Don and Barbara's Grand Adventure

[dkl]

Don and Barbara's Grand Adventure--Santa Fe, Albuqu

We decided to move on to Albuquerque this morning in spite of the wind advisory. We thought if we left early we could beat the wind. Unfortunately, what with retirement and so much traveling, it has become almost impossible for us to do anything early. The winds weren't as bad as some we have encountered but it was still not pleasant. Poor Don had to slow down to 45-50-55 in order to maintain more control...how embarrassing!!!

Yesterday near Los Alamos, we visited the Bandelier National Monument. It contains ruins of ancient Pueblo homes and kivas(worship areas), many of which are built into the walls of the canyon, much like Mesa Verde.
Today we visited, in the Albuquerque area, the Petroglyph National Monument. We weren't able to walk all of the trails and see all of the petroglyphs but we did see and get photos of quite a few. The wind on top of the escarpment where so many them are, was so terrible that I was afraid I would be blown off into OZ. Fortunately, I have enough ballast to prevent that.
Tomorrow, weather permitting, we are heading toward Gallup, NM and Window Rock, AZ.
More later.

[SteveS]

Hi Don and Barbara,

My latest spy satellite photos show your bike is parked at a hotel (either a Super 8 or Comfort Inn) at around 2510 University Blvd NE. How close am I?

I hope you are enjoying your adventure. I spent some time in the area (in a cage) several years back and I thoroughly enjoyed the trip.

[dkl]

Don and Barbara's Grand Adventure

Steve you need to get the focus adjusted. We were on the other side of town just off Coors Blvd. about 1000 yards off I40.
We are now at the Thunderbird Inn Canyon de Chelly Az. Weather says 2 inches of snow tonight. If the whether improves tomorrow we will across the street to the campground.

[dkl]

Don abd Barbara's Great Adventure--Canyon de Chelly

We left Albuquerque early Friday with the intention of going as far as possible before the winds drove us off the road and we got to Canyon de Chelly,AZ early afternoon. This national monument is on the Navajo Reservation so we can't visit most of it without a (very expensive) Navajo guide. We were able to ride along the south rim and get some photos from the overlooks. The Grand Canyon is larger, deeper but I don't think it is any more beautiful. We took photos, about 150, but they don't do justice to the beauty of this canyon. We haven't gotten around to posting them yet since we were told we need to add more captions. Will try to get them posted as soon as we get internet access again.
The local forcast was for rain or snow showers so we opted to stay at the Thunderbird Lodge for the night. Since there is no white stuff on the ground this morning, we are moving to the campground. We will probably be here for a day or two to wait out the next 2 storm systems coming through this area towards you.
More later.

[gsezrider]

White stuff? Not exactly the ideal weather for a bike trip. Are we having fun yet?

[dkl]

Don and Barbara's Great Adventure

Wow, what a week it has been. We spent Friday night at the Thunderbird Lodge in Canyon de Chelly, AZ then moved to the Cottonwood Campground which is in the National Park and is free. Because the sky looked as if it could rain or snow all day Saturday, we stayed pretty close to the camp but when Sunday started out the same way we decided to ride up the North Rim of the Canyon.
The Canyon is truly beautiful, wonderful formations and colors. On Monday we took a tour of the Canyon with a Navajo guide which is the only way we are allowed to go in to most parts of it. We both had sore necks from looking up at the ruins and the walls of the canyon. Don has posted the pictures so check them out.
Tuesday, we rode down to the Painted Desert/Petrified Forest National Park.
That was a great trip too. Again, the colors are just spectacular.
We intended to leave here today and actually broke camp this morning but the winds came up before we got everything on the bike, so we decided to just check into the Lodge again and wait for a calmer day.
Boy, am I glad we did! The news reported gusts to about 60 mph and for about 4 hours we could not see more than about 100 yards because of the dust. The power was even out in the Lodge for about 45 minutes during the worst of the winds.
Then about 4:30 the winds slowed and the snow started to fall. We probably got about an inch of snow before it finally stopped.
I hope this is the last of the winter storms and we can get on with our trip.
Monument Valley is next on the itinerary.
More later.

[dkl]

Don and Barbara's Grand Adventure

Well, the week ended as screwey as it began. We left Canyon de Chelly Thursday morning for Monument Valley. We arrived there about the same time as the snow. We decided to have lunch in the restaurant of the new View Motel which is right in the midst of the Valley. By the time we had finished most of the snow had stopped. But...we ran into it again when we reached Natural Bridges National Monument. It was snowing so hard there that we just took enough time to get our National Parks passport stamped and then we took off again.
We got to Hanksville, UT where we spent the night in the Henry Mtns. Hideout..the first motel we have stayed in where we had to check in at the store across the street. It wasn't as bad as it sounds, though.
Friday we left Hanksville enroute to Bryce Canyon. We got as far as Capitol Reef National Park and were again hit with snow. The rangers there suggested we get a room close by as cars were having a hard time getting over Boulder Mountain in the snow. We spent Friday and Saturday night in the Chuckwagon Inn in Torrey, UT, a very nice place. Torrey is a very small town but they have several motels and at least 2 wonderful restaurants.
On Sunday we moved to a local campground/RV park. We are waiting here until Thursday because our rear tire is kaput and we are getting one put on tomorrow in Richfield, UT. The Honda shop ordered and will install it for us.
Today we are going to go back to the park to see all of the stuff that we missed last week.
More later.

[dkl]

Don and Barbara's Grand Adventure

We left Torrey, UT last Friday after getting a new rear tire and seeing as much of Capitol Reef National Park as we could. We traveled Hwy 12 down to Bryce Canyon National Park and again we had high winds that made travel difficult. One stretch of that road is called the "Hogsback" because it has no shoulders, no guardrails, no nothing but a sheer drop off on both sides. That was real exciting with the winds blowing us around.
We made it to Bryce Canyon early afternoon and decided to get a motel room because of predicted rain/snow showers. It was cold that night but no snow. We decided that we didn't care much for camping with the temps below freezing and boy am I glad we opted for a cabin Saturday night and another motel room Sunday night because we had snow with accumulations on the bike and trailer both nights. We were still able to ride the rim and stop at all of the overlooks for pictures but we nearly froze every time we stopped. The Gerbings jackets kept us warm as long as we were on the bike, though.
We decided to cut our visit shorter than we planned to find someplace a little warmer so we headed for Zion National Park Monday. We have had a wonderful time here seeing the park, the beautiful scenery and enjoying the warm weather. Sunshine and temps in the low 80's have been a welcome relief to the snow and cold temps.
We hope to be here another couple of days, depending on whether we can get campsites for the next 2 nights and then we are going to head south to the Valley of Fire State park just outside Las Vegas.
The bike needs an oil change and a replacement center stand since ours broke several weeks ago.
Don has posted pictures from both Bryce and Zion so please enjoy them.
More later.

[Gator]

Hi Don and Barbera, just finished reading your lastest report of y'all adventure. Looks like you're having a great time. Wish you could send some of the snow down here, we could use it. We've been looking at y'all pictures as you post them. Fantastic scenery. I hope someday we can take in some of those sites. Keep the updates coming. We can't wait to see the next places that you visit. Have fun and be safe.
Bob and Wanda

[Bones58]

Don and Barbara, I had the pleasure of riding Utah 12 myself, without snow.
If you can make the NorthRim of GC, stop at Jacobs Lodge for Homemade Cookies an Milkshakes.

[dkl]

Don and Barbara's Grand Adventure

Tony, we thought about going to the north rim of the Grand Canyon but unfortunately they don't open till about mid-May. We talked to another rider at Zion and he had tried to ride down but the road itself was closed. Next time maybe.
We are now in Las Vegas, till Thursday anyway. We had to come in for a new front tire, and a new center stand as the original one broke several weeks ago. The dealer here was great, but then the service manager is a good ole Alabama boy, Auburn native.
We wanted warm and we got it...the temps here today were over 100 according to the bike reading.
We went to Hoover Dam yesterday by way of the Lake Mead Recreational Area and that was pretty interesting. We were going to take the "dam tour" but they had an elevator malfunction so we couldn't go down. We did get to see the power plant and get a history of the dam. They are building a new bridge over the Colorado River there so driving across the dam will soon be a thing of the past.
We are heading out toward Death Valley tomorrow but may wait till early Friday morning to actually drive in because of the heat.
BTW: for those of you who remember Ed Ferguson who was with the service department at Carlos's, he is still here in Las Vegas. In fact, he was working for this dealer until last December. Ed packed his camping gear in his canoe and pulled it with his BMW and once got yelled at for launching the canoe at FDR State Park in GA when we had a meeting there.
Would have been nice to see him again but not this time.
Till next time.

[Bikebum]

Has anyone heard from Don and Barbara in the last week? I think they have forgotten about us; having too much fun I suppose.

[jdubeemer]

Jamie, What happens in Vegas, well you know.

[Gator]

Has anyone heard from Don and Barbara in the last week? I think they have forgotten about us; having too much fun I suppose.

I was just wondering the same thing this morning, Jamie. Maybe they hit a jackpot in Vegas.
Gator

[Bikebum]

Gator, I do know that Don has said that if he strikes it rich he is going to buy a motorhome, hire a driver, ride the bike wherever he wants, and have the driver to meet them with the motorhome each night. Do you think that's what has happened?