SCRC Central Ark Chapter "One-Dirty-Five"
2009 Grand Canyon Tour Run
Fri. June 5th – Tues. June 16th, 2009
GRAND CANYON TOUR 2009 SUMMARY ALBUM
Plans and Tour Photo Summary
http://community.webshots.com/album/569913587rwQaOF
Slideshow - http://community.webshots.com/slideshow/569913587rwQaOF
ALBUMS – Chapter Webpage w/ LINKS to All Albums –plus- Album Slideshows -
http://home.earthlink.net/~scrc135/gcanyon2009_tour.htm
Friday, June 05 / 630 Miles:
We had scheduled a departure time of about 7:00am, but some folks wanted to get out of dodge ‘early’ to avoid the go-to-work traffic – so we departed No. Little Rock at just after 6:00 am. Plan was to have breakfast in Ft. Smith/Van Buren at I-40 Exit 5 and that’s what we did. Since we had gas’ed up at Ozark, AR we headed to Weber Falls, OK for our next stop and gas up. Weather, after being a bit cool that morning, was mild but warming up fast. Oklahoma SCRC were having their State Rally in Shawnee and Blue told them we would stop by and say ‘Howdy’. So Shawnee became our next stop and gas up as we did stop by and met some of the Southern Cruisers there. Back on the road after about 30-40 minutes we took the I-240 Bypass south of Oklahoma City and Blue again found the new concrete superslab west of Okla.City a travesty of good workmanship… how that stretch of roadway (re-constructed in 2005-2006) ever passed ANY inspection only the people getting a ‘kickback’ would ever know.
So after getting beat half to death on that wondrous stretch of interstate, we just HAD to stop a bit early – so we gas’ed up earlier than scheduled and continued to the Cherokee Trading Post before Clinton, OK. We first has some tea and coffee and a bite of pie in the restaurant, then browsed a bit in the trading post/store – then back on the road again.
Crossing into Texas, Blue had to sigh with relief as the Texas portion of I-40 was smooth as a pool table. So we arrived at Shamrock, TX where we had planned to stay the night. After Gabby and June checked with the motel desk and discovered their prices seem a bit ‘inflated’, they asked “How far to Amarillo ?’, and Blue said “98 miles, a little over one hour.” Since we had collected some of the ‘Motel Discount’ magazines along the way, it was decided to go on to Amarillo and use one for a motel there… we still had 3 hours of daylight left… so it seemed a good plan.
Well, it was and it wasn’t – after about 60 miles toward Amarillo, we could see T-Storms brewing over Amarillo. So at a ‘spot-n-the-road’ named Conway, Blue pulled off for an unscheduled gas stop and to give us time to see what was happening in Amarillo. After talking to one of the workers at the truck stop, a real nice fella, who called his wife in Amarillo, Blue was told that the main storm was over Amarillo but moving northeast.
We discussed options and decided to check on the two small & older motels across the interstate. No Luck – they were way over-priced. So we decided to make a ‘run-for-it’ to Amarillo – that turned out to be a good decision. We ran into Amarillo with only some heavy splattered rain and found a good motel. The T-Storm was just a ‘tad north and east of Amarillo (see the photos) and so we unloaded and headed back east about two miles to Big Texas Steakhouse. At Big Tex, we heard that Conway, the little ‘spot-n-the-road’ we were at 30 minutes before, had an EF1 Tornado and 1-inch hail – LUCKY IS US!!
After a ‘so-so’ dinner at Big Tex, we scooted back to our motel and crossed our fingers that the storm STAYED east of us – don’t really want 1-inch hail on our uncovered bikes. Luck stayed with us – rain splatter during the night but no storm.
Saturday, June 06 / 540 Miles:
Pack up and had breakfast at Waffle House a few miles to the west… then out of Amarillo we go. We did, of course, stop at the Route66 Mid-Point town of Adrian, TX and Blue managed to find a unique cap or two – plus a new Route66 Pin. Back on the road and westward we go… stopping at a New Mexico Tourist Center to pick up some new maps and info stuff.
In New Mexico we stopped in Santa Rosa to gas up and then again at Clines Corners (actually just a little bit before) to gas up and visit their Trading Post Store. At I-40 Exit 187, we turn off and took the back way to Hwy 14 North – planning on a brief visit to the town of New Madrid, NM (the little town in the movie ‘Wild Hogs’). All the while, it continued to look like an afternoon T-Storm was trying to build… Oh Well – roll the dice and hope for a 7.
We continued north – it’s about 30 miles off I-40, but the run up Hwy 14 was great with winding mountain curves and decent scenery – worth the trip. Blue, for one, was a bit disappointed by New Madrid itself – was expecting a quaint little town, but what’s there is a ‘tourist town’ with hundreds of bikers and a ton of tourist in autos and RVs… place was ‘crowded’. But we stopped – visited a couple of stores, talked to the owner of Maggie’s (that’s the little café/restaurant in the movie) and took our pictures in front of it (Maggie’s).
Blue decided the quickest and shortest way to get back on the interstate system was to continue north on Hwy14 and hook-up with I-25 out of Santa Fe, NM. There was also the consideration that the Biker Bar that was blown up in the ‘Wild Hogs’ movie was supposed to be about 12 miles up the road… but we somehow simply missed the bar (Maggie’s owner told us that, Yes, it had been rebuilt). But the main consideration was the clouds that were building and that another storm was definitely brewing… and if you have ever been in a western storm on a motorcycle, you’d get nervous too. Lightening – wind – blinding rain HAPPENS.
We managed to make it the 20 or so miles north (real nice road to ride – see why all the bikers were in New Madrid) and gas up and get onto I-25 South toward I-40.
When almost to Albuquerque we encountered a neat and dangerous little thing, a mini-cyclone / a wind-shear vortex. You could see it before we got to it - it was just sitting there next to I-25 tossing debris round-n-round and you could see the cars rocking as they went by it… it decided to cross the roadway just as we were getting there - and Yeah, Blue had slowed down, then accelerated out of it as it struck… still it was a nervous moment or two. Grit, sand pebbles, leafs, even some sagebrush bushes were being tossed across the road.
As was said, this was just before entering Albuquerque, and we did catch some of those heavy raindrops a time or two and some wind on our way into Albuquerque, but we swiftly passed through all of it and were into town and finally connected with I-40 west. Finally making it to Gallup, NM and stopped for a late lunch or early supper before going to find a motel for the night.
Sunday, June 07 / 239 Miles:
The next morning, in Gallup, we did find a couple of Indian Jewelry stores that opened early and Gabby and Persuader, after some dickering, purchased a couple of nice rings. Then we were back on the road headed further west. We again stopped at a Tourist Center, this one for Arizona, to again pick up maps and other info for Arizona. Our next stop was at the Petrified Forest / Painted Desert National Park right there along I-40. We each purchased a National Parks Pass but while Gabby and Persuader got theirs for a very significant ‘age discount’, Blue had to pay the new $80 Pass Fee – but as it’s a way to contribute to the National Parks System, who have had cut-backs in their budget, Blue didn’t mind. The nice Park Lady even gave Blue a special pass to allow him entry onto ANY national park or monument or forest or other lands, even on unpaved roads. Gabby didn’t get one – LOL!
Well, off on the tour – first the Painted Desert, which showed definite signs of erosion since Blue was last there 10 years ago. Still, it has unique patterns of sandstone that Blue photos don’t seem to bring out. Now the Painted Desert is basically on the north side of I-40, while the Petrified Forest runs for 26 miles south of the interstate. One other attraction just across on the south side of the interstate is ‘Newspaper Rock’ which is a ‘group’ of rocks containing Indian ‘petroglyphs’ and ‘pictographs’ that are hundreds of years old (dated 650 to 2000 years). While you used to be able to walk down to them and view them up close, they have since built a platform overlook and you can’t hike down to them anymore. The other interesting ‘feature’ is a collapsed ‘bowl’ or ‘dome’ right there --- the possible reason why the Indians used the site for their ‘newspaper’.
South into the Petrified Forest Nat. Park and the amazing unique formations and features of the area – you’ll see petrified wood everywhere. Until this became a park in 1962 (was a National Monument before), people picked up the ‘agate’ petrified wood for themselves or for sale. They had to extent the park’s boundaries in 1932 and again in 1970 to protect it’s ‘resources’. Also the Petrified Forest National Park is the only national park unit that preserves a section of Historic Route66 by including it within the park’s boundaries (it runs along-side of I-40 thru the park). There is a Historic Marker where the park road crosses over I-40.
While there are things (mostly petrified wood/logs & scenic sandstone formations) to look at everywhere, most of the easily accessible petrified wood is found in the southern 6 miles of the park’s road... but don’t miss any of the side roads – they are worth the detour. The park has various other ‘exhibits’ that you will miss without taking a little hike or two – but since we were on a ‘riding tour’, such hikes didn’t fit out schedule (or Blue’s biker boots). We did stop briefly at the south entry/exit and then were on the highway headed north and back to I-40 and our next stop.
After another short run on I-40, we turned off south to Meteor Crater which is ‘privately owned’ and not a National Monument or Park. The entry fees have gone up quite a bit since Blue was last here (BTW – ALL National Park/Monument Fees have gone UP – National Park Pass is worth the money). But they do have AAA and Age and Military and School discounts… be sure to ask before you pay up. Like the Painted Desert, there is very notable erosion along the Crater’s wall but it’s still an awesome site when you think that an object about the size of a couple-or-three large freezers created it. What is confusing here is one (online) site says it was 80 feet in diameter while other sites estimate a much smaller meteor – they do agree that it was made up of mostly nickel-iron and was very heavy. Regardless, it’s a big-o-hole in the ground.
Shortly after Meteor Crater, we arrived in Flagstaff, AZ and again, stop for a late lunch or early supper… then find a motel for which we have a coupon. Luck was in our pocket – we found a motel at a good price and it had two bedrooms and was conveniently located as well.
Once we were settled in, Gabby went and hunted up some oil, oil filter, and an oil pan and changed his motorcycle’s dino-oil while in Flagstaff. Blue was/is running Amsoil Synthetic so didn’t/doesn’t worry about it.
Monday, June 08 / 221 Miles:
The next morning it’s a ‘tad cool in Flagstaff (about 39 degrees) so we ate at the nearby Denny’s and back to the motel, before heading out to visit the South Rim of the Grand Canyon. We took Hwy89 on the east side of Flagstaff up to Cameron, AZ (which used to be almost nuttin there) and turn west to the South Rim on Hwy64. We had to stop at one of the Indian (Navajo) trading stands set up along side of the road to check out the Navajo Jewelry and wares… but as there are ‘several’ such along the way, you have to be careful or you could spend all day doing such stops. After a number of miles along Hwy64 we finally arrived at the Eastern Gate of the Grand Canyon South Rim and our first stop in the park was the Agate Tower – a ‘must see’ on the south rim. Blue had been taking a bunch of photos up to then so he should NOT have been surprised when, after he had ‘climbed’ to the TOP of the Agate Tower, that he had run out of space on his camera’s memory card… and couldn’t take any pictures from up yonder – DRAT @! ..and DOUBLE-DRAT @!
Oh Well – back down the stairwell (think it was 4 levels) and back up the hill to the parking lot… it’s hot and I’m tired – change memory cards and just get back on the road. And so we stop at a few of the canyon overlooks (all but one – it was too crowded) until finally we arrive at the confusing roads around Grand Canyon Village (& Lodge). Of course there isn’t ANY available parking anywhere around, but we parked anyway (as motorcycles often do) in No Parking spots.
This is one of the ‘other’ most interesting and most photographed areas of the South Rim with some great views of the canyons and of Bright Angel Trail (which crosses the canyon and the Colorado River and up the other side to the North Rim Park/Lodge). So after spending a couple of hours, visiting the Hopi Store and the Lodge and all along the overlook we return to the bikes and move them to where the train and the buses embark passengers and found a ‘valid’ parking spot. This allowed us to hike up the hill around the cabins to Artist Point Store and Overlook. The last time Blue was there, they actually had an artist in residence who was busy painting Grand Canyon Landscapes – now it’s a store and open access to everyone… even to the artist platform overlook. If we had walked a bit more west, we could have had a good view of the beginning of the Bright Angel Trailhead itself, but by this time we were all tired and about ‘walked-out’.
After talking to a couple of park officials – plus seeing ‘Full Up’ signs on the road, we were told that all the tent and RV camping spots were taken and the Lodge completely full. Don’t know about the motels at the little town just south of the South Gate. But this is not really unusual at the South Rim, just seems a bit early in the season to be full-up.
So after a bit we returned to our bikes and Blue just managed to find our way out the park via the south entrance. When you go, be sure to study the Village area map as they have a confusing, twisted idea of where a road should go. Now the ‘used-to-be’ little spot south of the gate has grown up into a small town named Tusayan with a couple 4-5 Star hotels and even an I-Max theater. No problem with getting gas there now… as there used to be.
On down Hwy64/180 we headed and then Blue turned southeast on Hwy180 so that we could go thru the San Francisco Mountains (contains the 14k Humphrey Peak) because Hwy64 would take us to Williams, AZ and not to Flagstaff.
Tuesday, June 09 / 187 Miles:
The next day, even though the prediction was for scattered T-Storms, we decided to gamble they were going to occur north of Flagstaff and allow us to do the Sedona / Jerome Run south on Hwy89A. This is a very scenic and a fun run for those who like ‘twisties’. So we head out of Flagstaff on I-17 and turn onto Hwy89A just south of town. It starts out a bit bumpy and then gets better, and they are, of course, working on it going down the mountain into Sedona Canyon… but it’s worth it.
Sedona Canyon is a scenic canyon they should have made a state park before it got ‘settled up’ – and while the roadway is wider than it used to be, it still does not allow you to ‘pull over’ anywhere – you can be ticketed for pulling over… there are almost no shoulders along the canyon road and an RV or Tour Bus could come around a curve could ‘take you out’. So soak in the sights and pedal on – it’s the kind of ‘twisted’ road Arkies just LUV.
Now one thing that Blue forgot to mention – that almost everywhere we went we often got ‘swamped’ by tourist for ‘photo-ops’… I’m serious as a heart-attack. Mostly they are ‘foreign’ tourist – many from Germany and France… with a few English and Dutch and a couple of Chinese tossed in, but some were Americans, but none from Arkansas, thank goodness.
But as we neared Sedona and were leaving the main canyon, there is an older bridge with hiking trails and overlooks and Blue, of course, pulled over into the parking area (which was crowded) and even before getting off the bike was being ‘charged’ by a bunch of people (6-8-10 of ‘em). Along about then Blue was kind’of wishing he had a handy piece of Ironwood… ‘til one of them spoke up, AFTER he had taken 2-3 pictures, and asked if it was alright to take some pictures – Blue said ‘Ok’ – and they busily clicked away… at Blue, at the bike BEAR. They were French (I think) but there were maybe a couple three Germans as well.
It’s not the picture taking that made Blue initially ‘nervous’… it was the way they ‘rushed’ over; like he was going to disappear before they got a chance to take some photos – made Blue fell a bit like ‘wild game’. After a few photos, Blue went on about his business of being a tourist himself and started walking around taking his own pictures – just scenery though.
Dawg and Blue had experienced this sort of ‘tourist behavior’ on previous trips out west – but this year it seems to happen with much more frequency. Oh Well – maybe we ought to start charging !? We even had some people who simply wanted to sit on Blue’s BEAR and have their picture taken. Then some who wanted a picture of themselves next to the strange American in the leather vest.
Just remember – be polite – tourist ‘happen’… YOU might be one someday.
Well, we finally rode into (northern) Sedona, visit a couple of tourist type shops, and continue on our journey… to Jerome, on south on Hwy89A. Like every other place visited during this tour run, there are more houses, larger towns, and fewer ranches and less open country everywhere – I understand it, but still find it sad that scenic country is being choked back everywhere. As we neared Cottonwood Valley and what used to be the very small ranch town of Cottonwood, we see houses and more houses… and up yonder, mid-way up the mountain on the right is Jerome. Jerome too seems to have grown. What used to be just a re-settled little ‘artist colony’ hanging on the side of the mountain now has a lot of rebuilt/remodeled houses and storefronts and a couple of new motels… guess it’s now a ‘tourist town’. It seems to have some re-opened mines as well… guess because of the higher gold prices. Well, it’s still a good little run climbing the mountain… onward and upward we go.
We pass through Jerome, AZ and on up the mountain until finally we cross over via the pass and downhill the south side of the mountain. We are not going all the way to Prescott Valley and Prescott but turn east on Hwy69 and then Hwy169 back to I-17. Turning north on I-17, heading back to Flagstaff you will find a very long long long down-hill on the superslab into the Verde Valley – just let ‘er roll. Persuader wanted to go back and do it again.
Just short of Flagstaff you will encounter signs stating ‘Very Rough Road for Next 10 Miles’… and they ain’t kidding – slow down or speed up don’t matter – it’s ROUGH coming into Flagstaff, AZ on I-17 from the south.
Wednesday, June 10 / 370 Miles:
Up early and leave just after 7:00 am local time in 39-41 degree temps. Plan is for Blue to take us to Williams, AZ, to a little Old Route66 Diner for breakfast. It was a 'tad cool but was warming up quickly - about 53-54 when we arrived in Williams 30 minutes later. The Route66 Diner was all we could hope for; fresh eggs and slab bacon and great coffee.
After a casual breakfast we visited Old Town Williams for a bit, but being quite early, none of the stores were open yet - so all we could do was peek into store front windows. Time to go... so back on I-40 to Seligman, AZ and Old Route66.
We gas'ed up and took Route66 through Seligman and out the west side, on Route66. West of Seligman, the country is pretty much flat high-desert with hills just to the north denoting the Grand Canyon & Colorado River. Route66 performs a big arch that 'bends' toward the Grand Canyon. Toward the top of the 'arch', you'll find Grand Canyon Caverns (privately owned)... said to be accidently discovered by a drunk cowboy walking back to a line shack after a night of cards at another line shack around 1890. It's said that his foot & leg went through the roof of a 'dome' in the cavern but he managed to not fall through completely. The next day this cowboy went back with an iron stake, a rope, and a lantern... he spent the next 20 years exploring and leading tours in the cavern -- and did this only with a lantern that showed him areas of the caverns around him -- 10 feet at a time.
During the 1920's to the mid-1960's the Grand Canyon Caverns were a tourist destination but were never easily accessed until Rout66 was built along this route in the 60's. With the construction of the US Highway 66, the Grand Canyon Caverns saw its best & busiest time... then came the new Interstate System - and they moved the route 30 miles to the south, building I-40. The Grand Canyon Caverns begin to fade from memory... with fewer and fewer visitors every year. The Grand Canyon Caverns were designated a Nuclear Shelter in the mid-1950's and visitors will still find a bunch of survival equipment and food canisters in the caverns that were stockpiled back then. They will also find a Giant Sloth, a bobcat, and an Indian. They aren't sure about the sloth, but the bobcat and Indian appear to have wondered into the caverns and got lost and couldn’t find their way out. They think that the sloth may have fallen through a 'dome' and survived the fall - and tried to climb back out as there are deep claw marks on the walls where his bones were found. And it's notable that there is an underground stream or river still running through the lower levels of the caverns... toward the Colorado River to the north.
While we didn't take the Cavern Tour (Blue had done so 2-3 times before), we did visit for a bit -- the Caverns and it's store are 1 mile off Route66 itself.
Back to Route66 West... to Kingman, AZ, where we again gas'ed up and continued through Kingman to the little known, little used, Route66 south of Kingman.
This portion of Route66 is different... WAY DIFFERENT. The main difference is that this portion (for a ways) had NOT ever been rebuilt as almost all other portions that Blue has traveled on – even the Grand Canyon ‘Loop’ we had just traveled shows the original Route66 old bridges and roadbed in several places along side its current route.
But just southwest of Kingman, Old Route66 first travels along a low-lying sandy desert with lots of ‘dips’ that have signs about ‘Flash Flood’ and ‘Do Not Enter When Water Present’ and have ‘depth gauge markers’.
Then you begin to travel up into the low-lying mountains – on hairpins and switch-backs, and 10 mph curves… always climbing – until finally you reach a 3000 foot summit and begin the repeat the hairpins and switch-backs, etc. but all downhill now. It makes the Eastern ‘Tail of the Dragon’ and the Arkansas Dragon & Pig Trail look like child’s play… no guard rails, almost no speed or curve signs, lots of ‘cliff hanging’ – would be a scary little road during ‘dark-of-th-moon’.
It would be a real ‘HOOT’ – Arkies would LUV it…. except, it has LOTS of ‘road snakes’ that were NOT FLATTEN and divots and chug-holes that are the same color as the old pavement itself. So it’s a bit ‘bone jarring’… especially on a ‘hard’ cruiser… but it’s also very scenic. The surrounding mountains are mostly volcanic in nature with covers of multi-hued sandstone and there seems to have been a lot of placer type gold mining going on in this area. There are still a couple-three active gold mining operations to be found on the ‘lee’ side (downhill) of the mountain. So on the downhill (western) side of the pass, we finally come to an old gold mining town turned tourist town named Oatman… where the asses left over from a bygone era still roam free and pester the tourist for carrots and other treats. Where motorcyclist and auto tourist both seem to come from the west, from Bullhead City along the Colorado River… and not from the Old Route66 we arrived on. We also discovered that the Old Route66 is also known as ‘The Gold Road’… so named for all the mines that used to dot it. Since mining was the principle activity in this area, it might be why they decided 60 years ago to have first American Cross Country Highway (Route66) come across these mountain where it did. Take a look at a modern map of the area and you’ll note that ‘modern’ routes go around these same mountains now days.
So on through Oatman we go, dodging asses, burrows, donkeys, and tourist, etc. And the roadway CHANGED… it was new pavement that was well maintained… no more bone jarring bumps. Just south of Oatman, Route66 bares LEFT and the route to Bullhead veers right… and that seems were most visitors to Oatman come from. Meanwhile, we continue on Route66 and do encounter a few autos and motorcycles, but they are few and far between.
This roadway is also fairly new and fairly maintained and is a fun road of long, slow winding curves and dips… you could easily maintain a rapid pace, but Blue was still busy taking pictures so the pace remained ‘low-keyed’ and steady. This was still high-desert and the hills were still volcanic in nature with covers of multi-hued sandstone… but we were soon to leave the hills for more sandy soil nearer the Colorado River as we came to Topock, AZ and I-40 that had ‘bent’ southwest from Kingman, AZ.
We crossed the Colorado River on I-40 at Topock, AZ and traveled to Needles, CA where we gas’ed up and took Hwy95 north toward Nevada and Las Vegas. We found that both I-40 and Hwy95 in California were poorly maintained and were relieved when we finally crossed into Nevada on Hwy95 where it was new pavement… and they were busy in Nevada widening Hwy95 into a 4-lane highway. So up 95 we went until we came to Hwy93 out of Kingman that crossed the Colorado River at the Hover Dam. Turning west on Hwy93 into Las Vegas, NV, where it now turns from Hwy93 into I-515. That’s a ‘fast crowd’ there in Vegas… keep up or get run over seems to be the rule – and folks ignore or just don’t pay attention to motorcycles.
Anyway, into the heart of Vegas we go… getting off I-515 on Flamingo Blvd and head toward Las Vegas Blvd (The ‘Strip’) where we got a room at the Super 8 Motel two blocks from the Strip. We got our bikes unloaded and decide to take a little strow along the Strip where they now have a monorail train you can ride for $5 each way to all the main casinos along the Strip, plus they have built overhead crosswalks along the main area of the Strip to ease the pedestrian caused traffic jams at the traffic lights. A very good idea… ‘cause there is a ton of pedestrians and even if you have a green light, you might not get to use it because of the people walking across the street in front of you – against the light.
Well we headed first for Caesars Palace which is ‘hu-moungous’ and eventually made our way to the ‘Forum Shops’ which are on 3 levels. Blue’s feet got tired and sore by the time we left Caesars and June (Persuader) wanted to travel down the Strip a bit to visit a couple of the casinos – so we walked – and walked – and walked. Ended up down at the Harley Davidson Casino – not really worth the visit – then decided to go back to the motel to rest a bit. It was far too early for the tremendous ‘sidewalk shows’ that happen at all the larger casinos along the Strip, so back to the motel we go – and go – and go… we finally, after a million miles of walking, arrive. Gabby, after a bit, decides he want to ride around and explore the Strip – Blue advises him ‘Not a Good Idea’ – Gabby goes and discovers his bike overheats at the intersection waiting on the pedestrians to cross.
So then we mount up and head out to find dinner… which we did at a very nice Blueberry Hill Family Restaurant back down Flamingo Blvd. Very good food and good prices and very good coffee… Blue recommends it highly… and it’s open 24 hours too.
Thursday, June 11 / 70 miles:
We girt our loins for a cool morning and a warm day and head to breakfast at Blueberry Hill and Blue takes us on out to Boulder Blvd (the old route into Vegas) where we turn south and head for Hoover (aka Boulder) Dam.
They are building a new multi-lane highway and an arched bridge over the Colorado River just below the dam… but we are still using the old two-lane to Hoover, so there is, understandably, a traffic jam. The traffic jam isn’t very bad early in the morning, but you could imagine what it would be in the afternoon. Part of the traffic jam is due to new security where they (very) briefly inspect your vehicle and RVs and Buses are more closely inspected. Big rigs aren’t allowed without special permits.
Blue, who has been here before, takes everyone over the dam and up to the third-tier overlook (there are 3-4 higher tiers and two lower on Hwy93 – all on Arizona side of the dam). The first tier is $7 paid parking and has sheds to park your auto under – as it gets REALLY HOT at the dam during the summer. It allows people to walk back across the dam and get in on the paid dam tour. You can used the FREE parking tiers and do the same; you’ll just have a much longer walk.
We took our photos and talked to a couple of folks and saddled up to re-cross the dam to visit the Visitors Center – Blue figured it’s easier to do it this way because the Visitors Center was across the lane coming in and it’s a simple right turn going back… and there is less traffic going back. The shocker was they now want $7 to Park at the Visitors Center – Gabby at first talked one attendant to charge $7 for BOTH bikes, but the Boss said ‘NO’ – for EACH bike. And the National Parks Pass has no use at all as the Hoover Dam is not part of the National Parks System. Everything at Hoover now cost.
We briefly visit the Visitors Center Shop and café area for some picture from the Nevada side of the dam. Then back to our bikes and back up the hill from the dam where we turn off on a short road to a Lake Mead Overlook where we take a few more pictures… then back on Hwy93 and turn off onto Boulder Blvd. On Boulder Blvd, Gabby had, of course, spotted a motorcycle dealership, where he wanted to stop.
After stopping at the mc dealership and Gabby having the chance to check out the Vulcan1700 for the 48th, or is it 58th, time – Gabby and Persuader head out to stop at a Custom Bike Shop we had also passed – meanwhile Blue had discovered he had a short in his double-horn system and so went back to the motel where he could try to trace the short.
Blue couldn’t determine the actual short in the horns, but did get one of the two horns working. // Back in Arkansas, Blue discovered, as he expected, that the Relay that controlled the horns had shorted out on one side and had to be replaced. He also discovered the same problem with the Relay that controlled the Running Lights – and had to replace it as well. //
When the Gabby / Persuader team arrived back at the motel, it was decided to go grab a bite – so away to Blueberry Hill we went… HEY, they serve really good food. Then Gabby and Persuader wanted to find one of the Outlet Malls – and so got directions and some instructions and headed out, while Blue went back to the motel to do some route review & planning for the coming days.
Gabby and Persuader were successful in finding the Outlet Mall and some items they could not live without… actually some new travel packs for the bike. So they repacked their gear to get ready for tomorrow.
While Persuader did do some minor gambling while in Vegas, neither Gabby or Blue felt inclined… so we all, thank goodness, still had our shirts the next morning.
Friday, June 12 / 471 miles:
Back to Blueberry Hill for breakfast and this worked out well as our route/plan upon leaving Las Vegas was to take Boulder Blvd south to pick up Hwy149 – Lake Mead Blvd to Hwy169-Lake Mead Road and take this scenic route north to I-15 at Glendale. So after finding and turning off on Lake Mead Blvd, we gas’ed up and continued to Hwy169. Hwy169 runs thru Lake Mead National Park so the National Park Passes came in handy again, else we would have had to pay the take this route.
Lake Mead Road Hwy169 is a fairly new paved road with good scenery and winding curves that travels along, but out of sight of, Lake Mead. That is, it was a good roadway until we got over half way along the route and encountered the older pavement – and then encountered three different construction zones were they were totally rebuilding the bridges. No pavement, just packed earth and some gravel and a water truck doing his business. This was only the last 8 miles or so and then we were out of the park and at Overton, NV.
Shortly after that we were at I-15… where some ‘funny people’ had twisted the interstate direction sign completely around so that it show you crossed the interstate overpass and turn left to go to Utah – which Blue JUST KNEW was bass-ackwards. But Blue stopped and pulled out his map and checked anyway… and Yep – the sign had been twisted to point in the wrong directions. So we turned right and headed north – toward UTAH – but we’ll be crossing a corner of Arizona first, then into Utah.
We stopped at Mesquite, NV and gas’ed up and then, back on I-15… and a few miles later crossed into Arizona – and two miles after that Blue pulled over and removed his lid (helmet) which had been required since we left Route66 in Arizona a few days before. Even though Persuader and Gabby had asked in Mesquite when we could finally take our helmets off, they didn’t remove theirs… and so we continued on I-15 in Arizona. Shortly after we were in Utah and coming up on Virgin River Canyon.
Somewhere just after traveling through Littlefield, AZ, Gabby had dropped so far back Blue lost him in all the big rigs traveling the interstate. Now the interstate speed limit was 75 mph and the traffic was all running at 75-80 mph, even the big rigs, and so was Blue… but for whatever reason, not so was Gabby and Persuader – never did figure out why they were not running at traffic speeds. It’s NOT a safe thing to do, to run slower then traffic, especially on a motorcycle. But when Blue got to the Virgin River Canyon, he slowed down to 50 mph to wait on Gabby to catch up. When Blue got to St George, UT – still no Gabby… and Blue turned off I-15 at Hwy 9, the road to Zion Nat. Park, and waited at the gas station there for over 30 minutes when, finally, Blue received a call from Gabby who simply said, “Blue, We’re going home.” – didn’t say why, how, or bye – so Blue said ‘OK’, then saddled up to got back on the road to Zion.
Hwy9 to Zion National Park is scenic and hints at the rock formation you will eventually find in Zion. And again, Blue found that people had build all along the route and the little communities now run up against each other such that you can’t tell where one ends and the next begins… until you get to the Zion Nat. Park entrance.
Both good and bad about Zion is that, by roadway, you only get to see a small part of it; but this allows the more adventurous a lot of very scenic and unspoiled hiking country. Shortly after entering Zion, you climb switchbacks up one side of a canyon, the go around and do it some more on the other side of the canyon – until before you lies a very narrow two-lane tunnel 1.1 miles long. While I’m sure this tunnel was of quite sufficient width and height in its day, now days, one must wait for traffic to come through – from one direction at a time… very essential for RVs and Buses, but safer for autos as well. It’s a very narrow tunnel. Along the tunnel there are ‘porthole’ cut to the outside, else there would be an air pressure and other related problem in such a long tunnel.
A very short time after exiting this tunnel, you get to traverse another, but very much shorter tunnel. And between them, everywhere around you, is awe inspiring rock formations… it’s just too bad that the roadway had to be cut through some of these formations. Blue, for once, had to be ‘pushed’ by the traffic behind him… but that’s alright – Blue just smiled and took another picture or two.
All too soon we exit Zion National Park – so Blue rolls the throttle a bit and enjoys the curvy Utah road… to Mt. Carmel where he picks up Hwy89 south… and soon arrives in Kanab, UT – a small town that was the center for several western movies starring such as John Wayne, Jimmy Stewart, and others… where many of those unique sandstone coasters are produced. Blue wished he had more time to visit but it was going to be a long day and a long run and continued south back into Arizona, now on Hwy89A to Jacob Lake Jct.
It’s cold and high up, over 6000 feet and climbing higher. This is cedar and pinion pine country with wind that can twist and create unique features in cedar trees. As Blue comes into Jacob Lake Jct, it comes as little surprise that the little 10 room motel and two pump gas station is now replaced by a much larger motel and a six double-pump gas station; since every Blue has traveled on this run there is remodeled or new construction – and for the motorcycle rider, much of this western country used to be almost ‘out-of-reach’ due to the rarity of gas stations. This is both good and bad – good for the motorcycle rider, but it also means a lot more people both in the area and traveling through the area. The little no-services camping area at Jacob Lake is now a full fledge Camping & RV park.
At Jacob Lake Jct Blue heads south on Hwy67 (which has been repaved and widen) for the 45 mile run to the North Rim of the Grand Canyon. The road, while not appearing to, continues to climb… all the way to the Rim. There are open alpine valleys and the elk and sometimes a bear can be seen on the rich grasses or along the tree line – Blue did spot some elk, but no bear. Just about half way, there is an expanded Lodge and now a little trading post and gas station. The lodge was only a couple of building and the station non-existent 10-12 years ago. And Blue was not surprised when he finally arrived at the Grand Canyon North Rim National Park that there still wasn’t any ‘facilities’ such as a gas station… after all, it’s only 45 miles to such. But there are a lot more little cabins and a second smaller lodge and Blue understands the camping/RV park has been expanded as well. Talking to some of the people working there, Blue was very surprised the ALL of the cabins, ALL of the rooms, and All of the camping and RV spaces were FULL.
The North Rim used to be so far ‘out-of-the-way’ that they were never full – but obviously things have changed quite a bit in the last 10 years. This hints that anyone going to a National Park now days had better get early reservations… or find it full when they arrive.
Blue visited different areas (there really aren’t too many) along the North Rim but didn’t hike the trails down to the ‘pinnacle overlooks’ of which there are a few. Regrettable, Blue also didn’t have time to take the newly paved road to Cape Royal as it’s 20 miles along a scenic rim road – then you gotta come back. That would require gas and time Blue didn’t have this trip. Blue didn’t fill up at Jacob Lake Jct. in anticipation because this road previously was gravel; but now it appears to be paved… don’t know if the full 20 miles are paved though.
So, knowing he missed an opportunity, he headed back north to Jacob Lake Jct. and then eastward on Hwy89A to Page, AZ – 45 to Jacob, then 75 to Page. It’s rather cool and the clouds can’t seem to make up their mind to rain or just cover the sun… onward we go.
Taking Hwy89A down the mountains from 9,000 feet to about 6,000 feet along the Vermillion Cliffs and over the Colorado River and upper Grand Canyon at the Navajo Bridge (about 410 feet about the water) where none of the usual Navajo trade stalls were open this late in the evening on this Friday… which Blue thought strange. On previous trips, there had always been open stalls east of the Navajo Bridge.
Hwy89A parallels the canyon south until it meets Hwy89, where Blue turns north on Hwy89 and another scenic run, up to Page, AZ. Arriving in Page just before dark, Blue grabs a bite at Denny’s where a couple of the locals try to help him find a motel that wasn’t yet full-up and at a reasonable price – Blue didn’t have much luck either way. So leaving Denny’s, Blue stopped by 3 motels before he found one that just had a cancelation – and only 1 bed – that couldn’t be used by the 4-5 people waiting in line, so grabbed it while he could, as it was starting to rain.
Thankfully it turned out to be a brief rain with high wind, but as they allowed me to park BEAR right next to the motel room (on the grass), BEAR would be somewhat protected if it decided to hail.
Saturday, June 13 / 310 miles:
Up early the next morning – breakfast at Denny’s – helped two Germans and one Chinese plan their days travels – talked to a local Deputy, who had a VTX1300, until he got a call – then visit the Lake Powell Dam Overlook, then hit the road aiming toward Monument Valley.
Blue took Hwy98 out of Page – this used to be pretty much of a ‘backroad’ and rough, but seems to be a fairly used main route now; having been repaved and widen since 1998. So we take it east to Hwy160, and then north to Kayenta, AZ.
At Kayenta, Blue gas’es up and turns onto Hwy163 North through the southern portion of Monument Valley which goes from Arizona and into Utah.
Just before Bluff, UT, Hwy191 comes in from the southeast and Blue spotted 5 bikers and a caddie pulled over who all seemed to be pouring over a map – so, of course, Blue pulls over to see if he could be of assistance. Yep – they need a ‘tad bit of help. Their map was not real good and not at all ‘to scale’, nor did it have distance marked on it – but it was in German… as were they. So Blue pulled out his Southwest States map and helped them figure out where they were, where they wanted to go, and how long to get there. It was lucky that one of them could speak broken English, ‘cause as you know, Blue’s Dutch is only slightly better then his German… and Blue can’t speak either. But they finally got what they needed and after asking some personal questions and other stuff – off they went. Then a few minute later, a couple of generous truckers pulled up and pulled over in their semi and asked if Blue needed some help… Blue thanked them and said, “I ain’t lost yet – but I’m working on it.” Then back on Hwy160 to Bluff.
At Bluff, UT, Blue continues the Monument run on Hwy191 up to Monticello, UT. While the more scenic ‘road accessible monuments’ are actually south of Mexican Hat, the rock colors and formations of the northern section of Monument Valley up to Monticello, UT is worth the time if you have it. Around Monticello, it’s hay, horse, and cattle country and not a ‘tourist town’.
So after Blue gas’ed up, he turned south onto Hwy666 (Yep – The Devil’s Highway) headed to Cortez, CO… but Blue notes that the clouds are REALLY BUILDING over the San Juan Mountains to the east and over Ute Mountain and Mesa Verde south – and that’s where he’s headed. Sixty miles to Cortez and 45 to Durango… weather can change a lot in one hour.
Blue didn’t make it to Durango, Co – had to stop in Cortez. About 10-12 miles north of Cortez he started running into large rain drops – then ice/sleet – and wind. Then the lightening machine started up with lightening strikes all over Mesa Verde. One bolt of lightning covered Blue’s horizon from Left to Right, but others were ground strikes on the Mesa.
Encountered such little rain squalls 3 different times as Blue was coming into Cortez, so he started looking for a motel. Again he had to visit 3 motels and the 3rd had rooms available.
There was a Rodeo and a Festival in Cortez this particular weekend so room prices were up and there weren’t that many available, being that it was the weekend. But Blue did get to park BEAR under a ground floor overhang and could walked across the highway to eat dinner a little while later – between rain squalls. After eating and return to the room, the sky let it’s hair down… brief, but furious – all over just before 9:00 pm - and we understand that they went on with the rodeo and festival event. Guess they must be used to such things there.
Sunday, June 14 / 151 miles:
Again Blue was up early, had breakfast just down the road at the Old Style Denny’s and packed and headed to Durango. It’s notable that during this trip that morning are almost all cool and fairly clear and pleasant – the storms usually make their appearance in the mid-afternoon and build fairly quickly, as western storm often do, and can be surprising intense and just as surprising, brief… ya never know – just don’t stick around on a motorcycle to find out.
So Blue makes the short pleasant run to Durango, CO. and check on a motel Dawg and Blue used before… and after reserving a room but not being able to get it until the afternoon, headed back south to Old Town Durango near the train station. After having a coffee and visiting a couple stores, knowing it must be warming up on in the mountains by then, saddled up and headed north on Hwy550, the Million Dollar Highway (aka The Silver Road), to Silverton, CO.
Once you get just outside of Durango (you are still in Durango Valley) you will notice all the aspens – that tells you how high you must be – over 7,000 feet… and you will continue to climb up and up and up the San Juan mountains until you drop from over 10,000 feet to 9,300 feet at Silverton. It’s a great 50 mile run with plenty of scenic vistas and, at this time of the year, snow all around – under the trees and on the hillsides.
After about two hours in Silverton, and before Blue got finished browsing the stores and shops, he could see heavy dark clouds building over the mountains just to the southwest and before Blue could get back to main street and BEAR parked there, down came those heavy heavy raindrops along with icy rain and a little sleet and wind.
As mentioned, it might be a short-term T-Storm or could last the rest of the afternoon… with rain and ice slick roads for the 50 mile trip back – we’re outta here. Blue saddles up and heads back toward Durango… and only caught rain & sleet going up the mountainside out of Silverton – and then two quick moving squall lines before getting back to Durango. No Problem… just tuck the camera inside my jacket and roll-on.
Once back in Durango, Blue stopped off at the Denny’s (that used to be the Village Inn 2 years ago) and after a couple of coffees and a bite or two; along with talking to several bikers visiting the area, he’s ready for that room and an afternoon nap. There is also a bigger T-Storm building south of Durango; which fits, since it’s early afternoon and therefore due.
So Blue hops on BEAR and heads to the motel to check on that room. The young Lady there was very helpful and had the cleaning crew go to work to clean a room for Blue… so Blue got his room and his nap and waited on the weather to make up its mind.
We got lucky – while we would get some rain later that evening, most of the afternoon storms stayed further west (around Cortez, up to Telluride) and stayed there – and we only received its ‘fringe’ later that evening. Worked for Blue… since he got to go back to Old Durango and visit some more shops… then eat a good dinner and take his time at it.
Monday, June 15 / 148 miles:
Area weather still can’t make up its mind – weather radar show current morning rain over Delores and Cortez and moving toward Silverton. So Blue make a short run eastward on Hwy160 to Gem Village after breakfast to visit some old shops he has been to before and then on the way back to Durango, turns south to Aztec, NM on 550 for the same reason. They have built a new multi-lane Hwy550 from the Animas River plateau all the way to Aztec and Farmington, NM and from the work being done along the plateau, are going to do the same there. This is likely the reason they are also currently building all the new roadways and overpasses just as you get to Durango Canyon and the Animas River… but then, as Blue discussed with a couple of locals, they have been building and rebuilding Highway 160 & 550 coming into Durango for years – since Blue first visited there in 1994. I kid you not !
After returning from Aztec, NM, Blue decided to gamble and dashed north back to Silverton where after only about 1 hour, the rain/ice machine started up again and Blue & BEAR dashed back south to Durango – still, we enjoyed the ride… main reason he did it anyway.
Once back in Durango and back in Old Town, with coffee in hand, it’s hot enough to shed some clothes so Blue comes out of his chaps, then his vest, his cut-off shirt, his pull-over and thermo-shirt… all the while two gals (German lasses it turned out) are busy snapping pictures with camera and cell phone.
You’d be made to think they had never seen someone take off clothes on main street before… I said, a little uncomfortable, “It was cold up on the mountain.” as a brief explanation for my ‘public’ behavior – they just giggled a little and resumed taking pictures. We spoke briefly as I ‘redressed’ – ‘cause my German is as good as my Dutch and their English was almost entirely Dutch to me. Then Blue bid them a good day and stroll one way and they another.
GEESH – tourist!
After shopping & browsing awhile and after dinner downtown, Blue heads back to the motel and get the gear packed up and ready for morning. Know it’s gonna be a ‘tad ‘cool’, so laid out another pull-over and thermo shirt for the morning and check the forecast for tomorrow.
Tuesday, June 16 / 1144 miles:
It’s cool but not overcast… so dress light and head to breakfast. Back to the motel after breakfast and load BEAR with the gear while Blue finishes getting dressed (but ya didn’t know I kan do two thangs at onc’t – did ya). Check out and ride back south thru Durango and east on Hwy160 to Pagosa Sps,CO.
Though we are still at over 6,000 feet, it’s pleasant and not to cool on the run to Pagosa but Blue knows it will be cooler once he heads up Wolf Creek Pass where it’s over 10,000 feet. When Blue gets to Pagosa Sps, he takes his time visiting the area around the hot springs… allowing it to get warmer up on the mountain.
Then it’s back on the road… to Wolf Creek Pass – with a wonderful climb up the pass starting at Treasure Falls… up and up and up. Until you are at the pass and might have been expecting ‘anything’ but the somewhat flat expanse of a rather large ‘pull-out’ area and a couple of park type sign boards. You might be feeling sort of ‘let down’… but, Wolf Creek Pass has some ‘history’ and for those with a passion for hiking, there are trails every-which-way from the pass itself. The pass itself can often get fogged-in and you’ll find that it snows there even in late June and early July… so it gets a ‘ton’ of moisture. Blue’s first visit to Wolf Creek Pass was in such a ‘blinding snow storm’ in very late June… His son rode ‘shotgun’ and just LUV’ed it. It was all two-lane and a lot more ‘curvy’ then, and Scared the bee-gee’s outta Blue.
But through the pass Blue cruises and down the eastern side… and down and down and down – heck, with no traffic (such as horse trailers), you could easily coast all the way down the mountain at a steady 60 mph – except for a couple of kind’a tight curves… ya better slow down for them. Anyway, since they made Hwy160 across the pass multi-lane several years ago, it’s an easy easy run… until you get almost down the mountain – then it’s back to a two-lane road. But they are still busy working on widening and making it a multi-lane from South Fork westward to the pass. Going down the mountain Blue encountered a little wait at an area of road clearing on the two-lane next to Wolf Creek where a section of the mountain collapsed onto the road… then the construction area near South Fork – otherwise it was smooth sailing all the way to Walsenburg, CO where they were working on the southbound bridge on I-25 and all interstate traffic had to detour through Walsenburg to get around it.
At Walsenburg, CO, we head south on I-25 going to Raton, NM – ran thru some more construction I-25 in Trinidad, CO and the state police we busy checking for speeders in the construction zone – NO, Not Blue… I just waved – and they waved back. There were also New Mexico State Police checking folks coming through Raton Pass in I-25 – Yep, Blue waved and took some pictures…. Then, because you were going downhill from the pass into Raton, there was also a local in the median checking with radar – Blue didn’t have time to wave, but Blue thought about it.
Gas up there in Raton, NM and talked to a local and his son for a bit – both in the Boy Scouts – Dad also had a VTX1300C… a 2006 he proudly stated that he had almost 10k on. Then he looked at BEARs speedo and thought it showed only 11,000 – then he did a ‘double-take’ and had to look again. ALL six digits on BEARs speedo are currently in use.
From Raton, Blue headed eastward on Hwy87 for Clayton, NM… then Dumas, TX. This area of New Mexico has LOTS of old volcanic cones and lava rock all over AND pronghorn antelope. It’s not much good for farming without lots of water, which they don’t have, so it’s mostly cattle and pronghorn. The latter can be a real hazard at night because they can and do appear everywhere… and can jump any fence.
At Dumas, TX Blue, instead to taking the normal route south on Hwy87 to Amarillo, TX, continued straight on Texas Hwy152, which took Blue clear across the Texas panhandle to Wheeler, TX and then on into Oklahoma where Blue continued on straight on Hwy6 to Elk City, OK and reconnected with I-40 East.
In the photos Blue took of eastern Texas, you note the country is mostly cattle and natural gas wells and then some natural gas processing plants further east before giving way to cattle and crop country around Wheeler, TX. For most of the run, Hwy152 proved to be a pretty good road with the exception of two specific counties (see the photos). Both of those Texas counties seemed to be ‘well off’ and busy with business – but State Hwy154 in those two counties really needed some work. In Arkansas, such a situation would mean there are some ‘crooked’ dealings going on at the county level – one wonders if it’s the same in Texas.
The sun was going down just as Blue was coming into Elk City, OK – that’s his excuse for not getting a better photo of the US Route66 Museum there (yeah – it’s a poor excuse, but all I got). It can be noted that Elk City tries to live up to its name by raising elk in specially fenced pastures northeast of the city… for commercial purposes. So after Blue gas’ed up, had some coffee, then his put thermo and pullover and chaps back on, we are cruisin’ eastward on I-40 to Okla.City some 135 miles away and it’s fully dark.
In Oklahoma City, Blue does the ‘two-step-shuffle’ and manages to pick up I-240 that loops south of the city – manages to avoid two groups of deer in the dark on the side of the interstate, just before getting back on I-40 east of Oklahoma City. Now about the ‘two-step’… years ago when I-240 was built, it traveled through farm and pasture country, an easy, uncongested, simple run from west to east. I-240 was built to relieve I-40 interstate traffic traveling through Okla.City… that was in the 90’s. But NOW, since they have rebuilt I-40 through Okla.City –and- since the western portion of I-240 is heavily ‘built-up’ (mean shopping malls and such), they DON’T want you using I-240 to avoid taking I-40 through downtown Okla.City… so they REMOVED the ‘I-240 Bypass’ signs that used to be on I-40 coming in from the west. So unless you do the ‘two-step’ or use the ‘force’, you will not know where to get off I-40 from the west to pick up I-240. Then after you get off I-40, there are STILL NO SIGNS to indicate I-240… so you use the ‘force’ again to pick-up I-240 after traveling south for about 10 miles. And AFTER you get onto I-240, it’s about 4 miles before you FINALLY see an I-240 sign.
Those Okie DOT folks are either diabolical and evil men, or pretty smug smart folk. Personally, Blue thinks it’s the first. They for-sure ain’t travel friendly @!
Stopping after Okla.City to gas up and coffee, then continued in 100+ runs until finally Blue arrives at the Wildwood Ave Waffle House a few minutes after 5 am Wednesday morning – after 1144 miles in 20 hours and 30 minutes.
It was a good cross country run – half the run via back roads and half via interstate – with the interstate portion coming at night, when traffic and conditions were much better and all the back roads were run during the daylight hours (Blue doesn’t recommend riding back roads after dark – running interstate is bad enough, but back roads are down-right dangerous – ‘common sense’ dictates why / but we all know, with some folks, ‘stupid happens’).
Couldn’t of planned that 1-Day 5-States Cross-Country Run better my-own-self @!
Tour Run Totals – 12 Days – 4493 miles – 9 States – 1533 Photos
_The End_
Cruise on Ya’ll !!
IF YA AIN'T RIDIN'.... YA BE RUSTIN' !!!!
Bruce (BlueBoy) Richardson - 1st Officer, Central Ark, Chapter 'One-Dirty-Five'