New Mexico is in my headlight

Monday  (July 21) dawned bright and beautiful as it seems to most days in Arizona.  I had two missions.  One was to meet up with the New Yorkers, Kim and Richard, in Silver City, New Mexico.  The other was to find the bus with Verlie.  There had been other problems and it was parked down off the road and Joe had gone to Phoenix to get some part repaired and get other things needed for the bus to try to nurse it to Las Vegas, Nevada, to a place that had worked on it and knew the bus and its parts and pieces inside and out.  She was about 18 miles down Highway 260, which was the way I was going anyway.

Of course, the saga of the motor coach didn’t end there.  I found out the bus would not start at the Walmart on Saturday morning until two hours later and then Joe had rear ended a guy at a stop light on his way into town.  Then his engine light on the pickup came on.  Good grief.  If there was no luck on this trip, there would be none at all. 

I got to 260 and then started watching the mile markers … yep, there was the road she described and down it I went.  There was the bus parked just outside the training camp for the Arizona State University football team.  Woo hoo.  Alas, there were no young bucks in sight.  But if you’re going to be broke down somewhere, what a beautiful setting.  Huge trees that stretched to the end of your sight with a smell that made you think you were in the middle of nowhere, and no traffic except for the occasional vehicle going in or out of camp.  It was beautiful.

No access for me.

The beautiful setting, and the perfectly paved spot for the coach.

So, into the bus I went.  We visited and Verlie fixed me lunch.  Jazzy, their little Yorkie, had to tease me with jumping into my lap and out.  What a short memory she has … pretending she doesn’t know me.  Ha!!!

Jazzy and me in a beautiful setting.

All too soon I needed to get back on the road as I’d been there a couple of hours and I would lose an hour going into New Mexico.  It was hard to leave Verlie there alone, but Joe would soon be on his way back. 

On I rode, making time, avoiding any rain clouds, and I rolled into Silver City about 6 p.m. and found the hotel where Kim had reserved rooms for us.  It was the historic Murray Hotel and I loved it. 

The Murray Hotel opened in October 1938, named after William Dennis Murray.

I was backing my bike in next to theirs and down the sidewalk runs Richard.  Oh man, it was so good to see him.  I love my New Yorkers.  We hugged and got my luggage to my room and then went back to where Kim was.  It was another joyous reunion.  I think the New Yorkers are even louder in their greetings and happiness than I am. 

The Little Toad Creek was where Kim and Rich were sitting when I went by.

We had dinner and a wonderful visit.  I decided then that rather than go visit my swan at the Baton Rouge Zoo on this leg of the trip, I’d travel with Kim and Rich for a day as they headed north toward Farmington, New Mexico, for a bike service.  Rich was coming up on 105,000 and desperately needed a rear tire.

The food was excellent, the company even better.

 

What's happening here?

Adventures … but strange things are happening

There’s always another adventure just around the corner, and this trip, to date, has been no exception.

I arrived in Phoenix, Arizona, Thursday morning, July 17.    Joe was picking me up at the airport and he’d said if I didn’t have too much luggage he could do it on the bike.  I made sure I brought only camera gear, my computer, my phone, medications and make up.  It did not take up much room. 

As I wandered to baggage claim, I was texting Joe to find out where he was.  I was just finishing up and I looked out the window and there he was parked next to the curb, the big silver and copper-toned Ultra Limited motorcycle, my ride and my chauffer awaiting my arrival.  Too cool.

It's nice to be picked up in style.

We loaded my stuff, then I loaded my butt onto the bike and off we went.  What a glorious day to ride, even on the back.  We headed home to drop my things off, pick up my bike and go do some shopping, including getting Systane eye drops.  Later I found out I didn’t really need them as I already had two bottles in my belongings at their house.  Oh well, I can always use them.  (Of course, I lost that bottle for a while, too.)

Later at the house we awaited Verlie’s arrival (from work).  Their plan was to leave in their motor coach the following evening after she got off work as they were going to Colorado to visit her mom, then to a family reunion in Oregon.  Part of the reason to leave at night was so the bus wouldn’t have to work so hard to go up the hills like it would during the heat of the day.  That evening we loaded some, did a bit of cleaning up and readied ourselves as best we could for the following day.  My plan was to follow them to Payson, or wherever they chose to spend the night, stay the night in the coach with them, and then head to Sun City on Saturday to visit with the Peeps for the weekend.

We be loading and getting ready to rock and roll.

On Friday Joe was busy loading things into the motor coach, I helped him wash it, and when Verlie got home we did some last minute loading.  We were quite the caravan … the 45-foot-long, 45,000-pound coach (loaded) pulling a loaded 4,500-pound pickup truck and me following on the bike. 

Washy, washy.

If I don't look while I'm rinsing then if I get Joe he can't complain to me, right?  Sorry, didn't see you  Ha ha.

 

The pickup adds something to the caravan effect.

I'm loaded up and ready to get on the road.

Out of town we went, leaving maybe 8 p.m. or so.  I followed behind, sometimes close, sometimes not so.  Once we hit Highway 87, it was pretty nice, no stoplights.  But when we hit the hills, I finally reached my point of having to pass them.  They were running about 30 mph, so naturally, with it being a good road with nice easy sweeping turns, I needed to get by and ride, even if it was night time.  There wasn’t much traffic so it was great, and I kind of wasn’t fearing animals too much, but I was very aware that I needed to be watchful. 

At one point I pulled over to wait for them to come up the hill.  They didn’t come, they didn’t come, they didn’t come.  It was dark with no traffic and I could see a long ways, but there weren’t many lights.  A vehicle passed me and pulled over to the side of the road in front of me, maybe 10 car lengths away.  No one got out, no one backed it up, no one hollered out of it.  Time for my left turn signal and an entrance back onto the road.  I didn’t like that. 

I ran slow, and when cars came up behind me I’d use my flashers to make sure they saw me.  Still no motor coach or Joe and Verlie.  Wow, that honking big thing is sure slow.

A car was pulled over to the side of the road with a guy out by it … and he hollered “broke down” as I went by.  Hey, sorry, I don’t know you and I’m not stopping.  I’m not mechanical so it’s not like I could help anyway … and I’m highly suspicious of things like that.  I kept on going as I’d decided to get into Payson and call them to find out where they were.  A car went by (the same one broke down by the side of the road).  A guy was hanging out of the window and he said, “Your friends in the RV are broke down back there.”  Oh.

I stopped and they stopped.  They told me Joe and Verlie were broken down about Mile 217.  I was at about 230 or so.  I went down the road looking for a place I felt safe so I could pull over and call them.  I found it … some buildings, businesses.  So I pulled into the parking lot and pulled around facing out.

Verlie answered the phone and told me what had happened.  The bus overheated, and went black.  Nothing was on, no lights, no flashers, no power steering.  Joe was able to get the coach pulled over toward the side of the road but the back end of the pickup was in the other lane … no flashers and people whizzing by narrowly missing the vehicles and hollering at them horrible things and telling them to get the vehicle off the road, like they’d intended to park in the middle of the highway?  Good grief!!!

A man in a vehicle stopped behind Joe and Verlie’s vehicles and put on his flashers.  From what I heard he was wanting people hollering at them to come back so he could kick their a$$es.  That’s kind of funny.  NOW!!

Verlie and I decided I’d go on to the Walmart in Payson and wait in the parking lot as that was where they would try to get.  I wandered in to Walmart and got a few things, and sat on my bike outside.  It’s quite friendly with a community of motor homes gathered there.  I got to meet a Harlequin Great Dane named Hercules who had ears nearly as soft as a Beagle’s and a man and his son who ride.  So it was not bad and actually entertaining, and the bus pulled in probably an hour after I’d gotten there. 

I got on my bike and over to the coach and we hugged and were glad everyone had made it safely although they’d had to stop several times coming up the hills to add water and let the engine cool off.  Joe said he was glad I’d not been there when the bus broke down as they’d both thought someone would hit their vehicles and they’d be killed.  What a night.  We finally got to bed, but it had been quite an adventure with a lot of excitement … and it wasn’t a good kind, only the kind that stresses you out.

Joe is a mere fraction of himself.  He's been bicycling 30 miles a day.  Wow.

Their Yorkie, Jazzy.  She's a sweet baby.

 

Perked coffee, yum.

The motor coach kitchen, one side, complete with decorative flowers.

On Saturday morning we got up and I eventually headed back down Highway 87 to go to the Peeps (Judi and Ken) in Sun City. 

Packing up ... goodbye Walmart parking lot.

It was a great ride going down through the big curves in the day time.  But I had to stop at Joe and Verlie’s because I’d gotten up and remembered I’d forgotten to bring a jacket and I’d probably need it going to Minnesota.  Crap.  I picked it up, and then remembered I hadn’t put on any sunscreen.  Too late.  Burned.  And I’d forgotten my Spot Tracker that is in the house.  I can’t get to it.  Guess I’ll just have to post on Facebook.

I got to the Peeps about 2 p.m. and spent a couple of nice and relaxing days.  We had some wonderful meals (including at the Cheesecake Factory, wish we had one), and had Auntie Lavon with us.  We played cards, a game that Ken beats us at every time, and I slept in. 

Mama and baby quail ... they're so cute.

Hummingbirds are always around sipping from the fountain.

We watched hummingbirds and quail and their babies and other birds.  And Judi and I talked for hours on Sunday, never getting dressed until late-afternoon.  Yahoo.  But then it was time to get on the road again.

Catching up before starting the next great adventure

There were a few more days left on the March/April trip.  It’s hard to finish one when you know you’re embarking on another but it’s time.

Any day is a good day to see Snoopy and Spike.  Wikieup, Arizona.

On Wednesday (March 26) Jaz and I rode up to Kingman, Arizona, meet Dewey, Chuck and Jaz’s friend Karl.  We encountered some big rolling tumbleweeds, and ended up packing a bit more on the bikes than we’d expected. 

Tumbleweeds 'r' us.

We met up and had to hit the local Harley shop, of course.  But when on a Harley, you have a tendency to stop at the shops.  I know there’s always a clean bathroom and a shirt waiting with my name on it.  We made our visit and headed to Karl’s to spend the night.  What a great day as usual; it’s always a good one when you meet up with old friends, and make new.  And the weather is perfect riding at this time of year.

On Thursday morning (March 27), after coffee of course, Karl played tour guide and we rode around Lake Havasu to see the London Bridge. 

Perfect weather for a visit to London Bridge.

And we're always ready to pose for a photo.

The day’s ride continued to Oatman to take a look around the little tourist town and see all the donkeys.  They run free, and there’s a great gimmick for feeding them … let the tourists buy alfalfa cubes and feed them.  Of course, I was right on that. 

And Karl is falling in line, buying cubes.  Hey dude, a donkey could starve here.  Hurry up.

What about me?

Psssst.  Buy us food.  Buy us food.  Hey, you listening?

And someone will ... Karl, Karl, feed me.

 

Hey, buddy.  You got anymore in there? 

Haha, ya'll are goofy.  We're so cute you just have to feed us.  But thank, you.

The donkeys are loads of fun to feed, and they follow you, and sometimes get a little pushy.  I didn’t have my hand just right and one, in his eagerness, nipped me. 

Bad donkey. 

I tried to parcel it out evenly, but they don't believe in that.

 

Hey, lady.  You got something for me?

There was a baby who is still feeding from mom, so we weren’t to feed it.  It was a cutie, and had a sign on its head saying don’t feed.

Yep, I got the sign.  Don't feed me.  But I'm so cute. 

An ya'll come back now, ya hear???

Nuff said.

One of Dewey’s “must see’s” was the Hoover Dam, so off we went, over the bridge and down to parking.  We walked across the dam, and as always, it’s a photo opportunity waiting to happen.

It's always a wonder to see huge, man-made things 

Bigger, better.  Hoover Dam rocks.  I've seen it multiple times but it always amazes.

I love this bridge.

It's a long way down.

I think Dewey likes visiting the U.S. 

There's a lot of water there.

 

As long as we were so close, Dewey said he’d kick himself if he didn’t get to Las Vegas.  So we separated from Karl as he had to get home, got rooms in Boulder City (where Jaz and I’d stayed before), dropped our gear and headed to Vegas. 

Fremont Street is always rocking.

And the shows are always fascinating to watch.

And there's always something interesting to see.

Yep, we're in the West.

We just came into the Strip at dusk so the lights were brilliant, twinkling, lighting up the sky.  Dewey’s head was like something out of the movie, “The Exorist.”  His head was spinning round and round trying to take in everything he was seeing.  It was worth fighting Las Vegas traffic just to see Dewey’s reaction and to see him find his “angels.”

Dewey's Angels.

Or maybe they should change to little devil outfits?

Then it was time for more separation.  On Friday, Jaz headed back to the San Francisco area and I rode with the boys back toward Phoenix, and north of there for them.  It was a great ride and I found my way back to Joe and Verlie’s.  It was going to be the end of my trip now, and I was saddened yet excited to be heading home.

My plans were to go home on Monday as I like to spend a weekend with Verlie.  We gathered and squeezed oranges for juice and I was drinking it until I thought my eyes would turn orange.  It was just so good and we don’t get that at home.  I couldn’t seem to get enough and was drinking huge pitchers of it each day.

Orange juice ... yum.

Then Monday arrived and off to the airport we went.  It was not a good day to be flying out if you were riding passes.  I spoke with Hobbs and he said Wednesday would be better.  A reprieve.  Verlie came and got me, and I got hold of my riding buddies.  Hey, Dewey, wanna go ride Tuesday?  I’ve got an extra day.  Woo hoo. 

And look who we hooked up with ... the Hoka Hey Cowboy.  Yahoo.  It's always a pleasure to see and ride with Mac.  And that's all I can say about that.

And ride we did, towards Globe and the mountains which is one of my favorite rides.  But all too soon it was over and on Wednesday I really did head home, and made my final approach into Anchorage.  But now, it was April and riding time at home … Home … where the Beagles roam … all is good in my world. 

Stay tuned for my next adventure.