 |
 |
|
|||
|
|||
|
|||
|
|||
|
|||
|
|||
|
|||
|
We sallied forth to 25 where the hills were carpeted with emerald green and contrasted by the white, white clouds. We stopped for a moment at the intersection of 25 and 198 before traveling down Peachtree/Indian Valley Rd. and realized there was no way we were going to make it into Paso Robles without a gas stop. Before heading off for gas, Steve asked us to empty his spare gas can that he brought along… CC’s escapades with that gas can were something you really had to behold for yourself… see the pics and you’ll get an idea. So we took a short detour out to 101, gassed up, and then headed back. It started raining at that point and we ended up having to stop so Steve could put his rain gear on (it was his fault it was raining… it he’d just kept it on, everything would have been fine!) and we waited and waited and Patrick finally came back to see what was going on – and they say girls take a long time to get ready! Finally coming to rest in Paso Robles, we stopped for lunch at Big Bubba’s Bad bbq for some serious meat… for lunch, people, for lunch! Food was great, we got to watch Todd do his caveman impression, and it gave us a chance to de-layer for a little bit. We kept hearing this recorded voice and realized there was a big buffalo head by the kitchen that kept spouting the same message over and over and over… can’t imagine that the employees must like that thing! Layering up again, we headed out into the rain once again and out to 58. The countryside was beautiful and surprisingly, rain riding is quite exhilarating especially when you couple it with the amazing cloud formations and colors, sun breaking through, extreme green hills, and staying dry and warm – although we did have to keep an eye out for loose livestock after we ran across two calves who had somehow gotten on the wrong side of the fence. We made a quick pit stop at an elementary school restroom and Dona looked around and asked if we were in heaven. It was beautiful to behold. We continued along 58 where we experienced a series of dips that were so much fun not only to ride but to see riders in front of you popping up and down the dips. As we climbed up over the mountains, we descended into heavy fog that made it difficult to see more than about 25 feet in front of you… you’d see the bike in front of you and then all of a sudden it would disappear into the fog (“Watch the road” Patrick warned… we would have if we could have SEEN the road!)… and as we wound down to ground level, all of a sudden, out of the gloom, appeared these ghostly oil pumps, a processing plant all lit up in the gloom, and lots of tumbleweeds littering the roadside… someone mentioned it was a bit surreal, kind of like some sci-fi movie! From there, we jammed down 7th Standard Road and finally into Bakersfield – those last 30 miles we were all ready to be done! As we started to unload, it was noticed that our bikes had picked up about half of the muddy dirt along the roadways… never has a bike been so dirty (or so we thought). Everyone checked in and then we headed to the restaurant for a nice dinner and chat with everyone. Mike Lyman also joined us in Bakersfield so our little group was growing. After dinner, a few of us went to check out the karaoke lounge where our very own Todd performed his version of “Crazy Little Thing Called Love” to which we were very pleasantly surprised as he has quite a nice singing voice and we watched as the ladies in the bar were all in a tizzy. Our favorite song lyrics that evening were “Save a horse, ride a cowboy.” The next morning we were awakened to the sound of the pitter-pat of little raindrops… lots of them. Luckily, we were able to park under the hotel’s front overhang so it made for a much easier packing. Again, we layered up and, being the brave and hearty souls we were (although some of the people who we encountered might use other descriptive words for us), we headed up 178 and Kern Canyon. Once we got to Lake Isabella, the rain stopped and we encountered none of the impending snow that people had been wailing about the day or two before we left. Up and over Walker Pass we went and into Inyokern for another gas stop (CC said the first thing she is gonna look for in a new bike is the biggest dang gas tank she can find!). While there we saw an unusual trailer hitch on the back of a truck that made it quite clear that the truck was, um, a boy truck. Patrick had hoped to take us to Lone Pine and along 136 but since there had been so much snow forecasted, he decided to just go out via Ridgecrest and Trona. When he saw Walker Pass was clear, he decided to take the journey to Lone Pine and off we went up 395 and into Lone Pine for lunch. I’m not sure what it was but the food at all the little restaurants we went to seemed to be some of the best we had… whether it truly was or we were just ravenous, I was not sure. We headed out along 136 which was a lovely set of sweepers and twisties and I so wish I had a helmet cam so I could have caught the line of bikes as they all leaned through the turns in front of me… it was beautiful to behold. We landed in Panamint Springs for a warm beverage where we met two gents from Jacksonville, MI, Neil and Michael, while there and chatted with them. I mentioned to Patrick that Dona and I wanted to try to get some road shots of everyone on their bike so he said to go on ahead and he’d follow with the group shortly. Unfortunately, Todd and Real didn’t realize that was what was going on so they followed me out of the parking lot… oh well! So we boogied as quickly as we could to find a good spot and waited for everyone to come by and snapped some great pics of everyone traveling down the road. Steve and Bill peeled off from the group to find lodging at Stovepipe Wells… we never did see them again but have since had confirmation that they are alive and well! Finally, arriving at Furnace Creek, we checked into our respective home away from homes and all met up at Todd’s cabin to sample some of the grape juice he had offered to share (we drank a lot of grape juice on this trip!). It was at that point that I didn’t even try to record the commentary and double entendres… it was flying fast and furious and really, you just had to be there… but we laughed… a lot! Our appetites were getting the better of us so we headed for the restaurant and ran into the Boys from Mississippi, who we invited to join us for dinner. They were most kind and purchased more grape juice for the group as we conversed and laughed… a lot! Did I mention we did a lot of laughing on this trip (and drank a lot of grape juice)? We shared stories with the MI boys and when we mentioned about the DC Estrogen rides that were ladies only events, Michael then proceeded to try to find a way to finagle himself into attending one of these events… you had to give him an “A” for effort. He works with politicians which was quite evident as he pursued his cause relentlessly… for hours… and hours… and hours. Finally, we bid all a good night and headed off for some shut eye. The next morning, most of the group was moving pretty slowly so decided to get a later start. The early birds, Patrick, Stevie and Michael L., decided to take advantage of being a small group and took the longer trip to Hoover Dam that he had originally decided to opt out on. On my way out to the parking lot, a familiar face/helmet pulled up alongside me – it was Brent who had recently moved to Arizona but decided to ride up and join us for part of the weekend. Our faction headed out for Scotty’s Castle only to find a “Road Closed” sign blocking our way – there were a lot of those around this trip due to all the flood damage. So we backtracked and headed toward Beatty, making a stop at Rhyolite, a ghost town looking exceedingly ghostly with all the foggy clouds hovering low to the ground, and the Open Air Musuem, which is, well, an open air museum with all kinds of sculptures in the middle of the desert. We also came across another work of art, Phil Kamp on his Harley and his lady friend, Sandy. They had trailered the bike down and would eventually be heading for Vegas but hooked up with us for part of the day and our gabfest in the bar later that night. We arrived in Beatty and decided to have lunch at the casino at the far end of town. Again, another great round of food followed by some gambling by CC and Audrey. As we headed out the door, we noticed that it was raining but as we got closer to Death Valley, the rain stopped and the clouds parted and… wait, what is that?? Oh yeah, it’s the SUN!! The skies cleared and the sun came pouring through. Dona and I ventured toward Badwater to do a photo run (lots of stops!) while others relaxed back at the Ranch. We joined everyone once again for dinner and wondered when we would see the three Hoover Dam visitors. We learned later that they had stopped in Shoshone for dinner and got back in one piece. Sunday morning we all met outside the registration area for a trip south toward Badwater. The first stop of the morning was Natural Bridges which, in order to get to, you had to ride up an extremely rutted, dirt road. CC and I gave it the old college try but got to a certain point and with nervous hysterical laughter, decided that our good ole’ cruisers just weren’t made for this kind of journey so we turned back and headed for Badwater and waited for the group there, basking in the warmth of the sunlight. From there we headed south again and found the first (Dona and I had come across this particular field the day before and didn’t realize that there were more fields further down the road – Patrick and Stevie found them later on!) field of wildflowers and stopped for some photo ops. Some of the group had decided, again based on weather reports of torrential rain on Monday, to make it a two-day journey back in order to break the trip up and not have to drive up Hwy. 5 in the rain (okay, okay… so I won’t believe everything I read on the internet!). So we turned back toward Furnace Creek to pack up and head out for Bakersfield. Stevie and Patrick continued on their way and found more floral wonders along the way as well as a visit to the Tecopa Hot Springs, where Stevie ran into a lady dressed in a devil robe (see the pic) and hat who tried to give her some sort of “energy” pill as she cackled and pointed at Patrick. We packed up the bikes and headed out through Trona, which has to be one of the most bizarre towns ever… run down homes, shacks, cars littering the road and nary a live human being to be seen… it was like a modern day ghost town! We gassed up in Ridgecrest and took a break, looking at the increasingly ominous grey clouds up ahead. We did run into some rain outside of Ridgecrest but once we started up 178 toward Lake Isabella, it tempered off and we had a lovely ride back over Walker Pass (it was COLD up there this time!) and a final gas stop for the day at Mt. Mesa. Now it was 5:30, and dusk was starting to settle so we decided to have Todd and Real lead, with their bright-a** lights, so the ride down Kern Canyon would be well illuminated. At first, I was a bit apprehensive but found it to be quite lovely – the lights lit up the canyon walls and glinted off the river in places and it felt like we were just floating down the road. All the cars pulled over to let us pass them. A light rain started and as the raindrops dropped into the path of the headlights, they were colorfully illuminated and looked like sparkling diamonds. We arrived in Bakersfield in one piece and ready for some dinner and a night’s rest. The hotel van managed to cram all of us in to drive us over to the Hungry Hunter, although Mary-Anna took the backseat on the ride, literally. She had to fold herself up in the very back of the van but she handled it like a trooper. Monday morning we awoke to…. blue skies?!? Where was the torrential rain?!? Oh well, we pushed off via 99 to 46 to 33 which, while very straight, was so beautifully green on both sides of us – light green, dark green, lime green all peppered with the pinks and whites of orchard after orchard of blossoming fruit trees and yellow wildflowers. As we rode through the lush, fertile land of the Central valley, we also noticed we were riding the dividing line of storm clouds to the west and blue skies to the east. We continued in to Coalinga for a quick break and gas stop and then continued our homeward bound journey via 198. Hwy. 198 has to be one of the most fun stretches around (and there are lots)! Again, the countryside was breathtaking, so alive and fresh. We encountered a bit more rain as we wound our way down Hwy. 25 but after that it was smooth sailing. We made our final stop at Tres Pinos and marveled at the amazing adventure we had all just experienced – and took as long as was humanly possible to suit up and make the last leg of the journey because that would mean the trip was really over. But we managed to drag ourselves forward, out to 101 and off to our respective homes. As I neared my exit, I saw a lovely rainbow that seemed to end in my neighborhood, as if to remind me there’s no place like home. I pulled in to the garage and spent a good ½ hour wiping down the beast of the muck and grime that had accumulated over the last 5 days… only seemed fair to take care of him since he’d taken such good care of me! It was a glorious trip, filled with fun, flowers, and the best of all – great friends! Peace,
|
First
off, many thanks to Patrick for organizing what, once again, was an
amazing adventure. It was exciting, exhilarating, exhausting, and existential!
We arrived at Carl’s Jr. in Gilroy with everyone greeting and comparing
rain gear and bikes for the trip ahead. Todd showed us his new rain
pants which were quite large for him (he said he found Texas in his
pants… we left it alone) and the ladies all kvetched that we felt
like big ole ticks with all the layers of gear on! Our group consisted
of Patrick and Stevie, Real and Shirley, Audrey, CC, Todd, Dona, Tyler,
Bill and Steve