Ramblings While Traveling 10 States on a Harley

I would like to attempt a "travel blog" from our recent journey through 10 states on two wheels....yes---I mean a Harley Davidson motorcycle.  In doing this, I hope to divulge info for places to see, places to eat, places to stay, places to avoid, and places to be sure to stop and see from our experiences along the way!!!  Also by doing this....my hope is that if you plan to head to any of the states that we visited, I can give you some ideas of where to go.  The picture below shows our youngest grandson, Breckin, who was happy to come and pick up our French Bulldog, Monroe, and watch him while we ventured out on our big California Adventure for over two weeks!

It all began for us on a Monday in early June as we (husband Terry and I) took off for Kansas from our Oklahoma home.  Packing to travel on a Harley isn't the same as packing to travel via airplane or a vehicle.  You must leave room for tools, rain gear, leathers, sunscreen, helmets, and other necessities, as well as your clothes and other items.  It is not easy trying to pack for two weeks in a 24x24 bag!  You become very clever in your packing and clothing choices.  Lucky for us, we knew we would be staying with friends and would have the luxury of doing laundry on the trip.  

We decided that our best option would be to head north to Beloit, Kansas on Monday, since our first destination would be Fort Collins, Colorado.  Going to Beloit would get us up north so that we could then head straight west the following morning.  The first part of our trip north was smooth and sunny sailing and appeared that it would be uneventful----the weather was perfect.....

.....this is me being a "nerd" and reading a book from the co-pilot seat of the  Harley, while my husband keeps us on the road!!  As you can see....it was a be-a-utiful, sunny almost-summer kind of day!!  Of course, if you have lived in this part of the country you know that the weather can change in a heartbeat (or a thunder roll, whichever you prefer)!!  Shortly after we hit the Kansas border, we rode into this....

...stormy weather isn't exactly what you want to see when you are traveling on a motorcycle!  And it just didn't seem to get any better as we continued north towards Wichita....

...soooo, if you have never traveled on a motorcycle, then you don't really understand what this meant to us---getting wet was NOT the desired outcome. However, when you know that you need to get to a certain destination...no matter what the weather....you make adjustments (rain gear) and just keep moving...

...and that is exactly what we did.  Well...I did by putting the rain jacket on while Terry was trying to stay positive and tough it out!! These pictures were taken around the city of Wichita while we were still dry and somewhat comfy.  It was just a little bit later that we began to run into what would turn out to be our nemesis.  Just past McPherson the rains began and it wasn't just your average, run-of-the-mill sprinkles....no, this was a drenching, soak-you-to-the-bone downpour.  The kind of rain that hits you like needles on the skin and soaks you through.  Thankfully, we found a rest stop where we could find cover to see if it would let up some....

....as you can see...the rain was coming from the east and soaked my right side the most.  We proceeded to break out the rest of the rain gear (wind pants for me and jacket for Terry) and made the attempt to keep on moving to our destination.  When we got to the Lindsborg turnoff, the rain was so hard that we couldn't really see and it was getting dangerous to continue.  We decided to head to Lindsborg and see if it would let up some.  First we stopped at a gas station and checked the radar again....dang storm was following us!!  Not only following us...it was swirling around us like we were the Bullseye on a target!  We took off again, but turned back and decided to hang out in Lindsborg for a bit while we rested and warmed up as we ate.  Where else to eat in Lindsborg except here....

By the time we had finished our sandwiches, the rain had let up some, so we decided to brave the elements and continue on.  After checking the weather map, it looked like our best bet was to continue north towards Salina.  Unfortunately, that storm system just seemed to keep following us and circling back around to pommel us over and over.  Since I grew up around this area, it looked like if we took the exit headed west towards Lincoln we could avoid the crosswinds that tried to blow us over on the interstate.  It did help somewhat...and we made it to Lincoln where we stopped for coffee and fuel.  After warming up some, it was time to continue with only 30 miles left to traverse!  Although we did get some sprinkles, we made it to Beloit....just in time for the sun to come out and the weather to clear up!  Gotta love it!!

While we were there, we visited with my mom and also a classmate who would soon be celebrating a birthday!  

Here she is with my husband, who also has a June birthday!  Happy birthday Angela and Terry!

Here we are together and Angela with her new birthday wine glass!!  A celebratory glass of wine while we were in town for the evening was a must!!

The travel plan was to head out early the next morning for Fort Collins, Colorado.  There we would be staying with another classmate of mine and also seeing Terry's son.  That trip was going to be packed full of fun before we would make a mad dash to California!

 On this trip, I learned so much about myself...about my beautiful country...about living life....about people!  I would love to share tips for travel, places to go for food and fun, photos of amazing beauty that God has provided in our gorgeous country.  Please join me through 10 states, two mountain ranges, four national parks, a couple of deserts, many lakes (including The Great Salt Lake and Lake Tahoe), and 3,829 miles of exploration and adventure....keep watching as I share pictures, adventures and stories of traveling on two wheels!! If you have any comments to add, please feel free to add them!!  Come on let's go....next up---Colorado!!