Started off GREAT - then just kinda dwindled down

May 29, 2003

That night as we sat around marveling at what a great day we had we began to wonder what we could do for the remainingg time.  Looking at a map it seemed that, despite passing through Lajitas, a run to Fort Davis and back around to Alpine and then Study Butte would be a lot of fun.  We were about 1/3rd right.  As usual, I started my morning off by blasting through the canyons for my morning jolt of adrenaline.  Here I had pulled over and was waiting for Garrett and Bill - if you look closely, you'll see Garrett doing his "Jesus Christ - Motorcyclist" impersonation.

Leaving Study Butte (we had breakfast at Ms. Tracy's again, good stuff and no one was asked to "go south") we took 170  through Big Bend STATE Park.  The State Park is actually gorgeous, and if  I were making suggestions to tourists I would say 'make the Fort Davis run first, and THEN go to Big Bend National Park."  The State Park kind of prepares you for the national and this way your trip will build UP as opposed to Down. 

The ride TO and THROUGH the park is absolutely fantastic - for about 1 1/2 hours of the 12 hour experience (more on that in a minute).  I took this picture on the side of the road - what a great house, I would love to wake up every morning to that view, if only I had about a BILLION dollars set aside for my own personal gym and helicopter - as I would need to jog into town once or twice a week for a coffee and some civilization. 

 

These next few shots were all taken at what I consider the middle, or at least the most scenic, part of the state park.  There is a large turn to the right and a pull over to view the Rio Grande.  Here is a shot of Garrett and Bill.  Notice the octopus Garrett is holding? 

As well as one of just me.

 

 

One of the guys and  the bikes at the top of the hill..

 

And one of the bikes looking down the hill

 

 

Here is a picture of the hill and the Rio Grande, so peaceful, so beautiful.  Is there something behind that bush?

Why, yes, there is.  It looks like . . .  the burnt out hulk of an 18 Wheeler down there - someone clearly met the Rabbit of Death and swerved the wrong way

Seriously, no kidding, they told me back in town "we just let 'em burn, come get the body after the fact."  Something I hadn't thought about during those 120mph turns I was taking was how long, exactly, it would take an ambulance to get to me.  Figure, just about the time rigor mortis set in . . .

After Big Bend State Park you basically ride through some flat lands and farming communities until you reach Presidio.  This place was a classic border town except a little poorer than most- no more need be said.  We gassed up, and left a town with about 20 Border Patrol Cars, 100 Pickup Trucks blaring Tejano, and the usual assortment of people, sights and smells. 

We stopped and ate in Fort Davis.  Fort Davis is a cute little town surrounded by some nice geography.  It is a small tourist town, and reminded me of Fredericksburg, TX.  Both towns have a main street with an 'old time' square and buildings that are designed in 1800's Western Style.  Food was good, people were nice, we moved on. 

Leaving Fort Davis we took 118 to the McDonald Observatory.  The McDonald observatory was built in the hey-day of the fast food boom, before McDonald's decided that their philantrhopic monies were better spent on "Ronald McDonald House."  Maybe in the future we will visit the "McDonald ICBM Site," or even the "McDonald School for Future Porn Starlets."   One can only hope - though I suspect the "Hamburglar" has some vile role in the upbringing of future starlets, doesn't he have a cousin named the "Hamfondler"? . . but I digress.  118 had a couple of decent twists and turns but was mostly fairly flat and straight.  A couple of good twisties was enough to keep it interesting though.  Here are a couple of shots of Garrett, Bill and I on an overlook on 118.

 

Here is a picture with the observatory on the horizon.  It is amazing, really, that you can see something and then ride for 20 more minutes before you get there.  We saw this damn dome nearly half an hour before we got to the top of it.  Here is a shot from on top of the observatory - no one was amused by my request for 'two all beef patties, special sauce, lettuce, cheese."

 

Here are a couple of shots taken from the observatory:

        

What sucks is that when you look out you think 'man, there are some great roads out there - let's get to it' but you are wrong.  We discovered that the great roads  aren't here.  Here, what you find are straight, flat, unimaginative roads going AROUND all the cool places but not through them.  Really, really frustrating to see all the places where a nifty curvaceous road would be - and then riding a flat square piece of pavement right by it.

We took 166 loop to 118.  The 166 loop is clearly a pointless piece of pavement going AROUND the Davis Mountains.  More than once I was yelling into my helmet as I looked at a terrific piece of Terra Firma that deserved a great road but instead had goats grazing right where I should be riding . . damn goats.  We did see a wild mountain goat and some kind of deer looking little thing with twisty little horns sticking up.  It was so delicate, elegant and graceful I couldn't help but pull over and shoot it right between those big, soft, dewy brown eyes.  I was going to have it mounted on my wall - but who has the time?  Hopefully it wasn't the last of its kind in the area, I doubt that vultures appreciate exotic game any more than they do dead armadillo.

We took the 166 to 118 and rode that all the way through Alpine and back to the hotel.  We all agreed that the first 2 or even three hours were nice, but the rest of the riding could have been 'anywhere Texas' - big, open spaces with lots of nothing to see.  We ate our dinner at Tivo's (again) because Ms. Tracy's isn't open in the evening, then we headed home.  Here is a shot of another great sunset in Terlingua, Texas.

On with the Trip

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