It seemed like he was gone for a really long time. Unfortunately, between the extra-busy load at work and a rather long to-do list of chores, I didn’t have much time to kick back, relax, and enjoy the single life. Not that I would prefer being alone all of the time, but brief intervals of being able to do what I want to do, or not do, according to my own schedule and/or preferences does have its perks.
Anyhoo… I was a happy girl when Mike pulled into the garage on Sunday.
In all, he rode 10,116 miles (16,280 km) in 14 days. He was gone for 17 days, but spent a day in San Diego with Shannon (our eldest) and her boyfriend, Chris. Then, after making his way north to Washington, he spent a couple of days with Amy (middle kid), her husband, TJ, and the grand kids. (Riding to Spain to visit Eric (our youngest) and his wife, Kelsey, is not an option.)
He didn’t take nearly as many pics as I would have. But he did capture some especially for me.
Look closely and you’ll see his motorcycle in front of that sign.
Then, a couple days later, he shared this pic of him with the Babe he found in Rumford, Maine.
Ok, it was some other guy’s Babe.
Those selfies made my day, of course.
He and I stayed in touch via text messages and phone calls, and we entertained each other with random pics during his trip. Like the next one.
He could’ve just said, “It’s raining. Again.” But pics are more fun.
It pretty much rained on him, more on than off, from around Wallace, Idaho (near the Montana border) to Madawaska, Maine. It was cold, too. He wasn’t a happy traveler. But he persevered. He didn’t really have a choice, though, did he?
At least it wasn’t like the torrential rain he drove through in East Texas. Or the tornado-spawning thunderstorm he sat out in the wee morning hours on May 25 in Del Rio, Texas.
He knew, but didn’t tell me at the time, that that tornado hit about six miles (9.65 km) from his hotel.
That fog was courtesy of Lake Superior. He says it looked much thicker in person.
He did come home with a pretty interesting tan.
And here he is with me, shortly after his arrival back at the Virginia homestead.
Now we can get back to relative normalcy.
I wonder what’ll be next?
If you enjoyed following along and wondered how the tracking was accomplished, here’s the scoop.
He used the SWConnect for iOS phone app and the SpotWalla personal location manager. You can learn more on the SpotWalla site.
I think I’ll try it out on my next adventure. 🙂
Fantastic ride, Mike!
Love the roadside seflies. You’re corrupting the poor man. 😉
Fuzz, he did it for me. 🙂
The images did make me happy.
Well done what a ride out.
I’ll have a good read of the blog on my tablet later.
TT
A great trip (though the “real NW corner” was missed. Maybe on the next trip 😉
Richard, agreed! Yesterday, when he said to me that he’s not sure how his bike could get any dirtier I said, “Ride to Alaska!” He told me that the three miles or so of dirt (construction zone) on the Trans Canada Highway was enough to convince him that a big-ass bike like his doesn’t need to be on the Dalton Highway (is that the right name?).
Dalton Hwy, he’s right. Folks have ridden all the way up on Goldwings and Harley’s but only in dry weather. The Alaska Hwy would be no problem except for boredom. It’s all paved except for construction areas.
Wow, he really rode the distance. That is over 722 miles per day average. Good thing he has the comfy bike.
I enjoyed the virtual tour with him. I agree with Fuzzy, you’re corrupting him – he found all those roadside oddities for you.
I know, B. That’s a lot of miles. I’d be wiped out after a day. If I were REALLY corrupting him, he’d have taken lots more pics. 🙂
Quite the mileage ramped up in a bit over two weeks time. I’d like to take that route and spend three or four months doing it the slow way round 😉
Good to hear he’s back safe and sound.
I’m with you, Sonja. He missed seeing an awful lot of stuff.
Way to go, Mike! What a freaking awesome ride.
Mike was around Fargo one of the times I checked his progress, and it got me wondering: He had just ridden some torturously straight (and presumably flat) stretches of asphalt–hell on earth for most motorcyclists. Did he simply get sick of those stretches, or did he find them (maybe their scenery) interesting and engaging in their own way?
There is no normalcy for you two!! Glad you had a great adventure Mike!!
All –
I’m working on a “guest post” ride report.
I’m on day 12 now, and hope to be finished after the weekend. I’ll try to make sure that I answer all of your questions.
Mike
I love this, that Mike did the ride he wanted to do! I am with Kathy, would much rather take loooonnnng slow trips, but the hubs would do this, I think. It’s not on his bucket list or anything, but he would still probably like to do it.
Looking forward to Mike’s guest post…it’s probably there now, so I am going to look!
Cheers, Lynne