Today, June 27, we made one of our destinations for the trip. Grand Canyon!
We left Mexican Hat and headed west towards the big canyon. The road there was fast, and very pretty. We went by the area known as Monument Valley, with a fairly level ride and huge rocks of varying shades of red, beige, and brown scattered along the way.
We also saw very poor living conditions. The road went through the Navaho lands, and I saw living conditions that appeared to be big-time poverty. It would be a hard place to live.
On to the Grand Canyon. Gary had never visited it before today; I was there about 15 years ago. I won't try to describe it; no one can d0 it adequately. It's just stupendous!
It was not too crowded, and we had easy access to all the overlooks we wanted to see. Had lunch at the Village Market; a chicken sandwich that was pretty good.
Went to the big hotel, just to walk through it so Gary could see it. A neat hotel that I'd like to stay in sometime.
Left the canyon to head to the north rim. As we left the high areas at the canyon and started downhill, it got very HOT again. We needed gas so we stopped at a gas station to get gas and to wet the Sahara vests. Oh, that helped tremendously! They make a huge difference in body temperatures.
As we rode north, it was getting later and we started talking about where to stay overnight. We originally planned to do the north rim and then head back north into Utah. As it was getting later, and we had several hundred more miles to ride, we decided to ride into Page, Az for the night and to go to the north rim tomorrow morning. A wise choice.
We found an adequate motel (with Internet), did laundry, and had dinner at a steak house nearby. Ok meal, but not great.
The Vstrom is doing okay, but the chain is failing. It's getting loose much faster, and I'm not going to make it home on this chain. So, we're going to start looking for a place to get it replaced soon. I hate it because it will be a waste of time, but it started wearing and then wore very fast. I think heat and speed kills it much faster than normal. In any case, it's pretty much gone.
Tomorrow to the north rim and on to Zion National Park.
342 miles today.
We left Mexican Hat and headed west towards the big canyon. The road there was fast, and very pretty. We went by the area known as Monument Valley, with a fairly level ride and huge rocks of varying shades of red, beige, and brown scattered along the way.
We also saw very poor living conditions. The road went through the Navaho lands, and I saw living conditions that appeared to be big-time poverty. It would be a hard place to live.
On to the Grand Canyon. Gary had never visited it before today; I was there about 15 years ago. I won't try to describe it; no one can d0 it adequately. It's just stupendous!
It was not too crowded, and we had easy access to all the overlooks we wanted to see. Had lunch at the Village Market; a chicken sandwich that was pretty good.
Went to the big hotel, just to walk through it so Gary could see it. A neat hotel that I'd like to stay in sometime.
Left the canyon to head to the north rim. As we left the high areas at the canyon and started downhill, it got very HOT again. We needed gas so we stopped at a gas station to get gas and to wet the Sahara vests. Oh, that helped tremendously! They make a huge difference in body temperatures.
As we rode north, it was getting later and we started talking about where to stay overnight. We originally planned to do the north rim and then head back north into Utah. As it was getting later, and we had several hundred more miles to ride, we decided to ride into Page, Az for the night and to go to the north rim tomorrow morning. A wise choice.
We found an adequate motel (with Internet), did laundry, and had dinner at a steak house nearby. Ok meal, but not great.
The Vstrom is doing okay, but the chain is failing. It's getting loose much faster, and I'm not going to make it home on this chain. So, we're going to start looking for a place to get it replaced soon. I hate it because it will be a waste of time, but it started wearing and then wore very fast. I think heat and speed kills it much faster than normal. In any case, it's pretty much gone.
Tomorrow to the north rim and on to Zion National Park.
342 miles today.
1 comment:
Great report!!! Wish I were there ...
Dick
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