Made it to Tent STOC

I got on the road this morning at 6:00 am which isn't easy for a retired guy. I stopped for breakfast in Flagstaff and then headed up highway 89 to my final destination which is a campground just outside Bryce Canyon National Park. I arrived about 2:30 pm.  The weather was great with plenty of sunshine and temperatures in the 80s.

Here is home for the weekend. There will be a couple dozen other motorcyclists here soon. I'll go into the park tomorrow.

Ride from Tent STOC in Utah to Loc STOC in Wisconsin

I'll be leaving in the morning on a ride to my brother Kevin's motorcycle gathering called Loc Stoc in Spring Green, Wisconsin. The map shows my intended route which will first take me to another gathering near Bryce Canyon, Utah called Tent Stoc this weekend. From there I will travel on I-70 to Kansas City where my other brother Steve lives. After spending a few days there the 2 of us will ride up to Spring Green. After that event is over I plan on visiting an Aunt and Uncle in Cedar Grove, WI and from there go to Cedar Falls, Iowa to visit my parents and see old friends. Eventually I will go back to Kansas City and then at the end of June ride back home via I-40.

Friday and Saturday

Friday Steve left us to head home but not before having a flat tire in Cripple Creek. We got him back on the road and he made it back to Kansas City on Saturday. Frank, Bruce and I rode to the top of Pikes Peak. The traffic was terrible going up the mountain with the flat landers moving at about 10 mph. I had to stop a couple times to let my engine cool down and at one of the stops I tipped over when the road was cambered so much on a corner that I couldn't get up enough speed to get going. I broke a foot peg and scuffed up some trim but all and all the bike faired pretty well. After that excursion we headed to Durango and hit a lot of rain going over Wolf Creek Pass and again between Pagosa Springs and Durango. We arrived at the KOA around 10:00 pm.
Saturday we took a leisurely ride up to Silverton and back to Durango where we wandered around town checking out the saloons. We will head out in the morning back to our respective homes and loved ones.

For me it has been great spending time on the road with Steve in Oregon and all the other guys in Colorado.

Steve fixing his flat tire

Top of Pikes Peak

Durango night

Killing Saturday night in Durango. More pictures from the last 2 days to come later.

Rainy day Thursday

Kevin, Nate and Greg headed home early this morning leaving 4 of us to continue on. We started the morning out by riding Trail Ridge Road through Rocky Mt. Park where we saw a huge herd of Elk. That picture probably only shows 1/3 of the herd. Afterwards we kept moving South and rolled into Georgetown where we walked around a bit and had an ice cream cone for lunch (I know hard to believe). It started raining so we suited up for it and rode over Guanella Pass which took us into Grant. We checked out the families cabin and again headed out in the rain. After a slight detour we made it to the KOA in Cripple Creek around 5:00 pm. Of course the skies cleared and we had a beautiful view of the surrounding mountains. We went into town for a buffet dinner at one of the casinos. It will be chilly tonight seeing as how this campground is located at over 10,000 feet. In the morning Steve will start his journey home while Frank, Bruce and I will work our way to Durango where we will spend the next 2 nights before returning to Arizona on Sunday.

Tuesday and Wednesday

Tuesday we rode to a KOA East of Walden up on highway 14 in the North Central part of the state. This morning we continued on highway 14 through the Cache la Poudre river canyon to Ft. Collins then back through the Big Thompson Canyon on 34 to tonight's KOA in Estes Park.
On highway 14 we had several moose cross in front of us and we saw some river rafters enjoying the day.

The group

Frank's wife Kim wanted me to post a group picture so folks could see who we all are on this trip so here it is. From left to right we have Nate, Kevin, Greg, Steve, Jim, Bruce and Frank. I hope this helps you out Kim.

OK the joke worked. Here is another picture of us (Nate, Steve, Greg, Kevin, Jim, Bruce, Frank) and one on the porch of a KOA Kabin in Buena Vista. I'm taking the picture so I'm not in it.

Also a selection of scenic shots taken today as we traveled from Montrose to Buena Vista via Aspen.

Nate, Steve, Greg, Kevin, Jim, Bruce, Frank

waiting at a construction zone

Doing what we do best

Where's the banjo player?

Sunday

We had a nice ride today through a neat canyon and over the Grand Mesa ending up at. KOA in Montrose. We got rained on a little and it was chilly for a few miles on top of the Grand Mesa road but otherwise a decent day to ride.

Saturday meet up

Steve and I arrived at the KOA in Ouray, CO and met up with Kevin, Nate and Greg, an hour later Frank and Bruce showed up. We will all be together for the better part of next week as we tour around Colorado. After 2 weeks and over 3,500 miles I experienced the first rain only 6 miles from this campground. I imagine we'll get more rain this week but at least all this week we have KOA cabins reserved for each night, no more tents.