Home again

One last picture looking towards North Carolina from the Blue Ridge Parkway

Well, it was another great trip this year. I was able to cover a lot of ground, go to many new places, see some interesting sites, meet some interesting people, and have a number of memorable experiences. The weather was, i a word, hot; sometimes hot and humid, others hot and muggy.  It was so hot in fact that for log stretches, sometimes all day long, I would ride with only my kevlar jeans, a t-shirt and the Wild Turkey bleu jean shirt I bought when I visited the bourbon distillery in Lawrenceburg Kentuky. 

There were many highlights, some of which I've tried to mention along the way.  There's no doubt that the most interesting bits of road were, in no particular order, the Skyline and Blue Ridge Parkways, Deal's Gap (on any serious motorcyclist's bucket list), the Natchez Trace, the road along the Gulf coast from New Orleans to Pensecola, the Outer Banks, and the drive through the Apalachians.

The places I most enjoyed myself at were: the Naional Civil War Museum in  Harrisburg PA; Deal's Gap; Nashville, especially the Grand Ole Opry; Memphis, Graceland of course; July 4th fireworks on the waterfront in New Orleans; meeting up with, and then diving with Jane off Key Largo, and our drive to Key West where we got totally drenched by a tropical downpour that left streets flooded; the fery accross Biloxi Bay with the oil drilling/production platforms on all sides; the beaches and surf at Myrtle Beach and at Kill Devil Hills on the Outer Banks of North Carolina; Richmond, especially the excellent Civil War Museum there; and last but not least Gettysburg. 

I can't say it was a wildly successful trip on the dining front, though there were some particularly good meals with Jane in Key Largo, and a few other places that I,ve mentionned in earlier posts.

Here are some of the facts related to this trip:

Days away from home: 37 days
Days actually riding: 28
Different hotel/motel rooms: 28
States visited: 14
Ferries: 3
Scuba dives with Jane: 5
Most kilometers travelled in one day: 462 (June 26 - Deal's Gap North Carolina to Lexington KY)
Litres of gas: 429.8
Kilometres travelled door to door: 9718


My trusty motorcycle behaved beautifully; all it needed was gas, an oil and filter change, and one new front riding light.

I would welcome the chance to do certain stages of this year's trip over again, particularly with Jane in a car, maybe even a convertible. But I'd probably suggest another time of the year when it's not so hot. Like the past two long motorcylcle trips I have taken, this one has allowed me to discover pieces of the North American continent that I had not before had an opportunity to visit. As such it again created many happy memories, some I have shared with you, and others that I shared with Jane in our many on-the-road phone, and at night Skype calls. 

No matter how good the trip was, it was nice to be home again.  The welcoming arms and smile make it so. I am blessed and very lucky!


À la prochaine.

Richmond and Gettysburg

Notwithstanding (now there's an excellent former bureaucrat word) having been caught for nearly half an hour in a bottleneck on 64 North of Hampton, and  having stopped on Route 5 to visit the Shirley Plantattion which has been in the same family for 11 generations - where nary a mention of the slaves who worked there- , I still arrived in Richmond early enough on Sunday to be able to take in a quick tour of the State Capital Building and to have a nice walk along the canal by the river after a particularly fine dinner at The Hard Shell Company on Cary Street. The oysters and the rib steak, perfectly cooked, with pan roasted potatoes and rapini went very well with the local Hardy Wood beer.  The hotel I stayed in for the night, the Linden Row Innn on Franklin Street is a wonderful establishment in old premises that is full of charm and character.  The complimentary continental breakfast was varied and, for the first time on the trip, was served on china with real cutlery.  Even the coffee, in a real mug, was good; and so was the complimentary ice cold pink lemonade in the glass urn by the reception desk. And if that isn't enough to impress, the staff were welcoming, helpful, and courteous.  I've noted the address for a possible return visit.

Monday morning before leaving Richmond I visited the excellent Civil War Museum in Richmond.  The chronological disposition helps understand not only the conflict itself but importantly the broader context in which it occurred and its aftermath. 

Some 307 kilometers later I arrived at the simple, but extremelly well located, Colton Motel in Gettysburg. Indeed the property is just accross the street from the National Cemetery which I visited this morning after taking a two hour guided bus tour of the battlefields.  Having taken in the Gettysburg Diorama Monday night I was better able to follow the presentation by our excellent guide.  The battlefields cover a very large piece of countryside around what was at the time the village of Gettysburg, and the terrain has ridges and small points of higher ground which were the favoured emplacements of both armies. 

After the tour I had a decent lunch in the 1776 Dobbin House Tavern, Gettysburg oldest, most historic house.

A two hour tour in no way does this national site justice, and I can appreciate why so many people come to visit the place where events truly changed the course of history.  I would lover to return with Jane to continue to explore this area of the USA.

Tonight I am in Scranton, and tomorrow I ride north throuch the Adirondack Mountains.  I think, as Craig said about his cycle on one of the ferry rides on the Outer Banks, that my motorcycle has smelled home and is looking forward to his return there.  So am I.

Here are some pictures of the last few days.

This is the Main House of Shirley Plantation

 This is a picture of the second of three levels of balconies at the Linden Row Inn leading to my room. The building on the left, along with other similar ones are around a series of beautiful small courtyards where guests can spend time reading or simply enjoying the air.

This is the Civil War Museum of Richmond Virginia. It is located next to one of the largest iron mill of Virginia that produced rails for the railroads and, during the war, canons, armaments and steel plate to cover Confederate ships.

Finally this is a view fron the top of Little Round Top, a small boulder strewn mountain that the Union forces faught off the charges of the troops of General Robert E Lee. Off in the distance looking west are 'The Peach Orchard' and 'The Wheatfield'.  So many men, from both armies, lost their lives or were wounded in the battle that occured here.  In the end the Union won the three day battle of Gettysburg, and it proved to be a turning point in the war. 

Made it to the Outer Banks, just!

Yesterday I rode from the happy Holiday Motel in Myrtle Beach to the Sherwood Motel on Main Street Havelock. When I arrived at the motel and went to check in I was told by the ice womwn at the desk that I indeed had a reservation for their fine establishment but, it was for Saturday night, not Friday.  How could that be, I'd made the reservation myself. Ah, there's the rub; I had not been paying enough attention on the Expedia site and had booked myself in on the day I would be out.  By then my friend at the reception desk had assessed my troubled state and had decided that she would take pity on, and assist this hapless Canadian senile, or near to senility, traveller.  She found the same room for me (at a lower rate than I had been charged through Expedia) and suggested that once I had logged in to their free wifi I could cancel the next night's appointment by myself, a task which by then she had assessed I might just be competent enough to accomplish.  I did!

Now, earlier in the day I had stopped at a Norh Carolina Information spot and one of the friendly lady attendants had helped to find me a room in Kill Devill Hills and reserve a 7:00 am passage on the ferry from Cedar Island to Ocracoke, the southerrn tip of Highway 12 that goes up the Outer Banks, supposedly an hour from Havelock.

I say supposedly because it ain't and that makes a difference when you're supposed to be at the ferry terminal to pick up your ticket one hour before the ship leaves. I won't say I was speeding; well, not all the time, and not always by the same amount.  I was the last vehicle to board the ferry with, oh, maybe a minute to spare.

And on the traverse I met Craig, a retired high school principal, who rides a Spyder and who was doing an Iron Butt journey that involved going to so many lighthouses in so many days.  We shared experiences and impressions about long distance solo bike rides, and discussed a number of other topics.  He is a charming person who's son and daughter-in-law work in the health care field and live inVancouver.  Craig and I hit it off immediately and I was happy to see him a little further up the road when we took another ferry accross Hatteras Inlet together.  I wish him well with his cancer, and with their move to upcoming move from Virginia to Maine.

I visted the Hatteras Lighthouse, the tallest brick lighthouse in the USA, and rode on to Hotel Shutters which is right on the Ocean in Kill Devil Hills.  I arrived early enough to be able to go for a 'swim' in the waters.  The waves were higher and the water colder than at Myrtle Beach but it was a blast.  Afterwards I had a very good glass of locally brewed beer at the Outer Banks Brewing Station, and a not too bad dinner at Captain George's accross the road from the brewery.  The oysters were fresh and plump, and the Philly sandwich was quite tasty. 

Here are three pictures from today:

Craig's Spyder and my Beemer

A view north along the ocean side of Hatteras

Moi même and the Hatteras lighthouse

 


AND THEN THERE ARE TIMES WHEN YOU'RE JUST GLAD TO BE STOPPED FOR THE NIGHT!!

From Myrtle Beach

yesterday I rode 325k from Jacksonville Florida to Harderville South Carolina, most of it on I95. Some have commented that I could be covering a lot more ground if I simply set my mind to it and rode up the Interstate. They are right; at 75 mph (the posted limit is 70 mph) the miles go whipping by. But 1 mile of interstate is much like the last or the next one, pretty boring. Some of the secondary highways are more interesting; that is those sections that aren't lined for miles with strip shopping malls interrupted by churches of various denominations (or maybe it's the other way around, churches broken up by malls?).

I stopped early at a Holiday Inn Express along Interstate 95 because the skies had become quite dark and the lightning that seemed to be closing in on me was not very friendly looking. However as it turns out, no sooner had I stopped, booked in and brought my luggage to my room, the sun came back out and it didn't rain till sometime during the night. I bought an early dinner from the Subway next door and used the extra time to study my maps and make hotel arrangements for the next two nights.

This morning after breakfast at the hotel I rode some backroads to Myrtle Beach. My route took me through Charleston and Goergetown South Carolina. I arrived in Myrtle Beach shortly after noon and quickly found the Happy Holiday Motel on Ocean Blvd, the only establishment I've stayed in on this trip so far without wifi. On the positive side, it's just accross the street from a Starbuck's and I was able to get into my room and change (even if it hadn't been cleaned yet) and cross the street to the beach and play around in the waves. The beach is wonderful and the municipal facilities, showers, walkways, etc are excellent. The hour spent being tossed around by the waves was a lot of fun and it reminded me of the times Jane and I have played in the surf at Cocoa Beach and Daytona. The long and narrow beach here is much like at Cocoa Beach, and I can see how it would be an attractive destination for students on spring break. I resisted the temptation to be shot up in the giant slingshot or to ride the giant Ferris wheel. I did however walk out the the end of Pier 14 from where there are impressive north and south views of beach.

The plan for tomorrow is to ride to Havelock in North Carolina from where on Saturday I'll ride to Cape Hattaras Outer Banks.

Tonight's dinner was at a packed all-you-can-eat seafood and other stuff establishment. The crab, of which there were three kinds, the different fried and baked seafood fish dishes, the shrimp and the crayfish were all surprisingly good. The rest was your usual buffet fare, oh hum!

Cocoa Beach to Jacksonville Florida

Another 319 kilometres today under mostly sunny skies. The ride along A1A which is the road that skirts along the coast is quite nice. I was able to take a few pictures at Flagler Beach which is about twenty miles north of Daytona.

I was fortunate enough to be able to simply walk in and get a new filter and an oil change at the BMW motorcycle dealership in Daytona where there are, not surprisingly, many motorcycle shops.

I stopped to visit the lighthouse that was constructed in the 1870s and museum in St Augustine, a place that is well worth a return visit.

Tonight I had a great meal at BandB Bistro and Bar in Jacksonville. The shrimp bisque was very flavourful and actually went well with the margarita I had ordered as a pre-dinner drink. The flank steak that was accompanied by baked tomatoes, mashed potatoes with small pieces of chirozo, braised onions and adjust the right amount of chimichurri sauce was cooked to a turn, and the presentation on the plate was beautiful. It was what a plate should be: agreeable to the nose, the eyes and the palate. A bold chilean cabernet sauvignon was just the right wine to complement the various flavours. And the dessert, a hot croissant bread pudding with a ball of vanilla ice cream served in a small dish on a bigger plate did not let me down.

After dinner I rode the JTA Skyway, an elevated subway-type system from the south to the north shore of the St Johns river and back, for free.

All in all another pretty good day.

Back on the road; back on the blog

Jane arrived at the Marriott Courtyard in Key Largo a few hours after I did last Tuesday and we had a woinderful time in the Keys and on the water. We went out for our first dives on Tuesday but neither of us remeembered to take our Gravol; that was an error. The seas were quite choppy with 3 to 4 foot swells by the time we arrived at the Speigel Grove (a large decommissioned navy vessel that was sunk to form an artificial reef and that sits in over 100 feet of water). Since we were not diving with all our own gear (and because Jane lost a pouch with 4 lbs of weight in it at some point during the dive), we were both seriously underweighted for the dive. That, combined with a strong current and poor visibility, made it an interesting and challenging dive. Once on surface and back in the rocking boat Jane decided to join me and not do a second dive that morning. We were fortunate to find a new weight pouch for Jane, and a bunch of other neat stuff, at the huge Divers Direct outlet in Key Largo. Non divers will have trouble understanding this but it's like Canadian Tire; something you want in every isle.

Thursday we dove the Speigel Grove again and the experience was totallydifferent; the seas were calm, the visibility was great and there was zero current, something that thee crew of our boat said was very unusual.. The sunken ship, when you can actually see it, is an impressive sight underwater and is a pleasure to dive on, and through in some parts. The second dive was at another wreck, in much shallower water - 30-40 feet, with abundant sea life on and around it.

Friday we took a day off diving and drove to Key West. Because the speed limits are low, 40-45-50 mph, it takes over two hours to get from Key Largo to Key West; but some of the vistas are amazing. No sooner had we arrived at our destination, parked the car, and made it to the world famous Hog's Breath Saloon ( Motto: It's better to have a hog's breath than no breath at all) for a less than fantastic lunch, the heaven's opened up and it poured, and I do mean poured. Many streets were flooded and we had to shell out $5 each to buy 99 cent rain ponchos so that we could make it back to the car. We drove to the southernmost point of the US marker, took a few pictures and headed back to Key Largo promising ourselvess that we would try to return to actually visit what, at first glance, seems to be a very interesting little city steeped in history.

On Saturday we did two other shallow dives in the marine park that runs along the Atlantic, or ocean as they say here, side of the Key Largo, and on Sunday we rented kayaks and for two hours navigated various bits of waterways in the mangroves of John Pennekamp Coral Reef State Park. It was a lot of fun, even if we did get lost at one point.

Dear reader, you will ahve noted that there has not, to this point in this entry, been any mention of food. Well, the truth is that there have not been many gastronomic home runs; a few triples, like the two sushi dinners we had at Sushi Nami, the fine dining experience at Pierre's (pronounced Peer's) on Islamorala, and the Sunday lunch at Hobo's and same day dinner at Sundowner on Key Largo. The rest is not worth mentionning and has already been largely forgotten.

Which brings me to today. I mounted my bike at 9:20 and made off for Cocoa Beach, a small place along the space coast I had had the pleasure to come to three times in the past to attend launches as either a guest of, or the head of the CSA. Except for the deluge that I got caught in for about ten miles north of Palm Beach on Highway 1, the rest of the ride was uneventful. When I get back I'll tell those who want to hear it about the encounter with the guy with two bicycles in the parking lot of a McDonald's.

The number of properties for sale along this part of the coast is alarming. There are stetches of A1A, the road that goes along the shore in Brevard County, where I would say nearly every fourth property has a for sale or for rent sign, some with words like: Huge Price Reductions. And while there are some people on the beaches of Cocoa Beach, there seem to be much fewer than when I was here before. I think many people are hurting as a result of the economic situation.

Tomorrow I will continue to ride north along the coast and I'll let you know what I see.

Quick update

Yesterday I travelled 454k from Pensecola to Perry Florida, and today I made it to Sarasota. The drive along the beach highways as they are sometimes called is not as exciting s the name suggests. Unlike along the Mississippi and the Louisiana coastline roads where there are long stretches where you can actually see the beaches, the sililarly named roads in Florida are either a fair distance from the water's edge, or when they are close offer very few views of the beaches. You can sometimes spot the tops of beach umbrellas between or under the condominiums and other buildings that are built side by each along the coastline.

The weather has been hot and muggy. Today there were a series of thundershowers; one that forced me to take cover for an hour under a building in a town called Treasure Island, and a second that started the moment I parked my bike at the Golden Host Hotel in Sarosota where I'm staying this evening. Just as I was unloading the bike a VERY LOUD thunderclap surprised the hell out of me. I must have jumped three feet straight up. Boy, that was close!

On the food front, it's still rather dismal. I had a decent grilled shrimp lunch at Po Folks in Panama City yesterday, and a pretty good grilled grouper with mediteranean sauce (stuffed pimento olives, capers, tomatoes, garlic, shallots, olive oil and white wine) at a place called Barnacle Bill's in Sarasota this evening.

Tomorrow I ride down to Naples where I'll spend the night before heading for Key Largo where I'll be meeting up with Jane. I'm looking forward to that and to our 6 days together in the Keys.

Need to catch you up on the kast few days

Oil production platform in Biloxi Bay

A building on the corner of Royal and one of the streets leading to the waterfront in New Orleans

The door to my room off the courtyard at the Royal Inn.

Sorry I was unable to update the blog till now (and I apologize for the formatting) but the internet connection at the hotel I was staying in in New Orleans for the last two days was very poor.

I started off July 4th in Baton Rouge. I had wanted to have a look at the Mississippi waterfront there but, because of the holiday all roads leading to the riverfront in rhe city were blocked off. So I rode around the State Capitol building and then started off for New Orleans.

The ride along the Mississippi into New Orleans is not very spectacular. There are refineries and, except for a few plantations, sugar cane fields and the odd church, not much elase. And you can't see the river because of the tall burms that have been erected on either bank.

In New Orleans I stayed two days at the Royal Inn on Royal Street in the very heart of the Latin Quarter. I had a couple of good meals at the ACE Oyster House and took in some of ther sights by walking around a fair bit. In particular I walked Bourbon Street, the waterfront and many other side streets. The architecture is quite distinctive particularly with the wrought iron railings that are on the streetsides of many buildings. The fireworks from the two dueling barges on the river were spectacular and they were viewed by tens of thousands who had taken up their positions on both banks of the river.

This morning I headed East along the Gulf Coast up to the city of Pensacola Florida where I'm now parked for the night. The most interesting bit was the ferry ride accross part of Biloxy Bay where I saw many oil production platforms, like the one in the picture above.

Memphis to Jackson

There's more corn growing here then in Kansas; or at least it seems that way.

But there are no ctton fields as big as the one's I've seen along the roads leading to Jackson.

I started off very early this morning to try to beat the heat and was partially succesful in the enterprise. It was a cool 34-35 degrees till around noon, and then after the temperature rose to near 40 by the time I arrived at the Travelodge in Jackson.

The ride was uneventful, except. You should know that I tend to put all of my faith in Lucy, the lady in my GPS, to help me navigate between different points on the map. She tells me to turn and I turn. And, most often she gets me efficiently from point A to B to C, etc. Then there are days when I can't understaand what she's thinking; that's particularly true when detours are involved. Today for instance she had me ride for 6.3 miles on a loose gravel stretch of road. So what you say? Well, inside an air conditionned car it's a piece of cake; on a loaded touring bike with great highway tires it's just a white knuckle 10 kph sphincter tightening experience as you slide from side to side of the road over and through the accumulated mounds of loose garvel. I, and one pick-up truck going in the opposite direction, seemed to be the only two vehicles who were following Lucy's advice. The driver of the by then immobilized truck seemed quite amused and was smiling profusely as I squirmed my way past his vehicle. I, was not amused, and was very happy to soon thereafter see a stop sign at a t-intersection aheadand a paved road in either direction. I followed Lucy's suggestion and turned left. I barely had a glimpse of the vast corn and cotton fields that lined both sides of the gravel road.

BUT, but, all ends well. I had a great meal at a place called Char in Jackson this evening. I started off with the Sin City BBQ shrimp: four shrimp over grits with mushrooms and spicy creole sauce accompanied by a glass of Sonoma Valley Chateau St Jean Fume Blanc. For the main course I chose Blackfish: pecan crusted catfish over garlic mashed potatoes with jumbo crab and worchester butter sauce, with a side of fresh aparagus, accompanied by a Sonoma Valley Cline Zinfandel. All the dishes were flavourful and brilliantly presented. I didn't even mind the cab fare there and back. Oh boy, food!!!

Tomorrow it's soth to the gulf.

From Country and Bluegrass to the Blues

Friday Night's Grand Ole Opry visit was a lot of fun. As the picture of the Isaacs Family which I took from my seat at the bottom off the stairs in front of the stage shows, I was as close to the action as one can get; the first row, the middle seat. So cool!!

It:s quite something to see how they pull together this live to air two hour show with no less than 8 acts that come on and do no more than three numbers each.

On Saturday I got up early to try to beat some of the heat and rode to Memphis. Driving out of the city I stopped for breakfast at the legendary Loveless Café on Highway 100 at the Natchez Trace Parkway.  This place has been around feeding the stars and a whole bunch of other folks since 1970. The fresh made biscuits with home made preserves and the huge slab of ham and eggs were delicious and they kept me going for the rest of the ride to Memphis.  The Parkway, like the others I've riden on this trip so far, was extremely well maintained; and the scenery was beautiful.  One can actually follow this route all the way from Nashville to Natchez in the south of Mississippi. I veared off the Parkway and followed routes 64, 128 and 57 to Memphis.

As you all know, Memphis is to Rock and Roll and Blues, what Nashville is to C&W and Bluegrass; and the heart of Blues is a club-lined four block section of Beale Street which is closed off each night for a party.  There is music all day and well into the early hours of the morning, and mant places that you can choose from to sample such delectable items as deep fried catfish, deep fried pickles (I kidd you not; they slice up brined pickles, cover them in a spiced up batter and deep fry them; voila!), bbq ribs, pork shoulder, etc. The servings are huge and the taste...It,s probably an acquired thing.  But if you go late, as I did on Saturday, be prepared to go through through police screenings and a check with a hand held metal detector. 

Yesterday I went to Graceland and toured Elvis' mansion. memorial garden, where he and his parents are laid to rest, and a display of his planes and cars. The curation work inside the mansion is impressive. The experience is Dysneyworld-like, as they are extremely efficient in moving through large numbers of guests without making them feel rushed. The self-guided audio tour, which you can pause at any time to linger in any specific area to take in the spirit of the King of Rock and Roll, is informative.  One can't help but leave thinking how important a figure Elwis was in his time and how he continues to be at he heart of a very successful enterprise.  To quote his company logo TCB, he's sitll very much Taking Care of Business.  Graceland is well worth visiting.  Here are a few pictures; first, the famous 15 foot white couch in the living room,

the very modern early '70's kitchen that was staffed 24/7

one of the many showcases of the costunes that Elvis wore on tour,



and the grave of Elvis;  his mother's and father's are on either side of him. (The two small round objects on the marker are two toonies, no doubt left by some admiring Canadian fans on Canada Day.

After Graceland I went to visit the Civil Rights Museum which has been set up on the site of, and behind the facade of the Lorraine Motel where Martin Luther King was killed on the balcony just outside of room 307 on April 4, 1968.

This museum chronicles the struggle of American black people to achieve equality going back to before the Civil War and extending to the present.  The curators have done a great job in telling the story in a chronological manner. It's sobbering, touching, and certainly worth the visit. One fails to understand why much that it describes could have happened; and much of it in our lifetime.