Deep in the Heart – June 28, 2022, Amarillo, Texas, USA

Wrapping up Oklahoma and heading into Texas we were greeted by acres and acres of windmills.  They were huge and we were surprised by how big these wind farms were as they could be seen throughout most of the Texas Panhandle.  Wind comprises 20% of the power in Texas and Oklahoma it provides 33%.  There is argument as to how green this technology is but none the less there is a hypnotic quality about watching these mesmerizing windmills.

We made a detour off Route 66 to head south to stay in Decatur, Texas.  Ron had connected with one of his childhood friends from West Virginia who now lives in Texas with his new wife.  It was a fun dinner and thank you to Ricky & Sue for your hospitality and showing us the town. 

We awoke the next morning to a cloudy cold day and not 20 minutes into the ride, my wish came true.  It started to rain.  We donned our rainsuits, said goodbye to the bull at Jolly’s, and braved the storm on our way to Amarillo to stay the night.  I am getting better by the way.  I got the rain suit on and off by myself this time…just not gracefully.

Our last stop as we headed out of Teas was the iconic Cadillac Ranch.  It is an art exhibit installed in 1974 by an oil tycoon and over the years the cars have been graffitied and repainted but now that the daughter that owns it simply let’s the graffiti remain as part of the exhibit.  One of the cars was even set on fire in 1991, however, all 10 cars remain.  Thanks Texas and we’ll see you next time!

Over 1,500 miles and 6 states in, Ron and I pulled into Springfield, MO last night after riding through the Ozark National Forest. It ended up a humid 96 degrees so we rode past the National Quilt Museum, crossed through IL into Missouri, and finally crossed the mighty Mississippi River. We saw a gentleman at Taco Bell proudly wearing his gun on his waste. Not exactly sure why since there is little that can kill you in the heart of the midwest other then the summer heat. Missouri is filled with mega-farms that stretch as far as the eye can see and we headed onward this morning at a milder 69 towards Oklahoma!

On our way in search of Route 66, we got to try out our rainsuits. Note to self, my rainsuit is easy to get on over my shoes and less easy to get off. Must practice. Anyway, our ride today was a contrast to yesterday and as we are clearly in the plains and they are not kidding about the whipping wind! We didn’t see any tornadoes, but we did see a sign stating “Hitch Hikers May be Escaped Inmates.” Well, good to know I guess!

We finally picked up Route 66! This is called the “Main Street of America” due to it’s historic nature helping folks move out and settle the west. It is no longer a national highway but is now owned and operated in each individual state and it has been renamed in some places. In Oklahoma…it’s even a toll road! We made it to Oklahome City with only one thing on the agenda, the Memorial.

I don’t think the Memorial was at the top of my list of things to see but honestly, it is the most amazing thing we have seen so far and if you get the chance to visit – DO! I remember 1995 and the devestation of the bombing. 168 people we killed at 9:02am on Wednesday, April 19, 1995, 19 children were lost that day as there was a daycare center on the second floor of the building and another one nearby. Before September 11, 2001, it was the deadliest attack on US soil. The memorial includes a reflecting pool honoring the rescue workers, survivial tree honoring those who survived and were change, a field of chairs representing those who died that day.

The sole purpotrator who executed the bombing was executed in 2001 and there is an incredible documentary on this event. It tells the story of this right wing, white supremists. Even though the bombnig took place 27 years ago, The Memorial is a chilling reminder of the senseless violence we live in even today. Let me ask you, do you like what you see on main street?

Ron and I started the first few days post-Columbus in Cave City, KY. He got to do some work and we managed to not only catch the Onyx Cave Lantern Tour but also do a 5 mile hike the next day. Our Ranger for the cave tour was a riot and he made it very fun. The cave we had chosen was a a mix of both dry and wet so we got to see many stalagtites and stalagmites in addition to one I have not heard before – a helotite. They baffle scientists and they have not idea how they grow sideways against gravity but they do! It was 95+ degrees and the 55 degree cave was the perfect activity. The dry part of the cave spawns gypsum flower since it is so dry and they are exquisite!

The most interesting thing our guide told us was about “the cave wars” of Kentucky. After many years of families trying to make money off their land some got together and decided to sell. The government enacted eminent domain on the others who did not want to sell. They would grant them a sum of money and come while the family was at church and bulldoze their house to renaturalize the land for the newly named National Park! He simply warned us that not all folks in Kentucky have a positive view since many are families of the eniment domain victims. I had no idea!

Our next stop was going to be Nashville but we decided ahead of time that since it was their pride celebration weekend, and their have been threats from white supremists groups to all the pride celebrations, it wasn’t a place we wanted to be. We have planned to bike over, have lunch and walk around a bit, then keep going outside the city. In addition, all the hotels were $300+.

120 miles later we arrived in Nashville and boy, was I unprepared. The crowds were insane. Not only that, but it was a cross between Bourbon Street and Las Vegas. There were lines for most bars and mind you it was 10:30 on a Friday morning! We knew we didn’t belong here since it appeared to be halloween and all the girls chose the costume – slutty cowgirl. So to get my money’s worth, I dragged Ron off the main drag over to a few capital buildings which were lovely.

We grabbed a quick lunch at the Food Hall the headed out. Another 100 miles later we stopped in Paducah. Our fun sights today included the Fruit of the Loom World HQ, the Nashville in all it’s “glory”, Corvette Museum, and we were even on the trail of tears for a while. We wrapped up with a beer at the Thirsty Turtle.

Goodbye Ohio, Hello Kentucky – En Route to Kentucky, June 21, 2022

We have had a fun and exhausting week in Ohio visiting family and friends.  We have managed to do lunch with friends, endless happy hours, dinner dates, family visits, and even a retirement party.  In and amongst our social calendar, Ron painted and mount a new trunk for the motorcycle, perform his magic engine maintenance of oil changes etc., get a new tire and helmet for the bike, and lastly, installed a new backrest for both of our seats!   

A bit about the bike.  It’s a 2016 Harley Davidson Road King.  It’s a beautiful bike and I picked it out myself.  We found one that was a good price in Florida and Ron flew down and rode it home over the span of 2 days and 1100 miles.  It’s beautiful and I love riding with him.  I would not ride a motorcycle with just anyone but feel good since Ron has been riding since he could walk, did competitive off road racing through high school and college and had more trophies them I could count!  I love being married to a guy who is literally good at everything.  I would say our riding style falls somewhere between Sons or Anarchy and Brothers Gang which is mainly a club full of Orthodontist and Dentists.  We are mostly law abiding citizens. We do not belong to a crime ring. We wear hemlets/sunscreen/ear plugs, and just enjoy this as a means of travelling.  We rode a lot of day trips before we retired, and Ron has had a motorcycle as long as I have known him.  It also aligns well with the $5 gas prices as we can remain carless, get double the miles per gallon, and still get to do what we want, when we want.  It fits our off-season sailing plans nicely.

Thus far we started off our trip leaving Columbus for Cleveland, coming back to Columbus for a day and them completing our longest single day ride – 400 miles.  We have not joined the Iron Ass Club yet but by California they may induct us into their tribe.  After having the privilege of sharing the road today with Cornbread Express Trucking, passing through not only Campbellsburg but Big Bone Lick Ohio State Park (no lie!), missing out on the Kangaroo Petting Park and the (sadly booked – who doesn’t want to stay in a wigwam?) Wigwam Motel, we decided to stop in Cave City Kentucky for a few days of R&R and a change of scenery in our cheap but 4+ star hotel.  Hello Kentucky.

Personal Terrors – Cleveland, Ohio June 19, 2022

Let’s kick off today’s fun post by reviewing what hotel star ratings really mean.  Ron and I have gotten a crash course in this the past week as we have had two scary/icky hotels. 

1 Star – Hooker Hotel.  This was our first hotel when we hit planet Columbus.  While technically they got three stars this one breaks the rule where ratings matter and we need to note that comments are important too.

2 Star – Trailer Park.  These hotels are designated by crunchy sheets with cigarette burns in them, sticky floors, and without naming names let’s just say I wish they would not leave the light on for me.  After an extremely chilly 58-degree ride towards Cleveland, we stopped in Ashland, Ohio hoping to warm up and just grab a hotel.  Unfortunately, they were all sold out but this one.  It didn’t look terrible but 1 hours after checking in we decided we could stand it no longer and checked back out.  At least we got a refund and moved along to Middleburg Heights where we found a much better place.

3 Star – Family Central.  This is your typical stay designated by the halls being mobbed by kids typically at some sort of sporting tournament.  You have the soccer mom’s cooking the family dinner of hotdogs in their hotel coffee pots and simply hope you don’t share a wall with one of them.

4 Star – Corporate Road Warriors.  These are the hotels where everyone is expensing it and they pretty much keep to themselves leaving the common spaces largely untouched.  The upside here is there is usually a nice breakfast included.

5 Star – Land of the Rich.  I think I have only stayed on a 5 star once or twice, always on the company dime, and it tends to have an inordinate number of wealthy women who seem to do nothing but keep the onsite spa full.

Ron and I decided we fall somewhere between the 3 & 4 star hotels and if we are lucky, 4+.  See we want something clean but are too cheap to pay consistently for a 4+ however we do occasionally find one with a really good price and are most comfortable here being prior corporate travelers.  Now that we have personally familiarized ourselves with these ratings, we hope to have better luck with our hotel choices!

At least we got to top off our time with a great visit with Daughter’s #2 & #4 for Father’s Day and Ron for to face one of his fears…heights.  The kids decided we were going ziplining.  The poor guy hardly survived.  See for yourself.

A few things Sally and I have realized the past few months is we do not do well with downtime. We came from two busy careers, raised four kids and bought/built/sold several houses. Downtime is not a something we do well. We hauled Mariposa mid April, then spent a month doing boat projects to prepare for next season. The next month we spent on Jekyll Island house sitting while completing a few more boat projects. Once we ran out of boat projects the days began to grow longer and longer. At one point we decided to try and walk around the island on only the beach. That only took a few days, so then we decided to walk on all of the walking trails that spread over the island. A week later that was competed. Now what? I guess we could of attempted to swim about the island however much of that is marsh and very real idea of running into an alligator, we quickly passed on that foolish idea. It is not a very big island but in those few weeks we walked about 145 miles, dodged thunderstorms, changing tides and relentless bugs. Georga insects are no joke! If you want to check out our tracks you can see them here Jekyll Island Walkabout.

In a few days we fly to Columbus. Pull the bike out of storage, spend a week prepping it. Pack four months worth of clothes in a backpack and hit the long and windy road to the West Coast. Being homeless is not really a bad life. It does give us freedom to make the most out of our days.

We fill these walks with discussions about what is next, knowing that the end of hurricane season is another 5 months away, putting Mariposa back in the water was not the best idea. We talked about traveling to Europe to explore but with Covid & the war still lingering that was not the best choice. We could up our walking game and hike the Appalachian trail. It is a bit late in the season to make a reasonable attempt at that. We no longer have a car, so perhaps we could pick up a van and travel the US. With a bit of research, we quickly realized car prices are still insane, the camp grounds are totally full and gas prices only going up. So we shelved that idea. Out of the blue my incredibly adventurous wife suggested we ride the Harley across the US. We still own that and it would solve the issue of renting or buying a car. We have to visit our oldest daughter in Arizona so why not take it. I instantly wrote this idea off. When we purchased the Harley it was in Florida, and I remember flying down to ride it home with only a helmet and a backpack of tools. That trip consisted of 1200 miles over two days from southern Florida to Ohio, spanning the summer heat of Florida afternoons, and then navigating the late day thunderstorms followed by the cool nights in the mountains. Sounds fun right? Of coarse it does, the learning curve is small, I have ridden motorcycles as long as I have been able to walk and this seemed like the relaxing adventure we were looking for.