borderlands blast

[Nails]

The first couple hours were in and out of fog.

[Nails]

The fog mostly lifted a little before Big Sur, where there are big deep air shoulders, the kind with wet bottoms.

Then I rode across the Central Valley to Fresno, getting there at pizza time. (Sorry Cranky, but couldn't fit in Santa Cruz this time.) My back arthritis is acting up so I'm going to take another day off ... and bake in today's 90s. I'll try to find out why my temperature gauge is acting up -- that ground wire I added might be falling off. Looking forward to riding Hwy 49 through the gold-rush country next week.

Yesterday's story:
As I was leaving a valley town, a flock of bikers were just finishing at a gas station. One waved at me.

The traffic sucked. I was at a light behind a pickup. The bikers filtered around to the intersection rather rudely. I ended up at the tail of the Soul Brothers, looking ridiculous in my white mesh with cheap racing patches and on a non-Harley.

We came on a miles-long traffic jam, and they blew around it on the shoulder. I sorta followed along at a respectful 50 feet behind their sweep. We passed at least a hundred stuck cars.

Later, on a different road, the same thing happened. This time we blew around at least a couple hundred cars. The bikers were zooming 60mph on a four-foot shoulder next to stopped cars. I didn't want to go that fast that close, but still "when in Rome...". Other bikers wearing colors came along; and one popped out from two lanes over directly in my path. It was a close call, but he felt bad about it.

Anyway, the Soul Brothers stopped again for gas, and then came around me again. Lots of waves and peace signs -- but I'm afraid I didn't exactly earn honorary membership. And I still don't like riding in groups.

[GrandpaDenny]

Anyway, the Soul Brothers stopped again for gas, and then came around me again. Lots of waves and peace signs. But I still don't like riding in groups.

I belong to a couple of patriotic service motorcycle organizations. One is like a club. We did a mission, a meet and greet, at the airport recently, escorting a returning veteran home. They rode in close formation, 2 abreast, tight formation, in the rain. I had never done that before, and I don't think I want to do that again. I am rethinking my membership in that group.

[Nails]

They rode in close formation, 2 abreast, tight formation, in the rain. I had never done that before, and I don't think I want to do that again. I am rethinking my membership in that group.

This was the Loud Pipes Save Lives crowd. Their colors show crossed arms, one Black and the other Anglo. I was hoping they'd stop for beer to actually meet them.

I got turned off that handlebar-to-handlebar thing about 40 years ago when a fire crew bud wanted to do that from California to Seattle and back. I wanted to look around instead.

Good on you for that vet stuff. I think my vet plate helps with road encounters.

[cranky]

... Nails/Gramps... joined PGR Mar '06 just after they were formed, primarily
because of a rogue "church" group... 100s of missions many years... age and
caution made me chose to back off.. great group of folks!!! Mostly Vets ..

MUST agree on the close formation dislike... I always rode back by the tail gunner....
MUST also agree with the anti-group riding "like".... loner...
Many thanks for the pics Nails!!! I know clockwise worked for you, but I MUCH
prefer 1 going south... makes ya feel small, eh??!!!!! GBG

Interesting to see how ya attack the Sierra's... onward....

[Nails]

I left yesterday morning, heading up CA-49. I was dressed for 70s and had shorts under my levies in case it got to the 80s. Instead, it never got out of the 50s, and I froze my butt off ... again. I finally put on rain gear to get warm -- didn't feel like rummaging through all the crap in my luggage for electric clothes. When it did eventually rain the temp dropped to 40, and it even snowed my last couple miles. (Literally 100 feet from where I'm staying California enforced chain control over the passes.) So just a couple photos.

It looks like it'll be wicked cold for a few days. But I'm staying with a very close friend, the kind where we both say we need to crash early but then stay up talking until 11:30 anyway. It'll take a few days to catch up , so I don't really know when I'll be able to head over the Sierras. (Sorry, but it'll just be Donner Pass this time because I'll need to get across Nevada that first day.)

I took a few "Historic 49" detours through those old downtown areas, but didn't make the time to park and whip out the camera. Much of 49 is a 5th-gear doodle, but it has plenty of noodle, too.

And more oak tunnels.

A sweet ride, but maybe better on a warmer day.

[cranky]

....49 is nice on a warm day!!! Sorry the weather went crazy on ya...
I've always crossed to Nev on 88 and across on 50... 50 is billed with
signs "Loneliest Road in America". Real nice and not much but drive ...
pretty lonesome.... onward,,,,,

[Nails]

To ride or not to ride?

I think I'll wait for tomorrow.

[Bonnie and Clyde]

enjoying the report. We are having a chilly and snowy start to May this year in Gardnerville Minden. Its always unpredictable when you live at the foot of the Sierras.

[Nails]

Yeah, I've lived in the foothills up by Chico. I almost left this morning, but my next scheduled stop is Great Basin National Park. I opted for a 38F night tomorrow instead of 28 tonight.

It was a committee decision. All involved humans were in agreement. One cohort here was expressly uninterested ...

... and another wouldn't even reply.

[Nails]

Okay, I've tried to post this twice already. My German ancestors tell me that the third time is the charm.

Today, I rode across US-50 in Nevada, "the loneliest road in America". Or one of them, anyway.

Donner pass (7227 ft) had snow covering the ground and was 40F. It didn't really get much better than that -- some passes in Nevada were higher and just as cold. The warmest I saw was 60 when I left Nevada City.

(I have clothes to keep warm buzzing into town, 25 miles in below freezing weather. At home. For this ride, I planned on 60s to 90s almost always. This cold snap was extreme and poorly forecast. I confess, I could've put on an electric vest and rain gear and all else, but just got a little stubborn about becoming the Pillsbury Dough Boy. I got cold instead ... a little shy of shivering, but for all day. I deserve all your most sincere crocodile tears.)

This isn't Donner but just some arbitrary point in the middle of Nevada. 50 rarely got into trees like this.

"Nevada" means "snow capped" in Spanish.

The cold air was sinking from the snow onto the basin, which is the clayey/sandy detritus of the eroded mountains. The road generally runs through these gawdforsaken sage flats. It was cold. The passes between basins were colder.

50 sorta follows a Pony Express Route.

The referenced Austin basically is a biker bar extrapolated to the whole town. But it's sure a necessary gas stop. The gas stations are spaced about 135 miles apart.

50 also passes some wonders evidently unique to Nevada. This was one of the first trees I saw today. (For context, this tree is near the middle of the second photo, above.)

Presumably some strange sort of nut tree.

(You wouldn't understand. God knows I don't either.)

Regardless, I got a motel in Ely because ... well, for a number of reasons, but mostly because I couldn't face freezing all night after doing that all day. I promise I'll camp tomorrow.

[Nails]

After a nice shower ...

... and a lousy casino dinner (you don't want to see it) last night, I headed to Utah. This hill is just before Utah (Wheeler Peak, 13065 ft).

And then back to the desert.

At this point I gave the camera a rest because I had to beat feet.

[cranky]

... now... wasn't 50 MUCH better than the interstate????!!!!! GBG
I forget the shoe tree story... common at my age... sigh... onward....

[Nails]

Riding to Bryce, I saw thousands of tourists. The campgrounds I passed seemed full. But as luck would have it, I actually got a campsite in the park. The other campground was full, I don't know about the other two loops of the campground I was in, but I got the last campsite in my loop. Glad I didn't screw around taking pictures.

After a fine dinner of jerky, cheese crackers, and margarita, I had a swell visit around a campfire with the pretty young women "next door". They were on a girl's trip while their boyfriends were doing some dude thing. Silly boys.

It got cold -- 31 in the morning. I packed up, fired off a couple snapshots, scored a free cup of coffee at the lodge (they clearly felt sorry for me), and was back on the road by 6:30.

I've hiked through these hoodoos -- a couple decades ago.

One of the first settlers described this as "a hell of a place to lose a cow."

It's purely criminal to jam off like that, but I was ready to get home. And I was cold. And the park was crowded.

[Nails]

UT-12 through Escalante is gorgeous. It's on the Grand Staircase, named for the unbroken layers of sedimentary rocks. "Unbroken" means that none of the layers were subsequently washed away, one of the longest time-periods of a complete sequence anywhere. It gets geologists excited.

Also, this is bedrock country where you can see the landscape -- as opposed to the plantscape you see most everywhere else.

These photos are of a white rock "step" at around 7000ft elevation.

Another place where it's best to stay on the road.

The road climbed to about 10000ft. Here's a view back down on this white "step".

I'm pretty sure this open grassland and large aspen grove are where a stand-replacement wildfire went through a few decades ago. If so, it took out most of the mountain -- large open areas all over the place.

[Nails]

My route went through a red "step", but I was in a hurry again and mostly quit taking pictures. The Fruita canyon on UT-24 is stunningly gorgeous. It was also packed with cars, and I didn't even stop. You'll just have to take my word for it.

UT-95 is as pretty, and I did grab a couple snapshots -- definitely not the best views I passed, just the most convenient.

There's miles and miles of this, and I could spend a photographic week there no problem.

I got to Natural Bridges NP in time for the last campsite. The first disappointed camper was literally 50ft behind me. But there's a million nearby places to wild-camp, and some honestly are better than the park. I was happy to get out of riding through sand, though.

[Nails]

Heading out of Natural Bridges and south on UT-261, there's a famous overlook of the goosenecks of the San Juan River. I zipped back three miles for a couple snapshots. The road was hard clay (I'm sure that in wet weather it could stop a Russian tank) with sprinkled gravel. Firm traction, a bit bumpy but I've already rattled the hell out of my bike this trip.

It's very popular with overlanders, and I stopped at the first cluster of them.

It's pretty rough off the road, but folks had banged 5th-wheel trailers into there. As campsites go, this is legendary. Lots of exposure. (Part of Monument Valley in the background.)

It also attracts geologists, and Deanna did field camps based here. They named it "Point Bar", for "a variety of geologic and alcoholic reasons."

Again, I just popped over for a couple photos. I was in too much of a hurry again to find places where you can actually see the river.

[Nails]

I needed to get down there, off this mesa. This brings us to the famous Moki Dugway.

It's an amazing gravel road, but not really very difficult to ride -- at least going down. There might be some traction issues coming up fully loaded.

It's well graded, and the worst sharp corners have asphalt. There were only a few piles of loose gravel I didn't want to mess with.

That's part of Valley of the Gods in the background.

And after all the dirt roads this trip, my stupid Kawa chose here to roll off it's kickstand and take a nap. Just as I was taking this hero photo, a nice couple from Washington state stopped to help me wake the damn bike up.

(This parking area is near the top of the second photo above, across from the gravel piles and motor grader apparently permanently stationed here.)

The road up is invisible from the bottom -- even if it actually goes up to the right of where the camera is aiming.

[Nails]

This was a 25 day ride, but I only actually rode 11 of them. I estimate about 3600 miles, and my longest day was only 470 miles. I only ended up sleeping in a tent three nights, with only two motels. The rest of the time was with friends and family.

I slept well last night.

A fire about 25 miles from me looked like this the day before I left. (Phone photo, taken from south Santa Fe while driving.)

Here's what it looked like riding in yesterday, taken from about 20 miles north of Santa Fe. It's been a national news major-rager this whole time.

My house is about 20 miles east of Santa Fe, and the fire is closer than in the photo above. It's come over the ridge, and there was a lot of smoke in the air this morning. I saw columns of smoke from the porch -- will take photos of it today.

Ah, the joys of living in Western mountains.

[cushman eagle]

Thank you, Nails,for the great photos you have shared with us
I have enjoyed them.