Southwest Quest - Mac is Back!

Log Entry #19
The Cortez to Castro Valley leg of my tour was hot, cold and wet.
Not necessarily in that order but luckily I was outfitted for the conditions.
I was sure happy to be rounding the corner for home and with that in mind I seemed re-energized for this segment of my journey.
Wednesday morning the 23rd of September I got an early start and headed through Navajo country on my way to the North Rim of the Grand Canyon.
Taking advantage of the K-1600's awesome top end speed and the complete lack of traffic I was able to eat some miles across the early morning desert.
Great time to travel these roads cool and clear. Very beautiful!
Made it to the 4-corners right as the gate opened at 8:00am on my way to the Grand Canyon.
I always wanted to visit this site and it happened to be right on my path!
This is not a National Park so I had to pay the ransom money to get in and view the monument.
My National Park Pass is fully amortized at his point and I am looking to go negative into dot.gov territory soon!
Lucky for me I was early and missed the local vendor traffic that sets up here every day.
Back on the road and looking for breakfast I pulled into a Navajo run local restaurant in Kayenta Arizona that served up a great breakfast burrito!
With both the K-16 and me re-fueled,  I headed through Tuba City and onto Marble Canyon to view the Navajo Bridge.
The west side of canyon is the best place to park for viewing but make sure you have drinking water as this place is completely without.  Crazy to set up a viewing site with bathrooms but no water!
By this time the mercury is reaching the century point and luckily I am headed up towards the North Rim with temperatures dropping to reasonable limits.
Heading into the Visitors center for the Grand Canyon I was told that the park was booked to the brim and that it would take at least 1 hour 45 minutes to drive up to the the North Rim with thundershowers likely!
Ok whatever I'am going for it, see you on the other side lady!
Made it up in 40 minutes no rain and a pleasant 76 degrees, pretty much perfect!
The views were beautifull and the crowds were light.
The ride back into town were the visitor center is located was just as quick with no traffic or weather issues.
From that point on down the mountain was another story with thundershowers and thermal variations making things unpleasant.
The ride into St. George was looking directly into the sun again. Gotta do something about this problem soon! Oh did I mention HOT!
With the sun going down fast I called it a day in St. George which put me in pretty good position to get home the next day.
Thursday morning September 24, 44 days into my tour I was headed home from Utah.
The route I picked ran up the Extra Terrestrial Highway into Tonopah and on into Lee Vining California were I stopped for a late lunch.
Taking the scenic route through Yosemite was nice but filled with traffic.
I arrived in Castro Valley at 7:05pm!
So this brings Mac's Big Lap full circle. Back in one piece and ready to start the plans for the next Moto Adventure! Viva USA!
The trip by the numbers,
13,610 total miles traveled.
28 US states visited.
4 Canadian Provinces visited.
340 plus gallons of gas used.
0 - sick days!
1 - flat tire.
1 - set of tires purchased on the road.
1 - oil change on the road.
0 - bear encounters.
4 - successful border crossings.
1 - real close call fuel issue.
1 - domestic issue.
2 - weekend visits from beautiful wife Katherine!
17 - on the trail blog entries.
2000 - plus photographs.

1 - major forest fire.
6 - major rain events.
14,110 feet - Highest road traveled!
Stay tuned for the epilog entry which will highlight the trip seen through the K-16's eyes.
Keep on Truckin people!

Couldn't get my bike in here!

Navajo tortillas make the difference!

Marble Canyon bridges.

Left bridge commissioned 1929, right bridge commissioned 1995!

Ain't it Grand!

Somebody say Aliens?

ET phone home!

Got Gas? Don't look good.

Devil GPS back at it. Musta zigged when I shudda zagged!

Pulled Pork California Style!

Lee Vining CA.

K-16 not even winded after 13 plus thousand miles!

Crib Sheet for fast track ride home.

Don't forget fuel in Caliente!

Glare problem solved with electrician's tape. To bad I figured it out on day 44!

Next trip - Mac Goes North to Alaska!

Looking for volunteers!

Mississippi River to Mesa Verde - West to the 14ers!

Log Entry #18

By Saturday afternoon on the 20th of September I had made my way through a good portion of the Ozark's and called it a day in the town of Sumersville Missouri.

The ride on Hwy 60 through the rolling country side was very nice. Reminded me of Mines Road only greener.

The only bad thing about traveling west is the afternoon sun always in your eyes.

Even with polarized sunglasses without a visor it's difficult.

Next day got into Kansas and the hills we're no more.

I did manage to ride on a small portion of Route 66 which was cool and made it passed Dodge City to the town of Garden City before shutting down.

Monday morning the 21st got an early start and rode through a 100 miles of cold fog until finally climbing out of it just before I got to Pueblo Colorado.

Pikes Peak was easily visible by then and I had a good point of reference.

Riding up to the Summit was fun and the road was paved all the way.

Seems like you could see forever up there. It's always a hit or miss for visibility when your above 10,000 feet.

Continuing on from there was a fast ride into Gunnison were I stopped for the night.

Tuesday I rode into Montrose which was another fast ride up and down through some nice mountains. 

Colorado has something like 40 plus mountains over 14,000 feet. There everywhere!

The riding really livened up when I got to the Million Dollar Highway!

From Ouray to Silverton was a great riding experience which was a thrilling ride with scenery that was second to none.

I thought my day would be routine after that until I got to Mesa Verde NP!

The home of the Ancestral Puebloan people for over 700 years is a awesome site to see!

Finished up in Cortez were I had some great Mexican food for dinner!

Tomorrow I head to Arizona!

Check out the high water mark on this sign. My bike is at least 20 feet above the mighty Mississippi!

They move everything on the river with these boats.

Total Twilight Zone moment here!

If you like flat, Kansas is for you!

If you look about a 90 miles past the K-16 you will see Pikes Peak!

Americas Mountain!

Weathers good today!

Last stop for the Cog Wheel Train.

Hope the switchman ain't sleepin!

It's cold up here!

Cool waterfall just outside of Ouray!

Viewing platform on the Million Dollar Highway!

Even the Cabs are 4 wheelers in Silverton!

Looking down at the Cliff Palace in Mesa Verde!

Great Mexican Food in Cortez Colorado!

Wasn't this guy in Sturgis a few weeks ago?

Tomorrow it's the North Rim of the Grand Canyon!

Birmingham Museum Tours - Off to the Ozarks

Log Entry #17

The Birmingham segment of Mac's Big Lap included visits to several of the  local museums.

The day before Katherine arrived in Birmingham I visited the Southern Museum of Flight.

This museum had a great deal of information on the Vietnam Conflict, the Korean War and the story of the Tuskegee Airman of World War 2.

Thursday the 17th Katherine and I visited the Barber Motorsport Museum!

Claimed to be the largest motorcycle collection in the world housed in a beautiful building of over 180,000 square feet with a 67,000 square foot expansion currently under way.

Friday we hit the Birmingham Museum of Art and the Alabama Jazz Hall of Fame.

We also hit hit a couple of great dining venues in town.

The highlight was a restaurant called Hot and Hot Fish Club.

Great food and awesome Southern Hospitality!

Saturday  Katherine was homeward bound and I was heading for the Ozark's!

Nice boutique sized air museum with a lot of history on flight in the City of Birmingham!

Found a Bass Pro Shop down the street from Barber Motorsport Park with these beauties on display.

Several of the local businesses have bikes from the Barber collection on display!

Worked up an appetite shopping at Bass Pro...

Nothing a pulled pork sandwich Alabama style couldn't fix!

On the way to the "Promised Land"!

Katherine asked, If you could have one of these bikes - which one would it be?

Oh that's easy, I'd take the Astro!

No wait...

On second thought this little red one over here. Yea the oval piston NR750!

No wait...

On 3rd thought this ultra rare SS750 is the one!

No wait...

On 4th thought I kinda like this sand cast 750!

No wait...

Or maybe I should chose one that nobody else is riding?

This is a trick question right?

One bike ain't making it for me, I need a six pack!

After museum dinning at the Hot and Hot Fish Club!

Fantastic meal!

The Peach Cobbler in the lower right corner looks a little strange but does taste great!

Till we meet again in California...

On my way to the Ozark's!

Pikes Peak Bound!

Slow Ride to Birmingham - South of the Mason Dixon Line

Log Entry #16

The Blue Ridge Parkway is a green belt oasis that is over 450 miles long.

The lack of commercial vehicles and cross traffic make riding this road an unforgettable experience.

The only down side of the Parkway is the 45 mph speed limit.

After two plus days of great riding and sight seeing, the Parkway ended at the The Great Smoky Mountain National Park.

The road then leads into Gatlinburg Tennessee.

I thought I could find ample lodging there but was greeted with a huge crowd.

It reminded me of Jackson Wyoming only about 5 times bigger!

I called it a day in the town of Maryville Tennessee which is only a short ride down Hwy 129 to the Tail of the Dragon.

The next day I rode The Dragon, Moonshine 28 and the Cherohala Skyway then on to Summerville Georgia were I called it a day.

The next day I crisscrossesed the borders of Alabama and Georgia riding some nice country and finishing up in the Taladaga National Forest.

Today I visited the Taladaga Motor Speedway and took a tour of the track grounds.

The 31 degree bank turns are over four stories high and require a minimum speed of 85 mph to keep from sliding down of the track!

The rain helped bring the temperature down. I stopped at one of the few diners  on the Parkway for lunch.

Meatloaf, mashed potatoes and Gravy!

The landscape along the Parkway is incredible!

Pulled of the Parkway for a cup of coffee and found a pooch pal to keep me company!

I can see for miles and miles and miles!

This herd of elk held up traffic at the entrance to the Great Smokey Mountain National Park.

Harley Davidson owns the Dragon!

Location - Location - Location!

Deals Gap, the other end of the Dragon.

Killboy photos is across the street from Deals Gap and has a photo service with a least 5 photo stations located along the dragon.

The mythical "Dragon"!

What's up with the speed limits around here!

Lot of beautiful scenery along the trail.

Little River Falls Alabama.

This Civil War pig iron foundry was built by slave labor in 1865 and was used to cast cannons and other weapons for the Confederate army.

It was damaged by the Union army shortly after it began production than repaired after the war.

Cowabunga Dude!

Random tank along the road.

Lot of theses things down here.

Camped here, highest point in Alabama.

A nose bleeding 2,500 feet!

I wana go fast!

If you ain't first your last!

Ricky Bobby Inc.

Dale Earnharts championship 1980 Monte Carlo!

Sweet Big Block!