Ride to Hot Springs; Day 1; August 30th

Chris and I met Mel & Trish at Midland and Renner in Shawnee at 3:00 to depart on our Labor Day weekend ride to Hot Springs, AR.  Carl and Marge were going also but they couldn’t leave until later.

We rode south and east on I-435 to Hwy 69 southbound.  Boy was it hot.  It was 97 when we left but jumped up to 100 before long.  We stopped for gas in Ft. Scott, KS and then rode on in to Baxter Springs, KS.

Baxter Springs is located on the old Route 66.  We stopped for a photo op at the historic Rainbow Curve Bridge, built in 1923, and the only marsh arch bridge remaining on Route 66.Rainbow Bridge; Baxter Springs, KS

The Café on the Route was our destination for dinner.  The food was LARRAPIN GOOD!Baxter Springs, KS

We checked in to the Baxter Inn 4 Less, the only motel in Baxter Springs, and then rode a short distance west to a National Cemetery where some civil war soldiers are buried.civil war cemetery; Baxter Springs, KS

Carl and Marge arrived in Baxter Springs and while they dined at a steakhouse next door to the motel, Mel, Trish, Chris and I walked across the street to McDonalds for an ice cream cone.

We rode 178 miles today in miserable heat.  I hope tomorrow is cooler but the remnants of hurricane Isaac are likely to get us wet.  It’s all part of the adventure of motorcycle travel.

For more pictures from today click on the following link: https://picasaweb.google.com/104542123131082631220/Day1RideToHotSprings?authuser=0&authkey=Gv1sRgCOb85-D6hp6ZJw&feat=directlink

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