This year the annual motorcycle trip was cut short by rain. Originally, the trip was planned to go to Big Bend National Park but the forecast showed that it would be a wet ride. It was then scaled back to going to Sonora TX to see the caves and go into the hill country but at the last minute the rain chances increased from 30% to 50%. This wasn't looking enjoyable either. So the trip was planned around the forecast and Abilene TX became the base camp destination. Of course the route would be the road less traveled.
Trip Stats: 522 Miles, moving speed average 50 MPH, overall speed average 38 MPH and maximum altitude 2028 ft (note that Plano is at 671 ft). Aren't GPS units too cool? As you can see it is up hill when traveling west. The travel times are unknown because a basic requirement for these trips is to leave the watch at home. You can do the math if you want to see how much time was spent in the saddle.
Best Meal: Hammond's BBQ Located on the north side of Glen Rose Hwy. 67. Great Q and cobbler!
Some throw over saddle bags were added to the Sportster to make it more convenient to take a road trip. The o'l sporty looks pretty good all kited out.
The Outbound Route: 28 Aug 2008 - Plano, Grand Prairie, Weatherford, Mineral Wells, Palo Pinto, Caddo, Breckenridge, Albany and destinating in Abilene. A surprise view was encountered when approaching Abilene from the north. This was one of the West Texas Wind Farms. There were miles and miles of electrical generating windmills. The wind farm was built by American Electric Power and consists of a quantity of 100 - 1.5 megawatt turbines on Hwy. 351.
The plan was to stay 2 days and explore the area around Abilene but Abilene was found to be a "zero" on the scale of interest for tourists. There were a few museums which didn't pique much interest and the restaurants were chains. That coupled with a forecast with an increased chance of rain resulted in cutting the trip short. Abilene is best described as the Gateway To West Texas but not much of a destination. Perhaps the frustration was because Abilene wasn't the first or second choice. Others may have a more enjoyable experience there. However, this was the last time Abilene will make an entry in the o'l "Motorcycle Diary".
It's always amazing at how far a person can see in West Texas. The only way to see further is to look up at the stars. Then again, in West Texas you can really see the stars. There is little light pollution out there.
The Return Route: 29 Aug 2008 - Abilene, Eastland, Carbon, Gorman, De Leon, Dublin, Stephenville, Glen Rose, Cleburn, Alvarado, Midlotian, Dallas, and destinating in Plano. The probability of getting rained on went to one when passing by Alvarado. Fortunately, it only rained heavily for 15 minutes. Rain sure takes the enjoyment out of a motorcycle trip.
A pass through Dublin TX is a must for anyone in the southern part of the U.S. Understand that Dublin is the home of the world's oldest Dr Pepper bottling plant making it qualify as a shrine. Everyone knows that an eatery that doesn't sell Dr Pepper will soon be out of business. The plant is still in operation and was for many years the only U.S. source for Dr Pepper made with real cane sugar rather than less expensive corn syrup. Now days, for a price, you can purchase Dr Pepper, "the Dublin recipe" in many stores.
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Often the trip through Glen Rose is a non-stop to some other destination. On this trip time was devoted to go through the Dinosaur Valley State Park. There are dinosaur tracks that have been captured in the ground there. During the Cretaceous period the Acrocanthosaurus (20 to 30 foot long two legged carnosaurs and a 30 to 50 foot long Pleurocoelus left their tracks which were filled in with silt and preserved. These were the early ancestors for the larger and more famous Tyrannosaurus rex and the Brontosaurus (pictured above). During the Cretaceous period Glen Rose was under the ocean (at the edge of the ocean). Large dinosaurs would use the water's buoyancy to more easily support their weight but they were quite capable of walking on land without dragging parts. While looking in an indentation that was marked as "tracks" it was impossible to determine what shape containing a puddle of water was meant to be a track. Upon standing back the realization that the indentation that was being surveyed in was in fact "the track". These creatures had REALLY big feet.
Summary: It was a good trip. About half of that planned but still a good trip. South Texas will be the target again next year.
