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Showing posts from September, 2018

AR-MO twisties, a ferry jaunt, and nightlife shenanigans

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Today is riding day!! We went across the street for breakfast then headed out to play. The sun was shining, the purrrrrr of bikes can be heard for miles, and life is good!  We left Eureka Springs with leathers on and by noon, ditched the leathers for some sunshine on our skin. We rode 143 North  out of Eureka Springs - which winds from Berryville up through farm country, over hills, and through lots of fields. From there we went into southern MO, near Branson, where there are more amazing roads with lots of corners and great views. We took MO-JJ road - which is a long windy road that offers views of Table Rock Lake.. and is also a dead end. Funny, as we neared the end is exactly when I remembered that we made this mistake last year too. O-well, great views! We double backed to MO-86, on to 65 (highway) and over to 14 East. Another twisty awesome road with minimal traffic. I was looking for the AR - JJ road, but never did find it on the way - so we ended up at Peels Ferry - which was t

MN to Arkansas in just under 12 hours - the pot of gold under the rainbow!

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 We met up at the gas station just south of the metro and headed on our way in the full moonlight and rising sunlight. We left MN at 7:30am and rolled into Ozarks in Arkansas at 7:30pm. I had heated gear on the entire day - we started out in 47 degrees (but with sunshine!) and it didn't get a whole lot warmer as the day went on. The high was only in the low 60's in Arkansas and they had major storms roll through all day. I have talked about getting heated grips for a few weeks but procrastination prevailed and I never got around to actually doing it. So, being it was chilly out and I got frostbite on my left hand 2 years ago when we rode to Daytona Bike Week (in mid March) from MN - in 9 degree temps (literally). I made it a solid 42 miles before getting frostbite on my left hand. Ever since then, my hand tells me very quickly when it is too cold to operate. So, having no heated grips, I improvised and made my own. I took two hand warmers that you shake to make warm, and I t

Gunflint Trail (N. Shore Lake Superior area) riding and hiking!

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My dad is the reason I ride - I grew up on the back of his Goldwing and we rode everywhere that the weather would allow us. I remember being on the back of the bike and waking up because my helmet whacked into the back of his when I dozed off from being so relaxed. Fast forward 10-12 years and the bug bit me hard... I look forward to going on adventures with my dad on the bikes - sometimes we camp, sometimes we stay in hotels. It depends on where the road takes us.  This year we headed north, riding the North Shore of Lake Superior up to Grand Portage and then down the Gunflint Trail. Nature and scenery are top notch up there!!  We tented this time around, staying at Grand Portage Casino Camp Ground. We wake up to an incredibly thick layer of fog.. so thick we cannot see Lake Superior.. which we are camping on the shores of! We were going to ride up to the border and walk the water falls, but considering we could not see 25' down to the lake, we likely couldn't