DAY 20 PLAINVIEW TO SOCORRO NM

Wow, it's day 20 of a 21 day trip. That always conjures up mixed emotions about where we are and where we've been. As always anxious to get home and sorry to be off the bike doing a meet and great with this great country.

Left this morning and the temperature had dropped from 51 when we got up to 48 degrees.

 We were born before the wind
Also younger than the sun
Ere the bonnie boat was won as we sailed into the mystic
Hark, now hear the sailors cry
Smell the sea and feel the sky
Let your soul and spirit fly into the mystic

And when that fog horn blows I will be coming home
And when the fog horn blows I want to hear it
I don't have to fear it

And I want to rock your gypsy soul
Just like way back in the days of old
And magnificently we will flow into the mystic

Van Morrison

We pulled out bundled against the cool air into a very light mist. The fog had rolled in and the clouds had dropped making driving an almost dream like sequence at 70 mph. Road in quiet for a while and then switched the radio to sxm channel 32. Several miles later the song fit the day with Van Morrison singing Into The Mystic.

Sun started picking out clouds began to disappear and we finished the day on Route 60 into Socorro NM.

Home tomorrow.

DAY 19 GAINESVILLE TO PLAINVIEW STILL IN TEXAS

See Ken's for info, beautiful day, nothing that stuck out. Except for lunch at the Double GG restaurant where we had a nice conversation with a local rancher about motorcycle riding. He was one of the four other patrons and three employees.

Uneventful but enjoyable putting on miles as we head towards home.

DAY 18 VAN BUREN TO GAINESVILLE TX

Can't add to much to Ken's description of the day other than my impressions of the scenic road we happened upon.

Turn the quiet up, turn the noise down
Let this ol' world just spin around
I wanna feel it swing, wanna feel it sway
And put some feel good in my soul
Drink a little drink, smoke a little smoke

Want a little more right, and a little less left
Little more right now, a little less what's next
Act like tomorrow's ten years away
And just kick back and let the feelin' flow
Drink a little drink, smoke a little smoke

I set my sails for a new direction
But the wind got in my way
I changed my course
But my definition of change
Just ain't the same

Eric Church

We found ourselves going south through the forest of western Arkansas. This is a designated scenic drive through the Winding Stair Mountain area. Miles of winding two lane road with blind corners reasonable speeds and fairly well maintained, but that's not what made it great.

Radio off, very light mist occasionally falling, mix of clouds and fog, eerie quiet. Riding in shirt sleeves with the radio off feeling very alone with the clouds and mist. The only sound was the rumble of the bike and the tires on the pavement, turn the quiet up, turn the noise down.  

DAY 17 BRANSON MO TO VAN BUREN AK

Said goodbye to the dogs, I know they'll miss me,

and left Branson to make the old timers annual brunch in Springfield. Spent two hours eating, visiting, renewing old acquaintances and telling lies about how great we were.

After our brunch the day really started to go my way. We change leaders every tank of gas  and it was now my turn. My favorite spot, out front leading with perfect temps and cloudy skies. Headed west on US 60 shortly ended up on a few miles of interstate before turning south on Arkansas 59, not to be confused with US 59 just across the border in Oklahoma.

I road AK 59 all afternoon, small towns, farms, forests, and corners that allowed you to stay at speed. All of it lightly traveled two lane in great shape. Even the breaks were good, full of the usual mix of characters more than willing to talk.

I think I can squeeze another 40 or 50 miles out of this tank before I have to give up the lead. 

DAY 16 RUSSELLVILLE AK TO BRANSON MO VIA THE PIGS TRAIL

Highlight of the day was the Pigs Trail one of the many named rides in Arkansas.

An absolutely beautiful ride through the forests of Arkansas on two lane roads with varying difficulty of corners and road surface. All with great temps and no threat of rain.

Finished the day meeting up with JB's wife Susie and a great dinner at a long time Branson hangout Shorty Smalls.

Turning west tomorrow.

DAY 15 DYERSBURG TO RUSSELLVILLE ARKANSAS

Started the day under threatening skies following a brief shower. Heading out on green dot road and while the scenery was green the road was straight and wide, not our usual definition of scenic.

After lunch the wind decided that we should get several hours of wear on the left side of the tires by leaning into the wind mile after mile.

Then it happened.. The road narrowed, the forest got thick to block the wind, and the road started twisting back and forth. Posted speeds ranged from 55 to 15 with actually speeds not to be discussed in a forum accessible by wives and law enforcement.

We also did some trick riding today which included at least one of each the following:

Parking like a clown car routine.

Multiple parking lot u-turns.

An elongated, egg shaped, 360 degree turn in the middle of a busy intersection by the leader.

A fun day finishing with an easy find on a place to stay with a good restaurant in walking distance.

DAY 14 BOWLING GREEN TO DYERSBURG TN

Looking at the map it's just a short drive, a quick run, from Bowling Green to Dyersburg but there are lots of ways to get there and the one we picked is long. So we turned a short drive into a 300 mile ride through the countryside.

They say to keep your spot on the ladder
An’ keep that money rollin’ in
They say keepin’ up with the Thiles, boy
You can’t back off one inch
But I been puttin’ in my time
An’ I built up a pretty good deal
I'm gonna spend some, maybe waste some
Before my time comes an’ I wind up dead

Yeah tomorrow I'm takin’ me fishin’
Hang a sign on the door of my life
Tell the world that I’ve gone missin’
An’ I won’t be back for a while
I’m so tired of only wishin’
I could leave my troubles behind
I wanna be front porch rockin’
With a big sun droppin’ in a blue sky
Kick back an’ get high
On the livin’ part of life

Eric Church

Small towns, roads of varying quality, questionable signage, but as long as the sun told us we were west south west who cares. At the beginning of the day we saw lots of groups of Corvettes out for a drive on the same routes.

Yesterday at the hotel in Bowling Green we had the opportunity to meet a gentleman named Ron. He was there with a car club for the annual meet at the museum. We spent some time talking, since he had retired from the same career, and enjoyed each others company. Some of our conversations with Ron hit home when I heaard Eric Church on the radio today.

Stopped along the road in some small city today and a young man walking by asked if we needed help. So many things rolled through my mind, "sure can you guide me away from the craziness in the world", or "can you explain why riding brings a zen like peace" and a multitude of other questions but settled for where is a gas station.

Ride somewhere tomorrow.