July 2, 2021 - Gainesville, FL

Why does it always rain at the end of a motorcycle trip?  About 10 miles before pulling into my Gainesville garage the clouds opened up and started raining.  It always seems to happen.

I got home around noon and calculated I rode 5,900 miles on this trip of 2 weeks.  My brother Ted safely arrived at his house in Jensen Beach at 4:30 pm today.  Today was uneventful which is good.  The temps never got above 80 which is amazing for this time of year.  It was cloudy all day and rained pretty good a couple of times but never lasted more than 10-15 minutes.

I'm pretty tired but not alarmingly so.  My back is a little sore but not as bad as it was a week ago.  I am in good riding shape after this trip.  I had no major events, no injuries and saw some great parts of the Country I have never seen before; overall a fantastic trip.

Take care and travel.

July 1, 2021 - Atlanta, GA

We are spending our last night on the road just south of Atlanta. I should be back in Gainesville by mid-afternoon tomorrow. 

Today was a nice day of riding about 540 miles on mostly very good roads with light traffic. Of course, coming near Atlanta it jammed up but we kept moving.  Outside Memphis traffic also jammed up but for a different reason.  The I-40 bridge crossing the Mississippi River is completely closed diverting traffic in strange and annoying ways.  We were maybe 20 miles away from Memphis but things clogged up because there really aren't many options.  Overall not too bad but it's no fun sitting stopped on a warm motorcycle in full sun and upper 80s temp wearing riding gear.  But we got through it okay.

I took no pictures again today but I posted one below from earlier in the trip that may bring back some memories.

Remember the dinosaur?

June 30, 2021 - Little Rock, AR

Not a lot to report tonight and zero pictures.  Ted and I rode about 550 miles in temps ranging from the mid 70s to mid 90s. It was hot by the time we called it a day.  Tomorrow we plan about the same distance which will get us just past Atlanta.

June 29, 2021 - Salina, KS

Something is happening in little Salina, Kansas.  We are staying at a beautiful, one year old Homewood Suites hotel in the little downtown area about 5 miles from I-70. It really does not fit in the community. Also, we rode up the elevator with 3 guys who said they were from San Francisco hunting for run down hotels to turn into apartments.  Something is going in.  Could be oil, wind, solar, natural gas. Very curious.

Today was a big day and it turned out wel.  Last night when riding to see Savannah for dinner an error message came on my motorcycle indicating a computer issue and it said I could ride it to a service center. So we were at the impressive Denver BMW motorcycle shop right after their 9am opening. Two hours later were back on the road after a thorough checkout which found a disconnected wire to the radiator cooling fan.  No big deal.

After about 450 miles we landed in Salina, KS.  Tomorrow we will keep heading towards Florida. 

The Denver BMW motorcycle shop

The showroom

Our $165 per night room in Salina

June 28, 2021 - Denver, CO

It was a beautiful ride heading south from Rapid City towards Denver.  The morning was cool and the sun was out. The speed limit was 80 mph so we obliged.  Rolling hills with what look like large mounds mixed in at random. Then we would roll over a hill and look down on miles of straight 2-laned road.

I miss my regular riding partner Susie who acts as navigator and photographer while riding "pillion" on the back seat.  That's why I don't have any nice landscape shots while riding.  I could stop and take a few shots but I would never catch up with Ted.

The traffic coming into Denver was bad. Very crowded and fast. We are going to have dinner tonight with Ted's daughter. 

Ted making his new full-sized BMW motorcycle look like a mini-bike

We waited at least 15 minutes for this train to pass.  It was so long it had 2 engines in the middle of the line to keep things moving. 

Me, Savannah and Ted mug shot - celebrating Savannah's 24th birthday

June 27, 2021 - Rapid City, SD

Ted and I had an early start heading towards Mt. Rushmore. Temps weee very comfortable and it wasn't as windy as yesterday. We got there around 1:00pm and hit a major downpour on the way up to the mountain. There were crowds but not as bad as I was expecting. Lots of families.  

Tomorrow we're heading down to Denver to visit Ted's daughter. 

Mt. Rushmore

Ted lost in thought or just lost

Proof I was there

Riding in the rain

June 26, 2021 - Hardin, MT

I am sitting on the back deck of the Fort Custer Golf Course in Hardin, MT as I write this.  The temperature is in the 70s, sun is low and there is a light breeze.  We decided to leave Great Falls a day early and head towards Rapid City.  We are going to check out Mt Rushmore and then head to Denver to see Ted's daughter Savannah. 

Montana Big Sky

A real golf cart at the Fort Custer Golf Course