Gunnison Colorado | Motorcycle Trip

We had an amazing trip to Colorado this last week.  Below are some photos from the trip.

Tad gearing up for the trip...waiting for Aaron & getting wired on coffee on the first morning.

 

A.J. & Tad ready for the trip

 

Scott (Wingman) Joined us from Portland and rode with us down to Gunnison.  I don't know what he is pointing at & neither does he.  We were heading across this amazingly remote area in Southern Idaho on Highway 81 between Idahome and Malta.  It is one of the straightest roads I have ever been on.

Yes, I was the only one on the trip with hair.  I had to ride with these two "cueballs" the entire trip down :).  Just joki'n guys.  Just remember the headblade http://www.headblade.com/  We did joke around about me shaving my head.  Maybe next time....Yeah Right!!

 

What is he pointing at!?  Next stop was Bear Lake.  The border between Idaho and Utah cuts the lake in half.  It is this amazing blue color and is gigantic!  We had a little sand rally where we were spinning broadies and taking speed runs on the beach.  Not an easy task with slick tires on. It was a blast.  A.J. had the wildest ride and was throwing big rooster tails of sand in the air.  We all made it back onto the highway without dumping our bikes in the sand.

Tad at Bear Lake.

 

The one drawback to the Triumph Bonneville is that it doesn't carry much fuel.  We decided to push on to the next town for gas and just as we were about running on fumes we found this gas pump in the middle of the desert.  It looked like it was deserted.  There was no attendant or anything.  Thinking we were in dire straights we pulled up to the pumps & sure enough just insert a credit card and start pumping.  As we left we went around the next little hill and on the other side was a town...Kimmerer...hidden in the desert.  We weren't as far from civilization as we thought! :) 

 

We stopped in the town of Green River and bought some food to cook over my stove and a 12 pack of PBR.  We strapped the beer to the back of my bike and headed South to Flaming Gorge.  I saw a creek crossing on my GPS and gunned it to get down there before it got dark.  I'm sure the guys were thinking, "Where is he going with our beer?!"  We got to the crossing and it was Black's Fork of the Green River.  We rode out onto this mud bar.  We contemplated staying right next to the river, but were concerned if the river might rise in the night so we moved to higher ground.  A.J. dumped his bike after getting stuck in the mud.  Here is Scott pointing at me.  The map says that this is where John Wesley Powell's expedition started from in 1869.  This is God's country down here!  We tried to swim in the water, but the banks were so muddy and the water so silty, that we decided to forgoe the bath since we figured we might actually be more dirty from swimming in the water!

A.J.'s self portrait on his engine case.

Packing up for another amazing day of riding.  This was a beautiful morning.  It was starting to sink in what we were really doing out here.  Starting to forget about work and the stress of everyday life.

Brit Rocker "Red Winged Blackbird" at the "Flaming Gorge" on the Green River after crossing the border into Utah.  Thanks for the cool shades "Chopper"!...and I know you guys were envious of my hydration backpack by this day...even though you were yanking my chain about wearing it early on the beginning of the trip.

 

Brit Rocker "Boise Legend" at the Flaming Gorge

 

This was a sweet bridge that we crossed on the way to the dam.

 

The Dam on the Green River at Flaming Gorge.  It has a lot of the same features as Hoover Dam.

 

A little artistic photography by Tad.

This was a mirror on a tight hairpin corner to help see if there was any traffic coming the other way around the corner....Photo Opportunity!

 

Stegosaurus at the City Hall in Dinosaur, Utah

Stegosaurus Drive in Dinosaur, Utah

 

Scott & Tad and "Invisible Trevor" at Douglass Pass after crossing into Colorado!

Looking into Colorado from Douglass Pass

A.J. & Tad at Douglass Pass.  Thanks for the earplugs Wingman!!

Who is this Hooligan!?..The Dude!!...Yep, we finally made it to Gunnison!

 

The bikes lined up at the overlook

View from the overlook - Looking South across Colorado

Hot enough for ya! 120 degrees in the sun!

 

A.J. at the North Rim of the Gunnison River Overlook

 

Looking down to the Gunnison River from the North Rim Overlook

The Artist at Work!!

Hillbilly on his 1976 T-140 Bonneville Traveler

 

Frog on his 1971 Norton with custom fairing & paniers

 

Wingman Scott showing us how it is done.

Looking up the Gunnison River Canyon

 

Blue Mesa Dam on the Gunnison River

 

Our Camp at the "Tall Texan".  We almost got the boot the first night for being too loud.

The bikes lined up on the Streets of Gunnison

Scott the Carnivour

Looking towards Breckenridge, Colorado

 

At 11,344 feet the bike runs really rich.  Maximum speed was about 60mph :)

 

Ivy League of Colorado

 

Enough said.

 

Headwaters of the Colorado River

 

Wyoming wildlife.  We saw a bunch of these guys.  A couple crossing the road in front of us which got your attention on the bike.

The Granite Mountains in Wyoming

What am I pointing at?  This is called "Split Rock" in the Granite Mountains.

Our camp at Sink Canyon.

 

More Wyoming wildlife!

Feed the fish.

The Rise

The bike hits 10,000 miles

Red Rocks Wyoming

The Wind River Range in Wyoming

 

Teton Range, Wyoming

Sleeping in Chopper's backyard

 

Breakfast at Shorty's in Hailey, Idaho.

 

Sawtooth Hike - Baron Falls

Karma and I went camping this Fourth of July weekend with our friends Clancy and Anne Anderson and Lee and Abby Fischer. We stayed at a spot along the South Fork of the Payette on the road up to Grandjean. On Saturday morning after a lot of coffee to get motivated we drove up to the trailhead at the Grandjean campground. We hiked towards Baron Lakes. Lee and Abby hiked with us for a couple miles and then turned back. They took Bobeau back with them since he was getting pretty tired and Karma and I were planning a big day ahead of us. Lee and Abby planned on taking Bobeau with them to Bull Trout Lake to go kayaking on the lake. Clancy and Anne were going to meet up with them and go to Bull Trout lake as well. Hank came with us and did really well. We saw a few horses coming down out of the mountains and a couple other hiking parties, but it felt very secluded. We turned East at the confluence of Baron Cr. and the South Fork of the Payette and headed up the wide canyon. Grandjean peak was to our South and there was still snow tucked away in the small areas that were hidden from the sun.

We saw lots of waterfalls cascading down the cliffs above us. We reached the North Fork of Baron Creek and found it a torrent of water. We searched downstream and found a large log to cross the Creek.

Our next water crossing was at Moolack Creek. We found a log upstream of the trail at this crossing.

The trail was covered in thick brush and we were glad that we had worn long pants for the treck. The temperature was a little on the warm side for long pants, but the protection they provided was well worth it.

We found a large tree with some shade and sat down to eat some Gorp and the first our Sandwiches. It was a good break. The only sounds around us were the sounds of birds and water rushing down the mountains. The wildflowers were amazing this time of year. I took photos of many of them that I didn’t recognize and some that I did such as Sego Lilies and Indian Paintbrush.

I will try to find the names out of some of the others later. On the way up we could hear woodpeckers pounding away at the surrounding timber. We also saw many trees perforated by their work. It took us about 5 hours to get to the waterfall and it was amazingly loud as we got closer to it. Huge amounts of water were tumbling off the mountains.

We discussed going up to the lakes, but felt a bit exhausted and we were running later than we had planned so we turned around about 7,600 feet in elevation. It looked as if we were about level with the top of the waterfall and after examining the topo map I confirmed our elevation with my watch and GPS and figured we had another 2mi to the lakes. On the way back I pumped purified water into our hydration packs from Baron Creek. We had really gone through a lot of water. We ate the last of our peanut butter sandwiches and almost finished the Gorp. The views in every direction were just awesome! It reminded me of the time I had spent in the Sawtooths with Grandaddy and my Mom and Dad when I was a little kid.

The trek out took us almost 4 hours so we ended up hiking for almost 9 hours straight. Our feet and legs took a bit of a beating between sore muscles and blisters. We stopped at Sacajawea hot springs on the way back to camp to rinse off. We got back into camp around 9:00 at night and made a steak dinner. After dinner we hung around the fire with friends until we couldn’t keep our eyes open any longer. We slept outside under the stars and woke in the morning to a squirrel running over our sleeping bags. What a great weekend!

Boise's Whitewater Park

I went running with my dog Hank after work last night along the Boise River Greenbelt.  We stopped at a beach along the Boise River and he played fetch with a stick he had found.  This is the same area that I go fly-fishing after work in the summer.  We are so lucky living in Boise with the proximity to wildlife and the outdoors.

As I ran next to the proposed Esther Simplot park, I saw excavation equipment moving dirt & beginning inital grading for the new park.  It looks as if construction on the new park is finally underway!!  It got me thinking about the plans for the new Whitewater Park along this stretch of river and what a benefit it will be to our community.  It will be a great venue for slalom kayak competitions, a whitewater practice course, and will bring more interest and vitality to this area of our City.  Best of all, it is within walking distance from my house :)  What a great way to spend a hot summer day!...Kayak surfing in the cool, clear water, just out my back door.  Idaho really is an amazing place to live.

Click on the links below to see more on the proposed Whitewater Park and the new Esther Simplot park.

http://www.boiseriverpark.com/

Boise's Whitewater Park

Running

Karma and I ran 4 miles from Discovery Park down to the Diversion Dam and back yesterday.  It felt great!  We went to Bandanna afterward and I bought some new running shoes because the support in mine was breaking down.  I used them to train for the Sawtooth Relay last year, so I have no idea how many miles they have on them.  I saw John & Joni Stright at Bandana and John was on his way to Toronto to get current in flying the DeHavilland Twin Otter.  We went to the Flying M afterward for a mocha.

I went running tonight when I got back from flying.  It felt great to decompress and think about my flight.  I ran about 4 miles and checked out the area around Boise Cascade Pond.  The new Ester Simplot park is going to be a great asset to our community.  Also, the whitewater park is going to bring another positive aspect to our community in Boise.

The waterfront district is taking off!  It is great to see it actually coming together.

http://www.waterfrontdistrict.com/

Back in the Pilot's Seat

I went flying tonight with Flight Instructor Rick Reierson from Ponderosa Aero Club. I have been working on getting my license current again. We departed Boise Class C airspace and headed to the South of the airport above Kuna and Initial point. I did 30 degree banked turns for 360 degrees in each direction and S turns over a road. We also did turns about a point using an irrigation crop circle as a guide. I felt pretty solid in the ground reference maneuvers. After that we went over to Nampa and did some pattern work. I did three landings. The first was the best of the three. After that we headed back to Boise for a straight in approach. It felt good to be back in the air!

Pedicure

Karma took me in for a pedicure after work today to show me what is required in a salon to perform manicures and pedicures.  She thought it would be a good idea since we are working on the new salon for Scot Christopher and he will have full manicure and pedicure stations in the new plan.  Although at first I was a bit reluctant to go, I did have a good time & ended up walking away with 10 sparkley toes :) 

Matt Haley | Sand and Gravel

Our friend Matt Haley is infamous for leaving prank calls on our voicemail.  Today he pulled off another one!  It had me going for a bit.  Take a listen when you get a chance, his calls are hilarious.

Click here to listen.

Good News Network

Are you getting tired of all the negative news and reporting? I ran across this site called the “Good News Network” the other day and have added it to my homepages. There are a lot of interesting legitimate news stories that have a more positive take on our society and our world. There is even a free thirty day trial. Check it out when you get a chance by clicking on the logo below:

Killer Bees Spotted at Bogus Basin

The 2009 ski season at Bogus Basin has been excellent! A great way to end the season was with the annual end of the season costume party. This year Karma and I were the “Killer Bees on Skis!” We met up with friends Clancy and Tucker Anderson and their families. Clancy’s son Oliver was dressed up as a Meerkat and kept us in line. Click on the image below to see a video of the last day and party at Bogus! Special thanks to Bogus Basin and the events director JJ McCleod for a fantastic season!

Killer Bees at Bogus Basin | 2009

The Sun Also Rises

I just finished reading "The Sun Also Rises" by Ernest Hemingway".  Below is my favorite quote from the book:

“Romero never made any contortions, always it was straight and pure and natural in line.  The others twisted themselves like corkscrews, their elbows raised, and leaned against the flanks of the bull after his horns had passed, to give a faked look of danger.  Afterward, all that was faked turned bad and gave an unpleasant feeling.  Romero’s bull-fighting gave real emotion, because he kept the absolute purity of the line in his movements and always quietly and calmly let the horns pass him close each time.  He did not have to emphasize their closeness.  Brett saw how something that was beautiful done close to the bull was ridiculous if it were done a little way off.  I told her how since the death of Joselito all the bull-fighters had been developing a technic that simulated this appearance of danger in order to give a fake emotional feeling, while the bull-fighter was really safe.  Romero had the old thing, the holding of his purity of line through the maximum of exposure, while he dominated the bull by making him realize he was unattainable, while he prepared him for the killing.”

 

~ Ernest Hemingway  “The Sun Also Rises”

 

Lucky Peak Waterskiing

We have been waterskiing every Wednesday night after work at Lucky Peak Reservoir.  Tucker and Clancy and I grew up skiing in McCall on Payette Lake.  We would get up early to ski before any other boats were on the lake & we would ski whenever we got the chance.  They still have the same boat as when we were growing up.  Waterskiing with great friends is still one of my most favorite things in life!  Below is a link to a video of us skiing behind the Ski Nautique.

Lucky Peak Waterskiing Video