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-11C under sunny skies this morning, a great day for a ride. I took one of my commute routes into Markdale, as I plan to take the Ural to work tonight and wanted to make sure the roads were suitable for travel. The new front brake, after a few cautious stops, began to bite and after a few km's was working quite well and I was able to relax and enjoy the scenery.

We had experienced some unseasonably warm weather and copious amounts of rain a few days ago and the after effects could still be seen in the low lying fields...


The rivers were still swift and overflowing with the runoff...


I made it into Markdale with no problems and decided to carry on and loop around the east side of HWY 10 before returning home. This meant passing through the town of Cheeseville which, unfortunately, is improperly named as I did not see any cheese on display or for sale ...


Some of the county roads were iced over and very slippery in spots and I actually had to feather the throttle over a few sections to keep the back end of the rig in line. But it was still a very enjoyable trip and if I didn't need a nap before heading out to work on the midnight shift tonight I would have ridden a lot further than 70km. Apparently I am becoming a familiar sight in my new home town, because as I neared the Durham town limits I was waved to by several people in vehicles, farm tractors and on foot as I passed. I guess that's a good thing.

FINALLY got out for a ride today, it's been way too long. The weather and my work schedule haven't been favourable towards frequent work commutes, but it looks like that will change soon. The weather forecast is getting better and the roads will soon be free of salt and mud.

Took the back way into Hanover, then came back to Durham on HWY4 and then took my normal Ural work commute route into Markdale. I wanted to make sure it was still passable for the Ural, as i intend to ride it to work on Sunday night. From Markdale, I took HWY10 down to Flesherton and then back home to Durham on HWY4, a total trip of just over 80km. I stopped at the Chapman's Ice Cream Distribution Center along the way and took a photo to give people a rough idea of how much ice cream we make. Keep in mind that this pic is only the DC, the actual factory where I work is a few km north and in the town of Markdale itself...

The weather has finally warmed up enough to take my aging Hector The Wonder Dog for rides again. At 2pm Sunday (22 Mar 09) under sunny skies and 4C temps we headed out, pausing briefly for a pic in front of the house...


First stop was at McGowan Falls on the east end of town, but it was too muddy and the waters too swift to allow Hector out for a romp...


I decided to check out McCormick's Road, my adventure work commute and location where we had gone snowshoeing back in December, to see if the snow had melted enough to allow Ural access. The trail was soft in the exposed parts and glare ice in the shaded areas (especially going up the first hill) and Douk had quite a workout...


About 800m in we encountered the second hill and it took much finessing of the throttle and body English to get most of the way up, so I stopped near the top to check out the way ahead...


Around the corner was a third steep hill that I decided would not be passable by a 1WD Tourist with regular tires, so I reluctantly decided to turn around...


Hector, of course, was still having too much fun romping about and didn't want to go just yet...


We made it back over the mush and ice and I headed towards Markdale just for care 'n giggles. Along the way, I spotted this massive flock of wild turkeys milling about in a field...


Did a quick tour of Markdale and headed back on an unfamiliar route, managing to get lost at one point until I pulled over and checked the map. Once I got my bearings again we continued on for home.

Odometer is now at 42,300km. Looks like rain in the forecast for most of next week and it's too early in the season to be riding in that "poo poo", so Douk will get a rest while I take the Jeep to work.

8C under partially cloudy skies and slight winds, another perfect day for an adventure ride. Took the back roads towards the Allan Park conservation area, with the intent on doing some trail riding. Spotted some geese about 5km from home and stopped for a photo, with Hector all ears as he listened to their cautious honkings. By the time I had the camera ready for a shot they had wandered almost out of range...


The back roads were still a mixture of dry and muddy surfaces and I could hear the tires hissing and feel the mud splashing up on my legs as we rode over the slick parts, but it was still a very enjoyable ride...


We paused briefly at the entrance to the trail, ignoring the "no winter maintenance" sign seen at the right of the photo. The surface was more hard packed than the trail we had taken the other day, thanks to all the snowmobile and ATV traffic over the winter, so I decided to risk it and see how far we could go...


It was pretty muddy in the spots that were exposed to the sun but the surface was, for the most part, passable with a little bit of concentration and proper positioning of the rig to keep on the firmer ground...


Saw an interesting looking trail off to the right and decided to follow it for a bit...


It turned out to be a cross country ski trail that was barely wide enough for the Ural, so I stopped a little ways in where it intersected with another ATV trail and let Hector out for a romp...


After he had a good run, we saddled up and went further down the main trail. We started down a long hill into a valley and I was careful to keep the Ural away from the soft edge on the right, as it was a long way down...


When I saw the bottom of the hill ahead I had some concerns, not because of the mud bog lying in wait but rather the steep, snow covered trip up the other side...


My concerns were well founded, because 3/4 of the way up the Ural slid off the center and into the soft, muddy runoff path on the left side. I stood on the pegs and feathered all the controls in an attempt to keep going but the inevitable happened and we bogged down. I managed to back the rig out of the soft stuff but there was no traction available to make another attempt at going forward, the pusher wheel just spun in vain as gravity pulled us backwards. I fought it for about 10m and lost the battle when it slid off to the right and bogged down again. At least it was angled across the trail now, so with a bit of muscle (and the eventual shedding of a layer of clothes) I got it turned around...


We tore back down the hill and blasted through the mud bog again, stopping on the other side to take another look at the hill. I reluctantly decided not to try it again, as the stock Duros and 1WD can only do so much. So we rode back to the entrance and got onto the gravel roads once again, heading in the direction of Hanover. Stopped to put on the layer of clothing I'd taken off earlier and used the opportunity to take a self-portrait...


We entered Hanover from the west end and burbled down the main street towards Durham, stopping at the Tim Horton's to talk to a group of riders parked there. One of the bikes was a Harley Electra-Glide with a factory sidecar and I asked the rider a few questions about his rig. But he was more interested in the Ural, although he did give me a couple of leads on where to find used harley sidecars, and after a few minutes of chatting I wished them well and fired Douk up again. It wasn't until we started to roll away that I noticed why this particular biker was riding a hacked bike - his right leg had been amputated. Kudos to him for not giving up!

Back in Durham, I stopped at the Ultramar gas station to top up and had to host another HDF session when the locals in the pickup at the next pump wanted to know more about the rig and the dog riding in it. They even came over to get a pic of Hector as I fueled up. I no sooner finished talking with them when another car pulled up, a woman got out, took one look at Hector and melted all over him. So I had to go through "The Story Of Hector" once more before finally managing to escape into the store to pay for the gas. By the time I came out there was another woman melting all over Hector, so I had to tell the story again before we could leave.

Was supposed to go to the Harley dealer yesterday to ride my bike home from winter storage, but woke up to 3cm of fresh snow on the ground. Couple that with the fact I had to work an extra day and you can imagine what kind of a mood I was in. Angie went to the dealer while I was at work and took this photo of the Veteran graphic I had painted on the rear fender by Vince Goodeve, a world reknowned bike painter...

Yesterday was the big day for Angie - her Harley was finally coming out of winter storage! Because it was at the dealer in Owen Sound, she wanted a lift in the Ural to retrieve it, after which we would spend the rest of the day motoring about on our first ride of the year together. She figured some time in the chair would put her in the right mood to start her riding season and was wearing her new helmet for the occasion, the one she took her Ural Wedding Ride in last year. It was sporting the new butterfly artwork that Vince Goodeve had painted on it over the winter...


She insisted on taking back roads all the way and I was only too happy to oblige. It was a little chilly, but the roads were well screened by forests along the way and we puttered along as we admired at all the scenery. Just before we made it to the Harley dealer, we stopped for a photo op at the Storybook Park. We haven't gone in there, but from the outside it looks to be a well set up mini theme park for children with all kinds of rides and activities...


Once we arrived at Fox Harley-Davidson, it didn't take long to get the paperwork done, the bill paid and her bike rolled outside. Her Majesty was, understandably, very happy when she finally got to swing a leg over the seat once again...


The rusty, mud and salt caked Ural received quite a bit of attention in the parking lot and I had a few UDF sessions while waiting for my beloved...


Finally, we were good to go and we rumbled away towards home, taking some quiet paved county roads to get there. It was starting to warm up by now and Angie was keen on spending the day in the saddle, so Douk was dropped off and Bluebird was fired up for a day of touring. We did a nice, relaxed and mostly traffic free loop of about 180km, stopping at the Pine River Cheese factory outlet for some curd and specialty cheese for the evening's meal. Ontario is falling in love with wind turbines and we were surprised to see a wind farm across the road from the cheese store. Last year there was only one or two that could be seen off in the distance but now there were 20+ of the units spinning in the field across the road...


We ended our day with a visit to West Grey Meats just south of town, where Angie selected a couple of bigass steaks for supper. And as the sun set in Grey County, we sat in the comfort of our home feasting on BBQ'd steaks and fresh cheese curds as our bikes sat in the garage, catching up on all the news since they last saw each other last year...

as our bikes sat in the garage, catching up on all the news since they last saw each other last year...

Hey, man... motorcycles are just machines until you add people.

Ride hard or stay at home. 'Nuff said...

Took the empties back to The Beer Store in town, but didn't like the attitude of the young thing behind the counter so I decided to buy some booze in the next town over instead. Any excuse for a ride. When I got into the lovely village of Hanover I stopped at the LCBO, but it was already closed so I motored off in search of their Beer Store. As I had never been there before I wasn't sure of the location and spent some time wandering about the various side streets. I noticed a Sherman Firefly tank sitting on a grassy center of a parking lot and wheeled in for a pic...


There was no Armouries in sight, although the building to the left in the pic looked like it may have housed a reserves unit at one time. The plaque on the front of the tank stated that it had been placed there in 1972, which is interesting because it was at the height of the "we don't need the military" days in Canada.

Eventually I spotted the store and a few minutes later was on my way home with a fresh 12-pack of Rickard's White comfortably nestled in the hack. I remembered a spot where I've been meaning to get a photo of for awhile now and zipped over to take it. This place is called "The 50's Diner" and, while we have yet to eat there, it seems like a pretty cool place from the outside. I especially like their taste in decorating on the side wall of the building...


Those are the actual body panels and wheels from a '56 Chev. The Coke trailer looked like the real thing (no pun intended), too. A few km's later on my fave back roads route I noticed something I hadn't seen before, despite having ridden past this particular farm many times - free range pigs...


Just not a common sight here in Canada, as most pig farms are contained within huge buildings where the poor things never see the light of day. As I was about to put away the camera, I noticed a horse on the other side of the road having a rollicking good time thrashing about on his back in a pile of sand. But, of course, by the time I had moved the bike closer and lined up the camera for a pic, he was finished and trotting away...


What IS it with horses that they absolutely refuse to have their photos taken while rolling around on the ground or lying down? This is not the first time this has happened, I have several pics of horses that seconds before they were taken the damn animal was rolling around on the ground. Is it like some kind of Wild Kingdom secret or something? Mark my words, one of these days I will get a pic of one doing this and will forever alter the course of history.