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Buellish
| | Posted on Saturday, July 25, 2015 - 05:49 am: | 
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I don't think I've ever seen a Sportster with that much gear on board.Who says Sportsters aren't touring bikes!Thanks for the pics Crusty,puts an image to the words. |
Crusty
| | Posted on Saturday, July 25, 2015 - 08:04 am: |
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State # 31
Friday morning
I’m in Maine at Megan and Rocky’s place. There’s no good way to get here. If I take back roads, I’m stuck in the bumper to bumper traffic of tourists and beach goers and if I take the Interstate, I’m stuck with tolls. It really galls me to have to pay $2.00 to go 20 something miles in New Hampshire and then have to shell out $3.00 to ride 47 miles in Maine; but I’d rather spend the five bucks than sit still in traffic on Route 1 while my engine just keeps getting hotter. That’s one thing about the Northeast; the politicians sure love collecting Tolls. But, hey; they need the money. Or somethin’.
I arrived just after lunch time yesterday and Megan and I went out in the car and she showed me where a few different places were. We hit the local Supermarket to pick up a few items, and she showed me where she likes to run for exercise (I don’t run at all; my ankle won’t allow it) on the way back home. She also showed me where the Laundromat is, so I can wash my sleeping bag, and we stopped at a local Ice Cream shop. I love good ice cream, and I wasn’t disappointed. I have a particular fondness for Strawberry, and they made it right with big chunks of strawberries in the ice cream, as well as really good flavor and smooth consistency. Both of the kids had to go to a rehearsal last night (they’re both acting in a play) so I had a quiet, laid back evening. I watched a few episodes of Arrow on Netflix until they got home.
I made a list of the states I’ve been in on this trip, and I’m up to 31. It will, of course get bigger as I get into Phase 2 of my summer run. I’ll be adding a few southern states as I head for Texas and California, and I’ll pick off Vermont and Connecticut when I head out next week, which will polish off the Northeast. If I was smart, I’d head north now, while it’s the middle of summer and pick up a few Canadian Provinces, but I really have the itch to ride the Chesapeake Bay Bridge/Tunnel. I’ll see how I feel when I head out next week. The only thing I’m certain of is that I won’t be heading east; or not for long if I do.
Saturday morning
Yesterday, Rocky took the day off from work, and he and Megan acted as tour guides. We went to a Local donut shop, and we each got a donut. The donuts were unlike any that I’ve ever eaten. The texture of the cake was kind of, um, rubbery, though that doesn’t really describe it. They were huge and they tasted really good. I enjoyed my Maine Blueberry donut and I would not hesitate to recommend one to anyone. The name of the place is the Holy Donut. They didn’t have any filled donuts. They were all traditional in shape. We then drove around and looked at a few lighthouses. The harbor around Portland is full of rocks and Islands, and there are several lighthouses to look at. Rocky took a picture of Megan and I at the Bug Light lighthouse. I’m going to try to attach it to this. Hopefully, I paid attention well enough when Rocky was instructing me yesterday. If I get it wrong, I’ll get some help when he wakes up in a little while.
For lunch, we went to Salvage BBQ in Portland, and I have to say that it was some really good BBQ. I got a Chopped Pork sandwich (Pulled Pork) and a side order of Pinto Beans. The meat was very tasty with a nice smoked flavor. We parked out back near the smoker. The cook knows what he’s doing. The beans were very good; cooked with some chili powder and cut up onions and I don’t know what else, but I’d say to try them if you like beans at all. When I go back, I’ll get them again. Of course, I ate too much (again!), and it made me pretty lethargic for a good part of the afternoon. ( which is why I’m having trouble remembering how to attach photos to this Snippet). We did manage to stop at Walmart and I finally got a 2 GB memory card for my camera. I think it’s good for something like 8,000 photos, so now all I have to do is start taking pictures. That’s definitely easier said than done.
Last night, Rocky’s sister, mother and his mother’s boyfriend came over for dinner and to play cards. We sat at the table and played a card game called Phase 10. I have to say that they can be pretty ruthless when it comes to cards, and the name calling was unexpectedly rough. I had a great time, as did everybody else. While I couldn’t bring myself to call any of the others the names they were using, some of the phrases used were colorful, to say the least.
I’m not sure what’s on the agenda for today, but it should be a good day whatever happens. |
Desert_uly
| | Posted on Saturday, July 25, 2015 - 10:59 am: |
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How could I not have noticed that your trip reports were lacking photos? This should be an added bonus to supplement some great writing skills, keep them coming. |
Ocbueller
| | Posted on Saturday, July 25, 2015 - 08:11 pm: |
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Crusty,
I am in Berlin,Md. right off of Rt. 113 your direct road to the bridge/tunnel. If I can offer you a bed or a tour, let me know. It's peak tourist season for another two weeks. Travel on weekdays advised.
SteveH |
Crusty
| | Posted on Sunday, July 26, 2015 - 11:03 am: |
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I’m eating Humpty Dumpty brand BBQ potato Chips and drinking a 1/2 Liter bottle of Pepsi for breakfast. I debated it in my head for a while before deciding to go for it. I know that it isn’t really a healthy meal, but I don’t care; it’s what I want. Every so often I enjoy doing things that aren’t really that good for me. Then again, it’s not THAT bad for me either. I remember one night back when I was still Mining. I’d gone out to dinner with Bob Passarini, who was a Power Lifter and was into eating Healthy. Bob was giving me grief about how much salt I was putting on my food. I looked at him and said, “Bob; I work under Boston Harbor and blow up rock for a living. Do you really think I’m going to worry about a little salt?” He let the subject drop. Sometimes, I just have to cut loose; the trick is to cut loose without getting really self destructive. A little Pepsi and some potato chips is not really good for me, but it’s not on the same level of destructiveness as trying to run across I-95 at rush hour, juggling chain saws or guzzling a bottle of Jack Daniels. (by the way, the Humpty Dumpty BBQ chips are way too salty for my taste. I’m done eating them. I will finish the Pepsi, though.
Yesterday, Megan, Rocky and I took the ferry over to Peaks Island. We walked around the circumference of the island which was about a four mile walk. By the time we made it back to the ferry, my ankle was hurting pretty intensely. I hadn’t brought my cane, which was a mistake, but I completed the walk, which was a big success. This morning, however, my ankle is really stiff and I don’t think I’m going to do a whole lot of walking today. The views we saw on the island were worth it, though. It was really beautiful and I felt like I was on the Maine coast; a very rocky coastline with lots of rocky islands within sight. We could see four different lighthouses and it’s easy to understand how there were so many shipwrecks over the years nearby. I think Rocky took 200 pictures. Digital cameras are pretty cool in that if you take a picture you don’t like, you just hit the Delete button and it goes away with no wasted film or developing necessary.
After we returned from Peaks Island, we made out way over to Rocky’s Aunt Sue’s house for dinner with his side of the family. There were a lot of people there who I didn’t know, but the food was wonderful and I ate well. I watched the Red Sox get their butts whipped, and I talked with a few of the people there. One thing about me is I have a really bad memory for names. I don’t know who I talked with, but I had a few pleasant conversations. After a while we left and went home.
It’s raining right now and it’s looking like today is going to be a laid back day. Megan said something about going to see a movie later. Not a bad thing to do on a rainy day.
Here's a couple of photos Rocky took of me and Megan:
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Crusty
| | Posted on Tuesday, July 28, 2015 - 07:57 am: |
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Back To The Burg
In a couple of hours, I’m going to be heading over to the Cardiologists. I don’t expect to hear any bad news, and I’ve dropped an honest 25 pounds since Christmas morning. (on Christmas, I weighed 241.8 lbs. This past Sunday I weighed 216.6) This is why I’m not anticipating any bad news. This afternoon, however, I’m seeing my Urologist for a Cystoscopy. While I’m also expecting good news, the procedure itself is one that any male that I know would hate to have done. It is necessary, though. I may hate the procedure, but I’d hate having cancer more.
It was an interesting visit with Megan and Rocky. I got to see some really nice parts of Maine, and I got to get to know some of his family members a bit better. They’re a pretty neat bunch of folks, and they all seem to be pretty damn good cooks. I’m pretty sure I gained weight over the past few days, but I don’t mind in the least. I don’t think I’m quite ready to play Whist with them, though. I’d be playing well out of my league. Aunt Sue seemed to be a very Real person as well as a superb cook, Rocky’s mom, Cynde is another Real person, and a live wire when she’s playing cards. (she can cook, too! Sunday night’s dinner was wonderful.) I also like Rocky’s sister Angela; she has a strong personality and a twisted sense of humor; both are assets in my opinion. The rest of the family is a bit confusing to sort out, but they all seemed like pretty good people.
It was a bit of a whirlwind tour for me. While Thursday had a bit of downtime while the kids were at a rehearsal for a play they’re both going to be in, the rest of the weekend was pretty much non stop. It was a fun but very busy time.
I left Maine yesterday morning and took an assortment of backroads back to Fitchburg; arriving just before Noon. I really hate paying extortion in the form of tolls, so I used Mapquest to plot a route that avoided them. One nice part is that it didn’t take much longer than the route with tolls; another benefit is that I got to see more of the less congested parts of Maine and New Hampshire. Anyhow, I got back and gave my sleeping bag to Dondi, who’s going to sew the zipper tape where the stitching is coming loose. (a stitch in time saves nine!), then went over to Ernie’s to look at his bike and try to diagnose why it’s starting to misbehave. I think there’s some crap in the low speed jet (the bike suddenly doesn’t want to idle), but I didn’t have the tools with me to take the bike apart enough to check things out. This morning, I’ll go by my storage and pick up a couple of tools then tomorrow, I’ll go see what I can see. When you’re working on a 30 year old bike, things that should be easy, become much more work. Screws that should be a piece of cake to remove are frozen and would much rather strip out than turn. However, we are nothing if not determined.
I still can’t decide whether to go north or south when I set back out. It’s mid summer, and now would be the best time to check out Canada. I have my Passport with me, so going north is feasible, but I really have the itch to ride over the Bridge/Tunnel, even though I know it’s peak tourist season. Logically, I should head toward New Brunswick, but my inner Captain Peachfuzz is saying to go toward Virginia. I’ll probably do like I did on the first day of this journey and decide when I head out. Knowing me, I’ll probably go west to get a steak in Kansas City. |
Natexlh1000
| | Posted on Tuesday, July 28, 2015 - 04:29 pm: |
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My favorite method of invading maine is via route 1 at night/early morning.
The owl's head bike day is coming up in Sept 5 or 6. If I manage to get out that day, that's my chosen method  |
Crusty
| | Posted on Wednesday, July 29, 2015 - 06:02 pm: |
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A Brief Medical Update
Yesterday, I had appointments with two specialists that could have serious effects on my life. My first appointment was with my Cardiologist. Everything looks and sounds O.K. with my heart. Dr. Robotis is very happy that I've lost 26 pounds since Christmas. He wants me to lose another 20 pounds and get down to 200. I told him that my goal is to get down to 180, and that made him smile broadly. When I told him that I'd retired in December, he was impressed that I was doing so well. He said that many people let their health go to hell when they retire, but I was looking happier and I was healthier than I was before. I guess that being a Tramp is my true vocation.
My Urologist was happy with the Cystoscopy. I was watching the monitor as he moved the scope all around my bladder, and he pointed out how everything looked healthy and normal. he was going to schedule my next cystoscopy for six months from now, but I told him that I want to be in Australia through the winter (Northern hemisphere) months. So he scheduled it for mid November. That way, I'll be able to head out in November,and return in the Spring. He's also happy about my traveling and wants me to send him a postcard from Australia when I go.
In other words, I'm healthy and happy and my Doctors are pleased. |
Airbozo
| | Posted on Wednesday, July 29, 2015 - 06:31 pm: |
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Woo hoo!
Healthy heart, healthy bladder, traveling to be happy. I'm jealous (about the traveling part). |
M2owner
| | Posted on Wednesday, July 29, 2015 - 07:59 pm: |
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So are you going to ship the Sporty to Australia or find something else to ride? Good news on all the good news. Thanks for sharing all this. |
Crusty
| | Posted on Wednesday, July 29, 2015 - 09:56 pm: |
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So are you going to ship the Sporty to Australia or find something else to ride?
I have a 1979 XLCH that I built for the 8th Australian Hog Rally (Which was in March of 1997) that's patiently waiting for my return in Ron & Melia's garage. It'll need some work, I'm sure; but I think I'll be able to whip it back into shape. |
Etennuly
| | Posted on Wednesday, July 29, 2015 - 10:19 pm: |
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Hey Crusty.....that is ALL @%^&*#% AWESOME! |
Bluzm2
| | Posted on Thursday, July 30, 2015 - 11:12 pm: |
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Great news John, really glad to hear it.. |
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