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Day 1: LA – Palomar – Yuma (410 miles)
I started out at 7:30, clear skies and 40 degrees. I headed down the 10 and took the 243 over the mountains toward Julian. There was quite a bit of snow around but the roads were in pretty good shape. Nice twisties after Idyllwild and not too much traffic made for a fast and fun ride. I made good time to Palomar and headed up the South Grade for a nice run to the top. I know it’s been said before but what an awesome stretch of road, 7 miles of non-stop twisties – bike heaven. At the top I stopped at Mother’s Kitchen for lunch and pie. I normally don’t take food pictures but that was amazing apple pie. I went down East Grade road with the intention of doing a loop and coming back up South Grade again. But traffic suddenly increased to the point where South Grade was a jam of mini vans – so frustrating. Half way up S Grade I turned around and headed to Julian. Julian was a jam of people out for New Year’s Day. Here I made a few calls, had some coffee, and hit the road to Yuma. The ride across the desert to Yuma was fast and fun, clear skies and roads all the way. Along the 8 hwy were these massive dunes with people riding their ATVs up and down the sides – looks like so much fun. I made Yuma just at last light, checked in to the Best Western, then headed over to the River City Grill for a super mustard crusted halibut over ravioli – this alone was worth the trip.
Looking toward San Bernardino Nat'l Forest
Snow along the 243
Palomar
Great apple pie
View from Palomar
Julian
Heading to Yuma
Day 2: Yuma – Sedona – Grand Canyon – Kingman (590 miles)
I woke up at 4:30 the next morning – not sure why. Read a little and watched some TV and got breakfast at 6:00. I headed over to the Yuma prison. In operation between 1876 and 1909 the prison held 3,000 + people including women. The prison had one solitary confinement cell called the Dark Cell used for inmates that tried to escape or broke the rules – boy was that creepy. Apparently Yuma’s high school athletes are called the “Crims”. I left Yuma and headed to Sedona by way of Phoenix. In Phoenix the highway patrol uses photo enforcement to ticket speeders. I realized this eventually when riding in traffic; the cars around me would suddenly slow down at certain areas. Radar guns and cameras were mounted in certain places. Also along the highway the cops will sit over hill crests and raise radar guns about 15 feet over their cars on a pole and catch speeders. They snap a photo as you pass by and mail the ticket to you – how awful. I couldn’t get out of Phoenix fast enough – literally. I’m now hoping I don’t receive a ticket in the mail. Despite Phoenix I made good time to Sedona. The scenery in Sedona was beautiful. Coming out of the desert the red rocks were really striking. I made several stops and planned to get lunch in town. But, Sedona was a zoo – jammed with people and traffic. I decided to head to Flagstaff and get lunch there instead. Climbing up the north side of Sedona the temps dropped and snow appeared - lots of snow and runoff. In Flagstaff I started to get concerned. With the temps predicted to be 18 degrees the following morning all of that runoff was going to be ice on my way out. I decided to ride to the Grand Canyon and decide there if I would stay the night or head out and ride to a lower elevation. Again I made good time to the Grand Canyon. I was at the GC about 8 year ago and knew what to expect but, whoa, it still takes your breath away – no picture does it justice. I walked around the South Rim for a while then headed to my hotel. There I cancelled my reservation and decided to head south to avoid any morning ice. I did a fast ride down hwy 40 and stopped in Ash Fork for a great turkey dinner at a little family café. Into Kingman, I stopped and found a hotel for the night.
Old prison
The Dark Cell
Sedona
Flagstaff
Grand Canyon
The obligatory pose
Heading to Kingman at sunset
Day 3: Kingman – Lake Havasu – Van Nuys (409 miles)
Up early again I hit the road at 7:00 and made good time to Lake Havasu. Lake Havasu’s claim to fame is that they have the London Bridge. Constructed in 1831 the bridge eventually became unsound and the city of London sold it. The bridge was moved to Lake Havasu and reconstructed (over 3 years) precisely with each stone numbered to ensure accuracy – interesting. After breakfast and lots of coffee in Lake Havasu I headed south and stopped at the Bill Williams reserve, a scenic wild life reserve. There was a nice dirt road heading into the reserve so I ventured several miles in and stopped for the occasional photo. Out of the reserve, I headed down the 95 then across the 62. I’m not sure if it was the caffeine or that I was doing 110 mph across the flat empty desert but the views were amazing – everything looked so clear. Surrounded by vast space and rugged mountains in the far distance the colors were deep pastels: blue sapphire sky, silver puffs of clouds, gold desert. I really enjoyed this ride - until hitting the 10 freeway. Then it was boring slab into Palm Springs with a stop for lunch. Then, pass the wind farms, back to the slab and made good time to LA. The only rain of the entire trip was a sprinkle when I hit San Dimas. In all, it was a good trip and a nice way to start 2009.
London Bridge in Lake Havasu
Bill Williams NWR
Palm Springs
