Retired and Trippin

Today was our white-water rafting day. We drove to the area of Buena Vista, had lunch at a Subway and then went to our rafting destination. The raft company drove us south of Buena Vista (about a 20 minute drive) where we boarded our raft in the Arkansas River. Matt, our guide, took us through and to just south of Salida. Just as we were exiting the river a cold rain started. We were glad to get in the van for the ride back to Buena Vista. The raft ride was mild enough for a 5 year old and 60+ year old grandparents but even at that it was a fun trip. We all had a good time. It rained on us on our drive back to the cabin but it was dry when we arrived so we had our first evening at the fire pit. After a spell in the hot tub we called it a day. For pictures from today click on the following link: https://plus.google.com/photos/104542123131082631220/albums/6042407785589271841?authkey=CIfS6Nfh4KvYJQ

HAPPY BIRTHDAY to Eric, our oldest son, who is 37 years young today! On our travels to and from the cabin and Breckenridge we passed over Hoosier Pass numerous times. Today we stopped there and hiked up the mountain a bit. More beautiful scenery! During this hike we could see a Lake below that was fed by a waterfall. After our Hoosier Pass hike we drove to the lake and walked to the waterfall, another beautiful area. More wet and cold but a good day nonetheless. The Goldwing was idle again today, which was for the best considering the weather. For pictures from today click on the following link: https://plus.google.com/photos/104542123131082631220/albums/6042013970881943953?authkey=CMi0yJbyh4_aZA

We started the day with a soak in the hot tub located on the deck of our cabin – nice. Our goals today were to ride the gondola at Breckenridge, possibly play at the fun park there, and have dinner at a steakhouse called the Mint in Silverthorne, CO. Years ago, Molly’s family would eat there when visiting Colorado and she wanted to check it out again. As we drove north on Hwy 9 we saw a scenic spot and stopped for a photo. A kind lady there took a picture of all of us. We rode the gondola in Breckenridge but when we arrived at the fun park it was raining so all the “stuff” was closed. There was also a threat of lightning moving in, which would shut down the gondolas, so we rode back down while we could. Having some time to kill, we drove Hwy 6 east out of Dillon up to Loveland Pass. It was cloudy there but still beautiful scenery. The Mint provided us an excellent steak for dinner, which we cooked ourselves over their grill. Afterwards we had some ice cream to top it off. T...

This morning Eric and I drove into Fairplay for some groceries for our stay at the cabin. Later in the day we all drove north up Hwy 9 (south of Breckenridge about 9 miles) and hiked McCullough Gulch. All the pictures today were taken during that hike. It was a very pretty area. https://plus.google.com/photos/104542123131082631220/albums/6041270861908422449?authkey=CKOfj7j63PGYdQ The motorcycle sat idle today.

Today we were caravanning with Eric & family. We left Colby at 8:45 and it was 72 degrees under mostly sunny skies. A short distance west on I-70 and we were in mountain time zone, which gave us another hour for the day. We were deprived of an early sighting of the Rocky Mountains because of clouds at the mountains. We stopped just west of Denver for lunch at Panera’s. Then it was off for Idaho Springs and a trip up Mt. Evans to the south. I dropped my trailer in the parking lot at the bottom so I didn’t have to pull it up the mountain. We stopped at Summit Lake before motoring to the summit. It was very crowded, being a Sunday afternoon. But we found parking at the top and just started walking around when a park ranger started warning of lightning close by and telling folks to return to their cars. I’m not sure how protected we were after we returned to our motorcycle. On the trip down we stopped for photos of a marmot and a herd of antelope (I think). A short way down (we w...

Today we departed on a trip to Colorado with Eric, Molly and our grandkids, Jenna and Ben. Eric and family were going in their mini-van and Chris and I on the motorcycle. It was supposed to be hot one today so Chris and I left at 6:15 to beat some of the heat. It was 81 when we departed. Eric and family would head out later. Our plan worked for the first 200 miles. It was cloudy and cool with a spot of brief rain here and there. Very nice riding. West of Salina, however, the sun came out and it got hot. We stopped for lunch in WaKeeney and ate an early lunch at the Tropical Mexican Restaurant. There were no cars in the parking lot but, then again, it was only 11:00 am. Shortly after we arrived another brave soul stopped and went in. The food ended up being OK. Then it was on westward bound. We stopped for the day at a motel in Colby. Eric and family caught up with us later and we had a good time in the motel pool. We rode 371 miles today with a high temperature of 98. For p...

WOW – another great day – 66 degrees and blue clear skies as we rode away from our motel in Memphis at 8:00 for a short jaunt to the other side of Memphis for breakfast at the Gingerbread House Restaurant. Today we were just riding home through Missouri. Our route took us through Unionville, Princeton and Trenton. We stopped in Jamesport so the ladies could do some more shopping . . . . . and then in Gallatin for lunch at the Corner Café. The food was good but they allowed smoking, which made the place stink. We rode on home through Hamilton, Kearney and Kansas City. Our ride today was 245 miles. For more pictures from today click on the following link: https://plus.google.com/photos/104542123131082631220/albums/6037825863807712993?authkey=CPzw6fuQjNzHWQ Our total trip mileage was 3,300 and a grand trip it was. Chris and I enjoy traveling with Carl and Marge, the weather was fantastic (nice and cool – in July), and the scenery was beautiful. And for icing on the cake, we got to...

Sunny and 68 degrees as we rode out of Peoria this morning at 8:30. We rode west on Hwy 116 and crossed the Mississippi from Niota, IL to Ft. Madison, IA. We stopped at Tim & Deb’s home outside Montrose, IA before going to Ogo’s Restaurant in Keokuk for a LARRAPIN good buffet lunch (chicken, meat loaf, walleye and ham). We were accompanied by Chris’ relatives (and my friends), Deb, Tim, and Myrna. Chris and Marge rode in the car with Deb and Myrna so Carl and I were on the motorcycles. On the way back to Deb and Tim’s we rode the River Road between Keokuk and Montrose. After a short visit back at Deb & Tim’s we hit the road again and stopped for the day at the Sunrise Motel in Memphis, MO. 203 miles today and beautiful weather. For all the pictures taken today click on the following link: https://plus.google.com/photos/104542123131082631220/albums/6037177025952540257?authkey=CObOvoPrvqvWuQE

HAPPY BIRTHDAY to our son Bryan who turned 34 today! When we first went outside today it was nice and sunny. By the time we left at 8:45 some clouds had rolled in and it was 63 degrees. If the fact that we were next door to Amish Acres was not enough, I was reminded that we were in Amish country when a horse drawn buggy went by in front of the motel. We rode south out of Nappanee to Hwy 10 and then west to Illinois. We saw a lot of corn - many corn fields with corn of various heights. Early in the day we also passed another Amish buggy on the highway and saw numerous Amish farm homes.   A few miles south of Nappanee Carl turned over 100,000 miles on his Goldwing. He pulled to the side of the road and took a picture of his odometer. In Watseka, IL we stopped at the Watseka Family Table Restaurant and had a very average lunch. We were a bit disappointed because there were a lot of cars in the parking lot, usually a good sign. We rode west on Hwy 24 . . . . . . into Peoria,...

HAPPY BIRTHDAY Marge!    I won’t tell you her age. Our goal was to ride into Detroit and check out the home that Marge lived in from age 3 to 10. She also wanted to see her school, which was nearby. I was somewhat apprehensive about riding around on a motorcycle in downtown Detroit. That apprehension was not relieved when, preparing to leave our motel, a man told us to be very careful out there. I told him we would. He said, “No, I mean be very careful.” At 9:15 we were riding away from the motel under clear skies with a temperature of 70. We left late to miss rush hour traffic. It did not seem like that worked so well. We made it to Marge’s old neighborhood. It was in poor condition but the half of the duplex she lived in looked pretty good compared to some neighboring property. The school Marge attended (and she had to walk there; up hill both ways) was a private Lutheran school. Today it is Baptist. Marge and her family left here in 1969. As run-down as the area w...

It was mostly sunny and 68 degrees when we rode away from our motel. We made our way through Bay City and then rode Hwy 25 north, east and south again around the thumb of Michigan. Riding north took us by several potato farms and one good sized wind farm. It was a beautiful day for riding and Hwy 25 hugged the coast of Lake Huron. North of Caseville we stopped at the Thompson Scenic Turnout and played in the lake. We stopped again in Harbor Beach so the ladies could do some shopping, which was followed by lunch. Another shopping stop in Lexington.  After 212 miles we stopped for the day at a Best Western in Roseville, a suburb of Detroit. We enjoyed a swim in the outdoor pool before calling it a night. For more pictures from today click on the following link: https://plus.google.com/photos/104542123131082631220/albums/6036065694768345905?authkey=CMeip9CenvaRjQE

When we left Gaylord at 8:50 it was 63 degrees and cloudy. We took off east headed for Alpena and about half way there it started to clear up. In Alpena we stopped at the Great Lakes Maritime Heritage Center and went through there museum. There was a bunch of information on ship wrecks in the Great Lakes and the Thunder Bay area. From Alpena we headed south on Hwy 23 along the shore of Lake Huron. We stopped for lunch in Ossineke at Connie’s Café. Connie was a cancer survivor and she had a “Garden of Dreams” out back to support folks fighting cancer and cancer survivors.  http://www.conniescafeossineke.com/ Chris wanted her picture taken here to honor her cousin, Deb, who is a breast cancer survivor. We stopped at the Sturgeon Point Lighthouse a little further south and found there was also an old one room school there that is maintained by the Alcona County Historical Society. After 208 miles we stopped for the day at an AmericInn motel in the Bay City area. The high tempe...

Our intentions for today were to ride to Traverse City and spend a couple nights there while we explored the area. The night before, when searching for lodging, we discovered that the National Cherry Festival was going on there. Rooms were hard to come by and those available were outrageously expensive. So we changed our plans. We left St. Ignace at 9:00. It was cloudy and 70 degrees. It rained very lightly in the morning, just enough to make the streets wet, which was just enough to soil our cleaned bikes. Today was a good day of riding. We started out by riding over the Mackinac Bridge ( http://www.mackinacbridge.org/ ) This was followed by highway M-119, the Tunnel of Trees, from Cross Village to Harbor Springs. Mother nature tinkled on us along this stretch of highway. In Harbor Springs we noticed a farmer’s market on their main street so we stopped to score on some goodies. Chris was happy to find some kohlrabi, which she got hooked on as a child. Her maternal grandparents gre...

Today we took the ferry to Mackinac Island. A shuttle bus picked us up at the motel and took us to the boat. Then it was off to Mackinac Island.Our boat ride took us under the Mackinac bridge, which we will be riding over tomorrow. Chris and I took an 8 mile bicycle ride around the island while Carl and Marge took a horse carriage tour. We followed that up with lunch at Millie’s on Main. We had an authentic beef pastie and a few other delicacies. It was very good food. Ice cream (from Sanders) followed lunch. The ladies did some shopping, which resulted in more poundage in our trailers. It was a fun day on the island with great weather – nice and cool – high in the 60’s. When we arrived back at the motel we finished off the day with a trip to the laundry facility to clean some clothes. For more pictures from today click on the following link: https://plus.google.com/photos/104542123131082631220/albums/6034992173178020897?authkey=CLfWgZ-Q3ezamAE

It was nice waking up on the south shore of Lake Superior in Copper Harbor, Michigan. Skies were clear, the air was crisp and cool and the gulls were squawking. A great start to a great day. We left at 9:00 and aimed our beasts south down the Keweenaw Peninsula. It was a very pretty ride, especially toward the north end. The temperature was 64 degrees. We were doing no sight-seeing today (except for that which we could do from the saddle) but we stopped briefly at the Eagle Harbor lighthouse for a picture. We rode Hwy 41 south and east to just east of Marquette, where we picked up 28 east, then 77 south and finally 2 east along the north shore of Lake Michigan to St. Ignace. We stopped for the night a a Quality Inn. We intend to visit Mackinac Island tomorrow. We rode 310 miles today. Our lunch stop was at a Hudson’s in Marquette and Chris enjoyed the roadside wildflowers (again today). We did encounter a dumb bunny today. I think it was on Hwy 2. Carl was leading and I saw him...

We departed Two Harbors, MN at 9:00 and it was 64 degrees. The sun was shining and the skies were blue. It was shaping up to be a great day. We road south to Duluth, crossed over into Wisconsin at Superior, and headed east on Hwy 2. Our first stop was in Iron River, WI at the White Winter Winery. Marge bought a few bottles of vino (Carl was carrying more cargo in his trailer) and we were on our way. In Ironwood, Michigan we stopped at the Breakwater Family Restaurant for a decent lunch. A much better experience than the day before. We continued east on 2 to Watersmeet, MI. Signs proudly proclaimed Watersmeet to be home of the Nimrods. I had always thought “nimrod” to be a derogatory term. Anyway, we turned north onto 45 at Watersmeet and rode to Paulding. Just east of Paulding is the Bond Falls Scenic Site. We spent some time walking around the falls and taking pictures. We hiked up the hill to see where the falls started and found out the water in the falls comes from a lake a...

We departed Bemidji at 8:10 under cloudy skies with a temp of 61 and rolled northeast on Hwy 71 to Northome and then east on Hwy 1. (Was that a run-on sentence?) This section of Hwy 1 was very desolate. Lots of woods, water, and critters but few humans. I’m not sure we saw even one car or person between Northome and Effie. It was a pretty and enjoyable ride. Yesterday our wildlife sightings consisted of one deer, large mosquitos and large flies. Around Northome we saw a momma deer and two fawns in a field of wild flowers off the side of the road. Throughout the rest of the day today we would see five more separate deer. One was in the middle of the road as Carl and Marge (who were leading) rounded a curve. Carl’s riding skills enabled him to avoid a collision. We stopped in Effie for petrol and a break. In the store Marge found a long wooden sign with a saying on it that was appropriate for her future status as a grandma (I don’t remember the exact words). Carl told her she could n...

We took off today at 8:10 under blue clear skies with a temperature of 72. It was beautiful. We rode east to McGregor and north to Jacobsen. Almost immediately after turning westbound on Hwy 200 we crossed the Mississippi River, which was a relatively short distance from its beginning. A short distance west of here we turned and rode a county road north and west to Grand Rapids. This road was designated as a Minnesota Great River Road. We never saw the river while riding this road but it was nearby. We rode on west into Bemidji, had a very good lunch at the Keg N Cork Pub and visited the giant Paul Bunyan and Babe (the blue ox) on the shore of Lake Bemidji. From Bemidji we rode south and west to Itasca State Park. As soon as we arrived it started to rain. Fortunately, it was not a real hard rain and it didn’t last too long. We enjoyed riding around the park, walking to the headwaters of the Mississippi River . . . . . . . . . . and seeing the giant white pine tree. We rode 258 ...