My Favorite Place on Earth

I know you might think this odd after all the travelling we did this summer, but....

Unsuccessful Play Date

Squeak & I went to Kristin's for the weekend, and I thought the 2 kitties would remember each other from their holidays together...ahhh...no! (click on picture to view larger)

She's Still Up to Something!

They tell me that cats find new hiding places every few days...and it's true....we find her in the funniest places.

In a nutshell...the places we travelled this summer...

Confession...

Steak BBQ Tuesday evening

Raylene & Audrey wearing hats to cover helmet hair- purchased in Billings at WingDing!

A wonderful steak supper at Hawrelak Park in Edmonton, was enjoyed by a big GWRRA crowd. Two couples came out from Barrhead too! This is going to be our last evening ride until next year, as it is getting dark so early. Even though the bike has powerful headlights, the danger of animals on the highway is too risky.

Sept 8, Sunday

Would you believe after all that riding that Ted is actually going for more? He is leading the picnic ride today and meeting up with the Innisfail group. Eighteen bikes altogether at one point. Luckily the weather was fair and they had a great ride!

Sept 7

The temp in Edmonton this morning is zero! I don’t ride in cold weather…..no choice now! We headed home. At least it isn’t pouring rain…just sprinkles here & there. Stopping at Red Deer’s Gasoline Alley, we ran into Guy & Susan Gokiert from Westlock! Nice to have a chat...they are on their way to a wedding in Bragg Creek.We arrived home in Westlock about 3pm. Just long enough for Ted to change clothes, repack his bag & take a lunch, unhook the trailer….and he is off to Montana to pick up my laptop!! For real! We discussed getting a courier to pick it up, but with our luck, they would lose it, along with all of our holiday pictures….not to mention a $1400 laptop lost. He is amazing!

Sept 6 continued.....

Lunch in Waterton town…a little quieter than last year….we ate at an outdoor deli…one we didn’t see last year! They also had a sweet little gift shop and I did a little more Christmas shopping….although I’m not telling what & for whom…. Time to get back on the road….but it wasn’t long before a horrible cold front came over the mtns and the temp dropped, the wind came up and nearly blew us over. We even had to go back 30 miles to fill up with gas. We wouldn’t have made it to Black Diamond with that wind! Lucky for me we have great garments that are windproof and waterproof…and a heated vest! As long as you are warm & dry, who cares? So we managed to get to Cochrane in one piece. Well, not quite. I discovered at this point I left my laptop back at the Red Eagle Motel in Montana! Now, we need to decide what to do….

Sept 6 continued

We are going to take a trip into Waterton Park…Red Rock Canyon road is awesome on a bike! The weather is continuing to be warm & gorgeous, so we hiked 2km up to Blackiston Falls. The path there was so pretty; up by the Falls, the trees are turning color already. What a feast for the eye!

Sept 6

The clouds are sitting low on the mountains, and the temperature is also low. Good thing we have heated seats! Breakfast at the motel café…what a quaint little log cabin owned & operated by the same family for years. We had a hearty breakfast with French toast, made from homemade bread, then off we go again…..

Sept 5

The Yamaha dealer had our tire installed very quickly and for only $37…so our day started off well. By 10:30 am we were on our way to Montana. The temperature is hovering around 30 C today- a perfect day to hit Glacier Park and “Going to the Sun” road. The first stop was the Apgar visitors center….where we did some shopping (I’m still not telling). The time is after 4pm, so the sun is low in the West and will not be in our eyes as we travel to the Logan Pass summit. What a ride! We have few vehicles ahead of us, so we are free to “scrape the pegs” as we whistle around the multiple curves and switchbacks. Awesome! But a scary kin of awesome! The pass itself is mostly one lane, and construction is going on. A friendly Ram entertained us in the Summit visitors center parking lot…then down we go again! The view is spectacular….we couldn’t have chosen a better day for it!
Once down on the flat lands again, we decided to stay in St Mary’s for the night. Managed to secure a room on a hill overlooking the mountains….supper at the fancy Lodge….expensive, but delicious! We had ourselves a superb day today! Kinda makes up for yesterday!!

sept 4 cont'd

Kootenai Inn room overlooks river.

Before we make it to Kalispell, the top little part of Idaho has to be navigated first…however, we didn’t make it out of Idaho. Just about 4pm I asked Ted to stop while I wet my hair down…the helmet was bugging me. Meanwhile, Ted decided to check the rear tire as he felt something funny as we rode along. Trouble! The rear tire is cracked and showing steel belt in places. Good heavens, we just bought it before the July trip! There is a Yamaha dealer in town, so he located a tire in Sandpoint, a beautiful little resort town back about 30 miles. Ted called Ronnie, back in Moses Lake and he consulted the GWRRA Gold book, for a local member in Bonners Ferry. Dick Dawson came right down and even drove over to Sandpoint to pick up our tire. I immediately called my supervisor in Westlock, to beg for extra days to get home. A room was booked at the Best Western, and we enjoyed the best prawn dinner I have ever tasted….it was Greek with couscous…mmmmm! Tomorrow morning Ted will take the bike down to the Yamaha dealer to get the new tire installed and we will continue on our way.

Sept 4th

We went with Ronnie to the Himilaya warehouse this morning. What a time we had...we got a look at all the new stuff coming out next year too! then Ted & I headed off to Kalispell, or so we thought. Just a few miles from the Montana border in Bonners Ferry, Idaho, Ted decided to check the rear tire. It seemed to be a little off....ha! it had cracks and bare steel showing through. The only place in town was a Yamaha dealer, also, thank goodness for GWRRA and the Gold book! we contacted a local member, who drove back to Sandpoint Honda to pick up our new tire! Tommorow morning we get it installed, then we can continue on our way. I called the office and got another day or two if I need it to get home for work! Either way, we are not going to rush home...we are still planning to ride the Road to the Sun through Logan Pass!

Sept 3

We decided to head to Moses Lake
with Ron & PeggyLopez. they toured us around all the good places!
Like Grand coulee DAM
and Dry Falls. We had a fantastic day! Gorgeous hot weather too...31 C.

Sept 2

Even though it wasn't very sunny today, we still had fun! The poker run was a great way to sight see. My fav spot was Ashcroft where this little historic park kept us sapping pictures for half an hour. The day ended with a BBQ- Ted doing the cooking.

September One

Hard to believe summer is nearly over! We are here in Merritt BC, with cool weather, but the riding is excellent! As long as you are warm & dry, who cares?? Meeting old friends at the pub, or sharing laughs round the "campfire", Gold Wing rallies are always the BEST!