Day 35 - September 9 Poky, Sweet, Poky - brrr, it's cold here!

We were ready to go this morning long before our scheduled ride time of 7am.  We held out until dawn, but then we were on the road.  It was about mid-70's in temp but it felt a bit on the cool side.  The plan for the day was a straight shot down I-15 to Pocatello.

Our sights were set on Beaver for our first stop as it was about 100 miles down the road.  The sun was trying to top the mountains as we rode north.  Each time it was about to rise above the peak, we would turn a bit and it would be just enough to keep the sun from shining on us.  It was like getting to watch the sunrise 5 times in one day.  As we passed through the area near Cedar City it was COLD!  Brrr!  Turns out it was 54 degrees. We stopped briefly to add a layer or jacket.

When we reached Beaver we were greeted by our good buddy, Rudy.  He lives nearby and we were happy that we rode out to meet us.  We enjoyed a few cups of warm fluids and some hot breakfast at the Timberline Inn Restaurant together.

    
Rudy joined us on the next leg of our journey.  It had warmed up and was more comfortable riding now. We visited the Timpanogos HD store in Lindon, UT.  It's an old steel mill that Torrey wanted to show Tim & Shannon as they hadn't been there before.  While we were there Rudy got a new du-rag and Tim got his first picture with a real princess.

   
From Lindon, Rudy went south back to Richfield and we continued north towards Tremonton.  It was great to get to see Rudy even though it was a fairly quick visit.  We cruised through the Wasatch Front in the HOV lane quickly and smoothly.  It helped that we managed to hit it at off peak time.  We stopped for our last fuel fill up outside Tremonton.  Just over 100 miles to go! We were back into familiar country.  We even saw a few signs of fall.

A few time over the last couple days the talk has turned to who was ready to be home.  We were all looking forward to sleeping in our own beds and eating some home cooked food.  There were broad smiles across our faces as we passed over the Idaho border.  In approximately 60 miles we were pulling off on the South 5th exit.  We've made it!

 
The long awaited Dream Ride was in the books.  We were all relieved and happy to be back to our home town.  Hard to believe it went by so fast.

Miles traveled today: 481
Time to travel that distance: 9 hours
Total Cumulative miles: 13,079.6

Addendum: Today is the end of week 5.  In the past week, we traveled through the dry, hot deserts of the Southwest.  We captured the fourth corner HD store completing the goal Torrey set forth so long ago.  In the 2,556.5 miles traveled we touched 6 states and tip-toed along the border of Mexico.  We enjoyed the less humid air and the warm dry climate

All told we covered 13,079.6 miles, 32 states and Canada in the past 35 days. We enjoyed all that this country has to offer in scenery, people, and food.  The special request we each made had been addressed.  We had experienced so many different climates traveling from "sea to shining sea".  Woodie Guthrie effectively summed it up when he wrote the early verses of the song "This Land Is Your Land,"

This land is your land This land is my land
From California to the New York island;
From the red wood forest to the Gulf Stream waters
This land was made for you and Me.

 

As I was walking that ribbon of highway,
I saw above me that endless skyway:
I saw below me that golden valley:
This land was made for you and me.

 

I've roamed and rambled and I followed my footsteps
To the sparkling sands of her diamond deserts;
And all around me a voice was sounding:
This land was made for you and me.

 

When the sun came shining, and I was strolling,
And the wheat fields waving and the dust clouds rolling,
As the fog was lifting a voice was chanting:
This land was made for you and me.

Day 34 - September 8 Desert to Red Rocks

Thirty minutes prior to our 7am start time we were on the bikes and ready to go.  The mornings provide the most comfortable riding as the desert hasn't yet stored up the day's heat.  It was already 73 degrees out there.  There were a few quick minutes on I-10 before we turned to CA-62, aka Twenty-nine Palms Highway, towards Yucca Valley.  When we stopped for fuel in Morongo Valley temps had dropped to 64. It felt cold.  As we continued on, we ran alongside the Joshua Tree National Park.  

Just beyond that we found Amboy Road and ourselves in the "Heart of the Mojave". There were mixed feelings about whether this was a cool place or a desolate waste land.  As one might expect, this road took us to Amboy, CA which is on a portion of Route 66 (National Trails Hwy).  We took a brief break at the iconic Roy's gas station.  For being out in the middle of the desert, it was a hopping place while we were there.  We met 3 guys traveling from the mid-west to Santa Monica, CA in a 1940's classic car, 4 bikers from Germany riding BMW's on a cross country tour of their own, and a family in a suburban.

 

Six miles east of Amboy, we turned left onto Kellbaker Rd and remained on that as it passed the I-40 turn off to Needles and took us into the Mojave National Preserve.

This brought us out to I-15 near Primm, NV where we stopped for lunch and fuel. Just before the exit off the left side of the road was an enormous field of solar panels with 3 power towers that looked like giant lights.

Next, we had to pass by Las Vegas.  Wouldn't you know it, traffic came to a screeching halt.  Turned out to be a vehicle fire on the side of the road. 

Once we cleared the congestion in that area, it was fairly quick roll to the Arizona state line. Of course, this meant removing the helmets.  Shortly beyond that was the red rocks of UT.  Alan took us on a scenic back way into Ivins where we stayed with him for the night.

It was a relaxing evening in Ivins. Alan's neighbors, Don and Kris, graciously offered their hot tub to us. Alan and Yoli were exceptional with their hospitality.  We had a delicious home cooked meal of chicken, baked potatoes, salad and rolls. We watched football in the man cave and enjoyed the down time before retiring for the night. 

Total miles traveled today: 394.8;
Time to travel that distance: 9 hours
Total Cumulative miles: 12,598.6
Tomorrow: Poky, Sweet, Poky!

Day 33 - September 7 The Missing Piece

It not clear whether it's the heat or the anticipation of the comfort of our own beds, but we all seem to be ready to ride earlier than usual.  This morning we were saddled up and headed out at 7am. Torrey came in from the balcony patio and said, "I don't think it ever cooled off last night."  It was already 77 degrees.  Today is the day that we got get that southwestern most HD store and complete Torrey's goal of reaching all 4 corner HD's of the continental United States.

With the intent of taking CA371 to CA79 we plugged Warner Springs into the GPS and pressed go.  The garmin thought better of our decision and took us south on CA86 back towards the Salton See and Salton City.  Shannon was able to capture a pic of the date trees and how they go about protecting their harvests.

Once there we turned west onto CA78 which led us to the Anza-Borrego Desert State Park. CA- S22 gave us a tour through the place and.  It felt like we were in the middle of no where.  That said, if deserts are your thing, this one is sure to please.  It did make me think that this was California's version of the Badlands in a few places.

We cruised along CA- S22 until it took us to CA- S2 which landed us in Warner Springs.  Here it intersects with CA79 which was a winding fun road to ride.  We all took notice of the homemade pie store in Julian as we rolled through.  From there is was CA67 into Ramona and south down to I-8 and into El Cajon, CA. 

From there is was just a short distance to Sweetwater HD in National City where we accomplished what Torrey had set out to do in his dream ride.  By making it here, the group had now hit all 4 "corner" HD stores.  As excited as we were about this accomplishment and the more than 12,000 miles it took to get here, it was a bit anti-climatic to be honest.  The store didn't have any dealer pins or patches (both of which Torrey has collected from each of the other corners), nor did they have a shirt that marked all the corners.  We did find shirts that stated they were the southwestern most dealer and the nice gal working in motorclothes agreed to contact us when their next shipment of pins and patches arrived. 

Next up on the agenda was lunch.  Nobody was too keen on hanging around in this area very long due to the traffic.  We didn't get caught in it like we typically do, but we also didn't want to wait around to give it a chance to either.  Everyone liked CA67 and there was that pie shop in Julian.  Thus we opted to go back to the "mountains", as Tim called them, for lunch.

The ride back up was as fun as the ride down.  The road had twisties, climbs and a few dips in it too.  Strangely, it was warming up as we went back up the hill.  It's strange because usually elevation drops temperature, but in this case it wasn't that much elevation and we were moving away from the water and the humidity.  By the time we hit Julian it was 80 degrees.  Lunch was at the Apple
Country Restaurant.  The food was good and the pie was too. 

For our return trip to Indio, we decided to take the route we meant to take this morning.  So when we reached Warner Springs we stayed on CA79 north which then meant that we took CA 371 to CA111. As we were so close, we decided to drop in on the Palm Springs HD on our way home. 

We returned to our lodging via I-10.  By then it was over 100 degrees in Palm Springs and the pool and hot tubs were refreshing after that heat.  

Total mileage today: 350.8 miles;
Time to travel that distance: 9.5 hours
Total Cumulative Miles: 12,203.8
Tomorrow: Utah is close to home

Day 32 - Sept 6 Feelin' hot, Hot, HOT!

We happened to all be awake and ready to go early this morning so we were on the road at 7:15am and it was already 77 degrees.  The route was determined with the intention of avoiding traffic in the greater Phoenix metropolitan area. I-10 took us to Casa Grande where we stopped for fuel. In the hour that had passed the temps had already jumped to 86 degrees. While hydrating, Torrey and Tim related that riding through this region made them feel like they were in The High Chaparral.

From there we opted for I-8 to Gila Bend which took us through the Sonoran Desert National Monument.  During this stop we decided we preferred I-8 over I-10 as it had fewer trucks and the scenery is about the same as far as desolate desert.

 By lunch in Yuma it was 90 degrees. For the second time in two days we were dancing on the border with Mexico passing several exits to cross the border. 

This route took us past the Imperial Sand Dunes Recreational Area.  There was so much sand! It's actually the largest mass of sand in the state. It was also fairly windy with an occasional gust mixed in. It felt like we were riding in a furnace.

At El Centro, we turned north on 86 towards Brawley.  We rode past the Salton Sea and stopped for a brief cool down at Salton City.

It was just 30 more miles into Indio for the next 2 nights.  It was 103 degrees upon our arrival.  We were all glad to get off the bikes and head to the pool and showers.  By far, the hottest riding we've done on the trip.

Total miles today: 386;
Time to travel that distance: 9 hours
Total Cumulative miles: 11,853
Tomorrow: The 4th Corner