Sunday 29 April 2012

Spring

It was a sunny weekend, but windy and not so warm.
I just went for a little spin around Ottawa.
Went down to the market to see if all the stands were open. They are just being set up.

I came home along the canal/Dow's Lake/Experimental farm area. There is always something blooming or about to bloom there.

The tulips are about a week from prime, the water level is being raised in the canal, and you can see the flowers starting on the crabapple trees.


Tulips
Experimental Farm
Experimental Farm
Dow's Lake
Sometimes you don't have to go far to see  the sites.

On another note,this week is supposed to warm up !
Sweet!!!!
I need a big ride....and I would rather not freeze doing it.

Thursday 26 April 2012

Different Strokes

I don't think it is only Harley people...everyone who rides has a vision of what their ideal ride swill look like.

The funny thing is that very few people ever achieve it.

All nice bikes below...but none of us are totally happy....there is always something to be changed.

And we all have different bikes.
Brent's Panhead
Dan's Iron head

Which kind of brings me to the point here...that it doesn't matter what a person rides.

It is not for me to critique some other guy's bike or brand of bike or what he wears, or how he wears his hair.

Not my f-in business.

If someone is riding...that is all that counts.
I have met some totally cool people on old Nortons, Gold wings, big vespas...just about anything  or any brand you can imagine.

I have met some real douche bags on beautiful Harleys.
The kind of guy that asks "when are you getting a big bike?"
Nice.

Stopped at a light one time and a BMW pulls up beside me.
I turn to the guy and say "nice bike".
His reply? He looks at my ride and says "nice vibrating harley"...which is true..but a shitty thing to say when you have just complimented his bike.
 WTF ? 


Brent's Softail and my FX
What is wrong with some people?
There are a surprising number of people in the motorcycle world who spend their time beaking off about who is a biker or not, who is a poser or not ...what's a good bike or not...
Like when did  this kind of stuff become important?
How about get on your bike and ride!


This is why my profile says "just a guy who likes to ride".
Seems like a pretty peaceful life's motto.

And on that note...
 http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=qamwdXXxD0g&feature=relmfu

Chillax with some David Gilmour from 1978.







Sunday 22 April 2012

Reminiscing II


Saturday we had aimed to go to the coast, and made it as fas as Conway, by way of the Kancamangus hwy. Beautiful area...but the coast was not meant to be I guess.
 So Sunday in Lincoln found us waking up to more rain. YAY....
We decided that regardless, we would get a good ride in, and that we were heading out.
We decided that we would head across Vermont, and into New York.
Aside from the rain, it was a great ride...amazing landscapes.
I forget what town it was, but at one point we spent an hour waiting out a downpour under an awning  at a rundown old mall.

By late afternoon, the sun was actually out here and there.

We got lost in Schenectady New York...we were not staying there! It was like something out of a "Cops" episode. 
We stopped to ask directions at a little store, and nobody spoke English.
Luckily a friendly crack-head passing by did speak some English and gave us directions out of the city.
By this time it is around 6pm...we needed to find a place to crash, and eat. We were all get cranky.

In Amsterdam, we found a little Motel called the "Blue Moon"...seemed legit!
Turned out to be really clean, but definately from the 50's. There were plastic lobsters and undersea stuff on the walls in the room.
It was also a "bum" motel.
The guy next door to us said he was just staying there until he could get back on his feet, and when I asked how long he had been there, he said 2 years!
The Blue Moon
There was also this other drunken dude who was staying there because his house burned down, and the Red Cross (?) was paying for him to live there...and all of his cats had died in the fire etc. etc.
The funky glow


The Bikes looked Cool!




Monday morning arrived , and there was actually some sun. We rode through the Adirondacks. They are really something to see, but after seeing the White Mountains in NH., they seemed kind of small, believe it or not. The picture below doesn't actually do them justice.

Adirondacks


Flag of Rohan


We stopped for a mid morning coffee/breakfast in a little town, and I was looking around and it seemed strangely familiar. And then it hit me...the walls were covered in Lord of the Rings stuff. Too cool for sure!
The rest of the ride home was pretty dull...the last hour in a crazy downpour, of course.

It had certainly been fun, but I was pretty happy to sleep in my own bed that night...dry and without the stench of drying boots and socks and leathers.























Saturday 21 April 2012

Rainy Weekend..... Reminiscing

April showers...
I guess I cannot complain too much. This has been a pretty dry April so far.
Still...a cold wet weekend sucks. Even if you don't ride, it would be nice to do some lawnwork or gardening or just be outside.

When we went to Laconia last year, the ride down was perfect...sunny and nice. We hit the New Hampshire border and off came the helmets. Going out for dinner, (in Lincoln...home of the world famous Profile Motel !! )I just put on my vest over a t shirt and headed out. Was awesome.

We woke up Saturday to pouring rain...like really pouring.
In the photo below, we had been out riding for 4 hours in the pouring rain, and were in Laconia checking out the merch at all of the stalls.
We are smiling, but all of us were soaked right to the bone.

When we got back to the room, everything we had needed to be dried out..the room stank like wet boots and leather.


Nicest part of the day



Me,  Brent and Dan


 
Wet stuff everwhere

Dinner time was another adventure...nobody delivers food.
We could pay with Visa over the phone and then pay a cab to go get it for us....or not !
Put our wet boots back on ( we put our feet in plastic bags 1st. so our socks didn't get wet......we looked like really bad losers ) and walked 15 minutes up the road to a little Italian place . Wasn't fancy, but cheap, hot and tasty.

Got home..turned the heat up 90 deg. to dry our stuff ...and went to bed.

The next day's adventures are tomorrow's blog.

 Bet you can't wait  !!!




Sunday 15 April 2012

Sunday April 15

Nice Ride today.


Church in Watson's
Met Brent at the church in Watson's Corners.
We decided to ride some backroads, as opposed to spending time on highways.

Took a break at Silver lake


Bikes at Silver Lake






Silver Lake





















Headed up to Sharbot Lake and went back in to Tichborne, Parham, Wagarville to Tamworth.
Really amazing area.

Super cool geography. I will go back on a sunny day with a better camera ( was using my smart phone today) specifically to get some shots of some of the rock formations.
I don't know enough about these things to say what makes them special...but I had never seen stuff like this.


Little lake off of Mountain Road






Falls in Tamworth






From here we road back out to 17 on the Arden road.
Scenic..but like the land that time forgot.
I guess you could say parts of it are paved.

Crossed 17 and made are way over to 41, and came back in past Mazinaw Lake (where the pictographs are )
http://algonquinsofpikwakanagan.com/culture_arch.php  
to Renfrew, and home through Burnstown, Pakenham and Almonte.



Saw lots of future rides today...

Friday 13 April 2012

Friday Afternoon

You know that Friday is going to be good, when your boss tells it it is going to be a sunny warm afternoon, and you should take off and go riding!
Thanks Boss!!!

Madawaska River from Burnstown bridge
So I went out to Cobden and came back through Douglas, Burnstown,Renfrew, Waba, Pakenham.
Saw a lot of people doing exactly the same thing.

I have always liked these landscapes that I have posted today...they just look so Ottawa Valley to me.
Other side of bridge



Stream in Waba


Sunday 8 April 2012

Easter Weekend

Back to work tomorrow, but it was a pretty good weekend.
Started off with an overnighter in Montreal to see Opeth and Mastodon.
Couple of videos posted by others from the concert.
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=T0OApGwUbFo&feature=related  opeth

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Cir9C7lkIik&feature=relmfu  mastodon
Maybe not everyone's cup of tea.....

Great ride on Sunday with a couple of friends. Up through Lanark, Sharbot Lake, Enterprise,Verona, Napanee.
Started out pretty cold, but ended up being really nice.

Beautiful country.







Sunday 1 April 2012

Cold Rainy Sunday


Yesterday



Kind of a crap-tacular day.
Took the dog for a walk, and there was wet snow falling. That sucks.
Guess there won't be any riding today. If it was warm I would ride for sure, but cold as well?
NFW.
Glad I got out yesterday.

I think maybe I'll give the bike a bit of a clean, and go over it with a wrench and check that everything is all good.
There is always something that can be done to the bike. It is like having a part time job that you pay to go to.

Should probably mention that I am a really shitty photographer.
The photos here are taken with one of those "Albert" proof Canon cameras, and editing is done by clicking auto-correct.
Over half the pics I take are too blurry/ fk'd up to use....so I just snap tons and hope some are OK.
Seems to work.