Jenny and I relaxing by the wood stove a few days before the start of my trip. I'm extremely fortunate to have a loving and very supportive wife.

Humming bird from our kitchen window

Grand Canyon National Park

I rode two-up on this trip - Max and I. She was made in China so doesn't speak much English :) But she's very cute, and Jenny likes her as well. She was with me for seven weeks altogether, including a month on the bike - before I somehow lost her in Fairbanks, AK. (This trip and the next one to Alaska were back-to-back.) I will have to look for another mascot for next year, but for now, I'm getting ahead of my story.

Speaking of mascots, some of my readers might remember "Sparkle" of last year's Alaska trip. I still have her, and every time I go to the grocery store, I see that they are still selling this cute squirrel dog toy. The company must have made millions of them.

I met this gent in Williams, AZ, as he was touring the country at age eighty-three. Said he got tired of dropping his bike in his driveway, so switched to the three-wheeler. He said its not nearly as much fun, and he has to take the curves nice and slow; but the three-wheeler can go really fast on the highway.

A very nice buckboard, found in Williams, Arizona. I'm thinking of the contrast between the old buckboard and the modern motorcycle. Technology has come a long ways. Nevertheless, my motorcycle still has spoked wheels, as they are the strongest off-road.

Route 66 - Williams, AZ
In my youth, my dad took the family from Colorado to California on Route 66. I remember the small gas stops, and the Painted Desert and Petrified Forest. But what I remember most was the length of the trip. it was a very long ways.

James and Gina's cabin in the town of Big Bear Lake. They invited me to use the cabin for as long as I pleased. But I was on a trip, so I stayed for only two days. But it was the best two days ever, and I really enjoyed my time there.

Good friends and fellow adventurers James and Gina. I've known James for 25 years.

Sequoia

Flowers in the parking lot of the General Sherman Tree

When on a motorcycle trip, I frequently eat sandwiches. They are quick and easy to make, fairly nutritious - depending on the ingredients - and quite sustaining, calorie wise. The challenge is to buy good bread, which the bread in this photo barely qualifies. And rather than filling the sandwich with glop shown in this photo, I usually buy sliced cheese, fresh salad greens, and peanut butter smeared on the inside or outside. I avoid any kind of sandwich meats because they are typically loaded with unhealthy chemicals. And please note that I'm not recommending these sandwiches, but only describing what works for me.

No chicken strips on this tire. Lots of twisty roads, going fast and leaning the bike far over. Fun! ("Chicken strips on motorcycle tires are the unworn sections of rubber on the outer edges of the tires, often seen on new tires or bikes that haven't been leaned into turns enough. They are associated with the perception that a rider is too "chicken" to lean the bike fully in corners")

El Cap

Tuolumne

Typical rest stop to stretch the legs

Sulphur Works, Lassen Volcanic National Park

The card reader didn't work on my side of the pump, but it did on the other side.

Taking a break at the Tree of Heaven Campground

Pebble Beach Dr., Taking a day off in Crescent City

Northcoast Marine Mammal Center, rehabilitation facility for seals and sea lions

Trees of Mystery, Paul Bunyan

Lady Bird Johnson Grove Trail, Redwood National and State Parks

Hayden

The dog trying to ignore an elk in our front yard

Each year we find the occasional snake on our property. Usually gopher snakes. They harmless and docile to humans (who treat them with care) but extremely beneficial to the environment. In this photo, Jenny is giving a gopher snake a drink.

The Milky Way, photo taken from my front porch with an iPhone