I'm finally home...

I made it to Moab, Ut Friday afternoon after a great ride through Zion National Park and Capitol Reef National Park. I cruised through town and found the Moab Brewery and stopped for a meal and a couple of beers. I then decided it was time to find a suitable campsite for the next two days. I located a campground just north of town on the Colorado River. Moab is a great little town located right on the Colorado River between two National Parks, Arches and Canyonlands National Parks. Moab brings in tourists who seek all kinds of out door adventures from rock climbing, mountain biking, hiking, dirt biking, and jeeping, etc. I settled in for the night and planned to tour Arches National Park the next day. 

I woke up to a brisk morning in the 40's and had a great breakfast of oatmeal from inside the tent. After getting up and getting moving I warmed up the bike and headed toward Arches National Park. I spent the majority of the day exploring and seeing the sights of the park. The day ended up warming up and it turned into a beautiful sunny day. After touring the park I made my way back into Moab and found a great little Mexican restaurant for an early dinner, late lunch. After I had my fill I toured the town a little, stopped by the grocery store for a few other essentials, and made my way back to camp. I started a fire and began to get things organized for my departure in the morning. 

The moon was so bright the last two nights it was hard to believe it was the moon. I was in a canyon so the moon would creep up from behind the canyon wall around 7:30 pm and light up the entire canyon to the point you no longer needed a flashlight. I was in bed and listening to music by 8:00 pm and asleep shortly thereafter. The next morning I woke up early and broke down camp. I had a 430 mile ride ahead of me home. The first half of the day I spent riding in chilly 30 and 40 deg weather, by early afternoon it had warmed up to pleasant 55 deg. I was home by dark and it was hard to believe that my two week trip was actually complete.   

My camp spot on the Colorado River in Moab, Ut.

All the above pictures are from touring Arches National Park.

My completed trip totals. 

The orange beast and I finally home. 

The last week...

Sorry friends and family. I had every intention of making this a daily thing and of course I failed. So I'm playing catch up. I had a great time in Las Vegas seeing all my friends and family. I had a Halloween party on Friday night, a birthday party on Saturday, then a wedding on Saturday night. In between all the lunch dates with buddies I managed to get in three workouts at my old gym Crossfit 702 with old friends and my brother and sister. It just so happened that SEMA was in town this week too, thanks to George I was able to attend for a couple hours and see some amazing vehicles.

I left Las Vegas yesterday around noon headed for Zion National Park. I had  beautiful ride through Zion and made my way through southern Utah. I ended up stopping for dinner just after dark outside of Bryce Canyon. The goal after dinner was to find a place to came for the night, which became extremely difficult after dark. The 30 deg weather didn't make it any easier either. I ended up finding a place, possibly not a 100% legal place but I was running out of options.

I woke up this morning to a nice brisk 26 deg outside. I got camp packed up early so I didn't get caught some place I shouldn't be. I had my sights set on Moab. I spent the morning riding in 30 deg weather but the scenery through Escalante and Capitol Reef made it worth it. It finally warmed up to the mid 50's which made for an even more pleasant ride into Moab.

As I write this I'm sitting in a brewery in Moab drinking a beer and having a bite to eat. Next on the agenda is finding a suitable campsite for the next couple of days. Stay tuned more to come...

Jessica and I in our Halloween costumes. (its the only costume I had room for on the bike)

Laura and Jessica

Thanks to Kyle's GQ closet I had dress clothes for a wedding. 

One of the many amazing vehicles at SEMA this year.

A couple amazing pictures from Zion National Park.

This was my not so legal, 26 deg camp spot. 

The above pictures are all from Capitol Reef National Park.

Day 5 of vacation

I woke up this morning and went downtown Orange circle and had breakfast with George. Before leaving Ryder was happy to see me as usual. After breakfast we stopped by the hardware store to get a water valve to replace for Granny. George ended up taking me out to Chino airfield where a friend of his has a hanger. In the hanger was a P-51 Mustang that I was allowed to sit in and enjoy. It is a beautiful WWII aircraft that is becoming extinct.

George and I then decided to take a tour of the aircraft museum that is located there. It was an amazing museum and unlike most museums all of the aircraft located in the museum were air worthy and are flown from time to time. After the museum we proceeded back to Granny's to replace the leaky water valve. Granny decided she was going to take the orange beast for a spin, and of course I can't say no to Granny.

George and I went downtown to the last farmers market of the season and had dinner. That concluded the days festivities, I need to get some rest because I was rising early to leave for Las Vegas in hopes of beating the Halloween traffic.

Day 4 of vacation

I got a good nights sleep and woke up and talked with Granny for a bit while giving Ryder some attention. My buddy George ended picking me up and we went and had lunch. A west coast trip would not be complete with out In and Out. From there we made our way to Long Beach to tour the USS Iowa. It was a self guided tour and filled with interesting facts. After the tour we headed to Seal beach to get a nice view of the ocean. While on our way we stopped off and took a peak at a lighthouse. Eventually we made it back to Georges for dinner and home to bed.

Ryder enjoying some attention.

West coast trip isnt complete without In and Out.

Lighthouse...

Day 3 of vacation

I got up and said goodbye to my grandparents. Thank you for the great hospitality. I had a long day on the highway ahead of me with not much to look at. It was a beautiful ride leaving Sedona but that only last about a half hour with traffic. I had 460 miles ahead of  me and I would be hitting L.A. traffic between 4-5pm, rush hour.

Grandma and Grandpa

My trip totals thus far.

Day 2 of vacation.

Well this morning I woke up to a chilly 35 deg outside of Durango. It really made it difficult to get out of my sleeping bag. Once up and moving though it wasn't to bad. My bike was feeling the same way she was slow to start but once warmed up she was ready for another day of adventure. I didn't take many photos today. There wasn't anything that stood out across south west Colorado or north eastern Arizona. Its a lot of desert. I made it to Sedona and had dinner with my grandparents. Time for a good nights sleep because my longest leg of my journey thus far is tomorrow. Sedona to Anaheim, Ca.

Day 1 of vacation.

Today is my first day of vacation. I'm leaving Colorado Springs and heading toward Durango. Ultimately ending up in Southern California and Las Vegas.

The orange beast all loaded and ready to go.

...and I've been ready. 

A couple pics from Hwy 160 on the way to Durango.

...and here's one of the river in downtown Durango.

Camp all set up for the night. Its been one long day.