I don’t want a nickel, just want to ride on my motorcycle

Housekeeping: Picture URL is http://www.flickr.com/photos/96983556@N00/

Today we came down from on high, rode through the valley and started on our way back up again.
Michael had decided to face his fear and stand at the edge of the canyon, on a rock without the protective fence. For once, I was considerate enough to wait until he had come back from the edge to tell him that his shoe was untied.

We left the Grand Canyon via the east entrance, Rte 64. This was, by far, a more spectacular route than the road in from Williams. The roads were twisting along the edge of the canyon rim and coming down from the plateau an offshoot of the main canyon ran alongside of the road, reminding us of what we had just seen. We headed east on Route 160 through many small, what the hell do these people do for a living towns, stopping at 4 corners and taking dorky touristy pictures standing in 4 states and 2 nations simultaneously. From there it was straight to Cortez. We got here too late to go to Mesa Verde, which was ok, because thunderstorms hit over there anyway. We’ll hit it tomorrow before we head to Moab.

The theme that has emerged for this trip is cheap eats is the best eats. From 2 Potrillos in Henderson, to the Amigo Café in Kayenta, to Pippo’s Home Cooking in Cortez (although they didn’t have any pie left), we’ve been eating food that hits exactly the right spot. Navajo fry bread is best when made by actual Navajo. Michael had a Navajo taco that was easily the size of his big, bald, bulgy head in Kayenta. So far, we’ve totally undershot my food budget, which leaves more money to give to those billionaires in Vegas.

I’ve never been the biker type, I’ve never bought into the mystique, the lone wolf, the spiritual aspect of the V-twin. But on this trip, I’ve become convinced that the total immersion in the environment that the motorcycle affords you makes the experience much more intense than in the confines of a car, even with all the windows down and the moon roof opened. Now if you do it in a 1970s Cadillac convertible (ether on the dashboard optional, BATS), maybe you can have a similar experience. We’ve been looking from side to side, up and down as much as forward. There’s this really cool rock tower at the intersection of 160 and 491 in absolutely nowhere Colorado, just amazing and not on any National park listing.

Things I never thought I’d see:
A Porsche towing an Airstream

No good musical moments today, although I did confirm that Judy is a Punk by the Ramones doesn’t really fit the riding through the desert motif.

Pigment Quotient, I little lobstery with undertones of wonder bread crust. Though the top of Michael’s head is a little tomatoey.
Money status: Much better than expected with the free dinner from the adventure tourists and the cheap eats situations factored in.

Let’s see if tomorrow we can jam Mesa Verde, 200 miles of mountain roads, and Arches in a day. Probably not at our age. I posted the rest of the pictures from yesterday and today.