Our second annual adventure is over. Everyone is home safe with their families and all is good. This trip has always been referred to Epic and it lived up to its expectations. We had the pleasure of Dave for the first week and everyone enjoyed his company. This may be known as the Jinxed trip, but we persevered. Nick broke two horn brackets and had a nail in this rear tire. Jeff's saddle bags nearly ripped off. Dave had two head light bulbs burn out. The first took us about two hours to replace. Rob lost his motorcycle key at Old Faithful and dropped his bike in Leadville, CO. Just before Fane was to leave town he found out that his Subaru's head gasket was blown. So he was unable to join us as planned. It all was taken in stride and did not affect the enjoyment of the trip.
I may have said this before and if so I apologize
. But, no matter how hard the prior day's ride was, heat, wind or traffic, that morning getting on the motorcycle and settling down into the seat and the rhythm of the engine and motion of the bike on the road it was good; it was right; and all was well with the world. No matter how long that day's ride was to be. When I got home and rode into work, it wasn't the same. It was just a commute. I figured out that it wasn't going to work; it wasn't that I wasn't still on vacation; it was that my riding companions were not with me.
My deepest regret is that Nick did not have a Sena communications radio. Dave, Jeff, and Rob shared so much while riding that Nick missed out on. The communications was not just talk, but safety information, such as when it was safe to pass. If we wanted to pull over for pictures easy to let the others know.
This trip had such varied scenery and elevations. From sea level for Nick to over 12,000 feet on top of Independence Pass in Colorado. About the only thing that we didn't see was the ocean. For example, in one day we went from Grand Junction which is on the edge of the desert; the old canyons of the Delores Valley with tiered walls with vegetation; new canyons with steep red sandstone vertical cliffs with the Delores River in the valley surrounded by green cottonwoods and bushes; to higher plains farm lands; a box canyon that has Telluride at its end; high alpine mountains on Lizard Head pass; and a long downhill ride to Delores, CO which is in scrub oak and sage country.
The people we met, Jen in West Yellowstone, MT; Ryan in Red Lodge, MT;the two women, Heather and Kelly?, from Wisconsin in Aspen, CO; the older "class clown" lady in Crawford, CO; the clerk at the gas station in Naturita, CO; three motorcyclist from Tucson, AZ on their fifteenth year touring together; the trio in the liquor store, man with the long beard, the 73 year old gentleman, and the young Coors expert; the two guys in Canyon Lands whose pack was broken into by the ravens; the General Store clerk at the Hole in the Wall tourist trap just outside of Moab, UT; and the concierge at the Moab Under Canvas that assured us that the tents were designed for 60 mph but they were ready to evacuate at 45 mph. Best of all the Chinese mother and daughter at the Arches National Park who were so excited about the Harley Davidson.
Last year in the epilogue I said, "I want to thank Jeff for, as Lesli put it, being our Education Director. Any question we had about trees, plants, animals, regions, and all other things forestry were fully and interestingly described to us. Such an immense knowledge base. His enthusiasm, joy, easy going, and child embodiment (see his face in some of the pictures in the large chairs) was spirit lifting. He was always eager to get on the bikes for another full day of riding." This year it was the same knowledge, excitement, and energy as last year. Look at the pictures of his fake crying in Delores, CO when the brewery was closed on Monday and his holding the whirly-gig in front of the store in Aspen, CO. Thanks Jeff, and Lesli for loaning him to us for this trip.
Last year in the epilogue I said, "I want to thank Nick for being our Social Director. I've harassed him in these blogs for talking to all these strangers. But, if he wasn't there, I wouldn't have talked to anyone and missed the chance to meet these unique individuals." Look at the individuals that I mentioned above to see how his persona drew this people into our little circle of life. His knowledge of the environment and animals was also proffered and appreciated. And thanks to Lisa for loaning Nick to us.
Thanks to Fane for joining us in Grand Junction. I am sorry that he could not join us in Vernal, UT through Grand Junction, CO, but I am happier that he was safe and sound and got his car fixed. He had quite the adventure just to get down to Grand Junction. With his car in the shop over the weekend, Fane took a bus, tram, and train from Spanish Fork, UT to the airport in Salt Lake City just to pick p a rental car and drive down to Grand Junction Saturday to just reverse the steps to get back to Spanish Forks. His sense of humor, as always, is very much appreciated. But, lets not talk about those shorts!
I want to thank my friend Dave for joining our little motorcycle family. Even though his time was brief, his presence was very much appreciated and enjoyed. Dave's personality, and beer drinking, fit like a glove with my cousins. We've traveled together on several shorter trips and have enjoyed them all. He competed with Nick as the Associate Social Director by engaging several people along the route.
Highlights of the Epic trip:
Best roads: Bear Tooth Pass.
Best speed limit: Idaho's 80 MPH!
Best corners: Tied: Bear Tooth pass, Independence pass, and the Delores River valley just south of Gateway, CO.
Best view: Second place - Lizard Head pass. First place - The view from the restaurant's patio over Jackson Lake and the Tetons.
Worst road: La Sal Mountain Loop. It was narrow, steep, and very rough. We had to use both sides of the road to avoid patches upon patches and gravel from he patches.
Weirdest event: The ladies in Steamboat Springs, CO inviting us "in."
Best person encountered: It's a tie! Jen, Ryan, and the Chinese mother and daughter.
Best part of the entire trip: Spending time with Jeff, Nick, Fane and Dave. What a great time. What great people.
Next year?!
Epilogue
Wednesday, July 06, 2016
Monument, Colorado, United States
Other Entries
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1Background
Jun 1422 days priorMonument, United Statesphoto_camera7videocam 0comment 0 -
2Jeff and Nick leaving Corvallis
Jun 1521 days priorCorvallis, United Statesphoto_camera7videocam 0comment 0 -
3Rob and Dave, Denver to Edwards
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4Rob and Dave, Edwards to Heber City Utah
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5Jeff, Nick, Dave and Rob join forces
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6Yellowstone Park
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7West Yellowstone, day two.
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8Red Lodge Montana
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9Teton National Park
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10Transition day
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11Transition day two
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12Ended up in Glennwood
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13The hottest day, ever!
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14Nick's Birthday
Jun 2610 days priorGrand Junction, United Statesphoto_camera9videocam 0comment 1 -
15A day of diverse scenery
Jun 279 days priorDolores, United Statesphoto_camera25videocam 0comment 1 -
16Epic's Last Stand
Jun 288 days priorMoab, United Statesphoto_camera24videocam 0comment 3 -
17Touring the Moab area
Jun 297 days priorMoab, United Statesphoto_camera32videocam 0comment 0 -
18Headed to GJ/ Spanish Forks
Jun 306 days priorGrand Junction, United Statesphoto_camera2videocam 0comment 0 -
19Nick and Jeff's continued trip home
Jul 015 days priorOntario, United Statesphoto_camera9videocam 0comment 0 -
20Epilogue
Jul 06Monument, United Statesphoto_camera1videocam 0comment 0
2025-02-11