Day 15: Tuesday June 12, 2011

Today was a day of joy riding, not that the other days haven't been a joy. But today we didn't have to pack the bikes and check out of a hotel. It felt like taking off for a ride in the country, except this wasn't California and we don't have any faces carved into the Sierra mountainside! Yep today was a ride into the Black Hills with a stop at Mt. Rushmore. We talked to our new friends Robert and Brian and they recommended a route to take that is a lot of fun on the bikes with great scenery. So we cruised out to highway 16a and wound our way up the mountain to the national monument. I have seen Mt. Rushmore several times but the view and history of the sculpture is fascinating and never gets old. It was Dave's first time viewing "The Faces" and he was awestruck! We stayed for about 1 1/2 hours and started hearing thunder and the skies were getting dark. Knowing a thunderstorm was approaching we wanted to get out of the hills before the golfball size hail began to fall. (Last time I was in the Black Hills we got plastered by a hail storm that dented my parents motor home.) Dave and I made it out dry and safe. When we got back to Sturgis we visited the motorcycle museum which had interesting history and fascinating bikes on display from a 1907 Indian to the Bic chopper built by Orange County Choppers (you may have seen the episode of OCC when they built the Bic Chopper) After we got out of the museum the skies in Sturgis were turning black and the rains started to fall. We rode back to the hotel parked the bikes under the awning and protected them in the event the hail should fall. Because Sturgis is the home to the largest motorcycle rally in the world the town is very friendly and accommodating to motorcyclist. We met up with Robert and Brian for dinner and talked bikes, politics and family. We enjoyed our stay in Sturgis and the Black Hills and tomorrow I am looking forward to visiting my aunt and cousins as we trek to the Ernst farm. Total miles rode today 153, total miles ridden 3814.

Psalm 19:1 The heavens declare the glory of God, the skies proclaim the work of His hands.

Day 14: Monday June 11, 2012

Once again we woke to sunny skies! We can sure get used to this!! Temperature was 59 degrees in Casper when we headed out at 8:30am. We took off north bound on interstate 25 to highway 259, to 387 and highway 450. As we were traveling on the two lane highways we passed open prairie with antelope. Again the landscape of Wyoming isn't very exciting but peaceful. The ride was relaxing and the sunshine felt so good! Dave and I took pictures along the way stopping often. We lunched in Newcastle Wyoming at a little mom and pop. While we were eating a siren went off and we were told a prisoner must have escaped from the local prison. We were advised when leaving the restaurant to not pick up anyone hitch-hiking if wearing an orange jumpsuit! After walking out of the restaurant we noticed a Ford Model A pull up in front of the restaurant. Knowing my other friend Dave was a Model A club president I asked the owner if I could take a picture of his car. He obliged and said he was from Auburn CA and knew Dave, again what a small world! We left Newcastle on highway 85 and shortly arrived in South Dakota. We rode through the Black Hills to Sturgis where we checked into a hotel. Knowing the history of motorcycles in Sturgis we wanted to explore the area. We went to the notorious or infamous bar known as Full Throttle Saloon (FTS) also featured in one of those reality TV shows. The bar is a major venue during the Sturgis motorcycle rally where 500,000 motorcycles descend upon this little town of 6,000. My friends at CABC will be amazed at this location and the nightmare it must be to police during the rally! The place also has a free roaming donkey strolling throughout the venue (which also has a restaurant). Not sure if South Dakota has a health department inspection??? We had dinner at Side Hack Saloon which the bartender at FTS recommended for the best pizza in town. When we finished eating the very good pizza, we checked out the town and I bought an official Honda GoldWing 2012 Sturgis Rally t-shirt. When we got back to the hotel we started talking to a couple of guys (Robert and Brian) who had a GoldWing and Victory. They were from Chicago and GreenBay. We talked motorcycles and suggested rides around "The Hills" for a good hour or more and hope to connect for dinner tomorrow. We rode 263 miles today with a total of 3,661 so far!

Psalm 25:21 May integrity and uprightness protect me, because my hope, Lord, is in you.

Day 13: Sunday June 10, 2012

Guess what? We woke up to sunny skies! No rain! We were stoked as we left Ogden for Casper Wyoming. What we didn't expect was how cold it was! As we left town and headed out on Interstate 84 we merged onto Interstate 80. When we got into the mountains the temperatures dropped to 43 degrees. We didn't dress for the cold but we figured the sun would heat things up. We were wrong, but we kept riding until we arrived at the welcome to Wyoming sign. We then put on warmer clothes and continued on. We crossed the Continental Divide on our way to Rawlins Wyoming for lunch. The landscape of Wyoming is very desert like even at the 7000 foot level. Not too much to photograph. After we left Rawlins we headed north on highway 287 and later merged onto highway 220 toward Casper. After about 10 minutes on the 287 we were hit with a cross wind that was incredible! I thought the winds on Saturday were strong! These felt hurricane strong! Our bikes were at a constant lean and the wind incessantly hit our helmets as if we were being head slapped! The physical workout of keeping the bikes on the road and the beating of the wind on our helmets was almost comical as Dave was laughing at me seeing me ride sideways and I was doing the same seeing him in my rear view mirror. Then when the 18 wheelers passed in the other direction we would get caught up in a wind pocket that would straighten is up and then throw us back into the lean. We stopped after about 30 minutes of the physical beating to take a picture and we didn't get off the bikes for fear they would blow over. We arrived in Casper to 71 degrees, a bit wind blown but safe and ready for some rest. We rode 416 miles today for a grand total of 3398 miles.

Psalm 78:26 He let loose the east winds from the heavens and by his power made the south wind blow.

Day 12: Saturday June 9, 2012

Due to the threat of snow in Yellowstone we had to reevaluate our course. So Dave and I decided to drive south into Utah and let the storms move through. So we got up this morning packed, ate a hearty breakfast that Joe prepared for us and we were on the road by 9:00am. It was a cool 43 degrees and windy. We took off east bound on interstate 84 toward Ogden, Utah. Approximately 20 minutes into our ride we were in rain...again and something new-strong side winds. We kept an eye to the west where the wind was driving the storm. The skies were dark and you could see that heavy rains were falling to the west. We felt like "storm chasers" except we were running away from the storm instead of into it. We needed to get gas so we made a quick stop for fuel and continued riding to avoid the torrential downpours that were no doubt in those clouds. The scene was so ominous. When the 84 turned south the rains slowed down a bit but the winds were incredibly strong! Fighting the winds while riding at a 30 degree angle was exhilarating and exhausting! We finally made it to Utah and stopped for a picture. We were so cold and the winds were just cutting thru our gear. We quickly took the pictures and finally stopped for lunch in Snowville the only place along the highway. Southern Idaho and northern Utah is desolate so Snowville was it! We ate at a funky mom and pop diner that had seen better days! But we needed food and some place to thaw out. After leaving we had to make a stop at a restroom once we arrived in Ogden! We checked into our hotel and then left to find a state owned liquor store so we could get something to heat us up from the inside. We settled on a bottle of wine. We got back to the hotel went down to the spa and soaked in the hot tub and enjoyed some good California Zin. Total miles rode today 361 total for the trip 2982.

Genisis 28:15 I am with you and will watch over you wherever you go...

Day 11: Friday June 8, 2012

Today was a day of rest. We decided to hang with Joe and let the storms move west. Joe being the gracious host took us on a tour of the Boise National Forest with many stops along the white water of the Payette River. There is a major white water kayak competition happening tomorrow and we were watching as the race committee were setting up the course on the river. The drive in Joe's convertible Sebring thru the mountains afforded great views of the countryside and Dave and I didn't have to do any of the driving! In fact Joe's quick reaction avoided a collision with a deer who later posed for a picture. After we got off the mountain Joe took us to a winery for some tasting, even though Joe does not drink but knows Dave and I like the fruit of the vine. The cost was $5.00 to taste five wines. After the first sample, Chardonnay, I told the gal pouring it wasn't good she tasted it and agreed with me. She opened another bottle and the same thing. We moved on to a Merlot and it too was nasty! She agreed also. We worked our way through the flight and the only thing that was somewhat palatable was the Meritage. Since the wines were not good we were not charged the tasting fee! We moved on and had dinner at Louie's Italian restaurant and ordered a California Cab. The food and wine were both great! Thank you Joe for your hospitality, it was a joy meeting you! Total miles ridden today zero, total for the trip 2621.

Job 31:32 but no stranger had to spend the night in the street, for my door was always open to the traveler.

Day 10: Thursday June 7, 2012

After a restless night in the KOA cabin (poor mattress and a major freight train route about 100 yards from us) we woke early for the 400+ mile ride ahead of us. Much to our surprise and joy the sun was shining although it was 41 degrees cool. We were going to Caldwell ID to visit Dave's buddy from the San Diego Sheriff's Department. Caldwell is 25 miles west of Boise. After about an hour into our ride the skies began to darken and once again we were riding in the rain. We geared up and rode into the storm. The temperature hovered around 46 degrees as we climbed into the mountains. We took the fastest route to Caldwell which took us back into Washington and Oregon on interstate 84. Hence the reason we were riding "into the storm". Once we reached Idaho the rains stopped and we had dry weather into Joe's place. Thank you Joe for your hospitality! No pictures taken today as it was a boring ride along the 84 and it was stinkin' raining too hard! Total miles ridden today 432 total for the journey 2621.

Genesis 7:12 And rain fell on the earth forty days and forty nights.

Day 9: Wednesday June 6, 2012

Well because of the constant rain and the fact we are traveling in the same direction the storm is moving we decided to stay another day in the area. So after touring downtown Coeur d Alene and walking around the resort and the "worlds largest floating boardwalk" in the cold blustery rain we had lunch at Hudson Burgers a local favorite since 1907, the burgers were just ok. The floating boardwalk was basically the slips for all the boats on the lake. The picture of the boats depict copper roofs which I thought was cool. The other pictures are inside the hotel resort. We checked out of our hotel (not the resort) and rode back to Spokane Valley to stay in a KOA cabin. We hung out in the cabin praying for clear weather. Around 5:00pm things cleared up so we went to dinner and came back and sat on the porch with a cup of Honey Jack and visited with the other campers. About 9:30 we called it a day as we want to get an early start for the 400+ mile ride to the Boise area tomorrow. Total miles rode today 30 total for the trip 2189.

Leviticus 26: 4. I will send you rain in its season, and the ground will yield it's crops and the trees their fruit.