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We had a great day of riding. We accomplished 560 kms before the butts demanded a respite. We blew, figuratively and literally, across North Dakota averaging (close your eyes Mum) 130 km/hour. On the road by 6:50 am, with plans to stop at Williston ND at Gramma Sharons for a full fat American breakfast. Gramma didn't disappoint. Ordering one omelette plate, and one pancake stack plate to share, forgetting the portion sizes down here, I managed one pancake and woefully told Ian ALL THE REST was his! Some random fellow diner stopped and put her hand on my shoulder asking me "is it enough food for you honey?". Back on the road with guts bursting, we stopped every hour for a short break just to stretch the bod. At some point yesterday, I noticed a 5 cm hole in the crotch seam of my Kevlar jeans. That does not instil much confidence in their overall protective rating......
Sorry folks, North Dakota along Route 2 was rather drab with not a whole lot to look at. But not all was lost. Just when I thought I was drifting off into complacency on the bike, the chinese drip torture would bring me
back to my senses. I'm talking about bugs, those of the order Diptera. Yes, flies. I leave it to you to imagine the carnage of little critters and their body parts all over my windscreen and helmet visor. They start off small in the mornings when it is cooler out. Light, delicate ones with whispers of wings that gently kiss your visor before fluttering off in the wind. Noon comes and we are into the multicoloured splatter species, that splat usually directly in your line of sight, coloring your view of the landscape (which in North Dakota is a good thing) with greens, yellows, reds and purples. The yellows cover the most canvas. One navigated its way below my left handguard and butterflied itself between my thumb and forefinger, its guts gluing them together. Hmmmm, kinda smelled like bacon. By mid afternoon, we are in an all out war with big black buggers with indestructable unsplatterable bodies, that ping your helmet like your finger tapping Middle C. These ones don't splat. But they do hurt like hell on the shins, zingers stinging longer than an elastic band zap. The worst are those that hit your visor dead in the middle
after you see them coming at you for a second, and then they drop dead, straight downwards towards the opening of your jacket and teeshirt. Wonder how many of those are in my cleavage. Right, I forgot, I don't actually have one of those. Better just close my eyes and shake out the shirt bottom. Thankfully, no sign of yellowjackets or bees yet. The epipen can stay incognito for a while longer. I don't know how riders ride with open faced helmets. Hanman??
Anyway I digress. Route 2 North Dakota is dotted with small lakes, all still frozen. Lots of snow spots along the road, and places where it felt like we were riding through a moonscape. The land is brown and barren, not a crop growing anywhere. It was very windy most of the ride. We called it a day at Devil's Lake, ND, staying at the Fireside Inn Suites. Got a run in through downtown Devil's, got to see a tidy little oldtown, a railway, taverns, no casinos, and a war memorial park. Attempted to run around a very flooded, frozen Devil's Lake only to find all the trails were closed. Dinner was at a grain elevator
bar called Proz. Rowdy innebriated locals made for an interesting evening - entertainment at its best at the Proz.... A must see if you are in the area! Not all was lost (where have I heard that before) - they had Canadian Hockey on! Who won, MTL or OTT ?
The best part of yesterday was riding an 80 mile stretch of the route between Williston and Minot. Route 2 is 4-lane at this stage, and very lumpy bumpy the whole way. Our bikes, dualsport class, are built for this and the suspension did a stellar job. It was an absolute blast, even with pancake belly. Bumpy Roads: Bring 'Em On !!!! We also drove through the Geographical Centre of North America: Rugby ND. There's a first.
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Tot: 0.195s; Tpl: 0.01s; cc: 13; qc: 51; dbt: 0.0926s; 1; m:domysql w:travelblog (10.17.0.13); sld: 1;
; mem: 1.1mb
carol
non-member comment
hey bikers
Well it looks like you two are skooten pretty good I have never been to N. dakota think I like Montana better from what you have described....great weather here today we got up to 27 told you that you should have stopped by for a visit anyway keep on truckin did I tell you that we are going to a christining yup they got dates changed for the 19th Addisons Christening Day so cool safe travels can't wait for us to sit and relax at the cottages...loves Carol oh yea and Les xo