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Day 7 of My 5000+ Mile, 17 Day Motorcycle Ride (Cameron to Panguitch 287 Miles)

Posted on October 5, 2015 | 6 comments

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Day 7 Ride Route Cameron Trading Post, AZ to Panguitch, UT

Today is day 7 of my 5000+ mile, 17 day motorcycle ride… We are riding up US-89 & Us-89-A to Panguitch, UT via Bryce Canyon National Park. I am riding with Larry T. and Larry A. from Georgia. Larry T. sent me a picture while I was planning this trip of a bridge over a river and asked if I remembered it. Larry had mistaken the picture from one of our previous rides. I realized it was actually a bridge on US-89-A. Originally, I had planned our route to stay on US-89 but decided to add the bridge to our ride…

Leaving Cameron Trading Post

We were up early and had a good breakfast at the Cameron Trading Post restaurant. We have been staying here, at the Trading Post, for the last 2 days. We want to get on the road early to get in as many miles as possible to avoid riding in the heat we have encountered over the last 5 days of riding together.

US 89 North of Cameron Trading Post

Colorado River at Navajo Bridge

Today is a good ride, a beautiful blue cloudless day. The ride from the Cameron Trading Post to Marble Canyon was mostly scenic flat desert, straight highway with gentle curves and weathered plateau hills near the highway and in the distance.

Navajo Bridge

Native Americans selling their wares at Navajo Bridge

Larry T. and me Attaching Bumper at Navajo Bridge

The bridge I mentioned above is just 70 miles down US-89 & US-89-A at Marble Canyon. The bridge is called Navajo Bridge and spans the canyon 467 feet above the Colorado River below. There is a pullout at the bridge where Native Americans display and sell handcrafted jewelry, pottery and other crafts… There is a walking bridge across the canyon. The walking bridge is actually the original bridge across the canyon. From the bridge we got some good photos of the canyon, the river and the new bridge. The bumper on the car of one of the Native American ladies there selling her wares had fallen off and was lying on the ground. Larry T. was looking at her bumper and decided to reattached it for her. I gave him a hand and he got it attached in a short time. She was very grateful and let him pick out a couple of pieces of jewelry for his labors. Larry didn’t want to accept her offer but she insisted. I’m sure Shirley (Larry’s wife) will enjoy the fruits of his labors.

Riding Down US 89 to Bryce Canyon

Rolling Down US 89 to Bryce Canyon

Riding north the scenery was more of the same until we reached Utah. The scenery became greener, hillier and US 89 was a bit curvier. The vistas and landscapes along the route of US 89 are spellbinding with red rock canyons and mountains. There are several picturesque farms, towns, many national parks and monuments with noteworthy geography. We can’t stop at all of them but we are touring Bryce Canyon National Park today.

Visiting with fellow rider at rest stop. Photo by Larry A.

Panoramic View from observation deck at rest stop on US 89. Photo by Larry A.

At one rest stop we met a fellow biker and swapped stories. We took pictures of the panoramic views from the observation deck and of some of the flowers before heading on down the road.

Riding to Bryce Canyon

Cactus Flower at rest stop on US 89 in Utah

As in the past 5 days it is getting hot again. When we reached Bryce Canyon it was in the 90’s (F) 10 degrees warmer than normal for June. It was a welcome stop to get off the bikes and stretch our legs and take in the majesty of the views of the canyon and take pictures. Because of the heat we skipped stops and headed to our home for the night in Panguitch. By the time we reached Panguitch the temperature had climbed to triple digits again, reaching 104(F)…

Us at Bryce Canyon

Bryce Canyon

After checking into our motel, we visited with a couple of fellow bikers who made us feel like 3 young bikers. The older biker was in his seventies and still staying young riding… It’s always nice meeting like-minded people and even better when they are bikers like us…

Riding up US 89 to Panguitch, UT

Tomorrow we ride to the Ogden, UT (via Salt Lake City and Temple Square) up US 89. Come follow along and enjoy the ride over the next 10 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…

Hera are other rides you may like too…

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

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Posted in Motorcycle Touring Logs

Tagged Bryce Canyon National Park, long distance motorcycle touring, long distance motorcycle travel, Marble Canyon, motorcycle ride, motorcycle riding, motorcycle road trips, Motorcycle Touring, motorcycle travel, motorcycle trip, Navajo Bridge, scenic motorcycle rides, travel

Day 11 National Park Motorcycle Ride – Lethridge, AB to Billings, MT

Posted on August 22, 2013 | Leave a comment

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Lethbridge, AB to Billings, MT ride map

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Leaving Lethbridge, AB Canada early morning.

Today is day 11 of our national park motorcycle ride. Over the course of 16 days we will ride some of the best national parks, historic sites and national monuments in the U.S. and Canada (Pikes Peak National Park, Grand Teton National Park, Yellowstone National Park, Glacier National Park, Banff National Park, Little Bighorn National Historic Site, Devils Tower National Monument and Mount Rushmore National Memorial). Come follow along as we ride one of our dream rides on our bucket list.

Today we are riding to Billings, 404 miles of just riding. There are no planned stops except for the occasional photo, gas and food. For the most part, the trip was miles and miles of Great Plains farm and ranch land… Some may consider this boring but I actually liked it. Having grown up on a farm in Texas I do appreciate this type of living and do see beauty in this landscape. You can see for miles and miles with the occasional view of the mountains in the distance to the west. Cattle and crops all along the way. These people work hard and do provide the good food that we enjoy on our tables all across the Canada and the U.S.. If you are riding out this way it is a good ride… maybe not as spectacular as the mountains we just rode through but beautiful in its own right…

Visitor’s Center at Milk River, AB Canada

At Milk River, AB we made a pit stop at the visitor information center and visited a bit with the young attendant who answered several of our questions. Larry asked about the town of Milk River’s namesake. He figured it to be a big dairy area… When The Lewis and Clark’s Expedition passed through here they described the river as appearing to be the color of a cup of tea with milk. Apparently it looks like more milk than tea… She also answered our curiosity about what the many fields of yellow we had seen since leaving Banff. She said they are most likely Canola. Now we know where all the Canola oil’s source comes from…

Queued up at customs head back to U.S.A.

At the border crossing it was a bit busier at this crossing than when we entered Canada. There were several cars in front of us but the line moved fairly smoothly and quick. I was wondering if all the customs agents were so matter-of-fact with no sign of personality as this one was… It seemed Larry was taking a bit longer to be processed through. I asked him what took so long and if Mr. Personality was as personable with him. Larry said the agent was until he finished with the questions… then the agent loosened up a bit when he asked about Larry’s Victory Vision. That’s what took so long… 🙂

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More farm and ranch land on our way to Billings, MT

Our route today took us through another of the larger cities in Montana. Great Falls is the third largest City in the state with a population estimated to be 58,950 according to the 2011 census. Great Falls takes its name from the series of five waterfalls along the upper Missouri River basin.

Through out our National Park motorcycle ride we have crossed paths of The Lewis and Clark’s Expedition and Great Falls is another place they have been. We may need to retrace their expedition as a motorcycle ride someday. I will look into that when I return.

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Billings, Montana from cliffs over the city

We rode into Billings from the cliffs that border the city to the north and east. The cliffs to the north being 500 feet (150 m) tall and to the east of downtown, the face rises 800 feet (240 m). The views from the cliffs give good views of Montana’s largest city, which had a 2012 population of 151,882. The GPS routed us through the older part of the city to our motel. It had a quaint and inviting air to it that made me want to explore Billings’ history a bit more and check out some of the many sites in and around Billings. We will have to leave that to another time on a return trip.

Today was another good ride with more great scenery and good weather, a bit warmer today but still a good ride…

For more pictures of our ride click here and don’t forget to like “The Texas Rambler” Facebook page. Look for the “Subscribe to Texas Rambler via Email” at the bottom right column to receive notifications of new posts by email. Also, please take some time and leave us a comment. We always love hearing from y’all…

Tomorrow will be a leisurely ride to Gillette, WY via Little Bighorn Battleground. So until then, we will get a good night’s rest. Ride safe and I hope we will see you somewhere on the road…

This has been one amazing ride for Larry and me. Check out the other post from this ride using the links below…

Day 10 National Park Motorcycle Ride – Banff National Park Canada

Posted on August 17, 2013 | 8 comments

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Banff National Park Ride Map

Today is day 10 of our national park motorcycle ride. Over the course of 16 days we will ride some of the best national parks, historic sites and national monuments in the U.S. and Canada (Pikes Peak National Park, Grand Teton National Park, Yellowstone National Park, Glacier National Park, Banff National Park, Little Bighorn National Historic Site, Devils Tower National Monument and Mount Rushmore National Memorial). Come follow along as we ride one of our dream rides on our bucket list. Today I will finally get to see Banff. When I was working, I did a lot of work in Canada. While in Canada, I was told to visit Banff many times. I never seemed to have the opportunity… I was always putting out fires (fixing problems) and never had any time to spare. The best thing about finally seeing it for the first time is I am riding through it. The best way to see Banff is from the seat of a motorcycle!

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Nice cool clear morning heading to Banff National Park in Canada

We took Hwy 1 from Golden, BC to Lake Louise Drive in Banff. Lake Louise was the one place I was told I must see.. We were not disappointed. Lake Louise is an alpine lake, known for its sparkling blue waters. It is situated at the base of impressive glacier-clad peaks that must be seen to be appreciated. It has been said, “A pictures is worth a thousand words” but I say the heck with pictures… You need to experience this to fully appreciate its beauty.

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Early morning Banff National Park Canada

While stopping at the Information Center we were told we needed to visit Lake Moraine too. They said it was even better than Lake Louise. It was a 9 mile/14 km ride from Lake Louise. Lake Moraine is 6181 feet/ 1884 meters above sea level. Lake Moraine is a bit higher in elevation than Louise with many scenic views on the ride up. Parking at the top was a bit of a hassle. We ended up parking in a couple of triangles by a walkway. It was perfect motorcycle parking and we didn’t get in anyone’s way. Once I saw the lake I realized I had seen pictures of it before. The lake seems like something unreal or made up. Both Lake Moraine and Louise are a deep-turquoise color with beautiful glacier covered mountains reflecting from its surface. These lakes must be seen to be fully appreciated.

Lake Louise Banff National Park Canada

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Lake Moraine Banff National Park Canada

Glacier at Lake Moraine Banff National Park Canada

If you are into hiking, there are many trails in Banff and is probably the best way to see Banff up close and personal. The rest of our ride through Banff was filled with beautiful views of the surrounding glacier covered mountains with some of the most pristine sparkling clear streams all along our route. While on our ride we were told about rides we needed do while in the area. Because of time constraints we were not able to do them… but when we make it up this way again I will include them in our plans. Several people told us we must ride up to Jasper. We were told the scenery is outstanding and is a must see. The other place is highway 40 between Highway 1 and Longview, AB. It is an outstanding motorcycle ride. So if you are headed up that way you may want to check these out and include them in your travel plans

Riding down Hwy 1 Banff National Park Canada

As we rode closer to Calgary the landscape started to flatten out… a noticeable contrast to Banff but pretty in its own right.

Riding through Calgary, AB Canada with rain clouds rolling in.

It’s been a long time (10 years or more) since I’ve been to Calgary. It too has probably changed a lot since then. I would have liked to spend some time in Calgary but we have miles to go before we sleep… so we rode the outskirts of Calgary on our way to Lethbridge, AB, our destination for the day. As we headed south from Calgary the scenery was mostly farm and ranch land… Very nice farm and ranch land… As we left the Calgary area the clouds got darker and we did encounter some misty rain from time to time. We seemed to have ridden between several of the rain showers that were all around us all the way to Lethbridge. The clouds and rain showers did keep the temperature down for some nice riding.

One of the many farms between Calgary, AB and Lethbridge, AB

Riding past one of the many rain showers on our way to Lethbridge, AB

Riding into Lethbridge we rode into a canyon and over the Oldman River. We had a good view of the railroad bridge above the canyon. It was a very impressive sight. The bridge is a bit of good engineering and construction… A good end to a very good day… Today was another good day of riding (296 miles) through one of Canada’s best National Parks. Scenery in and out of the park was outstanding with good weather all the way. I even enjoyed the ride from Calgary to Lethbridge with its scenic farm and ranch land. I enjoyed seeing some nice farm and ranch houses and barns as well as some that have seen better days. I always find myself wondering what life must be like living there. Farming and ranching is a great life that takes a special kind of people to do it… It takes a lot of hard endless work with uncertain weather and economic futures always ahead. A gamble when you do everything right… but very rewarding in the end. Having grown up on a cotton farm in Texas, I admire farmers and ranchers everywhere.

For more pictures of our ride click here and don’t forget to like “The Texas Rambler” Facebook page. Look for the “Subscribe to Texas Rambler via Email” at the bottom right column to receive notifications of new posts by email. Also please take some time to leave us a comment. We always love hearing from y’all…

Tomorrow we will be riding to Billings, Montana. There are no planned stops, just riding more scenic Great Plains .So ride safe and I hope we will see you somewhere on the road…

This has been one amazing ride for Larry and me. Check out the other post from this ride using the links below…

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Tagged 1, 2, 40, Alpine, Banff, banff lake louise, Banff National Park, banff park, barn, bridge, Calgary, Canada, Canyon, farm, Glacier, Golden, great motorcycle rides, houses, Hwy, Jasper, lake, lake louise banff, lake louise banff canada, Lethbridge, louise, Moraine, moraine lake banff, moraine lake banff national park, moraine lake banff national park canada, moraine lake in canada, Motorcycle, motorcycle ride, motorcycle riding, motorcycle road trips, Motorcycle Touring, motorcycle travel, motorcycle trip, national park, Oldman, railroad, rain, Ranch, ride, river, scenic motorcycle rides, travel, views

Day 6 National Park Motorcycle Ride – Yellowstone National Park

Posted on August 6, 2013 | Leave a comment

Yellowstone National Park

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Early morning north-east side on Grand Loop Road in Yellowstone National Parl

Today is day 6 of our national park motorcycle ride. Over the course of 16 days we will ride some of the best national parks, historic sites and national monuments in the U.S. and Canada (Pikes Peak National Park, Grand Teton National Park, Yellowstone National Park, Glacier National Park, Banff National Park, Little Bighorn National Historic Site, Devils Tower National Monument and Mount Rushmore National Memorial). Come follow along as we ride one of our dream rides on our bucket list.

Today we are spending the day riding Yellowstone National Park. There is much to see and do. The park roads form a figure 8 through the park. We rode the entire figure 8 and saw as much as possible.

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Picnic area where we had lunch in Yellowstone National Park

Yellowstone National Park is America’s first national park. The park’s name is derived from the Yellowstone River, which runs through the park. Yellowstone has 60% of the world’s geysers as well as many hot springs and several mud pots. The most famous feature of the park is the geyser Old Faithful. There is also mountains, rivers, lakes and a diverse wildlife, including grizzly bears, wolves, bison, and elk.

Boiling hot spring fed pools in Yellowstone National Park

These are some of my favorite places in the park…

The Lower Falls: The Lower Falls is 308 ft. high and is more than twice the height of Niagara Falls. The volume of water flowing over the falls can vary from 63,500 gal/sec at peak runoff to 5,000 gal/sec in the fall. To me it is the most spectacular sight in the park. We stopped at Artist Point to get a good view of the falls and Yellowstone Canyon. The Grand Canyon of Yellowstone is a sight worth seeing also. The falls and canyon are very scenic and offer the artist and non-artist goodsubject matter. It’s hard not to take a good picture…
Lower Falls Yellowstone National Park
Old Faithful: The most famous of the many geysers in Yellowstone, mainly because it is so predictable when it erupts. You know you will always see a good show when you visit Old Faithful… There are other geysers on walking trails at the old Faithful stop. They are short walks so you may want to visit Castle Geyser, Grand Geyser and Geyser Hill.
Mammoth Hot Springs: The features of these springs are quite different from thermal areas elsewhere in the park. Formations grow much more rapidly due to the softer limestone. As hot water rises through limestone, large quantities of rockare dissolved by the hot water, and a white chalky mineralis deposited on the surface.The location of springs and the rate of flow changes daily. What you see todaymay be different tomorrow.
Mammoth Hot Springs Yellowstone National Park
Yellowstone Lake: The lake is large and beautiful with the surrounding mountains. Today the lake was calm and like a blue mirror. Very little boat activity kept the waters calm. The lake is the largest body of water in Yellowstone National Park and is 7,732 feet (2,376 m) above sea level and covers 136 square miles (350 km²) with 110 miles (177 km) of shoreline. The average depth of the lake is 139 feet (42 m). Its deepest spot is at least 390 feet (118 m). Yellowstone Lake is the largest freshwater lake above 7,000 feet (2,133 m) in North America

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Yellowstone Lake in Yellowstone National Park

There are so many stops and pullouts with geysers, mud pots, rivers, lakes and if you keep an eye out there is wild life to be seen. These spots are beautiful and scenic in their own right and must be experienced to be appreciated. Words… my words can’t do them justice.

Yellowstone River flowing out from Yellowstone Lake in Yellowstone National Park

We rode only 174 miles today… but we saw a lot of beautiful and interesting sites. I believe there is no better way to see Yellowstone than from the seat of a motorcycle. The low was 54 degrees when we left Gardiner and reached 87 degrees while riding the park making for a very nice ride. The maximum speed in Yellowstone is 45 mile per hour and slower in a few places. This made for a slow and leisurely ride. There was some construction on the north-east part on Grand Loop Road. It wasn’t too bad but it did get the bikes a bit dirtier. If you are riding Yellowstone I would suggest getting an early start and head to the more popular sights in the park. It seems a lot of late sleepers and traffic and tourist are much lighter in the morning than in the afternoons. This is a great park and a great ride… We will be back… hopefully soon.

The Grand Canyon of Yellowstone National Park from Artist Pint.

It was another good ride back to Gardiner for our last night there. When walking to dinner we met a nice couple from Illinois. They were riding a Goldwing trike and I wanted to know how they liked it. They had some stories to tell. I didn’t write down their names and had forgotten them(I’m sorry) by the time I got to the motel. We enjoyed visiting with them very much. The woman mentioned she writes stories for their local news paper about their rides. I told her she needs to start a blog and share all their stories. I hope they read this and leave us a comment. I would like to know how the blog is going…

The sign says it all… Leaving Yellowstone National Park at Gardiner, Montana

For more pictures of our ride click here and don’t forget to like “The Texas Rambler” Facebook page. Look for the “Subscribe to Texas Rambler via Email” at the bottom right column to receive notifications of new post by email. Also please take some time and leave us a comment. We always love hearing from y’all…

Tomorrow we will be riding 407 miles to Kalispell, Montana. We don’t have any planned stops except when we see something interesting… I hope we see you down the road somewhere. Ride safe…

Here is a slide show of the days ride…

This has been one amazing ride for Larry and me. Check out the other post from this ride using the links below…

Texas Hill Country Wildflower Motorcycle Day Ride April 2010

Posted on June 26, 2013 | 4 comments

Texas Hill Country Wildflower Motorcycle Day Ride

Janet and I needed to get away, so last Monday we went riding in the hill country to see all the wildflowers. The wildflowers are really pretty this year because of the wet and cold winter we have had. It was nice to finally get out with Janet on the new Goldwing. Janet likes it better than the old bike because it is a lot more comfortable (i.e. nice big cushy seat and backrest). I’m hoping Janet will be a little more willing to ride more often and further on this bike. We have talked about riding to Arizona sometimes. I was hoping that we could ride to Mount Rushmore this September. Janet didn’t get to go on that ride and it was a fun ride and she really wished that she could have gone. We will see. Below are some pictures from our ride last Monday ride.

Hill Country Wildflowers

Yucca on cliff at LBJ Lake

Hill Country Wildflowers

Janet in the Bluebonnets at Buchanan Lake. Ain’t she cute?

We enjoyed that ride so much that we are going on a three-day trip Monday thru Wednesday. The ride will be about 570 mile thru some really scenic hill country roads and again the wild flowers should be really good again. It will be the first time we have traveled over night on the new bike.

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Bluebonnets at Buchanan Lake

Yuccas by the road

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Above LBJ Lake

If you like this post you may like the 3 day ride we took a few days later. It was a great ride with more wildflowers. Click here to see.

Ride safe.

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Tagged bike rides texas, bike trip, bluebonnets in texas, Buchanan, Goldwing, Hill Country, hill country texas, lake, lake buchanan texas, lake lbj, LBJ, Motorcycle, motorcycle ride, motorcycle rides in texas, motorcycle riding, motorcycle road trips, motorcycle texas, Motorcycle Touring, motorcycle travel, motorcycle trip, pictures of texas wildflowers, ride, scenic motorcycle rides, texas bike rides, Texas Bluebonnets, Texas Hill Country, texas wild flowers, texas wildflower, texas wildflowers, texas wildflowers pictures, wild flowers, wildflowers, wildflowers in texas hill country, wildflowers texas hill country, Yucca

Tag Archives: scenic motorcycle rides

Day 7 of My 5000+ Mile, 17 Day Motorcycle Ride (Cameron to Panguitch 287 Miles)

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Day 10 National Park Motorcycle Ride – Banff National Park Canada

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Day 6 National Park Motorcycle Ride – Yellowstone National Park

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Texas Hill Country Wildflower Motorcycle Day Ride April 2010

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