Oregon, California, Nevada and New Mexico this year... and last year in Alaska, BC, Alberta, Yukon and Washingston... after a while.. a mountain is a mountain.

I found the entrance to the blue ridge parkway.

getting a bit boring eh? i think so too.

it was rough in the tunnel... but with the KLR it would take more than a little rough road for me to worry. When in doubt, throttle out.

I was riding the Blue Ridge Parkway for a while, getting chilly as the sun was setting and decided this was it. This is the end of the trip. Unless i have a change of heart of mind, i'm heading home.

It's fitting that on the last day of the trip i rode the 'tail of the dragon'. It's the tail of my dragon.

I look back on the trip now and I am disappointed with many things. Myself for lack of planning/preparition, not following my gut and other reasons i won't get into.
I wanted to get a ton of souvenirs. Alas, i sucked at that too. It's hard to buy souvenirs when you're off the beaten path. When you don't go to those cities where they have a lot of different things. It's also hard that anything i did want to buy was breakable or too large. Meh. sorry if you don't get anything when i get back home. I suck.

I failed to follow my own rules that i created. Like Rule #5
"Never pack more than 2/3rds full with all your gear in it."
I packed too much. Many things i didn't use. to all future travellers. LESS IS MORE. you can always find things along the way. always. If not, you can order it online and get it shipped to you next day. hah.

I had made a short list of what i wanted to accomplish on the trip... this was a very short list and i checked off most of those, so i'm happy with that.

They say not planning is the best way to go. I now disagree. It's the best way to BE. It's freeing to not be tied to a schedule, but there are times you miss things, have to back-track, etc.

Now i travel northwards... to the colder temperatures, to home... to my cave.

Oct 23rd- meeting someone from M-J, eating pulled pork and about to smoke a mountain

2010-10-24T02:00:00.001-04:00

After updating the blog last night, i promptly fell alseep... partially sitting up, laptop on my lap, tv on and three lights on. that was at around what... 10:30 at the latest...
I woke up at 2:30am... shut everything down and fell fast asleep. It's a wonder I slept at all with all the GIANT TRAINS blowing their whistle at all hours of the night. Seems the reason the motel is so cheap is because it's near ad GIANT TRAINSTATION. heh. maybe not, but it felt/sounded like it.

I finally did manage to get up sometime in the morning... no clue what time... this is why you should bring journals... so you'll know what you did! hah.

I still felt like crap, so i took one of these.

I still felt like crap, but now had a crap taste in my mouth. I cleaned that taste out with a smoke.

I knew there was a giant truck stop nearby and you know what you get at a giant truck stop.
No, not handjobs... GAS!
and i got plenty of it after eating this

This is at the 'huddle house' in the gas station.
I refuse to say it was bad... like, how can you royally fuck up breakfast? they didn't fuck it up.
It was bland.eggs are eggs. The bacon was thin... the sausage unappealing, the rye toast soggy, the hash browns not brown enough and grits were grainy.
Overall... bland.

Got an SC sticker... woot.. .too bad i didn't go to the spot on the sticker tho. hah.. at least it has SC and i rode through the spot :)
The i got the other gas and decided to take the back roads into Charleston, SC a stopping point in the day where i was meet a fellow moto enthusiast from the M-J crew. Yes. everytime i think about meeting M-J people i feel like a complete asshole for not going to see Adam or Kevin (to name a few)

I believe i took what they call the Savannah highway

The entrance to a Marine AFB i believe

a lot of this and some swamps/marshland to look at. it may look boring, but it wasn't... it was like a nice sunday cruise...
And then was i Charleston (aka Chucktown). More of a check mirrors and shoulder checks every 3 second kinda ride.

Also to note... my Neutral light keeps flickering... not a good sign. Now i can just hit the start while being in gear and the bike launches. I don't want that. I just read online that there's a problem if the wire to the switch is not routed properly around the front sprocket, it gets chaffed.
DAMMIT... another mechanic fucked up? i'll have to check in the daylight and it's more downtime. fuck.

I grabbed a coffee and txt'd ... let's call her Miss D... how about Misty... maybe Misty is her stripper name. lol
Anyhow, i got the laptop out and sent off some emails, and i chatted to an immigrant from Iran who has been a citizen since he was 17. A citizen of the country for longer than i have been born. Great guy, chatted about travelling, where the worse drivers were, him living in california... odd stuff like that. interesting fellow.

Sad to think that kids are born in a country, makes them a citizen, but a man who came to the country with nothing and worked his ass off.is still not seen in the eyes of his fellow man that he's a patriot... well.. that's crap.
Anyhow... He agrees that Florida drivers are the worse.

Misty sent me a txt to meet up at... a secret location.
You see, she's on the witness protection program... so i must abide;)

We met up and chatted for a while... She's a cool chick... how can you not love that accent :)
I wish i had more time, but if i'm ever in the area i'd like to spend some more time. a) the chicks are hot. hah.
b) it's a neat town... i like the setup... no big tall skyscrapers... it's just the right landscape...
c) They have starbucks. I'm not a starbucks whore, i just like good coffee, and it's hard to come by with free wifi

We had to part ways... her for secret reasons, and i to head Northwest. not northeast, but WEST.
Just chatting her, she conviced me to go to the smokey mountains and Hit Deals Gap and ride the tail of the dragon. I figured that i might as well take the blueridge parkway north even though it'll take me a few days...
Might as well enjoy the few remaining days to the last.

I was heading towards columbia and thought a coffee would go down well. Guess what... i didn't find the 3 different starbucks the GPS had. it's so out of date. arg.

What i did find was this.

Hard to read, i know.
Maurice's BBQ. I promised someone that i'd try BBQ for comparision... begrudgingly i did.

looks like a bbq place.
Aha! buffet BBQ... this must be interesting!

I took the BBQ buffet. He sad the buffet is a sample of everything they make here.
i tried to sample a lot of it. I took the more interesting bits first

we got some Cracklin' corn, fish, chicken, leafy green stuff, potato salad, some cabbage thing and finally pulled pork BBQ.
Corn was not as good as the Old country Store, but was ok
The fish was good, a really good batter.
The chicken was pretty good. better than a chain, but not as good as Mr. D's at the Old Country Store
leafy stuff was gross. tasted like grass.
potato salad, good
cabbage stuff, ok

leaves me to the two things i love. Pig meat and Pig skin.

Pig skin first... I love cracklin... but not if one side is greasy and wet, and the other side full of pig hair. Aren't you supposed to burn that shit off with a torch first? it disgusted me.

The pulled pork

I don't know how to give it a good review without being unbiased.
you see, i'm not a Sauce BBQ fan. I like mine naked. Let the meat, spices and smoke do the talking...

sauce is the cheap way to go about it. Some people like going to The Keg... others, to ponderosa. heh.

it was good. Correction, the sauce was good. I'm not a fan of sauces, so it's hard for me to judge, but they really are pushing this mustard BBQ sauce. That's all they have in their restaurant (which was mostly empty and not much traffc)
Seems they won Best BBQ in the USA in 2008, as per Kiplinger's business report.
Wait...a business report is now the new taste tester?
jesus.

well, the meat sucked... it could have been cat for all i know. you taste sauce and a hint of smoke. it was weak.
Then again, if you sell your taste in a bottle... why not make the crap at home.

I went back for a second helping

I liked the chicken and fish so i took that again, more pulled pork to get a better taste some green beans and some odd mushy stuff.
Chicken and fish were good, the pulled pork same as above, the green beens tasteless and the mushy stuff... some kind of meat paste? it tasted like they tried to make a stew or a chli and didn't get either right.
no clue what it is...
it tasted ok... albeit odd.

so far, Tim-1 others-0
i'll have to try again if i spot another...
overall, thumbs down.

I rode some more and a Floridian woman came up to chat. Tracy from Naples is a biker as well and we chatted bike stuff. She said to be careful on the Tail of the dragon. Just last year her friend died on it. Took them a long time to find him as he went off the road off a little cliff. ouch.

Riding Around SC i saw a bunch of "Warthogs"... don't know if they are part of the "1%" club or nod... i nodded to them anyhow...
I stopped in for coffee somehwhere in SC before crossing the border... what to do where to go...
I had to put my jacket liner in because it was downright cold.

I stopped at a rest stop in North Carolina (that was a weak woohoo moment crossing that border) and was staring at a map behind a glass case. it had all the routes i wanted to take on it outlined.
A security guard/janitor came out and gave me an identical map since he saw me staring at it. BONUS.

we chatted a bit, seems he's from pruhoe bay and knows cold. he said it's -15 there now...brutal.

got to where i am now... i was tired and checked into the Budget Motel.
if $100 a night is budget, i wonder what the holiday inn across the street is charging...am i in full fledged tourist season?

I thought for a moment there she was going to put her pinky up to her mouth and say "one HUNDRED DOLLARS!"

tomorrow, the smokey mountains.. .hopefully some nice rides...

Oct 22nd- 32 days on the road...

2010-10-22T22:59:00.000-04:00

Today was not a picture day. Today was a day of going against my beliefs for convinience. Today was a thinking day. Today just sucked.

I started out the day really late as i only got to sleep at around 5-5:30 am.
Got a quick breakfast...

was ok... but a) it was from a chain and b) i didn't want to eat. Wasn't hungry.

I was tired. I didn't want to ride today. I didn't want to sleep either. I guess i was just in my usual mood.
That got me thinking to being back home. thinking thinking...

I know what to expect when i get back home, but it doesn't make it easier, knowing what i must deal with.

Tired and wanting to do nothing, i pulled over and looked for coffee. none to be had anywhere. So i got wifi instead

yay... chain #2 of the day. At least i won a free smoothie.

I stood outside with the laptop on the top case and updated yesterday's blog. as you can probably tell from reading it, i didn't feel like writing it. meh.

Something i forgot to add a while ago.
Going south through Florida where i saw all the vendors and such (south of alligator alley) there was a guy n the side of the road, holding a chihuahua over his head in one hand, trying to make eye contact with everyone. Odd. Was he trying to sell it?
that's another thing... all the dogs down here are chihuahua's! unreal.

Even all this thinking about things, all this anxiety, i was falling asleep at the wheel. Not good when you have the worst drivers in the USA (floridians) and you're doing 85mph on a bike that suddenly likes to wobble for no reason. heh.

I needed to pull over soon. It's slow going, when you have to pull over so often. Kinda like digging a trench with a spoon. not fun, but it can be done.

I got some aids to keep me semi-conscious while i rode.

The more i rode, the more i thought... the more i thought, the more anxiety i got. Thinking sucks.
I thought about situations i want to deal with at home. situations i have to deal with and some i want to deal with.
I was thinking of last year's trip and how i went totally loopy for months afterwards. It's odd that i spend over a month on the road, and when i get back, i'm worse off than before with axed and depression. bah.

People often ask me why i do these trips. In actual fact, i don't know. I suspect i'm running away from life, putting a barrier between me and it, and living a fantasy for a while. odd to think i've gone over 10,000 miles, and when i get back home, i'll circle the wagons and hid out in the man cave for a few months.
at least i've already got the beard.

the caffeine helped and i felt more normal.

wasn't in the picture taking mood, and needed to concentrate on riding. The other reason there aren't many pictures is that there is nothing interesting on the interstates. usually a stand of trees of both sides of you, and you can't see through them.

mostly of what you see on the interstate. oh what fun

this was a nice sunset in person... camera didn't pick up the colors or the moon properly.

i was riding in the cold and dark, and didn't have a problem with it but the temperature was dropping fast and felt hungry. Only chains where i was, and decided on trying out Cracker Barrel. I had never been before.

since i had never been, i took the sampler breakfast.

from left to right
grits. they sucked
hash brown casserole. they were ok
scrambled eggs, country ham, sausage patty and bacon. all was 'ok'. nothing special.\
Fried apples. They were good. then again, it tasted like apple pie filling.
biscuits and gravy. I've tasted better.

the problem wth all this food is that it was mostly bland. the actual food had no flavor in it.
meh. at least my server was cool.

saw this on my way out. made me laugh

really?? this bugs th hell of out me.
it says "i'm a ritard".

i rode for a little while longer and then i was really cold. I took a room at a motel 6 and it was drirt cheap. $36 is cheap.
And now that i just realized i'm right next to the rail lines.. i don't know if i'll get some good sleep tonight. bah.

Oct 21- from key largo, to key west, to key largo, to fort pierce.

2010-10-22T15:06:00.000-04:00

Stayed up late with the blog sitting in a Tiki hut mostly. Was relaxing listening to the tree frog.

The Tiki Hut.

form the inside. It was late, It was dark.

here's the accommodations for the night.

it was the cheapest they had, and it had AC and it was comfortable. i'm not complaining.
a little different than i'm used to though, that's for sure.

did my usual coffee thing in the morning. I think i left it was around 11am. getting later every day. not good.
I need to get going earlier! not later...

anyhow... i won't say much today as i don't have the time really. i'm essentially standing in the parking lot at a McDicks updating the blog. meh. at least i won a free smoothie.

The Gulf!

some kind of sea mammal thing. dunno, rode right by it quickly

see the road? two lanes, max speed is 55 in some places, mostly 45 and 35 though for much of it and the cops watch like hawks. People drive slower than the speed limit all the time and it rives me insane.

no clue what that bridge on the right is all about... the old one maybe? there were gaps in the bridge though. odd.

i found a nice little beach with very few people on it.

and maybe this is why.

the old man was sorting out a fishing net. it looked like he was doing a strange fishing dance.
odd. be thankful the shutter didn't go off when he was bending over. jesus.

"LOOK AT THE PELICAN! FLY PELICAN FLY!"

dead sexy. i couldn't stop looking. just like a car accident.

I finally made it to Key west... it takes about 2.5-3 hours if you go fast. meh. it's a long ride, but the ride itself is worth it. It's nice to not be passed all the time and just look at scenery. relaxing even.
probably why i wasn't tired later that night.

Went down to the Blond Giraffe where they have the best key lime pie in the world. Well, they were closed until Nov 15 as they were on vacation. damn you. guess i'll have to find better pie.

Duval street was neat. lots to look at, a lot of shopping... etc. Key west has so many scooters (and not many people know how to ride)

For your viewing and listening pleasure...

Spider-man playing the sitar!

quite the odd site. I wanted to get wifi and a coffee. Go the coffee, but starbucks didn't have Wifi. WTF.
took a break anyhow.

Moto parking only. sweet. so many scooters.
On this one way, 3 scooters and 1 car turned into it the wrong way. 1 near collision. idiots. this was in the span of 10 minutes. The dude in the background selling shells, just kept shaking his head... seems this is very common here. wow.

finally hit my waypoint.

woot.
cuba is that way... 90 miles...
saw it ... took a picture... left... so many tourists. (and nowhere to park)

at a light... the camera doesn't pick up the awesome color of it.

I went back to that little beach and creepy fisherman was gone. I went into the water.

yes, in my full suit. No, i didn't get wet. lol. These boots are awesome... i felt water seep in, but the way the boots are designed, my feet stayed dry. love the alpinestars.

I went back to Key Largo... as you can see, i haven't eaten all day and i was starving. I went to the place the resort said was good. I had a free key lime freeze voucher for it from the resort. I tried it... why not.

world's famous key lime pie eh?

Here's the key lime freeze.

a no frills kinda joint.. The freeze? AMAZING. never it's like a key lime float... they have it trademarked and for good reason. it's truly one of the best things on this trip.

see that? a true sign of a good eatery. it may look a little junkie to you, but to me it looks like good food. hah.

I think i ordered something i would never had eaten in a million years.

Bull Fish. I don't eat fish.... not really. I've never liked it.

well, i cleaned the plate... it was so well cooked and the fish didn't taste like fish... a little sweet to the taste (because of the lobster it eats)

I ordered it because i asked what the house specialty was... so i ordered it. you can't go wrong when you do that. The beans were a little spicy but worked well with the fish. it was truly very good. best fish i've ever had.

I read in their menu that Cosmo put in the magazine that this was the best key lime that they've had (2004)

So i took a piece.

phenomenal. It chilled to almost be frozen. it was wonderful... i almost cried.

it''s a small joint, but by no means was it dead. Cars kept pulling up and getting take out and leaving. Always a constant flow. inside, a bar with stools to eat at (good sign) old booths and tables... about 7 in total and some patio furniture outside.

if you see places like this, stop in.
doesn't hurt they had cute staff. :)

ghostrider pic of the day

since i got up late, i made a decision to stay up late and ride in the night.

and here's some night riding. this is the good part on I-95 I took the toll way (turnpike) for a while but people in florida really cannot drive. It's scary how bad they are. the worst i have encountered in all of the USA so far.
i'm being serious too.

see? doesn't it look like the video game Night driver? remember, my visor is tinted so everything is darker. lol

I took a room in fort pierce.

it was cheap, clean and of course the wifi sucked. Thankfully no holes in the bathroom wall. heh.

Oct 20th- I found some keys but no locks

2010-10-21T03:10:00.000-04:00

I awoke feeling quite rested for 5 hours. odd how that can happen.
Here's Tim!

unfortunately, my eyes cannot focus whereas the camera can. Not a great shot. meh. I know what he looks like :)

Here's Tracie!

At least i could get my eyes open enough to see what i was doing.

Kai!

Sweet little cat. Tim taught both Roxy and Ruby tricks... as well as Kai.. I love well behaved animals... people need to learn to train their dogs... It's not so much about tricks as it's about making the dog know you are boss. You don't need to hit an animal. Tim trained his animals properly and it shows. They want to behave.

I should have taken more pictures, but when memories are being made, you seldom remember to pull out cameras... I had a truly great evening with them... great hosts... great people... hah... a home away from home for a day if you will. It helps that when you go sit out back, you feel like you're in a cottage / cabin... but you're right in town. Great established neighbourhood. very peaceful and i hated that it had to end...

But wait there's more!
We went out for breakfast (can't remember the name) but it was a ma and pa type restaurant... the kind we all like Both Tim and Tracie like the smaller places... they like good food done right... it shows in their cooking as well. Food, like an establishment should have character. A real restaurant always has a specialy of some sort... you may not like it, but they'll have one.I wanted something different today, and the menu inserts for the specials (written in black marker on plain paper) was right on top. I took the first thing I saw, and it appealed to me quite a bit. Why waste money on nice menus? i want to eat the food, not what it's written on.

I took this

looks bland and tasteless right? wrong.
loved it. Two properly cooked and seasoned pork chops, two eggs, Grits and rye toast.
I used to make pork chop and eggs once in a while and i had never seen it in a restaurant before... had to have it. I've had grits before, but these were really good.

Just because something may look bland, it may not be. It was good.

Oh and Tim, i just finished off the pulled pork.... damn that was tasty...

i think my food is taking half the table. hah.

sadly, we had to part ways... Tim and Tracie for work, and myself, to my 2nd point... Key West.
Why Key west? simple. It's the most southern point in the united states. I've been to the most northern last year (Deadhorse Alaska) so now it's Key West.

More interstate riding. Interstate riding wears me out fast... since i'm late in the trip, I am fatigued and i need to watch out for that. I stopped not far away at a starbucks because... well. you eat that much protein in a day and shit happens.Let's just say i had business to take care of. heh.

At a rest stop

Snake identification chart. Some can kill you, some can't.
how about this... if i see a snake, i stay away from it. I won't run away screaming like a little girl, but i think it's prudent to approach ANY animal you don't know with caution.
It's also a reminder that shit in florida CAN KILL YOU.
yet, i'm still more afraid of the old drivers.

me thinking i'm awesome.

actually, i'm looking at these clouds.
not good.

not good at all.
so yes, it rained... a little sprinkle though. I had hoped the sprinkle would cool me off, but alas it was so light it didn't even penetrate my mesh jacket. All it did was make the air more humid. blah.

i call this pose "touch of grey"

"uhhunh...i like dem gators" oh wait.. taters... anyways, nice rain clouds.

I went through alligator alley (I-75) and saw a bunch of vultures on the side of the road waiting for roadkill. massive massive birds. That should be the symbol of the USA. Isn't that what Ben Franklin proposed?

I bypassed all the cities and took a smaller highway parallel to it. This was actually an interesting ride. It was all grove growers... Palms, exotic plants... etc.. neato. There were people selling their fruits and vegetables out of the back of trucks, little stands, etc... Some of it looked awesome... no room to pack anything on the bike for fruits though... :(

I was getting hungry again, and decided on going as far as i could tonight. I knew i might have trouble finding a place to sleep, so when in doubt, load up on food and caffeine.
I saw a few restaurants, and hit this place in a gas station. didn't look like a chain, looked decent. The area is filled with many Cubans and Mexicans, so i had hoped I'd get some home style cooking. maybe not true authentic, but close.

I walked in and it looked way too nice to be in a gas station and i hoped the prices weren't going to break the bank. I read the top of the menu which has the story on the restaurant. The original is in Hollywood, and was started way back by Cuban refugees back in the day when 176,000 fled Cuba to the US.
looking at the menu, there was standard fair with a Cuban flair. was nice. The prices didn't fit the restaurant. It was was really nicely set up inside, and the prices were not that expensive at all.

I took something called the trio. Maybe not Cuban, but i had something similar in Colorado last year which was Mexican. This tasted different but the same style of food.

The Trio!

Pork chop, Skirt steak and chicken breast.

The Sides!

Rice, Black beans and Fried plantains.

all the meats were tender and juicy... tasted very good. The rice and beans were really good too, but the plantains were my favorite. I'd never had them before, not that i remember...
These were crispy and caramelized on the outside, tender but not mushy on the inside. A little sweet but not too much and flavorful on the inside. It was truly well done.

I ate as much as i could. So... family owned and operated restaurant, serving good food and they were Cuban. The waitresses accent was very thick. I liked that. Gave an air of authenticity to the place too.

after packing that down my gullet, i was asked if i wanted a coffee.
Of course!
Out comes this.

A coffee Cubano.
it's an espresso really... I wasn't asked if i wanted cream, and i wasn't about to. This is how they serve it, this is how you should take it. There's a reason for that! people make foods the way it's meant to be eaten. Like Tim's Awesome pulled pork. why kill it with additives?

The coffee was really good, and if you know me, i overdo it on the cream. because of the sweetness and flavor of the coffee (which wasn't a burned taste like an espresso usually is)
but this was really good. very sweet.

I felt bad not eating it all, or not packing it on the bike, but i had no room :(

I love finding joints like this. Honest restaurants... besides an egg or a rib steak, i don't want to be asked how it should be cooked. You're the cook. you cook it. i'm just there to eat and enjoy.

Not 10 miles down the road, stores started showing up... until then, it was the farm with an occasional gas station. Homestead looks... seedy a little... it was getting a little dark and didn't know if i should risk going to the keys now in the dark, or get a motel room. There were a lot of cheap places ($39) with wifi... but the bars on the windows really turned me off it. many chains here, as well as big box stores, etc. So i kept heading south.

South i went and hit Key Largo. It was full dark now (around 8pm) and started hunting for a room. I knew this was going to be EXPENSIVE... so i was looking for something cheap.

I found a little place called the sunset cove beach resort. looked really nice and i didn't know what i was getting myself into. Oh well.

I talked to the guy for a while (he used to ride but his wife won't let him now) and he gave me a discount. Still expensive for what it is, but not expensive for where it is. you need to keep that in mind.
I took the cheapest they had and i'm fine with it.
It's a trailer! two large twin beds, full bath... fridge... what more do you need really? It might seem hokey to some people, that instead of a regular motel room, i got a trailer which is old and needs work, for the price i got it for, but hey, i was sitting under a Tiki hut on rattan furniture in KEY LARGO.

I did almost step on a little lizard (the size of a newt) and it startled me. So not used to things like that.
no bugs inside here, but i'm sure there are cockroaches, snakes, bats, spiders and all kinds of critters outside.
While at the Tiki hut, i kept hearing a tree frog. damn thing sounds like a calling bird... not an obnoxious sound though. so many different things to get used to... like the heat and humidity... hah.
time for bed... 3 am again. tomorrow will be rough

Oct 19th- interstates are an nessisary evil

2010-10-21T01:45:00.001-04:00

I keep getting up too late, then not moving along as quick as i should these days.

maybe it's because i was up until 3am trying to get the blog going, and since the wifi sucked, i lost all the 'work' i did. meh. I shoulda used notepad like i normally do.... stupid autosave.
I got up at 8am... 5 hours sleep... and did nothing until 9. guess i should have gone back to bed. meh.

Is it fatigue? exhaustion? Do i just not care any longer?

Don't get me wrong. I can ride every single day of my life, rain or shine. I love to explore roads, where they lead, who lives there, and what they eat. That makes it interesting.
What makes it really dull, are interstates. I understand the need for them today, due to the large size of both the united states and canada... but at least make those roads a little interesting!

Put a giant Gator along I-75! Put a colossal Crawdad on I-10 in Lousiana! cyclopean cactus in Arizona, a rich Redneck in Texas!
heh.

Seriously. Running along the trans-canada or the interstate system can drive you insane.
I was about to take some smaller roads, but because i was busy uploading the 18th's blog and having my morning coffee, i left Tallahassee really late. I was to meat up with Tampa Tim today... And no, that's not a typo and you'll see why.

I was about to take some secondary highways... but they seemed about as boring as the interstate, and the speed limits were lower. if i kept this pace up, i'd get to Tampa really late. well... later than i was already going to be.

this was a neat road... but, slow...
I wanted to wind up Beast....

I think the difference between last year's trip and this one are:
day light hours. i had more in june than in october.
i had mini vacations where i did nothing for days on end... my average speed was much higher... some of the route 66 roads, and california really slowed me down.
I was broken down for a week in fairbanks (more or less) and a week in vancouver. then again, crossing canada was quick as there wasn't much to visit... just scenery, and i didn't have to fight traffic in many cities except for toronto and chicago... this trip, i fought it in many. Chicago, St Louis, Oklahoma, Alberqueque, las vegas and pretty much the whole coast of california. holy crap there's a lot of traffic there.

did i mention how awesome splitting lanes are?

Back on I-75, there's not much to take pictures of.... even at the rest stops.. .a wee bit boring.
I did find this at one of them though...

Isn't that romantic? ya, i'm a softy.

Beast had oil, and was running well, so i opened it up as much as i could. I went so fast i found myself in some country that drives on the opposite side of the road.

IT'S COMING RIGHT AT ME!

ok, maybe it's being towed. But as you can see, not much on I-75. Thank god for XM radio.
wish i took all the stations tho... getting bored with what i have already.

riding fast on the KLR wears me out... as soon as i'm faster than 70... i get tired quick.. i tried to keep a pace of 78-85mph.

man this beard is itchy... it's fur now... very soft to the touch, but the full face makes it itchy as hell.

nothing else to take pictures of... so here's one of me again.
whoopie.

I did manage to get to Tampa without incident... except Florida drivers suck... Why must they all stay in the passing lane when people are passing them on the right? how retarded? do they not get the hint that they are blocking the passing lane? morons.
Arizona drivers do that too.
fucking old people...
"i'm going to stay in this lane so that i don't have to move out of it until my exit! it's safer that way"?
really dumbass? traffic has a flow, and you're a rock in the stream. MOVE.

Tim came to pick me up and we rode back to his place.

The roads around Tampa are great? all the trees overhanging the roads... love it!

Tim and I got along great right from the start. How can you not... he's an awesome guy.!
I met his wife Tracie as well. Very welcoming people. I was offered a shower and greedily took it. Man it feels good to be clean after a ride... even though i had showered 6-7 hours before. unreal.

I met their pets ... Roxy, Ruby and Kai.
Roxy is a 'mutt'... sweet dog though, albeit a bit neurotic. She's soft as can be and always wants attention. Ruby can be a little bitch. Wiener dogs have such attitudes! hah.. she was a sweetie though.... just not trusting at first.. Their cat Kai, was cute. I miss having a pet... but i don't miss having to take care of one. I wouldn't want to not give a pet the attention they deserve.

Tim had some pulled pork and some smoked beans. They call it barbecue, but like most of us, we think BBQ and we think BBQ sauce. The pulled pork was 'au naturelle'. The baked beans, unlike anything i'd had before. The Pork was juicy, and had pure pork flavors, with such subtle tastes... it was ...

Wow. Seriously, wow.
I love food that is done right... i like it even better when it's a "one of"... truly some special food there.

washed all the food down with some of Tim's home made brew... this is a micro brew, not the crap you boil from a can. Very very nice beer. I'm not big beer drinker, solely for the fact that many many many beers suck. That beer was good...

The rest of the evening was very enjoyable and relaxing... i love to just shoot the shit, drink and smoke and just relax. I learned a lot about the flora and fauna, the history of florida/tampa... it was great.

I will say, everytime an Acorn would fall from the tree and hit the roof, it freaked me out.
I knew there were some animals that can kill you in florida, but i didn't know about many things...

crocs, gators, snakes, spiders and bugs.
a lot of crap can kill you out there. Is this why all the old people go there:? srsly?

What a different world completely to live in florida compared to home. Yes, we have snow. they have hurricanes.
We have deer and moose and beavers.
They have shit that will eat you, sting you, bite you, poison you and pretty much scare the crap out of you.

no wonder we put up with snow.
After doing nothing all night we crashed... 3 am. holy crap.

Oct 18th - Tallahassee or bust

2010-10-19T10:05:00.000-04:00

I slept like crap. I think i'm just too out of shape or i was spoiled by recent hotels. meh. Maybe my body is really starting to feel the affects of riding. Maybe i need a massage... most likely i need a chiropractor.

WASSAT!

nothing it seems... taken from inside the tent looking out. since i got up really early, i took my time this morning, i knew i had a ton of time to make today's destination before nightfall... Tallahassee.

I couldn't pee in the swamp as they don't want you to put greywater on the ground, so off to the washrooms i went. I saw this on my way there and laughed.

Funny isn't it? maybe you can't make it out fully.

That's a woman. On the left is a Great Dane, and in the Middle, a Chihuahua. Made me laugh.

There are only 4 words that come to mind when i see this

PUSH BUTTON | RECEIVE BACON

The sun was coming out nicely, and since i had taken a ride around the campground the night before, i knew there would be some nice photo-ops to be had. I was also looking for wildlife... haven't seen much on this trip, then again, i've stuck to the roads, and the most of what i saw were dead... I did see an armadillo dead too. first one of those :)

Off for a walk i went. I know, big shock... Al goes for a walk

i like these trees.

my favorite of the series... top of the trip i think. I like it.

It was quite surreal, the trees, the still water, the lighting, the slight fog...

There were these fish (i think they were fish) splashing about at the surface of the water.
Since i saw an old movie when i was young (Piranha) I wasn't about to test the waters. Never know what's in there.

I finally saw some wildlife, most probably what was making a rukus and creeping me out the night before. Right when i was about to take a shot, it runs away!

Stupid squirrels. heh. As much as i like the tree rats, that's all i saw for wildlife near a swamp. Meh.
My set up before the tear down. Right behind my site is the swamp.

welcome to the swamp. I wonder if they like to eat fat canadians.

I had to take my greybeard picture of the day. It's filling out quite well. I should be looking like Captain Caveman in no time.

I packed up and headed to starbucks for Wifi. well, ,coffee to (which i where i am now, well not really, about 425 miles west of it)
I updated the blog and looked at the time. CRAP. I wasn't going to make Tallahassee before sundown. I really need to get my ass in gear for this trip or else i won't have time to do anything... I'll have to take a direct line home.
I had decided on taking the causeway that goes directly across from where i was to New Orleans. It's a toll way, but for $3 it's worth it.

it's so long, you don't see the other end

this thing is about 24 miles long. and straight. Good thing is that the speed limit is 65 the whole way through, the bad thing is that if you speed, there are many... and i mean many cops waiting for you. I kept my speed at 70.

not sure which of the 2 above i like better...

New Orleans! or... Nawlins! whichever you prefer.

Bourbon street at canal. neato

OK, WHAT THE FUCK IS WRONG WITH YOU PEOPLE IN FLORIDA! MUST YOU ALL BATH IN PERFUME? FUCK! YOU STINK.

anyways...

I rode down bourbon street, looking for a place to park and maybe get some 'local' cuisine. Well, there wasn't anyplace to park right in front of somewhere and there wasn't any way i'd leave Beast by himself here. It's my ticket home, it's all my belongings in the world.. etc. Would you leave your wallet at a curb a few blocks away hoping someone wouldn't screw with it?

Riding down, i spotted a place called "Arnaud's". I must come back just for that alone! hah. I wonder if they'd let me drink for free due to my last name. doubtful. Does that mean i have Cajun/Acadian roots? dunno.

New Orleans is one of those cities i must come back to visit. The others being Las Vegas, Los Angeles, San Francisco and San Diego. apart from that, cities sucked. OK, i'd go to Green Bay again... felt like home somehow... very comfortable.

On the way out of town i kept my eyes open for a local place to eat. I found this place.

Sammy's Food Service & Deli

It was filled with locals. It took me a few minutes to decide on what to order. Meanwhile i was being stared at by locals, black and white equally. Never seen a spaceman before?

THE CLAW!!!

So i ordered this. A soft shelled crab poboy sandwhich. It seemed local enough and it was on as one of their daily specials.

Fries are hand cut, the bread fresh... it was really good!! I don't like fish, but i do enjoy seafood. This was pretty good. I'm still not a huge fan of the innards of the crab, but i did my best to finish it.

As i was leaving, 5 cops came in. If the local cops come here to eat, you know the food is good. always a good sign.

Belly filled, i headed east.

First Emma come, den i come, next, two asses, den i come again...

It's from an old joke of an Italian guy trying to explain how to spell a certain state...

Mississippi! (revisited)

Lunar lander!

The reason there's a lunar lander is that there are NASA tours (free) that shuttles from here. Seems it's the largest rocket test facility in the USA.

I got some maps and info and left. I got through Alabama, and noticed something different right away. State troopers. many of them. twice i saw 3 troopers have a guy in cuffs on the side of the road. holy.

I wanted to see what Mobile was all about and when through downtown. Actually, i was looking for coffee, but it's a good enough excuse. Downtown was dead. no cars, no people. creepy, so i kept going and i accidentally took this tunnel. All i could think about was a bad Sylvester Stallone movie called daybreak. heh.

Luckily for me, it took me right back to I-10 east, so not much time wasted.

Gusty as hell, and there are quite a few of these bridges/causeways. couldn't take many pictures.

Got to the Visitor information center in Florida. Got some info and noticed that the vending machines here are a bit different.

The visitor centers all had these in Florida. Odd.

ICE CREAM!

How cool is that? Never seen one before and they are a great idea! I took the bubblegum Popsicle to cool me off as it was quite warm in the sun.

It's a dumb picture, but it shows more bridges and it shows my really tall shadow. That means one thing only. Dark is fast approaching. crap. This is going to be fun. I actually like to ride at night, just not on the interstate.

As you can tell, it's not fully dark yet, only dusk. If i took a picture you wouldn't be able to make it out. Keep in mind my visor isn't clear either and it's dark. Want to know what i see? it's pretty much like the below.

This is the Atari 2600 version of Night Driver. I played it quite a bit in the day. The only difference between Night Driver and my Night Rider is that I only have 1 life, and no one keeps score. otherwise, it's pretty identical. Good thing i rocked that game.

as the sun went down, so did the temperatures. I was freezing. I should have put the liners in, but i packed them up in the duffel and didn't want to risk debalancing the bike.
To note:
I inflated the tires to 32-36 instead of what it should be (21-27?) There is still a front end wobble, but it's quite stable now, unless i go 85mph, or when i'm passing big trucks. Those rigs displace a lot of air and the KLR, loaded as it is, is a giant sail.

I stopped at every 2nd rest stop as i was cold, and to relax. I was going to be late anyways, why keep up an insane 80mph race in the dark? It also helps that at one point while passing a string of cars, I passed a deer not 4 feet away from me eating grass on the shoulder. Maybe i shouldn't pass cars so wide... meh. I lived. heh.

I picked up this energy drink earlier that day because i knew i'd need it. it's like all the others. Tastes like crap.

Beast in the moonlight.

I finally hit Tallahassee at 8:30pm... wait 9:30! crap. Forgot the timezone change. Oh well, at least i don't have to change timezones anymore as i'm staying in this one.

I got myself a coffee to warm up and then a room at a cheap econolodge. Yay for wifi at the motel.

There's not many ma and pa places nearby so i hit up an IHOP for a second meal that day.
As i walked in, some young woman asked me if i came off the interstate because of my suit. hah. I told her i was on the interstate earlier and i've had the suit on for 8700 miles. heh. she seemed shocked.

The food was actually not bad. tasted better than i had hoped. Sirloin tips, eggs, has browns and pancakes.

didn't know what kind of sauce/syrup it was, but it was the odd one out, out of the 3 to choose from. Was pretty good. rule of thumb. always go for the most different and never tried before foods. how else will you ever know what it tastes like and if you'd like it?

Got back to the room and wrestled with the Wifi for 3 hours trying to use and update the blog in vain. I lost it all, hence why i'm at a starbucks now.
10 am. crap. it'll probably take me about 6 hours to get to Tampa the way i ride :(

Sorry Tim, i'll only be able to get there at about 4-5pm.

Oct 17th - "28 days Later from Pigs to Chickens to Gators"

2010-10-18T10:50:00.000-04:00

Today was the day i would get the best fried chicken in my life. I hoped. It was the one place that I must go to. I didn't know if i would be in the area in the future, and if something says it's the best in the world (more than one) then it's worth the detour i took. Sure, an addtional 200+ miles to go there instead of going directly east, but i had hoped it was worth it.

I took a picture of a truck that was parked beside my bike in the morning. Well, it wasn't so much parked as much as it was broke. The axle broke at the u-joint and it was on the ground. Can't be fun for him.

Off i went in search of a starbucks. It seemed there were two on my way to The Old Country Store (source of the best friend chicken in the world).

The GPS maps and data are out of date by 2 years, and the reason i have not updated it is that the maps for all of north america won't fit on it completely (without removing certain sections). Shitty. i'm not about to pay yet until i really need it.

I saw a cop way off to the left hidden behind the bushes. Seems i was going through a speed trap at 62 instead of the posted 50. He said that it's a 50 all through town.

I looked in my rearview and didn't see a town. I saw what i think were a few abandoned buildings and maybe a gas station. The highway there is a divided 4 lane. The speeds should be 70 IMHO THROUGH the town. He didn't know if my Ontario drivers license was valid. WTF? don't they teach police what their own laws are? YES IT IS VALID. he started comparing mine to a mexican drivers license and said at least he could read mine. No offense to the cop, but he was ignorant (i mean that in the nicest way) How are you not educated enough to know what is valid in your country? jesus.

bah. first US ticket i've ever had. I tried to tell him my speedo broke and he said he'd put it down to the lowest possible. How about letting me go? that would be low. meh. The ticket doesn't have a price. I'm assuming i'll have to call the office when i get back and haggle a price or something. Oh well, i don't care.

So, as usual, the GPS pointed me to starbucks locations that didn't exist any longer. I started uploading yesterday's blog and noticed the memory card for my camera still in the laptop. well that just sucks. I would have thought the camera would have said "No memory" or something. oh well. in it went. Guess no picture of that broken axle then.

JESUS!!!
something is running around my tent. Didn't like the sound of that...

Anyhow, the coffee at this place was good and it had wifi even though it was slow outside where i was in the sun. felt good to sit and do nothing.

Off I went some more. I found Chevey Chase.

See this road? 50 zone. WTF??

Cotton fields, but no one picking them... where are those crackers when you need them?

Neato bridge over the mighty mississippi

The mighty Mississippi itself. Second time i've crossed it on this trip, St Louis being the first. I crossed it last year as well. I consider it a milestone :-P

it was a whoohoo moment. not sure why. just was.

This is what awesomeness looks like. Ok, maybe just a similar facsimile.

Right after the bridge is Mississippi. Whoohoo moment. Another state i hit and can put a pin on the map. heh.

Crossing the bridge brought me to Natchez and i felt like taking the Natchez trace parkway... all the way north. But alas, i was on a mission today. I'll be back for you Natchez-Trace... i'll be back

Chicken.

I didn't go 8300 miles to miss the on thing i HAD to do.

I got the The Old Country Store. No real frills, a little odd old place in the middle of nowhere along us61.

The Old Country Store.

serouisly nothing around. Here's looking south

and north

It's a quaint place, a country store by the old standards, with a small buffet in the back.

This is the Buffet. Left is cold, right is hot. doesn't look like much right?

wrong. See that doorway in the back? Mr. D kept coming from there,continually filling up the trays.

I took a small plate at first, 3 pieces of chicken, a ham steak (bone in) some egg/potato salad and green beans.

honestly, it IS the best chicken in the world. I shall never eat better fried chicken in my life, unless i return. seriously. i'm not kidding. The skin/crust, the best i'd ever had, while the chicken was moist and not greasy. I usually do not like the taste of chicken to begin with, as it needs something on it. I put hotsauce on KFC to make it edible.

nom nom nom

This needed nothing at all.

JESUS... more noises around the tent.

The ham steak was really good, and so was the green beans and salad.

I was stuffed, but they had other foods too... Ribs, rice, etc... a lot of food actually for a small buffet. Quality over quantity. If someone leaves there not satisfied, they have no taste buds.

I went back for a second plate, i wanted to try more than just the heavenly chicken.

I started by taking some slaw, more potato salad, beets, mustard greens i think, and there was a single piece of chicken i was eyeing. Before i could grab it, Mr Arthur Davis (best cook in the world IMHO) came out with a HUGE tray of freshly fried chicken, While saying/singing, Here it is, don't be shy, eat all you can. He seriously loves it here. I admire this man. He's good at what he does, and he knows it, yet he is truly and honestly happy with serving his chicken. That's pride. real pride. i bow to him.

I had to take another piece of chicken (even though i wasn't hungry) and tried to take a small piece. No go, all huge pieces of chicken. I also took some corn and dirty rice for good measure.

Massive piece of chicken... nothing smaller.

Everything was really good. Honestly, i wish i could eat QUALITY food like this all the time. Damn corporations are ruining the world.

I seriously hope they NEVER change anything. It was superb. an experience like non-other.

Total price of the buffet with a drink (free refills) less than $13.
WTF. if i ate that much at KFC or any other fast food, i would have spent at least $25 and the quality wouldn't be there.

when paying, he asked if everything was good. Srsly? has to ask? A humble man. very rare breed of person this one. Truely awesome.

There is a lot on the walls of this place to read... all of them praise, from some influential people.
But something caught my eye, and there was no clutter around it. I also found it interesting that it was directly opposite the cash, so whoever is behind the cash could read it.

This guy follows it. srsly.

Mr. Arthur Davis. What a man.

I left, belly full and knowing i won't have to eat for a long while.
Some of these roads were nice... A little scenery, but a nice quite sunday ride with no real traffic.

I Went to mount Olive, but Popeye was going to kick the shit out of me. heh.

I really wanted to go to New Orleans, but i may be too late for today. I stopped in at the visitor info of Louisianna from Mississppi and looked for a map. They asked if i needed anything else and asked if they had any state campground info. They had a ton of info actually, both state and private. bingo.

Now my quest was to find some lodging for the night. I was going to check out the campsite on the other side of the lake from New Orleans (40 min ride across the lake on the causeway) and it has everything i needed for $18 a night. not bad. The only thing is that it is seriously right on the swamp. Kinda cool, kinda spooky. heh.

I did go to a starbucks for a coffee, and since i had to wait a few mins for the coffee to finish, it was on the house. Cool.

I checked my tire pressure and it was severly low. WTF. I pumped it higher than normal (32 front and 36 rear) due to the load i have to see if it makes a difference.
Nope. Wobbles at low speed and high speed. Maybe a bearing is bad in the front or the tire is out of round. I need to get it checked out. Perhaps loose spokes too? dunno, i'm not a mechanic! It does handle better than the 17lbs it had in the front and 28 in the rear. maybe the last mechanic took air out? i dunno.

damn rustling around in the bushes is driving me crazy.

Oct 16th- From crickets to crabs

2010-10-17T12:25:00.001-04:00

Do you know the sound of one hand clapping?

yes i do, it's when i gave this guy a smackdown.

It was with mixed emotions that i woke up today. Didn't sleep well at all. Stress. something that i hadn't really had on this trip until a few days ago.

I think i work up around 5:30 or so... well before my 7:30 alarm. yay for less than 5 hours of sleep. I putzed around for a while, knowing the shop would only open at 9, and it probably wouldnt be ready until then.

Had the hotel breakfast. Cheese omellet, breakfast burrito, bacon, fruit loops, apple juice and coffee. Pretty good for free. Well, not exactly free when the room was $90 a night. Not that expensive considering it was one of the best rooms i've stayed at. Ok, the hotel in Page, AZ was $140 but considering it was one of the last rooms in town and it was a holiday inn express, it was worth it... except for that disgusting breakfast.

The room was really nice actually King bed, 5 pillows, very nice... 37 inch (i think) flat screen, nice furniture. Bathroom was all marble, nice glass walk in shower. The only thing i hated was the soap. felt like i was oiling myself up. I had expensive soaps for that. Gimme the cheap stuff. it cleans and leaves you feeling clean. I want an oil stripper dammit, i don't want to be left feeling as if i slathered myself in butter.

Why mixed emotions? 1) i knew today was going to be expensive. Maybe not as expensive as the one week stay in Richmond, BC last year while my rad was getting fixed, but i didn't know what to expect with the bike.

I went back up to the room as it wasn't 9 yet, and turned on the shower and sat in my personal steam room for a while. Then i coughed up a nice lung cookie. I know, who takes pictures of that? i do. Here is is.

I sat up in bed with most of the pillows behind me almost fell asleep watching TV. I was/am exhausted. It wasn't what i was watching on the History Channel, but rather just being comfortable in bed with nothing to do... it was easy like sunday morning... cept it's not sunday.

Went to the bike shop and the bike would take another 30 mins to an hour to be fixed. Back to the history channel i went.

It's interesting that that the tactics used in the tribal wars between the isrealites and the palistines in BC times, that were written in the bible, were used by generals in the first and second world wars going over the same terrain. neato.

Finally got the bike at around 10:30. $450 or so? can't remember. Got a new chain and sprockets and the power delivery is so smooth now. wow. They checked everything else, oil/air, cam tensioners, Horn and speedo cable.
The relay on the horn blew and they don't have the relay. piece of crap relay. They didn't have a speedo cable in stock either. oh well, maybe i'll find another shop along the way that does and can install it cheap. It's not really that needed, but i'd like to have the odometer and trip working correctly.

front sprocket and chain. woot.

rear sprocket and nice shiny chain. won't be like that for long

I packed up the bike and put the new cradle in it's place and works well (as i knew it would).

As you can see on my GPS, i'm listening to Guns n Roses. What's good about it? see that little thing on the top left that says HairNation? and the other thing that says XM on the top right?

Introducing my gift to me. The gxm 30xm. woot

Garmin GXM 30XM mounted on left fairing

Told you it was an expensive day for me.
hotel room for two nights $180
various crap from home depot $60
Bike repairs $450
audio cable to replace defective one $8
new cradle and XM reciever $250

being able to listen to different kinds of music at the touch of a button while riding.

Priceless.

Left the hotel at around 11:30. Today i was running late and didn't want to be as i wanted to meet up with Dan and his wife in Lake Charles, LA. I didn't want to be late, because i hate not keeping my word. If i say i'll be there, i'll be there. sometimes late. heh.

I let the GPS plot the quickest course to Lake Charles, and it took me mostly off the interstates and on put me on the highway system, bypassing all cities. Works for me.

Not 10 miles from Granbury, a very large object hit me in the right cheek and stuck there. Man it hurt, looking down, all i could see was yelow and black, so i flicked it off in haste. Last time that happened was in 2008 on my east coast trip and the wasp stung me. once, maybe twice. It hurt. First time i'd ever been stung i think. Anyhow, didn't get stung by whatever it was. Here's a hint. always put down the full face sheild. It'll protect your face.

Not many pictures of Texas because, well... Texas has no real scenery t speak of. Not the highways i was on at any rate. The roads are nice to cruise on and the speed limits are high. Nice roads for the most part, just a bit boring. Oh California, how i miss you.

I realized once hitting about 75 mph that the wobbling was still prevalent. Crap.
Not as bad as before (until i got on interstates) but still there.
I was pissed off, boiling hot and wanted to keep hydrated, so i stopped in at Mcdicks.
Why because mcdicks? Wifi. Only reason actually. The smoothie was ok.

saw this and laughed.

I wish i had a girlfriend that dirty. lol

Not much of interest to see, except a bunch of broken towns, so i listened to a lot of musc. Pretty good actually, except not loud enough nor does it have enough bass. Then again, This is XM RADIO, not CD quality. overall i'm fairly happy with the GXM 30XM... wish they didn't play the same music in a loop though.

I have a theory as to why my bike does a wobble.
it's not a single thing, but a compound issue.
1) small wobble with the front at high speeds. Could be tire pressure, balance, alignment, shocks. Maybe when it fell over on the right side a few times it knocked something out of alignment somehow. who knows.
2) weight. Look at the picture of the bike on day 1 (sept 20th) and look at it now. I still had some space in the cases then. Now, the cases are full and so is the large duffle bag i have. It's too damn top and back heavy.
3) drag. I'm probably have the same drag coeficient as a 1 ton truck. I'm not kidding. a typical sports bike has on the size of a car, and a cruise the size of a pickup.

to simplyfy: It's top heavy, wide and all the weight is in the rear with a wobbly front.

OMFG... my bike is a big fat black bitch. this is not a racist comment. If it were a different color, i would have said the color the bike was in. Then again, if you're offended, fuck you, you shouldn't be reading this. heh.
after much riding and much music I finally got to Beaumont, TX and hit a starbucks. I needed it bad. i hadn't had a decent cup of coffee that day, so i needed that, but more importantly i needed the Wifi so i could grab Dan's number which i forgot to write down.

Late as i wash, he and his wife were up to meeting up with me at Steamboat Bills. Woot. It was already dark by now, and he was only about an hour away.

The interstate ride was.. .interesting. Many big rigs on the I-10 and at night you could see my headlight shining the two lanes on each side of me, back and forth, back and forth. Heh. it freaked people out and they fell in behind me... or maybe it was because i was hitting 82. Think of the fishtailing like surfing and I was hanging 10. I've never surfed before, so you can just imagine. lol

Got to Steamboat Bill's and ordered a Pistolet and a Crawfish and shrimp combo platter. Anyone who is a seafood lover would love this place. People who don't like anything from the sea would like this place.
Was awesome. Dan and Rebecca were sitting under a 10 foot stuffed gator. Neato.
I actually hope Rebecca delivers on halloween! how cool would it be for them that there's an assured party for them on every birthday!! you need to think long term... Instant social life and drinking partners. heh.

Grats in advance on the baby guys...

Crawfish and shrimp, on a bed of fries, with a deep fried bun and slaw. AWESOME. No shot of the pistolet as i ate it so fast. It was awesome.

Delicious!

Steamboat bills is a no frills type of place. You order at the counter, everything is fried and it's delicious. I regret not taking more pictures, but i was too busy enjoying myself. I should have had one of the happy couple, and of the 10 foot stuffed gator over our heads. ah well, next time. i was so exhausted.

It was great meeting with them and chatting for a while... i had a great time. I really need to do another tour soon of the eastern seaboard and mostly the south. fear i spent too much time on Route 66 and the west coast that i'll run out of time and won't make this ride epic. meh. Next time.

I took a room at the Oasis Inn, almost right beside the restaurant. It seemed like a non-chain, cheap motel. It is. The wifi sucks, but i was warned ahead of time. for half the price of the hotel in Granbury, it's worth it.
The pain peeling wasn't great to look at but at least the soap here doesn't make me feel like i just rubbed lard all over myself. It helps that the shower worked and the bed was comfortable.

Time for bed. I was sitting up and dozed off while writing this in notepad.

Oct 15th - Not much of a blog update today...

2010-10-15T20:25:00.000-04:00

Before i forget, Any of you anonymous ones out there reading that don't know me, ship me off an email if you want :)

Today was going to suck, i knew that before hand, but still...

I got up early and ate breakfast before i had to drop the bike off at the shop for 9.

The breakfast at the hotel

eggs, sausage, covered in salsa, a banana and frosted flakes. meh. free breakfast, not half bad. I'm not into toast or bagels in the morning... neither making my own waffles.

I took the cases off the bike and brought them up to the room, and brought the bike to the shop at 9.

Back to the room to wait for my FedEx package... I really didn't want to miss this.
Got really hungry (probably because i didn't eat last night) and went out and about in search for food nearby. I told the front desk to hold a package if it comes.

I walked over to the bike shop and it seems they got the chain, but no sprockets.. it was on the truck, but wasn't delivered.
A lot of car customizing shops in this corner. check out this guy

The Pie Wagon

awesome... ain't it? classy.

I went across the highway and saw a bunch of restaurants.
I picked the restaurant that had a patio so i could smoke. Not the best way to choose things, but it turned out ok. The place was called Montana Restaurant. Not associated with the chain we have back home.

While in Texas... got the Ribeye...

It was good... the mashed with white gravy was really good, peas cold, but still good and the salad.. well, it's a salad. The Texas toast on the other hand i don't get. Like, put some garlic or something on it. Soggy bread and butter just doesn't cut it with me.

saw this sign at the restaurant. funny

it says
"take life with a grain of salt...
a wedge of lime,
and a shot of telquila"

I think i'm going to follow that advice tonight...

After much writing, and sitting in the partial sun drinking coffee, i went back to my room. The front desk called and lo and behold, my package was here. 15 bucks for less that 24 hours delivery... pretty good. actually, pretty awesome.
I'd order from GPScity again, for certain. I got my new cradle and the gift i gave myself. happy birthday/merry christmas.

Now i had nothing to do but wait on the bike. I decided to go to Starbucks (2.5 miles away). On the way there i stopped in at the shop and they had received the parts. phew. a load off my mind. Now i hope they put beast back into shape.

Went to starbucks and had my coffee. Wifi didn't work, so i sat and thought... and wrote... and thought some more. Sometimes i think it's not healthy to do so...

I understand the need for people to live vicariously through others, through their stories, their lives. It enriches their lives a little. but today, i had to live vicariously through you. it sucked. it does suck. I need to hit the road badly. i need to be on the move. Am i running away from things? running towards something? hell if i know, i just gotta move.

Anyhow, on the way back i stopped into a little shop and bought myself some medicine. Not the same kind of medicine i have at home, but it'll do in a pinch.
The grape tasting one is pretty awesome... cheap too. haven't tried the other yet, but i certainly will.

Cheers / Fisehatak / A votre sante / Sláinte / Kampai / Salud

Never asked questions that you never cared to ask, and didn't want to know anyhow

2010-10-15T16:43:00.000-04:00

I'm sitting in the hotel room, bored out of my tree.
I figured i'd do something a little different.
It's kinda like a faq, cept no one asked me, and no one really cares. i'm that bored. stuck near an industrial park with nothing nearby, not even coffee. this sucks. might turn to Mr Mist earlier than i thought.

Q) do you get bored travelling alone?
A) no, there's always a stranger that approaches me to chat for a little while. It's amazing how friendly people are when you look like chewbacca and have big stickers on a overloaded yet strange looking bike. I feel like a curiosity, a freak show, sometimes. Not that there's anything wrong with that. I keep a journal, and i write my thoughts.

Q) are you afraid travelling alone?
A) afraid of what? spiders? Travel smart... don't flash money, don't go to bad neighbourhoods, etc.

Q) how do you cope with being alone all the time?
A) it's pretty simple. first you go insane and hide that fact from everyone. luckily i've been doing it for years.

Q) after all that riding in a day, do you get sore?
A) you sit on a vibrator for 10 hours in a day, and tell me how you feel.

Q) any injuries so far on this trip?
A) numerous cuts on the hands, fingers, scrapes on the lets, bruises on forearms and a bump on the head from when the bike fell on me.

Q) what else do you do when you ride?
A) look at scenery and listen to music mostly. I make animal sounds when i pass that type of animal.

Q) what kind of music do you listen to?
A) all kinds of music. It depends on my mood and the road at that time. Slow paced music for long stretches of road, to fast paced when i'm in the twisties...

Q) don't you get tired riding the bike?
A) yes, a few times i almost fell asleep. If you mean tired as in "sick and tired" then no, i could live on it.

Q)What's pissed you off on this trip?
A) i bought beef jerky in Michigan, and a few states over, i noticed something had nibbled through the plastic. Don't know when it was, or what it was and how it got in my bags, but it did. Another thing is that my horn has stopped working on day 2 of the trip.

Q) any breakdowns with the bike?
A) the KLR is a tank. my last mechanic screwed me over, and have had problems with the chain and sprockets. Getting that corrected now i hope (if they can find the parts.

Q) What on the bike have stopped working?
A) Stock parts? headlight. aftermarket? horn.

Q) Any damage to the bike?
A) it's was put down slowly (dropped) 2 times on day 1. it was fully pushed over twice (once wind, once by the pressure washer) and the handguard was cracked. The cage and side cases took all the abuse and it pushed in the rack a little on the right side. no major damage. A third time the bike slipped off the center stand and hit me on the head on the way down. That wasn't fun. Again, the cage and cases took the abuse.

Q) any regrets on this trip?
A) who doesn't have regrets?? I regret not going to monument valley due to weather. I regret spending too much time going down route 66, and regret not doing proper maintenance on the bike. Main reason why i'm stuck in the hotel right now.

Q) How much planning do you do before each day's ride?
A) I don't. I don't even look at the weather anymore. I look outside. If it's cold, i put liners in. If it's wet, i put liners in and put on a rain coat. no use checking the weather as i'm heading in a direction anyhow.

Q) How's your health?
A) Physically,besides bronchitis at the moment and dizzy spells for the last 4 days, i feel just fine. I do have boot feet though, so that's not good. Mentally is another story altogether :)

Q) what do you do when you ride?
A) i ride, listen to music, sing to myself and i think. I think introspectively, retrospectively and prospectively. When i stop writing and i can remember what i was thinking about, it goes in the journal.

Q)Why did you write this NAQ?
A) i'm bored and an attention whore.

Now i'm off to go get coffee. Seems that the nearest AND ONLY starbucks or any sort of coffee is 2.5 miles away. GPS says it'll take me 30 mins to walk there. I think it'll take me an hour. i'm that slow.

Oct 14th -- Stuck in Granbury Texas.

2010-10-14T22:40:00.000-04:00

The 14th... already? I've been on the road now for 25 days, and I've totally lost track of time. Travelling, the way I do, really does mess with you in certain respects.

For one, no normalcy. You wake up in a strange bed one morning, and fall asleep in another that night. To some of you, this may be normal. If you did that, you'd be a whore. hah.

I've been begining to wonder why I do this, why I subject myself to this. The answer still isn't clear what drives me to this borderline insanity. Fear of normalcy? Am I running away from things? Is this just easier than a normal life?

People have told me, "you're living a dream" ... not just one or two, but many, so many.
The funny thing is, this is the easiest thing in the world to do for me. Pack light, spend money like you have it, and just live a fantasy life for a while.
I've been wondering if this fantasy life is truly living a dream. I think it isn't. It's easy for me in one sense, but so very hard in another. In reality, it isn't a dream, but an experience. A most wonderful, harsh, grim, exciting experience.

before i forget... Morely, Texas sucks.. .you want to go to New Mexico.. that's where it's pretty awesome..
so far, New Mexico, California and Nevada are my favourites... for the scenery alone... the people are nice everywhere... awesome driving in LA (fast paced, but you get used to it) and horrible drivers in Arizona. F'ing old people. Texas drivers are 50-50... most will go on the shoulder to let you pass... they are that nice.

I've been honked at ONCE during my entire trip, and that was in LA... from some out of state moron. heh.

Enough with that...

I know I look like hell, but I feel like hell. Besides all the aches and pains from riding, numb/sore hands, numerous cuts all over, and a big bump on the top of my head where my bike fell on me, I have viral bronchitis. yay.
The good news is, the pedo-beard is coming along nicely for Halloween. All I'm missing is the pedo-glasses and a pervert-coat and i'm all set. Anyone have a white van I could borrow?

I headed southeast and found the bike didn't wobble as much, but still did a bit. I decided to go to the next town over called Hamilton for breakfast, surely they'd have a ma & pa diner around. If there was, I couldn't find it. I settled for Donut shop. Seemed like the only thing around to get food.
I asked what their specialty was and was told two choices. Here they are.

A giant cinnamon bun and a pig in a blanket. don't let the photo fool you, that cinnamon bun was easily 8 inches across and 3 inches thick. I got a large coffee as well. I ate the pig in a blanket first. It was ok. What do you expect from a hot dog in a pastry? I will say the pastry was very good.
The cinnamon bun on the other hand was something else. Glazed, not frosted ( i like frosted better) but it was awesome. Sweet, but not overly so, and so fresh... The pastry was quite soft and spongy. Probably the best cinnamon bun I've ever had. The coffee? it was a complete disgrace. disgusting. It so weak you could see into the coffee a few inches, and of course, no cream... Damn "non-dairy creamer" is disgusting.

While i was eating, i kept looking at the map, and that if i should keep following my current trajectory to hit Beaumont, TX, i would be going through a lot of back country roads... I may not hear banjos on those roads, but roads i wouldn't want to get stuck at any rate. That, plus the lure of starbucks north of me, prompted me to go into that direction, towards Fort Worth. The GPS came through for once and found a Kawasaki Shop in Granbury, TX.
While riding to Granbury, my Speedo quit. CRAP. now i don't know how far i've gone, or have use of my Odometer for use as a fuel gauge. I got to the shop and they will see what they can do. They've ordered some parts and hopefully they will come in on time. there's a rash of things to be done on it, and i hope they will get it all done in time and done properly. I know this is going to set me back quite a bit financially. remember friends, an ounce of prevention is more than a pound of cure.

Luckily for me, there were two hotels right beside the shop. I got a room at the first one as it had everything I needed. Wifi, smoking room. It helps that there is breakfast in the morning, laundry machines right near my room, a pool and a hot tub. I think Mr. Mastercard is liking me already. I'm not sure myself as i haven't checked my bill, due to fear of having a heart attack.

They will start working on it tomorrow. Until then, not much to do but hurry up and wait. I went to the home depot, and picked up a few items to see if i could fix my GPS cradle. Small screwdriver set, a torch, you know... useful stuff.

By this time i was getting quite hungry and looked for a local looking place. It's hard to find one with all the Jack in the boxes and the likes.

I found one place called The Big Cup Eatery. It was dead in there, but then again it was only 2:30pm. I decided on getting a good breakfast.

2 eggs, Chicken fried steak and hash browns. It was really good, and the chicken fried steak was probably some of the best I've ever had... Definately the best i've had on this trip.

The server asked if I wanted pie for desert... I declined as I was too full. Turns out I got PI somehow.

get it? yes, lame humour.

Back at the hotel, i decided to play operation with my GPS. No music and sound on the GPS make it for a dull ride indeed. I need the distraction, and need it to concentrate. go figure.

I took it apart easily enough, but the sound portion is under a glob of silicone. I tried to get at it, but no go as I was breaking it more by digging in there. once I get back home, I'll rip that portion out and get a cheap replacement part from radio shack/circuit city.

It's in there and won't budge. As I still need the GPS to be able to charge in the cradle, i put it back together. It still charges, so that's good. I was really annoyed at not having sounds and looked stuff up on the internet. GPS City says that they can ship one next day. O RLY?
I called them and bought one. I also got myself a gift, which I hope I'll enjoy. No, it's not a mail order bride.

Tomorrow will be a sit in the hotel room all day kind of event. It should be here by 3pm they say. I hope to god it is because i'll have to leave without it (and my gift to myself).

Not many pictures today because i think i travelled a whole... 93 miles? yippie :-/
I didn't plan my trip up to this point to give me flexibility in where i wanted to go. I am really far behind and wanted to be halfway up the east coast by now.
Tonight and tomorrow, not much blogging/pictures to be done. I'll be planning and plotting a course. There are a few stops I absolutely must do, and some that aren't crucial.

Must do stops:
Best fried chicken at "The Old Country Store" near Natchez.
Ride through New Orleans.
Hit up Tim in Florida
Hit the keys in Florida / swim in the ocean somewhere in florida (my southeast corner)
Hit up Dan in Louisiana (probably my first stop)

That's really all i have on my ToDo right now... everything else is not on the agenda yet.

I would like to:
Ride the Natchez-Trace Parkway
Ride the tail of the dragon
Ride the Cherohala Skyway
Ride the Blue Ridge Parkway
hit up some friends in Georgia/carolinas
hit boston (my north east corner) and see a friend there
see Donna in Toronto (unless I'm late and she's back home)

That's about it for tonight. I cleaned out my pockets. You might think i have too much stuff on me, but seriously everything is essential.

oct 13th- Texas sucks.

2010-10-14T00:49:00.000-04:00

I realized today that all my little trials and tribulations are quite insignificant compared to what others are going through in their lives. you see, worse case scenario (apart from dying or being in a wheelchair, which could happen when i'm at home anyhow) is that i get back home a little poorer. that's about it.

meanwhile, people around me are fighting for their lives, and their loved ones. I wish them all well on their own journeys. may your paths be filled with love and not sorrow or regret.

back to "a day in the life of Al"
not many pictures today. Bike is acting up so much i couldn't take many pictures while riding... also, there's not a whole lot to see in Texas... Texas sucks. (not the people, the landscape)

the moose and I at the cross eyed moose cafe. The moose is originally from newfoundland

before i forget, here's the heater in the motel i was talking about

toasty

i was so hungry i forgot to take a picture before eating. it was good and breakfast came with the room. sweet.

it gets cold up there. srsly. thankfully i had on long underwear and i used my new winter gloves i bought yesterday. it was cold. real cold.thankfully no frost or snow yet.

of to texas i went, and was chilled to the bone. even with the winter gloves my hands were starting to get cold after about 30 miles. cold, but not to the point of pain yet. i would have liked to have taken some pictures while riding, but it was too cold and cumbersome with big gloves. The scenery was nice in the mountains with the sunrise coming through the trees, etc.

I finally got out of the mountains and got some speed going. This is when i first noticed that the wobbling was getting worse. every time i would shift in the seat, the bike would do an uncontrollable wobble.

i dealt with it and went to a gas station in Artesia for some cold and sinus pills and some allergy pills. i took them both. i don't know what i have, but i don't feel well. From there on out, all you cold see is oil derricks in action. i thought a few hundred at first... but i'll assume a few thousand at least. i saw a few hundred all by the highway... there are more.. so many more.

Texas is boring to ride through.

a lot of cotton fields everywhere

i'm shooting laser beams. pew pew

got to Comanche, TX just as the sun was fading from twilight to night. Got a cheap room, and proceeded to get some food. hadn't eaten since, i only rode.

club, tater tots and coffee. no creamer, only whitener. damn. food was good. I ate at some little local hangout instead of Sonic or Wendy's. not much choice in a town with a population of 4000

I hit this too

The bike was making odd sounds, lacked power and was wobbling like a Mofo.

i decided to see if i could do anything about it.
The power... well, i'll assume it's because there's too much oil. bastard mechanic.
wobbling and sounds.... well, who knows, i'm not a mechanic...

i put the bike on the center stand and tried to adjust the chain. The problem is that the wheel has to be off the ground. after fiddling with it for a while, i took the front wheel off and the back end came off the ground. sweet.

I adjusted the chain as best i could as it may have been most of the bad sounds coming from underneath me. could be the reason the bike is wobbling. i don't know.

just when i'm almost done and giving it one last pull on the axle bolt, the bike lurches forward, off the center stand and on it's right side, hitting my head on the way down. I'm lucky it didn't fall on me i guess.
what a pain. Too heavy to lift it to put on the center stand again, i was discouraged. I went to the motel manager i was talking to earlier about bikes (he used to ride all the time and customize bikes in India) but he was gone. The father came out and helped me lift it back up.

took the bike for a little spin and all seemed ok. I think my chain is finished though. quite a few rings are gone. not good. all i did was ride today and i only managed to cover about 450 miles. that blows.
night.

oct 12th- today was bittersweet and disappointed in myself as well.

2010-10-13T01:16:00.000-04:00

No mark, not my first salad... but they have been far and few in between. lol

Today was a series of misfortunate events. I woke up in a bad mood, cranky, down, fatigued and with body aches but after a quick call from someone, I felt better. heh. odd how that happens. I was sneezing all last night and coughing a lot. I feel sick. Either a cold or bronchitis, i don't know, but my head hasn't stopped pounding and i haven't stopped sneezing.

My choice of clothing is next to nil, and i knew there was a laundromat nearby. In haste i went! It was open and they had a soap dispenser. Now for the change machine. No luck there. DAMMIT I guess from now on I'll have to keep about $5 of quarters on me for that, or cleaning the bike (which i haven't done since the last tip over in what... Oklahoma? eons ago).

I reuse clothing on the road. Why the hell not? i know i stink, but i don't care. heh.
I look like hell anyways with the dirty smelly adventure suit, the nasty beard i haven't shaved since i left home, and the bad hair from the helmet. Did i mention boot feet? heh. That's what happens when you wear wool socks in the desert.

I wanted to make up some miles today, so off on the interstate i went, hoping to be well within the Texas border by nightfall.

riding into the sunrise

"Blue Steel"

I got to Las Cruces and started looking at the GPS for starbucks locations. I love how the GPS brings you to a location that doesn't exist... i mean, a big empty lot of weeds... not even a building? arg. 2nd annoyance of the day.
See the white car in the middle of the picture? i know the picture is small (even if you click on it) but take a look at the tires sticking out a good 4-5 inches from the body. I bet when he honks, it's "La Cucaracha".

after a few more false positives on the GPS, i went finally found a starbucks. Yes i like coffee, no it's not the only reason. I needed to find a cycle shop to see if they had a tire.

I really didn't like the looks of the tire. The tread was still ok, but i was worried it would chunk out, and then i'd be screwed.

I went online and found a shop about 6 miles away. Off i went to find the store was closed. crap. annoyance number 4? 5?
I rode around and found a small shop. He didn't have anything but directed me to a big shop that would have it for sure.
I went to Las Cruces Motorsports and they seemed to have everything in there. Suzuki, Kawi, Yamaha, Big Dawg choppers, Honda, Quads, etc. Jesse at the parts counter tried in vain to find one, but he said most stores don't hold inventory. He called another store, and that store had a dunlop D607 in stock. The other store was way south in Santa Teresa, on the border of El Paso Texas. My aim to to head north as i had "planned" to visit something very important up there.

While i was waiting for Jesse, i picked up some very sweet, but very expensive gloves ($120). pictures later.

Oh well, the tire was more important, so i headed south, not knowing the exact location of the store. The address he gave me didn't exist as per the GPS, but i figured a local would know.

Driving through Texas, i stopped at the visitor information and picked up some info and maps

I wasted a lot of time looking for it, driving around Santa Teresa. Locals didn't know the street i was given. I called the number Jesse gave me, and the parts guy at the Santa Teresa motorsports gave me directions.
I was really annoyed by now. I hate wasting time more than anything.
I found the shop and they started right away on the tire It was about 1pm. It was going to take some time and i hadn't eaten all day so i headed out to find a restaurant.
I saw this local Mexican joint called "Ramon's" and it was filled with Mexicans. Worth a shot.

the usual basket of chips, with a really hot sauce. it was burning my mouth. Maybe they were playing a joke on me and saying "haha, look at the gringo". She did keep speaking spanish to me and then switch over to english. I guess when you're about 10 miles from the mexican border, at the border town, people speak spanish. I ordered and she dropped something else off at the table.

a little bowl of chicken soup? odd. my order didn't come with soup, nor did i ask for it. I was a nice home made soup though... wish the bowl was bigger the way i felt.

My food arrived. Shredded beef tacos with beans and rice.

This was bland compared to mexican food i had in southern california. oh well, maybe they were gringo tacos. Maybe because my head is stuffed up i couldn't taste much. who knows... it was still good though.

I got back to the shop and the mechanic said i was really low on oil. damn... i know i was running it hard... i should check it more often.
I asked for an oil change and filter, and that was done.

Went to get gas, put the bike on the stand and left the helmet on the back of the bike. dammit. helmet bounced a few times off the ground.

price tag for oil change and rear tire. ~250. ouch. I still had time to go visit my important point of interest. The White Sands national monument. I won't go into a geography/history lesson, so go here

The monument is actually surrounded by the white sands missle range. This is where the first atomic bomb was ever fired. Hence the reason i think it's important to visit.

On the way there, the bike was acting really strange. If i moved around a little, the whole bike started going into a wobble. This was scary. also, it seems that i lost a bunch of power. crap!
I was getting pissed off at this point. another sore point is that my GPS sound was starting to not function at all. I knew this was a risk because it was failing two years ago, and was replaced under warranty last year. Because i was leaving on my trip last year and they didn't have the part in stock, they shipped me back the old one, and i got it working well enough for the duration of that trip. I figured i'd risk the old part again so i'll have a new one to put on when i get back home. too many annoyances... AHHHHHHHHHHHH1!!!

Here's a pano of a small part of the bomb range.

I pulled over and figured that because it was a new tire, i should have lower air in it. I lowered the pressure which seemed to help. I checked the oil and i was way above the fill line. WTF is wrong with you mechanics. there's a fill line for a reason. Kawasaki engineers are smarter and get paid more than you, so do what they tell you. piss me off. Now the air filter will be screwed again, and i'll gum up the engine and possibly the carb.

I got to White Sands (going through yet another Border patrol checkpoint.. .these guys are serious about illegals)...

Stunning scenery. I'll let the pictures do the talking.

at 12x zoom. that person was a spec to the naked eye

My attempt at some panoramic shots... not bad, not great... but i'm lazy.

as you can tell, i'm way up high on one of the dunes. People sled and sand board on these all the time. entry fee to the monument btw? $3. wow. dirt cheap, and it's good for a week. seriously.

Walking down the dune, it reminded me of walking down a snow slope and i almost caught myself being giddy. heh. It was bittersweet though. Was i starting to become homesick? was everything wearing me down? did it remind me how far i really was from home? where is home? what's at home for me? blah.

"I don't know, I don't care, it doesn't make any difference"~ albert einstien.

Quite fitting, as his work in the field helped develop the bomb that was tested in this missile range.

I got some souvenirs, and let the GPS plot a course for me. The GPS sounds cutting out were bugging me. There's a loose connection inside the base and the only way to get it working is to push on the audio cable a certain way and hold it there. Zip ties to the rescue. I used a few small ones, and so far so good. I wonder if it will last a day, a week, or until i get home. heh. If not, no more music or directions until then.

Next Stop, New Orleans. Ambitious i know as it's over 1000 miles away. I didn't feel like thinking at this point. I don't think there's much in Texas i want to see. I'm here to see natural wonders, odd wonders and real human achievements. Not big shopping malls. blah.

"Clouded judgement"

I passed through Alamgordo, and the GPS only had hits for the regular chains of motels. I figured i'd keep going.

GPS says "over those mountains is what you seek"

Up i went... and up and up... I didn't realize it but i was going through Lincoln National forest. Neato.
it's a real twisty road actually, going through a tunnel so far... and up some more i went
last picture of that area.

and up we went. The sun went down at an alarming rate and was twilight at this time and cold. real cold.

I looked around for a room as it was getting dark, there are many animals, this is a very twisty/technical road, there are rocks all over the road and i just didn't feel like riding any more. I found a place called the Cross-eyed Moose and Alpine Motel in Cloudcroft. that's a winner for sure.

It's a little cheesy , but i hope to get pics in the morning of the cross-eyed moose. heh.
the motel was a little on the expensive side, but it has good wifi (except i'm the furthest from it so it cuts out) a good shower, a nice soft bed, and best of all, heat on demand. It's a retro court type, single story. The neat thing is this old 60s toaster type heater in the washroom. heh. step out of the shower and into the heat. I hope they don't get mad i used all their facial tissues (on my nose)

I wouldn't be surprised if there's frost on the bike in the morning.
Thankfully i bought these bad boys today.

tourmaster winter gloves. awesome.

comes with a rain liner so the leather doesn't get soaked. the liner is in the zipper above (and it's attached to the glove on the inside so you won't lose it.

not sure if you can make it out, but check out the thumb... it has a wiper blade, and the liner has a slit for the blade to go through. like i said, good gloves, worth the $$.

So why bittersweet and disappointed in myself?
I should have bought the tire and strapped it on the bike and change it a long time down the road. I should have done my own oil. bittersweet in the sense that i have a new tire and fresh oil and filter.
The gps is crapping out, but i fixed it for now...
Hemlet fell about 4 feet to the ground. a little scuff and no cracks... it didn't bounce so much as roll around. maybe it hit the ground at the right angle. doesn't matter, can't find a good replacement out here. (not many wear helmets)
Saw the white sands. bittersweet.

disappointed in myself... spent way too much money today... upwards of $600. that's bad. guess i'll just skip a meal or two... oh wait, already skipped supper. heh.

Time to go have a nice tall chat with my two new best friends Mr. Mist and Dr. Pepper.

oct 11th, day 22... i'm coming home.

2010-10-12T00:43:00.000-04:00

I am coming home... just a little detour first... I still need to get to Florida, try out some roads in the south, find the best fried chicken in the world, and so on. hah. I'm coming home, the long way 'round.

This gave me the best feeling this morning.

through the peep hole, Beast is in his spot.

Since Beast is not only my way home, but my home for the time being, it's nice to know someone didn't pick it up and put it in the back of a truck.

Turn on the shower and ... it the lever to turn on the shower head is busted. CRAP. oh well, sink wash it is. I'm travelling, i don't care if i stink. hah.

I got my morning americano at Starbucks, and bumped into Don and Mark.(forgive me if i got the names wrong, bad memory! send me an email!) Nice guys, work in telecom as well. Don's a geek like i am :) You wouldn't know it but Yuma has a population of 193,000. wow. i thought it was more like 20,000. haha... Yuma is surrounded by bases and proving grounds. Look at a map sometime. see the greyed out area? Military. lots around here.

Before i forget, i did eat after posting my blog. I wasn't really hungry, but knew i had to eat. I went for a walk and next door to the motel was a jack in the box. in i went.

some turkey bacon melt thing, curly fries and a strawberry banana smoothie. maybe i wasn't hungry but it tasted like crap. The smoothie was ok, but the mix came in a carton. meh. all fake crap. gimme real fruit! It had turkey, so happy thanksgiving to me. meh.

I wanted to get a lot of miles in today, but had two stops to make before i did so.
First stop was only a few blocks away to my surprise.

A muffler man!

The second was about a half hour drive out of my way, but it was a nice ride getting there. A lot of agriculture going on around here and a lot of workers doing things manually. I saw some heavy equipment, but not much. Just bus loads of workers.

some sort of fog or something. maybe due to all the water they are spraying? it was a neat site. Oh, and this area smelled great. Further along i smelled some herb farms (thyme and coriander i think)

The second, another oddity. heh.

what's this you say?

a tiny church!

Odd to put the tiny church in the middle of ... well, there's nothing but desert all over. hah.

if you think the desert scenery is boring, it isn't. it's pretty awesome actually.

I call this pose "determination"

my first big cactus! At the rest stop before the Sonoran national monument.

The Sonoran Desert is ... hot.
I was starting to get really hungry, and really low on fuel. I stopped into a town called Gila Bend. Did some shopping for some things, and looked around for a family style restaurant. I hate chains.

Found this place:

The Space age restaurant. attached to a best western i believe, but i used to be The Space Age Lodge and Restaurant. Neato, established in 1963. renovated in 1996, burned in 1998 and remodeled again. Neato.

I was hungry but wanted something... light. I went for an open salad bar and a BLT.
I guess I've been missing veggies in my diet, so i went to work.

I started off with this:

a mostly caesar salad. nom nom nom.

then i went back and got this

Garden salad with almost everything,. I love beets and baby corn. nom nom nom

this was then delivered to me

BLT on sourdough

I wanted more salad bar, so i went back.

two pasta, one potato and the best strawberries I've ever had.

seriously. Those strawberries were so sweet and juicy it was something else. Never had any like it before. We get these (picked at the wrong time) from the USA, and shipped up to canada and they taste... ok. not like these. I think i'll need to stop at a fruit vendor at the side of the road and pick up some fruits for snacks.

I walked outside and checked the bike over, specifically the back tire to see how much life it has left. I really should do more checks on the bike (all motorcyclists should do this each and every time they get on it). I'm glad i did, because it looks like i ran over something.

Nasty Gash!

now i was a little worried. will the tire hold together going 88 mph? will it fail and i go careening off the road? will it last until i find a replacement? will there be a replacement down the road? AHHHH... i didn't panic though. I have inner tubes and it's not a puncture, so i should be ok for a little while.

I call this pose "Stoic"

the long road is long

San Simeon enjoying the ride and the view

I enjoyed going through the desert (even though i was baking) as i had never seen a cactus that wasn't in a pot before. heh. ya, not really a worldly man, am i.

seems this cactus was going to jump on the bike and go for a ride. heh.

me in full ATGATT... in the desert. also proof that i didn't hire a stunt double.

This was just outside of Tucson, where the GPS brought me to a starbucks that didn't exist. dammit! I needed wifi now to find a motorcycle shop so i could find a tire.
One thing to note, it seemed dead today. Most shops closed, etc. Then i remembered it's Columbus day. DAMMIT!.

I did manage to find a starbucks and found two possible places. Scratch that, one is closed on mondays (and holidays) I headed to the other.
Only to find the store doesn't exist. dammit.

I saw a guy on a 1984 bmw r75. Nice bike in nice shape. I asked him if there were any shops nearby, and he said there is one about a block away! Another biker (hd ultra) admired my bike at this time too. Odd how i get approached all the time with people saying that they ride and they like my bike and the way i outfitted it. Beast is happy. heh. makes me think i did the right choice. (although i'd change the sprockets to go highway gearing) The BMW owner (Ron Mario) said that if i'm ever in town again, we should go for a ride. If i am, i'll take him up on it. Nice fellows.

I headed to the motorcycle shop and they tried to help me out, but my tires are oddball sized. at 90/90-21 front and 130/80-17 rear... they are oddball. The kenda's i have on now are 90/100-21 and 130/90-17 rear.
Oh well, i made a choice. Stay and wait for a tire to be shipped which would take about 3 days, or press on.
Press on i did. If it pops, so be it... this is supposed to be an adventure, right?

going through Tucson, i noticed a boneyard.

neato. was on both sides of me, but hard to take pictures in all that traffic. love boneyards.

EAST! to more desert. stunning scenery. If you haven't been to Arizona, i suggest you go. Quite a diverse landscape.

picture porn.
I was on the interstate, and there's not much else to do except take pictures and listen to music. It's not like i can fix myself a snack, have a smoke or a drink, etc...

Ghostrider shot of the day. a tall shadow like that means two things at this time of day. I'm heading east, and the sun is dropping fast, shortly to be replaced by dark.

I needed a rest after being on the bike for about 100 miles non-stop. remember, this isn't a comfy car with cruise control... i have to grip it and rip it for that whole time. the KLR is a real bone shaker. My hands have been numb for about ...20 days.

Good thing i have a strong forearm... all that practice you see.

I found this interesting... Let's just say i started looking where i was walking more.

I do not fear riding in the dark. i love it, but i do not like risking my life because some moron didn't see me. oh well, i was going to watch the sun set, and deal with riding in the dark.

M-O-O-N, That spells Sunset!

M-O-O-N! that spells Moon!

the sunset was quite a thing of beauty.

Now that it's going to get dark soon, i needed a place to bunk up for the night. Camping was an option if i could find a spot, or a cheap motel. No hits on the GPS, but the GPS is so out of date i don't trust it anymore.

speeding along at the speed of ...

...82 mph. I hit 6666 miles on this trip. lol.

the sun sets fast.... especially if you're going east.

I saw a sign for the usual chain of motels in Lordsburg and figured there would be an alternative near. Which i found, called the Holiday Motel. A single story old style motor inn. It also has a pool and restaurant.
Smoking room, Wifi, and for $40 it's a pretty good deal, considering the shower works... and i does, i checked. Now if only they had shampoo!! damn you. good thing i come prepared (which i took from the other motels)
I kept seeing signs all around town and on the interstate for this restaurant called Kranberry. I didn't have to look far. I headed into the center of town, all the while looking for a place to eat. There isn't much here, and wouldn't you know it, Kranberry is in the center of town and open.

I spotted a State trooper SUV outside, and there were a lot of people there. Good sign.
There were at least 2 troopers and another guy with police on his back. he was the cheif or something running the show as i overheard his conversation on his two way. (kind of hard to not overhear)
I got the Steak sandwich with a side of slaw.

the food was ok... maybe after the lunch i had i wasn't very hungry, or perhaps it's this pounding in my head. I think i have a sinus infection or something. it's killing me. Time for a hot shower for like an hour, and some rest.
The song of the day today was Tom Petty's I won't back down

oct 10th- a dip in Silver Strand & 3:10s to yuma with a screw loose

2010-10-11T00:58:00.000-04:00

It's thanksgiving, and it was a time to reflect on what to give thanks for. Honestly, there isn't much but the things i am thankful for, are what got me to this point. Namely to three groups. Family, for i think they have raised me well. my real friends, for i think they have treated me well, and for complete strangers. You might think it odd to pick complete strangers as the third group. It's not odd at all. There are good people out there, and the more i bump into people, the more i see the good in them.

Everyone has their quirks, but it doesn't make them a bad person. The more i talk to people, the more i've come to the realization that large multi-national conglomerate greedy corporations are to blame. Big cities sicken me. They are revolting. Everywhere you go, you have people working crappy ass jobs at some large chain that don't care about anything but their paycheck. Travelling the countryside shows you this. Small towns are sheltered by corporate america, due to lack of profit to be made there. Good for me, because those family businesses do care about their business. you being happy, makes them happy. i like that.

I have and will continue to help strangers, as i have been helped by complete strangers myself. A bit like paying it forward. what goes around does come around. Anyhow, enough of my tirade.

----

Even though i was camping (at a $36 a night tent spot) i had set my alarm for early AM. Oddly enough, i got up before the alarm and proceed to shower and try to get my Blog updated. No go on the blog as the wireless sucked. It's a large campground and it was full, as it's right outside of LA in Pomona, there was an RV show coming up, and a nascar race (amongst other things). Everything trying to get online on a crap connection doesn't make it any better.

Packing up at first dawn.

I wanted to finish up the blog so i hit a starbucks not too far away. Odd, it's an outdoor only starbucks. I guess you only need a small thing like that when the weather is always nice and the annual rainfall is next to nothing. Uploading complete and ... battery on the laptop dies and no plugs outside at the starbucks. WTF. I finished my americano and left. One of my waypoints today was Silver Strand Beach. On the map/GPS, it looked like a big sandbar with a road running through it. Off i went down the interstates and out of the metro LA area. everyone drives fast here. Average speed everyone was keeping was 75-80. I essentially rode like what most call a madman, but when everyone is going that fast, a bike going 85, isn't much faster. I weaved in and out of lanes, always using my signal. not once did i cut anyone off, nor did anyone take offense. it seemed. No need to lane split at that speed, also a local told me lane split under 45mph, over that and you're asking for trouble.

I took no photos on the interstate as a) it would be suicide b) the roads are all grooved pavement c) what the hell is there to see on an interstate?

I got near to san diego and was still early in the day, so i search for another starbucks to look for a power outlet and some wifi time. done and done. I finished Oct 9th's entry in the blog, finished my tall pike and headed to Silver strand. I didn't see much of San Diego as i blew past it to a city called Coronado. Beautiful city. srsly. I'd go there for a vacation. check out the link because my picture i took of it sucked.

Coronado :-/

my favorite self shot of the day. palm trees and sun reflections. awesomeness.

I wasn't there for the city (even though the streets are lined with palms, the shops looked cool, etc)

I was here for two reasons. The first reason was to complete the first leg of the journey. Done. I've hit the southwest corner of the states. one down, two to go.

Here's the second reason:

Silver Strand beach

I faced my other fear. My fear of sharks. Unfounded i know, but i'm a fat pale Canadian... i'd make some shark a tasty snack.

it was a little after 10 when i got there and the water was cold, so not many people around. I also went to the part of the beach that didn't have all the RVs.

Panoramic. Click me. My gear is in a little pile on the right.

Cold testicles in 3 seconds

in 2 seconds...

COLD!

"...you're as cold as ice..."

oddly enough, i listened to that song by foreigner earlier.

After going in a few times and getting refreshed, it was time to start leg 2 of my trip. Key West Florida. Tim better have that BBQ going soon. Lol.

I had paid $10 to get into the california state beach, so i decided to spend that wisely by doing this.

MORE STICKERS!

ain't it just horrible and gaudy? hah. loves it.

i'm missing a sticker from nevada, new mexico and kansas and illinois. oh well. no biggie. at least i got the big sur on there, route 66 and the four corners.

I left and headed east. I noticed how dramatically different the driving is out on this interstate, not like freeway driving at all. Plenty of highway patrol and was afraid of getting a ticket not once but twice. sneaky bastages.

I saw a sign that put my heart in my stomach. "high winds and gusts, next 63 miles" shit. Guess it was apropos that Elton John's "The bitch is back" came on during that ride. It was very windy and i was having a hard time concentrating. The KLR does not like two things. High altitude and high heat, which i had plenty of at that moment. At least i know the bike isn't broken, it just doesn't like being hot with no air.

Oops. Forgot to eat. I pulled into a small town called Alpine and found this little joint called Tapatio's. this close to the mexican border and not being a chain, i decided to try it.

Tapatio's

I walked in and took the #1. Cheese burrito and taco. I figured it'd be a small meal, but what the hell, anything is better than McDicks.

a huge plate actually. The taco had a deep fried shell, and the beef was shredded not ground. awesome.

the cheese burrito... well, let's just say i may not need TP for a little while. The beans and rice were really too. all these mexican joints have a sauce bar. from left to right, mild to hot. All seemed home made and had awesome flavor. I need myself a little mexican to make this stuff for me.

first cactus of the trip. heh

wow. that's nasty.

rear tire. Chicken strips aren't bad for a klr! it's getting bald fast though, hope there will be a tire down the road.

frote tire. Still in good shape for now. chicken strips are about as small as i'll get them

when it wasn't so gusty, i got gutsy and took some pics. It's odd that the landscape changes so dramatically just by going over a pass. The first pass i went through had big trees on one side, and then this on the other.

right around here i could see the mexican border, and the big black wall/fence they put there. I could also see border patrol on motorcycles/quads and jeeps. neato, yet sad at the same time.

And this is the last pass i went through. pure desert. pure heat. boiling. Even though the sun was at my back it hurt my eyes.

about 20 miles out of Yuma Arizona (i'm still in california) i took this picture of the sand dunes up ahead. I was going to take another picture as i got closer, but i put some weight on my right footpeg and the peg swiveled and my foot hit the highway. WOW. scary. I looked down and managed to swivel it back up and put the camera away. that must mean one thing. The bolt holding it there sheared and broke off, or it fell out.

Right at the dunes there was a rest stop so i made my way there to see what was up.

It appeared to be just missing, so i took out some tools and tightened the remaining bolt, and tightened the other side too. they were all loose. wow. should check those more often.

for anyone keeping track (i am) here's where the KLR is now

20,000kms. 12.5k miles. not bad. so far a few oil changes, air filter cleaned once, 1 new set of tires, 1 new tube, front brake pads and a headlight bulb. pretty low maintenance since i've been riding her hard and putting her away wet. heh.

I got to Yuma, AZ to see i could find a camping spot. i do need to save on $ a bit. I'm afraid to look at my bills. I got to the visitor center and it was closed. CRAP. after a hunt i found a starbucks, looking for a campsite. Lots of RV places, but i can never find a tent site. arg. I was close to getting info and my iphone turned off. battery was dead. the laptop wasn't fairing any better, so i decided not to bring it out in case i really needed it.

It was still light out so i decided to hunt for a really cheap motel. With this heat, at least some A/C would be good.

Not a block away i spot a place called the Royal Motor Inn. It's a true motor inn, a relic from the 60s and headed in. It has the classic archway you drive under, an attached restaurant, two stories and a pool. They all had pools. A classic Motor Inn.

The outward appearance may seem... a little run down, but for what they were offering i couldn't refuse.

Air conditioning (and cieling fan) king sized bed, Tv, microwave, fridge, full bathroom and best of all, Wifi.

Even if the wifi didn't work, i could always use the starbucks 500 feet down the street either tonight or in the morning. For the price of $36, you can't go wrong. seriously.

The carpets are worn and stained a little, same with the couch, but the room is clean, smells clean, clean sheets and they even have soap and shampoo. (you wouldn't believe how many more expensive places don't have those) Again, not a chain and the owner actually opened the room for me. Turned on the A/C, showed me around, that kind of thing. I told you i liked family run businesses. did i forget to mention they have laundry machines on site too? sweet. (now all i need is a little mexican woman to do that for me)

$36 at KOA < $36 Royal Motor Inn. tenting isn't always cheaper.

the ride today took a lot out of me physically. I didn't really eat a thanksgiving supper... i had some Cracklin' and some Smok A Roni (smoked sausage sticks) and a big bottle of powerade. for all motorcyclists reading this. Dehydration will kill you faster than any vehicle on the road. keep drinking.

sorry for writing so much (if you've read all of it) just not anyone to really talk to. :(

happy thanksgiving.

oct 9th- splitting lanes but not hairs, From Monterey to Pomona. oh ya, LA sucks.

2010-10-10T13:09:00.000-04:00

I didn't get much writing today nor did i take many pictures. I really wanted to get past Los Angeles and not get stuck in traffic.

I started packing up the bike and found some friends waiting for me outside.

This guy was not scared of me at all. Hate racoons that aren't scared.
There were about 5 more out of frame that were fighting over scraps.

Also this little guy wanted attention from me. Why do animals like me? hah.

The place is called Butterfly Grove for a Reason. Here's why:

it's odd that i've been following them the whole time.

Down the US-1 again. Great road. great to watch the sunrise on the coast.

this is what awesome looks like

I stopped for a coffee along around Big Sur... Lucia i think? not sure.
I got a coffee and a cookie for breakfast. A rootbeer float cookie. Homemade obviously, and never heard of it, so i tried one.

WOW. Amazing cookie!

The bird was not impressed that i didn't give it crumbs.

no clue what bird tis was, but it looked like a giant hummingbird. tiny freaking wings.

These signs make me so happy i bought a KLR 650. this is what it was designed for.

what an awesome road.

I kept going and spotted these guys.

looks tasty

This guy kept barking.

There was a beach out of frame to the left that had a TON of them, but the tourists made me shy away. Freaking pushy tourists... a ton of asians with big cameras. Not being racist, just telling the facts. This is near San Simeon, California... Simeon (my mascot) is named after San Simeon. Heh. Also a song from Goldfinger which i originally heard of it. His full name is not San Simeon B. Mungay.
don't judge.

I got to San Luis Obispo and where i pulled over there was a choice of a breakfast/lunch restaurant, or some taco joint called Taco Roco.
Taco Roco i went.

I took a breakfast burrito called the San Luis Burrito. Avocado, Sour cream, Cheese, Eggs and a choice of meat; Bacon, machaca, chonzo or ham.
I took Machaca before even knowing what it was, just to be different. It's beef and onions.

I drank a Pibbs xtra because i'd never heard of it. Tasted like dr. Pepper, which is good.
She gave me chips. I didn't know i got them. sweet. There were some salsas to choose from. I took a medium green one, and a super hot red one.

The medium one is HOT... the hot one was pure suicide. both tasted really good. Not just a burn, but true flavors.

The massive San luis breakfast burrito

the burrito?
1) huge
2) amazing
3) DELICIOUS!

tasty delicious filling

When in doubt, always try something new.

about half left

The driving here is quite crazy, but i'm used to crazy so i fit in.
Not once did someone honk at me, and every time i split lanes, they parted like the red sea. I'm better than moses. I have a motorcycle. It's name is Beast. Hear it roar.

I got to LA and wanted to see the pier where route 66 ends. Didn't get there... got really close but couldn't find parking, was a complete nightmare with all the tourists, so i left. It was starting to get late and i had two other stops to make in LA. La brea tar pits and LA Ink. I know, retarded stops, but my stops to make.

on that subject, everyone seems to think i have all the time in the world and tell me what i should see (not you folks, people on the road) people don't get it. I'm a traveller. I'm not a tourist. I like to see things along the road, but won't go too far off my track to see things. I refuse to go do things. That's not what this is about. I'm travelling, see, not touring.

I went to La Brea and couldn't find any parking. ARGH!! i could have paid $7 for just a few minutes... not my idea of good money spent. I peered through the fence and saw it anyhow. meh. it's a bit pit full of tar. haha.

Off to the next stop. LA Ink. I had business there to attend to. No, i didn't get inked, i just wanted to pick up a souvenir.

you don't see it in these shots, but the place was absolutely packed.

I wanted to camp out more figuring it was cheaper. I called a KOA in Ponoma and said they had a spot but to be there before 7pm. Traffic was insane and everytime it would come to a stop, i would just split lanes until it got moving. Know what stopped the traffic? NOTHING. people jam on brakes for no reason.

all i can say is splitting lanes while going 82mph is more fun than a barrel of monkeys!
Even with the huge sidecases, i felt like a slippery eel compared to all the cars on the road. Fun as shit.

I got my spot at the KOA. $31 is pretty steep for a 20x20 square for the night, but it beats $100 at a motel that doesn't have wifi. There is wifi here, but it sucks.

beans and weenies.

alone, the beans and weenies were terrible, but edible. Thank the gods for condiments. a little salt and pepper and this:

Why you, why now? because the beans and weenies are terrible without you. with you, much better...

oct 8th- from a bulb in Santa Rosa, to Butterflies in Monterey

2010-10-10T01:17:00.000-04:00

while i'm typing here, there's a chick from quebec doing video conferencing to home. VIDEO conferencing. idiot. She's said "Allo?" at least 40 times. What a moron. At least use a low bandwidth skype voice only when it's shared wifi. oddly, now that she has left (2 hours later) the connection appears better for me. imagine that. idiot.

right by the motel i was at. no clue what it is, but it was funky.

The main things today were to change the headlight bulb, and to get a camera.
Changed the bulb, took about 15 mins as you need to take off the whole top cowling to get at the bulbs. That being done, i was about to take a look at that horn. Looking at the tools i brought, it seems i don't have many metric sockets. What the hell?? oh well, hope i don't break down. hah.
While changing the bulb, i had myself a coffee, a banana and half a danish... free hotel food. can't complain, i spent nothing for breakfast.

Found a best buy and got the next generation of the same camera i have. I actually like my old one a little better, but maybe it's just that i've had the sx110 for 3 years, and the sx130 is new to me. There are a few minor features missing too. i'll get used to it.

old and busted vs. new hotness.

I tried some instant coffee from startbucks and got suckered to buy it. Cinnamon spice. Reminds me of the pumpkin spice. I was looking for instant coffee like this for when i camp again, at least i'll have something other than tea to drink.

I headed for the coast and for US-1 again. a nice coastal ride, highly technical again, and a real riot to ride. If there was a state i'd move to, i'd move to California for sure. I love the roads and scenery here.

leisurely road heading to the coast. ranch country

Shawn from florida trucked in this 125cc scooter and doing the pacific coast with it. holy insane. happy riding!

check that road out

I finished up with that end of the US-1 which landed me on the Golden Gate bridge. Woohoo moment. heh.
"If you're going to san francisco..." you might want to ensure you know how to use your camera.
arg.

$6 at the toll on the other side, and off i went to go ride down lombard street.

The roads are freaking insane in San Francisco.

I ended up on Lombard by guessing. neato. Took a picture while riding down it... left hand on camera, bike in neutral, right on the bars, and right foot on brake. wasn't hard to do 5mph and take a picture... stupid camera though, i think i need to put it on continuous as it takes too long to take a picture!

Rode around San Fran, trying to get back to the US-1. Traffic. tons of traffic.
I want to come back to San Fran, but there is no way i want to ride around. I'd rather take the trolly or rent one of these little go kart looking things. neato.

those are what interstates look like and the majority of my view... just in case you guys are wondering.

neat limos

I ended up in San Mateo. These cities never end, one border stops and the other continues. It's like one giant city sometimes.
I was starved by this time and wanted some real food. Chains and Tacos and little cafes are all i could see. Seriously, when i want a coffee, i can't find one, and when i want food, all i find is coffee?

I saw this place called Hiedis pies which looked like a retro diner. correction, not retro. Just a diner that looks like it's been there for ages.

In i went.

Signs of a good eatery.
-A counter with stools to sit at.
-Booths with cracked vinyl.
-old waitresses that seem like they've been there forever
-locals / old people

why locals/ old people you may ask? old people don't like new things most of the time and like to stick to their regular meals. If old people keep coming back, you're doing something right.

I ordered the BBQ bacon cheeseburger. I spoke to the waitress for a little bit as i was curious about all the pies. Stacks and stacks of pies. i said my little story about my trip, etc. I said the pies smell delicousl, and it's too bad i can't pack one on the bkes.

Seems the owner and/or waitress liked my story or my questions, becuase she said that she put my order in, and someone said i get pie on the house. Sweet! i love free things.

The burger and rings were really good. Road food. loved it.
While eating, i kept seeing people come in, get a pie or two and leave. Many people. The pies here must be pretty good.

She gave me a pie menu and asked me which one i wanted. No clue. So many pies. so many.

I asked her what the most popular was, and gave me a short list off the top of her head.
Blueberry sour cream? never heard of it, so i tried it.

FANTABULOUS. what a great piece of pie. i wish i could still taste it. Great filling and great crust. I wish they made mini pies, else i'd buy a few for the road. hah.

I asked them if this was a chain or a stand-alone. Seems 30-40 years ago it was a chain, but this is the only one left and business is still good. Love it. Hate the corporate restaurants, where it's more like eating at a trough.

When i come back to the bay area, i'm going back and eating more pie. great food, if you're in the area. go and get pie. awesome pie.
i checked out my chicken strips. not bad for a KLR loaded with gear

rear

front

Belly filled, i got the GPS to find me the fastest way to the other portion of US-1

I was zipping along in the carpool lane (motorcycles are allowed) at something like 75 mph, and something whipped by me so fast it scared the crap out of me. A motorcycle was lane splitting and going 90-95mph. damn him. Here's the funny thing. It was a California Highway Patrol. Haha. That dude was lane splitting and swtching lanes faster than anyone i've ever seen. Brutal skill. I didn't have the nerve nor did the bike have the power to do that.

I took the turn off to Santa Cruz where traffic was at a stand still. After about 10 mins i had gone maybe 400 feet. brutal. Even though it's liquid cooled, the bike needs to move to keep it cooler. the inside of my legs were starting to get REALLY hot. thankfully, the suit helped a bit.

An ambulance was coming up behind and i squeezed into the middle lane. It went by me and though... why not follow it? So i did, while staying on the white dotted line. This is called lane splitting.

Cars in California actually move over a little to let you by if they see you. It was pretty sweet. I only went 20-30mph faster than they were, making sure i had room for the big beast, and making sure they saw me... most moved over quite a bit.
what a fantastic idea. Lane splitting is pretty awesome.

When the traffic picked up to a reasonable speed, i went back into a regular lane as there's no point of pushing my luck any more than i did. No close calls either.

California drivers, for the most part, are really good drivers. i'm not talking about big city drivers btw.

They actually watch for bikes, are considerate for the most part and don't speed excessively. There's reason for that. many hills and many corners. unreal how awesome the roads are.

I was losing light fast and wanted to see if there was a cheap motel and/or camping up the road on US-1.

brussel sprouts or artichokes. seems to be what they farm around here.

I couldn't find anything on the gps, nor on the starbucks Wifi so i decided to just go for it and see what happens.

The ride to monterey was an absolute hoot. I've never seen Technical Highways before. No wonder everyone has motorcycles around here. no pics, sorry... can't ride and take photos on those roads... i'm not crazy.

Got to monterey and the one camping spot the GPS said there was turned out to be homes. LAME. backup plan, look for a motel. I saw an inn at $70 a night, butthey were booked. dammit. Inns in the area go for about $110 a night. This is a big money tourist town. dammit.

I rode around almost complete dark now, and saw a sign for the Butterfly something inn. The owner said a room would be $110 a night, but they have Wifi. I said it was too rich for my blood, and he knocked off the price to $90. deal. I was freezing and tired and it was dark. I wasn't about to complain much.

To note, when the sun goes down in california, you freeze. hah.

The room is awesome! Vaulted cielings, a little stovetop/sink combo, large bathroom, king sized bed and fireplace.
This is worth the $110, so at $90, it really was a deal. The wifi isn't working for the laptop, and i have to smoke outside, but whoopie.

I sat outside to have a smoke and saw a fawn just walking around. dammit. where's the camera when you want it. a little while later, a saw a racon trying to get into the garbage. I tried to shoo him away, but he just turned around and stared at me for a few seconds. He tried for the garbage again and i stomped my foot. it scared him that time.
My efforts were for naught, as later still, i saw garbage strewn all around the can.

I later spoke to the owner again. He's originally from Moscow, and a rider as well. He said running to LA from Monterey is hard on the interstate in one day. we shall see... we shall see.

Btw, all bikers keep saying "I could never do something like that!" when talking about my trip.

Why the hell not? get on the bike and ride. At night sleep. Rinse and repeat until you have to go home. There is no more freer experience than to travel this way.

oct 7th- waking up with wood, exciting rides indeed

2010-10-08T11:20:00.000-04:00

I woke up and started breaking camp. I had to pay for the night's stay but the office didn't open until 9 and was 7:30 or so. I packed everything up, and went towards the river for a walk. These are called Arundo, an invasive plant from Asia. They are taking over everywhere. 20' tall or so, and looks like bamboo.

I took a picture, but something in it caught my eye as i took a picture.

a ripple in the water?

I tried to snap off another, but missed it.

Got ya this time!

See?

An Otter!!! never seen a wild river otter before. neato.

I haven't seen much wildlife on this trip, A few deer on the side of I-5 as i came into Oregon, a couple of Foxes here and there, and birds. Lots of birds.
I did see my share of dead animals though. A huge Elk by the grand canyon entrance, deer, coyote, rabbits, skunks porcupines, rat, cats, dogs, and other small furry unrecognizable pancakes.

it's nice to see we haven't run over all of them.

Eel River

Today the plan was to hit the US-1. heard it's pretty good, and the National Geographic book says it's pretty awesome.

I paid the campground the $20 i owed, picked up some small souvenirs and I rode south and hit a town called Garberville. This town was strewn with hitchhicker/granola munching/birkenstock wearing hippies. Tons. more of them than the population. Did i hit their Mecca?

I spotted a place that regulars would hang out and went in. The burgress restaurant. The prices seemed high, $10 omellette, $2 coffee. meh. Who cares, just money right?

Wrong. It was worth every penny. home cooked, and loaded up.

ham, bacon and cheese omelet with hash browns and biscuits and gravy

I overheard a conversation while i was eating.
"Did you know the indians weren't the first people in north america? it was whites, they came over 3, maybe 4 thousand years ago!"

Really? you fucking serious? are people that ignorant? 13 to 17 thousand years ago, early humans migrated out across Beringia. ignorant idiot.
Anyhow, breakfast was awesome.

a guy across the street eating his breakfast.

Seems the owners around here don't like hippies either, as found on the outside door to the bar/lounge attached to the restaurant. Damn hippies.

Right after Garberville i took the US-1(california 1 north), the best route in California. WOW. I couldn't take pictures because When i finished my apex on one corner, i was already swinging the bike over for the next corner. highly technical, even though it's a slow road. Most corners are 20-30 mph and i was able to take them at 30-35 mostly, some even slower than the posted sign. A brutally technical road as the road would be a hairpin left, rapidly reducing radius, but a bank to the right, on an incline and declines. Did i mention all corners are blind due to either being next to the mountain or soundrounded by big trees? srsly.
Now try that with a top heavy loaded up dirt bike. hah. It's pretty awesome when you're in a right hand corner, you're near the center of your lane and your helmet brushes against the weeds that grow 3.5 feet. neato.
Talk about joy and excitement.

us-1 between the start and Fort Bragg. only one i could take, or wanted to. from a pullout at one of the straightest sections

Right before hitting Fort Bragg, there were a lot of trees blooming it seemed. Something smelled nice, spicy not flowery. Got to fort bragg, and fueled up. I hit reserve a little while back and i think i was running close to empty. I still had about 1/2 a gallon left or so (plus i have a Litre of gas stowed on the bike) currently at 44mpg. not bad considering how i'm riding it on and off the throttle and loaded the way i am.

Leaving the Fort Bragg starbucks, i notice my headlight is out. FUCK. I didn't bring a spare. South i went and hit the ocean and redwoods again, and now in search of a spare bulb and a camera as mine is having more troubles as time goes on. pretty soon it's going to die.

a lot of these circling above. ospreys perhaps?

Again, technical, but pretty awesome.

a big rig hiding behind a tree. the big trees are big.

at some point i missed the turn off to get back onto the US-1, and was suddenly on state highway 128. Looking at vineyards. Lots of grapes and vineyards. WTF?

GRAPES!

Ocean, Vin yards, Mountains, roads with curves, Giant redwoods, all within a 20 mile radius? unreal.

I stopped into Boonville for a coffee as the gas station (good coffee) and started checking my map. My USA map isn't detailed enough to see the small roads, but the GPS found a road called Mountainview road that ran from Boonville to the oceanside.
This has to be the most technical route i've ever taken. I thought the first part of the US-1 to fort bragg was tough, this was tougher. Tighter turns, no posted speed limits anywhere, Rough roads everywhere, bad patches, sometimes divided, sometimes not, and some sections only 8 to 10 feet wide, up to a max 20 feet or so. Scary ass shit. Did i mention no guardrails anywhere? Awesome ride. The KLR felt at home, hammering on and off the throttle and going over the bumps and dips. only bottomed out once. heh.

notice the lack of guardrails?

If i get to hit The tail of the dragon, i'll have to compare. They boast the toughest road to ride... i'm
I missed 20 miles of Us-1 on my little detour. oddly enough it's the section that isn't mentioned in the book as being good. bonus. Instead of going 20 miles, i did 53 miles, 23 of those the twistiest nastiest roads ever. loved it.

shot from US-1, i was in those mountains

I got back on California 1 north. WOW again! As technical as the first part to Fort Bragg, but this part was sheer cliffs instead of big trees. A little different mind you as there aren't as many blind corners as the fort bragg run.

It was about 5pm, and i knew dark would come soon, so off the US-1 i went, heading towards Santa Rosa. You see, it has a best buy. It has an Auto-zone. It has motels. It's got what i need because i don't have a working headlight, a bad camera and i'm smelling pretty ripe.

notice the lack of any railings??

the road is pretty much like this the whole way. no railings, and a few hairpins. hah.

I took a room in Santa Rosa and there was a diner across the street and a gas station nearby. all i needed.

Looked 'ok'
Hungry since i didn't eat since breakfast...
The meal was great. everything cooked properly and tasted fresh.

Salad!

Garlic bread.

Steak, Scampi, baked potato and veggies.

exhausted. I somehow managed to turn a 164mile run, into 220 miles of twisties... not that i'm complaining.