Retired and Trippin

Another cool morning.  We rode north on Hwy 18 out of Cushing, OK at 8:45 am.  It was mostly sunny and 50 degrees.  Though cool, it was a great morning for riding and Hwy 18 was a great venue.  There was virtually no wind, the sun was out and we were riding through rural Oklahoma over hills, around sweeping turns, through small towns and over streams and rivers. The scenery along Hwy 60 west of Pawhuska resembled the Kansas Flint Hills. From Pawhuska we rode north into Kansas where we were greeted by cloudy skies and a wind from the east that became much too strong for comfort.  Throughout north Oklahoma and southern Kansas we saw standing water along the highways and in the fields. I have seen crop dusters before but today my backseat photographer was able to snap a couple good pictures of one.  We were so close we almost got sprayed! We had a very good buffet lunch at the Down Home Family Restaurant in Independence, KS.  It was great food (incl...

This morning was another chilly one so we were in no hurry to leave.  We rode away northbound from Wichita Falls, TX at 9:25 am.  It was mostly sunny and 46 degrees. We exited I-44 just north of Lawton, OK and rode west towards the Wichita Mountains Wildlife Refuge (WMWR) on Hwy 49.  It was a pretty ride. Signs in the wildlife refuge warn that bison and longhorn steers roam wild and they are dangerous.  The first animal to greet us in the park was this beauty. We stopped at the nice visitor center and checked out all the stuffed animals on exhibit.  We rode to Lost Lake inside the WMWR, where we hiked and climbed around on the rocks. On the way out we saw a bison along the road and later we saw a whole bunch of prairie dogs in a field by the road.  My expert backseat photographer was able to snap a photo of one, which was no easy task the way they darted around. We decided to check out Holy City, which is located inside the WMWR.  It was an i...

BRRRR COLD!  What a difference a day makes.  It rained last night and it was still raining this morning.  A cold front followed the rain.  We left Llano, TX at 10:30 under cloudy skies.  It was 50 degrees.  A short distance north of Llano it dropped to 48.  The rain stopped prior to departure and the streets were even dry. We rode Hwy 16 north to De Leon, TX, where we had lunch at the Blue Moon Café.  They offered a tasty and bountiful lunch plate for under $6 . We followed Hwy 16 north all the way to our destination, Wichita Falls, except for the last 30 miles on Hwy 281.  It was a great ride with varied scenery.  The sun came out as we rode north (didn’t help the temperature much) which made the views all the better. We arrived in Wichita Falls a little after 4:30 and we holed up in the Best Western University Inn & Suites.  Our high for the day was 55, which is a little cool, and it was windy as billy-hell but it was a ...

We rode away from our Best Western in Llano at 9:30 under cloudy skies and it was already 73 degrees.  The weather was BUENO. We rode directly to Longhorn Cavern State Park, which took a little over 30 minutes.  Their first tour of the cavern was at 11:00 so we took that time to take a hike on the nature trail - and climb to the top of the three story observation tower. Amy was our energetic and enthusiastic guide for our one and a half hour tour of the cave. The cave was formed by an underground river and during periods of heavy rain the cave can still fill up with water.  The river that formed the cave is now running below the cave.  One of the cave formations (shaped like a dog – you can see it in the photos) was broken in 1957 by a woman on a tour, who leaned on it.  She was fined over $7,000! Perhaps the most cool thing about the cave tour was seeing seven different bats hanging on the ceiling of the cave in different areas.  The first bat we saw...

HAPPY BIRTHDAY to Tatum!  Congratulations on reaching double digits in age. We said our goodbyes to Don, Catherine, and Anna, and rode out of Rosenberg at 8:55 am.  It was mostly sunny and 73 degrees. It was nice to be on the two lane back roads as opposed to the hectic interstate traffic through Dallas and Houston.  As we were rolling along Hwy 102 towards Columbus, TX we passed a sign.  I caught a glimpse of it and thought it said something about backwards RB . . . . could that be right?  We turned around, went back and saw it was a sign for the Backwards RB Ranch, home of the registered Texas Longhorn.  We had to get a picture of that.  My brother, Carl’s, nickname is RB and he’s somewhat backwards!?!?! After gassing up the Wing we rode west and north to Bastrop, TX, where we stopped at Buc-ee’s.  I love Buc-ee’s and their products that reference beavers.  They have to be the biggest convenience stores in the world. We continued we...

Today we were not on our motorcycle.  Don (brother) and Jeffrey (nephew) took us to Galveston to spend some time on the beach.  It was a cloudy morning but the temperature was very nice.  We then went to the University of Houston where we had lunch with Caitlyn, Jeffrey’s fiancé.  Jeffery stayed at the University while Don, Chris and I went to old downtown Rosenberg to see where Rob (nephew) works.  I was impressed by how big and nice his office was, especially for someone so new into the work force. For photos from today click on the following link: https://picasaweb.google.com/104542123131082631220/Galveston041513?authuser=0&authkey=Gv1sRgCJWWrYuJ2PDCyQE&feat=directlink

We departed south from Durant at 8:50 am under blue skies with a temperature of 61.  Our first stop was for gas at Ennis, TX. Along the way we saw many blue bonnets and other wild flowers blooming in the right-of-way and fields. We drove through Dallas and were very glad it was Sunday rather than a workday.  As we were riding south on Interstate 45 Chris took a little siesta.  She wrapped her legs around me, rested her feet on my thighs, leaned back and shut her eyes (she claims she doesn’t really sleep).  As a BMW Mini-Cooper was slowly passing us the young lady in the passenger seat was grinning real big (maybe chuckling) and pointing at Chris.  As they pulled away she waved goodbye.  I don’t think she’d ever seen anybody sleep on a motorcycle before. We stopped at an I-45 rest area just north of Huntsville and had a picnic lunch.  Texas knows how to do rest areas – they are very nice.  Besides the restrooms, this one had a pond, wildflowe...

Chris and I planned this trip to visit my brother, Don, and to visit some Texas State Parks in the hill country.  The weather forecast at home for the coming week was not good so we were extra glad to be hitting the road south. We left home at 8:40 am.  It was sunny but it was also 40 degrees.  A chilly start. We rode south past Louisburg and through Fort Scott to Pittsburg, KS, where we stopped for gas.  It was a short distance south through Baxter Springs to the Oklahoma line.  For awhile, in the area of Baxter Springs and in northeast Oklahoma, we followed the historic Route 66.  The temperature had not climbed to 60 by the time we got to Oklahoma.  The Interstate 44 toll-way and 69 Hwy took us south to Pryor, OK, where we found a small hole-in-the-wall eatery called the Boomerang Diner for lunch.  It was a good choice. Then it was 69 south through Muskogee, past Lake Eufala, through McAlester and Akota to Durant, OK.  It is interest...

As reported in February, my youngest son, Bryan, fulfilled a longtime desire to own a motorcycle. http://shawneegoldwingertrips.blogspot.com/2013/02/another-clark-on-two-wheels.html Since that time, he passed his beginning rider course, acquired the motorcycle endorsement on his driver’s license and did some riding.  Today Chris and I went with him as he took his first foray onto an interstate highway.  We rode north to see my granddaughter’s soccer game.  In the following picture Bryan is riding north on I-435 north of the Missouri River. Bryan is riding well.  He scratched his last itch . . . . except as all us old riders know . . . . . the itch to ride never really goes away.