Totals and awards

So this is a little late, but here's my version of a trip wrap up.

Totals:

Number of days: 35

Miles on Cece: 746
Miles by tow truck: 107
Miles by UHaul: 128
Miles on Envy: 6664
Total miles by bike: 7410
Total mile: 7645
Sets of motorcycle tires: 4 (1 on Cece, 3 on Envy)
Number of oil changes: 2 (Brooklyn, and Bartlesville, OK)
Number of motorcycle batteries: 3 (1 in Cece, 2 in Envy)
Number of bike drops: 3 (VA gas station, Waterfall in TN, Cinnamon Pass in CO)

Number of good samaritan stops: 2 (Harley shift linkage near Denver, KTM gas near Silverton, CO)

Bottles of Scotch: 1
Bottles of Bourbon: 2

Number of states: 21 (not counting clipping Texas)
Number of hotels: 15
Number of campgrounds: 7
Number of friend's homes: 3

Broadway shows: 2 (Kinky Boots, The Book of Mormon)
Movies in a theater: 2 (Much Ado About Nothing, The Lone Ranger)

Days until next trip: ???

Awards:

Best scenery: Colorado. Runner up: Arizona
Most water crossings: Tennessee
Most frustrating roads: Arkansas (gravel)
Most challenging roads: Colorado
Most fun dirt roads: Colorado
Most fun paved roads: Tie; Colorado and Arizona
Most boring unimproved roads: Oklahoma
Biggest armpit of a town: Pueblo, CO
Place I most wanted to get out of: Tuba City, AZ
Worst drivers: Pennsylvania
Worst traffic: NYC
Best looking girls, state: Indiana
Best looking girls, city: Tie; NYC and Nashville, TN
Best hotel chain: Best Western
Best hotel room: Best Western Kokopelli executive suite, Clayton, NM
Place I most want to go back to: Tie; Ouray, CO and Sedona, AZ

That was a thing

I got home yesterday afternoon. Time to clean up and get ready for work tomorrow. I'll probably have a better wrap up post later today.

A non-optional stop

Got to get a date shake.

One can of tuna

When I was packing for the trip, I tossed a couple of cans of tuna in the trunk. I never opened them. This morning I found a good use for one of them.

More rain

The one place I didn't expect rain is Blythe.

34

Thirty four. That's how many days ago I left California. Today I've returned.
I left Tuba City quickly. It was a handy stop at a rainy, windy moment. But, I really didn't want to spend more time there than I needed to. The restaurant next to the hotel was probably the worst place I've eaten during this entire trip. That included McDonalds, Denny's, and the Waffle House.
Flagstaff came and went relatively quickly and I headed to Sedona. Who knew that there were gorgeous mountains like that hidden in the desert that is Arizona. The only problem is that it was over run by tourists. I didn't stop there but the guy I offered gas to yesterday said that there are some amazing trails around Sedona. Sounds like a possible reason to return. I then made my way to Cottonwood to pick up a quart of oil. I'm fairly sure the next motorcycle shop I'll pass by is in San Diego county. I don't really need to be caring another quart. Better safe than sorry though. Then, off to Jerome, which I've wanted to visit for a while. It was just a drive through, but it was everything I expected. Prescott was the next waypoint.
After Prescott I stopped by the side of the road to take a quick break. While I was sitting there drinking my water, a guy rides up on a bicycle. He's been riding for eight weeks from Virginia and is heading for San Diego. Now that's a trip. While we were talking a guy pulls up in a Jaguar. He transports cars and is driving this one to Newport Beach. Three people, three different modes of transport, heading for about the same place. Interesting, random, meeting.
The roads from Flagstaff to outside of Prescott were fun. Sections of very tight twisty mountian roads that made me wish I had the Monster with me instead of Envy. There's something about a heavily loaded KLR with knobby tires that isn't as fun on mountain roads as a Ducati. Once I dropped out of the hills south of Prescott the roads got decidedly boring. And hot. So, I continued on the 89 then the 60 toward Blythe. By the time I got on the last twenty miles of the I10, the wind started picking up. It stayed manageable at 65 until I crossed the border.
Once in Blythe, I made straight for the local Best Western. Best Western has been consistently the best hotels I've stayed in. Once i was checked in, I unloaded Envy, took off the riding gear, and headed for the hot tub. After a quick soak, I showered and walked across the street for diner and a surprise. The "coffee shop" I went to also has a full restaurant and bar in the back. This place is right out of the 60s. Red leather booths, stone walls, brown/tan stained glass. I felt like I was in a old Tom Waits song. The surprise was I got a fairly passable Manhattan there. Other than New York I've been lucky to get a beer. Who would have figured I would get a decent cocktail in Blythe?
The heat sapped me. I'm going to try to wake up early and take the long way to Palm Desert, through Mecca, tomorrow.

Wow. Sedona.

Not bad for being in the middle of a desert.

The trip that keeps on giving

I woke up early(-ish) this morning looking forward to the ride out of town and towards Flagstaff. I showered and walked down the street to breakfast then loaded up Envy and started the GoPro. Unfortunately the housing fogged up near the end, so the time lapse won't look very good. But, here's a sample.
I got to Silverton and filled up the gas tank and put the tires back to road pressure. While I was there I talked to a guy pulling a Suzuki dirt bike behind his car. He's been travelling around the country for the past few months. He doesn't have a goal but to do as many motorcross races as he can. When I was done, I wished him luck and pulled on the highway. More gorgeous roads as I headed to Durango.
Along the way I saw a KTM on the opposite side of the road and it's rider had all of his gear off. I decided to turn around to see if he needed help. He had run out of gas and had been waiting for a while for AAA to show up. I offered him the spare gas I've been carrying and he was floored that I had extra gas. As he was about to open the first bottle AAA showed up. He filled up and we talked about his bike and the trails I did the day before. Those KTM enduro bikes are damn nice. We then continued on our ways.
At the very end of Durango I noticed a liquor stored and decided to top off the Nalgene as it was running low. I felt a little sketchy pouring a bottle of Bourbon into a plastic bottle in plain view of traffic on the main street in town. You gotta do what you gotta do.
Then everything got boring. Outside of Durango the scenery gradually changes to wide open desert. Once in Arizona the roads become long straightaways. And the climate changes. I was chilly leaving Ouray. This morning was the first time in a long time that I had to pull out my sweatshirt. In Arizona the jacket got unzipped and things were getting hot.
I stopped at a reservation gas station to top off and get a Gatorade. When I got back to Envy there was a big BMW K bike parked next to her. I chatted with the owner a bit and he said he was heading for Tuba City which is on the way to Flagstaff. I pulled out, bracing for more long, hot, and straight roads. As I started getting close to Tuba City I got a wonderful light show. There was a big storm going, with more lightning than I've seen this entire trip, to my right. It seemed to be moving away from me and I continued on. Then, out of nowhere, about 10 miles from Tuba City, the wind started. Wind so strong the tumbleweeds were blurs as they shot across the road. First I slow down to 55. I'm still getting tossed around. So, down to 45. Still getting tossed around. And now the rain starts. I wind up crawling along in second gear and have to pull off whenever I see lights in the mirror. Finally I reach town and head for the Quality Inn that I saw billboards for. This was no weather to be picky about hotels in. As I rode through town I crossed the deepest water yet. I also got drenched by an ambulance going through the same deep water. I make it to the hotel and thankfully they have a room. I park and quickly unload Envy. By the time I took a shower and went for dinner the rain and wind had stopped. Maybe I should have pressed on to Flagstaff. One thing is for sure, there are no boring days on this trip.
Side Note 1: The stupid liquor laws continue. Tuba City is in a dry reservation.
Side Note 2: Yesterday's trails left me with some souvenirs. My left elbow doesn't seem to work right. My right wrist is very sore. My back has been hurting all day. And I seem to be walking with a limp now.

Update: My hotel room just got lit up by lightning. Looks like more rain is coming.

2013 Toyota FJ Summit

I was wondering why there were so many FJs when I rolled into Ouray yesterday. Turns out they're having a big rally this week. Supposedly the local hardware store sold out of tow straps the first day.

Out with a bang

Today was my last day on the TAT, for now. I was out of the motel early and hit a local steak joint for breakfast. Then it was off for the ~20 mile ride to the trail. The GPS route was a little off and it told me to turn into a private ranch. I saw people getting into a truck, so I rode it and talked to the guy. He said that everything (including Google) has the wrong road and directed me to the right entrance to the trail. When I got there I found two guys on BMW GS' that were riding to Lake City. I took off before them but they soon caught up and passed me.
Today was some of the best, most fun, roads yet. The first part was a meandering road that hugged a river to one side. It was cold today, like yesterday. I had to stop and zip up my vents to avoid shivering.

Eventually I came to the really fun stuff. Cinnamon Pass, Engineers Pass, and some road I don't know the name of. These were, by far, the roughest roads I've riden so far. Everything I've done on the trail so far has been building up to this. Steep climbs. Rocky roads. Water crossings. Everything. The up hill parts weren't a problem. Envy has enough torque to pull me and all my gear up some insane hills. The Shinkos I got in Oklahoma provided enough grip for all of Envy's grunt. Things were going great and I was flying over the road (well as fast as first gear anyway). Jeeps were pulling to the side to let me pass.  Things were going great. I stopped after a few miles at a rest area and one of the Jeeps I passed pulled in. Turns out it was a women's poker group from Texas out for a little offroading. One of them recommended I take a five minute detour to check out the basin in the valley. So totally worth it.

I took some group pictures for them and chatted with a guy who liked stopping in the middle of the road a bit. Then I was off for more. And more there was. I hadn't even hit Cinnamon yet. The road kept being rough and it kept going up. And the rocks. Oh my, the rocks. I'm very glad I got the Happy Trails skid plate. It now has a very large dent in it. The rock that put the dent there would have definitely cracked the cases.
And more up. Very steeply up. I was getting worried because what goes up, must come down. But the roads kept going up, and up, and up. For a while there was a white Jeep for an offroad tour company that I kept swapping places with. At one point I had to stop for a break and they checked to make sure I was OK. I thanked them and passed them again a while later.
And then I started down hill. Just as steep, if not more so, than going up. Envy is so heavily loaded that engine breaking in first isn't enough to slow her down. Engine breaking and rear brake isn't enough. No choice but to go to the front break. Everything was going OK for a while. I kept the front brake for straights where I didn't have to worry about the front wheel washing out. But then came the switchbacks. These are insanely tight 180 degree turns on the side of the hill. Invariably they are also covered with loose gravel. Thankfully most have a runoff area. My usual MO  was to ease down the hill and use the runoff to turn around and take the next one.
Unfortunately I miscalculated on one and down Envy goes. Now, I've had to pick her up a couple of times. The first time I had someone to help me at the gas station. The second time was the water crossing in Tennessee which although slick was level. This time Envy was on a slope with her top lower than her bottom. I tried to pick her up and she wasn't budging. I tried again with the same result. I waited a bit thinking maybe someone will come by and help. Then I realize, where she was laying, she would get run over first. I got everything off her that I could and gave it another try. It felt like forever, but was probably only a coulpe of minutes until I got her upright and to the runoff. Then, as I was catching my breath, the white tour Jeep comes rolling by and asks if everything is OK. I tell them that the bike and I are fine and they move on. Eventually I gather the courage to continue creeping down the hill.
Of course no sooner do I start moving than the thunder and lightning started. I stop and look behind me and see some horrible storm clouds. No rush. If it started raining while I was going down the hill I'd be screwed. I tried not to hurry for fear of dropping Envy again. Slowly I crept on. I was caught by a guy on a Yamaha that asked if I was alright. I was OK and just easing her down the mountain and he took off. A short while later I was at the 550 highway. I stopped at the staging area to fix the mirror that came loose and check my GPS. Ouray was a few miles away and is GFL on the GPS (Gas, Food, Lodging). It took me a fraction on a second to decide to head to Ouray and get a hotel. The ride into town was amazing. I think I'm leaving town the same way and will have to time-lapse it tomorrow. After the first hotel I tried was full, I landed in the Antlers Motel and limped down to the Ouray Brewery for dinner. Best beer I've had on the trip by far.
So, that's it. I've done all of the Trans America Trail that I'll be doing (for now). I had considered getting on highways today to start heading home. That would have been the biggest mistake ever. The scenery today was the most beautiful. The roads were the most fun. I was faced with the biggest challenges. And I am, so undoubtably, the most sore I've been on this trip.  The TAT has been amazing. Someday I have to do Utah to Oregon. Definitely with a lighter load on the bike.
For tomorrow, I think I'll head to Flagstaff, then Jerome, then Prescott. Or something else. We'll see.
BTW, I have pictures to go with this post but the motel's WiFi sucks and I have crappy cell reception. So they'll be uploaded later. I'll post when I add the pictures.

Rocky mountain hi... Oh shit!

The ride out of Pueblo this morning took longer than I thought it would. I got to the point where I was going to jump on the trail and there was a convenient gas station where I filled up. There was also a '78 R100RS parked out front and I chatted with it's own, Mickey, for a bit. What a great ride to start out the day. Great roads with a nice hill climb that gave a great view of the valley below.

The great roads carried on until I was dropped into Salida on it's old main street. I found a nice little place called the Son Rise Diner for lunch. It was getting kind of late so I was considering taking the highway to Gunnison. I decided to carry on with the trail and I was glad I did. It took me right in to San Isabel national forest. Wonderful. I got a bit lost but I got to see some more cool stuff before climbing up the roughest road I've riden yet.
Now, everyone who's gotten lazy about reading you maps the night before the ride, raise you hand. Just me? I knew there was a bypass for heavier dual sport bikes in Colorado. I also haven't looked at my maps for the last few days because the GPS waypoints work so well. Today was the day for the bypass. There was no way of getting over the sea of rock waiting for me.

I tried for about 10 feet. This was not going to work. And, I didn't have enough time for the proper TAT bypass. So, highways back to Salida then on to Gunnison. The ride through the mountains was fun. Even fully loaded with knobbies, Envy took the curves well. But it was freezing cold. I almost switch to my rain gloves to get feeling back in my fingers. I was hoping to camp tonight but rolling in to town at 8:30 and the dark clouds over Gunnison changed my mind quickly.
While looking for a hotel I met a guy that's riden almost all of the TAT and chatted a bit. He recommended doing Utah some other time with a lighter loaded bike. According to him most of Utah is very technical. It's not really a concern since tomorrow is going to be my last day on the trail. I'll ride it for a while, then I'm going to hit highways down towards Flagstaff and start heading for home.
Also, I'm staying at the Seasons Inn. When was the last time you stayed in a hotel room with a proper key instead of a card?

Who wants to go to dirt bike school?

When I started this trip I had never really riden a motorcycle off road. I had been around dirt bikes and their riders enough to know the basics. But, one thing I've learned is that I have a lot to learn. Another thing I've learned is that I want to do this kind of thing again. So, I started looking for ways to improve my off road riding. There's a school near Anza that does off road, motocross, and even trials classes. Anyone else interested in going there?

Today was kind of wierd

As soon as I woke up this morning I went out to check on Envy. It had rained all night and most of the hard earned dirt and mud was washed off of her. That and it looked like the skies were about to open up again. Not looking forward to riding in the rain, I kind of dragged my feet and didn't get on the road until about 10:30. Thankfully the sky turned blue while I waited.
I finally got packed up and got going. Considering it rained all night I plotted a course to Trinidad on highways. Somehow the course I plotted in Garmin Basecamp was totally different once I loaded it on my GPS. It took me right up along the Oklahoma border then west along the Colorado border. Along the way I saw a bunch of antelope and deer. I had a waypoint for Long Canyon road which is where I would cross the trail. Before I even got there the road, which I thought was a highway, turned to dirt. When I got to Long Canyon I'd been shown that there weren't any mud concerns so I got on the TAT. And oh what a ride. First were some long sweeping roads then there was a fork. It looks like a friendly local noticed a bunch of lost motorcyclists and put up a "biker route" arrow showing the way. That way went up what's best described as a goat trail up the side of a hill. But the view was worth it.


If you zoom in on the picture the trail I rode in on is in the left valley. The bit of road at the far left is the trail up the hill.
Unfortunately when I got to the top things started getting boring. Long straight stretches of high speed roads. I cruised at 40 to 45mph the whole way in to Trinidad. The most interesting things were the pissed off cows that didn't like a motorcycle riding through their turf. After I grabbed lunch at the Trinidad Diner (not very good) I got on the trail again. And guess what? More long straight roads that took me way out in the boonies.


This is where riding the trail alone gets a little concerning. I was riding roads that maybe see two vehicles on a heavy traffic day. That and hiking out would take a long time. If I break down out here, I'm toast.
The trail took me right up to the I25 that runs to Pueblo. I had used my last 20 on lunch and the waitress said there's a BofA in Pueblo. So, on to the interstate. The I25 is the fastest interstate I've been on. The speed limit is 75, including trucks. Not fun as I was grinding away at 65-70. That's when I jumped onto the frontage road I posted earlier. That didn't last long though as it soon turned away from the interstate and into dirt. Not just dirt, but dirt covered with dirt clods. There be cows here. And I found them. Particularly a very large cow that decided to nap in the road. Not being one to disturb a nap I slowed way down and was going to go through the grass around it. Bad idea. Turns out that the ground under the grass hadn't dried out from the rain and was deep slick mud. I think the cows were laughing as I worked to get Envy unstuck from the muck. And it got worse from there. Mud hole after mud hole. One took a lot of effort to get through and left a lot of mud on Envy and a eight inch deep rut. Then I was finally back on the 25 on the way to Pueblo.
Pulling in to Pueblo the only thing I knew about the city was that it's where all the TV commercials mentioned when I was a kid. Turns out it's a total armpit. Granted I've seen a very small bit of it. But what I've seen doesn't make me want to see more.

Found the mud

You can have the interstate

I've got this road all to myself.

Bonus New Mexico post

So I check in to the local Best Western then head over to the only restaurant open on Sunday, the Eklund Hotel (did I choose the wrong one). While I'm enjoying the first decent beer I've had in a while and munching on a pork chop this guy walks in with a guitar and starts playing. He explains that he's been hitchhiking from his home in Kentucky for the past three weeks. I chatted briefly with him as I tossed some money in his case. All he has is a thirty pound pack and his guitar. I may have over packed a bit. His plans are to work on a farm in Taos for a while then start traveling. Where, he doesn't know. And I thought what I'm doing is hard.

I'm so done with Oklahoma

I woke up this morning to some serious wind. Not only that, but the only breakfast place around was a McDonalds. So, I ate an apple and drank some coffee from the hotel's "continental" breakfast and hit the road. As soon as I hit the trail I was disappointed. It seemed the rest of Oklahoma would be straight farm roads. That the the freaking insane wind didn't make for fun. To top it off I kept getting sprinkled on. The last thing I wanted was to be stuck in some muddy Oklahoma farm road. So, I found my way to the highway and stuck to it the rest of the day.
Did I mention the wind was insane? Up until Hooker (yes, really) I could barely do 50. At least I missed the rain. I seemed to be on the edge of storms all day. Getting a sprinkle here and there.
Before I actually got on the trail I saw the first bike set up for adventure touring other than my own. It was a F800GS riden by an older guy from Louisiana. He definitely wasn't adventure touring. Just taking highways to Oregon. He told me about a crazy storm he got stuck in in Tulsa. He seemed like a nice enough guy, but his was interesting. He seemed to have the entire Touratech catalog on his bike along with a shiny new Schuberth helmet and Klim gear. All very good stuff. But, no GPS?
At about 11:30 I was feeling the lack of breakfast. Luckily I passed through Gate, OK and spotted Laurie's Cafe. This is one of those gems of road food. There were about four big communal tables and I sat at one near the door because I definitely smell bad. The roast beef special was amazing. One of the other customers came over and asked what I was doing. Laurie then asked me to sign her guest book. Her husband was planning on doing the TAT before he passed away a couple of years ago. So, she loves seeing TAT riders stop in.
The rest of the day was a straight shot through the pan handle of Oklahoma. I couldn't wait to be done with that state. According to my GPS I clipped Texas on the way to New Mexico. Right as I entered New Mexico I got rained on a bit. It was almost like the state was saying "Oklahoma sucks. Here's a spritz to cool you off a bit." As I approached Clayton, NM I was not happy with what I saw.

And I was heading right towards it. Thankfully I rolled into town right after the rain. I did get a couple of water crossings in today after all as the gutters were overflowing.

Ooooooooklahoma

Lord, today was a long day. After grabbing breakfast in downtown Bartlesville at Meeme's Cafe (diner?) I went and got new tires and an oil change. Then I was off to the trail. The trail was mostly great today. After some of the roads I'd been going over the previous day it suddenly seemed like Oklahoma ran out of trees.

The new Shiko tires also worked very well. At first I thought they were less grippy in the dirt than the Dunlops I'd been running. Then I realized I was going a good five to ten faster. Wonderful. Then came the sand. Without any warning the great roads turned into sand and I near lost it. By sand I mean talcum powder mixed with pea gravel. And it was plenty deep. This was almost as bad as the gravel earlier. Also along the way the Laminar Lip decided to fly off the windscreen and I had to turn around to get it.
Eventually I dropped into an area that was peppered with little creeks. Which meant more water crossings. One was a little sketchy with a somewhat slick bottom. But it was fairly narrow and no drama ensued. The one that took some work was nothing but mud. I took a bit of time and lined it with rocks to give me some traction. It worked out well and I scooted across. And then more sand.
The trail put me on highway 11 to get over Kaw Lake. I decided to ride to Blackwell and see what I felt like. Well, I felt like riding on to Woodward. Overall about a three hour ride. All told I rode for about 9 hours today. And it hurt. Especially highway 60 going through the plains with strong winds. I stopped at Glossy Hills for a break. I could only imagine what people on the highway though when they saw me walking around with my over-pants around my ankles. Did I mention it was hot. Someone told me it hit 105. It felt much hotter than that. Also along the way the Lamina Lip flew off again. This time while heading south on I35. No turning back for it this time.
I have to be honest. Every day I've been on the trail had ended with me wanting to quit and just take the interstates home. So far I haven't given in. But it's only going to get hotter, maybe. Supposedly it's going to cool down tomorrow. It also is supposed to rain tonight and tomorrow morning. So, as usual, we'll see what happens in the morning.

New tires, new oil

I was going to stop at Bartlesville Cycle Sports for a bottle of oil but stumbled across No Limit Powersports instead. Good thing too. They stock Shinkos for the KLR. So Envy's getting a new set of tires and an oil change too. The stock Dunlops I got in Brooklyn weren't lasting too well and I was worrying how long would take me. No problem now. Unfortunately its taking a couple of hours away from riding.

Some beer is better than no beer

We have some absolutely screwy liquor laws in these United States. In Arkansas I couldn't get a beer to save my life. Now in Oklahoma I can get beer, but it's low alcohol. Something like 3.5%. Oh well. The next couple of days should be interesting. I'm entering a big section with no major cities and interstates are few and far between. I'm in the Bartlesville Econolodge tonight. There's a motorcycle shop just up the street, so I'm going to hit them up for an extra quart of oil even though I have a full bottle. I have no idea when I'll be near a bike shop again.
As for the trail. The back roads of Oklahoma aren't as well taken care of as they were in Arkansas. This is good and bad. In the beginning of Arkansas the gravel was really thick and tough to get through on a bike. In Oklahoma there isn't thick gravel, but there are rain ruts filled with natural rock and lots of pot holes. These are by far the roughest roads so far. But I'll take them over fresh gravel any day.
There were a few interesting technical bits. Yesterday I had to ascend a wall of rock. Today I had to descend a wall of rock. Plus it had a bend to it. It wasn't nearly as bad going down as it was going up. Also, there were a few nice water crossings. The only one that nearly caught me was a shallow gravel crossing. Unfortunately the gravel was on top of a soft mud bottom. It seemed strong enough when I walked it. Not so much. Shortly after riding into it the back wheel started sinking in. I had to get off Envy and push/guide her across while gently working the clutch.
Also, the people in Oklahoma don't seem as friendly as in previous states. I was sitting outside of a gas station, drinking a Gatorade, next to a woman that worked there. She couldn't even be bothered to return a hello. I guess I'm out of the friendly (if racist) south.

Officially done with Arkansas

Lets see what Oklahoma has in store for me.

These are the roads I'm looking for

The rain last night didn't do any damage to the trail. In fact, it seems to have washed away the gravel that was kicking my butt for the last couple of days. Instead I had long stretches of great dirt roads. And, as an extra bonus, the trail went up into the hills so it was a bit cooler too. 

There was nothing noteworthy in the morning other than helping a baby tortoise off the road. I passed through an old town at about 1:00 and stopped for lunch at the market/deli for lunch. 

The only technical bit today was a nice steep hill of fist sized rocks and plenty of ruts. Getting up it did a good number on my shoulder. At least Envy stayed upright during the ascent.

More good roads followed. At about 4:30 I decided that I didn't have enough gas to make it through the next section. So, I dropped down to I40 and headed to Alma. I'm disappointed with the Comfort Inn I'm staying at. The Savannah Motel was nicer. And, the WiFi here sucks.

The thing I really need to decide is how much of the trail I'm going to do. I have a bit more than a week left and there's no way I'm going to be able to do the whole trail. Do I skip a big chunk tomorrow to try to make time? Do I keep riding the trail and doing an hour or two of interstates in the afternoon? I'm not really sure.

OMG Gravel

After a very noisy night of camping at Storm Creek (I had to wear ear plugs all night because of the bugs) I hit the road to Helena Arkansas. I was looking for somewhere to grab breakfast, preferably with a restroom where I could clean up a bit. No showers at Storm Creek. There's not a whole lot of choice around those parts so I stopped at McDonalds. As I was dehelmeting a guy came up and asked my where I was going. I told him about the TAT and he mentioned he ran into a few guys a couple of days ago doing the same thing. A bit more chatting and I headed in.
As I was drinking my coffee an older local started chatting with me. I told him about the trail but he seemed more interested in telling me about all the famous people from the area. Turns out Conway Twitty grew up in Turkey Scratch right up the road (I rode through later in the day). I asked him about the best way to get to a road which was on the trail. He told me the fastest way but then told me there were too many blacks that way and I should go down the road further. That was my first, and hopefully last, experience with southern racism. I excused myself and started gearing up again. As I was about to put my helmet on friendly local number three starts chatting with me. He mentioned his son had heard of the trail and was planning on doing it. The TAT seems fairly well known around here which is kind of cool.
Out of spite for the racist guy I rode through the area with "too many blacks" and was back on the trail. The gravel roads seem particularly bad around here. It seems like many were freshly graveled so there's no good path through it. All you can do is chug along and hold on. Near the end of one of the gravel roads I saw a hand painted sign for the trans america trail. I of course stopped to see what it was about. A local family had noticed all the bikes going by and asked some riders what it was about. They've totally embraced it. The son fixed up the old building next to the trail and it's now kind of a museum. Dad hands out there in the mornings welcoming riders and offering them water and a place to rest for a bit. They also have a log book for riders to sign. One of the other locals checks up on ADVRider to see everyone's progress. All very cool.
After some more brutal gravel I stopped at Bendi's Diner for lunch and to fill up the tank. I skipped a bit of trail to let lunch settle and then I was back to it. The only water crossings today were flooding from farm fields. On the gravel roads it wasn't too bad.
By about 4:30 I was done and decided to take highways to Beebe and find a hotel. After two days of heat in the 90s I was really looking forward to a shower. The first hotel was full, so I went across the road to the cheaper Budget Inn. After a quick shower I walked next door to the Exxon for water and saw that it was a really good idea to hotel it tonight. There's currently a massive storm blowing through with thunder and lighting like I've never experienced. If it's not raining, I'll check out the trail and see what the rain did to the roads. I may have to spend a day or two on highways while things dry out.

Update: Just as I hit "publish" for this post my phone gave me my third severe thunderstorm warning of the trip. The first two were in Pennsylvania.

Update 2: The rain let up a bit so I walked back to the Exxon to buy a beer. It turns out Beebe is in a dry county. Thank goodness for the sacred Nalgene bottle.

Definitely not paleo

But, damn, I'm hungry.

Made it to Arkansas already

The day started out pretty good. I grabbed breakfast at Huddle House. I've seen them all over the place, but this is the first time I tried it. Not the best food. But cheap and I couldn't be picky.
My first stop was the Lowes I saw driving into town. I somehow lost a bolt on my crash bars. After the water crossing yesterday I wanted all of the crash protection I could get. Then onto the trail.
Today was fairly uneventful. The only water crossing was unplanned at Sulfur Spring. The river rose and washed out the road. Thankfully a local named Dustin was there with his quad checking the depth so I didn't have to. He said it was five feet where he was. No way I could make that. So I had to explore for an alternate route. It didn't take long, but the day was getting hot. Also, the easy dirt road of yesterday were replaced by thick gravel roads. I really hate gravel. It seemed all of the road were the same gravel. But, I ventured on. Eventually I crossed into Mississippi and stopped for some food.
Now, here's where I wuss out a bit. It was about 4:30 and I was beat. I was hot and worn out from all that gravel. Since I was right on the highway I checked to see how far it was to the campground at the end of the Mississippi section. Only about 2 hours. So, I did it. It probably would have taken a solid day of the trail to get where I am now. Right or wrong, its done. I'm at Storm Creek now. Still sweating my ads off in my tent.
Also, as I was on the highway I realized I never test my air pump. So I decided to stop and give it a try. Good thing too. The 3 amp fuse I had in the cigar lighter wasn't up to the challenge. Luckly I found a Auto Zone nearby and picked up some 15 amp fuses. One will go in in the morning. Then, back to the trail.

On the trail at last

Once I was done with the last blog post, I headed down the 65 to start on the Trans American Trail. There was a gas station at the exit so I fueled up Envy and myself. Since the mishap the previous day I developed a new procedure at gas stations. I stop with the pump on the right side and once I get off I never let go of her until I'm between Envy and the pump. And it payed off as Envy tried to topple over again. 

I was a bit disappointed with the TAT at first. It was just a bunch of nicely paved back roads. Very similar to the ones I rode in Maryland. Those roads did take me through some nice country though. Eventually the pavement became worse until it was indistinguishable from gravel. Along the way I passed through what I think was a Mennonite farming community. At each house was a list of items they had (beets, pickles, baked goods, etc). I was very tempted to stop in at one of them. But, late start on the trail meant I had business to get to.

Eventually I got to proper dirt roads. Once I got the feel of maneuvering a heavy Envy I got into a nice groove. It helped a lot when I dropped the tires from the 30psi I was travelling with down to 25. Things were going nicely. I saw my first (dead) armadillo. And it wouldn't be my last. I got lost and chatted with some locals about how to get back on the trail. Then I got to my first water crossing of the trip. It was really just a flooded dip in the road, but the thing I'm most worried about are water crossings. Everything went fine and I dealt with a few more without a problem.

Then I got to Waterfall. A bit of backstory; I'm navigating via waypoints on my Garmin. Each of the waypoints is named. Usually it's a road name, sometimes not. I had a bit of trouble finding the right path for Waterfall and did a big loop and eventually found it. Great. Unfortunately I came to a big washed out section of road. It was clearly shallow and in all of my great "I've done a bunch of crossings today" hubris I took to it without testing it out. Oops. About half way through I realized the bottom was incredibly slick. Then with only a couple of feet to go Envy's back end comes around and down she goes. Nothing was damaged, but it was then that I found out how heavy she really is. I unpacked everything that I could (everything but the saddle bags) and she was still a bitch to get upright. My feet sliding around didn't help either. Eventually she was upright. So, simple matter of firing her up and easing her out, right? Wrong. The carb flooded a bit when she was on her side and it took longer than I was comfortable with to get her running. But eventually she fired up and I gently eased her out. So that's why they call it Waterfall. There's water, and you fall in it. 

I started off again and it wasn't long before I got waved down by an older couple in a Deere Gator. They asked me if anyone told be the bringe was out. My heart sank. The idea of dealing with the Waterfall crossing was the exact opposite of appealing. They then explained that they owned the house next to the bridge and I was welcome to crossing the creek on their property. Yay! I asked them if they knew of a good place to camp and they offered their field. This was after explaining that I was from California, and no I didn't vote for Obama. I decided to carry on since it was only 6:30 and I had plenty of daylight left. I came up to the bridge which was definitely not crossable. And found (on foot) a place to cross on the property. This time I walked the creek first. The local snake didn't seem to like this as he made a strike at me then took off to the bank. That was the most hostile Tennessee local I've encountered so far. This crossing was much less stressful despite the steep banks and I got through without incident.

Eventually I hit the end of the trail for the day which was supposed to have a gas station. They must have it hidden nicely. And the sun was going down. Thankfully I had cell service and found Savannah was only about 15 miles away. So, a quick run down to the Savannah Motel with a detour when I thought I saw a sign for a state park. Unfortunately both of the recommended restaurants are closed so I'm making do with a beer from the gas station for dinner.

A bit on the wild life today. Deer are stupid and they all was to commit suicide. I think armadillos only exist in corpse form (I saw three dead ones today). I really hope my boots are snake proof. And, I didn't expect to see so many tortoises on the road. I rode by three or four today.

Time to review the maps for tomorrow. If all goes well I should be out of Tennessee by the end of the day.

Also, after talking with Nate last night I was really regretting not saving my route so far. So, I started saving them today. I'll see if I can figure out a way to upload them to Google Maps so everyone can see my route.

Updated: Lets see if this works for a map of the route: TAT 2013

It was going to happen eventually

The night before last I stayed at a KOA campground in Wytheville, VA. It seems to be a thing now that when I stay at a KOA the weather turns shitty and it rains all night. At least I got a bit of campfire in before the rain. Thankfully it stopped at about 8:30 in the morning and I showered, packed up and was out of there. The weather was great and I got close to a hundred miles right away. Unfortunately I had an absolutely mind splitting headache. Probably too much campfire smoke the night before. Since I was about 160 miles since my last fill up, it was time to top off. I pulled off at the next station and was a bit wobbly from 100 miles and a headache. As I was pulling my helmet off, I watched Envy topple over. The thing about Envy right now is she's very heavy and her suspension is well compressed. So, if I'm not careful to park her on flat ground or banked the right way, she will not stay upright. And, of course she fell towards the pump so there wasn't anywhere good to grab to get her up. A guy at the next pump helped me with her. After filling up I got her to the side of the station and checked the damage. It wasn't too bad; broken windscreen, shattered mirror, rotated from brake lever. Then it started raining. So, on with the rain gear. I adjusted the brake lever and taped up the windscreen to keep water away from the dash and I was off again.
The rain and headache kept up for a long time. I eventually had to pull off at a Hardee's to take a break. Unfortunately my headache was so bad at this point that I wanted to throw up. Since I generally avoid taking anything before riding I didn't want to pop any ibuprofen, but I gave in an took two as opposed to my usual three.
And the rain kept on. Before Knoxville I got stuck in traffic. Which sucks because lane splitting isn't legal in Tennessee. So, there I am sitting in bumper to bumper traffic and rain. Sucks. I eventually make it through the traffic and Knoxville. And I'm greeted by, ready, more bumper to bumper traffic. I think I drove by five or six accidents. The only ones I've seen since I left California. Once I cleared the last one I crested some hills. On the other side..... Sunshine!
I might make it to Nashville that day after all. But, my GPS said I was going to arrive around 8:30. I wanted to stop by and see Nathan and Tracy but didn't want to bother them that late. I stopped to fill up and realized I might be in mountain time. Check the phone and yup, I gained an hour. A quick call to Nathan and he graciously offered me a bed for the night.
About an hour later I was at Nate's place. Which is awesome. Nashville is definitely a cool place. His house is awesome and he took me to a nice BBQ place up the street. Back to his place and we drank from the sacred Nalgene bottle and off to bed. Then breakfast at Frothy's (sp?) and I was off to the nearest shop to see if I could get a mirror and screen. They of course didn't have them in stock, but they had a used KLR for sale that they pulled the parts off of for me. Score! A quick run down the 65 to the nearest Home Depot for some mounting tape for the Laminar Lip and now I'm at Starbucks plotting my entry onto the trail.
Let's see how that goes!

Bugs

Virginia has, by far, the oddest collection of insects I've seen so far. Giant ants, and so many types of spiders I've never seen before. I wish I got a picture of the spider I woke up next to this morning.

Also, it rained all night. I don't mind sleeping in the rain. But packing a wet tent sucks.

Firefighters have it easy

OK, not really. But I've started a few fires over the last few weeks. It never seems to get easier. I'm camping in southern Virginia tonight about 80 miles from Tennessee. I had hoped to make it out of the state today. But at about 5:00 I started feeling very worn down. Too much easy living in New York and Maryland I think. It is nice to be camping again. I don't do well with hotel beds. And, my Scotch reserves have been replenished with Bourbon. It seemed the more appropriate beverage for this point in the trip. No cigar though. Shame.

What to do near DC on Independence Day?

If you have a KLR handy, like I do, you cruise the back roads of Maryland for a few hours. Not nearly as many dirt roads as I thought there would be. Some nice gravel ones though.

Then, go watch The Lone Ranger. Not the most involved movie, but it was fun. Johnny Depp actually does a good Tanto.

Four score and seven...

Made it to Maryland. My GPS decided to route me through Gettysburg, hence the title. I did four states today, unfortunately only one is new to the list as I backtracked my route to NYC for a while. The weather was great except for the last 10 minutes when a easy rain started up. It turns out I'm sharing the hotel with preteen girls lacrosse players. Last time it was a cheerleading conference. What is it with this hotel.
First stop: Nando's for chicken and beer.

Making the best of a situation

Since I stayed an extra day in New York because of rain, Victoria recommended that we rush Book of Mormon again. We had rushed it on Sunday with no luck. But, the rush was a good show in itself. This time wasn't as entertaining except that Victoria won. It was going to be me and Titus seeing the show. But being the nice guy he is, Titus gave up his ticket to Laura, Victoria's friend.
The show was hillarious and, in my opinion a good description of church and religion.

Stuck in New York

This morning I put everything in order and set off to pick up Envy. First stop, Starbucks for coffee. While I was there the sky opened up and started dumping buckets. I headed back to the apartment to wait it out, figuring it wouldn't last long. The few rains that have happened while I was here haven't lasted very long. After a short wait I was off again. Unfortunately when I came out of the train station in Brooklyn it was dumping again. If this keeps up I'll be spending another night in the city. I can think of worse things.