9/9/09-9/10/09 - Branson to Memphis & Elvis

Wednesday, 9/9/09

We had intended to spend the whole day riding Peel's Ferry Route, Bulls Shoals Dam Route (and the ferry from MO to AR), The Ozark Moonshine Run, The Mountain View Run and the Jasper Disaster.

So much for the dreams of men and mice!

The morning of the 9th found a healthy rain in Branson, MO. To ride the twists and turns, often with a healthy drop off the mountain side, while raining, gave us pause. So off we went, returning to Arkansas by way of Route 65, until back in Harrison. It was raining there as well so we decided to head to Memphis, to visit Graceland.

Down 65 to I40, to Little Rock, then I40 to Memphis.

The bridge into Memphis was really a sight, then off to the right to the visitors center.

Their instructions .. take I55, to exit 5b .. we missed entirely.

Fortunately, the locals guided us to the right place.

Thursday, 9/10/09

We took the tour of Graceland! Unbelievable as to how many people wanted to see Graceland. Elvis makes more money dead. Simply amazing!

The picture of the little house is Elvis's birthplace in Tupelo, Mississippi. The remaining pictures were taken at Graceland, Memphis, Tennessee.

9/7/09 - Altus - Arkansas Wine Region

Oops! Got this a bit out of sequence.
9/7/09. From Route 7, we went west on I40, to the tiny town of Altus, the wine region of Arkansas. This isn't Napa!
We pulled in Monday evening, after riding all day, timing our entrance to align just perfectly with a very wet rainstorm. 2 miles from Altus, we had to pull over and quickly put on our rainsuits, getting a bit wet in the process.
We visited http://www.wiederkehrwines.com/ just in time for the harvest.

Terry tried some of their wine back at the drinkhaus (oops, they're of Swiss extraction .. ordered here in 1880 by the local monks). Vinegar ... from Terry's palate.

9/8/09 - Riding the Ozark National Forest ending in Branson, MO

Tuesday, 9/8/09;
We spent the noon hour in Hot Springs, Arkansas, an interesting town commercialized on their hot springs (oddly enough). Terry had his bike looked at, at the local Harley shop .. all ok was the verdict.
After another bbq lunch, we continued on Route 7, riding through the Ozark National Forest. Now that was some fun riding!
http://www.arkansas.com/outdoors/motorcycling/suggested-rides.aspx

These videos were further up Route 7, part of the Ozarks motorcycle rides; this one called the Eureka Springs backroads route (route distance, 132 miles with 571 curves, through Huntsville (where we had lunch at the local hangout), through Eureka Springs (an interesting little town), then onto Harrison, where all these rides originate from. We had intended to spend several nights in Harrison, but then decided to reverse course, take 65 north and spend the night in

9/7/09 - Eldorado to Altus, Arkansas

Monday, 9/7/09; leaving from Eldorado, Arkansas (yes, arriving 5pm-ish on the 2nd day, 1,073 miles); traveling north on Route 7, which took us some time to find (we ended up on Route167, but then realized our mistake and switched over to 7.
We drove by the town of Smackover.

Once past the 4 lane highway, we drove the back roads of Route 7. A delightful ride over lonesome roadways.

These pictures were taken on a bridge just before the town of Arkadelphia.

9/5/09-9/6/09 - FL to Arkansas, 1073 miles

From South Florida, riding the back roads of Arkansas, an evening in Branson, MO, and then back again. Here's a few pictures and videos from our trip.

Saturday - 1st day - 09/05/09
Leaving from Coral Springs at 7am, I met Terry on the Turnpike in Ft. Pierce. From there, we rode all day, stopping at 4:30pm in Chipley, FL, only because of the rain storm we decided not to ride through (way too menacing).


Sunday - 2nd day - 09/06/09

We rode through Mobile, AL, during the morning hours, in the pouring rain. We pulled over in a truck stop to put on rain suits. The overcast skys to the west don't look all that threatening but looks can be deceiving. It was a bit disconcerting riding in the rain across the bridge before the tunnel in Mobile, AL. It was a challenge seeing through the rain covered windshield and fogged over helmet visor.

Later that day, traveling to I20 (from I10).
The video was taken while riding on RT49 from Gulfport, MS to Hattiesburg, MS.

This clip was taken on I20, driving west, just after entering Louisiana, from Mississippi. To my right was an intriguing farm, although a little tough to visualize because I couldn't hold the phone camera steady.

There's No Place Like Home

September 17, 2007
We arrived home at 3:30pm after 400 miles leaving Brunswick, GA at 8:30am.
I'll write more once I get my fingers to uncurl.

Today was a day!
20 miles down the road (I95), the clouds looked a bit too ominous so we pulled over and donned out rain gear (what a pain .. need to rest for 20 minutes after putting everything on). We rode for another 40 miles before the sky's opened up .. in Jacksonville. I followed Terry and hoped he had a clue as to where he was going. The windshield on the Harley has no wiper, nor does our faceplates. To see, we have to peer around the windshield, once it's sufficiently covered with water. To prevent water from whipping under the faceplate, I have to cover the underside of it with my arm or hand, which means steering with one hand. Not so bad if it weren't for not being able to see through the windshield.

It rained through most of Jacksonville, down through St. Augustine. We didn't get the full brunt of the rain, which was off to our east, which could have made it a bit too dangerous to ride. The ride without the rain was relatively uneventful, which brought us to Melbourne, a good 240 miles from the start of the day.

Pulling over for gas (our third thus far) at the same station Terry filled his tank with diesel two years previous (tip .. don't do this). The rain gear was entirely too hot so we took it off, the sun shining brightly. 60 miles to Port St. Lucie so off we went. 40 miles south, Vero Beach to be precise, a rain cloud entirely too large, opened up upon us, but we rode, rainsuitless nonetheless. This was cause for great laughter as we got a good soaking, which was welcome given the heat of the day (Florida .. what a place). My jean legs were soaked but they'd dry with enough wind. We averted the other clouds, up until the exit for Fort Pierce. I decided to pull off I95 and take the Turnpike (the exit where the two roads nearly touch). We waved goodbye, yelling what a great ride this was, and off Terry went on I95, me thinking he had another good soaking coming.

As soon as I entered the turnpike I realized I was the one headed for the soaking. It turned out that the rain cloud didn't cover I95. Rather it was 1 mile south on the turnpike. Giving up .. laughing .. I stopped to don my rain suit once again. The downpour lasted 10 minutes .. long enough for me to return to I95 in Stuart. Back on I95, lots of clouds but no rain, I continued southward, pulling over 20 miles down the road to take the rainsuit top off (too hot). Not a drop more .. the remaining 60 miles home, arriving at 3;30. It's now 10pm and the Harley engine noise is just beginning to fade from my consciousness.

Terry was exactly correct about this being a perfect ride; 4,850 miles in 2 weeks, 2 day, lots of cold, hot, rain (no snow thank God), sites a plenty. It just doesn't get much better than this.

Almost Home

September 16, 2007

We couldn't make it .. too far .. to Terry's house in Port St Lucie, that is.

It turns out that the ride from Cedar Island to I95 (I76 .. at Florence, SC), took us from 8:15am to 2:15pm (with a little stop in some little town close to Marion for bar-b-que), just about 280 miles). Who knew it was so far?

From I95, it was a straight shot south, stopping every 140 miles or so for more gas. We could have gotten further had I not been so tired from not sleeping at all during the evening at the fleebag hotel on Cedar Island (maybe it was the cream of crab soup at 9pm that caused the sleepless night).

By 6pm I was toast, so we'll have to be happy with the 520 miles we rode today, stopping in Brunswick, GA (is there where Brunswick stew found it origin?). Tomorrow, it's a straight shot home (307 miles for Terry, add another 100 for me).

I could have taken some pictures of Cedar Island, for it was certainly beautiful but we had a full day and I didn't want to stop (I should have).

the Outer Banks

September 15, 2007
I'm not quite sure where I'm getting the strength to write this, or rather, type this. Today was a long day, starting in a town who's name escapes me, but it was 80 miles north of Norfolk on route 13. By 10:30, we had crossed the Norfolk bridge/tunnel which covers about 10 miles, three long running bridges and two tunnels. The sky was very overcast and quite impressive even though it didn't rain at all. Nonetheless, we rode with our raingear for a good 100 miles.

From 13 we got onto I64 until exiting onto route 168, Battlefield Road, the route to Kitty Hawk. That ride covered another 90 miles, a nice but somewhat featureless road. We arrived in Kitty Hawk around 1pm or so, stopping to ask where the Wright Brothers flew. It would have added 20 roundtrip miles to see the field that marks where their plan took off and touched down, so thinking about the ferry rides, we continued on.

We stopped in Nags Head for lunch (the 1st 2 pics are outside their door), a yummy barbque, where the restaurant owner called the NC Ferry system to confirm they were still running and if we needed reservations (for the 2nd ferry .. yes). He provided us with delicious baby backs, fantastic coleslaw and the phone number for the NC ferry system. I called whole eating and made reservations for both of us.

We had 50 miles to ride (it was now 2pm), through 4-5 towns down the Outer Banks. The ferry from Hatteras to Ocracoke Island left every 30 minutes (40 minute ride), whereas the ferry from Ocracoke to Cedar Island left at 3pm, 6pm and 8pm (2 hour ride). Off we went.

The ride down the Hatteras sea shore was nice (notice the sand dunes on the beach) and only slowed down by the towns. We arrived at the Hatteras ferry system at 3:15, in time for the 3:30, which got us to Ocracoke by 4:15.

The ride to the south side of the island too 14 minutes and allowed us the time to explore just a bit. Ocracoke is a perfect resort area if you'd like to get away, be quite isolated and have a very relaxed time. We were the first on the 6pm ferry, which experienced some rough water, in that the 2 hour ride covered 23 miles and was exposed to the open ocean. Not too bad, even with a little rocking and rolling. We arrived at 8pm on Cedar Island, very tired and took a room in the hotel just off the dock. We'll need the rest for tomorrow we try to make it to Terry's house in Port St. Lucie.

post scipt: the hotel at the ferry dock; the fleebag inn; was terrible. If you ever have the opportunity to stay at the hotel on Cedar Island at the ferry doc; dont!

Cape May

September 14, 2007
We started out trying to ride the Jersey shore, first along Long Branch, then onto Ashbury Park. The home between these two towns were quite impressive, but once in Ashbury, we decided to skip the rest and go to the Parkway. Even if The Boss started in Ashbury, it's in quite a state of disrepair. We rode the 85 miles or so to Cape May, missing the turn to the ferry which gave us the chance to see the town of Cape May. Quite nice.

After a nice tour of Cape May, we rode back to the correct turn and then to the ferry. We arrived around 12:30 but too late to catch the 1pm. We parked, along with dozens of motorcycles, who were on their way to Ocean City, Delaware, for some rally that happened to coinside with our arrival. The ferry ride was nice, even though the waters were rough. We arrived around 4pm, then riding on 9 west a good 20 miles, the onto 113 for 70 miles or so, until we reached 13 south. It was a nice ride even though the rains returned.

We were intent on reaching Norfolk but it was not to be. The time, the rain, the tiredness upon us, all sugested we spend the night in Ononcock, Virginia. This town is surely in the top 100 towns to miss. By the time we got into the room, it was 6:30pm. Time to rest.

One Year

September 13, 2007

This morning saw us leaving Seekook, MA, traveling west on I95, pulling off soon after entering Connecticut to visit Mystic Seaport. Terry knew this area well as a young man in the Navy. It seemed nice but at $17.50 to see the tall ships and walk around in their recreated village, just not nice enough. The one picture of the water was interesting if only for the fish that kept on circling and jumping out of the water, apparently under attack by larger fish feeding on them.

We spent the next several hours seeking out and finding an old friend of Terry's. It was well worth the time spent, if only for the opportunity of two very old friends to have rediscovered one another. There are delightful, nurturing souls who walk this earth. It was my good fortune to meet one today.

At 1:20pm we decided to try and get into NYC to visit Levi. I had forgotten what it is to drive in the CT/NY/NJ I95 corridor. My suggestion .. don't do this on a bike. I believe both Terry and I lost 1 year of our lives in breathing the fumes and noxious odors, in the stress of dealing with drivers who are certifiably insane and/or intent on running us over (even at 75mph).

We reached the outlining area of NYC when the traffic came to a standstill. There were several instances where we rode the side of the highway, just to keep the bikes from overheating. There reached a point where the traffic was so slow moving, that we became concerned regarding our engines, so we pulled off the highway, into, what turned out to be the Bronx .. or it could have been Harlem (173 street and Bronx Highway). I can assure you that we were the talk of the neighborhood, especially to the young fellows who started to pretend they were holding handlebars. I called Levi for instructions which would have taken us into the city put that proved to be too vexing. Enough ... we decided to get back onto I95 for it seemed to be moving, although slowly. I think New York drivers get points for getting with inches of bikes so it proved to be a stressful experience. Nonetheless, abandoning the thought of seeing Levi today, we rode on to New Jersey, mixed in the with dozens of fast moving truckers and speeding SUVs.

We were still intent on making it to Atlantic City but gave that up when nearing 6pm, we had reached Long Branch off the Garden State Parkway. Tomorrow we'll ride the Jersey shore, then back onto the Parkway, passing Atlantic City enroute to Cape May where we'll take the ferry to Lewes, Deleware. From there, we'll take 13 into Norfolk.

Glocester to Salem to Lynn to Revere to I93 to Cape Cod

September 12, 2007
From Glocester we rode south on 127, an awesome road. If you get the chance, take it! How fortunate these few people who live along this road. The ride from Glocester to Salem was just a delight. I took a few pictures but they don't do the path justice. We could not longer continue south on 127 for in Beverly, there apparently was a gas leak which caused all the traffic to be rerouted. We rode onto 128, exiting onto 1A heading south.

In Salem, we suffered through the Salem Witch Museum (don't) and then continued on through Lynn, Revere, Winthrop (what famous person was born there), pass Logan airport, onto I93, to face the Boston drivers .. who are nearly all insane. At 75mph, people would cut in front of us only to slow down so as not to hit the car that was formerly in front of us.

We exited 93, continuing south on 3, onto Cape Cod by 2:30. We drove to Woods Hole for lunch/dinner, eating at Captain Kidds (don't). After a leasurely stroll about town and trying to see the deep sea diving equipment (the scientists were less than inclined to talk), we rode out to Falmouth to visit the harbor and the town. I wish we had more time for you could spend a week here.

At 6pm we decided not to stay (a bit antsy ... I think) and off we went to see how far west we could go. We're 10 miles east of Rhode Island on 195. Tomorrow, if I can't convince Terry to ride through Manhattan (to visit Levi), we'll very likely end up spending the night in Atlantic City (a short 310 miles).

Topsfield to Gloucester

September 12, 2007
Thank God, no rain!
We left Chuck's home at 9am, driving into town, for breakfast and to visit Jimmy, Chucky running buddy, at his store in downtown Topsfield. We had a very nice morning.

Somehow, Chuck's instructions worked (the last time I left, I became lost for 45 minutes), driving on 133 through Ipswitch (home of the clams of the same name), and onto Gloucester via 128. This is another working sea town and home of the mythic Perfect Storm. I took several pictures and by far, my favorite was the seagulls grabbing whatever morsels they could scavenge off the passing fishing boat. I reminded me of Tippi Hedren in one of my favorite Hitchcock movie, The Birds.

Notice the Eleanor, the reconstruction of a Boston Tea party sailing ship. The construction is expected to go on for a few more years, resulting in a hand made exact replica of a sailing ship in use during the 1770s.