Hot Day with Some Fiery Rocks...

This past summer we spent a great weekend in Grand Junction, Colorado.  Travel there and back...not so great. It was SO freakin' hot...driving thru the desert in temps over 90 degrees. I know bikers are tough and ride in all types of elements, but me? Not so much. Well, I do...but I bitch and moan a bit about it. This trip was no different.

After a full day of work, we ventured on the 300 mile ride from Salt Lake to Grand Junction.  On the way, we passed a sign off the highway for Moab, Utah, and Arches National Park.  Looked intriguing but it was getting late so decided to hit it up on the way home.

Here's the route we took from outside of Salt Lake City to Grand Junction. Scenic ride...

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Last night in Grand Junction was a doozey, hit a couple of the local wineries and found a nice Italian restaurant within walking distance of hotel, so...more wine. Sunday morning woke up with a bit of a wine-over, the last thing I wanted to do was hop on the back of the bike and ride through the desert for over 300 miles. And add a sidetrip? No way. But my inner conscience was yelling at me. 'When will you be out this way again?' 'Suck it up, cupcake!', 'You wanna play with the big boys, act like one.' You know...that type of stuff.  Not really sure if that was my conscience or the old man...sounds like stuff he would say. Anyway, put my big girl panties on and gave the go-ahead. Arches National Park...here we come.

Ride in was fine, we left early enough that it was still warm...not yet blazing. Admission to get in park is $10.00, no discount for bikes like other parks we had visited over the summer. Well worth it, just making a point.

The change in scenery from flat and barren is quick and the flaming, vivid colors that contrast against the blue sky is intense. Breathtaking. There is said to be over 2,000 arches in the park in varying length from one to ninety-three meters. Lots to see...

 Roads were awesome to ride on but slow going. A lot of traffic on a long weekend.

Have you ever seen such a blue sky? Wow!

 
Keep your eyes peeled for the BigHorn Sheep. I nearly strained my eyeballs right out of the sockets, but no luck.  I just read on the Park website that there are only 75 BigHorns in the park...sounds like a needle in a haystack.

Below is the Court House Towers formation.  Apparently, there is a trail around here that leads to a swimming hole. The trail is about 5 miles long...no thanks. Did I mention it was hot?

This deep red color comes from minerals in the rocks. 

Back of Towers?

The old man particularly liked this rock below...not sure why...

Think this particular arch may have had a little bit of help from the man...

Other arches and formations are developed from the strong winds and rains crashing against the rocks.

 

Long weekend traffic...wasn't too bad, but would definitely go at another time if I went again. Parking was sparse at the pull-offs and it was difficult to get good pictures without Japanese tourists in them. Did I just say that out loud? I kid...

I think this might be the Turret Arch...not sure

Definitely is the Balancing Rock below...looks a bit like Yoshi from Super Mario Bros. No? ET?

Look close....that is a person on the top of that rock!

Owl Rock is located in the Garden of Eden area of the Park. There were several people making their way up to the top...according to most sites, this is an easy climb. Really?

Temps were starting to heat-up into the 90s and with barely a quarter of the way home completed, we had to leave. It is a beautiful park and I am very thankful that I did not let the fun from the night before keep me from such an amazing place.

Sturgis, Day Two...Four Presidents, Two Monuments, One Saloon

Day two found us up and out early, trying to beat the crowds and the heat. Man, it is hot out there. Sizzling!

Because we were only in Sturgis for 3 nights, we had to do the quick version of all there is to see, so we crammed a lot in to the day.

First stop was Mt. Rushmore. Husband's friend told him to save the $11 admission fee because the views are just as good driving around the park.  Driving up to the park, you do get quite a view, but seriously, when will we be back to Mt. Rushmore...if ever. Cough up the dough, ya cheap-o.

  Got to gate and was pleasantly surprised to see that admission for all bikes was discounted to $5.00. Went inside, and it was very crowded and hot.

Plenty of tours and trails to hike but we had our 'Chevy Chase' moment, said hello to George, Thomas, Theodore and Abraham and moved on.

Out in the parking lot, found this Patriotic bike under America's 'Shrine of Democracy'...seriously, how awesome is this? We almost walked right past it.

From Mount Rushmore we drove over to Custer State Park, roads were awesome...incredible views, bridges, tunnels...

 

Plenty of turns and windy roads...

 

Husband's friend was right though (shhh...don't tell him I said so), there really are amazing views from so many different areas.  Probably could skip the admission to park. So much better on the road, away from the crowds.

 

While we were at this viewing area below, we heard a lot of sirens, saw several response vehicles and an ambulance speed by.

Soon, the life flight helicopter showed up and we all thought the worst. Said a silent prayer and hoped for the best...

Just a mile down the road, we ran into the accident and the road was closed. While we were waiting, we heard several stories...a van hit a bike, a jeep hit a bike, a jeep hit another car...not sure what happened, but a woman who was on the scene said everyone was thankfully okay. I'm sure by the end of the line they were hearing something along the lines of 'a bear ate a biker'.

Road opened and we passed the vehicles...looked like cars. No jeep, no van, no bikes.

Left the Monument and drove off to Custer State Park

Another nice ride...smooth, windy roads. Think we paid $10 admission for the bike, cars were $15. Made our  way to Wildlife Loop Road hoping to see some buffalo

Eyes were peeled but no luck...saw several antelope and deer and were starting to get discouraged until we came over the hill and saw this incredible scene.

Had to drive up this dirt road to get to them...gravel and dusty, but it was worth it.

An even better surprise was ahead...wish I had brought some carrots or something.

These guys were NOT afraid of the bikes, they were not moving...

From Wildlife Loop, we drove over to Needles Highway...still in Custer Park. 

Highway is a must-do, if you are in the area. Tons of rock formations, hairpin turns, and tunnels.

Great photo-ops and scenic overlooks

After the highway, we decided to head back and saw a sign for Crazy Horse. Had kind of decided I did not want to see it because I did as a kid and remember not being too impressed with the 'hole in the rock'.  It being only 8 miles from where we left the park, it was another moment of 'when will be here again, let's do it'. So we did...

 

Driving up to the monument, you can see the rock just as good as you can see it from within the park. At the gate, the sign indicated admission was $10 each...aw, hell no, $20 bucks to look at an incomplete rock?

The attendant told us it was 50% off for bikes so we did it...and gotta say, even that was too much. I understand the historical significance behind it, and do not mean any disrespect, but was very surprised to see the formation has not changed all that much from the 1980s when I last there.  Still a hole in the rock. Although the Visitor Center was beautiful and had some interesting pieces, clean bathrooms and a small cafe. Passing on it next time...

Driving home, a storm came from out of nowhere. Dark clouds rolled in, and bolts of lightening were lighting up the skies. I was petrified and not at all reassured that I 'was grounded' because of the rubber tires. Thankfully, we came across the Silver Dollar Saloon and pulled in for a few quick ones...along with several other bikers caught in the storm. Beers were cheap, staff was fun...

Thus ends our day of nature...Day three...bring on the bars!

Life Beyond the Vegas Strip? Yes, There is One!

Early to bed the night before and on East Coast time, we were up and at 'em pretty early, eager to hit the road.  Day 2 on the bike started about 8am....eerily quiet on the strip and the streets wide open. The only people up with us were the elderly heading to the penny slots & the partiers from the night before stumbling towards their rooms. 




First stop on my list was Valley of Fire State Park. Located about 50 miles northeast of the strip in Overton, Valley of Fire is Nevada's oldest state park.

In our haste to see something other than the bright lights, we left without coffee or breakfast thinking there would be a quaint diner or roadside stop along the way. No such luck..bring some snacks or water, there's nothing, not even a vending machine that I could find at the Visitor's Center...towards the end of the trip I started to wonder if I was going to die of dehydration and become food for the hawks circling above. Oh, and fill the tank. These are all common sense things, I know...but some of us are more book smart, than street smart.

Anyway, admission to get in to the park is $10.00. Hours are 8:30am-4:30pm. There is a clean restroom with working toilets and a small area with picnic tables right after the entrance. Suggest the ladies stop here, I didn't see another one until the visitor center. Guys, you do what you want, but I know I am not the only chick who prefers a toilet to a porta-potty or a rock with a rattle-snake lurking...be kind to your woman. It's the little things.... 

Driving in to the park, it was easy to see how this attraction received it's name...The vivid colors and fiery rock formations were an incredible backdrop against the blue sky.  The sandstone rocks get their formations from the winds and rain battering against them; some formed in to pretty cool shapes, such as the BeeHives and Elephant Rock.

I've spied my own rock formation in the lower right hand corner...doesn't it look like the lion in front of the MGM Grand? See it? Or have I spent too much time in Vegas?? Perhaps...

My view from the backseat...

The old man was getting a little frisky behind these rocks...but again, the rattlesnakes...

Found some interesting tidbits from the web that I wish I had known before we visited. And if it's on the web, it has to be true, right?  Several movies and television shows were filmed here, and in fact one of the sets remain from the movie, The Professionals, with Burt Lancaster. Also filmed here were the Mars scenes from Total Recall, though I am no longer a fan of Schwarzenegger so who cares? What an a$$hole he turned out to be...Team Maria, holla. But I digress....another cool scene filmed here was from Star Trek Generations where Captain Kirk fell to his death...It's been fun! (Kirk's last line, you non-trekkies). This ride has been fun too, but I'm thirsty, and hungry...

Honey, do you think there might be a little cafe around the corner here?

Or here?

My fave picture below...taken from the backseat...not bad for an amateur, eh?  

Smooth, flat black-top for miles, Fire Valley National Park is a perfect place to spend a day outside the strip. But not when you are starving, and thirsty, and bitchy...

How many more freakin' rocks are there for god's sake...get me the hell out of here...ahhh, change in color must mean we are almost back to civilization...

Please tell me this is not a mirage that I see...up ahead I spot a palm tree, and a neon Budweiser sign...an oasis in a sea of sand.  Mmm, beer...and food, please? Gold Mine Tavern in Henderson, NV was a wonderful site after nearly dehydrating and starving to death...not really, but close. Lunch! But wait, Gold Mine does not serve food...time to watch a grown woman cry.  Waaahhhh. The sweet bartender then tells us to go grab some food next door and bring it back to bar...

And right next door Detriot meets New York at the Motor City Coney Island.  Take a guess what they serve here? Did you guess hot dogs? Ding, ding, ding...you got it. Not my favorite meal, but it certainly did the trick. They even walked the food over to us at the bar. Very friendly people and the food was delish.

After lunch we had a bit of time before we had to return the bike. We were going to get every penny out of the rental so made our way back towards the strip and stopped at a few places along the way. The Crown & Anchor is a British Pub on Tropicana Ave.

Of course there is video poker machines at the bar...don't all bars in Vegas them? And it couldn't be Vegas without cute waitresses, right?  If you squint really hard, you can see the bartender in her school girl uniform.  Not friendly though, and that is what you are looking for when you go to bars like this, right guys? Guess when you look like that, you don't have to try so hard with the personality...

Bangers and Mash 24 hours a day, 7 days a week...

Last stop was back to our new favorite Vegas bar, Double Down Saloon.  Mentioned in previous post, had to have some a$$ juice..this is how the locals drink it...twinkie dipping. A twinkie and a shot for 5 bucks...happy hour drinks half-off. Place rocked.

Met some great people, enjoyed the beautiful ambiance...

We got back to the rental place with only minutes to spare...a great day on the bike.  Oh, and in my last post I was bitching about being on the glider, or glide...on the bike for 8 hours flat and jumped off it like a school girl...no aches, no pains...I felt like I was riding around on a barcalounger the whole day.

Day did not end here though...back to the hotel and had a celebratory cocktail...not sure what we were celebrating...life, I guess.

Then decided to walk to the Harley-Davidson Cafe a few blocks down the strip. Passed the Bellagio fountain show, never disappoints...

Made it to the HD...far from a biker bar, more of an Applebees, but you still have to go at least once while in Vegas...

You might even run in to a Bachelor party there...oh, if his fiancee could see him now...

Capped off the night with a sighting of Flava Flavvvvvv....only in Vegas!

Yea, boiiiiiiii!

Contact Info:

Valley of Fire State Park

Overton, NV

(702) 397-2088