Triumphrat

Catenaccio · 07-21-2009, 01:32 AM

My youngest son and I make at least one trip together each year, in part for me to get even for my wife letting him have the Speed Four two years ago. This year we decided to go to the North Rim by way of Moqui Cave and Pipe Spring National Monument.

The first part of the ride followed the warm up we'd done a couple of weeks beforehand. My son had given me a Camelback for Father's Day. (I already had one, but shied from the truth and thanked him for the gift, then gave him the old Camelback on the day of this ride for this trip.) Our first stop was Moqui Cave on the outskirts of Kanab, UT. http://www.moquicave.com/ A tourist trap for sure, but innocent enough. The place claims to have the world's best collection of florescent rocks - and that may be true, but who's going to spend the time refuting such a statement?

My son outside the cave entrance.

We went through Kanab, then into Fredonia, AZ, then west to Pipe Spring NM. It's an outpost built by Mormon cattlemen in the 1800s. The place is a fortress with gun ports, a lookout tower, and a spring contained within the walls to supply water and cooling. http://www.nps.gov/pisp/

Here we are enjoying the 116 F before walking into the visitor's center. When we returned to the bikes, my digital thermometer was reading 150 F in full sun light. Later, it stopped working.

There are ponds fed by the spring, which runs under the floorboards inside the fort and under the courtyard into a "spring room."

Catenaccio · 07-21-2009, 01:38 AM

Inside the "spring room" is a trough which supplied the fort with H2O and acted as a kind of refrigerator.

The water flowed outside. It used to flow 40 gpm but recent earthquake activity has cut the flow to just 7 gpm. The ranger said the water was projected to dry up in 20 years.

A pic of the gun ports to fend off hostiles.

Catenaccio · 07-21-2009, 01:46 AM

The north side of the fort was built into the hillside. From the second floor bedroom on the east side, one could walk to the outhouse, the stables, and the corrals.

The first telegraph in Arizona ended at the fort, affectionately known as Winsor Castle.

A view from the 2nd floor headed into the courtyard.

A pic of the east gate, which reminded me of old courtyards in Italy.

Catenaccio · 07-21-2009, 01:55 AM

A view of the Vermilion Cliffs and the old bunk house.

When a cowboy "hit the hay" for the night, it was on real hay.

HiDesert lost his pet lizard while he was vacationing in Tucson. I found it scurrying about in this doorway. It appeared malnourished and dehydrated.

The commemorative plaque on the corner of the fort.

Catenaccio · 07-21-2009, 02:05 AM

The cops in Fredonia were anything but friendly. In fact, they were anything but human. It took me two glances and a slow drive-by to figure out this guy wasn't real. The good thing is he didn't impede progress.

We had a lunch of prepackaged sammich and Diet Coke before heading southeast on Alt 89 to Jacob Lake. If you stare directly into the picture for 8-10 hours, you'll see the band of color called the Vermilion Cliffs which stretch for about 100 miles.

Jacob Lake Inn isn't near a lake. But it does have a new addition which was comfy. We took a couple of hours to cool down in the air conditioned room before heading for the North Rim.

See the helmet sitting near the air conditioner? Could that be on purpose? Ehm, could be.

Catenaccio · 07-21-2009, 02:21 AM

The ride to the North Rim is beautiful but a bit tedious what with slow posted speeds, motorbarges trundling along, and rubberneckers salamandering down the macadam. We did our best to disrupt the traffic patterns eventually arriving at the North Rim Lodge. I was in a bit of a dither, anxious to see the sites as witnessed by this snappie.

And here's the Lodge from below.

Brighty of the Grand Canyon was my first grown-up book, given to me by my parents on my 8th birthday. Brighty's statue can be viewed inside the lodge. I threatened to give a copy of the book to my son for his daughter. He looked at me and said "I'll just throw it away." Dang kid takes a man's Speed Four then refuses a highbrow literary work like that? Incredible!

Since my last visit, the windows had been replaced.

Catenaccio · 07-21-2009, 02:29 AM

I'll minimize the dribble and let the pics speak for themselves and the area.

Catenaccio · 07-21-2009, 02:42 AM

Cape Royal was my favorite destination for three reasons: the incredible views, the ride in was amazing - lots of twisties and turns - some doubling back on themselves, and the ride out being the same only in reverse and in the dark. Trees dappled the sunlight, motorists cussed at "those idiots on sport bikes," and we saw the Colorado River from miles away.

A window for your Colorado River viewing pleasure.

Now with a close-up of the river.

Severe lighting conditions make striking contrasts...

And beautiful colors emerge.

Catenaccio · 07-21-2009, 02:51 AM

I've seen amazing places and hope to see many, many more. But this big hole in the ground really is a one-of-a-kind journey into personal discovery or personal insignificance.

I figured if one carried enough speed into this loop, one could make it to the South Rim. Where's Evel Knievel's rocket bike when you need it?

Catenaccio · 07-21-2009, 02:58 AM

The sun was setting and I had miles and miles to go before I slept...at Jacob Lake Inn...the place without the lake.

So off to the trusty steeds...

To nice supportive beds without visible hay...

And a long mid summer's night with dreams of more riding in the morning.