9-9-17 on our way to Eureka Springs.
Because work severely got in the way this year, this is the only rally we will get to. Melanie thought she was going to have to work this morning, but got everything done on Friday, so we left Saturday morning.
Melanie wanted to go through the Sandhills of Nebraska, and after a few evenings of looking at routes and times, it came down to taking the route we did to avoid some morning thunderstorms.
Melanie likes to ride near the train tracks, and the trains go right along highway 2, and she got several of them to honk this time.
The wind was fairly strong out of the south, with gusts over 25. We have ridden in stronger winds, but it isn't fun. The wind finally let up when we got near Grand Island, NE. When we got to Grand Island, we got a room at the Travelodge. The room was a streetside and the street noise was a little loud, but we have had worse. That was the worst thing about the room. When we got unpacked, we went for food and ate at the Texas Tbone Steakhouse that was on the back side of the motel, and the food was delicious! A little spendy, but there was more than enough, we went away full!
466 miles, with wind all the way.
Day 2, a little family time
Today we went from Grand Island, NE to Mayetta, KS to visit Melanies niece. We hadn't seen her for a couple of years, and it was on our way, soooooo.... we imposed!
The day was windy all day again, and it started out as rain, so we messed around in Walmart waiting for the rain to move on. We again chose a route that would keep us driest, and that ended up being I-80, a road Melanie doesn't like because it is so busy, but it did help us skirt the rain.
A note here, our Motochello bike communications was giving us both fits, so we ended up not using them, just shutting things off. Today I am really regretting spending all that money on this system. The Autocomm system worked much better, but the speakers aren't as good. This was the most frustrating part of the day, without a doubt.
We actually spent the night at the Prairie Band Casino and Lodge. It is a VERY nice place.
We spent several hours visiting, and had a great time. We really enjoy visiting with them, and got a tour of their house. It is an old farmhouse with lots of character and great old hardwood floors throughout, the kind of place we both love.
245 miles, mostly dry, just a little moist in spots.
Day 3, a small diversion for our other passion.
We slept in, and enjoyed the incredibly comfortable beds in the Prairie Band Casino. After a late start and an excellnt $4.99 breakfast buffet we finally got on the road. Our diversion was to Chanute, KS at Kansas RV. They have a smaller 5th wheel I wanted to look at. After looking at it, we decided the only thing we didn't like was the residential fridge. We boondock too much to not have a propane fridge in our RV. We left their and were on our final leg to Eureka Springs, AR. We love this area, and the group that always gathers here, and we had to miss last year because of work. When we got there, I thought there would be very few people there, but I was surprised at the number of "regulars" that were there already. It definitely made it worth coming down a day early.
324 miles, dry, very little wind and very little traffic.
9-12-17, day 4
We made our required trip to Lamberts in Ozark, MO. The food was excellent again, and we went away full, again. After we left there, we went to Bass Pro Shops. It is the largest in the country, or maybe even world. After we wandered around for a while, we realized we have been there before. This time we watched the fish feeding show, and it was kind of fun and educational, with the diver talking about the different fish he was feeding. It was a fun day with
Hotsauce, Margo and Hancock. His real name is Will Smith, he is from the Omaha area, and he if fun to be around, and he said he will be back again next year. There might have been some alcohol involved with him getting the nickname of a superhero that drinks...... .
It was a nice loop, this area has GREAT roads. Almost better than the Black Hills.
9-13-17, day 5
An easy day, we went to Turpentine Creek, a large cat "refuge" where they take lions and tigers that people think would make good pets, until they realize they get big. Some people are just simply morons.
Almost everyone that is coming is here now, there were a surprising number of people here when we got here on Monday afternoon
9-14-17
Not much riding today, lots of visiting with people we don't get to see often enough. We went down town and ate at the Oasis, another must do when we are here, the food is always outstanding. There were a couple of surprises for us today. Mark and Amy Fulcher showed up very late, and we stayed up to greet them, it was well worth it seeing Mark soing so well after fighting cancer. The other surprise was the Millers showed up. Melanie was so happy she was texting Denise getting regular updates on when they would arrive. Tom bought a nearly new BMW R1200RT, so now I am not the only BMW here.
We had a group meal at the Forest Hill Resturaunt. It is a buffet, and nearly the whole group made it.
9-15-17
After a late night of drinking and visiting, and staying up to see Mark and Amy, Melanie slept in, and I went on a small ride around town, then got breakfast at McDonalds for us. I also got some for in the morning so we can get going. Sadly, this is coming to an end. They always go too fast.
Here are some pictures I have taken at various times throughout the week.
A panorama of the Kaw Pasture
Hmmm, they match. Sandy said something about a threesome, but Skid wasn't around.
Denise wasn't liking having her picture taken with helmet hair, but we all get it. Well, almost all of us.
Tom is pointing out a water spot on his nearly new bike.
We ride by this place every year, so I thought I would get a couple of pictures of the ES&NA line equipment.
The inside of the Oasis. Google shows it as being permanently closed, but I can prove it isn't. This place is much better than there old location.
Here are some pictures from the wonderful meal we had thanks to Hotsauce and Margo, and Dave and Sharon.
Here our chefs are checking on things.
These were some amazing ribs.
People are starting to gather around the great odors of meat smoking. If you click to get the bigger picture, you will see that Sandy already has her food. She does have a reputation.
Tom found a new drink from Mickey D!
I think Lanny is trying to take a picture of a bunch of cats.
Melanie didn't think this would turn out, since it was dark out.
Tomorrow morning we head for home. It will be two long boring days, but the previous week has made it all worth it.
9-16-17, The Road Home
We both woke up when it was just getting light out, so we were ready to go about sunrise. It was a chilly morning, but some of the views across AR 62 were beautiful, with the fog down in the valleys, and we were above the fog with the sun coming up.
The wind was light until we got almost to Omaha, then the wind changed, the temperature dropped from the upper 70s to the mid 60s in the course of two miles. We had been going about 150 to 160 miles between gas stops, and we had to go to around 120 because the wind was so strong. My on bike mileage went from 46 for the trip to 43, in just about 200 miles.
We got to Mitchell, SD while it was still light out, about 10 and a half hours later. We stayed at the Budget Inn, after checking several motels that were booked full. The motels away from the interstate all seemed to have rooms available. We ordered a pizza from Marcos, and it was delicious.
The motel is older, but nice and clean.
9-17-17, Home
That means work and work around the house.
We had a mostly good day, except for a pretty strong side wind the last hundred miles. It was also very cool. As in 42 degrees when we woke up, so we messed around and went to the grocery store near the motel for a coffee and breakfast at the deli. It was ok, not bad, but not great. The temps stayed in the 50s to low 60s all day.
We had a mostly good day, except for a pretty strong side wind the last hundred miles. It was also very cool. As in 42 degrees when we woke up, so we messed around and went to the grocery store near the motel for a coffee and breakfast at the deli. It was ok, not bad, but not great. The temps stayed in the 50s to low 60s all day.
Here are some other blogs that are worth looking at, and I want access to because I always forget their addresses.
Sherms blog
Lannys blog
Skids blog
