This is a very long Post covering 14 days and will take a few visits to consume (includes 18 short video clips).
The Highlight is the
The Highlight is the
The Majestic Volcanic Yellowstone National Park with its Geysers and "paint pots" - scroll down if you are only interested in this.
A quick preview of some other highlights
The waterfall at Yellowstone
The waterfall at Yellowstone
Duration 25"
Shooting a semi-automatic AK47
Riding the Rapids on Snake River
We left Banff after a great golfing experience in the best of sunshine and set off on a big trip back to the US. Our plan was a major stopover in Yellowstone National Park (Montana and Wyoming)before heading back to Reno, Navada
Leg1 of return trip - Distance to Yellowstone 920 Miles.
Total Distance this trip to date 2,655 Miles (4,282K)
Total Distance this trip to date 2,655 Miles (4,282K)
" As we leave Lake Louise -this is the section of road were I have seen the most wildlife in the Park so I am hopeful that we will see a bear or two along the way. Eugene would really enjoy that and I have been pretty positive about his chances. As we are driving along I notice that all the rivers we encounter are running quite full and I assume there was a heavy snow year as well as some spring rain. It is only when we get back to Reno that I get the news that there has been massive flooding in southern Alberta and the road we took on our way to golf has been closed with portions actually washed away. No bears, but we do encounter a number of unusual overpasses. These look almost like artificial tunnels built across the highway with the tops heavily landscaped with trees and other native vegetation.
I stop and point these out to Eugene who does not have a clue what they might be used for. They were built while I was living in Calgary and were the subject of some controversy. The theory behind their design was that the bear population of the Park was being hurt because the busy Trans-Canada Highway acted as a barrier to the free movement of animals from north and south movement within the Park. These overpasses were specifically designed to allow all the Park’s wildlife to cross the highway without having to contend with vehicle traffic. The design was very expensive however and that led to the controversy. At the time I was there, critics of these wildlife parkways claimed that there was no evidence that any animals of any type had actually been documented as using any of the bridges. I do not know if that has changed in the years since but would not be surprised if these crossings are not just a monument to good intentions. I guess when you reflect these certainly would not be the worst use of government funds. At least the goals are laudable if ineffective. In any case the highway has not attracted any bears, moose, elk or other wildlife so Eugene is disappointed but we still have Yellowstone Park where the bears are legendary."
"The round of golf took a bit longer than we had planned and by the time we were back on the bikes and heading for Calgary, we were cutting it close on making it to our dinner on time. I had planned on staying in Calgary for a couple of days but things were backing up and in order to make sure we had plenty of time for a comprehensive visit to Yellowstone, I cut this short so we only stayed a few hours. I arranged to meet some old friends for dinner. Mike Bader and his partner Tanya, Kaulin Melnyk, George Curnew and his partner Brenda were joined by another friend from the Calgary days, Jack Scown and agreed to meet Eugene and I for dinner at Earl’s. Riding though town to the restaurant I was greeted by numerous new buildings but the overall impression of the city was much the same as when I left a number of years ago. The dinner confirmed by feeling that what I miss most about Alberta is the people. The place is beautiful in spots but the weather is the pits. My friend Art Price used to say that he would put the 10 best weather days in Alberta up against any other place on earth. I had to agree with him but the problem was that there are only about 10 great days a year, which leaves 355 poor to crappy ones. It is great to catch up with my old buddies and see that they are all well and happy. "
We had a very pleasant evening and I forgot to take the iphone out of my pocket to take a picture - soo unusual! The following day we set off for Waterton National Park in southern Alberta near the US border.
We have breakfast in a cafe which has a picture of Moraine Lake near Lake Louise which I refused to visit beacuse it would have caused us to be late for our tee time in Banff.
Bob exclaims
"Look what you missed!"
"Eugene and I are back on
the road early the next morning and dodging the clouds on our way south heading
for “Head Smashed In Buffalo Jump”.
Bob explains that the indians had neither horses of guns when they went hunting buffalo.
This is one of a number of sites throughout the plains where the Indians would drive herds of buffalo to the edge of a cliff where the momentum and weight of the animals would drive the leaders off a cliff to their death. I explain to Eugene that before the Europeans became a significant presence in the Americas that there were literally tens of millions of buffalo ranging freely over the continent from western New York to the Pacific. It is almost unimaginable that within a single generation wide-spread slaughter of the animals by whites drove the buffalo or American Bison to the brink of extinction with total populations estimated as low as 1,000 before careful husbandry by concerned private individuals and ranchers saved enough stock for their numbers to once again be in the hundreds of thousands. A real success story even if most of these animals are in protected preserves such as Yellowstone Park.
The Indians were able to use the buffalo carcass for food, clothing and a range of implements.
After enjoying a buffalo burger at the Head Smashed In Interpretive Centre, we once again head south for Waterton Park and the US border. I am hoping that we can stay at another of the grand old hotels. This time the Prince of Wales which is located on a spit of land, which juts out high above Waterton Lake which runs north and south with the southern end in the United States’ Glacier National Park. Hearty tourists have enjoyed the views from the lobby of the Prince of Wales for over 100 years, as the age of both the building and the elevator will attest.
15" video of approach to Hotel
Waterton Hotel Arrival from eugene murray on Vimeo.
You can see the hotel in this photo -perched on a hill.
views down the lake from the hotel
And in the morning - not very sunny - but still glorious - the view from one side
and from the other
The next day we make another aborted run in light rain up the Red Canyon in the hope of sighting a bear. Another vain hope as it turns out but a scenic ride nevertheless.
Video 2 minutes - as we fruitlessly go Bear Hunting and reflect on our leaving of Canada
Bear Hunting in Waterton from eugene murray on Vimeo.
We cross the border into Montana
The open plains "home on the range" of Montana and Wyoming are so different to the mountains of Alberta, the rainforests of Washington State and British Columbia.
Crossing the border into the US once again we head for the turnoff where I had planned we would take the “Going to the Sun Highway” across one of the passes of the Continental Divide. Unfortunately there are still several meters of snow up in the pass and the road will not be open until July. This was a disappointment but we have some pretty spectacular scenery along the alternative route that lessens our loss.
Crossing the border into the US once again we head for the turnoff where I had planned we would take the “Going to the Sun Highway” across one of the passes of the Continental Divide. Unfortunately there are still several meters of snow up in the pass and the road will not be open until July. This was a disappointment but we have some pretty spectacular scenery along the alternative route that lessens our loss.
We met a lot of bikers along the way but frankly somewhat fewer than I had expected. Whenever you stop and there are other riders around you normally will get into a bit of a conversation even if it is only where are you from and where are you going. We met a few guys like us; old geezers out for a long ride but mostly you meet middle-aged or younger individuals out on an adventure. I was surprised at the number we ran into who were headed up to Alaska but two stood out. These were both newer riders who were on what I thought were totally inappropriate bikes for taking on the Alcan Highway. One guy was from Missouri and was riding a small Ducati racing bike and the other was a fellow from Ohio who was on an Aprilla. Both of these are very high performance racing bikes made in Italy and neither is built for comfort. We met Mr. Ohio at the Wal-Mart parking lot in Pincher Creek on our way out of Alberta. He was already complaining about his back and my surmise was the worse was yet to come. I guess we will never know for sure but I certainly suspect these two will ultimately return home greatly the worse for wear and sporting some very unhappy stories of their adventures. I am really glad Eugene and I have more sensible rides even if the drivers might no always be.
BOB TALKING BIKE TALK
A couple of days later we met two other riders when we stopped for gas in Browning, Montana. One was a 63 year-old riding another Ducati and having the audacity to claim that he actually enjoyed riding it for hours on end. I think this type behavior is the same that drives some young people to drive a large screw through their nose and then claim that it really doesn’t hurt. I do not understand it but think that these opinions are best left unchallenged. His friend was another old guy with an aged BMW 1200R, which was the bike that I had before the Triumph. I loved the comfort of that machine even though the only thing it really did well was go 80 miles and hour in a straight line. The guy actually tried to tell me he thought the Beemer was really not that bad in the twisty bits but he could not really do it with a completely straight face. Nevertheless it is still a fun bike but one you do not see often on the highways; better for Sunday afternoon cruising in the cities.
I had heard rumours that there were a few "Cowboy Developers" in Ennis - but I did not realise that they had taken over the town!
We spend the night in a little wide place in the road called Choteau. Pronounced by the locals as (Show toe). Not much going for this place but Eugene goes out to pick up a pizza since there is no delivery service and the pie turns out to be one of the best meals we are to have on the entire trip. Watch out Dominoes if the guys from Choteau ever decide to expand.
THE PIZZA DELIVERY MAN
We stopped for a break in a "saloon" in a small crossroads called Wolf Creek. I was really conscious of being in Cowboy country with the soundtrack of "The Virginian" constantly coming to mind. Although it was Rodeo time in many of the places we passed through we never actually got to see one.
The caption under this poster in the saloon read "There were a helluva lot of things they didn't tell me when I hired on with this outfit.
We made better progress than we had expected except for a short period just outside of Helena, the Capital of Montana, where we looked to be riding straight into the heart of a fierce lightening storm. The lightening was frightening enough but was also accompanied by occasional heavy bursts of wind-blown hail, fortunately of small size and not sufficient volume to cause ice to build up on the roadway. I put the hammer down and we are going about 85 mph in the hope that we can outrun the storm which looks like it is headed right into our path. Both of us have some anxious moments but gradually we begin to pull ahead of the heart of the storm and the lightening and the hail both subside so that we can back off a bit and get closer to the speed limit. Our goal is the small town of Three Forks, which will put us about half way to Yellowstone. We cross the missouri River and once we get there we are well ready to get out of the wet clothes and into a hot tub but there are only a couple of motels in the town and neither looks like one we would want. After a bit of looking we find the Lewis and Clark Inn. The Lewis and Clark expedition came through this part of Montana in 1804 on their way up the Missouri River. It is quite amazing to consider that the expedition walked the entire way from where we are spending the night all the way to the Pacific Ocean and Fort Clatsop that we had visited a couple of weeks ago.
After a great steak at the old Hotel that had been completely renovated and turned into a fine restaurant and a good night’s sleep in a warm bed we take off the next morning in good spirits. It does not take long for these to be beaten out of us. The temperatures are brutally cold, by far the coldest we have encountered so far. As we climbed higher into the mountains, they fell further and were accompanied by a light drizzle and we could see the snow accumulating at elevations that were only a couple of hundred feet higher than we were. I was very uncomfortable but was mostly concerned that the snow levels would drop and we would be faced with icy conditions. I was not quite sure what we could do if that happened since there were very few towns around where we could shelter and it would be madness to try to ride in such conditions. We only had to contend with the cold and the wet until we were about half way to our destination of West Yellowstone when Eugene roared by me and then slowed to a stop along the highway. His hands were almost completely frozen and he told me he simply could not continue riding any further due to the pain in his fingers. There was not shelter nearby so we simply huddled by the road, shivering while Eugene held his hands under his armpits in the hope that they would slowly warm up.
Me with my frozen hands - by the way that contraption on my helmet holds the iphone for taking videos as we drive along. We got great amusement from people asking us - Is that a solar panel? a radar detector? oh and - isn't that a great way to listen to music on your iphone?!
"He finally got to where he thought he could go on and we rode to the next settlement where there was a roadside bar that looked open. It was and we quickly went inside to get out of the weather and hopefully warm up a bit. After about an hour we decided to push on. At this point I think I was in worse shape than Eugene and was not only really cold but also struggling with the breathing. Back on the bikes, we finally made it into West Yellowstone and were able to stop for lunch and warm up. It was till quite early in the afternoon since we had only covered about 120 miles that morning. But they were among our hardest.
The restaurant we stopped at was right next to a place that offered the public the chance to, “shoot a machine gun”. Eugene was immediately animated and could not wait to give it a try. I was going to let him go on his own while I continued to warm up but finally decided that I had to see him give the automatic weapons a try. By the time I arrived in the store he had already selected an AK47 as his gun of choice and picked his target as well. I accompanied him onto the range and was taking video of his firing. At the first shot I jumped so high that I flipped the iPhone into the air and just barely was able to catch it but was able to get a few minutes of the shooting. He actually did much better than expected and put all the rounds into the target. I think anybody who has a dispute with “Deadeye Eugene” when he gets back to Ireland had better watch out.
Shooting an AK47 from eugene murray on Vimeo.
After we finished shooting up the place, we went back outside and checked the weather. It was still quite cold and it looked to me like we were in for more rain. I just could not face any more time on the bike in such conditions and suggested to Eugene that we should rent a car and drive to our next hotel, which was inside the Park at the north end of Lake Yellowstone. This was still some 80 miles away and there were a couple of important park locations that I wanted Eugene to be sure to see along the way. There have been few times I have enjoyed riding in a car more that I did that afternoon. It was a pleasure to see the wonder Eugene experienced at the Paint Pots (see pics below) and the Old Faithful Geyser.
THE PAINT POTS
Old Faithful from eugene murray on Vimeo.
THE PAINT POTS
WE DROP BY ONE OF YELLOWSTONES LANDMARK GEYSERS - THE OLD FAITHFUL , so called because it erupts every hour. We were licky that another big geyser which is not as regular had a big eruption while we were there - were we lucky or were we pissed?
Old Faithful from eugene murray on Vimeo.
When we got back the area where we were staying - we had a lousy dinner in the cafeteria of the Yellowstone Lake Lodge cafeteria and a wonderful warm night in one of the cabins that surround the Lodge.
The
next morning dawns much warmer and the clear skies bode well for a better
day. The first thermal feature we
encounter as we drive our warm car up from Lake Yellowstone is the Mud
Volcanoes. This is one of my favorite
locations because the views of the boiling and roiling mud are so strange and
slightly menacing. The appeal is
somewhat diminished by the amount of hydrogen sulfide in the air, which smells
just like a gigantic deposit of rotten eggs. Eugene scampers all over the site while I take a leisurely
and slow walk up to the largest pool.
Fortunately the gas, while noxious, does not seem to be effecting my
breathing too much. As we are standing
on the wooden walkway that allows visitors to look down into the bubbling caldron,
Eugene pulls out his iPhone and asks me to explain what causes this kind of phenomena. I take up my usual pedagogical stance
to begin and then realize I do not know shit about mud volcanoes, which I
freely admit on camera. I hope Euge
can get that clip into the blog somehow.
As a citizen of our host country, I have lots of opportunity to talk
about some of the wonderful places we have encountered on this trip and the
last. I suppose it looks like I
pretend to know a lot about the US West and while I always freely admit that
much of what I think I “know” may be wrong, I am seldom reluctant to share those
possibly erroneous opinions with others.
As those who know me can attest; I may not score too well in the
accuracy category but always do well in delivering with conviction.
For a change we have to rely on the Public Notices
This may be a huge tourist attraction
- but it could ruin your breakfast some day!
Is the world's largest super-volcano set to erupt for the first time in 600,000 years, wiping out two-thirds of the U.S.?The super-volcano beneath Yellowstone National Park in Wyoming has been rising at a record rate since 2004
It would explode with a force a thousand times more powerful than the Mount St Helens eruption in 1980.
Spewing lava far into the sky, a cloud of plant-killing ash would fan out and dump a layer 10ft deep up to 1,000 miles away.Two-thirds of the U.S. could become uninhabitable as toxic air sweeps through it, grounding thousands of flights and forcing millions to leave their homes.
This is the nightmare that scientists are predicting could happen if the world’s largest super-volcano erupts for the first time in 600,000 years, as it could do in the near future. Yellowstone National Park’s caldera has erupted three times in the last 2.1million years and researchers monitoring it say we could be in for another eruption.They said that the super-volcano underneath the Wyoming park has been rising at a record rate since 2004 - its floor has gone up three inches per year for the last three years alone, the fastest rate since records began in 1923. The Yellowstone Caldera is one of nature’s most awesome creations and sits atop North America’s largest volcanic field.Its name means ‘cooking pot’ or ‘cauldron’ and it is formed when land collapses following a volcanic explosion. In Yellowstone, some 400 miles beneath the Earth’s surface is a magma ‘hotspot’ which rises to 30 miles underground before spreading out over an area of 300 miles across.Atop this, but still beneath the surface, sits the slumbering volcano.
Bob explains the Geology of Yellowstone and the catastrophic consequences of an eruption
Duration 5 minutes.
Expert geologist David James who has worked a extensively in the USA endorses Bob's views
(p.s . Coincidentally - David's daughter Catherine is married to Bob's son Jason. We joined them for a BBQ in their lovely home in Truckee overlooking a huge valley and forest area - near Lake Tahoe. Also there were their 3 beautiful children Brooke, Amber and Cian - with Bob's wife Nancy and David's wife Joan. )
Our next stop is at one of the truly iconic sites of Yellowstone. This is the Yellowstone Falls and Canyon. We take a short walk down a path that leads to a wonderful and awe-inspiring view of the both. The power of the Falls is undeniable but it is the steepness and depth of the canyon that strikes you the most.
As we are taking in the views I approach a gentleman of approximately our advanced age who is walking slowly down the pathway dragging an oxygen bottle on a trolley. I approach him and share the fact that I also have some breathing challenges. Our man turns out to be an old cowboy from central Wyoming who at 76 is visiting the Park with his grown daughter. He threatens to, “talk our ears off’” and then proceeds to do just that. He has a colorful history and was a rodeo rider and later a rodeo clown and then a professional ranch manager but now goes out into the high forests around his home and uses his trusty chainsaw to cut firewood for a living, which he does with a couple of portable oxygen bottles strapped to his back. After he begins to wind down a bit we make our excuses and head further down the path but take away a real appreciation for his grit and determination not to be slowed down by his disabilities. I guess I can take a bit of a lesson from that old cowboy.
Bob meets a Fellow Sufferer from eugene murray on Vimeo.
Take a look at what a rodeo Clown Does!
<
Regardless of the disappointment the Chief Joseph road turns out to be much better than I had expected and we really enjoy the many scenic spots all along the road toward Cody.
Although it looks like a painting - Eugene took this picture of two metal cutouts of two Indians on horseback at the high point of the pass which was marked as an important escape route for the Nez Perce Indians led by Chief Joseph.
We arrived in Cody in time for Eugene to buy new gloves in case we encounter any more bitterly cold weather on the return bike trip. The town was named after its founder
William F Cody, better known as “Buffalo Bill”. Cody was probably most famous for turn of the 20th
century creation of the very popular “Buffalo Bill’s Wild West Show” which
attracted tens of thousands of individuals in cities throughout the Eastern US
and also toured in Europe. Driving
down the main street I am struck by the unique feel of the place. It has avoided the fate of Aspen,
Jackson Hole and Vail where the influx of truly wealthy individuals have turned
the towns into also a postcard perfect caricature of themselves. I mean they just look almost plastic
and everything is just a bit too cute and newly scrubbed. Cody on the other hand looks a little
bit down at the heel. Not every
building sparkles with new paint and perfect trim, some actually appear a bit
worn and well used. For me, this
makes the place a lot more interesting and attractive. Thee main street is filled with real
shops, selling items that might actually be needed by someone and is not just
an upscale mall with luxury brand name stores such a Gucci, Prada, Coach and
Bulgari stuffed into perfectly restored shells of what were formerly actual
shops selling real products and services to normal people. Leaving Cody we pass by the actual Irma
Hotel, which was originally started by Buffalo Bill himself and named after his
daughter.The road out of town and toward Yellowstone Park follows the same course along the Shoshone River that tourists have been taking since the Cody was established. It is quite a scenic drive and also passes along the Buffalo Bill reservoir created by the Buffalo Bill Dam. As you can see, Bill was a very big deal in this part of the country.
Once
we are back in the Park we have to traverse its entire length in order to get
back the West Yellowstone, which is located just outside the Park boundaries
and just over the State Line in Montana rather than Wyoming. I keep my eye peeled for bears but only
spot a number of elk grazing along the roadway. I ask Eugene if he would like to stop and get some pictures
but he tells me, “No I’ve seen enough damn elk”. He does not seem to tire of the buffalo however and we
encounter several herds along the road.
We stop at a couple and Euge gets out the car to film the animals up
close.
I think I have a responsibility to Avril so I tell him to at least keep the car between himself and the closest beast so that he will have at least a short amount of time to try to get back into the vehicle when he gets charged. Fortunately none of the animals are particularly aggressive on this afternoon. I am struck by how large the number of buffalo are in the Park. When we encountered our first buffalo just outside of Head Smashed-In Buffalo Jump in Alberta there were only three or four individuals and I was telling Euge how they formerly numbered in the tens of millions but were almost driven into extinction by wholesale slaughter in the last half of the 1800’s. I estimated the current population in the hundreds of animals but it turns out I was wrong: Again! The species has been brought back from an estimated low of around 1,000 to a current population estimated at half a million animals. A lot of which are in Yellowstone. We did stop at one place where a lot of cars were pulled to the side and people were watching something on the other side of a small river that ran along the road. Euge asked what they were looking at and they told us there was a wolf pack just on the other side. I did not see any but I think Euge got at least a glimpse of one. I cannot remember ever seeing a wolf in the wild but I did hear a lot of them when we were living in Alaska.
I think I have a responsibility to Avril so I tell him to at least keep the car between himself and the closest beast so that he will have at least a short amount of time to try to get back into the vehicle when he gets charged. Fortunately none of the animals are particularly aggressive on this afternoon. I am struck by how large the number of buffalo are in the Park. When we encountered our first buffalo just outside of Head Smashed-In Buffalo Jump in Alberta there were only three or four individuals and I was telling Euge how they formerly numbered in the tens of millions but were almost driven into extinction by wholesale slaughter in the last half of the 1800’s. I estimated the current population in the hundreds of animals but it turns out I was wrong: Again! The species has been brought back from an estimated low of around 1,000 to a current population estimated at half a million animals. A lot of which are in Yellowstone. We did stop at one place where a lot of cars were pulled to the side and people were watching something on the other side of a small river that ran along the road. Euge asked what they were looking at and they told us there was a wolf pack just on the other side. I did not see any but I think Euge got at least a glimpse of one. I cannot remember ever seeing a wolf in the wild but I did hear a lot of them when we were living in Alaska.
Once
we get back to West Yellowstone it is getting late and I am anxious for us to
reclaim our bikes from where we left them parked on the street across from the
rental agency. It is Saturday
night and in some of the smaller towns in the West, that can get pretty
rowdy. As usual we have not
made any advance motel reservations and the first two places we check are sold
out so Eugene urged me to take a couple of rooms at the first available
place. I was pretty tired so I
agreed easily. However it meant
that we got to spend that evening in just about the worst place we experienced
so far.
The Final leg - back to Reno, Nevada via Idaho and Utah
Distance 1,000 Miles. Total Distance this trip to date 3,655 Miles (5,882K)
I want Eugene to see the town of Jackson Hole and get a view of the Grand Teton Mountains so we set out the next day for the short ride to the high-end tourist destination of Jackson. The weather has warmed up considerably from our arctic experience of only two days before and we have a very pleasant and enjoyable ride of only just over 100 miles.
We stop for a snack and Eugene was wowing about his Huckleberry Milkshake which had a special wide straw to accomodate the large huckleberries therin.
These video shots from the bike show the beauty of the Teton Mountains
Towards Teton from eugene murray on Vimeo.
Once in Jackson Falls we decide to take a room in one of the better places rather than our normal low-end dive. We have done this throughout the trip and when we are staying in a pricier hotel generally share a room, which we do not do at the cheaper stops. This has actually worked out better than either of initially feared since we both have a richly deserved reputation for being among the world’s worst snorers. We can attest to this from experience when we had shared a room at the Old Head Golf Course Lodge in Ireland in 2011. This year however neither of us seem to be living up to our well-earned titles of truly monstrous snorers so the sharing has not been too bad for either of us.
We decide to stay here a couple of days to take a bit of a break since we have been continually riding since Lake Louise and have had some very hard miles getting into Yellowstone. We are lucky and the weather remains delightful all the time we are in town. Jackson may be a little plastic for my taste but it is charming nevertheless and we really enjoy checking out the tourist spots around town, including the “famous” evening shoot-out at the town square.
The icon for the square are four antler arches at each of the four corners of the village park. These are quite impressive and when I inspect them closely I am suspicious that they may not be natural antlers but manufactured copies. After checking the Internet I find out this is wrong and all the arches are constructed using actually antlers that have been found around the area. Quite impressive. In fact, everywhere we go furniture and light fittings all seem to be manufactured from antlers.
I
suggest that Eugene may want to check out the river rafting opportunities which
he does and while he is reluctant to leave me to go on his own I tell him that
if I were able, I would have insisted we both go, so he certainly should take
advantage of being in the right place at the right time. He takes the raft trip in the afternoon
of our second day while I am enjoying lounging by the pool and comes back
beaming. The raft company has
taken a number of pictures which they of course sell back to you but looking at
the shots of Eugene paddling for his life in the roiling white water it is
clear he had a great time and a really unique experience.
Riding the rapids on Snake River, Jacksons hole from eugene murray on Vimeo.
That and a short run we made out of town to see the incredible vista of the majestic Tetons when we first arrived, were the high points of our visit to Jackson.
Riding the rapids on Snake River, Jacksons hole from eugene murray on Vimeo.
That and a short run we made out of town to see the incredible vista of the majestic Tetons when we first arrived, were the high points of our visit to Jackson.
The
great weather held as we were packing up the bikes to start on our ride south
the next morning. We were looking
forward to a really pleasant ride particularly after the tough ones we had
recently faced. We made a quick
stop at Jackson’s town square to get a picture of each of us in front of the
very expensive art and jewelry shop where neither of us had purchased any gifts
for those back home. Leaving
Jackson behind, we then started down US 89 toward Utah. The road runs along the Snake River,
which was good news for us since it meant that we would be passing the section
of rapids where Eugene had made his rafting run the day before. We pulled off at a wayside that
overlooked a section of the river known as the Big Kahauna. There were a couple of kayakers putting
in as we walked down the path to the overlook and I told Euge that my son Jason
had been a pretty extreme kayaker when he was younger.
A friend of his wrote a book on his experiences entitled; Beyond the Comfort Zone which featured a picture of Jason in one of the waterfalls that they seemed always to be driving their boats through, or perhaps I should say, down. Some of the routes he and his friends took made me pretty nervous but he survived, apparently none the worse for wear. More recently, three kids and more responsibility have kept his several boats hanging in the garage for the most part. The Snake River overlook gives out on some great views and I am pleased Eugene got to make his rafting run.
On the way out of Jackson Falls, Eugene spots a typical Rodeo Corral which is coincidentially located on a road called Cowboy Way - he stops to take a video of the Rodeo Bull.
The
great views and fine weather continue all along the highway almost all the way
until we cross the border into Idaho where the land opens up into mostly
rolling hills covered with grass and neatly laid out farms dot both sides of
the road. As we approach Utah
however the terrain dries out and the green vistas are replaced with more tan
and brown. We ride through Paris,
Idaho just before the Utah border.
This is the town where I got married nearly 50 years ago. The town’s attractions were so
compelling that this is the first time I have been back since then but I have
to admit to myself that the place is not quite as bad as I had recollected and
it actually seems to be going through a bit of a restoration with some new
paint and a handful of newer looking storefronts in its very small central
district.
I am looking forward to
reaching the Logan valley and mountain pass that I had driven through some
years before and remembered as being very twisty and quite scenic. It is neither as curvy or a spectacular
as I had recalled, but still a very nice section to take the bikes along. We make pretty good time for most of
the day and arrive into the college town of Logan the home of Utah State University. Eugene wants to make a little more
mileage before we quit for the day so that our next two days will not be quite
as long. I am tired but agree
without too much objection.
However once we gas up for the next 50-mile run to Ogden, the weather
hits me pretty hard. So far on the
trip we had not really experienced any really hot conditions and I am a bit surprised
at how uncomfortable the 90+ F or 35+C temperature seems to me. We manage to make it into Ogden but the
last bit of riding is hard and I am quite concerned about what we might be
facing on the upcoming days ride.
Because
of the route we are on there is really no way to avoid taking the section of
Interstate 80 from Salt Lake to Wendover, Nevada. This is a section that I have both ridden and driven many
times and cannot once remember a time when it was enjoyable. It is bad from two perspectives. First it is all Interstate highway,
which so far in the trip we have been able to largely avoid. These roads are almost always boring
because they run through the most gentle country the designers could find and
always are crowded with hundreds and hundreds of large trucks that make the
riding dangerous and cause tricky wind currents that can easily buffet a bike
around and cause difficulties for the rider. All in all, Interstates are a pain in the ass for bikers.
This particular section of Interstate
runs though the Utah salt flats that surround the Great Salt Lake and which is
largely devoid of plants, animals or people. For the 100 miles between Salt Lake City and Wendover there is
only one small outpost that consists only of a gas station and a broken-down,
faded and peeling convenience store backed by a couple of sun-scorched
trailers. These attributes are
made even worse by the fact that the temperatures in summer rarely fall below
the mid 100’s F or +40 degrees C.
That high a heat and the lack of anywhere along the way to stop and try
to cool down makes this stretch of road not only uncomfortable for bikers but
downright dangerous. In thinking about
the ride, I even consider if we might be better off to take the ride at night
but in the end decide if we stay well hydrated and take water with us to wet
our clothes that we will be OK. As
it turns out the trucks are as bad as expected but the heat is moderate and not
extremely uncomfortable.
We are
however confronted with an unexpected challenge and this is a very strong and
gusty wind that not only blows us all over the highway but also even sends the
large truck weaving back and forth.
This kind of wind can be dangerous but is always frightening especially
when you are being passed and passing these large number of trucks whose bulk
causes additional unexpected currents to buffet you around. By careful driving and by avoiding as
many of the behemoth vehicles as possible we are able to make out way into
Wendover. We have made two
stops. One was at a roadside rest
stop where I wanted to show Eugene just how desolate the county truly is and
also so he could see one of the signs that I had noticed on an earlier
trip. This is the one that advises
individuals who leave their cars to Watch Out for Scorpions and Snakes!. 
We
park the bikes in the lee of one of the Wendover casinos in order to get out of
the wind for a bit and to have some lunch. We need to decide which of two alternative routes we are
going to follow back to Reno. One
is the shortest but it is completely on the Interstate while the other is
almost 25% farther but on regular two-lane highways and much more scenic since
it winds mostly though the mountains of central Nevada. Euge opts for the longer and I admit I
am pleased even if it means a few additional hours of riding, I have had quite
enough of the Interstates. Once we
are back aboard, I am hopeful that by leaving the salt flats behind we will see
a significant drop in the wind but this proves to be a vain hope and if
anything the wind actually is a bit worse since now we are riding across its
path rather than directly into it.
I really have to struggle to keep my bike in it’s lane and keep checking
the mirror to see how Euge is doing.
As it turns out, the extra weight of his bike is working to his
advantage and he is doing better than I at handling the gusts. There is no let-up until we reach the
outskirts of Ely, Nevada which means we have fought the winds for almost 300
miles. I’m beat and head to the
best hotel in town, which I know, has a hot tub. This turns out to be fully booked, as does the one we
are referred to by the desk clerk.
You have got to wonder what is going on when this aging wide spot in the
road is filling up with people.
One of the reasons is mining.
There are several still active mines in the area and Ely along with Elko
which is a bit farther north are doing the best economically of any areas in
Nevada. Things have cooled a bit
with current gold prices at $1,200 an ounce, down from the stratospheric
all-time historic high of $1,750 an ounce of just a few months ago.
I realize we had better find something;
and quick, because the next town is still over 100 more miles away and also
without any guarantee of an available room. We finally get into a real dive called the Four Sevens Motel
and are glad to be there. I am not
breathing very well due to the exertion of the day and fact that Ely is at
nearly 6,500 feet. Eugene offers
to order a pizza for us and I crash in the room, manage to get one piece down
and am out for the night. I feel
much improved in the morning and suspect that the Mexican scramble I had for lunch
in Wendover the day before might have had more to do with my difficulties than
the altitude. 
In any case we set off reasonably early on US Highway 50 dubbed “The Loneliest Road in America” which will take us to the next town of Eureka. I am not sure that US 50 is any more lonely than some other roads in Nevada but I have to admit it is a very long way from the settled areas of Utah to the California border without many stops along the way. This title was originally from a 1950’s look magazine article whose author was from back East and could not believe how little there was along his route in Nevada and western Utah. Not having much else to hold onto, local motels and cafes have seized on the title as a way of creating interest in driving the route instead of the ubiquitous Interstates.
Mountain Lions are
not as likely to have encounters with humans as are bears and attacks are rare
although there was a case of a jogger in Banff being attacked and killed by a
cougar while I was living in Alberta.
I am coming to suspect that this stuffed lion and whatever other mounted
bears we might encounter are likely to be the wildest animals Eugene is likely
to see on this trip in spite of my belief that his chances of seeing some
examples in the wilderness were very good.
With a good breakfast in us, we are soon back on the road
and heading to the next town of Austin, Nevada. Austin
is a perfect example of a town that is slowly dying but not quite dead. It is hard to imagine that any of the
few hundred residents really and truly want to be there. More likely, the winds of fortune blew
them here and they just have not yet got up the energy to move on. The lucky ones find a way to eek a
living out of the dwindling number of tourists that find themselves on Highway
50 and the rest most likely become wards of the State in some fashion.
Except for a very few scattered ranches
surrounding the town there just is nothing else to drive an economy. The current town is but an echo of the
lively and bustling community of more than 10,000 that it was in its mining heyday. Other Nevada communities are
experiencing a bit of resurgence as mining either expands or re-opens closed
facilities. That is what is
happening to Ely, Eureka, Elko and others but not in Austin. They abandoned and decaying
buildings that line the valley floor along which the town is built give
testament to what once was and some forlornly hope may be again. We stop for a quick cup of coffee at
the first café we encounter. I
over-tip in recognition of how difficult it must be to make a living here but
other than that and a brief look around we are on our way.
You
reach a time in every trip that you are ready to be done. If you are fortunate that comes late
into the adventure when you are already on your way home because once the
realization comes, you are not going to be able to take much enjoyment from
whatever attractions may be left to you.
You are quite simply ready to be home. I come to that realization as we are riding out of Austin
but there are a couple of things I still want to show Eugene before we wash his
bike and put out the For Sale sign.
Running
down the highway out of Austin is a long slow descent from about 6,000 to 4,000
feet at Fallon, Nevada. Most of
this country are gentle valleys, covered in sagebrush with a handful of ranches
scattered along, generally located a fair distance from the road. All in all it is well qualified as lonely
county. I am looking for the
ruins of one of the Pony Express Stations that I know is somewhere not too far
from Austin. It seems fitting to
me that we end up the trip with a visit to a Pony Express landmark. 
Several months ago we had started the
trip with a visit on our first day to a historical plaque, also located on
Highway 50 but in the Sierra Nevada Mountains in California, that marked the
location of one of the Express’s rider stations. We pull into the Cold Springs Station, which is a small convenience
store, seemingly all alone on the otherwise empty valley. The Station has some metal sculptures
of Pony Express Riders.
The former Pony Express staging post was a good place to illustrate why Highway 50 is known as the Lonliest Road in America
The Pony Express is an interesting
part of US history. In the period
after the gold rush of 1849 in California and before the completion of the
railroad, the only communication between the newly admitted State and the East
Coast of the US was either an infrequent and months-long wagon train crawl
across the parries or also a months-long voyage around the Cape Horn. The Pony Express was created to provide
a quicker way for letters to be delivered. A series of almost 200 change stations were set up along the
nearly 2,000-mile route from St Joseph, Missouri to San Francisco,
California. Each station
had a permanent staff of a few individuals who cared for a number of horses
chosen for their speed and hardiness and provided accommodations for a few
Express riders. These riders would
drive their mounts hard and as fast as possible between stations; changing to
new horses at every stop. Each
rider would cover several legs before turning over his mail pouch to a new and
rested rider who would be waiting at a one of the stations. A letter took 10 days to be carried
nearly all the way across the continent.
The Pony Express lasted only for 18 months and the completion of a
trans-continental telegraph line sounded the death knell but the audacity and
courage of the express riders was already firmly in the history and legends of
the West. Another tie-in to our
trip with is the fact that William Cody, a 20 year old adventurer was a Pony
Express Rider long before he became famous as “Buffalo Bill” and long before he
founded the town that carries him name.
The former Pony Express staging post was a good place to illustrate why Highway 50 is known as the Lonliest Road in America
The only place I still want to stop
before getting home is the Sand Mountain Park located just before we get into
the town of Fallon. This park is a
series of high sand dunes, which are formed by the sand that lined the beaches
of the large inland sea, which covered this part of the West thousands of years
ago. We have already encountered
another of the features of this distant sea in the form of the red limestone
deposits that also cover much of the region and form the material of the
natural wonders of Brice Canyon National Park and the Monument Valley which we
visited on our last ride together.
The origin of Nevada Desert Sand Dunes
Nevada Sand Dunes from eugene murray on Vimeo.
The dunes are located only a few hundred years off the highway and we pull in to both see the sights and take a break from our time in the saddle. As is almost always the case the dunes are covered with off-road vehicles whose owners enjoy taking their machines up the steep faces of the dunes to the peaks where they can stop and enjoy the views of the valley before racing down to start all over again. The motor homes that serve as the base camps for these racers are scattered throughout the parking lot at the bottom of the sand mountains.
The origin of Nevada Desert Sand Dunes
Nevada Sand Dunes from eugene murray on Vimeo.
The dunes are located only a few hundred years off the highway and we pull in to both see the sights and take a break from our time in the saddle. As is almost always the case the dunes are covered with off-road vehicles whose owners enjoy taking their machines up the steep faces of the dunes to the peaks where they can stop and enjoy the views of the valley before racing down to start all over again. The motor homes that serve as the base camps for these racers are scattered throughout the parking lot at the bottom of the sand mountains.
The next leg of our ride will take us all
the way back to my house. The day
has covered a lot of distance but somehow does not seem to either of us as a
hard day of riding. Perhaps the
bittersweet nature of coming to the end of a grand adventure. There is always a sense of relief and
pleasure at having made an ambitious journey and come through without mishap or
injury but the pleasure is tempered by a sadness that once again we will have
to return to our everyday lives and not wake up with the anticipation of
finding out what lies around the next corner.
P.S.
I have had a few queries about making Videos with an Iphone.
So I prepared this short clip explaining the methods I use
No comments:
Post a Comment