Bagdad to Eureka Springs 10 Day Trip

[TonkaDriver]

Off on my first cross country trip. Just shy of 500 miles today in 25 - 35 MPH winds with gusts of 50+. Temps were perfect. I was a little shy on photos today as I had a pretty big goal and a later start than I wanted due to a chiropractor Appt. on the way through Prescott. I will do better tomorrow as I only have about 350 for the day.

US 260 east of Payson on the Mogollon Rim



The Very Large Array of Contact fame for those of you that remember that movie. This is about 65 miles west of Socorro on US-60.







More on Day 2

Kurt.

 

[LadyonaMission]

Kurt, this is so cool. I remember when you were on your way to Texas to pick up your trike, now you are traveling across the country. Have fun.

 

[radismukes]

Ride safe and enjoy the miles of smiles! :clapping: Diane and I will see you Sunday.

Robert

 

[PosseRider]

Ride safe and enjoy the miles of smiles! :clapping: Diane and I will see you Sunday.

Robert

Be safe Robert. Cya in Maggie or Kerrville

 

[radismukes]

Kerrville for sure. Maggie will depend on when Randy schedules Kerrville. :GL1800:

 

[TonkaDriver]

Updates

Unfortunately I will not be able to post more picks until I get my room in Eureka Springs. Internet has been nearly zero since I left Socorro.

Kurt

 

[TonkaDriver]

Day 2

I had a nice stay at a B&B in Socorro and was on the road about 8:00 AM. The route I chose took me through Carrizozo and Tularosa. I wanted to drop down to Alamogordo and Holloman AFB but the winds that were so bad on day 1 did an encore and since White Sands National Monument is just south of the base the wind was creating white-out conditions so I headed east from Tularosa to Roswell and on to Floydada, TX.

On the way up US 70 out of Tularosa.



East of Ruidoso



Trying to get the hang of snapping photos while riding.









This is where I was when my trike turned 20,000 on the clock.

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The ride from Tularosa to Roswell is mostly sweeping curves but once I got east of Roswell it is mostly flat and straight.

 

[TonkaDriver]

Day 3

I didn't have the camera out much today due to weather. I chased the storm that caused all the tornados this weekend all the way across Texas and Oklahoma. At most I had a few sprinkles that spotted my windshield a little but it was a very dark sky with temps down to 65.

This was a construction zone in Texas an hour or so out of Floydada.



I stayed at the K River campground in Moyers, OK. The owner is Adam Sandoval. Check him out on YouTube he does some good videos and some good work for Vets.





This is a treehouse being built at the campground.



Not many photos were good enough to post. It turned out to be a challenging day with wet roads all day and rain gear on for the last 150 miles as I was starting to catch the storm. By the end of the ride I was seeing lightning ahead of me.

 

[TonkaDriver]

Day 4 - Arrival in Eureka Springs

Woke up to sunny skies and dry roads. This was my cabin for the night. Rustic but it kept me dry





This is the War Horse. Adam rode this bike to every Harley dealership in the country.



A big change from day 3





John and Judy (JohnnyB) TriGlide and Robert and Diane (Radismukes) Goldwing - Motor Trike.



More tomorrow.

Kurt

 

[TonkaDriver]

Day 5

I am officially spoiled after just one day of riding the Ozarks. With all the cambered twisties and sweepers it's like your very own amusement park ride everywhere you go. I live in twisties but a lot of ours are flat or off camber. We made two sightseeing stops today. Pea Ridge Battlefield and The War Eagle Mill.











War Eagle Mill

 

[DK Custom Products]

Hey Kurt!

Here's the pic Cristy took of us when you stopped by the shop.

Enjoyed visiting with you, had a great time!

Kevin

 

[TonkaDriver]

Hey Kurt!

Here's the pic Cristy took of us when you stopped by the shop.

Enjoyed visiting with you, had a great time!

Kevin

Truly one of the highlights of my trip.


Thanks,

Home now and am working on editing and choosing photos. Will have it all updated and posted by tomorrow.

Kurt

p.s. Kevin and Mary make ride reports look easy but it is really hard to keep up as the days happen. Sorry for the delay.

 

[DK Custom Products]

Truly one of the highlights of my trip.

Thanks,

Home now and am working on editing and choosing photos. Will have it all updated and posted by tomorrow.

Kurt

p.s. Kevin and Mary make ride reports look easy but it is really hard to keep up as the days happen. Sorry for the delay.

Hey Kurt, it may "look" easy...cause they are not there, and then all of a sudden they appear...but as you well know, each day takes hours of work to show up on the forum.

Thanks for doing it, looking forward to the rest of your trip!

Kevin

 

[TonkaDriver]

Day 6

Rain was in the forecast for Tuesday about 1:00 pm So we took a short ride in the morning and crossed a one lane suspended bridge across the white river. One of the great features of a GoPro is the ability to capture photos.







Then as I was getting back from a quick trip to Walmart, this happened



The storm let up about 4:30 so we were able to get in a ride to Beaver lake and dam.

 

[TonkaDriver]

I agree with both. I am always amazed at the engineering and construction processes involved with building all kinds of major projects. The process for building Roosevelt Dam in Arizona was an incredible undertaking since it is a masonry dam and it was completed in 1906.

Kurt

 

[TonkaDriver]

Day 7

This ride was a trip to Mt. Magazine down the pig trail south of I-40. It was a beautiful ride starting out but got cloudy about half way there. The overlook at the lodge is spectacular on a clear day. Not so much this day.

 

[TonkaDriver]

Day 8 - 10

I got a call from a friend over in Nashville that I had not seen in more than 25 years so I figured I am already 1200 miles from home and in no hurry to get home so off I went to Nashville for dinner. 466 miles and I was there by 3:00.







A little thin on photos but I was pushing to get there. Had a great dinner and I was headed west by 6:30 am. The next two photos are the only ones I took until I was back in AZ. Cherokee Trading Post in Reno, OK and the storm that held me up for about an hour in Amarillo, TX





Finish it off with the next post or two.

Kurt

 

[TonkaDriver]

Day 11 0f My 10 Day Trip

My side trip to Nashville added a day to my trip and except a for the stop at DK it was Interstate until I exited in Winslow and took AZ-87 to US-260 to I-17 This route basically cuts a diagonal from I-40 to I-17 and is way more fun than interstate highway riding. It was brought to my attention that if the only experience a person has with riding in any particular state it the interstate it may give that person a misconception of what is really there to discover. Even a pretty as I-70 through Colorado and Utah are it's like you are seeing in Black and white until you get on the two lane backroads. That said I thought I would show off the little bit of my state that was seen on my last day out.

The first three photos are just off I-40 in Winslow. It is a Hotel named La Posada. Winslow was the headquarters of the Santa Fe railroad and La Posada was a Harvey House witch were stopovers for rail travelers. John Wayne stayed here several times while filming in the area.







This next photo is of the landscape you see around Winslow. This is on AZ-87 on the way south.



The headwind was so strong that with my cruise set at 65 this was my fuel mileage.



About 20 miles south you start seeing trees.





And more trees.



Arizona has the largest contiguous stand of Ponderosa Pine forest in the world.





Sweepers aplenty.



More in next post.

 

[DK Custom Products]

My side trip to Nashville added a day to my trip and except a for the stop at DK it was Interstate until I exited in Winslow and took AZ-87 to US-260 to I-17 This route basically cuts a diagonal from I-40 to I-17 and is way more fun than interstate highway riding. It was brought to my attention that if the only experience a person has with riding in any particular state it the interstate it may give that person a misconception of what is really there to discover. Even a pretty as I-70 through Colorado and Utah are it's like you are seeing in Black and white until you get on the two lane backroads. That said I thought I would show off the little bit of my state that was seen on my last day out.

The first three photos are just off I-40 in Winslow. It is a Hotel named La Posada. Winslow was the headquarters of the Santa Fe railroad and La Posada was a Harvey House witch were stopovers for rail travelers. John Wayne stayed here several times while filming in the area.

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This next photo is of the landscape you see around Winslow. This is on AZ-87 on the way south.

View attachment 72308

The headwind was so strong that with my cruise set at 65 this was my fuel mileage.

View attachment 72309

About 20 miles south you start seeing trees.



View attachment 72310

And more trees.

View attachment 72311

Arizona has the largest contiguous stand of Ponderosa Pine forest in the world.

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Sweepers aplenty.

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More in next post.

I resemble that remark bolded above. :laugh:

Thanks for posting these photo's. We'll definitely be spending some time exploring AZ, especially since one of my brothers is moving there next month.

VERY different than the interstate desert we've ridden thru while going east-west.

Kevin

 

[TonkaDriver]

Wrap-Up

The final 10 pictures are roads I ride on a regular basis. They are so much fun with the elevation changes and the twisties that turn to sweepers that turn to twisties and the views are spectacular.

About 10 miles after turning west on US-260 The landscape turns to juniper and spruce covered grass lands



Then you get about 15 miles of 6% downhill into the Verde Valley





After an eight mile 6% climb out of Camp Verde

this is from AZ-169 between I-17 and AZ-69 in Dewey





Headed west out of Prescott towards home. 62 miles of fun road.











It was a great trip. Everything was as advertised. I met some great people Robert and Diane (Radismukes), John and Judy (JohnnyB) and Mike (Wehrme) in Eureka Springs. The whole gang at DK Custom Products. I found out that my rain gear stops the rain from happening and I will only be rained on if I am not wearing it. Total Miles = 4381. Can't wait till next year.

Kurt