My First trip to Big Bend (or wear is my tire?)

[Liteitup]

Started Wednesday morning at 7:30. Met mr2mch at the gas station and away we went. Not quite raining, more than a mist.

Weather clears, we stop in Fredonia

and then in Mason

Our plan was Terlingua by Thursday night and back home by Sunday afternoon. Not much of a plan, just the way it should be.

Lunch time finds us at Coopers in Junction, some of the worst bbq I have ever eaten. The sausage was decent enough, everything else was just edible….except the rib. Half of it was too hard to chew. Won’t be going back.

Next stop was a rest top high above a valley on 285(I think). Pictures are taken and legs stretched.

From there, it’s on to Sanderson and then finishing up day 1 in Ft Davis. We stayed at the Stone Village Tourist Camp

Very nice property, nice people, reasonably priced, I highly recommend.
End of Day 1, 523 miles if I don’t mis-remember.

 

[Cycledelic Relic]

Phil.....that stop on top was on TX 290 loop to Sheffield off of I10 (near Ft Lancaster)

xclnt pics!

 

[slowoldguy]

Nice pics! Keep 'em coming. Humorous that the Waco area folks all ended up at the same stop at Santa Elena Friday morning. Old home week.

 

[Cycledelic Relic]

Woulda been even funnier if we'd a met up on the way to the park from Ft Davis on Thurs !!! Things didn't "quite" happen that way though..huh Tom.

 

[Red Brown]

Hey Phil,

Sorry I was not able to ride with your group out there. It looks like you had a good time except your Cooper's BBQ experience. The dirty little secret is Cooper's in Junction is absolutely hideous! The mother ship in Llano is much better.

Gotta luv that funky colored V-Strom!

RB

 

[Cycledelic Relic]

Hey Phil,

Sorry I was not able to ride with your group out there. It looks like you had a good time except your Cooper's BBQ experience. The dirty little secret is Cooper's in Junction is absolutely hideous! The mother ship in Llano is much better.

Gotta luv that funky colored V-Strom!

RB

Hey Red....That paint was supposed to be the "hammertone" wrought iron look copper color.....I was going for an upscale version on the Rhino Liner look.

Didn't turn out exactly as expected .....!huh
Just has this pock marked moon surface look in places.....

 

[Red Brown]

Hey Red....That paint was supposed to be the "hammertone" wrought iron look copper color.....I was going for an upscale version on the Rhino Liner look.

Didn't turn out exactly as expected .....!huh
Just has this pock marked moon surface look in places.....

I think it is good to be eclectic sometimes. It should make it easier to pick out in a sea of bikes at a pie-run.



How was the westerly wind blast heading over to BB?

Happy Trails,

RB

 

[Cycledelic Relic]

On Wed the wind wasn't too bad.....& we stayed on as many small (er) roads as possible...even skirting I10 from Junction thru Ozona ..(mostly) on the FMs that run along either side of it. A different view of the countryside than the wide swath that is INTERSTATE TERRITORY.

 

[Liteitup]

Hey Phil,

Sorry I was not able to ride with your group out there. It looks like you had a good time except your Cooper's BBQ experience. The dirty little secret is Cooper's in Junction is absolutely hideous! The mother ship in Llano is much better.

Gotta luv that funky colored V-Strom!

RB

Fred, wish you could have joined us. The weather was better than we deserved, close to perfect.

 

[Liteitup]

Day 2 started with us leaving Ft Davis and riding to the McDonald Observatory

It wasn’t open yet so we wandered around and took a few pics.

And a couple from the road out of there.

From there we rode back to Alpine where we had burgers at Magoos. Pretty tasty, would recommend.

Now we’re off to Study Butte/ Terlingua with only one minor detour down what I believe was Terlingua Ranch Road, including three miles of gravel to get to the Terlingua Ranch Resort. At this point I hadn’t quite grasped the whole Terlingua /Desert concept. Well, not sure I have even now. Anyway, no pics of this part of the day.

We get to Study Butte and rest and have a drink at the c-store. Then we check into the “Easter Egg” and drop off our bags and head off to Lajitas and points beyond.
Pics a plenty in this section. Unfortunately, there’s something on the lens that makes it look like rays of light coming down from the heavens. Or………….

You get the idea. Back toward Terlingua w/ a stop on the way at the highly recommended pizza place, whose name completely escapes me. Probably the best pizza I’ve had in forever.


Back to the room, adult libations and conversations.

 

[Xdriver]

Really enjoying this. What was the route you took from Waco on day 1.

 

[Liteitup]

Really enjoying this. What was the route you took from Waco on day 1.

I could make something up, but probably better to wait on mr2mch to chime in w/the route. I mostly just followed him. His middle name is Rand(McNally).

 

[Cycledelic Relic]

I could make something up, but probably better to wait on mr2mch to chime in w/the route. I mostly just followed him. His middle name is Rand(McNally).

RAND MCNALLY!?? .....sir....I will not associate my good name with those map mongers......(the name is MapArt)

If ya can't tell....I absolutely DON'T like RMcN maps

Anyway....on with the show.............

We headed to Gatesville on US84 then on the west side of town took FM116 to FM1783/Slater Rd & FM1690 thru Izoro south to FM581 & over to Adamsville & thru Lometa.
581 junctions FM580 near Bend & then crossing the river take FM501 to Cherokee & on over to Pontotoc on TX71 heading west a bit further to Fredonia where FM386 takes you south to Mason.
From there take FM1861 south to FM385 & the new little shortcut FM over to US377 & south into Junction where ya get on FM1674 & FM3130 to skirt I10 to Sonora.
FM1312 & FM2398 will get ya over to Ozona & past toward the junction with I10 & US290 loop to Sheffield....picking up TX349 then FM2400 down to US285 & into Sanderson. From there it's pretty much US90 to Marathon..Alpine...Marfa....da dododo da da da da

I prefer TX118 from Alpine to Big Bend instead of US385 from Marathon....but that's just me.

 

[Red Brown]

Rod and Phil, man....nice pictures and report.

Looking forward to riding with you guys again soon.

Be Safe,

RB

 

[Voni]

Long Draw Pizza! Superior!

Voni
sMiling

 

[Liteitup]

Long Draw Pizza! Superior!

Voni
sMiling

That's it!

Those from the Waco area.....this is what Poppa Rollas Pizza used to be. (and Rollos is still pretty good)

 

[Liteitup]

RAND MCNALLY!?? .....sir....I will not associate my good name with those map mongers......(the name is MapArt)

If ya can't tell....I absolutely DON'T like RMcN maps

duly noted, no offense meant

 

[Cycledelic Relic]

duly noted, no offense meant

I kno....just joshin.......(but I really DON'T like Randy Maps)

 

[Liteitup]

Day 3, into the park.
We pack our belongings and head to BBNP. Lots of pictures here and I didn’t even begin to take all I wanted. Towards the end of our time in the park, the batteries in my camera crapped out. I replaced them but for some reason didn’t get back to picture taking mode until we left the park….not sure why, but I regret not having many pictures of the basin area.

After you enter the park, the scenery is awe inspiring. At almost every corner and at the top of every hill, I was yelling “**** yeah” or similar in my helmet. The **** eating grin on my face kept getting bigger and bigger.
So without further ado:

one of my favorites, probably my next screen saver

not sure why, but another of my favs

pictures don’t begin to do this justice

Before I left, the girlfriend asked how close we would be to Mexico. I told her close enough to hit it with a rock….so I did.

We ran into some shady characters

Three shots from the basin is all I took. I’m an idiot! Actually, I truly think my system had gone into visual stimulation overload and I couldn’t process any more.

And then it’s 7 million miles towards Marathon to get out of the park. Ok, not really. But 45 mph? Are you kidding me?


Any way, we leave the park

and see a small stand of bluebonnets

That’s the park part of day 3.

Next, the tire part of our tale.

 

[Cycledelic Relic]

I finally checked out the video I took on the trip......

Man! that old camera takes such grainy..jumpy video.....just not very good compared to the vid systems now.

Oh...& I posted my trip pics on the upcoming rides thread.

 

[slowoldguy]

The Chisos Basin is just a fantastic spot. World class. And Ross Maxwell to Santa Elena ain't far behind. Really glad you liked it out there. We rode a similar route down and back to the one y'all took down.

Oh, yeah. beemerbob joined us in Marathon for a late breakfast and the ride back. I think he made pretty good time on the way home. He was grinning pretty big. We were just making sure he got his new tire scrubbed in.

 

[ed29]

The visual overload is something I can relate to. On my first ride through the park I was overdone by the time we reached Sotol Vista. That was on the way from the canyon to the Basin.

There is so much to see out there.

 

[Liteitup]

Day 3 continued, the tire wear part.

After we leave the park headed towards Marathon, we have to go through a Border Patrol checkpoint.
BP agent, “how’s your day?”
Me, “awesome, how’s yours?”
BP agent, “good, are you a US citizen?”
Me, “oh, yes sir!”
BP agent, “be careful and have a good day”
He didn’t look old enough o have a gun, but I guess he must have been. I’ve noticed more and more people don’t look old enough, hmmm.

We head east from Marathon on 90. Our first rest is at a c-store in Sanderson, then continue east to the Pecos river, where we stop to rest and take pictures.

This is where Rod discovers his tire wear problem.
(pic is actually from later, at the hotel in Del Rio)

We pull into Del Rio at a Yamaha/Suzuki dealership at 5:45, they close at 6. They were friendly enough, but didn’t have tire that would fit and couldn’t get one till Tuesday. Story was the same all over town. We get a room at the La Quinta

and continue the search. We even called Cycle Gear in San Antonio w/ no luck.
About then, Rod starts calling people he knows. David, dahveed on the boards takes the reins and posts our problem on TWT and ADV. David made his first post around 9:30 Friday night, within the hour, I repeat, within the hour, we had a solution in hand. MikeinSA volunteered his house and tire machine and changing skills and WhiskeySmith promised a tire and to meet us at Mikes the next day. Both offered to come pick us up if needed. Keep in mind we’re in Del Rio, Mike is in San Antonio and WhiskeySmith is in Seguin! Long story made short(er), all parties met at Mikes, tire was changed and all is right w/the world. Amazing. Sincere thanks to all that helped and to all that volunteered to help. You saved the trip. Hopefully I can pay it forward when it’s my turn.

BBQ is eaten at the original Rudy’s, far superior to the 1st day’s BBQ. Then mr2mch and I head out towards the hill country. We end up in Fredericksburg at the Sunset Motel, another older property that has been renovated and is reasonably priced

Adult drinks are brought out and we celebrate our victory over the evil tire wear gods

The next morning is Sunday, our last day. It’s cold, about 35 degrees.

We wait till 8 to eat at the Sunset Grill next to the motel. We expect the standard greasy spoon and are somewhat shocked by the menu.
http://www.sunsetgrilltx.com/menu.html
How come there aren’t any cents in the prices? Smoked salmon benedict? Will they even serve us wearing MC pants and boots….and having not shaved since Tuesday?
We both order the Sante Fe omelet and I can safely say it was the best omelet I have ever eaten. Place wasn’t at all what I expected, but I’d recommend to anyone.

When we finish breakfast, we load up to leave. Temp is now approaching mid 40’s. We head out, first pics are here (hopefully Rod will chime in, I never remember to take notes about where I stop).

Then on to Kingsland (I think)

see my new trunk? That’s what I did while everyone else changed tires, lol.

Got back home about 2:30 Sunday afternoon. Great trip. Even the problem areas had a silver lining.

Started here

finished here

more pics here
http://s656.photobucket.com/albums/uu288/Liteitup_album/big bend 2012/#!cpZZ1QQtppZZ16


Thanks, hope you enjoyed it.


Phil

 

[Cycledelic Relic]

[Phil] We head out, first pics are here (hopefully Rod will chime in, I never remember to take notes about where I stop).

Well..Ring my chimes......OK.....That's the low water crossing on Keese Rd just off of FM965 near Enchanted Rock (Gypsum Mine Rd intersects Keese there too)

The shots with both bikes atop a high viewpoint are at the Longhorn Caverns picnic area climbing up from the intersection of Park Rd 4 & FM2342

 

[slowoldguy]

You did a good job on your ride report, phil.