Finally the weather suits my clothes!

Today I walked to Pozzuali from Bagnoli, In shirtsleeves!




You may have heard about the garbage problem in Naples. It has been bad for decades and doesn’t seem much worse than it was before. Note the stuffed bear atop the recycle bin.



This was an attempt to show some sailboats on the Bay of Naples. They are out there. I should have zoomed. The sunshine is nice, though, you must admit.

The internet connection here is very very slow so I will not be posting much or often. I’d rather be out in the sunshine anyway.

The Duck

Papera Gialla va a Napoli

The duck is in Naples and your are not. Sorry about your luck. I have heard about the weather in Klumbus and elsewhere. I was out in a light sweater today. Nya nya (quack?)

Unfortunately for me my luggage is still in Rome. Score: Alitalia 2, the duck 0. It is due this evening at the hotel. If it doesn't arrive I will have to buy some clothes and such. Next time I won't check luggage. I have become trusting because it has been a long time since my stuff was delayed. There is such a long list of contraband for carry-on that I decided to check my bag. A less frugal (read "cheap") traveler would just buy what he needs at his destination. On the return trip delayed or lost baggage is less of a problem as I have all I need at home. I've become complacent.

I've decided to abandon this blog, the Alaska trip and Camino de Santiago, and return to Lachan Bui.
which can be found at; http://lachanbui.blogspot.com/.

I'm new to this blogging and this is apparently the preferred protocol. My telephone number in Napoli is: +39 349 478 0536. I warn you that cell phones here are more expensive to call. Email or text messaging is better.

Westby, Wisconsin

Okay, I said I was just gonna go home and have no more adventures. I lied!
It took me quite awhile to cross Montana. I stopped and read each historical marker and toured several interesting looking towns rather than just pass them by.

I rode MT 89 and 294 rather than stay on US 12. There was an interesting ghost town called Castle or Castle Town. It took me down about 14 miles of gravel and rutted dirt road but it was worth it. I got pictures!

Back on the "Main Road" I also found new construction well marked with signs "Motorcycles use extreme caution". Most times this was nonsense. This time it was good advice. Great fun! In Minnesota I stayed at Aberdeen. The map showed the way east on US 12 to be divided highway so I went north to MN 10. About ten miles after passing a sign that warned of road construction I was stopped by barricades across the road advising it was closed. Beyond the barricade was a causeway covered with busy earthmovers. In remote Minnesota there are few roads that go anywhere. I found a way around via a twenty mile detour on roads that were mostly paved. I came out at the other side of the causeway and could see the barricade that had stopped me! The detour was great fun as the road was dicey.

I was forced to camp in New Ulm as the motels were all full. There I found the Hermann Park and the statue to Hermann, the German chieftain who massacred three legions of Roman soldiers in 9 AD.

I decided to stop for breakfast in Waseca. As fate would have it, there was a breakfast fly-in at the Waseca airport! I saw an ultralight called the Buckeye Special mad in Indiana. There were interesting people and airplanes.

If you spend enough time on these roads, you begin to understand the very conservative folks who live here. Conditions can be extreme and the difference between a bumper crop and a failure can be a fluke of nature. Divine intervention might seem less silly. Self reliance and true interdependence are understood. The government is remote and not timely if helpful at all. We city folk have no clue.

Couer d'Alene, ID

Two days ago I rode to Seattle. There I stayed with my sister. As fortune would have it I also got to meet my two grandnieces. Both are Swiss and speak three languages at the ripe old ages of 2 and 4 years of age. I stayed for two days and now I am in Idaho.

I will go to Missoula, Montana and then go home. I intend to include an entry on what I would repeat and what I would do differently.

If something unusual happens on the ride I will post, otherwise this is about all.

Cache Creek, BC

This morning Fred and I separated. He is going east to Jasper and Banff while I am going south. Anyone watching his GPS tracker will not be following me.

I rode down 97 to Cache Creek. Mostly the road follows the Fraser River. This is an historic route that provided for the fur trade and then the gold rushes. There have been a few. There are towns along the way that are named after way stations on the wagon and stage roads. There was a way station or road house every ten or so miles and they had imaginative names such as ”Hundred Fifty Mile House”. Vilages built up around the stations, some of which are now towns. There is a dude ranch at 108 Mile House. The road is now measured in kilometers.

The Fraser River valley begins well treed and mountainous. Gradually it becomes arid. Here at Cache Creek the valley looks like the US Southwest. The slopes are covered with sage brush.

It is very dry here and there are over a hundred wildfires burning in the area right now. The air has been filled with smoke from about Williams Lake. I should mention that Route 37 was closed yesterday at the north end due to fires. We made it past the area with hours to spare.

97 is quite a bit busier than any of the roads I've been on recently. Perhaps ome of the traffic is due to Canada's three day weekend.

I do prefer to ride alone. Now that I am back in civilization it is safe enough.

I failed to mention that, when we stayed in Tok the second time we stayed at the Thompson Motorcycle Campground. For motorcycles only, it has a communal gas grill/stove and a sauna. No running water or electricity, though. It was the nicest campground that I stayed in. A dry, perfect night didn't hurt.

Prince George , BC (again)

Yesterday we rode from Teslin to Kinaskan Lake Park. The ride to the 37 turnoff has already been described. When we turned onto 37 the story changed dramatically. For the first two hundred klicks or so there was no center line, no edge lines, no shoulder, and the road was often about 25 feet wide. This was also an area rife with such critters as moose, sheep, bear, elk, etc. The trees and/or brush was up to the edge of the road. The drop-off was often as much as 50 feet. Very unforgiving. Great fun!

We camped at the park and awoke to 38 degrees. My forty degree bag with a liner was adequate, barely. The two women who managed the Provincial Park were most helpful and pleasant.

This morning we had a road with a centerline and edge-lines, but still only about 25 feet in width and no shoulders. This is still a critter zone. Great fun! We saw a small group of sheep and a moose. Route 37 has very few gas stops and almost no restaurants. We went 145 miles between fuel stops. Unsettling. I can skip nutrition but my bike can't.

The steams are crystal clear. The bridges are a mix of concrete, mesh and wood. There is road maintenance ongoing. Every blind curve hides a prize. All this and some serious mountains.

We turned east on 16 and things gradually became more routine. The mountains reduce their grandeur. The construction has been less. Sometimes there is a shoulder and often even a truck lane! I was ready to quit at Vanderhoof, but Fred wanted to make Prince George. We arrived at PG at about 1930 hours. We stayed at Economy Inn. The rates were better and the room was about as nice as the Ramada.

Teslin, YT

This morning it was 40 degrees when I got up. By the time I arrived in Teslin it was 80! Today was sunny and nice and uneventful. We changed oil in Whitehorse where the Hardley dealer wouldn't let us use a pan to change our oil even though we were going to put Hardley spooge in the beemers. What a jerk! So we went to Wally World and bought good oil and a plastic change pan. We went out to the edge of town and completed the job in about 15 minutes on an abandoned lot. We took the waste oil and pan to a local Canada Tire who took it off our hands.

The only motorcycle dealer in town is the Hardley guy. He doesn't want to help other marques. I will post this on IBMWR (Internet BMW Riders).

Fred wanted to camp and I did not. He went to the Provincial Park outside town. I got a motel room so I could shower and do laundry. I met some German tourists at the laundry. Nice folks.

The bridge here is the longest on the Alcan. It has a steel deck. As a child, we called a steel mesh decked bridge a "Singing Bridge". Why is there a sign before these warning about ice in freezing temperatures? How could a Singing Bridge freeze up? Even if the deck iced up, I would think the ice would pop off when a wheel rolled over it. It is fun to watch inexperienced riders cross such a bridge. The mesh seems to want to grab your front wheel and yank it back and forth. This phenomenon is called "Searching". The proper response is to relax your grip and let it wiggle a bit.

I can tell I am farther south than a few days ago. It is less bright at 1130 PM!
If you look at the detailed weather tables for here you will notice that there is no nautical twilight!

Haines Junction, YT, revisited

Yesterday we camped at Tok. I didn't want to go intop town just to use the internet so no post.

The ride from Seward began in the cold and rain. It rained for about 2 hours after which it was cold and sunny. That was yesterday. Today is sunny and getting warmer.

Fred's GPS ent us down an abandoned stretch of the Tok Cutoff. For the first two or three miles it was well maintained as there were houses nearby. The last mile was fine also. The part between was adventure! It also was a lesson on what happens to a paved road when left for a few years to the ravages of frost heave. There were whoopdidos that were ten feet deep. We did eight water crossings and three were deep enough to come over my boots. The road had heaved left to right as well as for and aft. There was one section where the road was gone and we needed to ford the creek that had washed it away. The pavement dates it to the fairly recent past as does the faded yellow center line. There werer trees growing through the pavement and we had to chop a fallen tree in order to move it as it was far too big.

The ride to Haines Junction was tiring. There were two sections of gravel that were deep and coarse. I had more trouble than any so far, including the dirt roads! ("Just stand on the pegs and let the bike dance") I know how to do it but it still is scarey. I'm using the free Wifi at the bakery ("Get your buns in here"). There is a German tour bus here. I must finish this and leave before I get another cookie. They are huge and very good.

Guten Aben!

Palmer, AK

After such a wonderful day yesterday, this was especially dreary. The day began dry at a comfortable temperature and went downhill from there. The mountains began to disappear and ultimately did so. The rain was cold and constant. We got a late start so Fred could send some fresh Halibut to a friend.

Palmer is only a few miles from Sarah Palin's home in Wasilla. I wanted to stop in and say, "Hello" to her neighbor Joe McGinnis. We didn't.

It is still raining.

Seward still

Today we had to check out of the Army Rec Center. They didn't have even a tent site for tonight. The Air Force Rec Center is just down the block and they had tent spaces. We'll be staying there.

I'm sure the Flyboys feel an affinity with mosquitoes, being as they both are aviators. That's no excuse for not fogging the campground.

We used my military benefits to get tickets on a Kenai Peninsula boat tour. We saw a bunch of fish and critters. The captain said we saw more humpbacked whales than he had seen in any of his five hundred cruises. We saw between ten and fifteen. We also saw them feeding in groups. This is unusual behavior for these parts. I have film of some of it. We also saw a glacier calving. I didn't get that on film. This was also the only sunny day in the recent history of the place. Tomorrow it will rain again.

This place is very popular. All the motels and RV parks are full for the weekend There are only a few tent spaces left. There is a cruise ship in the harbor and the train drops folks off here too. This is a very small town but there doesn't appear to be any poverty in this place. Prices are high but not extreme. I like it here! I'm trying to remember why I have to go home!

Seward, AK

Yesterday we camped at Anchorage. It rained all night and most of the ride here this morning. The clouds and fog blocked much of the scenery. Even so it was a pleasant if cold ride. Just how cold is a well digger's butt, anyway? Who determines these things?

Seward is a nice little town that seems prosperous compared to some of what I have passed. In fact, there are some impressive houses here. There are quite a few pleasure craft in the harbor mixed in with the working boats. Some may qualify as yachts.

There is really only one road into town. As we rode into Anchorage yesterday the traffic became heavy. The number of Mobile McMansions was significant. Getting one of those monstrosities up here is no inexpensive operation. Don't tell me there is no life in the American economy. That much money came from somewhere. The hotels in Anchorage were all full yesterday. The average price was about $200 a night. I checked.

The campground at Centennial Park was damp and had a pestiferous bear. Fred gassed it twice and it seemed mildly annoyed. It finally left us alone but I slept with bear spray at the ready. It came back this morning and raided a dumpster with a faulty catch. At this point we notified park staff. And left.

I think the permafrost doesn't come this far south. The permafrost produces some peculiar geomorphological phenomena (I just like the way that sounds) When I see the heaves and dips in the roadway I can't help but wonder how the railroad keeps its track straight and level.

Pondering the wonders of science and the universe, I remain;
Your correspondant

Denali

I am at Denali. It is raining. The ride down yesterday began very overcast but the sky gradually cleared. The views got better and better.

Camping in Healy, the rains began last night. It is still raining this morning. I can see about a mile. Not much to see.

The plan was to go to Anchorage today and base there to see the area.

I hate to pack up a wet tent. Almost as much as I dislike tenting in the rain. I did sleep well last night, though.

Fairbanks, AK

I got to Fairbanks yesterday. I met up with Fred. Today we set off for the Arctic Circle. I got about 20 miles up the Dalton Highway when timidity took over. It was raining and the road was mud. I was doing okay until the surface changed and became pudding. That, combined with a steep downhill and I said "enough!" Fred was in agreement with me when we were stopped at the side of the road and a couple went by two up on an R1150RT. Fred went on and I went back to Fairbanks. I just don't have the experience riding in mud. He got his picture standing beside the sign.

Speaking of pictures, here is one I got yesterday on the way to Fairbanks;




The mud on Inga was so bad I took her to a car wash. I'm going to have to use chemicals. The dirt is that bad. Tomorrow we go to Denali. It will probably be raining then too. More later.

North Pole, AK

I just had to stop at the McDonalds on Santa Claus Lane to send this. I'll be in Fairbanks soon and send more then.

Tok, AK

I am back in the USA.

I have another grudge against RV's. When they go through customs, they are clearing a whole house. Granted, the ten RV's in front of me did not take longer than other vehicles. It is curious because, if a smuggler used an RV, he could bring in tons of stuff!

The road to Tok was reported to be really bad. It wasn't. The Canadian side of the border was a bit ripply, but the only real roadwork was on the US side, About fifteen miles of dirt. I was able to keep up a good rate because the flagger let me go to the front. Otherwise I would have followed a row of mobile homes (RV's).

The scenery on the way to the border was quite nice. Just after the border it fell off abruptly. I was wondering if the Tsar had taken all the good mountains before he sold Alaska to us. There is good stuff a few miles in.

I'm using the public library's computer because my motel doesn't have Wifi. The library in Tok is about the size of my living room! It is a nice, clean town. Prices here are already lower than Yukon. This is still a remote town. I will probably have to reach Fairbanks before I can do the Big Mac index.

I'm not going to hog this , the only work station in the library. I'm off to dinner.

Haines Junction, YT

I am not riding with Fred today. His satellite locator beacon does not show my location. I stayed in a motel last night while he and Joe tented outside town. He left for Tok this morning and I decided to spend an extra day here. It should be sunny and dry tomorrow.

Yesterday we rode from Dawson City through Whitehorse to here. It was a long, cold day. It began to rain last night and was raining this morning. I extended my room today and will leave for Tok in the morning.

There are a bazillion RV's here this morning. There is some sort of RV convoy going through. Were it not for this crowd there would be almost no traffic on the highways up here. This is a mixed blessing. RV traffic is a nuisance but results in parks, campgrounds and paved roads. RVers spend money and require infrastructure but I never met such a bunch of uninformed folks. Not one in ten has any idea of the significance of "Call of the Wild" or "The Cremation of Sam McGee".

There are quite a few bicyclists on the road. Talk about adventure touring! This must be as strenuous as it gets, and the mosquitoes here are ravenous! I like bicycling but I draw the line well short of this.

Joe had a mechanical problem with his motorcycle and is going to Haines and catch the ferry to Washington State. Fred is getting a new rear tire installed in Fairbanks. I should meet up with Fred in a couple of days. Maybe.

I will try to keep this blog up. In the meantime, I am not being tracked by satellite. Fred is.

Dawson YT

Yukon! Reminds me of Sergeant Preston. The roads here are sorta like those in remote areas of Southern Ohio. The pavement is called Chip Seal. If you were to take a gravel road and Chip and Seal it as we do in Ohio over pavement you would get the same result. The surface is firm but only an inch thick or so. Takes very little to break through it.

We are staying in Dawson City an extra day because our progress is blocked by flooding on the other side of the Yukon River. The road is so badly washed out that it will take days to repair it. Dawson is a bad place to be stranded. There are no rooms to be had at any price and normal prices are astronomical. Martha Stewart has been here. I'm sure of it. There are doilies on everything.

To catch up; we stayed in Watson Lake and Whitehorse prior to here.
The Rockies are quite impressive.
The road is desolate.
There are probably more RV's than trucks.
There are frequent sections under repair but, once you get the hang of riding the gravel, it is fun. Dusty or muddy though, depending on whether they are trying to keep down the dust.
We've seen moose, bison, goats and both black and grizzly bears.
The rivers and lakes are wide, fast and clear.
There are many areas of burnt out forest with signs telling the year of the fire. Some as old as 1953.
Trees grow slow up here.

"Adventure is disaster that doesn't kill you." (Dick McGurk) This is an adventure. If I don't make it back it will have been a disaster. I'll be back a little later than I expected. Going is slow and there is a lot to see.

Road repair here is a constant thing. The road from Whitehorse to Beaver Creek was reported to be muddy so we took the Klondike Highway. Now we will backtrack and take the Alcan again. It was a fun ride to Dawson, though.

I may want to do this again.

Fort Nelson, BC

At long last we are on the Alcan Highway. Here it is known as the Alaska Highway.

British Columbia has bugs!

You know you are in a small town when the Welcome to Hudson's Hope sign is painted with the same message front and back!

The first 80 mile of the Alcan were somewhat less scenic than the last few days. It was nice to take a break from the superlative views. I did get a picture of a bear. He was so busy eating that he didn't look up until I had put the camera up and was about to ride away. Alas!

We met a mechanic at at the campground who told us his wage. He gets 160.00CD per hour. That 'splains a lot! Of course he is a self employed oil field mechanic so he should be well paid. He also explained that the prices here reflect the fact that this is oil country and the wells are producing gangbusters. I think I will ride back part of the trip through Canada and see if eastern areas are as expensive. "It's only money"

Gas up here is only a buck more a gallon that in WA. Since my bike gets 4.2 L/CKM (liters per 100 kilometers) I'm not concerned about the transportation cost. Fred likes to camp so "lodging" is cheap. We can fit two tents onto one tent site. Meals are the only unavoidable expense. "Ya gotta eat" but I won't eat at a Rallys type places.

Canada has no one or two dollar bills. The one dollar coin is known as the "Loonie" and the two dollar coin the "Toonie". Does that mean that the Canucks are Loonie Toons? They are very hospitable despite my vocal disdain for the Canada Goose.

Hudson's Hope, BC

I must amend my assessment of Prince George. Yesterday I had only been to the city center from the east side. We rode out via BC97 north this morning. It still looks like a sick city but the north side is nicer.

The ride today was as scenic as ever. Lots of alpine lakes, indescribable views. At times when I rounded a bend or crested a rise the scene before me was enough to make me catch my breath.

Fred saw one bear that I missed. It was just a pup, he said, and it scampered back into the woods as he slowed to get a picture.

We are camping in a municipal campground and the folks here are wonderful. There is hot water and flush toilets at the camp. We pitched two tents on one site for one fee. Fred has cellphone coverage but I don't.

Tomorrow we join the Alcan Highway at Fort Saint John. It is still about 1200 miles to the end.

I'm going to save my battery as there is no AC nearby

Prince George, BC

Yesterday we rode from Kelowna to the campground at North Thompson River Provincial Park. It is a cold water vault toilet campground. (No shower).

I am suffering from sticker shock. Even with a slightly favorable exchange rate and high Canadian sales tax, there is no anticipating the prices. I think a more realistic exchange rate would be 1.50 CD to 1 USD. I say this after a rather unscientific survey that found Subway 5 dollar footlongs selling here for 6 to 8 CD. The Wendy's dollar menu was 1.39 to 1.99.

My vocabulary is insufficient to describe the scenery seen yesterday and today. I do now understand why this is such a popular trip.

Today we rode from the campground to Prince George, BC.

Prince George is the first depressed city I have seen in BC. There are two pawn shops and/or check cashers on each block. The first dingy looking motels I've seen in Canada are here. The Ramada is pretty nice but is very expensive.

Here is a sight that was two miles down a dirt road but worth the diversion:



This is Little Hells Gate Regional Park.

When a sign says "Moose next 8 km" expect to see moose. We saw one with velvet still on it's horns about 20 feet from the road right after such a sign. He wouldn't stick around to be photographed, though. A couple of miles further on a small bear was in the culvert. Fred got a picture of it.

The problem with trying to get a good photo of the scenery is that "I ain't no Ansel Adams!" All of my scenery shots look feeble compared with what I saw.

Internet is sometimes not convenient so I may go a few days between posts. Our progress is slow as there are lots of things to see. I've a long way to go yet.

Kelowna British Columbia

I am in Kelowna, BC. We came north from Spokane via WA395 into Canada, BC3, a section of fire road and BC33 to Kelowna.

Here is a tame section of the fire road. If adventure is disaster that doesn't kill you, then today was an adventure. I showed Fred how to tweek his GPS so that it avoids freeways. I left in unpaved roads. In BC that may have been a mistake. We took a route that included about 20 miles of dirt roads. I really don't care to ride downhill on a steep, rutted dirt road with rounded gravel on a heavily loaded motorcycle. The first six miles was deceptively easy. The excitement level got progressively higher. When we got to this campground The GPS was changed to avoid unpaved roads.




The scenery here is quite acceptable. We followed the Columbia River until it ran out. We are presently in foothills. Mountains will soon start again.

There are certainly a lot of French Canadians in this campground. Some of them like to listen to rap. Go figure!

Li'l red wagon

When I was small I had a little red wagon. It always seemed big to me. Maybe it was bigger even than I remember!

Map tracking

I have joined up with Mr. Ed. He is being tracked by satelite.

http://share.findmespot.com/shared/faces/viewspots.jsp?glId=0zWcKlBgaaXxJg5EXRKyxdTYz0JdJhg5U

Hopefully this is useful information.

Spokane is a very bicycle friendly city.

Spokane, WA

Here I am, a day earlier than intended. Two side trips turned out to be undoable so I got way ahead of schedule. Hence the trip to St. Louis and the layover at East Glacier.

I am located walking distance from the Steam Plant. Perhaps the best restaurant in Spokane.

The ride through west Montana and Idaho was quite scenic. By the time I got to Washington, the scenery was getting kinda ordinary. The mountains in West Virginia are as scenic. There was a little that was photogenic and I took a few photos. I will post some of them later.

I am waiting here for a travel mate. Fred Fogle is actually responsible for this trip. I wouldn't be nuts enough to do this on my own. He is due here tomorrow from New Jersey.

Libby, MT

I rode through the rain again today to get this far. I suppose I could have remained in East Glacier another day but it was raining there too and there is precious little entertainment in a hostel.

Yesterday I walked to Upper 2 Medicine Lake, a round trip of ten miles. I threw in another six tenths of a mile to see twin falls. Upper is interesting as it is a cirque lake. Okay, it is interesting to me, maybe to no one else. This walk looked easier because it only showed an altitude change of 425 feet. The path was undulating, though and I suspect I climbed a lot more than that.

I had a buffalo burger for supper. They are very lean and tasty. Salad is an essential part of the food chain. Animals eat salad. People eat animals.

I'm still going to get into Spokane a day early. Ah well! I'm certainly not hurrying. I did really enjoy the stay in Glacier NP. I have lots of pictures but not the inclination to pick some out for here.

East Glacier Park, MT

This is my second night at East Glacier Park and I may stay another. Unbeknownst to many travelers, there are two parts to this town. Last night I stayed on the other side of the tracks at a motel called the Circle R. It was the last place in town with rooms (I thought). After checking in I went for a walk. If you follow MT49 under the tracks past the big lodge there are several old style motels and "Travel Cabins" as well as a hostel. This is the "other side of the tracks" I took a room at the hostel for tonight and it is much nicer than last nights! I will stay here another night. If the hostel can't accommodate me, I'll try one of the 50's motor hotels.

Today I took a little walk. The path to Scenic point is 5 km (3.1 mi) each way. It starts at about 5000 feet and tops out at about 7500. It's steep! There aren't enough carbs in one pancake for that! The hostel is also a bakery. I suggest the lemon cookies. Especially if you are near bonk.

Scenic Point is a mountain. Not as high as its brothers but it still counts as one.

I didn't know I am old enough for a National Parks lifetime pass.

I had a bison brautworst for dinner. Luna's is a restaurant on the wrong side of the tracks that is known for it's Huckleberry pie. Deservedly so. Moose Drool is actually good beer. Hey! I needed carbs.

I took a lot of pictures but my bandwidth here is limited so I'll upload them later to Picasa.

There are a lot of hikers and slightly odd people at this hostel. They are interesting to talk to. I may have time-warped back to the sixties!

Chinook, MT

I spent quit a bit of time in the library in Glasgow. When I finally went looking for a room, I found all the motels flaunting "No Vacancy" signs! Curses! So I remounted and went on down the road. At Hinsdale and Malta there were No Vacancies. I began to notice the places were filled with fishermen. Then I saw that US 2 follows the Milk river. This looked ominous! I kept on 'till Chinook where I found a very nice room. The attached restaurant had very good locally raised steak. I had my first red meat in weeks. I can recommend the Chinook Motor Inn.

My laundry is done and I'm ready for tomorrow.

Big Sky Country

This morning I started in Sidney and am now in Glasgow. According to Google maps this trip should have crossed continents and oceans and taken many hours by plane. I got here before noon. The only MacDonalds is pre 1980 and still doesn't have WiFi. I'm in the library. I asked the librarian, "If Scottish residents of Glasgow are called Glaswegians, what are those in Montana called?" She replied, "Cowboys?"

This bicyclist was on the Fort Peck Indian Reservation. Heading east. I didn't get a chance to ask how far she was going.

This is a bar outside Glasgow, near the airport, at the end of the runway. Kinda makes you wonder. I didn't stop there. Might be dangerous.
This coffee shop was on the Fort Peck Indian Reservation. It was next to the ubiquitous casino.

Good coffee even if the barrista was a bit curt.

This may be one of the oldest buildings I saw in Montana. It is adobe over logs. It was built in 1910! Nothing out here is very old! It was the Grassy Butte Post Office. Sounds like what you get when you slide down the hill. I found an appropriately named hotel for endurance bicyclists, the Ragged Butte Inn. I didn't get a picture.Until you've seen the Big Sky Country, it is only words. The sky here B I G! S'true!

Hettinger, North Dakota

Yesterday I made a shorter ride as I had gone farther than intended the day before. I stopped in Hettinger, North Dakota. This is a town on the edge. There are many well kept houses with manicured lawns. There are also boarded up businesses on the main drag. There are two or three coffee shops boarded up. I think Martha Stewart gave up on Hettinger. There is an acceptable steak house and a bunch of bars. The county hospital and a coal gasification plant here. There are farm related businesses. But I saw few young people.

Here are some Volvos that are parked in front of an abandoned house along the highway. I have no notion what this is all about.

This is just a view of the terrain and the endless straight highway. Not the lack of traffic. This was most of the day. I love the solitude. I don't enjoy DoD nominal.

Here is a very large bull. He is anatomically correct.

This is an abandoned house along the highway. There were a few of these. Lots of this pasture land has gone fallow. It is very green. This house just asked to be photographed.

South Dakota and the GPS

I'm sitting in a motel room in Aberdeen, SD waiting for a storm to go by.

Yesterday I discovered something interesting about the Navigon GPS. I was going to stop in Ortonville, Minnesota. I asked for a room at the desk of the "nicest motel in town". The clerk looked and sounded like the Quikee Mart guy on the Simpsons. This is never good. In the past that means the place is dirty and structurally unsound. I was relieved that he was booked up. I didn't check any other motels.

I got back on the bike and set off for Aberdeen, South Dakota. That is when I discovered the GPS idiosyncrasy. I knew that when you exceed the posted speed buy about 5MPH a breathy woman's voice says, "Beware". She's British, I'm sure. I now learned that when you are riding at DoD nominal*, she says, "Slow down, Twit! You'll go to prison! If you get a ticket, you're not getting any tonight!" Any what? I pulled the earbud out and didn't hear the rest. Jeese! It was like being married again!

* DoD nominal is 10% faster than insanity or as fast as the bike will go (124 MPH).

It didn't take me long to make Aberdeen. There I found a nice motel where the desk clerk sounded local.

Today I have a much shorter ride to do. The storm I am waiting out will not hinder me.

New shoes for Inga

Yesterday was another absolutely beautiful day. The temperature was ideal for riding and there was no wind. I passed a field of "Windmills" and they were all stationary. There were hundreds of them.

I may have picked the perfect time to put new tires on my motorcycle. I am in Minneapolis and heavy rains are expected here. The bike service should take about two hours and by then the rain should be finished. I only got rained on in Ohio!

The stock market is still falling. In the past, whenever I leave the country, the Dow goes up. I'm about find out if that includes Canada. I will be crossing the border on about July 6.

Minneapolis is a very bicycle friendly city. I arrived at the motorcycle shop at 0900. This is Friday. There has been a pretty steady flow of bicyclists. Of course the shop is next to a bike path, and Caribou Coffee. Well situated!

Since stopping at McGurk's in St Louis, I've been singing "The Irish Rover" in my head. "...She spun nine times around and the poor old dog was drowned. I'm the last of the Irish Rover." I'd prefer to be singing Peggy Gordon or something else, not "...there was John D. McGurk, who was scared stiff of work..."

This is the true Midwest of this country. It has a little bit of topography, but the roads are just too straight for my taste. My old tires have enormous "Chicken Strips" (The part of the tire from the edge of the tread to the worn part) I hope I find some curves for this new pair. After I've worn off the glossy parting compound, of course.

If anyone thinks motorcycling is inexpensive transportation, they've not owned a BMW. "It's only money, Mr. Fuller."

Time to go check on Inga.

GPS-1 Google Maps-0

There is a sharp difference in Google maps of "Avoid Interstates" and Navigon GPS' "Avoid Motorways. I'll go with Navigon. More interesting roads.

In Iowa, mid-grade fuel is less costly than regular because ethanol is not taxed. Ethanol is an oxygenator and it does clean your injectors (allegedly). The reduced fuel economy is noticeable. I'm going to stick to regular.

Talk about timing! Yesterday I pulled under the awning of a 66 station with the tank on reserve and the rains came with a vengeance! I filled her up and waited fifteen minutes for the rains to pass.

The rivers are high and so is the corn and soybeans.

I love my job!

McGurk's Pub

I've discovered that John D. McGurk is a character in the song "The Irish Rover". Alas!

St Louis, MO

I hadn't intended to post twice in a day, but tow things intervened. First I must apologize to all for the double entry of the picture of the pub. I'm new to blogging and didn't preview the post first. Second, I have a room at the Drury Hotel. It is a very nice hotel. Historic and very posh. The fact that there is a police substation in the lobby tells volumes about the neighborhood, though. The garage where Inga is parked is very secure looking.

The National Road

I got a late start again today because it was raining. But for a brief shower in eastern Illinois it was a beautious day.

I did my best to follow the National road west from Terre Haute. The road was originally authorized by Thomas Jefferson in 1806. It was only to go to the Ohio River. It didn't make it to Vandalia Illinois until 1828 and that is as far as it went. Pavement was another hundred years coming. Here is an original section.


The chief lobbying group for paving this and other roads was the League of American Wheelmen! I wonder if motorists even cared about pavement. Part of the delay in improving the National Road was the fact that shortly after it was completed it was rendered redundant by railroads.

I looked for milestones and original bridges (S bridges) through Indiana and Illinois but found only one straight bridge completed in 1838. The fact that it was built by Army engineers confirms my belief that the highway was built for military purposes more than to enable commerce.

This next picture is an excellent example of a catenary arch. This is something I suggested someone look for in the architecture of the Eglesia Sagrada Familia in Barcelona. I'm going to visit my namesake tonight and sample some Killkenny.
I'm going to visit my namesake tonight and sample some Killkenny.

My family

Here are some of the ducklings I can see from my deck. They are a hoot to watch. I've never seen anything swim so fast!

At long last I am in Terre Haute IN. I got a late start and took slow roads. It is best to start early and stop early when going west. Going east it is inverted. Motorcycles don't have sun visors.

The good news is: my rain gear works.

The bad news: It was severely tested. Twasn't supposed to rain today!


My steed.

First entry

Hello!

I'm about to start a trip to Alaska. I've begun this blog to chronicle my experiences. Lachanbui means Yellow Duck. I'll actually be riding a blue BMW motorcycle.

Since I'm retired, I kinda wander around the world. As I don't have a schedule to meet, I have a very loose itinerary. I have never been to Antarctica or South America, but every other continent I can claim. I prefer Europe. I've not been to Australia either, and I may have to go there.