Thirty Six Hundred Miles

Carol's Beautiful Backyard



We had a wonderful time in Medford. We rested, we talked, we laughed, and we got to see Tiffany, and Owen. While we were having lunch on Thursday there was some excitement when 3 law enforcement vehicles and a motorcycle patrol officer were apparently searching for a suspect right across the street from where we were eating. I thought we should volunteer for the posse, but George and Carol were not fond of the notion. They had not nabbed the bad guy by the time we left.

We shopped in Ashland in the morning and returned later for dinner.  Ashland offers a free performance on The Green almost every night during the summer and fall. We were treated to a hilarious performance by a seven piece band, they are all writers and/or performers for the play, The Unfortunates. They were amazing. They rapped, and danced, and sang, and it was so great. Ashland is amazing!  We went to dinner at Sesame's and topped the evening off with huge servings of delicious ice cream.  Our time with Carol always goes too fast. Before we were ready, it was time to say goodbye and meet Sandy, George's brother. Our tradition has been for Sandy to meet us on the road and drive us home. He had been taking his own smaller road trip and we would all travel back to Folsom together.

See You Soon Carol!

George and Sandy

While we were riding through the deserts and forests occasionally I pondered on the more difficult parts of being on the road.  Not in order of importance, some are, chapped lips, head itch, new age spots, bigger age spots, dry eye, back ache, butt ache, and weather conditions. The first time I see a bike all packed up for a trip though, my heart starts to race and I wish it was George and me.  So, next year right around this time if you drive by our home you might hear a booming voice saying, "Woman, it's time to go." And a much softer scream answering, "It's 6:00 in the morning.  Who's waiting for us? It's our vacation!" And at 6:01 we'll roll out of sight.........
Jenson and George

Unsolved Mysteries & The Moose

Carol and George

Last night was our final night in a hotel.  I am happy to report that Oxford Suites is now employing refillable containers for all the toiletries.

The ride to Medford was uneventful. We left the desert behind and entered the forests. The following are a few of my thoughts:

Why would someone name a town Craig?
How about Stinkwater Creek?
The owner of the Hells Backbone Kitchen didn't like me. Now, I know I can be an acquired taste like red wine or American cheese, but she gave George a two handed shake when she said goodbye to him our last night of dining there. It's too bad, I love her food, but I can't eat in someone's kitchen who doesn't care for me.
It's 2013 and Utah and Colorado still do not have toilet seat covers!
The morning we stopped for coffee and hot chocolate in another small country town, on the way out I spotted a business called Tame Your Iron. Now there's a mystery. I know what I think goes on behind the door. And it involves a wizard. The imagery has kept me laughing through some pretty lean times on the bike.

During our ride through the Rocky Mountains we became part of a parade. The lead car was a random four wheel drive.  Then there were four convertible sports cars. Then us. I have not mentioned this before, but there is a lot of law enforcement in Colorado. So we ambled through the park on the lookout for moose. In fact, George informed me that we would not be leaving the area until we spotted Mr. or Mrs. Moose. You know when a moose is spotted because hundreds of cars have pulled over to get a glimpse.  In back of us Easy Rider shoots by passing all of us on his Harley, no helmet, his long blond hair held in by a bandanna, as he crosses the double yellow lines and leaves us in a trail of his cool dust. Then, the first five in the parade pull over for a fake out and we pass them.  A  miracle occurs and we come upon a group that has a true moose in its site. George slows the bike, we watch the moose graze with his back to us, I snap a few pictures that didn't come out, and off we go. And the Easy Rider?  He had been pulled over by one of the, We Don't Play coppers and was getting a ticket.  Oppps.

The black spot is Mr. Moose eating. (I think)

Medford at last.  One last stop at the Harley store so George can add to his collection of 273 shirts. We arrive at Carol's beautiful home, looking and smelling like roadkill, but she welcomes us anyway. As always there is the aroma of baking cookies and the refrigerator is filled with cold water and diet Pepsi.  We had a wonderful dinner, I finally had a friend to talk to, and we won't be off to anywhere but Ashland for shopping tomorrow.

Jenson

The Adventure Nears Its End

Eastern Oregon is a mixture of desert and farmland.  Actually it is about 90% desert and 10% farmland. We rode through an area called Vale, Oregon which appeared to have pioneer risings given the names of some of the streets and the age of the buildings. The variety of smells from the crops were wonderful, but the only crop I could identify was corn.  We spent most of the day riding in high desert. For someone with a overly active mind, the chill in the air,  the aggressive  landscape, and the unchanging scene, was soothing and restful. At one point George had to take a "break" in a barren treeless area. He saw what looked like a fairly private area and started to pull off the road only to spot a person sitting down and leaning against a sign.  Now, we had hardly seen another vehicle or lizard in the past few hours so this came as somewhat of a surprise. The person had a sleeping bag pulled over his/her self and was reading a book.

We did see more farm area, the homes appeared to be a mile or two from one another.  There were no stores or gas stations or schools for at least 50 miles and I wondered what people did for education. We stopped for lunch at the nearest small town and were lucky to find a cute cafe.  I just read Tina Fey's book, Bossypants, and in it she talks about how Subway is everywhere, and that is the truth.  There may be nothing else in the town, no library, or theatre, or clothing store, but there is always a Subway.

We saw a few more farming areas where the sagebrush and rocks had been removed and the land had been prepared for crops. What an undertaking that must have been.  Where does all the water come from?

When we arrived in Bend our first visit was to the Harley store.  Great store.  Lots of merchandise.  We finally pulled into our hotel, unpacked, and went for a walk by the Deschutes River. We love Bend.

Paddle Boarders on the Deschutes River, OR

We finished our evening in Bend with a wonderful dinner at Greg's Grille, a lovely restaurant located on the Deschutes River.  There appeared to be a class of paddle boarders and groups of people drifted by our table as we ate. Amazing.

George waiting for dinner.

Tomorrow we will be with our great friend Carol in Medford, Oregon.  YEAH!

Jenson

Foxy Roxie

Ben, Liz, and Roxie!

Happy 7th Anniversary Elizabeth & Ben! Congratulations on the new addition to your family. We cannot wait to meet Roxie. We hope you are having a wonderful anniversary.

This morning George and I went to a place called Bruges Waffles and Frites. Ben and Liz  had eaten there when they went to Salt Lake City for a wedding. George had a Freakandel, which is some sort of sausage over frites with toppings. I had a Belgium waffle, which is much more like a delicious cake, with fresh peaches and an enormous scoop of Belgium whip cream. The menu is available on line. When I finish writing tonight I am going to return to the website so I can read the story about the business. The owner was there when we arrived and he was a delightful gentleman.

This is the owner of Bruges Waffles and Frites

George's choice - some meat thing

My choice - fresh peaches, fresh whipped cream, and the waffle

We left Bruges and rode to the SLC Harley Davidson. George had met a couple at our hotel who were visiting from France. They had rented a Harley and would be touring some of the states for three weeks. When we arrived at  Harley Davidson they were there. Sadly, when we left something had transpired and the rental bike was on the ground. We did not join the crowd as there were too many people involved, but it looked as though two bikes collided. How difficult to be traveling in a strange country and have this happen on your first day on the road.

George and I left SLC and began the long drive to Idaho.  We were both tired and the ride was very windy.

Tomorrow we will be in Bend, Oregon.

Dinosaurs

George and I have watched two movies during our trip. Parental Guidance, which was better then expected, and Life of Pi. We agreed that we should have seen the movie in the theatre and we both want to read the book. So many unanswered questions. Is the lion a metaphor?

We are heading into Dinosaur, CO

An hour into today's journey we revisited Dinosaur , CO.  This time George didn't want to pose with any of the ferocious beasts.  We did stop by The Pickle Stop again so I could buy some postcards. The owner is a nice man who has been living in Dinosaur for 35 years. He said he and his partner love it. If the population of the town is more then 25 I would be shocked. (It is actually around 325) There are two gas stations, a post office, a museum, and the Pickle Stop. The Pickle Stop is a dark, dusty gift shop with a motley assortment of goods. I hope he does well. He told me they drive 35 miles to grocery shop, eat out, and for entertainment.

We were on the road for around seven hours today. Much of the landscape was desert like which is typical of Western Colorado.  Occasionally we ride by a small town, most buildings damaged by weather and neglect, and there are few signs of life. Yet somehow there is a thready pulse and the community struggles on.  After we entered Utah we began seeing many signs advertising 5 & 10 acre lots. These signs were miles and miles from any services, water, etc. I am writing this in sheer amazement and sadness as the developments will go up and the wild open space will be filled with homes, schools, gas stations, and malls.

Of course while you are in the middle of rock formations and the desert and hungry and it's Sunday in Utah there are slim pickings. We stopped at a cafe in Duchene hoping for the best. I mean, how bad could it be? American cheese.  I am sorry Marsha. American cheese is just not a food product.

Park City, Utah Harley Davidson

Our last stop was in Park City, Utah. We stopped there because it was the only place Harley Davidson was open on Sunday.  Neither of us knew that Park City had been a site of the 2002 Olympics.  We also did not know that every Sunday Main Street became a virtual madhouse of people walking to shop, eat, listen to music, go to Farmer's Markets, to drink, and to stop by Harley. George was not a happy shopper. It was a bit of a culture shock after our soul cleansing ride through Colorado and Utah where we often did not see another car.

We finally found our hotel in Salt Lake City and decided that we would dine in and rest after our long day. We are going to eat waffles at Bruges, a place Ben and Liz recommended, in the morning. I can't wait!

Tomorrow- Boise, Idaho. 

Jenson

Tame Your Iron

Rocky Mountains

Today we took a scenic, icy, drive through the Rocky Mountains. I know I have described green trees, desert, large rocky mountains, rivers, windy roads, and more green trees.  Yes, that is the Rocky Mountains. It was worth the absolutely freezing ride. I am just running out of descriptive words.  Colorado is beautiful. Not everywhere.  I keep waiting for the freeways, the interstates, the traffic jams, and pollution, but we have been here for a while and there is a lot of open land. Europe could fit nicely into one of the spaces we saw today. There are not a lot of cars on the road, even today, and it is Saturday. We stopped to warm up and have coffee and hot chocolate in some small town and realized we were really close to Steamboat Springs. This was lucky because the weather is so iffy. The thing is, as you are riding, you are in and out of black clouds. It is like gambling. Without the money. Will we get drenched, will we make it to the next sunny spot, will lightening hit us this time?

Which bring up last night.  I almost forgot.  We had the loudest, biggest, largest, hugest, thunder and lightening storm either one of us has even encountered. Why the roof is still on the Saddle and Surrey is beyond me. George even got up to watch the lightening. The weather here does not play. And yet every camping site is filled. I do not know what people are thinking. I have camped in those tents.  They are not waterproof.

We checked into the Holiday Inn and discovered that not all Holiday Inn are the same.  We have a beautiful suite. With a bathtub.  Tonight when George is snoring next to me, I can sit on the couch in the living room and watch television. Or cook. In the kitchen.  I could even make a peanut and jelly sandwich, which I am missing so much. There is also a restaurant attached which is so nice.  When you are on a bike you do not like getting back on at night to go out to dinner.

So, we rode to Steamboat Springs downtown and went to our favorite store.  We were able to find a few fun things and get a recommendation to a great place for lunch. We sat by a little creek and had a delicious lunch and felt like we had won the lottery. I guess George is back on my list.

Great place for lunch in Steamboat!

Steamboat Springs is a really pretty town. We always enjoy staying here. Seems like I should be writing more, but the words have dried up.

Tomorrow, back to Utah.  We will finally be visiting Salt Lake City.  Ben and Liz have given us some great places to see and to eat at.

Jenson

Really trying to find a prince!
 

 

Use Your Imagination

I don't always wake up like George. The following is one version of his morning theme song:
Woke up
Jumped out of bed
Took a shower
And shaved my head
Refrain: Oh I'm so awesome!

So this morning, our last morning at the Spa of the Rockies, my eyes felt like they had been rubbed with sand and my skin was so dry it felt like a prune that had been infused with mineral water. So, watching George happily skip around in his Tommy Bahamas at 6:30 am, and not throwing a thong at him was a challenge. I managed to drag myself over to the grille for breakfast, and then I decided to be gutsy and not shower before entering the pool. I know the lifeguards are always watching for  tell-tell signs that you have not showered, but today I was going outlaw. I told George and he said not to worry about it because none of the old timers shower either.

George went off to begin his lap walking and I thought I would stay in the warm pool and let the old timers get a look at a young gal.  When I joined George for some walking, the morning's exercise class had started and the teacher was rocking out to The Boss.  Elsewhere three women were walking together, one had her cane folded  up, one had her oxygen, and the other was appeared to be able bodied.  As we were preparing to start a new lap this darling woman who must have been in her 80's said "look out we have some fast ones today."  She was walking with a friend and we all laughed. We just had a wonderful last morning and now George wants to return in the winter.
                   
We rode through Glenwood Canyon early this morning. This piece of highway is described as an engineering feat and when you are on it you understand why. It is beautifully constructed, the turns are so well timed and rhythmic you want to repeat the experience again and again. The Colorado River flows to your right and the mountains stand grandly to the left. Quite amazing.

Glenwood Canyon

The Internet is such a great tool. Information at the touch of your finger tips.  I know I use it often when I want to learn more about a subject, like Glenwood Canyon, or hotels, restaurants etc. When I wrote about the Travel Through Time turnoff I could have looked it up, but I was born in a time when the imagination was still considered prime real estate. I want to believe that down that road is all kinds of adventures and when George and I return to Colorado we will make sure to take that turn off and find out what is waiting for us back in time or perhaps in the future. Of course we will have a side car so my sister can travel with us, because if I am going to have all of those adventures I need someone to talk to about them!

The ride to Estes Park took us by Vail. What a gorgeous place. I kept smelling something, which is not unusual on the bike, but this was different.  As we rode by the beautifully groomed golf courses, large estates, and unique architecture, it finally came to me. Wealth!

We were pretty high up in the mountains when we rode into the town of Black Hawk. What a terrible shock. The entire town is basically enormous casinos. And when I say enormous I really mean gigantic. Paul Bunyan could play there.  On the left side as you ride through it appears as though they are carved into the granite shelve of the mountain.  There did not appear to be a grocery store, but there was a post office.  We were both disturbed by the overwhelming immensity of the casinos and how incongruent they look in Colorado. Apparently it used to be a small mining town until Las Vegas interests took over.

We ate lunch in a very tiny town, Nederland, CO. George has found it so odd that he has
mentioned it a few times today. The part of the town, perhaps the entire town, that we were in consisted of multiple places to eat, a cannabis store, a healthy food store, two gift stores, and a consignment store. While we were at lunch I told George that I had been composing a top three greatest hits on the trip and three things I didn't like so much. He finally asked me what I didn't like and I said his music choices. I don't know what happened to him, but he listens to a mixture of bad soul and worse rock. By the time any of it reaches me it sounds like high pitched screaming. So then he asked what I liked and I said being with him. I asked what he liked and he said, "I just always like riding."  I scratched him off the top of my list. It then began to rain, really hard and we hightailed it out of town. I am down to one pair of jeans and I was thinking about how much fun they were going to be all day.

We pulled into the Saddle and Surrey Motel  in Estes Park and were greeted by a real character.  He said he goes to the Spa of the Rockies every winter. Here is another great us of the computer. My job every summer is to find hotels. I use Trip Advisor and other sites to help me find interesting places to stay. I read what others have said and that helps me make my decision. The Saddle and Surrey does not look like much, but for $76 a night the room was immaculate, the king size bed was comfortable, there was a flat screen TV, a refrigerator, microwave, and a continental breakfast.  The fact that it was a challenge to sit on the toilet and close the bathroom door was incidental. $76!!! So,  I asked the owner/manager where he recommended for dinner and he said he was not the person to ask as he always ate at McDonald's!  He looked to be in his 70's. So, we rode to downtown Estes where we were told Elk might be walking around the streets and we walked around a million stores.  Actually the weather was so beautiful, we just wanted to be outside. At one store I found some items I had been looking for and finally found.  The woman who worked there would not even say hello to us. She was so rude I almost did not purchase the items, but I was really tired of shopping so I went ahead. Later I figured it was either the F.A.T. Rider hat that turned her off, or she thought we were just really bad cats.

There is a huge bike event in Colorado.  It is the USA Pro Challenge and Estes Park is Stage 6.  They are estimating 75,000 people will be here to watch this stage.  We are leaving at 7:30 a.m.

Next stop is Holiday Inn at Steamboat Springs. YEA!
PS I am using a real computer.  OH MY.

Jenson