Last year when the gas prices where so high I gave in to Doug's wishes to buy a motorcycle. Truthfully it hasn't saved us any money. As with any "toy" accessories are always required as well as tune-ups etc.
Anyway...
Our good friends Chris and Rachelle Parker were going on a motorcycle trip for their Anniversary (it has become a tradition with them for their Anniversary and one that we participated in a couple of years ago) and they asked Doug if we would like to come along. Doug told me he was going with or without me. With his broken leg I was hesitant to get on the bike with him but he said it would be fine and he was really excited to do something that he would normally do. This year the plan was to go to Colorado via Vernal, UT, go to Steamboat, CO, Rocky Mountain National Park, Colorado National Monument and back home on I-70.
If you've never done a motorcycle trip I actually recommend it. It's like being on the lake in your boat. You feel the wind, you smell everything better and other bikers wave! You do get saddle sore though, but that's OK 'cause you just look for places to stop (something you wouldn't normally do in a car). We stopped at one point of interest stop and learned that a huge fire had burned up all that you could see at one point--something I would never have found out if I had traveled in the car.
It threatened to rain on us a few times but we seemed to be in the right place at the right time for all the storms where we either just missed it or just pulled into a town when it hit so we could get to shelter. I love the smell of rain on hot asphalt and the smell of fields just after a rain. Not something you would experience in a car!
Things I don't like about the motorcycle, getting saddle sore, going faster than 70 miles an hour, having the communication system, along with your music die because of the battery, long drive with nothing to see-- for example from Vernal to Steamboat and I-70--Utah part with no communication system!
I loved eating out, hanging out in the hot tub every night, reconnecting with Doug, spending time with just adults for longer than 2 hours (something I haven't had since the twins were born).
Had to make a stop here, not for the restroom but because Doug wanted to buy some moccasins to put on his broken foot--his toes were getting too cold...
Colorado National Monument
View from Colorado National Monument
Bear Lake in Rocky Mtn. Nat. Park