Fall Foliage Ride 2013; Day 2

Monday; October 21, 2013

When we woke up this morning it was 43 degrees in Salem, MO.  We were not in a hurry, however, so we showered and  had a good breakfast (the cinnamon rolls are LARRAPIN good) before taking off at 9:20 am.  By then it was cloudy and 50.  Our cold weather gear, heated grips and heated seat had us nice and toasty as we rode east towards Elephant Rocks State Park.Hwy 72 eastboundThe fall foliage along Highways 72 and 32 was very pretty in places.  It probably would have been more dramatic had the sun been shining.

We arrived at Elephant Rocks State Park at about 10:30.  We’ve been to this park numerous times but we still enjoy it.  There is a very nice paved hiking path plus access to the large rocks where you can climb and explore to your heart’s content.  Years ago folks used to quarry granite here, evidenced by the drilling marks found on many rocks in the park.  Some day we’d like to bring our grandkids.  http://www.mostateparks.com/park/elephant-rocks-state-parkElephant Rocks State Park

It was around noon when we left Elephant Rocks so we decided to eat lunch at the Fort Davidson Restaurant in nearby Pilot Knob, MO.  I wasn’t real hungry so I ordered a cup of chili and an appetizer of potato skins.  The menu said they were “fully loaded” with cheese, bacon and onion.  Sounded good.  Well, the chili was good but the tater skins . . . . not bueno.  The cheese was like cheese whiz and the bacon was baco-bits.  It was OK but not what I envisioned.  Chris ordered the meat loaf special and it looked real good.  One should always order the special.

We then rode county road N (a pretty ride) west 13 miles to Johnson’s Shut-Ins State Park (http://www.mostateparks.com/park/johnsons-shut-ins-state-park).Johnson's Shut-Ins State ParkThis is another park we return to when we are in the area.  The east fork of the Black River flows through the shut-ins which results in pools of water and numerous little water falls.  It is very busy in the summer with people enjoying the cool water.

We rode on back to Salem.  The temperature had reached 61 when we arrived at Johnson’s Shut-Ins but it was 59 when we left.  On the way to Salem we rode in and out of very light rain, which caused the temperature to drop as low as 54.  We arrived back at the Holiday Inn Express at 4:00.

Despite the cool temps it was a beautiful day of riding (148 miles).  Plus the cool temps were great for walking and climbing.

For more pictures from today click on the following link: https://plus.google.com/photos/104542123131082631220/albums/5937366955939085985?authkey=CIvulLW38djvIw

Comments

Post a Comment

Popular posts from this blog

Colorado; Day 9; June 30, 2012

Image
The evening of June 29th we saw the play, “Is He Dead” at the Creede Repertory Theater ( http://www.creederep.org/ ).  It was very entertaining,  one of the better plays I’ve seen. When we drove away from Creede at 6:05 am it was 41 degrees.  A short distance south the temperature dropped to 39.  We tried soaking up the cold for what we knew would be a hot afternoon. We rode South Fork and then east to Alamosa.  From Alamosa we took a detour north up Hwy 17 to see the UFO Watchtower ( http://www.ufowatchtower.com/ ).  It is a place for UFO enthusiasts to go to watch for UFO’s.  The lady who runs the place said something about some sort of vortex existing on the property.  Weird stuff, even for an open-minded guy like me. If the UFO Watchtower wasn’t weird enough we saw a male driving a Jeep with eye lashes over the headlights at a gas station in Alamosa, CO.  Hopefully it was his wife’s Jeep and he was just gassing it up for her. We continued east to Walsenburg, LaJunta, and La
Read more

Florida Trip; Day 15

Image
At 7:30AM we drove away from Russellville, AR on a cold 25 degree morning. At least the sun was coming up. Our route was 7 north to Harrison; 65 north to Springfield, MO; I-44 west; 13 north to Clinton; 7 north to Harrisonville; I-49 north; I-435 west to Kansas in the KC area and home. Hwy 7 in Arkansas is a scenic route with hills and curves galore. We stopped several times for photos. On the south side of Bolivar, MO we enjoyed lunch at Smith's Restaurant. It was 39 degrees when we arrived home at 2:20 but we saw a high of 44. It was a good day for our final of the trip. We drove 330 miles today and the total trip mileage was 3,109. I only have 6 photos today but you can click here to see them -  Final Day Pics
Read more

My Last Ride

On January 11th, 2017, I departed on a ride to Kelli's Korner (Paradise, MO - near Smithville, MO) for lunch with four friends (Carl, Gary, Bill and Larry). It was a beautiful day, which was all the excuse we needed for a ride. I was leading the group and we were taking a long way there. Riding north on county road N, about 6 miles north of Hwy 152 and I-435, the road turned and I didn't. I exited the road into a field. Fortunately there were no fences, trees, rocks, oncoming cars, etc. I have no explanation for this except that I was out of it for awhile. I remember crossing the center line but I was looking down at that time, which is weird. I have no memory of seeing anything after that until I was laying in the field separated from my motorcycle. I do remember a sensation of tumbling but that is all. My first thought was to drive my motorcycle out of the field and get it cleaned up so Chris would not know what I did. What a ridiculous idea that was. After I'd been up
Read more