California or Bust


(April 24 - May 5, 2004)



[Map of the route taken during this trip.]

Daily Log
Date

April 24 (Sat)

April 25 (Sun)

April 26 (Mon)

April 27 (Tues)

April 28 (Wed)

April 29 (Thrs)

April 30 (Fri)

May 1 (Sat)

May 2 (Sun)

May 3 (Mon)

May 4 (Tues)

May 5 (Wed)

12 Days Total

Miles

675.4

720.3

500.1

342.4

442.4

397.2

316.3

481.4

726.7

643.2

0.0

373.0

Total: 5,618.4

Destination

Monroe, LA

Carlsbad, NM

Truth of Consequences, NM

Farmington, NM

Cameron, AZ

Las Vegas, NV

Needles, CA

Gallup, NM

Shawnee, OK

Nashville, TN

Nashville, TN

Easley, SC

16 States Traveled





[It was still raining when I entered Texas on the second day of the trip.]
It was still raining when I entered Texas on the second day of the trip.

[The Harley parked next to one of the first oil pumps that I saw on this trip.]
The Harley parked next to one of the first oil pumps that I saw on this trip.

[You can barely make out the windmills in the distance on the top of the mountain ridge.]
You can barely make out the windmills in the distance on the top of the mountain ridge.

[The entrance to the Carlsbad Caverns.]
The entrance to the Carlsbad Caverns.

[The nice, twisty road to the Caverns.]
The nice, twisty road to the Caverns.

[Formations in the Carlsbad Caverns.]
Formations in the Carlsbad Caverns.

[Formations in the Carlsbad Caverns.]
Formations in the Carlsbad Caverns.

[The road leading to the Guadalupe Mountains.]
The road leading to the Guadalupe Mountains.

[Mt Guadalupe.]
Mt Guadalupe

[The desert behind Mt Guadalupe.]
The desert behind Mt Guadalupe

[The welcome sign as I was going into Mexico.]
The welcome sign as I was going into Mexico

[Some of the views and experienced as I went through the desolate countryside as I left the Gilah Cliff Dwellings.]
Some of the views and experienced as I went through the desolate countryside as I left the Gilah Cliff Dwellings

[An abandoned cabin on the side of the road on my way to Farmington, NM.]
An abandoned cabin on the side of the road on my way to Farmington, NM

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[The entrance to the Mesa Verde Cliff Dwellings.]
The entrance to the Mesa Verde Cliff Dwellings

[The old housing network on the top of the mountain ridge on the way to the Mesa Verde .]
The old housing network on the top of the mountain ridge on the way to the Mesa Verde

[The Mesa Verde Cliff Dwellings from a distance.]
The Mesa Verde Cliff Dwellings from a distance

[Here I am actually standing within the cliff dwellings.]
Here I am actually standing within the cliff dwellings

[The picture of me going into Colorado and the road sign showing that this was also old Highway 666.]
The picture of me going into Colorado and the road sign showing that this was also old Highway 666

[This is where I nearly dropped the bike in the deep gravel that was on the side of the road.]
This is where I nearly dropped the bike in the deep gravel that was on the side of the road

[Just a nice picture of the layers and reds.]
Just a nice picture of the layers and reds

[An idea of the difference in elevations......and the first hints I got of the sand storm I'd be riding into.]
An idea of the difference in elevations......and the first hints I got of the sand storm I'd be riding into

[This is the picture that I have hanging in my Bike Room.]
This is the picture that I have hanging in my Bike Room

[The sand was so bad at times, that when riding down the road, I was lucky to be able to see 30 yards in front of me.]
The sand was so bad at times, that when riding down the road, I was lucky to be able to see 30 yards in front of me

[A picture of other people at the South Rim.]
A picture of other people at the South Rim

[A nice shot of the Grand Canyon showing the depth. It was nearly 5000 feed down to the river below.]
A nice shot of the Grand Canyon showing the depth. It was nearly 5000 feed down to the river below

[I got a nice couple to take this picture of me at the railing.]
I got a nice couple to take this picture of me at the railing

[At the entrance sign to Seligman, AZ..]
At the entrance sign to Seligman, AZ

[Landscape before reaching the Hoover Dam.]
Landscape before reaching the Hoover Dam

[Parked at the Hoover Dam sign.]
Parked at the Hoover Dam sign

[A nice picture of the Hoover Dam.]
A nice picture of the Hoover Dam

[A picture of Lake Meade.]
A picture of Lake Meade

[The Welcome sign to California off of I-15.]
The Welcome sign to California off of I-15

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Some of the cars I saw at the car show/get-together in Seligman

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The sign in the building at the Meteor Crater

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Here I am with the meteor crater in the background

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This photo shows the crater's rim from a couple miles from the site

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Cruisin' over to the Petrified Forest

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One of the examples of a petrified tree on the side of the road

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A section of the Painted Desert

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My bike striking a pose with the Painted Desert behind it

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The park has many examples of early petroglyphs

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More examples of petroglyphs

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The remains of one of the ancient settlements

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A photo of some of the landscapes in the Petrified Forest

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A valley with the petrified logs showing them sticking out from the sides of the hills and how they roll to the bottom

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A nice example of a petrified log on a museum walking path

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A highly polished petrified log that shows the brilliant colors

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Taking a break at the Oklahoma welcome sign

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Vicki at the Belle Meade Plantation (note the bullet holes from the Civil War)

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Some of the old, horse-drawn buggies

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Back home with some dirt smuggled back from the West


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