Motorcycle Trip Out West 10 Years Later, Day 13

Total Mileage 4399.8 (297.0 for the day)

We are home.

We woke up to a cool perfect Midwest morning and headed out. We had I-70 almost to ourselves for quite some time before traffic began to pick up.

As we headed east, it began to look like we might actually be able to pick up the dogs before the kennel closed at 1:00. Seeing this was possible, I kicked myself for not getting going earlier and it caused the throttle hand to twist a little more than usual. We needed fuel as we were getting near Indianapolis, and got off the interstate at a stop with several gas stations, including a truck stop. Unfortunately, there was a pretty bad accident at the top of the off-ramp which left us sitting, not moving. Keeping it in perspective, this was much, much worse for the people in the accident than for us.
Eventually, I took the shoulder of the off-ramp past the two trucks in front of me and the kind woman directing traffic let me loop around and get right back on the freeway. A few more exits up and I got off again, successful in getting gas.

SO's phone wasn't working well so I gave her mine and she called the kennel. With the delay it was going to be close, but getting the dogs should still be doable. While talking with the kennel, we found out that they now offer 5:00 pickup on Wednesdays. They used to be closed on Wednesdays all day, but this is a very welcome change. This makes the decision to use our vet/kennel much easier when we might get home near a Wednesday.

After getting gas and making sure we had arrangements to get the dogs, we were off on the last leg. We got around Indianapolis and headed straight home. Once at home, everything was as we left it and since it was the middle of the day, it was almost scary quiet.

I started this trip thinking about how it is 10 years since the first trip out west. In retrospect, I think more is different than the same, and trying to recreate in my mind that first trip is wrong. This trip should have been called Texas by way of Idaho but when we left I really wasn't sure what the destination after Salt Lake City was going to be. Confirming the circular nature of life, our last night on the road was within a few miles of our first night on the road in 2004.

And, I guess that also marks a really big difference. Last year we completed the goal of riding through the 49th state and our riding trips can change now. While this might bring us more freedom, one of the things I really liked about this trip was that we had a plan daily and (mostly) stuck to it. We slowed down in places where there was something interesting we wanted to see and made sure to do them. We remained flexible to go where we wanted after visits with family that needed to be choreographed.

Sometime recently, possibly during this trip I likely surpassed 200,000 miles on a motorcycle in my lifetime. I don't see that as an accomplishment as much as a stepping stone to the next 100,000.

What a great Adventure!

Motorcycle Trip Out West 10 Years Later, Day 12

Total Mileage 4102.8 (638.7 for the day)

The plan was to get on the road early to start towards home, but we got a little later start than anticipated. The Quality Inn did have a great breakfast including Waffles! so it all worked out.

Once ready to go, we stopped down at the gas station. With the significant change in altitude on the trip so far, the tire pressure on the bike was now low. The gas station had the worst chuck imaginable on the compressed air system and I could see the humidity in the air hissing out, but I was able to get enough air into the tires to get them back where they should be.

And, we were off towards home.

The day was fairly mundane. We headed north through Oklahoma and got on the Toll-Interstate where we remained for the rest of the day. Thankfully, we only had tolls in Oklahoma. Early in the morning, we were right on the edge of rain, but once we got a bit north we were in sunshine.

Later in the day there was some clouds, but they were just fair weather cumulus clouds. Temperatures were moderate, within 5 degrees of 80 all day and the air dried out considerably. It was a great day to pile on the miles on the Goldwing.

We crossed the Mississippi near Saint Louis, and I still don't know how many crossings that makes on two-wheels. Once across, we started to look for the right combination of hotel and restaurant for the night.

We ended up in the Powhatan Motel in Pocohantos, IL. We had stayed at very few independent motels so it was a welcome change. The motel was very nice and a restaurant right next to it. The motel had a big parking area in front of the rooms that was level and concrete. Perfect for motorcycle parking! The restaurant had a coupon in the local paper as well so it was a real bargain. Ribs, chicken and pie to go rounded out the day.

Ready for the trip home.

Motorcycle Trip Out West 10 Years Later, Day 11

Total Mileage 3464.1 (399.3 for the day)

We woke up to lightening in the distance. After a shower, I ran down to the gas station and got some adequate convenience store coffee. On my way back to the hotel it was barely spitting rain. Checking the radar, it looked like most of the rain was to the north without much movement to the south. The one exception was a finger of rain that might impede our way.

We decided against any rain gear since it was warm and the rain didn't appear to significantly affect US-287. This, of course, was a mistake. I'm not sure how many times we have learned the lesson to put on rain gear when rain is in the area, or how many more times we have to relearn this.

Because of the heavy cloud cover, it was still quite dark as we left. The rain spit a bit more at us for the first half hour and then we had full on rain for another half hour. We sort-of dried out after that, but at the first gas stop things were again looking very ominous, as judged by the sky and the radar on our phones. Since we had mostly dried out, we put on our rain gear. This was the right thing to do since for the next several hours we were in and out of rain. Sometimes it was light, but many times it was very heavy. The temperatures fluctuated too, from muggy humid gross to cool clammy. For a few brief times, it rained so hard it was difficult to see. Luckily, traffic was never an issue except around Wichita Falls (and it was raining moderately hard for our entire time through that city).

Eventually we made it down to the wealthy suburbs/exurbs north of Dallas. There was a town there we wanted to drive through for some arbitrary and slightly sophomoric reasons and we did; we also took several pictures in the area for posterity. We had driven hundreds of extra miles for this, without it we would not have had many of the past few days adventures so perhaps the destination or reason are not really all that important.

From there, we headed up US-75 and head a great lunch at Abby's in Howe, Texas. We originally saw a sign for Don's Butcher Shop which was also a restaurant and promised more smoked meats, but it was very closed. Luckily, Abby's was right across the street and the food was great.

We headed up US-75 a bit more to Sherman, stopping at the Quality Inn. It is interesting how different locations will have different default conditions for hotels. I would only be able to recommend our hotel in Amarillo to precisely the right kind of person. The Quality Inn in Sherman was great. Compared to the previous night it was outstanding! The room was huge and everything worked. It was clean without smelling overly perfumed. The super awesome staff suggested I could park my motorcycle right outside the double doors of the hotel so it would be covered, lighted, and in view of people all night. I happily took advantage of this.

Restaurants were a bit thin in the area so we went around the corner to a small place called Camino Viejo which sits in an old truck stop. We ordered and I surfed the restaurant on my phone (always dangerous while sitting in the booth). It had a number of reviews that said something to the effect of: Don't let the exterior fool you, the food is great. The reviews were right as the food was really good - fresh guac and great tacos. What was funny is the guy sitting behind me was loud-talking on his cell phone and sounded exactly like the dude at 1-minute in this video clip.

We grabbed some ice cream at the gas station to eat in the hotel room before turning in, knowing it is time to head home.

Motorcycle Trip Out West 10 Years Later, Day 10

Total Mileage 3064.6 (481.2 for the day)

As with the previous day, the plan was to get on the road to put miles away before it got too hot.

As we got ready to leave Farmington, New Mexico it already felt warm. Thankfully, once we started to move it cooled off a little more.

We jumped on US-550 right outside of Farmington to head south and east. I won't go so far as to say US-550 is a great motorcycle road since it is mostly flat and what turns there are tend to be sweepers, but it was probably a highlight of the trip so far. US-550 is four lanes and at least on Sunday morning is devoid of traffic. This made it very pleasant to really enjoy the scenery. And, the scenery on US-550 is unbelievable. In 2009 when I went through Northern New Mexico, I thought it was one of the nicest areas I had ever been through and this was reinforced on this gorgeous Sunday morning. The scenery was enhanced by the shadows and broken light from the partly to mostly cloudy skies.

The scenery changed, but never got worse.

Continuing on in the day, the clouds gave way to mostly sunny skies, but New Mexico was still gorgeous.

All good things must come to and end and eventually we came to the end of US-550 and got on the interstate. Most of the rest of the day was spent on I-40. Once east of Albuquerque, I-40 is mostly scrub brush ranch land and is very flat. Traffic wasn't too bad on I-40 (all things considered). I actually really enjoy the Big Empty areas of the United States, but I missed US-550.

We stopped for lunch in Santa Rosa and had a very, very disappointing lunch that took forever to get. Oh well, the lunch stops like this make places like the Hy-Vee Market Grill a week ago much, much better.

It started to get very hot after lunch, but we soldiered on, crossing into Texas later in the afternoon. About 60 miles into Texas and just outside of Amarillo we had to stop at the definition of American kitsch. Cadillac Ranch is probably more performance art than anything else. It was created in the mid-1970's by some artists on land owned by millionaire Stanley Marsh III. It is on private property, but visiting it is encouraged and spraypainting the Cadillacs "planted" in the ground is not discouraged, although spray painting outside the private land is, as signs warn.

We parked the bike and walked up to the cars. I'm not sure it would be worth a special trip, and it is not nearly as interesting as Car Henge, but being this close we had to stop and see it. It was MUCH better than the time and money spent at the Four Corners.

It was funny to see the ecclectic group of people who stopped to see it. Equally as interesting was the many, many layers of paint on the cars. Former creases and sharp lines are now rounded in paint. According to Wikipedia, the site of the Cadillac Ranch was moved in 1997 since Amarillo was growing too close to the original site.


After the kitsch, we continued east to our hotel in Amarillo. We had seen signs for The Big Texan. This is part restaurant and part tourist attraction as it has been featured in several TV shows I've seen with "eating challenges." The challenge is a full meal including a 72-ounce steak; finish it and it is free.

We opted to walk there from the hotel which was probably a mistake since it ended up being farther than we thought. We just decided that we earned our meal with the walk, although we opted for a ribeye over a gigantic gut-buster. The steak was really good and the prices surprisingly reasonable given that The Big Texan was geared toward tourists. The service left a little to be desired, but I guess that is sometimes to be expected in places like that.

We took some fudge back to the hotel to eat while winding down for the day.

Motorcycle Trip Out West 10 Years Later, Day 9

Total Mileage 2583.4 (480.4 for the day)

The plan today was to get up early and hit the road so we could minimize the amount of time we spend riding in the very high heat in the Southwest. After quickly getting ready, we were out the door a little after 6:00, which was good for us and allowed D to get a morning bike ride in.

We headed south on the interstate which had very light traffic considering it was Saturday morning and got off on US-6, headed to Southeast Utah. After leaving the interstate, we were in an area full of canyons with lots of elevation changes. The temperatures dropped considerably in the canyons to the point that it actually got somewhat cold. Riding and being part of the scenery in the area with the rising sun was spectacular.

We were generally headed toward Moab, Canyonlands and Arches which was exciting since I had always wanted to ride through this area of Utah. As we headed south and east, some areas were hilly, almost mountainous

There were also several areas which were flat and straight. These areas plus ample passing lanes kept traffic moving very well.

Finally we made it to Moab. The actual town of Moab was messy with other tourists so I was glad we weren't actually stopping. What I found interesting about the Moab area, including the National Parks, was the changes in geography as we were riding through. Some of the areas were sharp cliffs and very jaggedy.

While other areas that were the same color of rock and in areas that weren't terribly far away were very smooth, suggesting much more history to round and erode the rocks.

Overall, the varying geography of Southeast Utah was pretty and amazing.

We had a very good quick lunch at Deb's Diner in Dove Creek, Colorado. The bacon cheeseburger was very tasty. Then, we continued south on US-491. This road used to be US-666, but the name was changed sometime around 10 years ago due to satanic connotations with the number 666 and the fact that the road signs were continually being stolen.

In 2009, we had been in this same general area, but had bypassed the four corners. We were piling on the miles that day and I had recently read a story that the actual point marked by the four corners is off significantly from the monument. How much the monument is off is debatable. The National Geodetic Survey says it is "in exactly the right space," but then goes on to say it is only about a third of a mile off. This document is government bureaucracy covering its ass in a big way. But, we were not in a hurry so decided to stop this time. This was a mistake. The four corners was a significant disappointment. We pulled into the lot, which is organized by the ultimate chaos theory of parking with anybody parking anywhere in any direction in a rough gravel lot. It cost $5/person to get in. Money NOT well spent.

Once in, if one wants to stand in exactly the right spot which is about a third of a mile from where four states meet, one must stand in line for quite some time and wait for every snot-nosed kid scream and get her picture taken.

We chose to quickly walk through four theoretical states which is nearly a third of a mile from where four actual states meet, yet still serves as a celebratory monument despite the fact that the hundreds of GPSs in the parking lot likely all showed the same thing mine did - that the point where four states meet is some ways away.

After our walk and glancing at some of the Native American crafts for sale, we jumped back on the bike and left. We probably spent about a dollar a minute to see the Four Corners Monument, which serves as a reminder of what a pain National Monuments and Parks can be.

Adding insult to injury, I left my metal kickstand plate in the rough parking lot since it sank into the soft sandy gravel. Granted, this was a self-induced insult, but it was irritating that I left it at the Four Corners. (as an aside, I bought a electrical blanking plate to replace it at home depot at the day's stop)

It started to rain briefly as we headed east in New Mexico. It was just a few very large raindrops, but with the days heat assaulting us, a brief downpour would have been nice. The bulk of the rain stayed to the south.

From the Four Corners, we headed into Farmington, New Mexico for the night. Dinner was at The Spare Rib BBQ. There has been a lot of smoked meats this trip, and that can only be a good thing.

Motorcycle Trip Out West 10 Years Later, Day 7, 8

Total Mileage 2103.0 (180.7 for the days)

July 24 is Pioneer Day in Utah which is a pretty big state holiday, especially in and around Salt Lake City so everyone had the day off.

Morning was spent around the house though, helping unpack remaining boxes and putting up mirrors, etc. in the bathrooms. After we had all accomplished things there, we packed up the car and bike to head up to the cabin for the day and night. The plan was to take both vehicles since J1's friend (I guess she would be J3?) was going along and fitting six people in a Prius is probably not prudent for a couple hour drive to the mountains.

We followed D up to the cabin and stopped at the lodge at the base of the mountain roads, hoping to park the bike there. The gravel roads to the cabin can be generously described as "rough" and the final driveway is very steep with gravel and loose dirt. When we talked to the people at the lodge, they weren't too excited about having an extra vehicle there with the busy weekend. The woman did eventually say we could park there, but I wasn't too comfortable about the situation at that point. I can't blame the lodge people given that it could be very possible to have lots of people wanting to park all manner of vehicles there.

I could also have left the bike at the forest service parking area which probably would have been fine, but that would have left it in a very uncontrolled environment. I decided to take it to the cabin. Ten years ago (the trip where the title of this adventure comes from), I took my Harley Davidson Electraglide up to the cabin on the inaugural christening of the cabin. It was just an harrowing then, but I didn't know the condition of the roads and driveway. Ignorance is bliss.

I carefully made my way down the dirt road on my plastic 800 pound bike, doing my best to avoid the largest rocks and potholes. Once at the driveway, I started up it but managed to stall about half way up. Whether I was on a steep section or not doesn't matter, since the entire driveway is pretty steep. I was able to roll back and rest the back tire on a rock to get the bike started and moving forward again, with some slippage of the rear wheel; none too comforting.

I successfully made it to the cabin, keeping the bike upright the entire time. A decade ago, I said I would never take my bike up to the cabin again, and I'll say it this time too. Maybe I should just buy a Suzuki V-Strom.

Once at the cabin, we changed out of motorcycle clothes we goofed around for a while, shooting pellet guns and hooting around. The cabin is a pretty amazing place and it was fun hanging around with J1 and J2.

After some time we had an amazing dinner of buffalo T-bone steaks which were some of the most tender buffalo I've ever had. The night ended with a rousing game of spoons until we all turned in after dark.

---

July 25

We woke up to a beautiful quiet mountain morning with very cool air. The cabin sits near 11,000 feet and the cool air was a welcome respite from the last few days heat. The morning mountain sunrise, as it has been during past visits was nothing short of stunning.

After a breakfast of yeast raised waffles and bacon, J2 and I took the four wheeler up Dead Man Mountain and hiked nearly to the top. I've done this same ride and hike several times before and it never ceases to amaze me how gorgeous and quiet it is up near the tree line. We sat at the highest point and the only sound was the wind in the trees. Even the usual din from ATV traffic was non-existent.

Back at the cabin we played a few games shot the pellet guns more before a quick lunch and heading back home. The trip down the steep gravel driveway is different, but just as uncomfortable as the trip up. But, I was able to crawl down and carefully ride the gravel roads out. Once at the exit, the police and/or forest service had set up a checkpoint. I wasn't sure if I needed a forest pass on the dirt roads, but what could I do. I asked the officer who stopped me if I could pull forward to the asphalt around 30 yards ahead and he kindly said that was fine. I was glad since he stopped me on very soft sand. All he did was checked my license and registration and thanked me for my time.

From there, we headed back to D's house and did some more unpacking and hanging of mirrors. This was interrupted by a great taco dinner before finishing the chores and calling it a day.

Motorcycle Trip Out West 10 Years Later, Day 6

Total Mileage 1922.3 (119.7 for the day)

Got a slightly slower start than usual since it wasn't clear what exactly we were going to do for the entire day.

Headed south on another dry and cool western morning. The area south of Preston was only intermittently rural, as the area began to feel more suburban quickly, especially once we got into Utah. The scenery along US 91 was still pretty though.

There were a few interesting things to see along the way.
Evel Cowneivel??? Or...why does a pig ride a motorcycle - because he can.

We continued south and got on the interstate, getting off near downtown Salt Lake City. We were headed to the Daughters of the Pioneers Museum in SLC. This was one of the first times I was really glad I had turn by turn directions on a GPS since we were able to quickly find it. Thankfully, rush hour was over by this time.

Surprisingly, we were able to easily find a parking space right next to the museum and it was free. Between the available free parking and the very clean downtown area, Salt Lake has to be one of the nicest big cities we've been to. Drivers are much more courteous than I was anticipating for as well.

The museum has many artifacts from the pioneer days of the Mormons entering what is now Salt Lake City and the general westward travel of pioneers in general. It is much more pioneer than Mormon, but both are there. There are later exhibits as well, showing the growing of the city. Unfortunately, photography is not allowed in the museum. Much of the museum is incredibly interesting, showing what daily life was like on the frontier in the mid 1800's through early 20th century. Many of the items can be tied directly back to their original owners including Brigham Young. I was surprised to see some of the things they hauled across the continent, including grand pianos. A couple pianos were buried in the plains and retrieved later as the travel was not always without troubles. Also interesting, the museum has a ~120 year old piece of bread from the inaugural of the Mormon Temple and a sheep with two heads. The museum has something for everyone.

The attendance was very lite which allowed a measured pace through the museum until a whole troop of kids showed up with scavenger homework on things in the museum to find. July 24 is Pioneer Day, celebrated in Utah as the day that Brigham Young declared "This is the place." and no doubt it will be much busier soon.

After the museum we headed down through Temple Square to a mall to eat at Kneaders, which is kind of like a Panera. The food was good, even if we were in a mall.

While walking back through Temple Square, we ended up touring some of the Mormon Temple areas. Despite the fact that we had been through here several years ago, we had the time and for whatever reason it was more interesting this time. The Mormons put a happy face on their Religion turned tourist attraction as there is never a shortage of tour guides to help or explain.

One of the places we went was to the 26th floor of the church administration building which has two observation decks. These can't be accessed unescorted, but a friendly guide brought us up and she also pointed out some neat things in the area. The view of the capital is stunning.

From the other observation deck, the main Temple Square and Temple is visible in a way not easily seen from the ground.

The general view of the Salt Lake Valley is also gorgeous.

It is impossible to come to this desert city and not think about Sarah Vowell's description of Salt Lake City and Las Vegas, especially with the friendliness of the volunteers: "Even though one city is all about sin and the other is all about salvation, they are identical, one-dimensional company towns built up out of the desert by the sheer will of true believers." What I truly enjoyed about the unscheduled visit to Temple Square was how everyone is very accommodating without being pushy and treating every interaction as a proselytizing moment; I think that shows a level of respect from the Mormons and since we are visiting their most special area that should be reciprocated.

After leaving the Temple area, we had a somewhat painful walk up the steep hill back towards the bike in temperatures that had climbed to well over 100 degrees. Still, I wanted to see inside the state capital building. I wasn't sure if was supposed to be walking around by myself, but other than the security guard glowering from overhead, none of the very few people around seemed to care.

The capital building is also very impressive with marble everywhere and imposing staircases.

The main rotunda of the building has four status showing what I presume are tenets of state of Utah. These are tangential to the Mormon religion and a statue of Brigham Young is also just off the rotunda.

Back at the bike, we painfully put on our hot motorcycle coats and helmets and made our way to a public library for a little over an hour to borrow the wifi and relax before we headed to D's new house.

Once there, we caught up for a while and had dinner of home made burgers before talking and playing a few games.

Motorcycle Trip Out West 10 Years Later, Day 5

Total Mileage 1802.6 (337.0 for the day)

Woke up a little slower since there was no reason to be in a hurry, but still was on the road by around 7:30. We took I-80 west. Temperature was near perfect, in fact it was near perfect for most of the day, ranging from the low 60s to the low 70s until the last half hour or so of the day when the elevation dropped.

I-80 through Wyoming is generally lightly traveled and with decent scenery for an interstate. On this day, I set the cruise control as we were leaving Rawlins and didn't touch it or the throttle again for well over 100 miles - I had to turn it off due to some evil RVs, otherwise I probably could have left it on without any manipulation for the full 145 miles we were on I-80.

At the interchange before we were supposed to get off, I noticed a sign saying it was the last services for 28 miles so we got off for fuel at Little America. The station was absolutely overrun with Mormon children in pioneer dress headed off to some Mormon Pioneer Day celebration or reenactment. It was actually hard to walk through the very large gas station with all the kids. Surprisingly and thankfully, the bathrooms were still available.

We got off the interstate and took US30. US30 through Wyoming is mostly straight but with a few notably interesting parts in and around some of the hills. Traffic was non-existent and what traffic there was was mostly truck traffic. The scenery is typical of Western Wyoming with brush ranch and range land. There are also many gas and/or oil wells dotting the area.

I actually like riding on these less-challenging roads sometimes since it is great thinking time. Both I-80 and US30 were enjoyable for the morning.

We went past Fossil Butte National Monument, but didn't stop. I didn't know much about the national monument, but it looks like most of the activities are hiking and camping. Not surprisingly, digging/taking/buying fossils is prohibited, so there wasn't much point to stop anyway.

We continued on into Idaho, taking ID-36 just outside Montpelier (I didn't realize we had gone all the way to Vermont). ID-36 is restricted for truck traffic and goes through the Cache National Forest. This National Forest stretches all the way south to D's cabin where we might be going later in the week.

Idaho 36 was wonderful. Much like Wyoming 130, it has lots of great curves, including some very steep stretches, up to 7% grade and a few switchbacks. There are enough straight stretches to allow passing, but there was so little traffic that it didn't matter.

As we descended out of the mountains, it did start to get hot, but this was tolerable since we were nearly at our destination of Preston, Idaho. Preston was larger in both people and geography than I would have thought, having a population north of 5000.

Preston, Idaho is where the movie Napoleon Dynamite was filmed. This is a cult classic film. It is one of the films that Netflix "finds maddenly hard to predict who will like it." I first saw this movie several years ago while flipping through satellite when we had it. I watched part of it and thought it was terrible. But, I couldn't get it out of my mind and searched for a replay of it several times until I found it on again and watched the whole thing. My mind changed and I bought it and have watched it several more times since then. To be fair, in preparation for this trip I watched it again a few weeks ago and it was a little hard to watch.

Lots of people have come to Preston to do the Napoleon self-tour. We stopped and bought a small brochure with a map. I had previously mapped out most of what I wanted to see, but the printing on my map had rubbed off over the last couple thousand miles in the saddle bags. The store with the Napleon map had other Napoleon Dynamite stuff including "Vote for Pedro" shirts, but I was very able to ignore those.

Napoleon Dynamite's house is down a very gravel road. There is a paved road nearby, but I didn't know this initially. For the second time this trip, the Goldwing played off-road bike as we went about a mile down much more slippery gravel than the first gravel road a few days previous in Iowa.

The house itself is still a private residence and apparently none of the movie was filmed inside the house as the inside scenes were filmed elsewhere. I did not see anyone shoot a cow across the street. However, the brochure I bought did say that "Lyle" (or Dale Critchlow) will sign autographs if you find him at home. I didn't look to see where he lived.

The Pop 'n Pins bowling ally is right by the Plaza Hotel where we stayed. The hotel was very nice and comfortable and they were able to check us in early since it was a relatively short drive on the bike from Rawlins. The bowling alley is seasonally closed so if anyone wants to bowl with bumpers, it sounds like it must be a winter thing.

We ate at Big J's burgers. This is not the original Big J's from the movie as that was apparently torn down a few years ago. The original sign lasted longer than that, until the building that now stands was built. The food was really great for lunch. Without a bit of humor, they serve tater tots as a side and the girl who took our order really did call them just "tots" without any irony.

Preston High School looks just like it does in the movie. There was even a bike rack out front, but no Hispanic "cousins" out front with their "sweet hookups" protecting the bikes from bullies, nor was there an Uncle available to pick us up after missing the bus.

I'll end this little Napoleon Dynamite expose' the same way the movie ends with the tether ball court. This is not really at the high school, but a short ways away behind the elementary school. It looks different in person, or maybe just getting the perspective right was more difficult.

Dinner that night was at the New York Style Steak and Deli. The steak was surprisingly good for a place that also had take-out. It was better than many restaurants dedicated to steaks I've eaten at previously.

I'm not sure an entire stop revolving around a polarizing movie makes sense, but Preston was really a nice town to visit for a night.

Motorcycle Trip Out West 10 Years Later, Day 4

Total Mileage 1465.6 (332.6 for the day)

S&T had to work so we were up with them and out the door around 7:00.  It was very dry and temperatures were in the low 70s.  Great motorcycle riding weather, but a premonition of what the day's heat was going to bring. We headed south and west towards Wyoming.  Early in the day, it was surprising how many cars were on the road and how slow they were going.  Actually, they weren't going slow, just not fast.  Perhaps nobody was in a hurry for Monday morning work.  We were not working and happily motoring our way through Nebraska and Wyoming.  As we continued on, the Sand Hills area gave way to bluffs and rocky outcroppings.  This landscape almost brings to mind the badlands.

As we crossed the border into Wyoming, the bluffs gave way to more hilly to mountainous terrain.  The temperatures increased until the elevation increased and the temperature moderated somewhat.
The fastest way to Rawlins, Wyoming was the interstate, but I had been through this area last year on my
Antelope Hunt and took Wyoming 130 to Saratoga.  I wanted to go through this area again on the motorcycle so this was a perfect opportunity.  Wyoming 130 leaves the interstate at Laramie and goes through a small residential area before heading into the Medicine Bow National Forest.  It is one of those great motorcycle roads with little traffic, lots of curves but a few straight stretches to get past slower moving vehicles.
We rode Wyoming 130 up to the pass.  As the elevation increased to over 10,000 feet, the temperature cooled before turning almost cold.  At the upper elevations, snow was still present; a reminder of last year's harsh winter.  The overlook at the highest point is worth a stop since the views are spectacular.

Going down is just as fun as going up except it is a little faster and uses less fuel.

Once through Medicine Bow national Forest, we were into Wyoming ranch territory and the same area where I successfully hunted antelope.  Before that hunt, I met the guide in Saratoga at the Wolf Hotel.  Since it was near lunch, we had a great burger and grilled ham and cheese there.  Because I had gotten to Saratoga so early before the hunt, I had time to kill and spent it seeing the town and stealing the WiFi at the Community Center.  I had read a brochure there about the Wyoming Frontier Prison and that was on the must-do list.

Leaving Saratoga, we headed north back up to I-80 and to Rawlins.  We got a room at the Roadway Inn.  This hotel had several bad reviews, but I have no idea what those meatheads were complaining about.  The staff was very nice, the rooms clean, with coffee in the room, a flatscreen TV and fridge.
After unpacking the bike to lighten the load, we went up to the Wyoming Frontier Prison.  This was a working prison from 1901 to 1981.  It had around 13,500 prisoners over that time and 14 executions - 9 hangings and 5 gas chamber executions.
It was hard to tour the Wyoming Frontier Prison and not compare it to the Mansfield Prison in Ohio toured last year.  Mansfield is more run down, but the self-tour is a little easier to do.  The Wyoming Frontier Tour is an organized tour so there is more information, but less ability to explore and the larger group was a little annoying a couple times.  Both are extremely interesting though.  Both had a similar life after closing, starting out as empty buildings, and each had some movies filmed in them - they still bare the scars form those movies as well (Wyoming Frontier Prison had the B-Horror movie Prison filmed there).
The building from the outside is a combination Victorian Gothic structure.  The front bars/door/gate is impressive and intimidating.

The tour guide gives lots of interesting stories throughout the tour and some interesting historical tidbits.  The odd thing was, he always talked about the prison in plural possessive, even though he was likely too young to be around when it was open.  He also had a Kevorkian-esque grin on his face when talking some of the less-pleasant points which was between humorous and disconcerting.  The tour group mostly stayed together, although a few of us hung back a couple times to take pictures without all the other people around.

As they are likely supposed to be, the free-standing cell blocks are imposing.

The cells themselves are spartan with different cell blocks coming from different eras and show different ideas about how to house and control inmates.  Regardless, thinking of living in a cell like that for years on end is enough to make anyone want to avoid prison, if there wasn't already reason enough to.

I was really surprised that the tour included portions of the prison used for execution, The Death House.  This was actually the hook that was used as the main support for the gallows, killing 9 people.

Even more harrowing, the execution gas chamber is still intact with the original chair and leather straps.  It was sobering to think the state took the lives of 5 people here using cyanide gas.

After the tour, we were going to go down to the Carbon County Museum, but it was closed on Mondays so we headed back to the hotel.  A nearby grocery store produced some snacks before heading to Diamond Lil's restaurant.  Diamond Lil's sounds a bit like a "gentleman's club" but is really just a small restaurant attached to the nearby Days Inn.  It is only a few minute walk from the Roadway.  I'm not sure what was so special about the daily special burgers since they were still at menu price, but they were very good just the same before ice cream from the store back at the hotel room ended the day.