The Wacky Adventures of Patrick

[Patrick]

A nice ride and great dinner 041208

Today we were not sure what the weather was going to be like and we figured it was going to be colder then what it turned out to be so we did not have concrete plans other then to go to the big Traders Village Chili cook off. Well the weather was warm enough for me to ride so I sent out a broadcast email followed by the phone broadcast and off I went to Traders Village 1145 AM on the bike to meet Willie down there. Val took her convertible cage to go get Marrie a friend of ours to meet me down at Traders Village also. Too cold for the bike but warm enough for he convertible.

Anyway so I get to Traders Village and find my way to the Chili Cook off area and was it cool. There were all kinds of folks there and all kinds of skits going on. Here are some pictures.



Same Group


Still the same group. To bad they were so close to the next group.



Now this group was down right funny and believe it or not they sounded good!







I now wonder over to the American Legion area Post 379 and man they had a great set up. There were several cookers from the post, all of them very good with past winning records. I loved them all.





On the next one notice all of the flags, I wish I got a better one of just all of the flags.



It sure is hard getting folks to pose for pictures so here is another one at the far end of the Post set up.





I got a kick out of this set up as well, another group out there competing.



Willie (Two Bears) shows up and he got himself a new Mustang Seat for his bike and he loves it. So I just have to take a shot. He must have been parked next to a red car as it makes his chrome look reddish.



The next one is the “Flint Mobile” I do not know where their base camp was but I liked this part of it. They were just roaming around in their Flint Mobile.



Well it was time for us to ride on to our next destination down in Lancaster to see Mr. RocknRoll (John) play at the town square. First we got a little group shot in between one of his performances. He is very good and was not feeling well at all.

Here is the group shot, left to right. Willie, Anna, John, Marrie, Val, and I.



The town center was quite quaint. Here is a shot of Willie in a little enclave for lack of better description. Behind him is some folks spinning yarn which you will see closer up pictures soon.



Here is a shot to the left of the on clave.



Here are a couple of the yarn spinners.



Willie starts asking questions of this next ole gal and she tells us a bunch of stuff of which I remember very little but she does tell us, the type of wool she is spinning and showed us the end product. Others not shown in these pictures are knitting stuff out of the yarn.



Here is John singing, the one thing about John performing is that even though they built him a stage, he is more of a get into the crowd and be with the folk’s (audience) kind of guy. I think that is why he is so successful. This town (Lancaster) had big banners flying talking about the event “Featuring Mr RocknRoll”. They love him down here but so do we.





So now it is time for Phase III of the day. Jim called me early this morning and asked if we wanted to do a fish fry at his house. I was still getting the cob webs out of my brain so I said let me check with Val. She was up for it when I asked her later but I was concerned about committing knowing how this group rides. We do not make times very well at all and in fact we sometimes do not make it too our final destination or follow the plan book very well as we are easily distracted into other cool stuff. So to make a long story short I ask him, should I announce to the group his offer as that may help keep us on course a bit better. He said sure he had enough fish so why not. Well it was not long and I was getting some positive feedback on the idea so I called him again and asked did he really have enough. He said yes so Phase III was on to meet at Jim’s house around 5ish for a fish fry. Well being who we are, first Willie and I stopped at Chili’s for a little bite to eat just out side of Lancaster as we were starved. We rushed through our food but had a good conversation while watching the Masters play golf. We did not even finish our second beer and we headed to my house to meet Val. When we got to our house Val was not there yet and Philip on the phone said give him 10 minutes which means 20. It is now 5:10 PM so already we are running late. I call Jim to give him our status and he says Courtney, Cindy, and a lady named Mary was coming over between 6 and 6:30. I sigh a bit of relief as I know now we too are running late. Well Philip even gets over before Val gets home, she stops at the grocery store to get some Champagne and desert. Well it is now 6PM and we are finally getting close to leaving. We do not get to Jim and Tammy’s house until nearly 6:35 PM. Now you see why it is so hard for us to make most large planned rides. Anyway, I later find out that Val and Marrie went looking around in Lancaster after they had a bite, and that is why she was so far behind. Marrie and Howard has other plans so Val dropped her off at home.

Well so here we are at Jim’s house late, but there is not Courtney, Cindy, and Mary. So we talk and have a beer while we wait. Left to right is Philip, Jim, Tammy, and Willie.


Well Courtney, Cindy, and Mary show up and here is a bad shot of Courtney and Willie. But Courtney must have said something funny.


Now Cindy is one the phone and it sure has Philip’s attention.



Here is a shot of Mary, this is the first time she hung around with us, I wonder what she thinks of the group.



Here is another shot of the group. Notice both Jim and Tammy missing, well let me tell you the set up they made was way beyond my expectations. Normally for a fish fry that means for this ole boy, paper plates and eating out side even thought it was getting a bit brisk out.



No they come out and say it is ready. So I am ready for a buffet style setup and what do we find but tables set up and real plates, home made fried potatoes, home made batter applied to the fish, and home made Cole Slaw, red wine and the whole bit. Man it was fantastic and in Jim and Tammy’s normal fashion there is double the food then the people can eat and man was it fantastic. Thanks big time to you two.

Well it was getting late and it was time to go, Paul had talked with Philip earlier and said he would have a fire tonight if we came over. We were tired, full, but since earlier we said we would go, I would have felt bad if since I committed I would not make it so we decided to go to Paul’s for a short while. Courtney, Cindy, and Mary went dancing, Willie needed to head home, and Jim and Tammy wanted to clean up and call it a night so off we went. Again another great ride and good time with good folks. Now it is late, so I am not once again going to proof read this so please pardon the grammatical errors as I am sure there are many.

PJ

[Wrider]

Just looking and reading through, I think you're going to be responsible for a big tragedy... Because of all of these pics you use, I think Photobucket may be unable to pay for the bandwidth! Good ride reports and such though!
Wrider

[Patrick]

You know, on the serious side of that, a lot of work has gone into uploading the pictures, now resizing them, and such, I hope they really do not go down or loose the pictures, yes I have the originals, but the work lost would be stagering. Do you know of a place that would be better for storing the pictures and such. I do realize there is even a risk of this web site someday going down and that too would be very heart breaking.

Patrick

[Patrick]

Lake Texoma Ride April 19th and 20th

DAY 1

I started calling Philip, Jim, and Brett around 7:15 AM to get a roll call, and everyone answered except for Brett. Philip came by about 35 minutes early and told me he had already got gas. So I took off to do the same and when I got back Brett was in the drive way with Jim ready to go. So I took our parting shot and off we went. Willie could not make it as he had to finish his floor work and it was his sons birthday.



We take off up 121 to 26 then over to 2499. After a few lights on 2499 it turns into two lane fairly pretty highway. We then catch 407 west to Copper Canyon and man was that area beautiful. It is really too bad we did not stop for pictures and I plan a ride up there sometime myself to further explore the area. In some of the most fantastic areas there was no place to pull over for pictures. I need to figure out a way to mount or hand shoot pictures while riding. Copper Canyon road was under some construction at one point so we got detoured and I ended up getting lost and almost having us head back south. Philip knew the area a little and got us pointed in the right direction. So to make a long story short, we end up in Denton at 35 and Loop 288. Brett and Philip below are discussing the plan. I jump in and it sounds best to take 288 loop so we do not take 35 through down town.



Well that was a horrible plan, 288 loop is not a free way like what Loop implied to me and how it is meant in other cities. We get caught in a ton of traffic and our bikes are heating up, not over heating but my fan was running constant at each light was we had to wait about 3 lights to get threw each one. It was a mess. We all decided to avoid Denton from now on at all costs.

Well Brett was very hungry and I was hungry so we decide to stop off at that Mexican place on 488 and 377 at Pilot Point. I tried the burritos this time and they were ok, I would order them again, but I did hit a large piece of grit that I thought broke a tooth but so far no known damage. I will need to talk to my dentist about it though, since it might have put a hairline crack somewhere. I over all would not go out of my way to go there because the burritos were only fair, and last time I had the Fajitas and did not care much for them either. Here is a picture and the name of the place is Ernesto’s you may recognize it from one of my earlier ride reports.



We head on up to Pottsboro non stop and Jim takes us to the American Legion post that is run by the SAL. It was a very nice place. Here are some shots.

We find a nice shade tree at the post.



Here is one looking more at the water. To the left is the Post.



In the back the have the Little Pat train. Of course I got some ribbing by Philip on that one. It is cool however so I shot it.



Here is a general bar shot.




Look at the ceiling fans. The windows over look Lake Texoma.


So we now head to the Cabins Jim has been talking about. While in the Post he calls and lets them know we are coming to take a look around as it is a bit pricier then what we normally pay for lodging. The lady gives us keys to two cabins for us to check out. After we learn that we need to pay 64.92 each we agree that this is a cool place and what the heck we decide to stay. We take the cabin to the left, and it sleeps 5-6. I will have internal shots down below.

Here is a shot of the cabin, there are two in one building, they run very deep.



After paying up we decide to take a little ride around town and the lake. We find take a road to the right which brings us to this dead in. I signal that I want to take pictures and Philip asks do I mean ride down the gravel hill road. Heck no, I do not mean that. I meant from right here.



I take another one with some zoom and it looks like down below this could be a gravel boat ramp as I see a SUV way down there.



We decide to get some gas and up pulls the cool looking trike.



We then ride around the lake some and find this Marina. Here are some general shots. Here is one with this mansion in the back ground.

We grab some sitting real estate behind a few dumpsters, man we have class.

But the forward view is cool.


Here is a shot of us slowly getting ready to leave. We now realize we are getting a bit tired.



On the way back we figure it is time to eat, and we noticed a flyer at the cabin office about this place called Hootie Hoo’s and that they have a free band playing and BYOB and great BBQ. Well all is true and man the place was cool. Here is Jim pointing out the name with Philip looking sleepy and Brett happy we are going to eat again.



Here is one of the bikes out front to the right of the place. I noticed on the sign in the previous shot it says “Beer Barn” but yet it is BYOB. I never did ask about that.


Here is one of Philip by the back door, if you read the sign they are serious about tress passing. In the back is where they are setting up for the band.

I went in side to take some shots while waiting for our food. Again a beer sign but you need to bring your own. Here is an old working wood/coal burning heater/small stove.

A shot of one of the walls. They nailed up Pine tree shavings. It was cool, had to be there for the real affect.


Here is a shot of where the band as setting up. I feel sorry for the neighbors as they kept bringing in huge speakers after this shot. There were all kinds of folks and very friendly to boot. A couple of big ole, golden retrievers kept coming by for some lovin and food. Man the food was great, I had the chopped beef, while Brett and Jim had a compo platter with some beans and sausage that had Brett sweating like crazy. Philip and Jim are immune to hot stuff as they did say it was hot but they did not look like Brett did. I thought he was going to fall off the picnic table.



Well it’s getting late (almost 7PM) it does not look like the band will start until 8PM and we are tired so we head back to the cabin. Someone said a funny here I assume. Most likely at my expense.

Here is a shot about 50 yards from our cabin.

Here is another only to the left.

In side our cabin is the kitchen


Out from the front porch.

I will post Day 2 later. That night Philip and Brett went to bed about 1030 or so while Jim and I went over to our neighbors, a bunch of good ole boys who have known each other since dirt was made and have a yearly reunion. They were a great bunch of guys and it was enjoyable to share their fire with them. Jim and I went to bed about 1230 or so and it was a great day. I was thinking about the RUT guys and their run today for Tractor, I was hoping it went well and safe. After seeing the ride report they did have a great turn out and everyone got back home safely.

DAY TWO
Well we all start getting up, Philip is first as he was first to bed and he is all chipper and ready to roll after his shower. Jim and I on the other hand were a bit slow moving at first. Our neighbors I mentioned earlier just was we were about to leave invited us over for breakfast and man the food was great. The sausage was tasty and then potatoes were fantastic. The turned us on to the Bloody Mary bowl they made, I declined but Jim did not like his as it was too spicy so I drank his and man it was good. Here is a shot of Jim on the porch, the worse part of any trip is the leaving.


Jim shot one of me on the porch.

Well with stomachs full we take off. We leave the key on the office door as no one can be found. As we are riding along Philip, Brett, and Jim stop along the road and I head down to the next street where I see a park sign. I waive them to come down this way but they start crossing the road. I think they are taking a bio break but then Jim comes rolling up and asked if I saw the old abandoned mansion. I said no so I head back that way and park on the street opposite of them and wow, it was huge. I was half tempted to go take a look inside but we all decided against it. Here is a shot close up of the main building.

Here is one of the whole complex.


Here is one of the building to the left.

Here is a closer up shot of the main building.

Here is a shot of the guys across the street. We then head off for the park I saw a sign for. It was in a fairly large sub division and normally those parks are quite nice.


This sign did not give me a warm fuzzy feeling but then Brett pointed out in the back ground there looked like trails that folks were using for off road biking.


Here is Philip and Brett with the lake in the back ground of the park. We ran across the owner of the White Power Wagon Pickup truck behind them and a truck discussion ensued.

We take off again and Philip pulls over by this old abandoned Dairy Queen or similar establishment. We take a rest and check it out.


We go in and check things out.


The next shot kind of reminded me of being on the bridge of an old ship. Not sure why.




If you notice we still have coats on. The temps up by the cabin were nice so I packed my Leather Jacket and wore my Joe Rocket Jacket with no liner and it was here that I unpacked my Leather jacket. It was just a bit cool.


So we head out back towards home. Things get kind of interesting as we hit 121 toll road and then Philip takes us to the 161 Turn Pike, we end up getting stopped at a pay both and Philip is not very happy. He apparently did not know or think that we would need to pay just to exit on to Spur 348 (I think it is 348 it might be 345) anyway after he pays up we all meet at the side of the road. He again expressed his displeasure at the whole thing and we ride off onto the Spur. I was thinking we were going to go to Strokers for lunch as we mentioned that we were hungry. So we stop at Flips as the service there is much better then Duke’s. Of course however we do stop at Dukes as that is the end of the ride stop and always has been. So here is a couple of shot of us there. We all got home safely and had a great trip. Lots of memories and too bad the pictures did not capture everything that happened. Philip even got us going down a gravel road which was no fun and very shaky but we all made it.



Philip was kind enough to take one with me in the picture. We all went home an took naps after this.


Pj - Patrick

[Patrick]

Ride of Marble Falls and area 4/28/08 till 5/1/08

The ride was great but we did have one thing that really caused a kink in the plan and the activities. It is with great hearted feeling, but glad all is ok that I say we had an accident on the trip.

Philip originally was supposed to go to Talladega for the race but after the storms hit his buddies house and had to drop out Philip was left without being able to go. So he asked if I wanted to take a short ride that week and I said heck yes. I had mentioned it to Paul (PB) in a conversation and he said he would like to come also. So we plan to get out early Monday morning but PB had an appointment early in the AM so we decided to wait until 0930 his expected completion time. Things ran late for him so we decided to meet at Forest Hill and 1187 at 1015. Gail (Gabby) took a shot of the three of us and I decided to take a side shot with the cemetery in the background as Brett (Boo Boo) likes old cemeteries.





Here is a shot of a aircraft Museum we ran across on either 1187 or 377.



We got down to Cleburne and stopped at a marina off of 377. Here is a couple of shots with Philip and PB.




PB grabbed the camera and took a shot of Philip and I.

We take off again and we run across the Hard 8 BBQ place talked about in another ride report on RUT. It was as good as reported.



Here is PB and Philip enjoying their portions.



Off we go again and we hit 281 and find a little rest stop along the way and take a break. Philip takes the camera in this case so here is PB and myself.



Here is just a side road stop we took so I shot a fast picture of a road that looked interesting. Might need to come down here again and take some of these older roads.



We then went through Hancock Springs where 281 kind of jogs off a bit and Paul went in one direction while Phillip and I kept going. I saw Paul take a turn indicating where 281 continued and I finally got Philips attention at the other 281 intersection and told him what PB did so he said stay here and he would round him up. I said I was going to pull across the street out of the intersection and I ran across this little Historic History House.

I decided to shoot a few shots of them coming my way.

The next shot is of Philip pulling in.

Now here is a shot of PB, do you remember telling your children to not put a Lollypop in your mouth and be running, where here is PB with one in his mouth while riding. Hum!


Well we get down to Marble Falls and find a hotel room and take a rest before taking off for a short exploratory ride.

We decided to take hwy 4 around Buchanan Dam. What a ride, I recommend everyone take this route if your in the area.
We stop at this little place that PB knew of as we were going along so I had to take some pictures it was beautiful. The first one is of PB and Philip.


Some general scene shots.



We then came across the bridge for the Dam itself. So some more general scenic shots.



Here is one of PB on the bridge.


We then ride on to the actual Dam area. The Dam produces electricity so it is not a very accessible area and the security as high as well as a local Sherriff was there. He stopped and we talked for a few seconds while on our bikes.

I take a walk down toward what looks like a beach and shoot a shot of the Dam and then Philip and PB.

Well a great about 50 mile side ride and now it is time to eat so we find this nice little place and we had to wait to see outside on the over look of the River.

Here is a couple shots from out table.



The next morning Philip finds a little pull off on a bridge as we are leaving Marble Falls so we take some shots. The day starts off great and a bit warmer then yesterday. Here is PB and Philip.


A shot looking back on Marble Falls.



We decided to take a trip to Fredericksburg and have lunch but of course first we find another river and bridge to take shots from.




We stop at this little over look rest area. We have not seen any real pretty blue bonnet fields yet so I notice that flowers at this rest stop and Philip and I try to get low for PB to shoot a shot of us. The picture does not do justice to the flowers but it was a nice area.

Well looks like Philip said a funny as PB is walking away laughing. No telling what was said and what the heck Philip is up to here.


We are on the road again and PB or Philip notices some Buffalo along the way so we stop to take some pictures.



We then head off and Philip told his sister we would try to stop at Wildseed Farms so we did. I bought a bag of wild flower seeds and a stick to the glass butterfly leaded glass thing for Val and Philip gets a T shirt for sis.

We finally get to lunch in Fredericksburg and man I am starved. We find this German restaurant and it was great and we got to sit next to the window.



Here is a shot of out bikes. This looks easy but it was on an incline with fine sand underfoot. So when we left I pushed PB back, Philip was then able to maneuver to get out ok, and I road up on the sidewalk a few feet down to another ramp off the sidewalk.

We then made it over to Luckenbach TX, and was it fantastic. Here are all three of us in front of the Post Office, General Store, and the bar all in one.



Here is a shot of the Washer Pit area. That is a game where you throw large washers for a hole, something like horse shoes. A friend of mine Chuck will get a kick out of this one.

Paul took a shot of me up on the stage where many famous singers have sung, such as Willie Nelson himself.

Here is one of the backside (bar part) of the Post Office, General Store, and bar. The bar tender from time to time grabs his guitar and starts singing.



Here is a shot of him singing from the outside bar area.


Well unfortunately we need to ride on as we are a little behind so we ride up to Sisterdale where I am not really sure why we stopped but I am glad we did.


Here is an older building we found after doing some walking around.

We take off again and find a bit a place we can get some pictures of the general area. The first one has PB in it.


This one is in the other direction in which we came.



Here we stop for a rest by a little creek bed.



We go down the road a bit and find this cool looking Tavern on the Devil’s Backbone and man it kind of turns out to be just that. At this point PB says he is not feeling right and is going to head up the road and maybe point it north towards home. After a long discussion ensues we all shake hands and off he goes. Philip and I decide to go in to discuss the new plans.
Here Philip is out in front.


Here is Philip inside. The folks were all very friendly and talkative. We talked about area rides and where we were from and such but we do not stay long, thank God as it turns out.


Since we did not get a chance to discuss new plans we headed West towards San Marcos as originally planned. It is not too many miles when we see a fire truck, cars, and an ambulance. Then we see a bike standing in the middle of the intersection so of course we are going slow with all of what is going on and I see one person on a gurney. As we slowly go to pass we notice the bike looks like PB’s and we do not see him anyplace so now we stop and pull over. A guy comes over to us as we are getting our helmets off and he asks if we know the motorcycle rider. And we said yes and he was not quite finished telling us that PB had been involved in the wreck that I ran across the street to the gurney with Philip on my heels. Man he looks like heck, my heart was racing and I was getting all kinds of information and questions. I talked with Paul very briefly and he asked about his bike of which I had not looked at closely yet so I just said it is fine. The paramedics of course do not give us much time to chat and load him inside. Then they decide to care flight him to Austin. Paul asks me to call Gail and of course I said I would. I had to stay behind with the Police and the helicopter. They did not feel it was life threatening but it would be an hour and a half ride to Austin so they decided care flight was the best way. So he finally gets going in the helicopter which took a long time getting there, in fact the police officers where joking saying how could he miss us as we were in the middle of no place with an ambulance and bunch of police cars and an ambulance. I was re-assured he was going to be ok so now it was time to get down to business of what to do with the bike which was in operable. The front wheel would not turn as the front fender was pushed into the wheel stopping it from turning. It did not flatten it how ever. So when the tow truck showed up we helped load the bike and got the address and phone numbers. The police had me go over the inventory of PB’s stuff with him before it was loaded. So I call Gail after I felt more composed and left her a voice mail and then I called my wife Val. She too did not answer right away so I left her a voice mail. She called back shortly and I told her what happened and to keep trying to call Gail as Philip and I were going to go find a hotel in San Marcos which was about 20 miles from our location and yet close to Austin (30-40 miles) thinking we would be going to the hospital at some point. We got a room and started making phone calls. I did get a hold of Gail who said she had not talked to Paul yet and was waiting to find out what she should do. I told her where he was and I called Paul. The doctors were not happy but let me talk to him and he sounded better then he looked. So Gail does get in touch with him and finds out they will most likely release him tonight and she was headed that way. We talked about us heading that way (Austin) and we all decided it would be best for us to stay put and work on the bike issue tomorrow. So we agreed. Later that night it was decided Paul’s brother in law and a friend would drive the trailer down to get the bike and we were to meet them at the hotel and have them follow us to the location.

So it is now about 5 or 6 PM and we know we are further south then planned and it would be a very late start to head back north. So we decided to go back West then up the 16 and stay someplace overnight tomorrow and get back early Thursday instead of Wednesday. We both called our bosses and informed them that we would not be in on Thursday. I was told by a guy who gave me his name and number said a young girl had her right hand indicator on but at the last minute decided to turn left thus right into Paul’s path.

Out in front of the Quality Inn we were staying at they had these figurines so we took a couple of pictures to kind of lighten up the day and our hearts. It was long and a mixed bag of emotions.




We do not stay up very late and go to bed knowing it is going to be a hectic day tomorrow. We do meet up with Kenny and we get the bike on the trailer after a bit of looking for the place in Wimberley. It was 1 PM before we hit the road. We have talked with Paul and Gail and she got him home very early this morning and he is doing ok, hurts and has stitches but will be ok and he is still more concerned about his bike of course I am still down playing the damage as they have more important things to worry about.

We did stop at the Blanco river for a rest.





We decided we still had to make more miles so we stopped at a Subway to get a sandwich and we would stop some place along the way to eat it. Man it was now about 2 or 3 pm and I was starved. I was riding behind Philip and I could smell his sandwich for miles. We did find this little area eat next to a creek. I was very quiet and we could talk about Paul and kind of share our feelings about all that has happened. It was quite mind numbing.




We did some serious shagging and got to the 16 and started our northern trek. We took a little break on the road side next to this old building and cows. They were mooing at us big time. From here out the pictures will be scarce as we are trying to make some time, we need to cover about 250 miles in less then 5 hours so our stopping became less and less.


I also took a shot of a cemetery for Brett.

Next stop was Llano. We had to it, was too pretty to pass up the little park next to the river.



It is tough fishing, there were poles in the water, I am glad they were not biting or this guy would have missed it.



Here is one at the same park, the granite was all over in big clumps.

Next stop was Dublin so Philip could take a picture of the first and original Dr Pepper Plant. I took a shot of the mural. I was getting very tired as the wind was strong all day. I was looking for Hotels while I think at this point Philip was planning to head all the way home. I just could not.

Down town Dublin.


Well we got into Granbury and that is when I had to stop. Philip did head on down the road to home and called me when he got there. After what happened yesterday I was reluctant to let him go it alone, but we all have ridden miles alone and I was so tired I was no longer safe on the road. He got home ok. We agreed that when I got back in town to meet at Dukes as I have yet not stopped there after a long trip so it is a ritual. He did meet me there, I was half tempted to invite Paul as I thought he might try to show up. He is doing much better every day. Val also met me there and took the picture. Too bad Philip has his eyes closed but this is the only shot with both of us in it.

From Granbury I took the 377 to 1187 and up 360 on home. The wind was getting hard again but not as bad as yesterday. It was a good ride and I am glad Paul is now looking for a new bike as the insurance company totaled it. Today (Sunday) he told me he actually went out of the house to look at one. Thank you God!!!

Pj

[Patrick]

Trip To Branson With Val May 17th (Day 1 ride)

Well we were going to go Friday night (last night) but due to work we could not get ready in time. We were going to leave early in the morning but last night Val came down with a sore throat and sleep in and did not get everything done last night. So at 11:11 we leave a local gas station so today’s pictures are a little scarce as Philip would say we had to shag it.

First Stop for Gas after leaving the house was Choctaw Oklahoma.




Next stop was Atoka Confederate Memorial Museum which the main building was closed. It was a very quaint area and there was another riding couple down by their selves enjoying some shade. Lots of riders in this area.



A sign out front.

The building behind Val is the actual Museum. You can see we brought the Van and Trailer as well as we figured since we would be gone for a week if we needed a tow or if it rained we were ready. So far I have not used it yet.


Val Shot one of me looking over the maps to figure out what is next.


So we take off and Val has been flashing lights and everything at me to stop at a fruit stop for the last 150 miles so I found one she could shop at. She nearly ran me over getting into the parking lot. She got her peaches and honey.


We got to Hwy 69 and 9 in Eufaula Oklahoma and found this hotel that was under re-construction and it looked like a mess from the outside but the room was very clean and newly refurbished. The local area looked very decent so we decide to check it out and once Val saw the room she was very happy with it and we decided to stay. It was only 50 bucks and I would say worth it.


Right next door to the hotel was this cheap Mexican dinner and it was really good for the price.


Here is another shot of the area around the hotel.


I hope my pictures can be more scenic tomorrow but we have 240 miles to cover and it should be much more fun once we get past Fayetteville and on the back roads. It has been a great day and all is good, the Van and the bike are running well and I am tired now so I will up load and get ready to go to bed. This is Pj reporting on the road to Branson have a good, safe, night and week!!

Oh, and BA I will try to plot my northern route to PK on a the thread when I get a chance if not while we are on our trip or when I get home.

Pj

[Patrick]

Branson Ride Day 2 May 18th 2008

Another good ride day but once again we had to kind of shag it to get to Branson. The hotel the Eufaula Inn as I said before looks like a mess from the outside but they are renovating every thing and it was a nice stay for the $$.

Here is a shot Val took.



Val was able to capture the name of the Mexican place next door.



After picking up a Subway Sandwich in Springdale AR, we thought we would find a place to eat it but as it turned out when we got to Osage the only thing was a church that was closed and Val had to make a pit stop so we drove on after taking these two shots.





So we traveled on to the 412 and 62 Junction where they gave us a map and good directions to where our hotel was. I filled up on gas across the street and shot these next two shots.

To the right of the Van is where we had our Subway sandwiches that we got some 60+ miles ago but they were still good and not soggy as I had expected they would be.




While driving Val took some shots of me and this one was the best with some scenic and a little closer to me. The question I ask is was she paying attention to the road and me as I was in front of her. She also took one of some flowers on the side of the road as she was driving.


Well we made it to our hotel and here is a shot of the Van and what we ended up turning into an evening tail gate party. We had many of the other hotel patrons join us from time to time. Here is a shot of Val, Patt and my dad. I will say more on them in some of my other day reports.


It was a good day riding but like I said we had to shag it so it was not really the type of trip I normally like. The route we took made Euless to Branson 460 Miles.

[Patrick]

Day 3 In Branson 5/20/08

We got up and had breakfast at the hotel (Quality Inn) and it part free and part pay for. You had a choice of briskets and gravy, donuts, fruit, toast, bagels, cereal, and assorted juices for free. If you wanted fried eggs, bacon, hash browns, pancakes and such it was no more then 4 bucks but less if you ordered less. The bacon was greasy and tasted bad but the eggs were cooked perfectly for me. Dad and Val ordered breakfast a couple days later and did not like the way they were cooked and I agree they were less then what I got.

After breakfast we headed to old down town Branson. The prices where fantastic and the quality was better then the price but not extremely high quality. The 5 and dime had more items then you could possibly see in one day. It was like no other 5 and dime I have ever seen.

Last night we partied till fairly late and dad and Patt did not feel all that great this morning.

Here is a shot of the 5 and dime.



Here is a shop next to the 5 and Dime that sells leathers. Dad and I went in there and I found a leather vest I liked but decided to leave it to think more on it and then I went looking for Val and Patt and he gave me the vest I was looking at. Thanks Dad!! I know he reads these reports. Anyway here is a shot of Patt outside the shop. Again great prices!



We walked down a bit and found this neat doll shop that really had some very unique stuff in it and again very high value at a great price. Se dad, Patt, and myself posed for a shot by Val.



We then took a ride on one of the free trams that takes you around down town old Branson. And then the Lake Front area (they call it a lake but it is really more of a dammed up river. Back a couple of years ago when we came here we ate at this restaurant on top of the other side that was supposed to be great but sucked and we over looked the construction going on at is now the water front area and man did they do a good job. All kinds of shopping but here you will not find the same value for your dollar and many of the stores are like those you would find anywhere. But the main difference in Branson from then and now is that there is FAR more GOOD places to eat. We only had one big disappointment and it was only a 5 buck mistake. Anyway here are some pictures from what we explored of the lake front today.

We ate at Bass Pro’s restaurant and I cannot say anything bad at all. It was good food, service, and value. We were there however at a very in the middle time frame between lunch and dinner so there was no stress on the servers.

Here is dad and Patt outside the entrance ramp to the bait and gas shop on the lake. Behind to their left is the restaurant.



Here is a shot of me while Val and I were taking pictures of each other. I publish this one more because of the scenery then the picture of me.



Here is a shot just of the bait shop and gas station.



Here is a shot of a bridge over a channel of the lake/river.



Here is a shot of some flowers Val took, but wait until you see the day 6 report she took some great shots of some.




While walking around the restaurant Val and Patt found an interesting scene. Here is a shot of Patt in one of them and the next shot is a close up of what is behind her.




Well after a great meal we decide to head back to the hotel to determine what shows we want to see tomorrow and other plans. So far all is safe and we are having a great time.

Pj

[Patrick]

Branson Ride Day 4 52108


Another great day in Branson. We started off the day by going to the Titanic Museum. It was 18 bucks and worth it. They had some real artifacts and did a great job with set up and self paced tour. The shot below was the building itself and the butterflies represent the 3 countries involved in its creation (US, England, Ireland). Once had the continents depicted on the back.



After that we went down to the water front again for an in between lunch and dinner meal. It was very good we all enjoyed everything we had.



We then went back to the hotel and took a nap before we went to the Shepherd of the Hill’s out door play which was fantastic. I highly recommend it and I will not describe it as not to ruin it for you if you have not seen it. Here are some shots from up on the Hill. This is one of the higher points in Branson.




I then found this old pump while walking around the grounds.


It was another great day and we got home quite late. Tomorrow will be a much more relaxed day, most likely we will do some sight seeing.

Pj

[Patrick]

Branson Ride Day 5 52208

We decided to go sight seeing today and it was a great day for it. A bit cool in the shade and yet warm in the sun.

We first took off for Table Rock Lake and ended up spending the day just exploring it. First we found the dam and the fish hatchery.

From the bottom of the dam and the hatchery. They breed trout here and release them when 10 inches long.




Val and her flowers, this is first a little write up she found on the local vegetation.




At the hatchery Val also went into the building that is kind of a little display and fact shop about the fish and such. So she found and shot these two turtles that are in this big aquarium and this shot is of them under water.



We then took off again but I found this little road to go down and then we went past this very steep boat ramp. I think dad and Patt did not care to much for me traversing it in their SUV. But Val took a shot of this angler and he might be famous as he said now you can tell people you met so and so, I did not catch his name but maybe one of you anglers out there will recognize him.



Here are more shots from the bottom of the boat ramp.




Val found this sign at the boat ramp.



So off we go again. Now we are on top of the dam but have not yet crossed it. This was a little peninsula. We were thinking the lake is a bit high as there were many trees in the water and other signs but we were not yet at this point sure.

Patt wanted some rocks for the garden she is building so dad and I got some.


Here is a black lizard Val found. They do these little push ups.



We hit the road again for the other side of the dam and once again I find this little road to take. It is amazing what biking trains you to look for. So here we are on the other side of the dam looking at the dam from a high side.




Then it was time to move on once again. We were getting a little hungry so we decided to stop for some cheese and crackers. A little fun at the picnic.

Now we know the lake is high. We are on the dammed up side of the lake now. Here is a picnic table and charcoal grill mostly underwater.


So we head back to old Branson water front to get a bite to eat. Dad and Patt wanted a Chicago Style hot dog, well in Branson they found a place that said Chicago style but it was far from it and in fact it was uneatable plan and simple so while they were wasting their money Val and I went in search of another place and we found this Bar restaurant that was fairly good and it had a great view of the lake/river front.


Well a great end to a great day we decide to tail gate it again. Tomorrow we are leaving and Dad and Patt will be gone before Val and I ever get up. We really had a great time and enjoyed their company. Tomorrow Val and I will start our journey home and hopefully it will be as planned, slow and explorative.


Take care one and all.


Pj