Monthly Archives: November 2015

Today is day 10 of my 5000+ mile, 17 day motorcycle ride…  Larry T., Larry A. and myself have ridden together for 9 days seeing some of the most scenic parts of the western US. On day 5 we turned onto US-89 just north of Prescott, AZ. Today we continue riding up US-89 to Gardiner, MT via “The Most Photographed Barn in America”, Grand Teton National Park and Yellowstone National Park.

Yesterday we met up with Larry C., my old Air Force and riding buddy. Yes, another Larry. Larry wanted to come on this ride but it conflicted with other travel plans he had made. Larry and his wife, Jo, are traveling by car with another couple, Larry S. (yes, another Larry. That’s 4 if you counted correctly) and his wife Janet. It happened that our trips crossed paths here in Jackson. We will ride/drive to “The Most Photographed Barn in America” to visit more and take pictures before heading our separate ways.  We will continue riding north on US-89 and they will be driving south on their way home to Alabama.

This morning is another beautiful riding day, a bit cooler than past days with partly cloudy skies. “The Most Photographed Barn in America” is located along with other popular photographed barns and other old buildings on Mormon Row. The barn with the Teton Mountain Range as the background has made it a symbol of the Jackson Hole Area.

To get to the barn take US-89 north from the Jackson town square for 13.5 miles. Turn right onto Antelope Flats Rd and ride 1.7 miles to Mormon Row intersection. The barn is to the left down a dirt road. We parked at the intersection and walked, a short distance, to the barn. To get to the other barn turn right at the intersection and ride 0.3 miles to the barn on the right. Across the road is a parking area.

We spent time taking pictures and visiting. It was a bit overcast, I was hoping for more sunlight so the Teton Mountains would make a better background for our pictures. “The Most Photographed Barn in America” is all I have read and seen in pictures. If in the area it is a must stop even if you don’t take Photos…

It was good seeing Larry C. and Jo again. We said our good-byes before heading our separate ways. Larry T, Larry A. and I rode on to the Grand Teton National Park visitor center. We got our entrance passes and checked out the park information and the displays. We rode up this way 2 years ago and now we are back. The scenery can’t be beat and is indescribable, pictures are worth a thousand words but seeing it from the seat of a motorcycle is worth a million words. We made just a few stops, while riding thru the Grand Teton’s, to stretch our legs, grab a snack and to re-hydrate. One of our stops was at Signal Mountain Lodge on Jackson Lake. There is a restaurant, gift shop, lodging with a beautiful panoramic view of the Teton Mountains across the mirror smooth Jackson Lake. Truly great photo opts… Before leaving the Grand Teton National park we made one more stop along side Jackson Lake to take more pictures of the mountains and lake. Leaving Grand Teton National park, we were back on US-89 headed north to Yellowstone National Park. Riding up US-89 we could still see Jackson Lake to our right for many miles. Leaving Jackson Lake we paralleled Snake River for several miles before we left it behind. Then we rode past Lewis Lake, another pristine mountain lake reflecting more beautiful scenery. Many years ago there were large forest fires in and around Yellowstone and today we can still see the damage caused so many years ago. The trees are making a slow comeback but they still have a way to go to reach their former grandeur…

Entering Yellowstone we continued riding US-89 to Old Faithful, our first stop in Yellowstone. As usual, every time I have been to Yellowstone Old Faithful had just erupted before we got there so we had some time to kill to stretch our legs and grab a cup of coffee and a cookie in the Old Faithful Inn. From the moment we rode up to the Inn it was a totally impressive log multi-story sight! We sat out on the observation deck, drank our coffee, ate our cookie and waited for Old Faithful to erupt. It was worth the wait… We got some great pictures of Old Faithful from a good vantage point. Afterward we checked out the Inn. Once inside you just didn’t know where to look as there was so much to see. The lobby is massive in breath, width and height and all constructed from lodge-pole pine and rhyolite stone. In the lobby is a massive stone fireplace with an equally impressive pendulum clock on its face. If you are afraid of heights, exploring the upper floors may be a bit unnerving while peering over the low log railings.

We eventually made our way back to our bikes, only to find I had been robbed! Over the years, we have travelled far and wide and we have always been afraid someone may take advantage of all the stuff we store on our bikes that can’t always be locked away. Well, it finally happened. If you want to know the rest of the story click here.

Leaving Old Faithful we back tracked to the southern entrance to ride up the eastern side of Yellowstone. We made several stops by Yellowstone Lake to take pictures before checking out the Lower Falls of the Yellowstone River. It was crowded and finding a parking spot was a bit of a chore. After leaving the Lower Falls the temperature was starting to rise as in days past but didn’t make it to triple digits. Traffic was getting heavier and it was moving slowly. I have never seen traffic like this in Yellowstone before and it did distract from what should have been a great ride. Traffic continued to be heavy as we made our way to our home away from home for the night, Gardiner, Montana. Two years ago we rode this route in July 2013.  Traffic wasn’t anything like what we have experienced today. Normally the ride from Mammoth Hot Springs is a nice ride following the Gardiner River into the town of Gardiner. As you ride you can hear the rushing water of the river as it tumbles down toward Gardiner but today it was hot with really slow-moving traffic and at times, stopped traffic.  We were ready to park the bikes and wide down for the day…

Tomorrow we continue our ride up US-89 to Great Falls, MT. Come follow along and enjoy the ride over the next 7 days… I hope we see you down the road somewhere. Ride safe…

If you liked this ride post, you may checkout the other post from this ride below…

• Introduction to our Motorcycle Ride (5000+ Miles In 17 Days)
• Day 1 of 5000+ Mile, 17 Day Motorcycle Ride (Georgetown, TX to Canyon, TX 458 Miles)
• Day 2 of 5000+ Mile, 17 Day Motorcycle Ride (Canyon, TX to Ft. Sumner, NM 173 Miles)
• Day 3 of My 5000+ Mile, 17 Day Motorcycle Ride (Ft. Sumner to Eagar, NM 343 Miles)
• Day 4 of My 5000+ Mile, 17 Day Motorcycle Ride (Eagar to Payson 231 Miles)
• Day 5 of My 5000+ Mile, 17 Day Motorcycle Ride (Payson to Cameron 222 Miles)
• Day 6 of My 5000+ Mile, 17 Day Motorcycle Ride (Cameron to Grand Canyon to Cameron 130 Miles)
• Day 7 of My 5000+ Mile, 17 Day Motorcycle Ride (Cameron to Panguitch 287 Miles)
• Day 8 of My 5000+ Mile, 17 Day Motorcycle Ride (Panguitch to Ogden 287 Miles)
• Day 9 of My 5000+ Mile, 17 Day Motorcycle Ride (Ogden to Jackson 235 Miles)
• Day 11 of My 5000+ Mile, 17 Day Motorcycle Ride (Gardiner to Great Falls 226 Miles)
• Day 12 of My 5000+ Mile, 17 Day Motorcycle Ride
• Day 13 of My 5000+ Mile, 17 Day Motorcycle Ride (Great Falls to Billings 402 miles)
• Day 14 of My 5000+ Mile, 17 Day Motorcycle Ride (Billings to Spearfish 332 miles)
• Day 15 of My 5000+ Mile, 17 Day Motorcycle Ride (Spearfish to Alliance)
• Days 16 & 17 of My 5000+ mile, 17 Day Motorcycle Ride (Alliance to Home)

Hera are other rides you may like too…

• National Park Motorcycle Ride – 5542 Miles in 16 Days 2013
• Blue Ridge Parkway Motorcycle Ride June 2014
• Big Bend & Carlsbad Caverns National Parks Motorcycle Trip September 09
• Our First Big Bend Motorcycle Ride
• Big Bend National Park Motorcycle Ride April 2007

I hope we see you down the road somewhere… Ride safe…