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Monday, June 6, 2011

Finally a Ride

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Had a busy weekend. Saturday we attended the swap meet in Albany. Didn't sell as much as we liked but managed to get rid of a few things. Troubadour sold a pair of riding pants and a riding jacket, but I didn't sell any of my gear. Oh well, there is always eBay.

We had use of a easy up shelter or quick tent as they are sometimes called. It was a beautiful day with brilliant sunshine. The warmest we've had all year. I managed to get a sunburn on my feet, back of my calves and a bit on my arms. Sunburn never felt so good.

(Taken today so you can image how red the stripes were on Saturday)

** Note to self, taking sunscreen with you does not work unless you take it out of the car and actually apply it.

We were home from the swap meet by 3:30 pm so we puttered for the afternoon and watched a movie that evening.

Yesterday dawned nice and sunny. We relaxed on the back deck and had our coffee in the sun and talked about where to go for a ride. We decided that we needed to head to Falls City as our local forum had a game going and we needed a picture of a city sign starting with an "F".

We went west towards Philomath and decided to stop at NutCakes for breakfast. RickRick had mentioned it and was even using it as the start of a group ride the same day. We got there too late to see the group off but did have a pastry. I thought we might have a muffin or a scone but all they pretty much had were donuts. Did I mention they had donuts, cuz they had donuts if you wanted a donut. We each decided on a fritter. They were big but too sweet. I don't think we'll be back.

Sufficiently tweaking on sugar we headed west then north on the Kings Valley Highway. We made our way to Falls City and Troubadour got his picture.


I knew that he wouldn't be long in taking the picture so I just waited on Max, didn't even bother to put my kickstand down.

(Me and Max hanging out in the dirt)

We headed further north to Dallas where we stopped for a break at the Hunter Arboretum Botanical Garden. Finding it was a happy accident of Troubadour's. Will be neat to go back and wander around some day. We did manage to get a few pictures.








Notice the sunshine in the pictures. Little did we know at the time this was about the last we'd see of it all day. From Dallas we got lost on some back roads trying to get on the main highway. We weren't used to being in that part of the city and managed to see some back roads we didn't know were there. They ended in gravel so we did some u-turns and finally found what we were looking for. A quick jaunt on the highway heading west and we were at Grand Ronde.


After getting the "F" city we needed a "G" city and this was the closest. Grand Ronde - home of Spirit Mountain Casino and not much else. We didn't partake of the casino; too many people and way too much cigarette smoke for us. A little bit of sun managed to filter through the clouds at this stop.

We decided to continue west towards Lincoln City on the coast for lunch. On the way Troubadour saw a sign for the Drift Creek covered bridge so we took a little detour.

The Drift Creek Covered Bridge was originally constructed in 1914 on Drift Creek just south of Lincoln City. In 1997, when it was scheduled for demolition, the Sweitz family offered to salvage what timber could be saved and reconstruct the bridge on their family property east of Lincoln City. Construction was complete the summer of 2001.










We were getting hungry so we continued on to Lincoln City thinking of a fuel stop and some lunch. The sun had gone behind the clouds as we got closer to the ocean. It was chilly as we arrived in Lincoln City. I had turned on my heated grips by this time.

After a quick fuel stop Troubadour spotted the Jasmine Thai restaurant (Thai food is always a good bet for vegetarian options) and we stopped for a late lunch. By this time it was 2:30 and I was starving.

We started with salad rolls:

And ordered the spicy noodles and noodle delight to share family style:

(My choice - Noodle Delight with tempeh)


(Troubadour's choice - Spicy Noodles with tempeh)

Sufficiently full we took some leftovers home. The restaurant was nice and provided us with a plastic container with a tight lid. That was pleasant surprise as we expected a clam shell type of foam container.

We headed south and then turned east on Oregon Route 229 or the Siletz Highway. A local favorite that parallels Highway 101 along the Siletz River, only with a lot less traffic and terrific twisty roads with smooth pavement. It didn't warm up as we headed south and it was decided that once we got to Highway 20 we'd book it for home.

We were surprised it didn't warm up as we headed into the valley, then the rain shower hit. I think I jinxed us the other day when I mentioned I didn't mind getting caught in a shower. Luckily it wasn't too heavy and stopped before we got home. We managed to make a jagged loop for the day.

We made it home by about 5:30 pm without any trouble. Another 196 miles on Max. The bike has just over 1000 miles on the odometer now. I even added a tank protector. It looks like a clear one but it is actually a blue one we found on clearance that happened to match really well.


My knees, right forearm, and buttocks were slightly sore from the ride, but what surprised me was how tired I was. Tried to have a bath and soak the tired bones but kept falling asleep. Self preservation had me getting out of the tub and crawling into bed before 8:30. Was nice and rested when the alarm went off at 6:01 this morning.

This coming up weekend we are looking forward to the annual Day to Ona Beach gathering put on by the Triumph dealer in Eugene. We have wanted to go the last few years but it has conflicted with other events. Good excuse for another ride to the coast.

- Au Revoir

"Life is too short for traffic." ~ Dan Bellack

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11 comments:

  1. Trobairitz: I also got a foot suntan but sorry, no nail polish . It was a very nice weekend for riding. Glad you managed to get out. I wished we knew there was a covered bridge over there, we were so close but didn't know it was there.

    bob
    Riding the Wet Coast

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  2. Trobairitz: Max looks great, expecially with the fantastic - looking exhaust. In fact, it looks much better on yours than on my friend's Honda Predator. Looks like it belongs on yours.

    Good to see you guys out in the sunshine as we slide into winter.

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  3. Looks like a nice day for a ride even with a little bit of rain. At least it didn't start to snow. I like the shot of the wagon wheel and the farm equipment but then again I always like to look at old mechanical stuff. Was that covered bridge actually over a river or was it reassembled on flat ground?

    Glad to hear that summer may have actually arrived.

    Richard

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  4. Goldilocks (Heather)doesn't like peanut sauce or spicy food. It has been an uphill battle to get her to try Thai food. She seems to think it is all spicy and has peanut sauce. I've assured her, this is not the case, but haven't had much luck. I showed her your pictures. The first one didn't help, but the fact that the peanut sauce was on the side was a plus. Nor, was Troubadour choice very helpful--too spicy, but you my dear lady ordered something that intrigued Goldilocks. She thought it just might be "just right." Thank you.

    Glad you were able to get some miles on Max. I wishing you well for this weekend.

    Thanks for the share and for the Noodle Delight with tempeh.
    ~k

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  5. Nice pictures. Your bike is really beautiful, love the color and the head light has a "transformers" look to it, the two exhaust look cool and now with the blue tank protector it's perfect. Really cool RR :-)
    Tell Troubadour his bike looks cool too ;-)

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  6. You look good on Max! In the dirt too. Breaking the bike in right I see. :)

    I hadn't heard of Hunter Arboretum. Nice! A new place to go explore. I hear that trail calling - what a lush looking path.

    If I recall correctly, you guys have a canoe? You should do a paddle trip at Ona beach - well, Beaver Creek that is. It's a favorite of ours, has a number of channels to follow. I think they've added some trails and a visitor center or some such. Nice spot.

    The tank protector looks great - perfect match!

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  7. @ Bobskoot - Oregon has many covered bridges, you'll just have to come back for another visit.

    @ Geoff - thanks for the compliment on Max. I think it is looking pretty good. For some reason the exhaust just seems to work on it. Love the sound too.

    @ Richard - I like to take pictures of all kinds of things not just bikes. It was a nice surprise to see the old farm implements. The bridge was over a creek, not so much a river, but at least it was over water.

    @ Circle Blue - The Noodle Delight was supposed to have a peanut sauce on it but I find sometimes they use to much sauce so I asked for it on the side. I find thai food restaurants very accommodating. If she finds something with veggies but doesn't like the sauce that comes with it ask for it on the side or if she can switch sauces. They are also very good about varying spiciness. If she tells them very mild they can accommodate it. I hope she is adventurous and tries something new.

    @ George - thanks for the compliments. Between the blue and white Gladius and bright orange Tiger you think people couldn't miss us and wouldn't cut us off. We are quite striking when riding together especially in bright sunlight.

    @ Bluekat - We do have a canoe and even put it in the water occasionally. I haven't heard of the channels at Ona Beach but have done the Siltcoos Canoe trail in Florence and it was great fun. Thanks for the tip.

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  8. Sounds like you made up for some lost miles! So many intriguing locations. Glad the day was mostly perfect and allowed some quality time with Max and Troubadour. (Not necessarily in that order.)

    -Lori

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  9. Oregon in the sun... ah those memories. Glad you got out, it looks like you guys had a blast, and Max seemed to have liked it, too ;-)
    You certainly look good on the bike!

    Thanks for the food pictures... delicious. Now I am hungry again.

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  10. Nice ride report. Like Bluekat, I hadn't heard of the garden. Thanks for the new destination!

    P.S. Why do you keep taking photos of that guy hanging around? :)

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  11. @ BeemerGirl - it was nice to get out and enjoy some miles and some sunshine. Time with hubby is just a bonus.

    @ Sonja - We did have fun. Not so much sunshine lately. It is hit or miss.

    @Irondad - I keep taking pictures of that guy because he hands me the camera when I ask for it. Sucks to be him...... she who has the camera doesn't get her picture taken.

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