Donna & I took another short BMW trip last week. The BMWMOA (motorcycle owners of America) had a get together in Cedar City UT., starting on Friday and ending Sunday morning.
We left on a Wednesday, enjoy the pics and narrative....
Off we go, nothing like long stretches of desert, heading north to Ely, NV
A short wait for a long one lane construction zone, between Alamo and Pioche NV.
Perfect weather, great motorcycle roads, and hardly any other traffic.
Stopped in Pioche, NV. for lunch. It is always fun to get off the Interstate and visit the little towns. Pioche was a mining town that rivaled Tombstone for gambling, brothels, and lawlessness. No big gunfights to make history, the town survives now by catering to hunters. We had the best chocolate cake at this little bakery/cafe.
More wide open nothingness on the way to Ely, NV.
Had to stop and mark another 1000 miles on The BMW. In the background is Wheeler Peak - more on it later. We stayed the first night at a Motel 6 in Ely. The next morning we rode the 60 miles to the Great Basin National Park.
The next pictures are from the Park, the fall colors were fantastic...
The colors were at their peak !
Donna enjoys the colors..
Donna & I at the Mather overlook.
Wheeler Peak
At the end of the road...10,000 feet.
Another Kodak moment
Going down...
We spent the second night in Ely, NV. at this hotel, it was built back in the 20's, had suites named after celebrities who had stayed there, and was much better than the Motel 6.
Our mini suite - the Vicki Carr - we didn't know what to do with the stuffed gorilla ??
On the way to Milford, UT, more desert all to ourselves.
Arrived in Cedar City, with a few of our BMW friends. Total BMW's at the getaway - 103. I only saw 2 older bikes than mine, every time Donna & I went out to the bike, many other riders commented on the condition and mileage of my BMW, I think Donna got a bigger kick out of that, than I did. The MOA had several rides you could sign up for and ride with a group, but since we had just been to several of these places in July, we decided to ride on our own to the north rim of the Grand Canyon.
On Hwy 9 in Arizona, again we had most of the road to ourselves.
Donna enjoys her morning tea at a little store near the Pipe Springs National Monument.
Another National Park to add to our refrigerator magnet collection.
Donna enjoys the view
Taking it all in at the North Rim
Enjoying a picnic lunch. We ran into another couple from Cedar City, Bert & Bev from Park City, UT. They took the photo.
Enjoying the ride back on Hwy. 14
Sunday morning, we stopped at Kolob canyon in the north end of Zion National Park.
One last stop before returning to Las Vegas....of course it was "damn" hot once we hit Nevada. After getting back home, Donna spent the rest of the day sleeping on the couch, the heat and all that riding took its toll. We finished the vacation with a splendid Taco Bell dinner !
Total miles 1216, averaged 52 mpg.! Weather absolutly perfect for the enitre trip.
I also had my raffle ticket drawn for a BMWMOA long sleeve shirt.
We might be able to cram one more trip in this year, it is always fun to get out of town on the Beemer..
