South Or West?
We still haven’t firmed up on a route and our feelings keep changing on where to go. The weather has a lot to do with that though. It was too hot a couple of days back 100 F with fairly high humidity and we thought it would be best to get out west as quickly as possible; yes, it’s even hotter out there – but it is a dry heat.
Today, Friday, it is pouring down and there are lots of thunderstorms. Now we consider crossing the midwestern states and the high risk of tornadoes – very active around there at this time of year, hence the nickname, Tornado Alley.
We really want to see some good friends in Florida. Now, I did not like Florida in July (last year’s trip) but, it would be good to see Pat and Norm.
Then there’s CJ (also known as Miss Mermaid – a pen name she uses on the books she writes and also when she does her radio DJ-ing ) another ex-sailor from the Caribbean circuit who has a job as a warden in a State Park on the West Virginia/Georgia border. She lives in her mobile home with her little dog – re-named ‘Monkey On A String’ last year by J. It would be good to camp out there with CJ. but we are a bit wary of the Georgia humidity and the chiggers; we had some nasty bites from those bastards a couple of years back when we were in Tennessee.
So, as you can see, we are going around and around in bloody circles here!
But, we are packing the big blue bag and the maps we might need.
This morning I’ve been re-reading the Ride Guide To America and found a couple of exciting-sounding rides around Georgia and again in southern Texas.
Quote from the Ride Guide
Jekyll Island
Cruising along a 6-mile black ribbon of causeway that cuts through green marsh, I leave the Georgia mainland behind and aim the Triumph (the bikers in these books always have BMW, Triumphs etc – not the poser’s Harley) toward open water.
“Leaving the mainland behind.” On a sunny summer morning, I love the sound of those words. Because it isn’t just continental North America that’s disappearing in the mirrors of the Sprint RS. It’s the hustle of modern life. Work. Schedules. All that.”
The chapter ends…
‘It’s as though the tide of progress washed over these islands generations ago, and never returned, leaving them firmly rooted in another time. And that’s just fine by me’
The other chapter that interests me for photography, is 16. Galveston to Rockport (although we would be riding the route the opposite way).
Distance: 221 miles
Highlights: The south Texas coast, riding on the beach, massive petrochemical plants (erm) AND ONE OF THE LARGEST AND MOST INTERESTING WILDLIFE PRESERVES IN THE WORLD. Five miles into the park is an observation tower that gives a great view of some of the park’s 59,000 acres.
It is referring to the Aransas Pass Wildlife Refuge Here you can see the whooping crane which is making a slow comeback. In 1945 there were just 15 surviving birds. At the time of writing the Ride Guide, there were more than 400.
There’s swamp too (mozzies) and alligators – and literally thousands of species of birds.
I know for a FACT. If I mention any one of those words – swamp, alligator or mosquitoes then I don’t stand a cat in hells chance. So please keep that quiet. Let’s just concentrate on the fantastic seafood to be had – the gumbo, the jambalaya, fried catfish. This is a method I used called stealth! (although J would say sly)
On The Road Again: Touring The USA On A Moto Guzzi Breva 