Well, here goes. It’s kind of hard to remember everything because neither I nor Tam kept any type of regular notes, although one of us remembered to buy and BRING a real journal and actually write something in it; at least for a few days. Then she slacked off.
Day 1
We had originally planned to leave on Thursday the 11th. That got changed to the 10th, then to the 9th. The weekend before we leave and now we’re planning to sneak out of town on the 8th. Oh yeah! Tam scammed her way out of work at 2am the 7th and I managed to clear up almost everything I needed to do so I skipped out about 10am. A quick trip home, change clothes and we’re off. The plan today is to haul posterior to the border as quick as we can. No real pics on this leg. It was uneventful except for the last few miles before Texarkana, then the bottom fell out of the rain clouds we had been under all day. Just in case you were wondering mesh jackets are not waterproof. The $20 Plano boxes we will use for hard luggage are.
Taminator packing her Strom
Loaded up and filled up. Note the cold weather gear bungeed on the bikes.
Highlights of the day:
(1) Jacksonville. Seems like every car had “bling” rims. Even the 70 something grandma riding next to us in her Chrysler 300 was pimped out.
(2) The Wagon Wheel café in Ore City. Most excellent special of Chicken, taters, beans, banana pudding and sweet tea. Cheap, cheap meal and it was GOOD!
Props to the La Quinta in Texarkana,ARK. They saw we were on bikes and let us park in the little alcoves around the front doors so the bikes would be dry and safe for the night.
End of Day 1
Total miles 309
Day 2
We left Texarkana and headed up 71 with the intention of covering lots of ground. In Tam’s words “Arkansas is close. We can ride here anytime.” There was so much traffic on 71 we ended up leaving it and taking some back roads to 41, which just goes back to 71 a little north. It was an interesting detour and brought us to the bustling metropolis of Alleene, AR and (I know this will get filtered) Dick Click Grocery. You just can’t make up these names.......
On to Mena, where we stopped for a short time and took some pics. We hadn’t been to Ark for quite a few years and were surprised at the amount of traffic. I’m tired of fighting the traffic and bored with the sprawl that has taken over. I’ll tolerate it though. Tam used to live in Mountainburg, just north of Ft Smith and I know she wants to see how it’s changed. Plus, I want to go to Chester again. Chester was one of those towns with one way in & one way out. Everyone would stop & stare at the “foreigners” every time someone new drove in to town.Kind of like those old sci-fi movies where everyone in town was an alien. At least it used to be. We would learn that due to the new highway Chester is now a modern town and Tam’s old school has grown.
After a visit to Chester and Mountainburg we blast out of town and finally get off 71. The traffic never thins until we pull into the Faubus Motel in Huntsville, Ark. The Faubus is a Mom & Pop hotel and the only hotel I’d recommend in this tiny dot on the map.
Mena RR Depot
Mountainburg school
Chester
Anyone who knows me will know why this one is special:
Highlights of the day:
(1) Tam got to see her old school and the big town of Chester
(2) I got Tam to eat Chinese food.
(3) We didn’t die from eating at the Chinese restaurant or the Mexican restaurant we ate at.
Note to self — Don’t eat Mexican food north or east of Texas.
End Day 2
Total miles 294
Day 3
We walked across town to eat at the Granny something other café. The desk clerk at the Faubus said it was THE PLACE to eat b-fast. Not impressed. I think a convenience store donut would have settled on my stomach better. How do you mess up pancakes?????????
We left town and shortly entered Missouri and rode up the western portion of the state. If you’re looking for scenery and good, curvy roads to ride, I highly recommend ------------ you stay away from this area. I think I could have napped and the bike would have stayed in my lane. There were no curves at all. South of Kansas City we decided to leave the state and head over to Kansas with the intent of spending the night in Lawrence, KS and heading over to Leavenworth prison the next morning. We pulled into Lawrence and got the jacuzzi suite at another chain hotel. Next we headed toward the college area for dinner at the suggestion of the front desk clerk. We stopped at a place named The Great Bambino or something like that. The food was bad, the service was worse. We ended up leaving before Tam could get something to eat because they ran out of the ravioli she ordered and what they talked her into ordering made her make a face that I haven’t seen in a while. This would be the 1st time we violated our rule to not eat at chain restaurants. She stopped at Culver’s to grab a burger. Well, at least it wasn’t a chain where WE are from.
Culver Burger. Boy it looked and smelled good!
A Sea of Sunflowers
Highlights of the day:
(1) Gorgeous fields of sunflowers.
(2) A traffic roundabout in the middle of NOWHERE in Kansas.
(3) Tam didn’t smack the owner at Bambinos.
End of Day 3
Total miles 318
Day 4
We blasted out of Lawrence headed to Leavenworth. The roads out of Lawrence are pretty straight and not very exciting. We would experience our first strong headwinds today.
We arrive at Leavenworth KS and try to find our way to the prison museum. First we turn into the military base there. Not good. I keep waiting to be challenged by a guard as we discuss where to go but it never happens. Evidently they have seen lost tourists before. We finally manage to find the road to the prison and when we arrive Tam sees what she thinks is a parking lot for visitors – it isn’t. She speaks to the friendly perimeter guard who informs here this is not a public parking lot, there isn’t a museum and we can’t take pictures except from the street. Who knew? One of the oldest, most notorious institutions and no museum?? Oh well. A couple of quick pics and we’re headed out of town and stumble on one of the best parts of the trip, the city of Atchison and Kansas scenic 7. We get good food and good service at the Riverhouse Restaurant and get our first taste of a really nice little town. Plus we get some really good riding in on a very good road with great scenery!
At the end of KS scenic 7 you hit Nebraska and we rode through farmland in Nebraska and Iowa until stopping for the night in Nebraska City, NB. Situated on the banks of the Missouri River, this is an absolutely beautiful place. We were directed to the Lied Lodge but it was full so we ended up staying at the Whispering Pines B&B. There weren’t any pine trees but it was very nice. It’s owned by a lady that grew up in the area but spent quite a few years in Austin in the tech industry.
Leavenworth prison
Riverhouse Restaurant in Atchison
Bridge over the Missouri River in Atchison
Overlook on Scenic 7. You could see 4 states from here.
Taminator at the end of Scenic 7 and the start of Nebraska territory
The end of Scenic 7. Great Road.
Whispering Pines B&B. We stayed in "The Barn"
End of Day 4
Total Miles 215
To be continued.....................
Day 1
We had originally planned to leave on Thursday the 11th. That got changed to the 10th, then to the 9th. The weekend before we leave and now we’re planning to sneak out of town on the 8th. Oh yeah! Tam scammed her way out of work at 2am the 7th and I managed to clear up almost everything I needed to do so I skipped out about 10am. A quick trip home, change clothes and we’re off. The plan today is to haul posterior to the border as quick as we can. No real pics on this leg. It was uneventful except for the last few miles before Texarkana, then the bottom fell out of the rain clouds we had been under all day. Just in case you were wondering mesh jackets are not waterproof. The $20 Plano boxes we will use for hard luggage are.
Taminator packing her Strom
Loaded up and filled up. Note the cold weather gear bungeed on the bikes.
Highlights of the day:
(1) Jacksonville. Seems like every car had “bling” rims. Even the 70 something grandma riding next to us in her Chrysler 300 was pimped out.
(2) The Wagon Wheel café in Ore City. Most excellent special of Chicken, taters, beans, banana pudding and sweet tea. Cheap, cheap meal and it was GOOD!
Props to the La Quinta in Texarkana,ARK. They saw we were on bikes and let us park in the little alcoves around the front doors so the bikes would be dry and safe for the night.
End of Day 1
Total miles 309
Day 2
We left Texarkana and headed up 71 with the intention of covering lots of ground. In Tam’s words “Arkansas is close. We can ride here anytime.” There was so much traffic on 71 we ended up leaving it and taking some back roads to 41, which just goes back to 71 a little north. It was an interesting detour and brought us to the bustling metropolis of Alleene, AR and (I know this will get filtered) Dick Click Grocery. You just can’t make up these names.......
On to Mena, where we stopped for a short time and took some pics. We hadn’t been to Ark for quite a few years and were surprised at the amount of traffic. I’m tired of fighting the traffic and bored with the sprawl that has taken over. I’ll tolerate it though. Tam used to live in Mountainburg, just north of Ft Smith and I know she wants to see how it’s changed. Plus, I want to go to Chester again. Chester was one of those towns with one way in & one way out. Everyone would stop & stare at the “foreigners” every time someone new drove in to town.Kind of like those old sci-fi movies where everyone in town was an alien. At least it used to be. We would learn that due to the new highway Chester is now a modern town and Tam’s old school has grown.
After a visit to Chester and Mountainburg we blast out of town and finally get off 71. The traffic never thins until we pull into the Faubus Motel in Huntsville, Ark. The Faubus is a Mom & Pop hotel and the only hotel I’d recommend in this tiny dot on the map.
Mena RR Depot
Mountainburg school
Chester
Anyone who knows me will know why this one is special:
Highlights of the day:
(1) Tam got to see her old school and the big town of Chester
(2) I got Tam to eat Chinese food.
(3) We didn’t die from eating at the Chinese restaurant or the Mexican restaurant we ate at.
Note to self — Don’t eat Mexican food north or east of Texas.
End Day 2
Total miles 294
Day 3
We walked across town to eat at the Granny something other café. The desk clerk at the Faubus said it was THE PLACE to eat b-fast. Not impressed. I think a convenience store donut would have settled on my stomach better. How do you mess up pancakes?????????
We left town and shortly entered Missouri and rode up the western portion of the state. If you’re looking for scenery and good, curvy roads to ride, I highly recommend ------------ you stay away from this area. I think I could have napped and the bike would have stayed in my lane. There were no curves at all. South of Kansas City we decided to leave the state and head over to Kansas with the intent of spending the night in Lawrence, KS and heading over to Leavenworth prison the next morning. We pulled into Lawrence and got the jacuzzi suite at another chain hotel. Next we headed toward the college area for dinner at the suggestion of the front desk clerk. We stopped at a place named The Great Bambino or something like that. The food was bad, the service was worse. We ended up leaving before Tam could get something to eat because they ran out of the ravioli she ordered and what they talked her into ordering made her make a face that I haven’t seen in a while. This would be the 1st time we violated our rule to not eat at chain restaurants. She stopped at Culver’s to grab a burger. Well, at least it wasn’t a chain where WE are from.
Culver Burger. Boy it looked and smelled good!
A Sea of Sunflowers
Highlights of the day:
(1) Gorgeous fields of sunflowers.
(2) A traffic roundabout in the middle of NOWHERE in Kansas.
(3) Tam didn’t smack the owner at Bambinos.
End of Day 3
Total miles 318
Day 4
We blasted out of Lawrence headed to Leavenworth. The roads out of Lawrence are pretty straight and not very exciting. We would experience our first strong headwinds today.
We arrive at Leavenworth KS and try to find our way to the prison museum. First we turn into the military base there. Not good. I keep waiting to be challenged by a guard as we discuss where to go but it never happens. Evidently they have seen lost tourists before. We finally manage to find the road to the prison and when we arrive Tam sees what she thinks is a parking lot for visitors – it isn’t. She speaks to the friendly perimeter guard who informs here this is not a public parking lot, there isn’t a museum and we can’t take pictures except from the street. Who knew? One of the oldest, most notorious institutions and no museum?? Oh well. A couple of quick pics and we’re headed out of town and stumble on one of the best parts of the trip, the city of Atchison and Kansas scenic 7. We get good food and good service at the Riverhouse Restaurant and get our first taste of a really nice little town. Plus we get some really good riding in on a very good road with great scenery!
At the end of KS scenic 7 you hit Nebraska and we rode through farmland in Nebraska and Iowa until stopping for the night in Nebraska City, NB. Situated on the banks of the Missouri River, this is an absolutely beautiful place. We were directed to the Lied Lodge but it was full so we ended up staying at the Whispering Pines B&B. There weren’t any pine trees but it was very nice. It’s owned by a lady that grew up in the area but spent quite a few years in Austin in the tech industry.
Leavenworth prison
Riverhouse Restaurant in Atchison
Bridge over the Missouri River in Atchison
Overlook on Scenic 7. You could see 4 states from here.
Taminator at the end of Scenic 7 and the start of Nebraska territory
The end of Scenic 7. Great Road.
Whispering Pines B&B. We stayed in "The Barn"
End of Day 4
Total Miles 215
To be continued.....................