(WARNING: CRAPPY GIFS AHEAD. I'LL ADDRESS THIS IN FUTURE POSTS)
The original plan was to head out of town on Friday evening, find a spot near Glen Rose to camp and then finishing the trek to Austin the next day. Unfortunately it had been raining all week and as of Friday night the weather was still butts.
Fortunately motorcycle jesus was on my side Saturday with the gift of 2 days of the best riding weather in six months.
Despite the setback, I stuck to my same route and cruised through Dinosaur Valley State Park. Twisty, empty park roads under a perfect blue sky meant nothing could stand, or flow, in my way.
My first water crossing with AnDRomeda. I had to take a moment to imagine all of the bad scenarios in advance. Not exactly sure why I do it at moments like this, but my guess is it's a sort of catharsis for bad thoughts that lets my mind stay focused when I actually go for it.
One river down, 200 miles to go.
Hello once again, Cranfills Gap.
The weather setback meant my time on the twisties and dirt roads came earlier than planned. I was actually headed to Austin for a formal party and was running late. I hopped on 183 just north of Briggs and burned the last fifty miles to town. Thai food and cocktails awaited me.
However, I did have one last stop to make.
I'd left my tie at home, so I had to raid the first department store I saw in my offroad boots and body armor . Scared children peeked at me from behind the legs of confused adults as I stomped past, each step punctuated with a click of the steel toe-caps of my boots on the floor. The teenage cashiers, however, were amused more than anything else. Apparently I looked "like a Power Ranger" to them. 5-year-old me took it as a compliment.
First order of business upon my arrival.
The next day brought weather that was just as good. Thanks to something called the Jambulance as well as the good folks at Sparefoot, I wasn't quite as up-and-at-em when Sunday morning rolled around. I eventually arose from of the unfamiliar couch and dropped by to talk to a few friends before heading out of Austin.
It is always with a heavy heart that I leave this beautiful city, but on this day the suffering of separation was soothed by the prospect of the ride ahead. With no deadline to arrive back in Fort Worth, I had time to explore the roads out along Lake Travis and the Balcones Canyonlands National Wildlife Refuge.
I started the right out right, heading west out of town on 2222, then Lime Creek past Volente to Anderson Mill and 1431 through Lago Vista all the way to the Canyonlands. There were curves from wide scenic sweeps around a hillside to sudden hairpin turns, hills to climb and valleys to plunge in to, and tantalizing hill country scenery for the eyes to feast on, and hardly a single straightaway or stoplight to interrupt it. It was the single most glorious ride I've ever been on and I hope to ride it many more times.
I chose Oatmeal, obviously.
A buncha cows. Also saw plenty of goats, but no ostrich sightings like on the way to Colorado Bend.
It got dark on me earlier than I expected, and surprisingly I felt myself getting pretty chilly by the time I reached home. That's just fine by me, since it's a sign that the best motorcycle weather is once again upon us.
I was exhausted but quite satisfied when I took stock of the weekend: 2 days, 537.6 miles, $37.86 in gas, and a green tie.