AZ Day 12 - Home Again....

Well I believe I rolled off a million miles today
I still have rocks in my shoes from Arizonia
Drivin' all alone down that lonely road
I'd call you but I'm almost home

Arriving right on time (I got to see what I can find)
When I get to the other side (of that Georgia State line)
My pride is swelling and how I try not to cry
You caught me in a Peach State of Mind

Peach State of Mind by Memory Dean

I'm home again in the Peach State.

Today started with what has become an almost chronic hour over-sleep. Damn! But with home only a state away I was dressed and on the bike in record time.

I'd been lucky to avoid any rain on this trip, not unusual in my drought stricken Georgia but for twelve days on the road that's quite a feat. Just south of Montgomery, AL, I had feared my luck was going to run out but the skies withheld their rain until I passed.

The miles rolled by quickly thanks to a good night's sleep. Even the dreaded bug encrusted windshield couldn't affect my return journey.

I arrived back home shortly after 3 p.m. EST and celebrated a successful trip with a good shower and home delivered pizza. Now that I'm home there will be a lot of catching up to do, both here and at work, but for this weekend I'm just going to relax...well, right after I mow the lawn. Seems that in my rush to get out of town I forgot to mow it and the neighbor down the street has been frowning at me since I returned.

As some of you know I aspire to more and longer road trips and consider this just one another stepping stone towards future road trips. I have compiled some basic facts and observations from this trip and will list a few here. However, I'll try to update this blog in the future with additional info.

Here's a quick review of the trip:

12 days on the road
10 travel days
Over 4,500 miles ridden
Daily average of 450 miles ridden
Longest day was 700+ miles
Estimated 25 refuelings
And while miles can be counted, smiles are beyond record keeping.

I was able to use this trip to narrow down some of my gear & upgrade selections for the bike. I will be sending my saddle down to the folks in Texas who add medical grade padding to the seat. At the same time I'll let them add a backrest to the stock saddle as my back sure could have used some support, especially around day three and on!

I've also decided that the Aerostich Roadcrafter suit I want will be sufficient in the heat of the summer. Even in the Texas heat I'd have been been better protected from sun and heat, as well as road rash had I gone down, if I'd had the Roadcrafter instead of my usual Joe Rocket jacket and blue jeans. Now I just have to save up the funds for it!

I received a few messages from some of the other long distance riders asking for info on the equipment I used on this trip. I'll take pics and post more info over the next few weeks. Feel free to shoot me an email via the blog profile if there's a particular piece of equipment that you want more info about.

Perhaps the most interesting part of this trip, outside of the trip itself, was my test of my new SPOT satellite tracking device. The multiple marks, almost one every ten minutes, tend to blend together but here's an over view map of the entire trip:

Thanks to all who have followed along with me during the journey via this blog. And a special thanks to JD in Texas and Chico in Louisiana for their hospitality along the road. A special thanks is due to Doc and Jerry out in Arizona for giving me and over a dozen other riders a damn good excuse to hit the road and meet up along the way. Thanks guys for all the hard work y'all did in organizing the Coronado Trail run and showing all of us a good time out in Arizona!

As a parting shot I wanted to include a video a friend and his wife put together using their pics and video shot from his bike. I'm the goober wearing the riding jacket with yellow shoulders:

A big thanks to Randy and Cindy for putting together the video.

Ok, time to mow the lawn...ah, the life of a returning Road Warrior!

AZ Day 11 - A White Sport Coat and a Puerto Rican

The coffee is strong
at the Cafe Du Monde,
And the donuts are too hot to touch;
But just like a fool, when those
sweet goodies cool, I eat 'til I eat way too much.

--The Wino and I Know by Jimmy Buffett

I've had a visit to the Cafe Du Monde on my mind ever since I hatched this half-baked route in my head some months ago. But the French Quarter of New Orleans itself wasn't enough of a draw. However, throw in a chance to see my good friend Chico and meet his family and I'm there!

After yet another late start I found some decent coffee and hit the road.

Plugging "New Orleans" into my GPS I headed south and over the causeway into the city. Nearing the city I looked up Cafe Du Monde and was surprised to find several listings. Reading between the lines I figured they must have opened satellite locations as the name itself would be a big tourist draw. I picked the one that looked most likely to be the original in the French Quarter and continued into town.

Stopping just 0.3 miles from the cafe I did a little business and answered emails. I'm loving that Blackberry more and more each day!

Back on the bike I arrived at the Cafe Du Monde....



Only to discover I'd picked the WRONG one. Crap!

Undaunted, I headed into town to find the French Quarter.



Out of the corner of my eye I spied something familiar and followed my instincts...GPS be damned!

One quick look around and it was obvious I'd found the French Quarter.

I found this line of school kids on a field trip through the French Quarter amusing.

Still looking for the cafe I found a tell tale sign that my buddy Chico wasn't far away.



Today was yet another hot day but at least I had the air rushing by my bike to keep me cool. Locals actually have to carry around a fan and plug it in when they stop for rest.

After asking the fan lady for directions I found my target!

The cafe is an New Orleans institution and a pilgrimage is only appropriate...and the food's good, too!

I ordered my coffee and beignets and watched the staff fill orders.

Victory!

Unlike Jimmy Buffett I didn't wait for my pastries to cool. DAMN good eats!



Chico and I touched base on the phone and made our plans for me to head to his house so I said good bye to the French Quarter and hit the road.

Heading through town I saw some old neighborhoods.

And then hit the interstate.

Even from the interstate there are obvious signs of post Katrina construction.

And destructions.

Arriving in Slidell, LA, I made my way to Chico's house.

We BOTH were holding in our gut for that shot!

I had a chance to meet all three of his daughters (or was one his wife?) and his son, Harry.

Despite Chico's request for me to stay the night with his family I wanted to hit the road and try to put some of my journey behind me. It is 470 miles from his house to mine and I wanted to put at least 100 miles behind me before bed time. Rolling into North Mobile, AL, about 9:30 p.m. CST I found a motel with only 360 miles between home and myself. While I'm sure I'll get a late start in the morning I should still make it home no later than 6 p.m.

In other news...the roadkill count is now hovering around 6,457 given today's added dead Love Bug count. Instead of washing the bike I'm considering buying a hammer and chisel.

Tomorrow: Home

AZ Day 10 - A Day of Travel....

Late. Tired. Bushed. Beat.

My buddy Joe talked me out of an early start, accurately pointing out that I would only catch the worst of San Antonio and Houston traffic. And then I delayed it further by farting around the resort. My bad.

In my defense breakfast was a bit late due to some drama we fortunately missed yesterday while out riding the Hill Country. Turns the out the tempermental chef was fired after getting into a shouting match with the manager. Too bad as he was one helluva cook.



The road out of the Escondida was one of the nicest I've ridden in the Hill Country and is reason enough to visit Kerrville, TX, from the south.

Today's journey was little more than a slog down Interstate 10 from Kerrville, TX, to Baton Rouge, LA, 540 miles of tortuous pavement.

On my way out of Texas I was getting stressed by the constant drone of the road and traffic. Further delayed by construction traffic in Houston I got into a routine of taking short breaks every 75 or 80 miles to break the monotony and fatigue. Somewhere along the Louisiana border I stopped for a late lunch/early dinner at a burger joint and took a long, refreshing break.

What a burger it was!

Arriving in Louisiana I finally felt as if the end was near.

After hours upon hours on the road everything begins to blur together into a single vision of traffic and more traffic.



I had two close encounters with dangerous motorist today. A Cadillac SUV was weaving through traffic in Houston...or was it Lake Charles. Hell, they all seem to blur together. A semi pulled in front of me just as I was starting to pass it. Fortunately I'd recently taken a break and was fresh. As soon as I saw him begin to change lanes I was able to roll off the throttle and brake heavily.

One safety technique is to alway find a way out of a situation before committing to it. That usually means finding an alternate route forward, often another lane or shoulder of the road. However, due to construction much of I-10 had no shoulder and, at times, was only two lanes wide. So, in this case my route to safety was backwards. Before committing to my pass I made sure there were no vehicles behind me so I was able to hit the brakes hard and escape the truck. All I can say is I'm damn glad I held out and purchased anti-lock brakes on the Wing!

To break the monotony I played with the camera for a while.

Today's roadkill count rises to 4,327, owing largely to the 4,323 Love Bugs I killed. I'm pretty sure there's now officially more bug guts than windshield left on the Wing.

Tomorrow holds the promise of New Orleans. With a little luck I'll meet up with a buddy from Slidell, LA, after riding through the city. Hopefully the traffic will be a bit better...it sure as hell can't be worse!

AZ Day 9 - Hill Country Rain

"Cause I got a feeling
Something that I can't explain
It's like dancing naked
In that high hill country rain"

-Hill Country Rain by Jerry Jeff Walker

I didn't dance naked (this trip) nor did it rain (thank God) but I did get a real taste of the Texas Hill Country today and I'm happy to report the Hill Country lived up to my expectations, even surpassed them in some ways. The countryside was lush and green with water everywhere, two of my favorite subjects, and the roads were more twisty than I had anticipated. And anyone who knows my riding preferences knows that means I liked the roads.

After a sumptuous breakfast my riding buddy, JD, and I loaded our bikes and headed to the hills, literally. Leaving Kerrville I was shocked to see how quickly the countryside changed from a nice, medium sized city with good infrastructure to rolling hills along a river (the Guadalupe) with ranches and summer camps bordering the city.

The bridge above is used to connect guests at a lodge with the resort's private dock on the Guadalupe River.

The river runs through the middle of town from it's source northwest of the city. Our ride took us along the river for several miles.

We saw numerous houses perched atop the limestone cliff's around Kerrville.

Close to Kerrville the road was tree lined.

But it soon turned into open riding terrain.

We rode through several small Texas towns day. Our first was Hunt, TX.

We were a little late for peak spring wildflowers but there were still some in bloom.

We took a quick break for some Gatorade as the day began to warm. The hottest I saw was 93 degrees but for the most part the temperatures were in the 80's.

The Hill Country is MY kinda country!

I guess it's true that every thing is bigger in Texas. Even the "hills" look like mountains!

The countryside holds another interesting view at every turn. Ranches abound as well as water features.

The Frio River was along our path as well.

JD mentioned that it was mainly German and Czech immigrants who settled this region. The land was cheap because all the rocks in the soil made it hard to clear for agriculture purposes.

I had hoped I was done with dirt roads on this trip but a four mile section of one farm road was being entirely reconstructed, right down to the soil and clay road bed.

Today's roadkill count was relatively low...one less butterfly in the Hill Country thanks to yours truly.

I even had a chance to play around with photography.

Even the trash in Texas is quite valuable...apparently.

I previously mentioned to some of you that I was staying at a VERY nice resort just south of Kerrsville. As you can see, it is WAY above my standard. Indeed, I hear the property value plummeted as they saw JD and I ride up to the office.

I hate this crossing:

I nearly dropped my Wing the day I first arrived. Did I mention I hate dirt roads? Well, I do.

The staff at the hotel have been good to us. However, they did fire the chef this morning and used a friend to cook our meals.

My room is just to the left of the foreground.

And this room was by far one of the nicest I've stayed in for a motorcycle trip.

I can't wait until my next trip to the Hill Country! Beyond the fantastic riding and scenery our accommodations were excellent. Thanks again, JD!