DK's Definitive Ride Report - Some of the Best Scenic Roads Out West - Tons of Photo'

[TGCarol]

Yay So happy. I just love your ride reports Kevin and Mary. Be safe out there and have a great time.

[Gone2Three]

Thank you for sharing your pictures with us Kevin, and Mary I appreciate the cloud pictures. Our son likes to take them when we travel as well.

Really nice to finally see a picture from the TT gathering in Eureka Springs...they must be camera shy.

Enjoy your trip and I'll be watching for your amazing adventure updates

[DK Custom Products]

Day 3-

Our first full day in Eureka Springs, headed out in the morning on the 302....



...ES is all about the twisties, and riding them with friends...



...we're on the 221 now.* One of Mary's cloud pics.* We knew it was going to be a short day, sometime this afternoon thunderstorms are supposed to roll thru, but right now it's perfect!



Headed toward some curving roads that wander thru some hills and hollers...



...with a river every now and then.



Back in some curves now....



and more curves as we get on the 311.



The 311 heads up into Missouri....



It has sweepers, tight turns, hills and great views of the countryside.



Today is the first day to sorta stretch our legs and enjoy the twists, turns, hills, and views.



​​​​​​​More in next post....

[DK Custom Products]

Day 3-

The 311 is a great road, full of a little of everything...



...there was very little traffic, finally getting out and just riding for the pure pleasure of seeing what's over the next hill....



...and around the next curve.



One of the lakes we passed by.



Only once in my life did I have my fill of curves in a day....today is not that day, we're thoroughly enjoying the ride!



Crossing into Missouri, at the town of Blue Eye.



It wasn't much of a town, but they had a Hillbiilly Glass Shack and a Hillbilly Squat Pot. lol



We stopped for gas and took a look at the radar. EEEKKKK, there is a huge green, yellow and red mass just outside of Eureka Springs...headed straight for the motel.

We hightailed it out of there, with Zammy leading the way. It looks perfectly fine, 35 miles away...



...but as we get closer (we're still 15 miles out here), it is not looking so good.



We have rain suits, and we don't mind riding in the rain...but this is a pretty heavy thunderstorm, as seen in this pic.



We rolled into the motel parking lot, right as some big drops were starting to fall. Can't get any more perfect ride and timing than that.



The rest of the afternoon and evening was spent swapping stories with other Trike Talk Members. Good times!

Kevin

[Trail Blazer]

Darlene and I had a great time, the rides was good, the food was good, and the visiting was great. A great group of folks. meet some old friends and made some new one.

we got home Friday about 7:00 pm. and almost bet the rain, got wet the last 75 miles.

Hope all get home safe

Jr. & Darlene

[DK Custom Products]

Great pics Kevin, thanks for posting. You & Mary have a great time on the road, have fun & be safe.

Thank you, glad you enjoy, lots more to come, we're just getting started.

Have a great trip Kevin and Mary. Really enjoy your postings and photos. I'll have to up my game to stay in league with you guys! Ride safe. Looking forward to comparing notes of our trips when you get back home.

Thank you. Looking forward to it!

Yay So happy. I just love your ride reports Kevin and Mary. Be safe out there and have a great time.

Thank you! Good to hear you enjoy!!!

Thank you for sharing your pictures with us Kevin, and Mary I appreciate the cloud pictures. Our son likes to take them when we travel as well.

Really nice to finally see a picture from the TT gathering in Eureka Springs...they must be camera shy.

Enjoy your trip and I'll be watching for your amazing adventure updates

Yeah, I'm sure there will be many more cloud pics.

Thank you! I'll be trying to update every day, or at least every few days.

Darlene and I had a great time, the rides was good, the food was good, and the visiting was great. A great group of folks. meet some old friends and made some new one.

we got home Friday about 7:00 pm. and almost bet the rain, got wet the last 75 miles.

Hope all get home safe

Jr. & Darlene

Hey Jr., was great spending some time with you and Darlene, really enjoyed it. Glad you got home with minimal rain. We rode with no rain today...last 5 hours was in 93-97* temps....no clouds.

Kevin

[DK Custom Products]

Day 4 Part I-

Today we rode the A23/Pigs Trail, had lunch in Oark, paid respects to Larry Weaver.

Before leaving out...photo of one side of the Regency Inn-



and the other side-



Ok, here we go...



...a lot of folks rate this as one of the best rides in the USA. We certainly enjoyed it.

Morning clouds that have not burned off yet.



The road is in good condition, rolling curves, lots of elevation change, riding thru the woods (some of my favorite)...



...fantastic scenery.



There was very little traffic, letting us roll at our desired speed. We only had to pass a few vehicles in over 150 miles riding....one was this big load of ****...we were happy to get that smell behind us. lol

[img]http://www.dkcustomproducts.com/image/2018_Definitive_RideReport/Day_4_PigTrail/7-big%20load%20of%20****.jpg[/img]

I have no idea what kind of acrobatics Mary is doing back there to get pics like this.



My favorite kind of road, curves running thru the woods with the trees making a canopy over the road.



Gary & JoAnn running the trail with us.



Mary took over 300 pics, having a hard time choosing which to post. Will post another 10-20, when time allows.

Kevin

[FuzzyWuzHe]

I have no idea what kind of acrobatics Mary is doing back there to get pics like this.

Trust me Kevin, I've been behind you watching her .... you don't want to know ... just know it's incredibly effective.

[bikerbillone]

Team Kev and Mary, almost like being there, thanks much for taking the time and sharing. Gotta be difficult picking the pics and doing the captions, great job. I see a few Canam Spyders parked at the hotel, maybe getting a bit more popular. I don't ride one, but curious. I'm subscribed, keep on doing this for the next 40 days or so, if it don't rain you out for pics.

[Jack Klarich]

Great ride and pics

Almost like being there

[Trail Blazer]

Thank you, glad you enjoy, lots more to come, we're just getting started.

Thank you. Looking forward to it!

Thank you! Good to hear you enjoy!!!

Yeah, I'm sure there will be many more cloud pics.

Thank you! I'll be trying to update every day, or at least every few days.

Hey Jr., was great spending some time with you and Darlene, really enjoyed it. Glad you got home with minimal rain. We rode with no rain today...last 5 hours was in 93-97* temps....no clouds.

Kevin

Kevin we also enjoyed you and Mary, ( Mary have some great stories) we will see you'll again down the road.

[FuzzyWuzHe]

Great ride and pics

Almost like being there

We did a one day ride together a few years back, Mary took like 350 pictures that day ... not a bad one in the bunch. You do really get a feel for the ride i their reports.

[DK Custom Products]

Trust me Kevin, I've been behind you watching her .... you don't want to know ... just know it's incredibly effective.

Yeah, I see her moving around some...but, it's usually in some sharp curves where I'm paying attention to the road. Good thing it's not a 2 wheeler where she has to be concerned.

Team Kev and Mary, almost like being there, thanks much for taking the time and sharing. Gotta be difficult picking the pics and doing the captions, great job. I see a few Canam Spyders parked at the hotel, maybe getting a bit more popular. I don't ride one, but curious. I'm subscribed, keep on doing this for the next 40 days or so, if it don't rain you out for pics.

Glad you're enjoying. I started doing these ride reports as a way to help us remember our trips....so many trips before where we have tons of photo's but lots of the details are lost in our not so good memories.

Great ride and pics

Almost like being there

Glad you're liking it Jack!

Kevin we also enjoyed you and Mary, ( Mary have some great stories) we will see you'll again down the road.

Looking forward to it!

Kevin

[DK Custom Products]

Day 4 Part II-

Love how the road disappears into the forest.



Another acrobatic photo technique...lol...it's a cambered road, and we're taking it low & inside, at a good clip....she leans over to the right and reaches forward to get the camera even or a bit in front of my leg.



I have a Pavlovian response to signs like this...they mean FUN AHEAD!



And a sign like this is like a booklet full of E-Tickets!



Nice S curve, just one of miles of them.*



Pretty cool pic, looking back-



Before we know it, 80 miles of fun are behind us and we're in Oark at the Oark Cafe-



Food was good, folks were friendly, then we saw a three ring binder with photo's & a memorial of our friend Larry Weaver.* He was murdered by some motorcycle thieves 2 years ago.* LINK if you want to see some pics of Larry doing what he loved.



It is good of the folks at the Oark Cafe to keep this memorial of him.

Ok, back on the road that Larry loved riding.



Back Rolling-



​​​​​​​Day 4 concluded in the next post.

Kevin

[DK Custom Products]

Day 4 Part III Conclusion-

The roads in these parts are just a ton of fun with curves, beautiful scenery...



...and more curves!



Looking back in a curve-



Still rolling at 50+ mph right before the 10 mph sign. I probably hauled it down to 20-25 mph.



Most those that ride HD Trikes know how well the handle...akin to a go-cart or a Porsche, for the uninitiated, I know they look like a bug than can easily tip over, but it is a rare stock HD 2 wheeler that can keep up with a HD Trike in the twisties. HD nailed the handling with them.

The Pig Trail was perfect today...hardly any traffic, mostly dry, scenic and just a great riding road.



Climbing, cambered curves...



...rolling, cambered curves...



...The Pig Trail!



Cloud Pic-



Some other folks out, looks like they're enjoying a great day of riding as much as we are!



That's it for our time in the Ozarks. Tomorrow morning we leave out for Dodge City, Kansas.

Kevin

[DK Custom Products]

Day 5 Part I of II-

9 AM in Eureka Springs, getting ready to mount up for a ride to Dodge City, KS-



The ride thru the Ozarks, out of Eureka Springs is a stark contrast...



...to where we're headed.* We are totally enjoying the perfect weather and great riding roads!



Blue skies, 70's, some clouds, winding roads, Mary caught this river as we crossed it at 60 mph.



I believe this is our first shadow pic of the trip...usually she gets one of these in the afternoon...this one was in the morning, while still in the Ozarks.



Curving, cambered roads, there may be something wrong with me...but I never get tired of riding them!



Last pic of some of the best riding in the country...the Ozarks-



As we head toward Joplin Missouri, this road is cut straight thru the rock-



Crossing into Missouri-



The rest of the ride to Dodge City in the next post.

Kevin

[DK Custom Products]

Day 5 Part II of II-

After crossing into Missouri we ran thru a bit of interstate, going thru Joplin....



...and not too long later we crossed into Kansas.



Pretty much as soon as we got into Kansas it started warming up....the temperature fluctuated between 93-97* the rest of the day...drank lots of water!



Mary messing around at a gas stop! lol



No offense to anyone from Kansas, but it is a State we need to cross to get to places we want to ride. Long, straight, mostly flat...



...some roadside metal art!



The TG is running great. We've run the 400 before and it was fairly irritating with the poor road surface. With the new suspension, this time is was like butter. Mary did not even realize it was a road that had worn her out previously. Engine is doing well also, running at 68 mph, into a pretty stiff headwind, 97* and we got 35.5 mpg. I'm happy with that.



440 miles later we arrived in Dodge City.



Tomorrow we cross the rest of the hot, flat, windy Kansas, then into the eastern desert of Colorado, and finally to the cooler start of the mountainous area of Colorado.

Kevin

[FuzzyWuzHe]

So yesterday I drove down to Our and spent the day with Kevin and Mary. We had a great visit (last least I did), we talked about everything from tunes to greenhouses (no, Kevin hasn't added a green house to his trike ... at least I didn't see one).

I drove my truck down as rain was forecast and delivered. Also, because when we get together we end up yaking and loose track of time. Between Our and my place is a very dark very isolated desert that I don't like driving at night, never mind rinding at night. I ended up leaving there about nine pm and got home around eleven. There was a wreck in the desert on my way home where a pickup went off the road and rolled ... after that I was pretty much wide awake ... .

We had a nice lunch with more good talk.

I was remiss, I had marching orders to get pics of the three of us together to post and alas, between the rain and the talk ... I failed.

I really appreciate Kevin and Mary making time for me they are great people. Thanks again guys. Be safe.

[Fearless]

Thank you for sharing another Adventure with us as always travel safe. That road side art looks like one of the shows from American Pickers. Fred

[DK Custom Products]

So yesterday I drove down to Ouray and spent the day with Kevin and Mary. We had a great visit (last least I did), we talked about everything from tunes to greenhouses (no, Kevin hasn't added a green house to his trike ... at least I didn't see one).

I drove my truck down as rain was forecast and delivered. Also, because when we get together we end up yaking and loose track of time. Between Ouray and my place is a very dark very isolated desert that I don't like driving at night, never mind rinding at night. I ended up leaving there about nine pm and got home around eleven. There was a wreck in the desert on my way home where a pickup went off the road and rolled ... after that I was pretty much wide awake ... .

We had a nice lunch with more good talk.

I was remiss, I had marching orders to get pics of the three of us together to post and alas, between the rain and the talk ... I failed.

I really appreciate Kevin and Mary making time for me they are great people. Thanks again guys. Be safe.

Fuzzy, we had a great day visiting with you. Thank you for coming over to Ouray. Glad you made it back safely, and the tune did great today.

Got 40.2 mpg, averaging 65 mph, and that including crossing 3 passes. Two of them in the 9000's and the other was Monarch Pass at 11,300.

Ended up at the same altitude we started...and, no I did not turn off the engine going down any of the hills.

Also, there was no significant wind, tail or head. Still gotta run some more with it, in some hot weather, but it is looking pretty good!

Thank you for sharing another Adventure with us as always travel safe. That road side art looks like one of the shows from American Pickers. Fred

Glad you're enjoying...we've barely gotten started.

Yes, I thought the same when we started seeing it...and we've seen a bunch!

Kevin