The KLR650 Motorcycle: Ride America [12 Nov 2005|02:07am] Somewhere outside Los Angeles, near a place called Temecula, I decided that I couldn't deal with Southern Califonia anymore. I found myself sinking into the same depression that had caused me to flee Chicago. The multi-lane, traffic-filled, concrete super-highways flowed through a seemingly endless suburban strip-mall landscape. "Watch the sky," wrote Alana. The sky was heavy with ominous clouds. A cruel wind blew damp off the Ocean; I was tired of being wet and cold; no love came my way from SF. Maybe it was best to save the Pac NW for the Spring? I decided to alter my course: I took 79 to 74, and ran through the breathtaking beauty of the San Bernadino National Forest. And then it was all Interstate: Fallbrook, CA - Odometer: 4367 - Date/Time: Nov 8, 13:59 Austin, TX - Odometer: 5754 - Date/Time: Nov 10, 16:28 1387 miles (2232 KM) in 50 hours and 29 minutes. Counting the distance from San Diego, and the time lost to the Border Patrol stops, I did two 700 mile days of riding, back-to-back. For me, on my lightweight, single-cylinder motorcycle, that was a lot of riding. It was a good experience. Having made an effort to travel on two-lane State and County roads on my route to the Pacific, it was an interesting contrast to "burn ass" at high-speed along I-10. October 31 - November 5, The road from Texas to California: I entered New Mexico's southeastern region, near Carlsbad. The land felt exposed: open to the heat of the day and the cold of the night - swinging 40 degrees (F) in temperature through the course of any given 24 hour period: ( Read more... ) I had entered Navajo Territory: thenavajotimes.com and nps.gov/nava/nav.htm. The outskirts of the Painted Desert and Monument Valley: ( Read more... ) I got a hotel room in Flagstaff. The Days Inn East, Flagstaff, kicked ass. I got clean; I got warm. Route 89A, heading southwest, was awesome. Sedona - only a (relatively) few miles from the area of the Grand Canyon and Painted Desert - represented a radical change in environment: city-data.com/city/Sedona-Arizona.html. Mixed forests of Pine and Oak thickly covered the steep slopes and creek-filled valleys: Further along 89A, I discovered Jerome: theasylum.biz/azpubreview.htm, azjerome.com/. That city, Jerome, hangs on the side of a mountain - as San Francisco poises on its hills. TWISTY ROADS filled with motorcycles galore: Pictured above: Santa Fe, New Mexico - 285 - 84 - Abiquiu - 64 - Chama - Dulce - crossing into Arizona - 160 - 89 - Flagstaff - 89A - Sedona - Jerome - Prescott. That is the portion of the ride that I would do again, in a heartbeat. 28 comments|post comment

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