8/18 – Coffee is not to be underestimated
Catching up at Cafe Racer, under the eyes of bad clown art. I finished that cup of coffee around 4pm, and still had trouble sleeping that night....
8/17 – Fry Bread Friends
248 miles. The westernmost point is actually Cape Alava, but it looked like I could drive a bit closer at Cape Flattery. Plus, it looked scenic so I went there. It’s a lovely ride, twisty, sunny and foggy at times. Remote. Three out of four corners now, Lubec, ME...
8/16 – Floating friends, napping on shore
37 miles. Tried on hats at Swain’s, poked around tide pools in Salt Creek/Tongue Point, sat around a lake, grilled many things, drank spicy margaritas, and launched some cobs towards the Olympics with an enormous slingshot. Good people. I perhaps oversocialized after so much mountain time, and napped like...
8/15 – I can smell the ocean
92 miles. I followed Gwynne, Tom, and Tim in the car to the Edmond-Kingston ferry port, but darted ahead of the line because there’s no wait for motorcycles in WA. It wasn’t until I could smell the ocean and realized it’s not the same as the one I left...
8/14 – All Boss Level Today
303 miles. The finale to the epic scooter ride through eastern Washington rose to a crescendo with Steven’s Pass. If hitting the pea-soup-thick fog made a sound effect, it would be, “PHOOWF.” The fog could have lasted a minute or forever, there was no way to tell. Just an...
Wisconsin (and a visit to Des Moines, IA). July 1-27, 2014.
Arriving in Madison, WI was like taking a breath of air after a long dive. It’s been my sister’s home for about 4 years, and the first place I planned on staying for a few weeks. I was already familiar with the city from previous visits, and spending time...
8/13 – Bighorn “Sheep”
292 miles. I was under the impression that bighorns were just sheep with cool horns. I rounded a bend and three of them stood in the road, at least eye to eye with me. They gracefully and powerfully bounded away, while visions of total scooter wreckage still played behind...
8/12 – Stretch Break at the Park
186 miles. I was tempted to go farther to a campsite Voni recommended in Libby, MT, but I’m glad I went with relatively low mileage today. Plenty of time to enjoy Glacier National Park, and I rolled into CSer Art’s home at a reasonable hour. He invited me along...
8/11 – Chance Convention of Kindred Spirits
312 miles. I was going to leave the Choteau City Park & Campground, but took the ranger’s advice and rounded the bend to the tree-shaded side. Two BMW motorcycles were parked there, along with a bicycle, car, and camper. I’m glad I stopped after all, and met Voni and...
8/10 – Only for one
204 miles. Round-trip today. Just me, the miles, and Tetons. Tee hee, Tetons. I passed more than one hitchhiker on the return leg. They stayed in my mind, as if they’d actually hitched a ride. Scooting isn’t so hard....