Blogs from United States, North America - page 4766

So, I guess today would be day 6 of Matt2 touring North America, and what a journey it has already been. Perhaps a little background might be nice for those of you who know nothing of the trip. Last April while walking the streets of Brooklyn I decided that after the summer in the Great North of Alaska I would like to return to the City by means of a motorcycle. When I returned to Anchorage I was talking with Matt Stevens and Erin Ginley about my idea. When Erin elbowed Matt to alarm him to what I had said, Matt was in. So in in fact that Matt Stevens bought a bike within days, at least it seemed. We had the summer to prepare ourselves. Neither one of had ever really even rode motorcycles before, ... read more

Death Valley today. It was hot, hot, hot. About 37 degrees in the middle of a salt pan desert and not a bit of shade. It sits about 90 metres below sea level and is hot and dry. They average about 1 1/2inches of rain a year. And people still want to live around here. Not for us.... read more

Another late start meant we were headed to Pearl Harbour during the hottest part of the day. We put the hood down, system pumping and tried not to look too gay in our car as we drove - A tricky feat. When we arrived at the memorial we took our ticket and waited the hour or so until our tour started. We looked around all the free parts but were reluctant to part with the 20 dollars or so to go inside the submarine or aviation museum. When our tour started we were ushered into a cinema and watched a short video chronicling the events of December 7 1941. The video was incredible and once it finished we hopped onto a boat for the short ride to the USS Arizona Memorial. Spanning the width of the ... read more

ROCHESTER Okay, so I made a pit stop on the East Cost on my way to Europe to visit some old friends, Molly & Melissa, in Rochester, NY. It was quite a change arriving in 40 degree weather versus the sweltering 90+ degree heat of Southern California. The air was cool and crisp, trees everywhere with their leaves shades of yellow and orange - Autumn had officially arrived. It was nice to get away from the busy fast-paced life of LA. The highways in Rochster are 2-lanes, and going 45 mph is considered "traffic". Houses with basements are common and big enough to build a family game room, and there are no wood fences separating neighbors. I was officially on the East Coast. You can immediately feel the history of Rochester with its Victorian style homes ... read more

0ct 6th At last I can get out of Lordsburg, a check on Google earth reveals that I have a long gradual climb of about 2,000 ft before descending into Silver City about 45 miles away, so much for avoiding the hills by going off the ACA map. I'm well organised in the morning for a change and set off at 9.15. The first part of the jouney is a very gradual ascent through the plains, it gets a bit harder as I reach apache mountain, but I am pleased and a little surprised to see the altitude counter on my GPS click off the hundreds of meters without causing undue tiredness or strain. At the highest point I cross the north american watershed, the grreat divide as the americans call it. The second half of ... read more