Yep that really is the Shenandoah National Park entrance and the start of an awesome day. We left warm and uncomfortable humidity in Front Royal and climbed into deliciously cool fresh and fragrant mountains and so started an awesome experience as we explored the Blue Ridge Mountains. This was the second bonus of heading east. We had planned to do some 'leaf peeping' of the autumn colours along this route in 2013 but the day was rained and fogged out so had to take the route at the foot of the ridge.

The ride today was awesome. The road surface, camber and gradient excellent and the ride itself spectacularly beautiful. The foliage surrounding us changed from luxuriant and dense and leaves well developed with dense ferns and undergrowth to more sparsely treed with beginnings of leaf cover only as we climbed higher but without doubt it was all beautiful to be amongst and the views were incredible either across multiple ridges and mountains or what appeared to be from the sky down onto the valleys and plains below first on one side and then the other as we traversed the ridge. Hard to stay focused ... might be just as well we didn't get here in the fall, way too much to safely look at and I suspect a lot more to share the road with as well. The traffic increased as the day wore on but not enough to be a bother and with the speed limits (56kmh on Skyline Drive and 72kmh on the Blue Ridge Parkway) it could have been a bit frustrating. We enjoyed a bite for lunch at Loft Mountain Wayside then a hot chocolate at the Otters Peaks Lodge, both a welcome respite off the bikes as my knees were complaining from being bent up for as many hours as they were .... mind you the rest of the body was just singing with the ride!

Photos were a bit of a challenge. Early in the morning the fog on the land below hadn't lifted and there was a haze present most of the day and increased through the day and I didn't bring my camera which does a panoramic shot DOH! and without it any photos just don't do the views justice. Ah well. A collection below anyway.

View from Jenkins Gap Overlook.

 

Typical of so much of the roadway / vegetation we travelled through.

A cute little tunnel.

Dark Hollow Falls. It was a workout and a half to get there and back!

A not so timid little deer early into the Blue Ridge Parkway.

 

The Peaks of Otter (well one anyway) on Abbot Lake.

Bits and Bobs:

An interesting way to view the countryside ..... well from the riders seat, not so much from the side cart I suspect. In the parking lot at the Loft Mountain Wayside car-park.

Last Night's Accommodation:

 

Hampton Inn Front Royal, 9800 Winchester Road, Front Royal, VA 22630
Nice comfortable room and bed and included hot breakfast. Shame there is no restaurant on site, we really didn't feel up to heading out once we had gotten out of the shower. Nice and handy to the motorway so makes for a quick getaway when leaving.

Shame we didn't have time to check out Dublin or more of Columbus it looked good but we headed off around 8.30am so an improvement on after midday yesterday and just as well since we had a lot of ground to cover including wanting to visit the Flight 93 Memorial which was the main reason we were heading in this direction. We got in at 6.30pm so an improvement on 9.15pm last night especially considering we had lost an hour with a time change as well. We felt a bit like being home today as we had at least four seasons from clear and cool to rain to warm and humid to very warm.

A fuel stop at St Clairsville found this massive public building (suspect a courthouse / municipal building) but a shame to see it deteriorating like a lot of the rest of the downtown area. Newer areas were in better condition but that may not last as the servo attendant told Norm the town was built on coal and people are being layed off as gas is taking over.

Barely in the gate at the Memorial and already we can see development ahead of us.

We missed out on seeing the Memorial in 2013 owing to the Federal Government shutdown of National Parks and managed sites. Grrrr. Anyway, we found our visit very moving and we were glad we came to pay our respects to the heros of Flight 93 who were regular citizens who decided they were not going to allow terror to overtake their country and made a  heroic stand. Interesting to know that they had learn't of the devastation of the World Trade Towers and Pentagon by mobile phone calls and realised that their plane was heading for the White House. No mobiles allowed on Australian planes and yet even in 1998 when we first came to the USA you could make calls from plane installed phones.



First pullover and already somber reflection.

A huge amount of work has been done since we looked out over the site in 2013 and the site already has many spots for quiet reflection and has a quiet respectful feel about it. We're glad we came. Have to confess that in spite of seeing some lovely sights after leaving there even if we had time available I doubt we would have stopped to take photos. There was a lot to process. If we had more time available the audio tour would have been good, as it was we listened to some that others were listening to which gave great context.

 

A view from the Visitor Shelter at the Wall of Reflection back up towards the Visitor Education and Interpretive Centre under construction.

And a listing of names of all the passengers and crew who perished on Flight 93. Through the gate at the end of the wall is a large rock which sits on the site where the plane came to rest. Very sobering indeed.

Last Night's Accommodation:

Crowne Plaza, 600 Metro Place North, Dublin, Ohio 43017
What a lovely spot to just drop after a huge day. Comfortable and spacious room, heaps of parking, restaurants with a kitchen open until 11pm and even better room service for these two weary campers. Cheerful and helpful and friendly staff. To top it off a beautiful hot shower and comfortable pillowtop mattress ahhh.

Down to the bike shop soon after opening and Eric pulled the fuel pump off my bike and got out the new one to discover that instead of being supplied with the pump and gasket as they are supposed to be it had arrived short the gasket. Doh!

And here is my poor little bike in bits with the fuel tank sitting on the bench in front of it. But ... as luck would have it they were taking delivery of a new 950 this morning so they very kindly transferred the fuel pump and gasket from that onto mine and away we went so three cheers for the boys at DuPage Honda Yamaha. www.dupagemotorcycleswestchicago.com

We decided instead of doing two days riding in one to split it up given we were going to be getting on the road after midday and having cancelled last nights accommodation at Fort Wayne IN we also cancelled tonight's at Wheeling WV and instead booked at a hotel in Dublin OH on the outskirts of Columbus and believe me we are glad we did since we finally got into our hotel at 9.15pm tonight.

But to today. Once we were finally out of Chicago and surrounds we pulled off in Gary Indiana to get fuel and it was a sorry site with huge numbers of empty and decaying private homes and commercial apartments and factory and office sites and even into the town itself it looked very tired and in patches a little bit daunting. The two nice things were a good ol boy hanging out his pickup window at traffic lights wanting to know how old we were and how far we were going and he was impressed then told us his Dad had still be riding his bike at 80, Yay I thought. The reason we had such a long chat was that the local police were escorting heaps of students and families across the road for a graduation ceremony complete with cap and gowns so in spite of what we saw an element of hope.

From here we traveled through thousands of acres of picturesque farmland being prepared for the new corn crop. Just loved the many quaint farmhouses and hotch potch collections of silos and outbuildings as well as the ocassional delicious fragrance of something like a faint hint of jasmine. Seemed to be when there were low growing creamy green leaved bushes in the vicinity. No idea what they were. Then the closer we got to Dublin the more forest area we came across complete with signs for deer and some dead on the side of the road and others wandering along the fence, glad we got into suburbia before it was completely dark.

Around 6pm we pulled off at an interchange to get a hot chocolate ... didn't have any so Norm got a 'kill a brown dog' coffee and I got a chocolate milkshake which was so thick I couldn't suck it through the straw so took the lid off and tipped it up and sucked it out of the cup as I walked around the shop to get my knees moving again.

Bits and Bobs:

Check out the accessory Norm has added to our bikes, it's a camera holder so we can sit our cameras in them so we can grab them quickly even in gloves. He's used a couple of 'Bobber Daves Custom Cycles' stubby holders.www.bobberdavescustomcycles.com.au  I suspect Dave hadn't anticipated his stubby holders would be traveling the USA. Ha ha.

Last Night's Accommodation:

Holiday Inn, 150 S Gary Avenue, Carol Stream IL 60188
An adequete spot to stay. Getting a little tired but clean and comfortable. Indoor pool available but couldn't quite face it with how cold it was outside. Two restaurants on site and large conference areas. Staff very helpful and found a room for us well before midday.

For those paying attention you will notice we didn't clock up many kilometres today and we're not in Fort Wayne Indiana tonight where we are supposed to be. DOH! So for everyone who has asked over time what we would do if we had an unavoidable hold up on our trip see below.

After having a trouble free ride yesterday, this morning shortly after we headed off my bike started to make a whistling noise which quickly worsened  and we discovered the issue was with the fuel pump so we pulled into DuPage Honda and Yamaha and the decision was made it needed to be replaced. Unfortunately they didn't have a 950 in stock to swap one out of and we learnt there were only 3 in the country all in California. So bottom line plan it will be Fed Ex'd to the shop arriving hopefully before midday tomorrow and it will be replaced and then we will head to Wheeling West Virginia (a distance equivalent from Melbourne to Adelaide so a big day). We cancelled tonight's accommodation and booked into a Hotel not far from the bike shop. Fingers crossed it all comes together tomorrow and we are grateful we were close to the bike shop instead of in the middle of nowhere.

  

Waiting for the bike shop to open at 10am.

  

This spot probably looks familiar. We rode around looking at some very pretty areas revisiting Whealing for lunch which is where we used to get the train to from Chicago when we came to collect the bikes and then onto Geneva again for a coffee on our way back to our hotel closer to the bike shop.

 Bits and Bobs:

And Norm spotted Mr Eggward (Humpty Dumpty) at Saint Mary's park on our way back to Saint Charles.

 Last Night's Accommodation:

  

Hotel Baker, 100 West Main Street, Saint Charles IL 60174

Always lovely to stay here. Staff very friendly and helpful, deliciously comfortable bed, breakfast included and parking close by. Very quirky Art Deco design and decor and beautiful function rooms as well as a comfortable restaurant.

As you can see we've started our trip (barely) and at Hotel Baker in St Charles which is where we've finished the last two USA trips so it was nice to come to a familiar spot yesterday evening when we felt decidedly second hand. After a shower and walk we had a beautiful meal at the Italian Restaurant across the street then 11 hours sleep. Aaaaaahhhh! The bed as always was superbly comfortable and it's cozy and quiet. The weather is very grey and cold as it was yesterday, today being 13c but feels like 9c so pleased we brought sufficient bike gear to be warm on the bikes and also that we are heading slightly south as we head east tomorrow.

 

Lucky to have this shot. I dropped my camera in the cab we took to collect the bikes today so called the cab company (Fox Cabs) and they dropped it off at the hotel. God bless them! This is a shot of the A380 we travelled in from Melbourne to Los Angeles. It was huge and when we landed it was escorted from the runway into where we unloaded by cars with flashing red lights at each wingtip I assume to show the pilots and others just how wide they are. In spite of the size the take off and landing seemed short and effortless. Amazing!

 

The lobby of Hotel Baker, it is a great example of an Art Deco Hotel and quite a quirky place as well as jazz inspired. Our friends Neil and Marie would love the dining room complete with jazz background music.

 

And a farewell to the boys at DuPage Honda Yamaha L - R Mike (business owner) Robert (Sales Manger) Nola and Norm. They have been a great support and a lot of fun and we can thoroughly recomend them. http://www.dupagemotorcyclewestchicago.com/

 

One of the cute shops (we assume formerly a home) on 3rd Street Geneva.

 

And a little further out a typical home in the township.

 

And along Main Street.

Bits and Bobs:

 

After having littlies staying with us for a bit over a year we are missing the kisses and cuddles but thought it was safer to try this than attach myself to an unknown child in the street. Pretty cold reception actually.

Well after a lovely Farewell / Mothers Day lunch we headed for the train to Melbourne and the big bonus was that our grandson Ashley headed back to Uni with us so we had his company to Clayton. A treat! We've had a leisurely dinner and headed to our bedroom at the Holiday Inn and we head over to the airport in the morning and off again on the next adventure.

Made it to the station, L - R Norm, Nola & Ashley

Well we are at the point of hanging on by the fingernails to our sanity as we countdown to our departure from here on May 10th. As always it's a bonus to have people moving around here all the time with work but also have someone staying here in our absence  of course.

Come and join us for our trip, the last to the USA on the bikes. We will be selling them before we leave.

Sunday 10th May 2015

V LINE TRAIN FROM TRARALGON TO SOUTHERN CROSS STATION

SKYBUS TO MELBOURNE AIRPORT

 MELBOURNE AIRPORT

I NIGHT

IN: 10MAY15

OUT:  11MAY15                                                                                                                                                    

Monday 11th May 2015

FLY MELBOURNE TO LOS ANGELES. CALIFORNIA

FLY LOS ANGELES TO CHICAGO, INDIANA

SAINT CHARLES, ILLINOIS                 

2 NIGHTS

IN:   11MAY15

OUT:  13MAY15

Wednesday 13th May 2015

FORT WAYNE, INDIANA

1 NIGHT

IN: 13MAY15

OUT: 14MAY15

Thursday 14th May 2015

WHEELING, WEST VIRGINIA

1 NIGHT

IN:   14MAY15

OUT:  15MAY15

Friday 15th May 2015

WHEELING, WV VIA THE FLIGHT 93 MEMORIAL TO

FRONT ROYAL, VIRGINIA

1 NIGHT

IN:   15MAY15

OUT:  16MAY15

Saturday 16th May 2015

FRONT ROYAL, VA VIA SKYLINE DRIVE AND BLUE RIDGE PARKWAY TO

ROANOKE, VIRGINIA

1 NIGHT

IN:   16MAY15

OUT:  17MAY15

Sunday 17th May 2015

ROANOKE, VA VIA BLUE RIDGE PARKWAY & MOUNTAINS TO

BOONE, NORTH CAROLINA

1 NIGHT

IN:   17MAY15

OUT:  18MAY15

Monday 18th May 2015

BOONE, NC VIA BLUE RIDGE PARKWAY & MOUNTAINS TO

CHEROKEE, NORTH CAROLINA

1 NIGHT

IN:   18MAY15

OUT:  19MAY15

Tuesday 19th May 2015

CHEROKEE, NC VIA NANTAHALA GORGE & LAKE (WAYAH ROAD) TO HIGHLANDS AND THEN ON TO ATLANTA, GEORGIA

1 NIGHT

IN:   19MAY15

OUT:  20MAY15

Wednesday 20th May 2015

ATLANTA, GA VIA TALLADEGA NATIONAL FOREST (SCENIC HIGHWAY) TO

MONTGOMERY, ALABAMA

1 NIGHT

IN:   20MAY15

OUT:  21MAY15

Thursday 21st May 2015

MONTGOMERTY, AL TO

SPRINGFIELD, LOUISIANNA

1 NIGHT

IN:   21MAY15

OUT:  22MAY15

Friday 22^nd May 2015

SPRINGFIELD, LA VIA BATON ROUGE, LA TO

NATCHEZ, MISSISSIPPI

1 NIGHT

IN:   22MAY15

OUT:  23MAY15

Saturday 23^rd May 2015

NATCHEZ, MS VIA THE NATCHEZ TRACE PARKWAY TO

TUPELO, MISSISSIPPI

1 NIGHT

IN:   23MAY15

OUT:  24MAY14

Sunday 24^th May 2015

TUPELO, MS VIA GRACELAND, TN TO

MEMPHIS, TENNESEE

1 NIGHT

IN:   24MAY15

OUT:  25MAY15

Monday 25^th May 2015

MEMPHIS, TN TO

NASHVILLE, TENNESEE

2 NIGHTS

IN:   25MAY15

OUT:  27MAY15

Wednesday 27^th May 2015

NASHVILLE, TN TO

ST LOUIS, MISSOURI

2 NIGHTS

IN:   27MAY15

OUT:  29MAY15

Friday 29^th May 2015

ST LOUIS, MO VIA MARVEL CAVE TO

BRANSON, MISSOURI

1 NIGHT

IN:   29MAY15

OUT:  30MAY15

Saturday 30^th May 2015

BRANSON, MO TO

OKLAHOMA CITY, OKLAHOMA

2 NIGHTS

IN:   30MAY15     

OUT:   01JUN15

Monday 1^st June 2015

OKLAHOMA CITY, OK VIA ROUTE 66 (CLINTON & ELK CITY) AND PALO DURO CANYON STATE PARK TO

CANYON, TEXAS

1 NIGHT

IN:   01JUN15

OUT:  02JUN15

Tuesday 2^nd June 2015

CANYON, TX VIA ROUTE 66, AMARILLO, TUCUMCARI & SANTA ROSA TO

SANTA FE, NEW MEXICO

2 NIGHTS

IN:   02JUN15

OUT:  04JUN15

Thursday 4^th June 2015

SANTA FE, NM VIA ALCADE, TAOS, GREAT SAND DUNES NATIONAL PARK, TO

PUEBLO - COLORADO

1 NIGHT

IN:   04JUN15

OUT:  05JUN15 

Friday 5^th June 2015

PUEBLO, CO VIA CANYON CITY, ROYAL GORGE, CRIPPLE CREEK, PIKES PEAK, COLORADO SPRINGS, TO

DENVER, COLORADO

2 NIGHTS

IN:   05JUN15

OUT:  07JUN15

Sunday 7^th June 2015

DENVER, CO VIA VAIL TO

MOAB, UTAH

2 NIGHTS

IN:   07JUN15

OUT:  09JUN15

Monday 8^th June 2015

FREE DAY TO EXPLORE CANYONLANDS NATIONAL PARK AND ISLAND IN THE SKY MESA

Tuesday 9^th June 2015

MORNING:  MOAB TO ARCHES NATIONAL PARK AND BACK TO MOAB

AFTERNOON: 

MOAB VIA DOLORES (ANASAZI HERITAGE CENTRE) TO MESA VERDE NATIONAL PARK

MESA VERDE, COLORADO

1 NIGHT

IN:   09JUN15

OUT:  10JUN15

Wednesday 10^th June 2015

MORNING – EXPLORE THE MESE VERDE

EARLY AFTERNOON - MESA VERDE (PARK ENTRANCE) TO MONUMENT VALLEY. LATER THIS AFTERNOON & EVENING. EXPLORE MONUMENT VALLEY

MONUMENT VALLEY TRIBAL PARK, UTAH

1 NIGHT

IN:   10JUN15

OUT:  11JUN15

Thursday 11^th June 2015

MONUMENT VALLEY TO PAINTED DESERT VISITOR CENTRE, THEN LATER THE SAME DAY RIDE FROM PAINTED DESERT VISITOR CENTRE TO

HOLBROOK, ARIZONA

1 NIGHT

IN:   11JUN15

OUT:  12JUN15

Friday 12^th June 2015

HOLBROOK, AZ VIA FLAGSTAFF, HIGHWAY 17 AND THE VILLAGE OF OAK CREEK, TO

SEDONA, ARIZONA

2 NIGHTS

IN: 12JUN15

OUT: 14JUN15

Sunday 14^th June 2015

SEDONA, AZ TO

MARBLE CANYON, ARIZONA

1 NIGHT

IN:   14JUN15

OUT:  15JUN15

Monday 15^th June 2015

MARBLE CANYON VIA 89A (TO TRY AND GLIMPSE THE VERMILION CLIFFS) TO

BRYCE CANYON, UTAH

1 NIGHT

IN:   15JUN15

OUT:  16JUN15

Tuesday 16^th June 2015

BRYCE CANYON, UT TO

LAS VEGAS, NEVADA

2 NIGHTS

IN:   16JUN15

OUT:  18JUN15

Thursday 18^th June 2015

LAS VEGAS, NV TO

DEATH VALLEY, CALIFORNIA

1 NIGHT

IN:   18JUN15

OUT:  19JUN15

Friday 19^th June 2015

DEATH VALLEY, CA TO 

SOUTH LAKE TAHOE, CALIFORNIA

2 NIGHTS

IN: 19JUN15

OUT: 21JUN15

Saturday 20th June 2015

DAY TRIP SOUTH LAKE TAHOE, RENO, TRUCKEE TO SOUTH LAKE TAHOE

Sunday 21^st June 2015

SOUTH LAKE TAHOE, CA VIA VIRGINIA CITY AND THE LAVA BEDS NATIONAL MONUMENT TO

KLAMATH FALLS, OREGON

2 NIGHTS

IN: 21JUN15

OUT: 23JUN15

Tuesday 23^rd June 2015

KLAMATH FALLS, OR VIA CRATER LAKE NATIONAL PARK TO EAGLE LAKE TO

CHEMULT, OREGON

1 NIGHT

IN:    23^RD JUNE 2015

OUT:   24^TH JUNE 2015

Wednesday 24^th June 2015

EARLY IN THE DAY: RIDE FROM CHEMULT VIA CRESCENT LAKE AND ODELL LAKE TO DAVIS LAKE

EARLY AFTERNOON: RIDE FROM DAVIS LAKE VIA CASCADE LAKES AND SCENIC BYWAY TO

BEND, OREGON                                        

1 NIGHT

IN:   24JUN15

OUT:  25JUN15

Thursday 25^th June 2015

RIDE FROM BEND, OR TO

EUGENE, OREGON

1 NIGHT

IN:    25JUN15

OUT:   26JUN15

Friday 26th June 2015

RIDE FROM EUGENE, OR VIA FLORENCE OLD TOWN, OREGON DUNES, BANDON-BY-THE-SEA  TO

GOLD BEACH, OR

1 NIGHT

IN: 26JUN15

OUT: 27JUN15

Saturday 27th June 2015

GOLD BEACH, OR VIA THE REDWOOD NATIONAL PARK TO

EUREKA, CALIFORNIA

1 NIGHT

IN:   27JUN15

OUT:  28JUN15

Sunday 28th June 2015

EUREKA, CA TO

SONOMA, CALIFORNIA

1 NIGHT

IN:   28JUN15

OUT:  29JUN15

Monday 29th June 2015

SONOMA, CA VIA PETALUMA AND SAUSALITO TO

SAN FRANCISCO, CALIFORNIA

 2 NIGHTS

IN:   29JUN15

OUT:  01JUL15

Wednesday 1^st July 2015

RIDE FROM SAN FRANCISCO, CA VIA HIGHWAY 1 (THE COAST ROAD) TO MONTEREY. 

SPEND THE AFTERNOON LOOKING AROUND MONTEREY AND CANNERY ROW.

LATER THIS AFTERNOON, RIDE FROM MONTEREY TO

CARMEL, CALIFORNIA

2 NIGHTS

IN:  01JUL15 

OUT: 03JUL15

Friday 3rd July 2015

CARMEL, CA VIA MCWAY WATERFALL AND HEARST CASTLE TO

MOONSTONE BEACH (CAMBRIA) CALIFORNIA

1 NIGHT

IN:   03JUL15

OUT:  04JUL15

Saturday 4th July 2015

MOONSTONE BEACH (CAMBRIA), CA VIA SAN LUIS OBISPO AND SOLVANG TO

SANTA BARBARA, CALIFORNIA

1 NIGHT

IN:   04JUL15

OUT:  05JUL15

Sunday 5^th July 2015

SANTA BARBARA, CA VIA MALIBU AND SANTA MONICA TO

WEST COVINA, CALIFORNIA

2 NIGHTS

IN:   05JUL15

OUT:  07JUL15

Tuesday 07th July 2015

FLY LOS ANGELES TO MELBOURNE

Thursday 09th July 2015

ARRIVE IN MELBOURNE

SKYBUS TO SOUTHERN CROSS STATION MELBOURNE

V LINE TRAIN FROM SOUTHERN CROSS STATION TO TRARALGON