T - Another day, another goodbye. We hate this part. Having to say goodbyes to the lovely people we meet really does suck. But onwards we must go! We dragged our asses out of bed and upstairs today. Jude and Andreas were already up and ready to tackle the day! We said our goodbyes to Jude who had to go to work and then began the steady process of our packing up.

Andreas was amazing and made sure we had everything we needed to keep us comfortably on the road for the next little while. Thanks guys so much for having us stay and for feeding us and keeping us entertained!



C – It was definitely sad to say goodbye to Jude and Andreas, such lovely and wonderful people. We were both looking forward to the next part of our journey though, which, all going well, we would travel the Pony Express trail from Vernon, Utah into Ely, Nevada. After contacting the White Pine County roads department in Nevada, we confirmed that the Nevada side of the trail was also open and driveable. From what I can understand, part of the Pony Express trail was also used to create the first highway crossing America and was called the US50 Lincoln Highway, or the Lonely Highway. So we would also get to traverse some of this historic route as well. Time to hit the road!



T - We waved goodbye to Andreas and headed off for Walmart. We needed to grab a few extra bits and pieces plus we wanted to grab some small jerry cans to carry a little bit of extra fuel. Chantelle had worked out that the distance between our last fuel stop here in Utah and our first one over in Nevada was around 400 kms. Right on the edge of our safe fuel range. So long as we didn’t backtrack, work the bikes hard, or get lost we would make it. So we thought it was a smart idea to grab a little bit extra.

New cans strapped down and filled with fuel and we were heading for the town of Vernon. The last fuel stop and the beginning, for us, of the Pony Express route in this area.



It wasn’t too long and we had covered our first 100 km’s to Vernon. We topped off our tanks and rode on out of town. We had to take our postie bikes down the old postie route!

C – It was such an exciting moment leaving the Silver Sage cafe in Vernon. The rush of the knowing there is nothing out here but desert basically all the way to Ely. We expected the cafe to have some Pony Express maps, after we saw a sign advertising this, but they didn’t have any info. It appears it isn’t as popular as I thought the route would of been!



T - The road was a little rocky and slippery in places but otherwise quite nice. We rode along towards a set of mountains. The road climbing slowly. White dust pouring from our tyres, coating everything instantly in a talcum powder. Then suddenly...



BOOOOOOOOM!!!!

Chantelle came over the intercom saying “Shit shit shit shit what do I do? Help!”

Uh oh... That didn’t sound good......

Turns out that Rosie blew her rear tyre out in a big way! The sudden deflation of which caused Chantelle to be taken for a wild sliding side to side ride as she coasted to a stop. Well this was a good start to this road! We had built this section of our trip up to be such a big thing in our minds, and both of us had some doubts as to whether we would make it on fuel, on our bikes, or even because of the road conditions.





C – I wasn’t very articulate at the time, but what I meant to be asking Todd was how quickly can you brake when your rear tyre does this? Rosie was swinging wildly from side to side, although I seemed to be able to keep her front end straight on the gravel if I didn’t brake too hard. So I figured it was better to coast and gently brake to a stop, rather than trying to stop the wild ride quicker.

T - We stripped Rosie down and pulled her tube out. Two holes. Something had gone through the side of the tread and sliced a 2 cm gash into the tyre, then pierced the tube from one side straight through to the other. I walked back down the road to where Rosie had started sliding around. There I found the broken remains of some type of animal and a heap of sharp jagged bones sticking up in the air. That’ll do it!





We put Rosie back together and after we were certain she was holding air again got ready to meander on. Our total distance so far down this road... 2 km’s... 398 to go....

As we were about to leave a fellow pulled up in his car and asked where we were going, where we were coming from, and if we were ok or if we needed nay help. He really wasn’t too happy when we told him of our plan to cross through into Nevada on the Pony Express. He shook his head a lot, told us it was a very long way, that there was no services out here, no mobile reception, and mostly no water. He looked very unhappy as he drove away. Now we did have some doubts and agreed that should we have any more bike issues in the next 20 km that we would take it as a sign and turn around.

Well needless to say there were no more issues. We rode along this stunning and iconic road which also followed, in part, the Old Lincoln Highway. Which we learned was Americas very first cross country highway. Well before Route 66 even!





C – The road was actually a maintained gravel road and in reasonable condition. There were sections of road which had recently been graded and this slowed us down a little, as the gravel became a bit loose and soft in these sections. We both certainly noticed the extra 5.5kg we were each carrying in fuel and water, with the girls feeling like they had extra super duper power steering!

As we came to the first stop on this section of the travel, Simpson Springs, we saw three beautiful mustangs standing just off the road side grazing. They threw their heads up proudly as we passed slowly and we could see their muscles twitching as they readied themselves to flee. They were simply the most beautiful horses I have ever seen.





T - The road dipped and curved down and around a huge salt lake. The Dugway Proving Grounds which the military used for all types of military things. The road was recently graded which gave us a few sphincter clenching moments as we skated off of the marble type rock strewn across the road and into the deep soft sandy stuff that was spread on the shoulders. And every centimetre of it spewed out this fine white dust that just hung in the air. Filling our helmets, our jackets and our bags with the stuff.







It was so beautiful out here. Just stunning. We stopped at an old mine tunnel for a bum break and I ventured a little ways inside. Not too far. As much as I wanted too. We set our next stop on Ibapah. It was at Ibapah that we didn’t know the road conditions etc. We had only heard about people getting there and then turning north to Wendover. We wanted to go south to Ely and the ET Highway.





We finally pulled in Ibapah. A small town way out here in the middle of nowhere. There are no services here. No gas, no food, nothing. We had used barely half of our long range tank of fuel to get this far but decided to top it up with our gas cans. We were about two thirds of the way across.

We picked up the Pony Express trail again and headed back out into flat grasslands towards some distant mountains. The dirt road here was ungraded, very hard, and very smooth. We flew along it! Our dust rising high into the still air. The sun beginning its downward arc in front of us and really lighting up the golden coloured grass and hills around us. It was just amazing.







Seeing as we were on BLM land we found a narrow track that lead off towards some hills where we found a flat grassy area to pitch our tent.

We checked the bikes over and gave the chains a lube. Mabels rear sprocket is wearing terribly. Super fast. While Rosies still looks like brand new. Weird. They both have the same chains, same engines, same miles on them, we ride in a similar fashion and apart from weight differences they are basically loaded the same. Hopefully Mabel can get me to LA where I will have a new rear sprocket waiting for me.







C – No more broken spokes. Are we declaring this incident officially over yet??? Thanks so much to Frank from ZMW Adventures in Tucson for getting this sorted for us!!!

The view from our tent was mangificant and we watched the colours change across the valley and the mountain as the sun made its final descent and darkness began to come over us. The most wonderful thing about the desert at night is the sky, especially when you are far away from any light pollution. It did not disappoint tonight, with the sky completely covered with bright stars. It was calm and quiet and a wonderful camp spot!



T - Tomorrow we head for the ET highway after we traverse the last section of this trail.

T - I was up just moments before the sun popped up over the horizon this morning. So I sat outside in my chair, typed up yesterdays blog entry and enjoyed welcoming a new day. Out here in the desert I always find the sunsets and sunrises are just spectacular. Maybe it is because of the dust that lingers in the air or the fact that there is no pollution around, or maybe I am just a soppy weirdo!

C – I vaguely remember Totti suggesting coffee at some point. All I could muster was a half hearted wave. I couldn’t even open my eyes, so I just rolled over and drifted back into blissful sleep. Some point later I awoke to a stunning morning. The sun was beaming through the tent and warming it up nicely.

T - Eventually Chantelle joined me and we had a nice coffee and some breakfast. We only had about 85 km’s to go before we hit the major town of Ely where we could refuel the bikes and work out a plan for todays jaunt.



We zoomed down the smooth hard dirt road, both of us resembling ghosts such was the thickness of the white dust that now covered us and the bikes. Then just like that the dirt ended and the bitumen began.







What a ride what a road! All the trepidations we had about it amounted to naught. As I suspect these things often do. I would highly encourage people to ride this road. Just make sure you carry enough fuel and water as there really is nothing much out there.

C – It was such an amazing thing to ride that section of the Pony Express and part of the old Lincoln Highway, both being important trails in American history. This section is maintained gravel and dirt roads and was definitely worth the trip for both the history and the views. Sensational!

T - As we rode along the GPS decided to route us through a mountain range to join us across to Highway 93. Now we haven’t had much luck with the mapping on this thing as of late, but decided to give it the benefit of the doubt and follow its directions. So glad we did too!





The new track took us away from our nice smooth bitumen and onto a single lane, rutted, rocky, sandy dirt track. We wound through some sensational national forest, through a small canyon, across a small stream and then started to climb a very steep hill. So steep in fact that we were back to first gear and the switch backs were packed in so tightly against one another that they were almost on top of each other on the GPS screen back and forth we went always climbing. The valley below us opening up the higher we went. The views seemingly going on forever.





C – The Kalamazoo Road (which we admit we mostly agreed to follow the GPS because of the road name) was a great ride and suitable for even beginner off road riders. Its always good to practice slow speed control riding and this track was not at all challenging, but super fun with the switchbacks and the views. The GPS promised us the road would emerge on US93 at McGill and when we turned onto the road, the National Forest made the same promise, in 26 miles. So, we went for it!



T - Then we popped over the top and had the same insane switchbacks heading down hill. So much fun! The road finally running out of turns and zipping off along narrow ridges between hills before depositing us out onto Highway 93 just 25 km out of Ely.





We went into town and wandered into the library to update the blog and let Jude know we had made it safely. We must have looked a right state. Covered head to toe in white dust, smelly and sweaty, Chantelles jeans stained in oil and grease from her tyre change. We didn’t care though! You stop caring about things like that when you’re on the road.

Blog updated we sat in the park and had some lunch before we fuelled up and headed for our next camp. We were only travelling about 150km’s further up the road to a place called Lunar Crater. There is some free camps there and we want to bag one!





The GPS took us out of town about 10 km and directly into a closed road through an active mine. Sigh. So back we went to Ely and took another route out the back of town.

We were basically stuck on the bitumen highway now, no back roads existing out there for us. Trucks and cars flew by us constantly until we hit the turn for Las Vegas. Then we had the road to ourselves.

We meandered along, crossing a huge flat prairie. The road just stretched straight out in front of us, disappearing into a haze miles and miles distant. It felt like an age before we reached that haze, only to see the road stretch on again into another haze. Wow. This was a straight bit of road!





C – We passed a large oil field and processing plant along the way. It was a bit stinky I have to say!!!

T - Eventually our turn off came up and we followed a hard fast dirt road into Lunar Crater. It was a gorgeous place too. Just a thumping great hole in the ground! We rode around the crater rim and just pitched our tent right on the edge of it at the end of the road. What a place to camp! We were the only ones here! The views around us were staggering. Photos do it no justice.





We climbed a nearby hill to get a better view of our camp and the canyon. The rolling hills stretching away forever in every direction. So beautiful it hurt.







We sat on the crater rim and watched the sun set over the crater, as the sun went down the temperature dropped. And so soon we were crawling into the tent wrapped up into our sleeping bags and watching an episode of Raymond.







Tomorrow we head for the little town of Rachel and the Little A’Le’inn. Plus we are going to visit a very famous mail box for our friend Jax.

T - It got bloody cold last night. I had to get up at some god awful hour of the morning and have a piddle. It was pitch black and bitingly cold. Especially when I was wandering around the edge of the crater in my undies looking for a suitable pee spot.

As the sun hit the tent this morning I laid there and stared out the door at the bright new cloudless day. It was promising to be a glorious one already! The valley around the crater lit up in spectacular fashion. I could certainly have laid there and stared at it for hours!

But we had some exciting places to ride to today and laying in the dirt wasn’t going to get us there! So we stuffed our faces with warm porridge, and left over brownie cake, and raced off down the dirt track and back to the highway.

C – Whilst making my coffee, I managed to spill the whole cup in my lap. Thankfully, it had been brewing in the press for a few minutes so wasn’t burning hot. But I did have the pleasure of having wet jeans whilst we packed up... that stained nicely brown around the crotch and down my left leg once it dried. Oh, I must of looked a treat today!





T - It was at this point I had a real profound moment. Riding this particular track at this exact moment. It was a moment of pure joy. Right then and there was the best moment of the trip, the best riding moment, the absolute best. I have no idea why. We have ridden through some incredible scenery, seen some amazing places, but this moment was the absolute best. I just rode in silence and relished it.





C – As we were riding out, we rode in silence. I didn’t realise that Todd was thinking exactly what I was thinking until we were out on the bitumen. I can not explain it, but the view of the desert on the way out from the crater was simply the most exquisitely beautiful thing I have ever seen in my life. It was a phenomenal moment.

T - Then we hit the bitumen and turned south. Towards the beginning of the Extra Terrestrial Highway! I had read about this road and the places along it many many times over the years, and now to be actually heading there, well it felt weird and not real. Strange that!









There wasn’t much traffic on the road which was great! Just us and our little red demons. The mountains stretched away before us and the ribbon of road faded away into infinity in the distance. Truly this is a beautiful bit of the world.

We rode along chatting away, both of us in very high spirits today. Though we usually are to be honest! The road was so devoid of traffic out here that I stopped and parked in the middle of it while I wandered around with my camera.



C – We managed to make up a conspiracy story for every little thing we saw along the way. We laughed a lot as each story got story got crazier and crazier!

T - Then Rachel came into view. Just a small shiny shimmer on the far horizon. 25 km’s away. Yep we could see that far! We stopped at the ET Highway sign, which was so covered in stickers and crap that we almost couldn’t read it. So we added our sticker to it as well. When in Rome...





T - We pulled up at the Little A’Le’Inn which was a blast! There was a UFO hanging off the back of a tow truck and all!! We went in and ordered some food. I grabbed an Alien Burger and Chantelle opted for the Hot Wings. Which were hot she assures me.





C – The Inn was certainly a very cool place, obviously all decked out in alien related paraphernalia. It was a hoot!! They had signed prints on the walls from Simon Pegg and co from when they filmed ‘Paul’ out here – we had both forgotten about that!!!





T - We grabbed a few souvenirs and a special ‘map’ of the local area. The lady that served us gave us some directions on how to get to a place just up the road along with some very stern warnings. Don’t cross any gates, don’t park in the way of the gates, if you do cross the gates you will be arrested and deported and not allowed back into the US for 25 years.



Where were we headed? Area 51 of course!! Oh my god. Area 51 Channy!!!!! I couldn’t believe we were really going to drive up to one of the entrance gates to this extraordinary place. A place talked about on every conspiracy website. Where alien bodies, live aliens, UFO’s and reverse engineered alien technology abounds! And we were going there! Alien technology abounds! And we were going there! Can you tell that I was excited?

We rode a short ways out of town before heading down a dirt road. We skipped along this very wide smooth road for about 10 km’s before it suddenly became tarmac. We followed the sealed road all the way up to a set of gates set in the middle of nowhere. The entrance to this secretive place. We couldn’t see anything of the actually Groom Lake site, obviously, but it was super cool to ride up to the gates, do a Uturn and park right there! We saw movement in the guard hut as security people moved about checking us out. But I am sure they get people like us out here a lot. We grabbed a few pics and then left. What with photographing missile sites and secret government installations, well I didn’t want to push our luck too far...







C – It was completely ridiculous how excited we were to be going to the home of conspiracy theories! Honestly, if the area had devices that could hear the conversation over the communicators I am sure the ‘camo’ security guards would have been calling for some serious mental health professions to take us away!

T - We rode back to the highway and continued on towards our next destination. Las Vegas.









The road was super quiet right up until we hit the main south bound highway. Then it became a mad race of big trucks, huge cars, and a narrow shoulder strewn with junk to ride on. Oh joy.

Eventually it happened. Mabel picked up a massive 3 inch long nail in her rear tyre. It totally destroyed the tube. Tearing holes all through it and splitting it wide open. Damn it. Mabel always gets flats on the side of super busy highways, while Rosie always gets them in remote areas.



Not to worry. We have this rear wheel repair thing down pat now and soon had a new tube in and the tyre back on the bike. Then it was a slog down the highway and the back roads into Las Vegas.



What a place. We were here 8 years ago and it doesn’t look like much has changed. Though we were saddened and shocked at the amount of homeless sleeping on the sides of the road just blocks away from the glitz and glamour of the strip itself.

We eventually found a cheap and clean hotel to stay in and went out for a wander which lasted well into the night. We wandered down old Fremont mall and watched as people ziplined overhead.





C – This city of sin is such an intriguing place. On the surface, its fun and lighthearted, with copious amounts of food, alcohol and adult entertainment. But there is always a flip side... its hard to ignore that people are exploiting themselves for other peoples entertainment in order to make money. That this one strip is full of excess when no matter which direction you seem to look away from The Strip poverty reigns king. Last time we flew in and missed everything away from the few miles of the strip and the Freemont mall. Driving in this time though, we saw outside of the adults play area.



Todd and I both commented about how different the vibe of the strip feels compared to our last Las Vegas experience. On our last visit, we saw a lot of glitz and glamour, including super expensive cars, whereas this time it felt cheaper somehow. Perhaps its got to do with the fact that I didn’t consume one drop of alcohol.. hhmmm that was also very different to last time!!!!

T - Its a funny old place for sure and tomorrow night we shall get out and have a good wander though some of the more famous Vegas landmarks. Plus I want a photo of Mabel at the Bellagio fountains and the Vegas sign!

T - It is always nice to sleep in a proper bed! I crashed last night and slept like a bay. Though I did have some weird dreams. Too much cheese with my nachos last night perhaps? Got to love those cheese dreams.

We decided to take our time in getting up and about this morning. No particular reason. Just that we had no where to be so why rush!



Chantelle had chosen one of the strips cheapest breakfast buffets for us to go to this morning. And cheap it was. But bloody hell was there some food on offer! Anything I could have wanted, from cereal right through to Chinese food and cakes.



C – Todd had been talking eating at a buffet since we arrived in the US, so I figured now was as good a time as any. I found a highly recommend one at a casino quite close to us, hoping it was going to be decent food. But then, for $11.99 for all you eat champagne breakfast.....



T - I had a selection of stuff. And finished it up with some cake. There was a bit of a misunderstanding with the waitress over what we wanted to drink and we ended up with 4 small glasses of free champagne. Ok...



Feeling terribly full and sick we wandered out to the strip and caught the bus down to the big casino district.





We had a wander through a few but neither of us felt the vibe of the place that we had all those years ago.







I was quite conflicted with the masses of homeless begging for money. I know we are on this amazing world trip, and maybe my opinion shouldn’t count, but I was totally saddened that these people had given up to the point that they were standing on the side of the footpath with a cardboard sign saying ‘Veteran needs money’, or ‘Homeless, anything will help’. It was so constantly in my face that I found I quickly began to ignore them. Not even bothering to read their signs. And I didn’t like that I was like that. I wish I could help them all out. I really do. But I don’t know that just giving them money is the answer. For me the lowest moment was when a fellow was using a very disabled and seemingly drunk lady in a wheel chair to get money from tourists in Fremont Mall. I didn’t feel he was there for her, only for himself. How do we let this happen? Where is the help that that lady needs? What is wrong with us wealthy Westerners that we are so focussed on money and ourselves that we can’t help these people?

And therein lies my conflict. I have to look after me and mine. Because but for a fine line I too could be holding up that sign. Plying tourists for a dollar. Very sad.

And then like a shining light was a man in the middle of Fremont Mall. A man by the name of Constant. A self described warrior and survivor. He had no use of his legs whatsoever. But he had a message of hope written on his placard. That he wanted to show others who were down on their luck that there were other options. He had an act and he used it to get the crowd in. For some reason this one man and his simple message and actions really inspired me. I wanted to empty my already empty wallet into his case. So I gave him what I could. I felt it was the least I could offer him.

Then we wandered the mall a little more while I thought about Constant. I don’t know what it was but he really struck a cord in me.

We had a small dinner and then wandered back to the hotel. I was tired. Vegas had worn me out. Maybe I am too old for this place.









C – Interesting how things change over time, although its not Vegas that has changed. We have changed. We have travelled so much since our last visit here 8 years and our attitude towards life has changed.

T - Tomorrow we get back onto our little bikes and head out of this place and towards Death Valley. And I would be lying if I said I was sad to leave Vegas this time around.

Wonderful adventure.


Begging can be big business in the states and Vegas is no exception. When you mentioned the guy with an act and a sign, well you Likely nailed it, almost nothing is real, please never give money to a beggar.

I remember seeing a very destitute you man on the bridge between the excalibur and the New York New York. He was very convincing and lots of people were dropping money to him. About 1am he stood up, took off his dirty cloths and tucked them in his back pack, underneath he had a nice silk shirt and slacks, off he went to gamble.

Now off strip, not far away things can be as they seem. Pay sucks for most in a city that never recovered from the crash in 08. Lots of homeless, most of whom are crazy. Sad really murica needs to address this and is seemingly incapable.

Make sure you tour the Hoover damn, absolutely amazing.

We had heard the city was in a bad way once you got away from the glitzy strip. It was still a shock though! The guy doing the performance was a great performer. Super human upper body strength like I have never seen before. He could have just sat around like the others, begging. But he wasn't. He was making the most of what he was able to do. And I liked that. The guy using a drunk disabled lady in a wheel chair though....I could have punched him in the throat.

We did a helicopter flight out over Hoover when we were here last time! It was pretty awesome! Chantelles parents will likely want to come to Vegas in a couple of weeks when they get here so we might take them out there too!

We are heading into Death Valley today and I am pretty excited about seeing that!

Death Valley is Amazing and I hope you plan on spending a few days, it is Immense and takes time. I had only planned to ride through and ended up spending three days toodling around :P

Spring is actually the best time, and once every 11 years or so it has a super bloom and the valley is carpeted with flowers. It was a to do thing and I managed to drag a cranky pregnant wife and our toddler through during the last super bloom this year :P
Thoughts of the Ages: Death Valley Super Bloom, cross one more off the bucket list.

It will be crazy hot as it is summer so be super careful, not a good time to be on bikes going through there.

While in Vegas make sure you take a ride through red rock canyon as well, there are wild burros which are often alongside the road.

And Hoover damn you HAVE to see on the inside, soo grand.

T - We had some laundry to do today. It has been a while since we did any and our clean clothes had run out. So we packed up our room and packed the bikes up. There was a laundomat just up the road from our hotel, and while we in theory could have walked there, we chose not too! No point in overdoing things right? I have worked too hard at drinking too much to get this sexy gut of mine. No way am I going to exercise and get rid of it!

It didn’t take us too long to have our clothes washed, dried and packed away again. Both of us now sporting clean smelling, if not clean looking, clothes, we headed off in search of an Ihop. Mm pancakes. My second favourite meal! Next to cereal drowned in cold, full fat milk!

C – Thankfully the lovely brown coffee stain came out of my jeans, although the grease is now a permanent fixture.. it adds character, right?!?!? Todd was super excited about pancakes. I think he thought all his Christmas’ had come at once – a buffet breakfast one day, followed by Ihop the next!

T - Alas this was not meant to be. We ended up stuck in traffic for mile after mile and when we rocked up at Ihop on our overheated bikes we were greeted by a long line of people waiting for a seat. We decided to not line up and instead start the trek out of the city. We had a brief chat with a few people in the car park who were interested in Mabel and Rosie before striking back into the slow moving molasses that was the snarl of traffic today.



C – We had planned to take a few photos of the girls along the strip today, but after battling the traffic one way down the Strip, there was no way we were backtracking to reach our chosen photo spot! Both of us were reaching stages of ‘hangry’ by now and there may, or may not, have been muttered derogatory comments about the skills of other drivers.. Sorry people.

T - Finally we broke free of the slow moving mess and struck out on a back road and away from the city. We had a stop for a quick bite to eat and to grab some fresh oil for the bikes. We were heading into Death Valley today and I wanted to make sure that the girls were filled with nice fresh thick oil in order to handle the crazily high temperatures in the valley.

C – We found what appeared to be a diner and pulled in. I think it actually might have been a chain, but the food was surprisingly good. Although I am sure we both would have eaten raw dog by this point, as it was 1pm and we hadn’t eaten or consumed coffee by this point.

T - We had no option here but to slog out some highway miles. Nevada is strikingly beautiful. It is proper hot desert out there and we loved every minute of it. Even the busy highway didn’t take away from the amazing scenery.



We turned off and headed down towards Death Valley. The vegetation becoming sparser and more sickly and stunted as we descended. The temperature rose and rose and I began to become a little worried about our hard working bikes.

C – We had stopped to look at a free camp site not long after the start of the descent, but it was 5pm, very hot and with no shade. We decided to keep going slowly and wait until the sun had began its descent to get through the valley, figuring it would be cooler for the girls.



T - We pulled over at a place called Furnace Creek Inn where we rested the bikes in the shade and watched as both bikes dripped hot oil onto the ground from their various leaks and engine breathers. When they leak like that we know they are warm!





C – We drank a bunch of lovely, hot water from our water bottles and filled them up from a tap.. which turned out to be hotter than the water in our bottles! Just like straight out of a hot tap!!! Turns out this doesn’t taste so nice when mixed with a rehydration tablet!

T - We had a good half hour rest and then set off again. The shadows on the road starting to lengthen as the sun dropped down into its resting place. I could feel the subtle drop in temperature too and I stopped worrying about the bikes so much.



Turns out though we wouldn’t have been the hottest people out there today. We saw a guy sitting on the side of the road right in the bottom of the valley. He was mending a puncture on his hand cart that he was pushing, yes PUSHING, through this hellishly hot landscape. We stopped to see if we could help him or offer him some water. But he wanted no help, no company and no conversation so we bid him good luck on his crazy walk and moved on.

C – As hot as it was, with a furnace like wind hitting straight into us, the landscape was beautiful and the ride was worth it. There was just absolutely nothing on the valley floor. Nothing – not a scrap of life to be seen. Nothing, nought, nada, zip, zilch nuttin’. It was beautiful and daunting.





T - It wasn’t long before we passed by some sand dunes and started the long slow ascent up and out of the valley. We decided to have another pitstop as it was still very warm and we felt like a cold drink. So we pulled into another place called Stovepipe Wells. We went in and I got an icy cold Gatorade from a soda fountain and Chantelle being the healthy one opted for icy water. When we went to pay for our drinks Chantelle informed the gentleman behind the counter that she only had water if that mattered to the price. Not that it mattered to us. Out here they could charge whatever they liked for the stuff! He looked at Chantelle. Pursed his lips, raised his eyebrows and shrugged. Not uttering a word. He was being openly rude to us. Well. Chantelles blood boiled on the spot. I took a step back as her eyes flashed from bright blue to dark grey and lasers shot out of each one. The guy behind the counter was vapourised on the spot. Nothing left but some hot ash floating in the breeze kicked up by the air conditioning. We left the money for the drinks on the counter and fled outside.

The guy was an ass. No need to be so rude. Customer service seems to be going out the window here as much as it has back home in Australia. And it sucks to see it like that.

C – Seriously, I couldn’t believe that someone could be so rude. I had no problem paying for the water at all... there are still costs with providing ice water (power, cups, straws) and especially when you are running a business in such a remote and desolate area. But seriously, there is nothing wrong with a simple, ‘no, we charge the same price’. I was very close to speaking to my mind when he gave me ‘the look’, but decided to keep my mouth shut. Then I was furious about it, but I realised I was furious at myself for not saying something. So here I am going to say something – please, if you are going to Death Valley, do not stop at Stovepipe Wells. Businesses like that don’t deserve to be patronised. Rant over.

T - We slurped our drinks and cooled down while our bikes cooled off around the corner in the parking lot.





Sufficiently enraged and watered, Chantelle and I decided to ride on some more. There was a camp ground here behind the shop, but no way were we paying another cent into this guys pocket. Even though the camp ground was probably a National Parks one.

Turns out that just up the road was a free camp for tenters only! It had toilets and running drinking water. So we were set!

We put the tent up in the empty camp ground and left the rain fly off. It was warm enough and the sky promised an amazingly clear nights view of the gazillion stars above. We ate some dinner, drank some hot water from the tap and settled down to watch Top Gears Vietnam Special.



C – The heat began to dissipate as soon as soon as the sun began to disappear below the hills around the valley. The evening was very pleasant despite drinking more hot water!!

T - Tomorrow we shall head for..well we don’t really know to be honest. Lets make it up tomorrow!

Loving the report & pics T&C

__________________
My memory is becoming that good, I should be able to organise my own surprise party soon

Thanks so much!

T - So while we ate some weird tasting breakfast and packed up our camp this morning we decided we would head towards Panamint Springs where we would veer off and head south and east. We are keen to meet a member of a Honda CT forum who we have heard some really great things about and figure we can take a couple of days to get there.

We were on the road nice and early which was good as it was quite cool for the final climb out of Death Valley. I really like riding at this time of the morning and later in the arvo just before it gets dark.



We climbed the mountains that ring Death Valley before we zoomed down a fun bit of road that zipped back and forth all the way into Panamint Valley where it then shot out across the valley floor, arrow straight and into Panamint Springs.



It was a fun ride down and we both clutched our bikes in for a bit. Mabel reaching a dizzying 95km/hr! We shot out into the valley and cruised slowly up into Panamint Springs. We had picked a road here that turned left and ran across beautiful nothingness in southerly direction before it joined back up with some major highways.





It was very pretty out here. I love this desert stuff! We passed through a town that looked as though it used to be a prosperous little place but was now full of boarded up, burnt down, and smashed in homes and businesses. There was a large factory here that belched out nasty chemical smells and we just rode straight on through. Our noses stinging and our eyes streaming from the stench.



Eventually we hit the town of Kramer. We decided to turn east from here and head for a place called Amboy. This dot on the map was situated along a stretch of old Route 66 and we were both keen to ride a decent section of it.



Well ‘decent’ is the wrong word for it! The poor old Mother Road was in such bad shape along here. The road torn up with craters and cracks all through it. We tried to grab a photo that showed the state of it, but I am sure there are better parts of the road for that and we shall visit some more of it with Chantelles parents in a week or so.



We finally pulled into Amboy as the sun set on a very warm day. Both of our bikes sat in the driveway of Roys Cafe, ticking and groaning in the heat. Both leaving little oil stains on the dry ground beneath them.





We had a cold drink and enjoyed the air conditioning in the cafe and admired the old diner. The owner chatted to us about the place and told us he did quite well out here from the tourism trade. He then asked us if we wanted to camp behind the old hanger out the back of the cafe as the place we wanted to camp, Amboy Crater, was frequented by BLM staff who kicked campers out.

So we set up our tent on a bit of ground littered with broken glass and bits of Route 66’s past and crawled into bed. We left the rain fly off as it was very warm and left the sleeping bags packed away on the bikes.





Tomorrow we shall head into Joshua Tree and meet up with our friend. Both of us are in need of a shower to wash away the sweat from the last two days of gloriously warm riding.

T - Not too many pictures today. It was a short riding day for us.

Neither of us managed to sleep well last night. The ground out there in Amboy held onto the fierce heat of the day and then radiated it up through our sleeping mats all night. It became a very warm sticky uncomfortable night thats for sure!



We were up and packed very early this morning. Our intention to be over the next set of mountains before the sun got up any heat. Any little bit we can do to help our girls!



We just flew across the landscape today. Straight up and over the mountains and zipped down the other side. It was a very short ride and then we were pulling into 29 Palms. We decided to go and look for a diner for some breakfast. A can of mozzie repellent had decided to empty its contents into our food box just the other day and now everything we had in there tasted like deet. Not so pleasant!



So we filled ourselves up on Dennys pancakes and burritos before heading a short distance up the road to our stay for the next day. The GPS seemed to be a little confused as to where we should really turn and took us partway up a sandy road before we realised we were headed in the wrong direction. At which point Rosie decided it was time she let all the air out of her rear tyre via a nice little hole. Again.



Well I have lost count of the amount of times I have had the rear tyres off on these bikes, but suffice to say I can now change a tyre and tube in less than 10 minutes. Even in the hot sun, in the hot sand, on the side of a busy road.

Soon enough we had the tyre fixed and the GPS rerouted and we were pulling up at Craigs house.

We had a lovely chat and a couple of cold s and had a great time. Eventually time came for us to go to bed. My eyes felt like they were hanging out of my head on stalks and had been rolled around in a kitty litter tray. I was so tired.

I flopped onto the bed and I could hear myself snorting and snoring like an old bull before I even hit the mattress.

We didn’t have too much planned today. Which was lovely! Craig invited us to stay another night if we wished and we gratefully accepted. He then decided to take us out to see Joshua Tree National park.







We had seen some amazing photos that Craigs wife had taken around the place and we were very excited to visit the places she had been.

After an awesome breakfast of cereal and blueberries drowning in milk we piled into the car and went for a drive.



Joshua Tree is stunning. The rocks everywhere are just so damn beautiful. I was so distracted by staring at them that I forgot I had my camera in hand!









Craig showed us through the camps and then took us up to the lookout spot where we could see the San Andreas fault running through the valley below us! Very cool!







Then we went for a quick spin through town before going back to Craigs and spending the evening chilling out and chatting. It was a great way to spend the day as even though we have had a few breaks lately, Chantelle and I are feeling a little weary. We have three weeks off of the bikes coming up and we both know that we shall miss the girls terribly, but it will recharge our batteries before we head south into Mexico! Which we are both getting very excited about!

The day was topped off by Craig cooking us some incredible ribs smothered in herbs and sauce. They were divine and the meat just fell off the bones! I stuffed myself silly and then out came the icecream. Oh my. I may never leave the couch!







We chilled out on the lounge and watched a show about tiny houses. They look like a great idea and maybe its something to put in the memory bank for when we eventually get back to Australia.

Tomorrow we are going to head for LA. Both of us have a yearning to see the coast and the sea. Though I am not looking forward to the LA traffic I must say....

It looks as though we may have a few free days inn the city, so if anyone can suggest some must do, and cheap or free, things to see then please let us know!

T - After another amazing sleep last night it was time to pack up and head for the big city. We decided last night to get up reasonably early and get going through the desert while it was still cool. Mabel has developed quite the leak from her kick start oil seal and when its hot she only needs a few minutes while she is stopped to end up with a nice little puddle of oil underneath her. It’s nothing major as yet, but it’s there and needs to be fixed...at some point.

C – We were up just as the light was starting shine across the desert and it was an absolutely exquisite morning. The desert is certainly at its best at this time of day. We went about packing the bikes up, knowing that the Palm Springs area would rise to higher temperatures today and we wanted to get our girls closer to the coast before the heat got too far over 100!

T - We said farewell to Craig, who has looked after us so well. It has been a difficult past 2 months for Craig and we are so grateful to him for having us over during this time. His wife Ellie is an amazingly talented photographer and we feel blessed to have been able to see her work. Craig gave us some of her photos printed into postcards and we shall carry them with us on our trip. You’re an amazing man Craig and your strength and resolve shall carry you through.





It was such a beautiful morning for riding. There wasn’t too much traffic on the road and both bikes seemed to be singing along. Riding bliss!

We passed through Palm Springs and from there on it seemed as though we were pretty well into the suburbia that sprawls out from LA. We took highway 74 which wound up into some hills. The road full of tight fast turns and dips and rises. Even on a small underpowered and overloaded bike these roads are a blast! We pulled over often to let the much fast moving traffic pass us and which also meant we had a heap of free road to ourselves.

C – The ride through the Santa Rosa National Forest was beautiful and so much fun. These little bikes love the twisty roads and we actually managed to keep up the traffic for a while!

T - We could tell we were into the city surrounds proper when we started to ride on 3 and 4 lane highways. Traffic was fast moving and we stuck to the shoulder, dodging bits of tyre and screws. I would risk a hundred flat tyres rather than a distracted speeding driver smashing into us at full pelt.



C – We had been warned a lot about LA traffic and the tone was set as were coming in. We witnessed a large suburban car decide that they didnt need to stop for red lights. They aggressively changed lanes from behind a car who was stopping for the red light, darted in front of us and just drove through the red light. Todd and I were completely speechless!

T - We had lined up a Motostay for tonight and the GPS did a sterling job of taking us straight to the front door without us having to ride on any Interstate or major highway. Good job Garmin!

Alisa and Edward welcomed us into their home and introduced us to their cat, Mr Purr! I was smitten with Purr instantly, but she was quite aloof, as cats often are when you try to give them some love! We settled in nicely and it wasn’t long before we were immersed in the pool with a few cold s. Ahhh. Such a hard life...





We had an absolute ball with these guys and we were so impressed with all the bikes and bike gear they had! It was like a bikers paradise! Right down to the Ducati parked in the house!





C – It was so wonderful to meet Alisa. I am always inspired by women who work hard to empower other women and Alisa is certainly one these gals! Alisa led a group of women on the Sisters Centenary ride across the USA, following the Van Buren sisters original route... so very cool!!! Alisa has done some amazing ride, including the Trans America Trail and a solo trip to Argentina – you can check out her adventures at motoadventuregal.com.

T - We were treated to a feast of Tri-tip. A cut of meat we had never heard of! Edward was a master BBQer and the meat was soooo good! This pic I stole from Edward....I was too busy shovelling food into my mouth to go and get my camera!



We sat around a chimnea for a little while after dinner and sank a few more s before my eyes began closing. I was off to bed before I fell asleep in the chair outside.



Tomorrow we shall have another day off the bikes. They both need a little maintenance and Chantelles parents are bringing a heap of parts over to the US with them. Mabels rear sprocket is now so bad that the tops of the teeth are starting to shear off, meaning I don’t want to ride her too far or too hard until I can fit new sprockets and chain! Unless there’s a big mountain nearby to climb.....

So we are having 3 weeks off of the bikes while Chantelles parents are here. We are happy to post up our uodates as we travel about in the RV if you lot are interested! Let us know! Otherwise in 3 weeks time we will continue on with our bikes and prep them for the jaunt southwards into Mexico and beyond.