Off the slab and through the deserts

OK, I have to admit I have slacked off a bit when it came to updating this blog. I was fine the first day, but then I arrived around 3 PM in the afternoon in New Mexico. But after my trip from New Mexico to Bakersfield, CA, I was a bit tired and didn't want to update my blog that night. Once I arrived in San Jose, I found that I didn't want to update my blog either. Shame on me. 

So, looking backwards at my trip segment from Deming, New Mexico to Bakersfield, California, there were a few things that really stuck out as highlights. One was the breath taking view I had along the New Mexico, Arizona border. It really was an awesome sight. My route took my off I-10 for the first time since leaving Kerrville, Texas. I turned onto US 70 in Lordsburg, NM and while I saw very few vehicles (mostly semi-trailers) on I-10, I saw no vehicles on US 70. It was me, my BMW RT, and the desert landscape. There is something very therapeutic about riding alone on a motorcycle in the desert. Maybe it's because you're alone with your own thoughts, and feel the wind, and elements around you, but it's very different than being in a car. 

As I crossed Arizona, I switched to US 60 and went through a wonderful little town called Globe, AZ. What a joy it was to go through that area of the country. I'll try to take some pictures of it on my way back since I plan to take US 60 again going home. Riding through the Phoenix area, I was forced off US 60 since the road was closed. I had my sister's address in the GPS and found that I was only a few blocks from their house, so I stopped in and had a short but nice visit with them. But I knew I couldn't stay long since I had to press on, I was trying to make it to Bakersfield and had a lot of miles still ahead of me. 

I ended up back on I-10 for a bit as I headed out of Phoenix, and then headed up through some smaller AZ county roads where I crossed into California. This was an area of California that seemed very familiar to me, and it was. I had spent some time in the high desert of California, when I was stationed in Twenty-nine Palms. I wasn't all that far from the "stumps" as we called it. I pressed northward and ended up in Needles, CA. With gas prices falling, I was averaging about $3.20 a gallon for gas. However, Needles (and Barstow) still haven't heard that oil prices have fallen recently and I ended up paying slightly more than $4.00 a gallon. In Needles I got back on the giant slab called I-40 and headed towards Barstow. Night was falling as I entered Barstow, so I opted to stop for dinner. They have a kind of neat little train style building that houses several fast food restaurants and the bus station. It was a very busy place, and I ordered the healthiest thing in the building at the Panda Express. 

I finished up dinner and headed out to Bakersfield. Along the way, I couldn't get that Dwight Yoakum/Buck Owens tune out of head, so I dialed it in on my iPod and listened to The Streets of Bakersfield. Ironically my hotel was only a mile from Buck Owens Palace (whatever that is) in Bakersfield. I rode from Barstow to Bakersfield in the dark and it's a little more than a hundred miles. It really felt more like 200 hundred. Maybe it was the dark, or maybe just the extra miles, or simply that I was ready for a warm shower and shut eye, but I was ready to call it a night. 

The morning ride to San Jose from Bakersfield was fairly uneventful. And then began my work week, which pretty much kept me occupied. In finishing up this post, I do have to say that I did split lanes in the bay area, maybe I'll talk more about that later. It's not nearly as dangerous as one would think, but I suspect that has to do with CA drivers expecting it, and the lanes being wider. But having a motorcycle out here makes a lot of sense. 

Photos from this 800 mile leg are here: Photos