Day 22 Saturday August 15, 2015

Days without an incident - 0
Days without rain gear - 8

Well, things started out alright this morning...Until we
actually got on "Historic" Route 66.  For the first few miles, it wasn't too bad.  Then, the road got so bad, it looked like it was a bombing practice site for the Air Force.  Our pace slowed to a tooth rattling 5 mph.

We finally got to an entrance ramp for Interstate 40 and quickly decided to use that route to get to Needles.  Granted, it wasn't the path we planned, but we were afraid every nut and bolt on the bikes would come undone if we stayed on it any longer.

Once in Needles, the temperatures were now about 110° and seemed to be climbing.

Here is where I really screwed up.  I thought we were on 66, but somehow, maybe it was the heat, we ended up in Vidal Junction.  Pretty much in the middle of nowhere!  And about 60 miles from our expected destination of Kingman, Arizona.  We had also planned a stop in Oatman, but now we were pretty far from there too.

When we realized I had gotten us lost, we were all nearing heat stroke as the

temperature was now around 120°.  We stopped in a little gas station, where the lady behind the counter recognized the signs.  She immediately began to fill bags of ice and placed them on our heads, necks and down our backs.  Bonnie is a Saint and has truly helped restore my faith in humanity.  I don't care what anyone says...there ARE good people out there.

We changed our plans and stayed the night in Parker, Arizona.  It was early, so we were in the pool within minutes of checking in.  It took a while, but we eventually cooled down.

Hopefully, tomorrow will be better as we head for Oatman and get back on track.

Day 21 Friday August 14, 2015

Days without an incident - 0
Days without rain gear - 7

We finished the second leg of our trip this morning by continuing down the Pacific Coast Highway to the Santa Monica Pier.  Along the way, we passed the Naval facilities in Ventura County which include the Naval Air Station at Point Mugu and the home of the Seabees.

Just a short way down the road we crossed into Los Angeles County and the 27-mile long city of Malibu.  Home to movie stars and million-dollar mansions.

It's almost easy to understand the insane price tags on

properties along this stretch of the Pacific Ocean.  The views alone are worth the money.

We got up on the Santa Monica Pier for our official start of the ride home.  From this point forward, our general direction will be east.

The pier is a lively place even at 10 o'clock in the morning.  Tourists milling about checking out the souvenir stands and local vendors.  Locals fishing while surfers and sunbathers filled the beach below.

After posing for a photo at the Route 66 sign (It should say "Beginning of the trail" on the opposite

side), we dove into the Los Angeles traffic trying to thread our way down the now poorly marked Route 66.

We stopped at Philippe's for an "Original French Dip" sandwich before continuing on our way.  Los Angeles is not tourist-friendly when it comes to roads or drivers.  On a motorcycle, you are truly taking your life in your hands.

We were able to find our way to Pasadena and Colorado Boulevard continuing eastward.  As we proceeded, the temperature continued to rise.  Our hope was to make it to Barstow.  When 66 merged with I-15 we weren't sure we would get there.  In fact, we weren't sure we would get anywhere!

Traffic was moving at the blistering pace of about 5 mph.  With the heat from the sun, combined with the heat from the traffic, the bike's engines, and the reflection off the road surface, we all started to show signs of heat exhaustion, bordering on heatstroke.

We finally found the only shade by getting off the interstate and hiding under the

Guess who doesn't seem to be bothered by the heat?

bridge that carried the road above us.  One of us, completely drained, laid against a fence as we poured water on their head and torso. While there, several people stopped to give us more water.

A short distance up the road was a service plaza...those "Golden Arches" never looked so good.  Even the clean-up girl saw the distress on our faces and began to offer assistance.

An hour or later, after we had cooled and refreshed sufficiently, we got back on the road.  The traffic lightened and it was a clear, but incredibly hot ride to our destination for the night.  At 106°, cold showers and time in the pool were immediately on the agenda.

Day 20 Thursday August 13

Days without an incident - 1
Days without rain gear - 6

What a difficult day!  Because of the failure of the latch on Juju's trunk, we were stuck in Camarillo, California for another day.

I started the day (6:00 a.m. Pacific 9:00 a.m. Eastern) by calling Jim Persin at Z & M Harley to pick his brain on a fix since the local dealer had no clue.  Unfortunately, they never ran across the problem.  I called Milwaukee and hour later (9:00 a.m. Central) and they checked with their tech staff and did have a fix, but said to have the dealer from Ventura call for instructions.  At 9:00 a.m. Pacific time, Ventura H-D was on the phone with Milwaukee and we were on our way to drop the bike.  (P.S. Margaret from Ventura Harley-Davidson Service is now the subject matter expert on failed FLRT trunk latches)

In the meantime, we were forced to spend an entire day sitting by the pool, drinking beer until they had it fixed at 1:30 p.m.  Afterward, we went to visit Ed and Nancy's friends, Mike and Kathy in Simi Valley.  Here, we were forced to have guacamole, chips, and drinks.  Next, we were subjected to ribs and tri-tips at St. Francis BBQ before returning to the hotel.

Damn these delays...oh wait!  I guess it's not so bad...never mind!

Tomorrow...we begin Route 66.

Day 19 Wednesday August 12, 2015

Days without incident - 0
Days without rain gear - 5

We got to sleep late this morning and lounged by the pool with coffee before we hit the road.

Only traveling about 30 miles to Stearn's Wharf in Santa Barbara, we rode right up on the wharf and parked the bikes.  An early lunch was in order today.

Having been there before, Juju and I took Ed and Nancy to the Santa Barbara Shellfish Company.  We sat in an outdoor booth overlooking the bay.  A cloudless sky was above as kayakers, sailboarders and boaters passed us by.  Cioppino, shrimp, clams, and crabs were consumed with great gusto.

Back on the road, we headed about an hour south to Camarillo, California.  This evening, we were treated to a home-cooked meal prepared by my cousin Vera and her husband, Marc.  Steak, potatoes, beans, and dessert.  A literal feast.  It was great visiting with them and my Godson, Brian.  On the road for more than two weeks, a visit with family is always nice.  Thank you Vera, Marc, and Brian.

Now for the incident report>>>Before heading to Vera's, Juju put her purse in the trunk of her trike.  When we arrived, the trunk would not open.  Try as we might, nothing seemed to work.  Juju, took off for the nearby Ventura Harley dealership for them to try.  No Luck!  They are going to call Harley headquarters in Milwaukee tomorrow for advice.  We also tried calling a locksmith, but they would not touch it.

Again we wait, hoping for better news in the morning.

Day 18 Tuesday, August 11, 2015

Days without incident - 3
Days without rain gear - 4

This morning we took a ride to Hearst Castle.  This was the home built by

William Randolph Hearst almost 100 years ago.  A palatial estate by any one's standards, but when you learn the history of the place and the man, you come away with a much different attitude.

Many people are more familiar with his Granddaughter, Patty, who made the news in the 1970s when she went to prison for her part in a bank robbery.

Mr. Hearst had a very strong work ethic and all of

his children and descendants to this day will get a job with the company, but they start in the mailroom and have to prove themselves.  To this day, Hearst is a big name in the media world.  Companies like Lifetime Network, ESPN, Hearst Broadcasting and the start of it all, Hearst Newspapers, just to name a few.  He was also a great conservator, leaving the property to the state of California for all to enjoy.  The rooms are opulent

and the grounds are beautiful.  The views are exquisite and were all a consideration in the design and building of every room.

Afterward, we rode a few miles to an elephant seal

viewing area.  This was fun to watch.  They are big and lumbering creatures on land, spending most of that time sunning themselves and fighting for the best spot.  In the water, they are graceful and playful.

Soon we were off, heading south on the Cabrillo Highway (U.S. 101 and California 1).

Stopping for a butt break in a little farm town called Guadalupe, we had chili dogs, chicken nuggets and fries at the King Falafel.  All while listening to classical music on the P.A. system.  Quite the combination!

Soon we were in our hotel in Santa Barbara, enjoying the pool, hot tub, and adult beverages before bed.

Damn, life is good!

Day 17 Monday August 10, 2015

We weren't quite finished with San Francisco.  This morning, Ed and Nancy

escorted us to the top of Twin Peaks.  From here, the city spread out below us as the fog rolled in off the ocean.  A magnificent sight that explained why the homes up here run in the millions of dollars.

Boots in the Pacific Ocean

From there we rode to the Beach Chalet for a dual purpose...First, we needed to put our boots in the Pacific Ocean.  This signified the completion of our Ocean to Ocean trek.  At over 4,000 miles, it has been a fun-filled and adventurous cross country trip....and we ain't done yet!

                                   

The second part of the reason for this location was to

meet Leonard.  A dear friend of Nancy's recently deceased Uncle Bob.  A true gentleman Leonard is and it was delightful having lunch with him.

Now, for the first time since this journey began, our compass heading changed.  Our general direction was no longer west.  We were now headed south, toward Los Angeles.

Along the way, we ran into a nightmare of a traffic jam on Highway 101.  According to the locals, it was normal traffic!

Before long, we were cruising through the Big Sur area.  Mountains that lead down to a rocky coastline, followed by thick forests, then back to the coastal views.  Incredible views around every turn.

Services around this area are sparse, as are available lodging opportunities.  After stopping at every Inn, cottage, motel, etc, there were no vacancies.  Going further than we anticipated, rooms became available in San Simeon.  Which was fine, since our planned activity for tomorrow was visiting Hearst Castle.

Day 16 Sunday, August 9, 2015

Days without an incident - 1
Days without rain gear - 2
Days off the bike - 1

Today was a tourist day for us in San Francisco.  We walked through the Ferry Building and visited the vendors.  Rode the trolley to Fisherman's Wharf, the Castro district and China Town.

We finally stopped in Nick's Lighthouse for dinner before returning to the hotel.  It may not sound like much, but we were touring around town for over eight hours today.  It felt good to have a day off.    Here are some photos.

Ferry Building

China Town

TransAmerica Building

   

Fisherman's Wharf

Steam Powered Bike

Lombard Street

Cigar store (I had to buy one)

Day 15 Saturday August 8, 2015

Days without an incident - 0

Days without rain gear - 1

Today was a scheduled maintenance day for all of us.  Juju had a 9:00 a.m. appointment at Carson City Harley-Davidson for her 10,000-mile service.  Ed and I were scheduled for oil changes.  Juju's service was expected to last about four hours and less than an hour each for Ed and I.

When they said Juju's bike was done at 11:00, we thought we had a bonus of a two-hour head start.  Unfortunately, they found a problem.  It turned out to be the Shifter Shaft (go ahead...say that three times real fast).  As a result of the extra work, we didn't get out of the dealer until about 4:00 p.m. and we had about 250 miles to our next destination of San Francisco.

Leaving Carson City, we began the climb to above 7,000 feet into the Ponderosa Pine covered mountains that sloped down to the beautiful Lake Tahoe area.  The traffic around the lake was heavy with summer visitors. 

Once we crossed over to the California side of the lake, the drivers seemed to get crazy, including motorcycles taking advantage of California's new law allowing "lane splitting".  One of these splitters got a little too close to me and almost wiped out both of us.

In the meantime, we were nearing the completion of the first segment of our journey...the completion of riding U.S. 50.  The road ended unceremoniously when it merged into Interstate 80 in Sacramento.  Even without a sign like the one in Ocean City, Maryland, we felt the accomplishment in having ridden the entire road.

Including several side trips to view places and things we didn't want to miss, we topped out at around 4,000 miles.  We are all very proud of ourselves for being able to get this done.

On the way to our hotel, we crossed the Golden Gate Bridge into San Francisco.  Even though it was after sunset, it was still a dramatic experience, just not a photo opportunity.

We checked into the Hyatt Regency and immediately caused a stir.  Apparently, they don't get too many grubby, road-weary bikers at this ultra-luxury hotel.

We took the time to enjoy the view from our room before visiting the hotel bar for a night-cap.  We retired feeling good that we made it, and we had two days of San Francisco sight-seeing without having to get back on the bikes again until Monday.

Day 14 Friday August 7, 2015

Days without Incident 4
Days with Rain Gear  0

It was cold and windy this morning.  Then, as we loaded up the bikes, it began to rain...in the desert!

We donned the rain suits before pulling out headed for, Eureka 78 miles away.  An important thing to remember is that between these towns on U.S. 50 in Nevada, there is nothing but mountains and desert.

By the time we arrived in Eureka, the rain had ceased, but the temperatures were very much on the cool side.  After some coffee, we decided we could take off the raincoats, but kept them handy.  The pants are a pain to put on, so we left them on as we set out for the next town of Austin, 70 miles to the west.

Riding through the desert allows you to see for miles in every direction.  What we kept seeing was storms in the distance.  Never sure which way the road would turn, we never knew if we were headed toward the rain or around it.

Now, when we got our "Official Highway 50 Survival Guide" we assumed it was just a fun publicity gimmick for the few towns along the road.  We never thought it actually meant "SURVIVAL".

About 20 miles from Austin, there was a mountain in front of us.  The road obviously went up and over it...and since the entire mountain was blanketed in a dark cloud, it was painfully obvious that there was rain up there.

We stopped to put on the raincoats, and heavier gloves, face and ear protection and headed into the belly of the beast...and it quickly became a beast!

The summit was over 7,000 feet and the cold temperatures kept getting colder.  The road kept getting twistier and the rain began to pound on us.  Then the rain turned to hail.  The ice crystals stung like a million bees as it hit our faces.  The hail then began to accumulate on the road surface, which brought our speed to almost a crawl on the winding downhill approach into Austin.  When we decided to stop for lunch and wait out the storm, the SNOW PLOW passed us as it scraped the road and spread salt...IN AUGUST!

A long lunch allowed the storm to pass as we continued on to our next destinations of Fallon, Virginia City and finally, Carson City.

Having been to Virginia City before, we were all looking forward to the retun.  Another childhood TV town, it was part of the setting for Bonanza.  The Cartwright boys went to Virginia City when it was time to "Go into town".

After dinner at Julia Bulette's (the founder of the Mustang Ranch), we headed to Carson City for the night.

Tomorrow is maintenance day.  Juju has an appointment for her 10,000
mile service and Ed and I need oil changes.

Day 13 Thursday, August 6, 2015

Days without an incident:  3
Days without rain gear:  8


The air was cool this morning as we left Moab, Utah.  Within 40 miles we were on U.S. 50 which was now part of Interstate 70 for about 100 miles.  Once we

left the interstate in Salina, Utah, we continued at interstate speed but were on a two-lane heading for the desert.

I have great respect for the desert...I know that if something goes wrong, they either won't find you, or they will find you too late.  That being said, I also have a great fascination with the desert.

You quickly go from climbing to a mountain summit
at over 7,000 feet, with temperatures dropping, and then find yourself on the desert floor, where it literally feels as if you just stepped into an oven.  At times we could look ten miles in any direction, and realize we were the only visible life forms, other than plants.  The vastness of it all is mesmerizing and

reminds you how insignificant you really are.





As the day wore on, the temperatures continued to rise.  By the time we got to
the Nevada state line, it was in excess of 100°.   We made our stop for the evening in Ely (pronounced E-LEE), Nevada.  Here we got the first stamp on our Route 50 Survival card.  A fun thing to do as you cross the northern Nevada desert.

The card lists eight towns along U.S. 50.  If you get stamps from five of them, you get an "I Survived U.S. 50" commemorative pack.  As stated in the background section of this blog, Time Magazine dubbed this portion of the road "The Loneliest Road in America".  This Survival Guide is the area's way of making the best of a bad rap!

Tomorrow we will begin our trek across the desert!

Day 10 Monday, August 3, 2015

Days without an incident:  5
Days without rain gear:  0

Today was the day we checked off another bucket list item...Riding the bikes to the top of Pikes Peak.

After breakfast, we took a ride to Old Colorado City.  The old town section of Colorado Springs.  Although a quaint looking section, it was mostly real estate offices, health spas, and smoke shops (not the cigar shops I hoped for).

My one editorial comment...Legalized marijuana in Colorado may be a good thing for the economy and law enforcement, but it doesn't seem to be such a good thing for Colorado.  From my perspective, most every old hippie and pothead in North America has made their way to the "Centennial State" and is pan-handling for enough cash to get some herb!  Enough said.

Finally, it was time to ride to the top of the mountain.  As soon as we went through the entrance gate, the views became almost indescribable.  As Juju stated:  "every time you go around a bend, it's like opening another page in a picture book.

The sixteen miles to the summit were just completely

covered with the scenic beauty of the earth below.  The skies were clear most of the way up, which allowed views of the surrounding area as if you were ascending in an airplane.

Four miles from the top, it began to rain.  We stopped to put on the rain gear, and almost immediately, the rain stopped.  We left the gear on because it was also

getting colder as we made the ascent.  The rain suits added an extra layer of warmth.

At last, we reached the top!  All of us were overjoyed with the accomplishment.  We were also affected by the altitude...some more than others.

One of the things we did, was to have one of their famous donuts.  They say that because of the altitude, the donuts taste better up there than down below.  They were light and airy on the inside and crispy on the outside.  A delightful treat.

Soon, the announcement came over the P.A. warning motorcyclists that they

were getting reports of lighting around the mountain.  They suggested we take precautions and also suggested we should leave.  We heeded their comments and headed back down.  On the way, we did see some bolts of lightning as we rode through the clouds. Once back to the bottom, we finally started to regain our breath.

Returning to the bottom, we made a stop at the Manitou Cliff Dwellers Museum.
At this location, we visited homes that had been built

into the caves by the local natives back in 10th Century.  The architecture was amazing, especially when you consider the lack of modern tools.  These are the most well-preserved examples of this style of workmanship in the entire South West.  Well worth the time if you are in the area.

A stop at Rudy's BBQ turned out to be a very pleasant event.  Great brisket and sides, served on waxed paper.  During dinner, the rains came down.  By the time we were finished, there was a rainbow above and the road began to dry for our ride back to the hotel.

This was, without a doubt, a highlight of the trip.  We collectively got to do something we always talked about doing.  Very happy campers!