Author: Matt Quinn

What an adventure! Eddie and I met in Middletown, NY on Friday, August 9th around 7am. We began our trip in the rain and rode about 300 miles before it cleared up.

We mainly cruised down I-80 with Denver, Colorado being our first destination to see Eddie’s cousin and our friends that moved out there.

From Denver, we headed through the Rocky Mountains over Guanella Pass and then Independence Pass and continued until we reached Moab, Utah. We hung out for a day in Moab before continuing to Zion National Park.

On our way to Zion, we rode through Capital Reef National Park and then onto Scenic Bypass 12, which was an amazing road! We also stopped and saw Bryce Canyon National Park which was cool with all its amazing rock formations.

We made it to Zion, rode through the park, and did two little hikes. Zion is another amazing park that is worth checking out. This was the western most point on our trip.

From Zion, we headed to Page, Arizona to stop and see Horseshoe Bend before continuing to Monument Valley and Four Corners Monument, which is where Arizona, Colorado, New Mexico, and Utah all intersect.

The next planned stop was Pigeon Forge, Tennessee, but before heading straight there, I wanted to hit Texas, Oklahoma, Arkansas, Louisiana, Mississippi, and Alabama. I’ve never been to Oklahoma, Louisiana, Mississippi, and Alabama. Eddie has never been there either, nor was he ever in Arkansas or Texas. So, we got to check those states off the list!

We finally arrived in Pigeon Forge, TN and rode through Great Smoky Mountain National Park and into North Carolina to ride the Tail of the Dragon, which is an infamous motorcycle road.

From there, we didn’t entire Blue Ridge Parkway, with the exception of about 50 miles due to a road closure. That was amazing! The views were incredible for all 479 miles.

Once we finished the parkway, we headed home. Before heading straight home, we stopped in Gettysburg for lunch and saw some cool historical monuments. Even though it was brief, it was definitely worth the stop.

We arrived back in Middletown, NY two weeks later on Friday, August 23rd.

We completed about 6,200 miles, totaling about 195 hours of ride time, and averaging about 415 miles per day. We rode through 22 states, excluding New York. We saw a moose, hit rain, avoided some big storms, hit one big storm, rode through temperatures ranging from about 50°F to over 100°F, reached a peak altitude of 12,095 ft, almost ran out of gas twice, hit a cloud of bugs, and crossed two time zones.

States we hit: Pennsylvania, Ohio, Indiana, Illinois, Iowa, Nebraska, Colorado, Utah, Arizona, New Mexico, Texas, Oklahoma, Arkansas, Louisiana, Mississippi, Alabama, Georgia, Tennessee, North Carolina, Virginia, West Virginia, and Maryland.

It was another incredible motorcycle trip and I can’t wait for the next one! Thanks for following along!

Friday, August 23, 2024

It was our last day on the road so we were planning on making it home by the end of the day. We left Fishersville, Virginia and decided to skip Skyline Drive because it would’ve taken too long. So, we just hopped on I-81N. The GPS showed it was going to take about 7 hours to get home and since we left a little later than we anticipated, we decided to just cruise along. The nice thing about I-81 is that it parallels the Shenandoah Mountains for a while so there are nice views.

Eddie and I have never been to Gettysburg, so we were planning on stopping there. As we were leaving to start the day, we found Appalachian Brewing Company and put it into the GPS. We were schedule to be there around noon.

As we got closer towards Gettysburg, we came to Hagerstown, Maryland and got off the I-81 and got on I-70E. We followed that for a little bit until Beaver Creek, MD and took route 66N to 77E through Catoctin National Park. We weren’t expected to be riding through any more mountains so it was a nice little ride.

We continued through the park and onto route 15N, crossing into Pennsylvania, and into Gettysburg. As we got into Gettysburg, there were open fields and a lot of historical signs and statues. It was really neat, especially not knowing where or how the route was taking us. We passed the State of Pennsylvania Monument and decided to take a little ride through there.

We got off the bikes and walked around the one monument and took in the scenery. It was kind of surreal reading some of the plaques and knowing what happened there. There’s definitely a lot of history and I’d like to go back and learn and see more, but we didn’t have time. It was pretty neat though, Eddie found a brass plaque for the 26th Infantry, and saw there was a private, Michael Quinn, which was my father’s name. That was cool to see!

From there we stopped at the Appalachian Brewing Company for lunch. I had a delicious spicy chicken sandwich while Eddie got fish and chips, which also looked really good. We didn’t stay too long because we still had about 4 hours of ride time to go before making it home.

We took route 15N until we reached Harrisburg, PA and got back onto I-81N. Unfortunately it was busy so we hit some traffic. Traffic is never fun on a bike as I’ve mentioned in another post, so we crawled along until we saw what started it. On the other side there was someone that was towing a trailer and the trailer hub caught fire. They were in the highway trying to direct traffic to keep people away from the fire.

The traffic finally cleared up once we passed that incident and we followed the interstate for about 120 miles before reaching I-84E in Scranton, PA. From there we knew we only had about an hour and a half to go. It was the home stretch. We took I-84E until Middletown, NY where we parted ways on route 17.

We finished the day with about 435 miles and each got home around 6:45. It was nice to finally be home and not have to worry about anymore long days of travel. As much fun as these trips are, the highway riding can get boring, especially after a few hundred miles in a day. My butt needed a break from the seat. I think I’m going to upgrade my seat before my next trip! Haha

The whole trip was about 6,200 miles in roughly 193 hours of ride time. We averaged around 415 miles per day.

Google photo album: Day 15

Thursday, August 22, 2024

We got up and got ready for the day. Before leaving, we had breakfast at the lodge and realized there was a nice view. When we arrived the night before, it was too dark to notice the view. Their breakfast was amazing compared to the standard hotel breakfast we have been eating, so this was a nice treat. Ellen came back over to talk to us some more. She was showing us photos of her first motorcycles and telling us she’s been going to Big Lynn’s Lodge for years to meet up with friends. Unfortunately, we were on a tight schedule, so we didn’t check out any of her suggested routes in the area.

We got back on the parkway and continued north. We weren’t sure where we would finish for the day, but we knew we had to get a lot of miles in if we wanted to make it back home Friday, August 23rd. We were seeing signs that there was a road closure, but we kept riding. When we reached mile-marker 261 in Glendale Springs, NC, there was a sign that the road was closed and only local traffic was allowed through. So, we got off the parkway and followed the detour along route 18 through Sparta, NC until we were able to get back on the parkway, near mile-marker 217.3. We bypassed about 40 miles worth of the parkway.

We got back on the parkway and continued until we reached the outskirts of Roanoke, Virginia. By that time we were hungry and looking for a place to get lunch. We found a place with good reviews about 15 minutes from the parkway called “Fork in the Alley” which was pretty good. This was not far from mile-marker 121.5, which is the exit for route 220.

After having lunch, we knew we had a good 3 hours before finishing the rest of the Blue Ridge Parkway, so we just cruised along until we got to the end. Most of the parkway is 45mph. There are areas that are faster but there are areas where you can get stuck behind slower drivers enjoying the view and taking it slowly around all of the tight turns. It’s not like out west where most of the posted speed limits are 65mph and higher, so those 120 miles could take hours.

When we got to the end of the parkway in Afton, Virginia, we stopped to look for places to stay for the night. We found a hotel and nearby sports bar in Fishersville, VA which was about 10 minutes away off I-64. It was too late in the day to do any of Skyline Drive, which is another scenic route. It is basically a 105 mile continuation of the Blue Ridge Parkway that goes along the spine of the Appalachian Mountains in Shenandoah National Park.

We finished the day with about 360 miles which took 11.5 hours.

Google photo album: Day 14

Wednesday, August 21, 2024

Today the goal was to start making our way home by taking the Blue Ridge Parkway. The Blue Ridge Parkway runs 469 miles through the Appalachian Mountains from Cherokee, North Carolina to Waynesboro, Virginia. It’s a National Parkway that’s also known as “America’s Favorite Drive”.

We left Pigeon Forge and back to the Tail of the Dragon. We never stopped the day before at the gift shop they had and we wanted stickers and a T-shirt. I believe we were in in Four Corners Monument when we saw someone wearing a cool shirt with the logo for Tail of the Dragon. So, we went back through. This time it was a slow ride. Since there was a a Jeep Invasion event in the area, there were a bunch of Jeeps going slow down the road. At one point we came around a corner and going the other direction was someone on the Harley-Davison’s Pan American adventure bike. He was laying it down! We didn’t realize until later, but when we checked the photographers websites to see our photos, we saw he had a pit bull on the back of his bike. It was actually quite impressive! I ended up searching him and following him on Instagram, haha.

After stopping to get stickers and shirts, we headed back to Cherokee, NC where the the parkway begins. Shortly after starting at mile marker 469, I wanted to stop at some of the pull-offs for some photos, but Eddie told me there are hundreds of pull-offs, so we just rode down the parkway and I would pull out the GoPro to take photos. The views truly were amazing. I would highly suggest taking a ride on the parkway if you’re ever near Great Smoky Mountain National Park.

We took the parkway until we reached Ashville, NC. We got off the parkway near mile-marker 393.5. Eddie had a friend that moved to the area a year or so ago so we stopped in the area to grab an early dinner. We found a place called “Stone Ridge Tavern” while Eddie waited for him to respond. When he responded, we told him where we were and he said he lived about 5 minutes away. He met us there and we had some delicious food. I didn’t know it, but he moved down to work at the new Pratt & Whitney facility there. It is a brand new 1.2 million square foot, state-of-the-art, turbine airfoil production facility. I thought that was pretty neat!

After hanging out for a little while, we left there and got back on the parkway. We kept riding until it got very foggy. At that time, we began looking for places to stay for the night. We didn’t want to ride through the dense fog at night in the dark. The temperature also dropped quite a bit and it was getting chilly. We just so happened to get off the parkway in Little Switzerland, NC to check it out quick near mile-marker 334. When we pulled off the parkway, there was a large sign for “Big Lynn Lodge” which was just a mile or so up route 226A. We pulled in and they had availability, so we decided to stay there. After checking in and getting to our designated parking space for our room, we met Ellen.

Ellen was an older woman that was excited to talk to us. She was telling us that she started riding BMW sport touring motorcycles all over the country and we chatted with her a bit and shared stories and pictures from our adventures. She was there on her trike from outside of Tampa, Florida. I was quite amazed at the places she’s been in the country as a woman riding motorcycles. She was so excited for us that she even offered us some Blue Moon’s.

We finished the day with about 256 miles and near 10 hours of riding.

Google photo album: Day 13

August 20, 2024

We left the hotel and stopped at JP Cycles to check out if they had gloves. After leaving the last gas stop yesterday, Eddie misplaced his gloves and they must have fallen off the bike after getting on the road. He must have put them on the side pannier and took off before realizing. So, we went to JP Cycles and we both bought new pairs of gloves. The pair I had been using were Milwaukee work gloves from Home Depot and they’re thick. After checking out we headed towards Tail of the Dragon. Eddie has the upgraded version of “Rever” which is an app geared towards motorcyclists and he was able to find twisty roads, using their built-in feature. So, we followed the GPS and went through Great Smoky Mountain National Park on route 441.

There were spectacular views! It was also very different from where we came from and it was nice to see so many trees. I was taken back by some of the mountains, because I expected “hills” in comparison to Colorado’s Rocky Mountains. We continued meandering through the park ,crossed into North Carolina, and stopped at the Oconaluftee Visitor Center, which is southeast of Gatlinburg, TN. We stopped in to check to see what stickers they had since we like to add them to the bikes.

From there, we headed down to route 74 to route 28, passed Fontana Dam, to route 129. Route 129 is where the infamous Tail of the Dragon is. It was an incredibly twisty road! Like I’ve mentioned, it has 318 curves in 11 miles. It is quite intense. Fortunately, when we went through, there weren’t many other vehicles on the road which made it much better. There are tons of videos and pictures online that show people crossing over the yellow line whih made it a little sketchy. The last thing we wanted was for someone to cut over and take us out. Luckily, we made it through without any issues or close calls. There are also a handful of photographers set up in the pull-offs. They take several pictures of every vehicle as they pass by. They then post the photos on their websites to sell, so I am thinking of getting one or two photos.

Once we got to the end of the fun stuff, we turned onto Foothills Parkway. This was a really nice ride. We didn’t know of any of the roads in the area except the Tail of the Dragon. Foothills Parkway had really nice long sweeping turns and exceeded our expectations. By the time we got near the end, Eddie needed gas. When we got to the end of the parkway, there was a gas station and we filled up and decided what to do for the night. We ended up going back into Pigeon Forge to get some food at JT Hannah’s Kitchen because it had a lot of good reviews. From there, we decided to go back to the same hotel so we could do laundry.

We only did about 165 miles worth of riding, but it took us about 6 hours. It was a long day, but definitely beautiful. I will definitely be going back to the area to spend more time in the Great Smoky Mountains!

Google photo album: Day 12

Monday, August 19, 2024

We left Vicksburg, Mississippi and headed towards Pigeon Forge, Tennessee. The route we chose goes through Mississippi and Alabama. We didn’t have time to stop or check out anything in Mississippi or Alabama, so we just cruised down the interstate all day. I’ve never been to Louisiana, Mississippi, or Alabama before which is why we headed that far south on the route back home. We chose Pigeon Forge as a destination because there are supposed to be phenomenal curvy roads in the Great Smoky Mountains, specifically the Tail of the Dragon, which is notorious for motorcyclists – there are 318 curves in 11 miles!

When we left Vicksburg, it was a gloomy morning but it was nice and cool compared to the previous couple days. We hopped on to I-20E from the hotel and rode all day, stopping for gas about every 100 miles. We had about 580 miles to complete until reaching Pigeon Forge, so we had to cover some ground. Unfortunately, I-20 was lined with trees so it was difficult to see anything off the interstate. However, about 10 miles before going through Jackson, MI, we could see smoke in the sky from a fire. It turns out there was a pretty big fire at a recycling facility.

Shortly after passing through Jackson, which was about 50 miles from Vicksburg, LA, we stopped for gas. I was getting concerned about my chain. It was getting tighter and we did not lube the chains in a while, so I wanted to make sure we gave them some love. We each grabbed a drink and some beef jerky while waiting a little for the chain lube to do its thing. After about 20 minutes, we got back to cruising down the interstate. We did another 100 miles and crossed into Alabama. I was excited, just to be able to say I’ve been there, haha.

We continued riding and stopping for gas until we got near Birmingham, Alabama. By that time, it was starting to get warm, so we took off our riding jackets again so we were comfortable. Along the way, we saw some signs for Buc-ees, so while we were stopped, we checked to see where there was a Buc-ees. There was one right along the route, just off I-20 in Leeds, AL. Eddie has never been to one so I really wanted to stop so he could see what it’s all about. We rode about another hour until we reached Buc-ees. It was perfect timing since we got there around 1pm and they have great brisket sandwiches. I never realized it before because I’ve always been to one in a car, but there is no seating area to sit down and eat. So, we found some shade and ate outside.

After filling up and getting in some delicious brisket sandwiches, we got back on the highway and took I-59N. We still had about 290 miles to go before reaching Pigeon Forge. We continued on and stopped about every 100 miles to get gas and hydrate. As we got further north the temperature was slowly dropping, but it was not nearly as bad as it was the previous day. We finally crossed into Tennessee near Chattanooga. We hit some traffic in which lasted about 15 minutes or so, which was not fun because it was warm. On motorcycles, whenever going slow, the heat from the motor gets you warm, and in combination with the heat, it was quite warm!

We got through the traffic and had about 150 miles to go before reaching Pigeon Forge. From Chattanooga, we got onto I-75N and followed that to I-40E, to route 66S into Pigeon Forge. We both have never been there before and didn’t know what to expect. As we entered the town, we were surprised to see how many attractions they had. There was a Titanic, upside down house, rides, and water parks – it was like a mini Las Vegas. We also noticed hundreds of Jeeps and we found out later that there was a “Jeep Invasion” event happening. There were Jeeps from all over country there.

We stopped right on main street to find a hotel near a restaurant. We found a La Quinta right next to to Smoky Mountain Brewery, so we decided to check in to the hotel and head to the brewery for dinner.

We finished the day with about 580 miles.

Google photo album: Day 11

Sunday, August 18, 2024

We left Altus, Oklahoma earlier than we’ve been leaving. We knew it was going to be super hot so we wanted to get in some miles before the heat. Altus, OK was supposed to be 108°. Once it broke 90°, we started taking breaks every 45 minutes or so to stop and chug water. We wanted to stay hydrated since both the heat and sweating can cause dehydration quickly. It’s not quite as luxurious as being in a car where you can crank the AC and have some water with you to easily drink.

We weren’t in Oklahoma long before we crossed back into Texas. We started off on route 283S and followed that south until we reached Route 287S through Wichita Falls, TX. Our goal was to head towards El Dorado, Arkansas before dipping south into Louisiana.  We continued on route 82S for about 220 miles before reaching I-30E which heads towards Texarkana, TX. All I could think of when we saw signs for Texarkana was the movie “Smoky and the Bandit” since the plot of the movie was to head there. It got hot around noon se we ditched our riding jackets. Eddie had a T-shirt and I had one of those warm weather long sleeve shirts which helped a lot!

Once we got close to Texarkana, I realized the interstate I-49 is on the western border of Arkansas. So, since it was brutally hot and there were minimal clouds in the sky, I decided to just head south into Louisiana and make it as far as we could. I was originally hoping to stop and visit Gabe in Russellville, AK, but time didn’t allow. He’s the one I did the first two trips with.

Shortly after crossing into Arkansas, we hopped onto I-49S. We weren’t on there for about 20 miles and saw no signs for fuel. So, we decided to pull over under and overpass, for shade, to drink some waters. I try to keep spare waters in my cooler for reasons like this. While we stopped and chugged some water, I wanted lube my chain since it was way too long since the last time we lubed the chain.

After about 10-15 minutes on the shoulder of the highway, getting some water, and lubing the chains, we continued until we crossed into Louisiana I was excited because I’ve never been to Louisiana. We stopped off the highway just outside Shreveport, LA to fuel up and get more water.  While there we pine a place to get some food which was another hour away in Ruston, LA. We hopped on to I-30E and continued another 70 miles or so until we got to “The Dawg House” for food. We didn’t know it, but that’s home of Louisiana Tech University which explained all of the college kids.  

After we stopped off and had dinner, we continued on I-30E. The next destination was Vicksburg, LA. We checked the weather at dinner and realized there was a storm cell coming in, but it appeared to be moving slow and were confident we would make it to Vicksburg where we booked a hotel. After about 30 minutes on the highway and watching a bunch of amazing heat lightening, we experienced 40+mph gusts of wind. It was honestly quite sketchy and a little scary. It was already dark and the first wind gust happened while we were riding at about 75mph and legit blew us across the entire lane. I saw a cloud of grass fly in front of me and then got blown over. It was so bad that we speed down to about 50mph until the next exit. 

We got off the highway as soon as we could and checked the weather. It looked like the speed of the storm picked up. Trees were sideways from the wind. We were not in a safe place and contemplated making it to the next gas station before suiting up in rain gear. It honestly seemed as if a tornado was going to come through.  However, it was coming very fast and we quickly suited up and hopped on the road again for 8 miles until we could get a little shelter at the nearest gas station near Delhi, LA.

It started raining just as we got on the highway. We took it easy until we reached the next gas station and waited for the bulk of the storm to pass. We met another biker and talked with him a bit before getting back on the road. We got back on the road and the wind gusts died down. The heat lightning was the most intense I’ve ever seen. It was really neat to watch. After about 40 minutes riding through the rain, we finally reached Vicksburg, Mississippi where we booked a hotel. 

We finished the day with about 620 miles. I didn’t take many photos due to being hot and only caring about being hydrated and comfortable.

Google Photo Album: Day 10

Saturday, August 17, 2024

We left from Farmington, New Mexico and headed towards Amarillo, Texas to stop at “The Big Texan Steak Ranch” steakhouse. I happened to come across it using Google Maps to see if there was anything to see in Amarillo and wanted to try it out. We took route 550S towards Santa Fe, NM. Along the way there were some rock formations I didn’t expect to see, but enjoyable. I had a feeling it wouldn’t last long, but I was wrong. Route 550 heads towards the Santa Fe National Forest so there was more mountainous views.

When we left in was nice and cool in the low to mid 70’s, but it was supposed to be quite hot, close to 100°F, so every time we stopped for fuel we chugged some water. We didn’t want to get dehydrated since we don’t carry water that’s easily accessible while riding. I do have a small cooler I carry to keep drinks in, but we have to stop to access them.

We continued on route 550S until we reached Santa Fe and hopped on I-25S for a short period until we reached I-40E. We got onto I-40E and rode through Albuquerque. Shortly after riding through Albuquerque, I noticed a motocross track which I thought was cool. I love the sport of motocross so that was nice to see. It was the Moriarty Motocross track just off the interstate.

We continued down the interstate, crossed back into the Central Time Zone as we crossed into Texas, saw hundreds of wind turbines, and kept riding until we got to Cadillac Ranch in Amarillo. I saw it at some point and thought that would be cool to see. It’s something different. There’s a rancher that had semi-buried some Cadillac cars and it’s open for the public to check out. Apparently, people go there with spray paint cans to make their mark on them. I thought there was a lot more to see there, but it was unique and worth stopping since we were that close.

Once we finished taking photos, we headed to the steakhouse. It was another 20 minutes up the road. We got there and it was busy. There are about 28,000 Google reviews for The Big Texan. The place was big and they served people quick. About 30 miles before we got to the steakhouse we noticed a bunch of cattle at Quality Beef Products. We joked about having eaten any of them or if they’re sold to the steakhouse. There were hundreds or thousands of them. Anyway, they sat us immediately and we ordered some steaks. I got the 16oz Texas Sirloin and it was delicious! While there, we decided where to go and end the day.

We left The Big Texan and headed towards Altus, Oklahoma. I’ve never been to Oklahoma before and wanted to go. Altus is about 150 miles and we knew we’d make it. We took I-40 for another 80 miles, then to route 256E, and on to route 62E for another 50 miles. We followed a semi truck cause it was getting dark and I didn’t want to hit any deer through all the fields out there. The speed limits on the state routes were about 70, and the lights on the bike are not quite as good as a car, and towns are 30 miles apart it seems, so I wanted to play it safe. We finally arrived in Altus, Oklahoma around 9:40pm.

We finished the day with about 625 miles.

Google Photo Album: Day 9

Friday, August 16, 2024

We left Kanab, Utah and headed east. Our goal for the day was to hit Horseshoe Bend, Monument Valley, and Four Corner Monument. We headed down Route 89S and not too long after leaving, there were police ahead. They were making everyone move over to the shoulder, as far over as they could get. We were confused until the officer stopped to tell each motorist there was a wide load coming through. Well, a couple minutes later, there was. It was the largest wide load I’ve ever seen on a tractor trailer, and they were moving pretty good. They had a very well orchestrated making all motorists move over.

After that we continued until we reached Arizona and stopped to get photos of the sign. You could even see “Lone Rock” in Glen Canyon National Park from there. We went a few miles further and crossed the dam for Lake Powell in Page, Arizona. Another few miles down was Horseshoe Bend. We stopped there and this time we had to pay $5 each for parking. I don’t believe I had to back in 2017. From the parking lot it’s a 15 minute hike to get to the top of the canyon where you can see the bend in the river.

After stopping and taking some photos we headed back to get the bikes and headed to Monument Valley. A quick stop for fuel and water and we were back on the road there was another wide load too. This time it was a massive house boat or something and they went straight through the middle of the turnout.

We followed route 98E to route 160E, passing Antelope Canyon. When we hit route 160, we stopped for fuel knowing gas stations are further between. I ended up going inside for a slice of that delicious gas station pizza! Was not disappointed 😂. When we left, Eddie left his gloves on his motorcycle. About half mile down the road he realized he didn’t have his gloves on, so we turned back around and found one in the road. The other was stuck on his bike by the chain guard, living both gloves were unharmed. After that it was a little longer until he turned onto route 163 which goes through Monument Valley. It was so cool and unique to see!

My goal was to stop at Forrest Gump Point which is several miles north of Monument Valley. I just love the movie so much and quote it often so I had to check it out! I was quite surprised when we got there to see how popular it was. There were a bunch of people in the road taking photos. I was not expecting that.

After stopping and getting some photos we continued on for another couple hours. Right after Forrest Gump Point, we went through Mexican Hat, Utah. There’s a rock formation there that resembles a sombrero which is where the town got its name. We took route 162E from 163E and it was quite desolate and there were some very straight sections of road that last miles. There were also a decent amount of pumpjacks which are used to extract crude oil from the ground. I just think it’s cool to see them in action.

We arrived at the four corners where Colorado, New Mexico, Utah, and Arizona all meet. I was unaware, but this is ran by the Navajo Nation Parks & Rec. I thought it was just a site where the states meet, but I was wrong. It was a nice facility with Navajo vendors selling stuff. We also met some older gentlemen that were also riding motorcycles all around the country, so we chit-chatted with them for a bit.

We continued from there to Farmington, New Mexico where there was a hotel we had planned on reaching. Shortly after leaving the for corners, we stopped at Teec Nos Pos Trading Post just south of the Four Corners Monument. I went inside to get water and the nice older gentleman working there suggested going to Tequila’s Mexican Restaurant. So, after traveling down Route 64E, and stopping for several road work areas, we finally got into Farmington. We booked a hotel and headed to the restaurant. It was very good.

We finished the day with about 375 miles.

Google photo album: Day 8

Thursday, August 15, 2024

We left Kanab, UT and headed to Zion National Park. We got to Zion from the east entrance and meandered our way through the park, through the 1.1 mile tunnel until we got to three visitor center.

At the visitor center they have shuttle busses that take you up the park’s canyon. The views from the bottom of the canyon are spectacular! We took the shuttle to the last stop, Temple of Sinawava. This is the stop where you can go through “The Narrows” which is probably the #1 feature in the park.

We took the trail up until you had to cross through The Virgin River. The trail up The Narrows is a 9 mile loop. Since we’re not spending several days here, we turned around at the river to get a glimpse of what it’s like. The Narrows gets its name from the canyon narrowing. At some points it gets as narrow as 20-30 feet wide. It’s something I’ll definitely have to do in the future! I didn’t go up the canyon when I went with Gabe in 2017.

We got back to the shuttle bus after doing the little hike and stopped at the cafe they have for lunch. It has a great view in the valley looking up at the canyon walls.

After having some lunch we went back to get the bikes and head back towards the east entrance to do the Canyon Overlook Trail. This is a nice little hike that ascends up a point that overlooks the valley. we hung out up there for a little bit then headed back down.

We headed back to Kanab again for the night. I wasn’t feeling good. I think I drank too many Gatorlytes over the prior days and had an electrolyte imbalance. I had an upset stomach all day and that led to dehydration. So I was taking it very slow all day and didn’t feel comfortable riding any more than we had to. We got back to the same hotel and grabbed dinner at Al’s Burgers. I felt better after a couple hours of drinking plenty of water and some Coca-Cola.

Google photo album: Day 7