2016 Summer Adventure

After spending the morning walking around Bandon, we made our way a bit north, then turned eastward across the mid secction of Oregon.

Eugene is a lot like Austin 30 years ago, smaller, less crowded, but still hip.  I consulted my trusted restaurant guide, YELP, and decided on dinner at Wildcraft Cider Works.  With great live music and food much like Contigo in Austin, it was a fun evening.   Band member, Tim, aka Eugene Jeans Huy, told me when he learned I was from FW that his mother was born there in 1938, as his grandmother was traveling from east coast to CA.  He said that since she was Jewish she had to go to the black hospital for delivery.  Didn't realize FW was still that backward in the 30's.   Wondered if my old friend Dr AI Goldberg delivered her.  In 1975 when I first started working as a pharmacist in FW, he was the only white doctor that would treat black Medicaid patients.  At least some things have changed, maybe.

The next day we tried to go to Crater Lake, but it was showed in and cloudy and cold.  This was a cold rainy riding day, in the 40's and 50's most of the way from Eugene to Klamath Falls, OR. 

Friday was also a cold ride from Klamath Falls to Reno. Arriving in Reno, we had dinner at Campo, a great little place downtown, and drinks at Death and Taxes, one of Brad's favorite haunts when he in in Reno.

The last day of the Brooke and Dad show, was a ride around Lake Tahoe, followed by dropping off the bike at the local BMW shop for maintenance, tires, and storage till I return later in the summer.

Brooke and I fly back to LA for her birthday celebration, and my next leg of the summer travels.

Tim, Our entertainment at Wildcraft Cider Works in Eugene.

Batman is alive and well in Klamath Falls, OR.  While vacationing away from Gotham City, he is saving the world by picking up trash.

We took a little tour around Lake Tahoe before ending our bike trip

Thanks, Brad Otts, for suggesting this great drink establishment in Reno.

2016 Summer Adventure

After a week of riding the beautiful Lake Tahoe area, my riding partner,Bill started back to Texas on another adventure.  My daughter, Brooke flew in from LA and jumped on the bike with me. We started out on CA 36 to Weaverville. CA 36 sign at the beginning said  140 miles of twists and turns and it was.  I wish I had taken a picture of that road sign that had the S curve sign and 140 miles.  It was one of the most challenging roads of my riding career to date.  Passing through Lassen Volccano NP, we ended the day at the Red Hill Motel in Weaverville.  The hostess and owner was a widow, originally from San Francisco.  She said she tries to keep the "riff raff" out but loves to rent to bikers.  The motel office was filled with art work by her late husband.  I'm constantly surprised by the diversity and interesting people I encounter on these trips.

The next day we continued west and arrived on the Northern Californa coast at Fortuna, and toured Humboldt Redwoods SP and the Avenue of the Giants.  After a marvelous dinner and the night at the Trinidad Inn, we continued up 101 to Redwoods NP.  After a very twisty dirt road we arrived at the Fern Canyon section of the park.  Parts of Star Wars was filmed in this canyon.

Continuing into Oregon, we stopped in Bandon, OR for the night.  We stayed at an 80's furnished motel on a secluded beach; reminded me of the Dingle Penisula in Ireland.

Weaverville, CA is a quirky little Northern California as evidenced by this.

Old school truck for the 30's with portion of a redwood.

Redwoods that are 1000+ years old are fantastic.  This one fell naturally and was cut so that the path could continue.

Fern Canyon in Redwoods NP

Fern Canyon

Bandon,OR beach. 

A sculpture made entirely from debris picked up from the beach in Bandon, OR.

A jobs preservation law??  

2016 Summer Adventure

Reno, NV is an interesting city in transition.  My last visit here was probably 20 years ago, and a lot has changed since then.  Tesla is building their "giga factory", people and businesses are relocating from the very expensive Bay Area and Silicon Valley.  With its' lower cost of living, lower taxes, and beautiful surroundings, Reno is rapidly becoming a tech and business hub.  

A friend and business acquaintance lives here and has been our guide and host for several days.  His passion for the city is evident and he has been instrumental in re-developing older casino hotels into upscale non-gaming properties that improve the business community and the city environment.

Using this as our base camp, we have taken day rides into the Northern California mountains.  There is a wealth of beautiful scenery, challenging roads and interesting people.

A fun gathering and private dinner at my friend's hotel in Reno.  Chef prepared a multi course Italian dinner.

One of my friend's hotel project.  Once a seedy casino hotel, it's now an upscale property with the world's tallest claimbing wall on the outside. You can stand on Main Street Reno and watch the brave climbers.

Interesting stone sculptures along the Truckee River in downtown Reno.  The artist travels around the country doing this.  He will be in Austin during the winter.

Reno is home to the Harrah family auto museum; over 200 vintage cars.  Well worth the visit.

2016 Summer Adventure

For my readers who have not yet visited the Grand Canyon, I will repeat what I said in a post a few years ago; the South Rim is like Disney, with hordes of people, shuttle buses, and general chaos.  The North Rim is secluded, quiet, and just as beautiful.

Traveling north found us at Jacob Lake, AZ, a great little lunch stop on the way to Reno. Why Reno, you ask.  A couple of reasons; it is a good base to stay and do some amazing rides in the Lake Tahoe region, and a good friend and business associate lives there.  He owns an amazing hotel (among other projects) and graciously allowed us to stay for free.

Reno is too far to travel in one day from the Grand Canyon, so we stopped for the night in Ely, NV., which reminded me of this..............

Traveling across Utah into Nevada showed me the interesting contrast between the two states.  It's almost as if one is traveling from one country to another.  The Mormon heritage of Utah has had a great influence on the culture and appearance of the state.  Many of the small towns and cities are pristine, with beautiful landscaping, well preserved downtown areas and parks, and a general sense of well being.  Once you cross into Nevada, the history and culture of this state shows up in completely different ways.  Casinos, bars, and a rustic western appearance is more the norm.  The people are warm and welcoming in both states, however, the cultural differences are distinct in many ways.  

Arriving in Ely, NV., a stop on US Hwy 50, dubbed as America's loneliest highway; the only room available was at the Prospector Hotel and Casino.  Quirky, to say the least, this hotel reflected the weirdness of this town, in the milddle of nowhere, but every hotel and motel room filled for the weekend.

Reno, and a much nicer hotel is my next stop and home for a week, as Bill and I ride some of the best motorcycle roads in America.

Unusual collection of memorobilia in the lobby of a hotel/casino in Ely, NV.

2016 Summer Adventure

I am daily becoming more aware of how blessed I am.  One of the many blessings I have is the ability and good health to indulge three of my favorite pastimes; family, travel, and motorcycles.  I don't always get to combine all three of these at the same time, but this adventure gave me a chance to combine them.

This summer, at different times, and in different places during a multi phase adventure, all three occur as follows:

Phase 1. Some motorcycle time and nature time with a good friend.

Phase 2. More motorcycle time with daughter, Brooke.  We try to carve out time periodically for a bike ride together.

Phase 3. Family time in Tijuana, MX with Chris and his church family.

Phase 4. More family time with all nineteen of us in San Diego

Phase 5. Some time for just Vickie and me exploring Grand Canyon, Zion NP and Las Vegas.

Phase 1 starts with our bikes loaded on my trailer and a departure west towards Reno, NV.  I decided to avoid the bike boredom of Hwy 287 through Texas, and pull the bikes out west.  Traveling in the rain almost all the way to Grants, NM made me glad I made this choice.  Meeting a guy from Dallas who was riding his bicycle from Dallas to LA, and who had spent 3 days in a motel in west Texas b/c of the rain reinforced to me the sheer lunacy of riding a bicycle on the Interstate.  I'll stick to motorized transportation and the back roads when possible, thank you very much.

Arriving at the Grand Canyon on day 2 began the fun part of this adventure.  A couple of hikes, some good food, and a helicopter tour of the Canyon provided a good start to this adventure.

After a day of driving thru the rain, HI Express is always a dependable place to stop for the night

Near the Grand Canyon, the summer fires have already started.

After a hike along the rim trail, a great dinner at the historic El Tovar lodge.

An early morning hike down the Bright Angel trail.  We decided to not go too far, as it was 110 degrees at the bottom.  We met a couple coming up who had to spend the night on the floor of a toilet at the bottom, as they ran out of daylight and water the day before.  They didn't listen to the park rangers who warned them at the outset they were unprepared. One of the many things I like about our National Parks, the Rangers give you good advice, but let you be brave or stupid, you make the choice.

I highly recommend a copter tour of the Canyon.  It gives you a sense of just how majestic and massive this creation of God really is.  Over a mile deep and hundreds of miles long, it is beyond description.

WA, ID, UT, CO, NM, TX

After seeing Vickie off at the Vancouver airport, I picked up my bike, newly fitted with fresh oil, a tune up, and tires and started thinking about what route to take home.  Having been warned that getting through Seattle at rush hour would take several hours, I opted to go east and the mountains instead of south and west along the coast.  Riding through the Cascade mountains was beautiful and I made it to Winthrop, WA, that night.

Continuing south and east, through the apple orchards on the plains of eastern Washington, I saw a sign for the Grand Coulee dam.  As with most large civil projects, the dam was controversial, but was finished in 1942 and is still today the largest electric power producing facility in the US.

Traveling on the back highways of eastern Washington is an invitation to gain some time and miles.  With few cars and miles of visibility, I was cruising pretty fast when I passed a white Tahoe.  As I passed him, I saw the Sheriff sign on the door.  Being committed to passing, I didn't slow down until the flashing lights came on.  Realizing the speed limit was 60mph and I was probably doing 85, I was expecting the worst.  Observing my Texas tags and the fact I was about his age, he let me off with a verbal warning and a reminder that no matter the speed limits in Texas, I was still in his state.

Crossing into Idaho at Lewiston, I continued southward thru rain and sleet and a day and night of generally crappy weather.  Breaking my rule of no interstates, I jumped on I84 and I15 and stopped at Brigham City, UT.  With a massive Mormon temple and the somewhat famous Maddox Ranch House restaurant, this was a welcome rest stop.

Grand Junction, CO was my next stop, followed the next day by a beautiful, but muddy dirt mountain trail into the back side of Crested Butte for lunch.  Riding familiar roads now led me to the last night of this adventure and our old standby, the HI Express in Raton, NM.  Enjoying a cigar and drink by the firepit, I was thankful to God for His protection and favor and the chance to make another set of memories.

postscript:
I'm just now (May 2016) publishing this 2015 trip.  I'm about the depart on the first leg of my 2016 Summer adventure soon.  I'll be writing about that in the near future.

Thanks for following along.

  A massive structure, still providing electricity and recreation.

Brigham City, Utah

Grand Junction, CO. Sticking to my plan of no chain hotels.  

Aspens just beginning to turn, as I came over the pass into the back side of Crested Butte.

One last look at the mountains and the cool weather of Raton, NM before returning to Texas.

Victoria, BC

Our flight from Anchorage to Vancouver was uneventful, just long.  This four plus hour flight was another reminder of how far away Alaska is from the continental USA.  I've gotta think the Russian's are kicking themselves all the time for selling this huge natural resource to us, and knowing how close we are to them.  Our purchase of Alaska from Russia in 1867, for $7mm or about 4 cents per acre was criticized by some in the US and was called Seward's folly, after Secretary of State, William Seward, who pushed the deal through.  Hindsight is always 20-20, but this has turned out to be pure genius on his part.

Arriving late back in Vancouver, we scored a night at the Rosewood Hotel, with a big discount thanks to an old friend.  

The next morning our itinerary started with a trip to Victoria.  The provincial capital of British Columbia, Victoria is a beautiful small city on Vancouver Island.  Getting from Vancouver to Victoria is no small task, requiring either a bus (or car) ride to a ferry, and a four hour ferry trip.  Or, a 30 minute sea plane hop.  Vickie, not being a fan of small planes, took a little convincing.  But, all in all she agreed it was an enjoyable way to travel.  Commuter sea planes were buzzing around all over the place, and I quickly learned this was a common yer fairly expensive method of travel in this area.

Based on several recommendations, we had reservations at the Fairmont Empress Hotel.  An historic hotel on the Inner Harbor, across from the Capitol building, it was the best place to stay for exploring this small historic city.  Of course, the big attraction at this quintessential British accommodation is High Tea, in the afternoon.  Being more of a cigar and bourbon fan, rather than cucumber sandwiches and tea, none the less, I experienced an afternoon of culture and raised pinkie holding my tea cup.

Not to be outdone, I adjourned to the iconic bar at the Empress, and found fast friends; a couple from Denison, TX, who were vacationing post cruise, like us, and Toby Gabriel, a fellow GS rider who was a long term Fairmont associate.  Toby and I exchanged many ride stories and have kept in touch via FB, although I missed him when he was in Dallas a few months ago.  

A must see attraction near Victoria is Butchart Gardens.  A former limestone quarry used for the production of Portland cement, the business owned by the Butchart family, has become one of the most beautiful locations of unique gardens in the world.  Mrs Butchart, wanting to make use of the abandoned and ugly quarry site commissioned several garden artists to build these gardens; including Japanese, Italian, and British style gardens.  This is a wonderful example of re-purposing an industrial wasteland that could be done more today if people would take the opportunity.  Still owned by the Butchart family, it is a major tourist attraction.

With this portion of our vacation coming to an end, we take a sea plane back to the Vancouver airport, Vickie boards her place back to DFW, and I take a cab back to the BMW shop to pick up my 1200 GS and begin the southeastern journey back to Texas.................stay tuned.

A forced smile, but things get better.

Almost there.

We made it

Inner Harbor of Victoria

High Tea at the Fairmont Empress

A rainy day, but still amazing