February 13, 2020
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| source: alarico/shutterstock |
Happy New Year! Nope, didn't blog a 'first ride' post this year...but it really happened just a few days into the new year. Now it's really time for the first ride of the year.
The ride north will be the same as it has been in years' past. Our typical stops on the way to 'The Kingdom of Nye' will probably be the same as they've always been. 😀
The Spotwalla map of the trip: Spotwalla Trip View Link
I have drawn on that Spotwalla map the generic route to Beatty, but also most of the roads we'll attempt to ride on once again.
If I've counted correctly, this will be my 11th opportunity out of 14 of these that have happened.
This blog post will be updated as the weekend progresses and time allows.
FUN!
February 14, 2020 - 5:00 am - Tucson, AZ
The ride up and thru the Phoenix area isn't one I particularly enjoy. The Interstate improvements made over the last decade has made the ride a bit more tolerable, but it's still the early morning slog up the road. Cold, but not quite as cold as it's been over the last couple of weeks. During this first leg, the sunrise begins to slowly illuminate the landscape...and with it, a bit of warmth. Brrr! Hey, not many places you can ride a motorcycle in the contiguous United States in February.
What's a bit different with the trip this time is the Loop 202 highway extension that goes around South Mountain and adjacent areas. I'm hopeful that it'll reduce the amount of bumper-to-bumper traffic that I-10 has on it just as I'm arriving into the area. We'll soon find out.
From there, the rest of the ride...typical. I'll meet up with a fellow I've mentioned elsewhere on this blog - biglefti. His annual motorcycle trips are filled with photos of places, some of which I've yet to visit.
Other riders that may not communicate (much) on the forums might also be there. We get gas & get moving...speaking of which - time to roll!
February 14, 2020 - 5:00 pm - Beatty, NV
Once again we've arrived at the epicenter of fun - Beatty, Nevada! Only two of us on the ride up, thus it was quick. Some that had arrived found their rooms hadn't yet been finished, so a bit of chatter both in the parking lot,then at dinner.
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| Lanny wanted a photo of this billboard... |
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| Legal in Nye Co., Nevada. We parked there, but that was it! |
Early evening last night... Kick stands up at 9am (as usual) - we'll wait until it gets above 40 degrees here locally.
I'll add photos as time allows.
February 15, 2020 - 7:00 am - Beatty, NV
Breakfast -'Happy Meal #1' (inside joke...) and prep for the GoPro. Looked at a few images; there should be some good ones to post here on the blog as I can.
Drop by later this evening to see what's here!
February 15, 2020 - 5:00 pm - Beatty, NV
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| Sat. morning, one of the guys who came from Florida mentioned they were headed to Lida. Since this ride really has no plan, I took an impromptu poll - sure, we'll all head that way! |
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| Ten miles or more of nothing between mountain ranges here in the Great Basin |
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| On 'the road' - why am I in the lead again? It didn't last long.... |
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| This stop is important for more than one reason... |
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| Tim (long-time participant) and his brother Gregg (nOOb) |
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| Yes,that is snow along the road! |
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| Westgard Pass - look it up in Wikipedia; interesting story about this pass. |
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| No matter where you are, this is a pretty good view. Even better when on a motorcycle! |
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| Makes a good screen-saver image... |
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| Got this one of Lanny waiting for the rest of us to come off the hill. |
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| It never gets old seeing this view up here. |
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| Yup - new screen saver image! |
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| The guys that have taken this road for the first time now discussing what they experienced over the last hour or so. Yes, in the middle of the damn road! Haha! |
We had lunch, then the ride back thru the park. A few images of that part of the ride follows...
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| Riding thru the Owens Valley in mid-February. We couldn't do this last year, as there was rain and snow happening this far north! |
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| Some roads...there's just something about them. I have a real problem with going down this road. The opposite direction? Nope, no issues. I have been kicking it down a notch or two along this road. |
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| Panamint Valley. I'm slowly beginning to feel like crap - I'm headed back - no stops for me! |
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| Right about here, with my detector screaming at me, I'm trying to let the rest know about why my detector was screaming. Motorist assist - lucky for us! |
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| Entering Death Valley - I know I'm doing good on fuel...I don't need to stop. |
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| Stovepipe Wells, CA - Civilization, camp ground, rest rooms...people! |
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| There's one section of road that's about four miles long - probably the best piece of road in my mind here in the park. Blind corners, narrow gulch the road alignment is in, and it really pulls up the hill - Daylight Pass Road! |
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| The Y in the road - close to Beatty now. |
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| State line between California and Nevada - cattle guard! |
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| Nearly the same perspective as the first image in this blog (which I borrowed...) on the outskirts of Beatty. |
A good day of riding! Dinner...and some had dessert. Some camera angles used to protect the innocent. 😂
February 16, 2020 - 7:00 am - Beatty, NV
Since we did 'the road' yesterday, we'll do the park today. The tracking is working from the get-go this morning when we depart.
February 16, 2020 - 4:00 pm - Beatty, NV
Unfortunately, only a few images from the GoPro. Last night, I'd left the camera on the bike overnight. Well, that runs down the battery to zilch.
This morning, I got it running when we got started. As long as the bike was on, the camera battery was charging. When we stopped at Artists Pallet, the camera was still running...probably until I hit the starter button; the camera stopped taking photos here. 😕
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| Leaving Beatty on a sunny and cool Sunday morning, heading toward the park. |
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| Zipping along behind Gregg as we head down Dalylight Pass Road. |
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| Quick pause while the crowd catches up - literally 30 seconds, and we keep going! |
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| Now on Beatty Bypass Rd, heading to Furnace Creek. |
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| Stop signs are optional in California, so I've heard. That's NOT true? |
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| Stop @ Furnace Creek long enough for a wardrobe change. |
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| Artist's Pallet Road |
Sadly, this is where the GoPro decided to not hold a charge.
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| Panoramic view of Badwater Basin |
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| Our normal stop here - even with a much smaller contingent, it still took over an hour. |
I didn't do so hot during the night...I was *really* sick. But, I'm 500+ miles from home. Sorry to all of those that listened to my coughing and hacking overnight.
February 17, 2020 - 7:00 am - Ride Home
I got lucky and had the GoPro run the entire ride home. Instead of static images, how about another video of the ride home.
February 26, 2020
Let's see...I've been home for a week now...
- Bike has not moved one inch since I arrived home.
- Whatever this illness is, my wife had it *much* worse. I think I'm about 90% over it, she's probably at 60%. I lost about six pounds over the last week or two.
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- I have absolutely no idea why my tracking dropped out on the way home. I'm pretty sure I didn't do anything that would have disturbed the tracking app on my phone. We *were* close to the AF base, though when it did stop. Could there have been something that interfered with the GPS receiver on my phone?
Next trip? I have no idea...
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