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After all of my buddies bailed out on our planned trip to Colorado I found myself with a few free days. Since I had never gone on a ride that didn’t wind up bringing me back home at the end of the day I was a little nervous about heading out but knew it was something that I had wanted to try so I just went for it. After all it is how I’ve been day dreaming about spending my retirement (which is a long way off), traveling around on a bike exploring the country but realistically I’d never even been on more than a day trip. I had already spent a lot of money on luggage, helmet, boots and other gear so I figured I’d better put it to use!
Having family in north Texas I wanted to head in that direction, I’d heard of the Talimena drive but really didn’t know much about it so I figured it would be a good time to learn. Basically I plotted a course out of Austin planning to spend the first night in Whitesboro Tx. with family, second night in Mena Ar., third night in Camden Ar. followed by two more nights back in Whitesboro before heading back to Austin. Looking back I wished I’d have put more thought into that route but it is what it is.
On July 2nd I packed up and headed out of Austin.
Being the “over preparer” that I am, I usually try to predict the various senieros that may occur so thinking lower back pain was going to be an issue I stopped off to buy some back support on the way out of town.
Since I’ve pretty much already seen everything close to Austin I decided to just slab it up I35 to get to my first days destination. I was for the first time attempting to listen to music via my IPod while riding. I struggled a little at first with the ear buds. My helmet has pockets for speakers but it took a few tries to get the buds in the right position. It ended up working out ok, just not really loud enough. After 25yrs of playing bass guitar my hearing is a little tainted. I have since decided to find a better solution, maybe the Edsets but I’m not sure yet. I also discovered that the IPod would overheat while in the map pocket of my tank bag (it’s hot down here). The controls were lethargic, this issue was first noticed after being stuck both behind and beside a couple of 18 wheelers, a freaking Madonna song came on (my daughters doing) and I was only willing to take my hand off the bars for a short second to try and change it. See although I’ve been riding motorcycles for most of my life about 98% of my experience is offroad. These big trucks made me a bit nervous. So there I was stuck listening to Madonna freaking out with these giant trucks all around. Luckily it wasn’t too long before I could get by the trucks and I figured out that unzipping the map pocket a bit would allow enough air in to cool down the IPod so I could control it. Anyway, not much to see on I35 between Austin and the Oklahoma border. I did stop at one of my favorite places in a town called West, Tx.
If your into kolaches you’ve gotta try this place. Here’s an example of what you can get, sorry but it had been awhile since I’d had my fix and I couldn’t wait on getting the camera ready before taking a bite. The breakfast sausage and spicy sausage with cheese are my favs.
The rest of the trip to Whitesboro went smooth, I did stop at a pretty cool rest stop just outside of Denton.
Soon after I was at my first nights destination, just north of Whitesboro on hwy 377.
I actually had this kind of neat feeling about myself as I’d completed day one of my trip and wasn’t back home in Austin. It was a pretty simple trip but it did allow me to get my slab legs underneath myself and work out a few bugs. I’m sure that’s nothing to a lot of you that have been doing this for awhile but for me it was a simple feeling of accomplishment and I was happy about it. I was ready for an adult beverage and no it wasn’t that crappy Coors light you see in the picture!
Day 2 was a bit more of an adventure for me as I would be traveling to places I’d never been. Since the relatives are only a few miles south of the Red river it wasn’t long at all until I was in Oklahoma.
I ran across this sign and had to stop and take a pict of it:
I’ve grown up just a few miles south of the Oklahoma boarder and have never heard of catfish races. Who knows, it might be fun??
I turned off of hwy 377 onto hwy 32 over to Kingston Ok where I stopped to contact on old band buddy from years past. He wasn’t at home but I did get him on the phone. He was excited because his current band, The Texas Hippie Coalition, was going to be playing a festival called Rocklahoma the following weekend. Next I jumped on hwy 70 and crossed the Roosevelt Bridge that crosses over Lake Texoma, one that I’d been underneath while boating many times in the past. I spent a few years in Sherman after college working for TI.
And not too long after that the Kiamichi River Bridge.
The terrain started getting better once I turned north on 271 and I started to feel the excitement of what I knew was coming. Not sure if it was just my imagination but it seemed like the temps were dropping as well.
My desire to explore the countryside doesn’t stop when the pavement does. As I’d mentioned earlier I have a lot more off-road experience than on road so I’m always looking for a dirt road to explore. The VStrom is well suited for this type of riding so I couldn’t resist checking out a few:
I saw this sign about being in the Choctaw Nation and wondered about the history of the nation and the way these people’s lives were changed. I’ve since read up on it a bit but won’t get into that here.
My next stop was in Talihina where I refueled both the bike and my stomach. I was excited about getting further up into the mountains so I made the stop a quick one
Before you know it I was here:
And soon after I arrived at the start of my intended destination, the Talimena Scenic Byway:
This is where the scenery got really good. Here’s a few picts:
I like this one up above because you can see a piece of the road I had just traveled on at the top of the mountains way off in the distance.
On a few of these I would ride them first and then go back to get the pictures.
If you look close you can see a lake in the middle of the picture, can’t remember the name of it.
This is one of my favorites, the shadows made by the clouds are cool.
After crossing over into Arkansas I found another dirt road to check out. Looking back at the maps I’m pretty sure this is Cr 100. I went pretty far down the mountain before turning back. This is one road I wished I would have explored a bit more but I guess I’m living and learning!
More of Cr 100
Back on the scenic byway I ran across the Pioneer Cemetery. Not sure if it was my spirit of adventure or the fact that my backside was killing me but I decided to check this place out.
After walking a few hundred feet down this path to get to the cemetery I realized that I was all alone in the middle of nowhere. I could hear the banjos playing in my head and got kinda spooked so I high tailed it out of there. Yeah that’s me, 6’5” 285lbs running like a little girl Ha! Well I didn’t actually run but it was a fast walk Ha!
I made it to my 2nd night’s destination, the Queen Wilhelmina Lodge.
I buddy of mine is from Mena and after hearing of my trip suggested I stay at this place. It was well worth it as the views are spectacular. They were out of singles so I got a double for $88. They had decent food as well. Here are a few pictures of the view:
Here’s an old train that was brought in some years back.
Both the late evening and early morning views were great as some lower level clouds rolled in. Every so often it looked like a rolling fog bank would drift through.
While talking to the receptionist I asked about a stuffed black bear they had on display in the lodge. During that conversation I discovered there was a recent black bear sighting at the Pioneer Cemetery. Maybe those banjos were telling me something…..
The Caribou luggage set that I recently bought worked out great. A few of the Harley guys at the lodge asked about it, they seemed to have the impression that this type of travel was old hat for me. I didn’t tell them any different… I just acted like Mr. Experience. One would without a doubt be able to pick out the riders with real experience. For example an older couple rolled in on separate Harleys and we’re very impressive to watch. They parked side by side each dismounting their bikes in a ritualistic fashion. First removing one bag each and setting them on the ground, then making various adjustments and checks to the bikes and finally installing bike covers assisting each other at predetermined steps of the way. This wasn’t their first time at the redo. They walked by not really commanding but receiving everyone’s attention. I was impressed!
The Famsa tank bag and panniers that I bought were also nice and supplied ample storage space. The tank bag itself zips right off of the base unit for easy removal and has nice handles to carry it with. The downside of the tank panniers is that they are not designed to be removed quickly. Realistically it’s only a few straps but not a turnkey system. They were overloaded with supplies that I thought would be needed but most were never touched. Yes Mr. Over Prepared is still living and learning….
I had a good meal and a few drinks to bring day two to an end. I was tired, a little sore and ready for a good night rest.
Day 3 started with trying to beat the oncoming storm that the weather channel said was headed my way. I had raingear but no real experience in using it or with riding in the rain for that matter. I had a quick breakfast, put the luggage on the bike and headed out. There was one lesson learned here as evidently the parking spot I chose was on a slight incline. I made the mistake of pulling straight in instead up backing in. So with the bike facing slightly downhill I unlocked the handlebars to put them in position to reattach the tank bag. Well as your probably guessing the bike rolled forward off the side stand and down to the ground. I’m sure I was red with embarrassment before the bike actually hit. One of the few fortunate things about being “a big guy” is that the bike was fairly easy to upright and no damage was done. Well except for a little dent to my pride as the old couple walked passed back to their Harleys…. They just smiled and gave each other the look.
Leaving Wilhelmina I took what was probably the best but shortest road of the entire trip. It was only about 2 miles long but not a straight piece to it. It may have just been the excitement of what I felt the day was going to bring but I sure liked it.
It’s Hwy 272, I actually rode back up to do it again!
My plan was to get over to scenic Hwy 7 and head south to Camden where I had a room reserved for the night. Since it was July 4th I thought I might have a tough time finding a room so I booked one in advance. Knowing I had plenty of time to get there I wanted to head north for awhile just to see what was there. Now knowing what’s there, well I’ll spend more time going north next time but since I wanted to stick to my planned route I took Hwy 270 N to Hwy 71 N and then in Needmore I jumped on Hwy 28 W taking it to Hwy 60 and finally to Hwy 7 South.
I pretty much lucked out all day as it seemed like everywhere I went the rain had just stopped. The roads were wet and several oncoming cars had their wipers on yet I seemed to miss all of the rain. I know I just jinxed myself for my next trip!
Cruzing down Hwy 28 I saw the funniest thing, not to harp on folks from Arkansas but I saw a family that looked to be celebrating the 4th by burning a stump in their front yard. They had some regular 4th of July party favors but the stump burning is what caught my eye. I turned around to take a picture but was a little embarrassed to stop right in front of them to take the picture so I made a quick turn on a side road trying to be inconspicuous. This turned out to be a bit of a treat as I found more dirt….
Even a little hill to climb.
I decided I’d go back and get the stump burning picture so headed back to the pavement and ran across this:
By the time I got back to the stump burning party the flames were out, I did get a picture of the smoking stump…
The scenery on Hwy’s 28 and 60 was great, basically just long winding roads going through the mountains.
The VStrom comes in handy when looking for a place to take a potty break.
I think this next picture was taken in Plainview, being that it was the 4th of July I felt this marquee said it all.
Next up was a lake called Nimrod Lake, now pretty much being a Nimrod myself I just had to get a few pictures of the two of us together.
Then I found my way to the Scenic Byway 7.
This road was a lot of fun but a little on the crowded side. I wasn’t really able to stop and take any pictures but it was a fun ride into Hot Springs. This place seemed to have a lot of touristy type things to do but unfortunately I didn’t budget any time to check them out. Plus that rainstorm was catching up to me as it started sprinkling while I was walking around.
The sign on this next building kinda made me wonder.
So now were they actually saying that out-of-towners weren’t welcome? If it wasn’t for the oncoming rain I just might have checked this place out. All in all Hot Springs looked like a place to have some fun in. Lake Hamilton looked really nice and being a holiday there were a lot of folks enjoying it.
Continuing south on Hwy 7 I made a quick visit to De Gray Lake and the Iron Mountain resort, then in to Camden for the evening.
Part of the reason I had preselected Camden was because distance wise it made sense for routing me back to Whitesboro the next day. Also, I had called ahead to a few different towns wanting to see which one was going to have a 4th of July fireworks display and Camden was. I got to the hotel, unpacked the bike and rested for a bit before heading out to dinner. As chance would have it I chose to eat at KFC, while waiting for my food another customer asked about my bike and my trip. I basically mention having a few free days and wanting to get out of Austin. Come to find out this guy was on a bike trip heading back home to Austin! He was on a BMW and on this particular trip had completed his goal of riding in every state (I didn’t ask about Alaska or Hawaii). Kentucky and Michigan were the last two that he needed. I thought that was a pretty cool goal so I set the same goal for myself. Of course I’ve got a long way to go because so far my list consists of Texas, Oklahoma and Arkansas. But it’s a start right! Well anyway, you’ve all heard the “it’s a small world” line but I guess it really is to be running into people like that. The funny part was this guy is evidently big the McDonalds business but yet eating at a KFC……. What does he know that we don’t?
Well I ate too much and had a few cocktails and decided to forgo the fireworks display which is ironic because that is one of the main reasons I chose Camden. But I did dose off to the Macy’s firework show they were airing on TV. Yeah, I’m getting old….
Day three was fairly uneventful as the ride back to Whitesboro was pretty flat with not a lot of scenery. This is where I’ll do it different next time. Basically I should have spent another day in the north eastern part of Arkansas. After reading other posts on it, I could spend several days up there exploring.
After passing through Texarkana I jumped on Hwy 82 heading west and saw this plane just outside of Paris Tx that caught my interest. It was an old prop plane sitting in a field just off the hi-way so I turned around to check it out. I wanted to take a picture of my bike next to it, well because that’s just what we do right? There was a guy working in a building close by so I rode up to ask about it. Come to find out this guys father was a WW II pilot and evidently a bit of a hero. After the war he had some sort of business buying and selling planes. The son pointed to another field further back with several more planes. Now I really wish I would have written his father’s name down as I want to study up on him so if anyone else is knows about this guy please let me know. The son was really cool, his father had recently passed on so he was building a museum to share his dad’s history with others. He gave me the ok to ride out and get my picture. The ground was a little soft but I thought I picked a good enough spot for the kick stand but evidently not as after I got a few feet away this happened.
As tired as I was I just had to laugh. This time the bike was a little more difficult to pick up and took a few tries. Come to find out one of the hi-way pegs was buried in the dirt. I got it though and headed back west on Hwy 82. My only other stop was in Sherman. Since I spent five years of my life there I had a few friends to visit and also wanted to take pictures of the various places that I lived to show the kiddo.
I spent the next two days visiting with family in Whitesboro before an uneventful trip back to Austin. Here’s a pict of what we did for entertainment when I got back to Whitesboro.
It’s actually this really cool spring loaded dart gun with a fly swatter on the end of it…… It’s pretty entertaining actually!
Hope you enjoyed!
Having family in north Texas I wanted to head in that direction, I’d heard of the Talimena drive but really didn’t know much about it so I figured it would be a good time to learn. Basically I plotted a course out of Austin planning to spend the first night in Whitesboro Tx. with family, second night in Mena Ar., third night in Camden Ar. followed by two more nights back in Whitesboro before heading back to Austin. Looking back I wished I’d have put more thought into that route but it is what it is.
On July 2nd I packed up and headed out of Austin.
Being the “over preparer” that I am, I usually try to predict the various senieros that may occur so thinking lower back pain was going to be an issue I stopped off to buy some back support on the way out of town.
Since I’ve pretty much already seen everything close to Austin I decided to just slab it up I35 to get to my first days destination. I was for the first time attempting to listen to music via my IPod while riding. I struggled a little at first with the ear buds. My helmet has pockets for speakers but it took a few tries to get the buds in the right position. It ended up working out ok, just not really loud enough. After 25yrs of playing bass guitar my hearing is a little tainted. I have since decided to find a better solution, maybe the Edsets but I’m not sure yet. I also discovered that the IPod would overheat while in the map pocket of my tank bag (it’s hot down here). The controls were lethargic, this issue was first noticed after being stuck both behind and beside a couple of 18 wheelers, a freaking Madonna song came on (my daughters doing) and I was only willing to take my hand off the bars for a short second to try and change it. See although I’ve been riding motorcycles for most of my life about 98% of my experience is offroad. These big trucks made me a bit nervous. So there I was stuck listening to Madonna freaking out with these giant trucks all around. Luckily it wasn’t too long before I could get by the trucks and I figured out that unzipping the map pocket a bit would allow enough air in to cool down the IPod so I could control it. Anyway, not much to see on I35 between Austin and the Oklahoma border. I did stop at one of my favorite places in a town called West, Tx.
If your into kolaches you’ve gotta try this place. Here’s an example of what you can get, sorry but it had been awhile since I’d had my fix and I couldn’t wait on getting the camera ready before taking a bite. The breakfast sausage and spicy sausage with cheese are my favs.
The rest of the trip to Whitesboro went smooth, I did stop at a pretty cool rest stop just outside of Denton.
Soon after I was at my first nights destination, just north of Whitesboro on hwy 377.
I actually had this kind of neat feeling about myself as I’d completed day one of my trip and wasn’t back home in Austin. It was a pretty simple trip but it did allow me to get my slab legs underneath myself and work out a few bugs. I’m sure that’s nothing to a lot of you that have been doing this for awhile but for me it was a simple feeling of accomplishment and I was happy about it. I was ready for an adult beverage and no it wasn’t that crappy Coors light you see in the picture!
Day 2 was a bit more of an adventure for me as I would be traveling to places I’d never been. Since the relatives are only a few miles south of the Red river it wasn’t long at all until I was in Oklahoma.
I ran across this sign and had to stop and take a pict of it:
I’ve grown up just a few miles south of the Oklahoma boarder and have never heard of catfish races. Who knows, it might be fun??
I turned off of hwy 377 onto hwy 32 over to Kingston Ok where I stopped to contact on old band buddy from years past. He wasn’t at home but I did get him on the phone. He was excited because his current band, The Texas Hippie Coalition, was going to be playing a festival called Rocklahoma the following weekend. Next I jumped on hwy 70 and crossed the Roosevelt Bridge that crosses over Lake Texoma, one that I’d been underneath while boating many times in the past. I spent a few years in Sherman after college working for TI.
And not too long after that the Kiamichi River Bridge.
The terrain started getting better once I turned north on 271 and I started to feel the excitement of what I knew was coming. Not sure if it was just my imagination but it seemed like the temps were dropping as well.
My desire to explore the countryside doesn’t stop when the pavement does. As I’d mentioned earlier I have a lot more off-road experience than on road so I’m always looking for a dirt road to explore. The VStrom is well suited for this type of riding so I couldn’t resist checking out a few:
I saw this sign about being in the Choctaw Nation and wondered about the history of the nation and the way these people’s lives were changed. I’ve since read up on it a bit but won’t get into that here.
My next stop was in Talihina where I refueled both the bike and my stomach. I was excited about getting further up into the mountains so I made the stop a quick one
Before you know it I was here:
And soon after I arrived at the start of my intended destination, the Talimena Scenic Byway:
This is where the scenery got really good. Here’s a few picts:
I like this one up above because you can see a piece of the road I had just traveled on at the top of the mountains way off in the distance.
On a few of these I would ride them first and then go back to get the pictures.
If you look close you can see a lake in the middle of the picture, can’t remember the name of it.
This is one of my favorites, the shadows made by the clouds are cool.
After crossing over into Arkansas I found another dirt road to check out. Looking back at the maps I’m pretty sure this is Cr 100. I went pretty far down the mountain before turning back. This is one road I wished I would have explored a bit more but I guess I’m living and learning!
More of Cr 100
Back on the scenic byway I ran across the Pioneer Cemetery. Not sure if it was my spirit of adventure or the fact that my backside was killing me but I decided to check this place out.
After walking a few hundred feet down this path to get to the cemetery I realized that I was all alone in the middle of nowhere. I could hear the banjos playing in my head and got kinda spooked so I high tailed it out of there. Yeah that’s me, 6’5” 285lbs running like a little girl Ha! Well I didn’t actually run but it was a fast walk Ha!
I made it to my 2nd night’s destination, the Queen Wilhelmina Lodge.
I buddy of mine is from Mena and after hearing of my trip suggested I stay at this place. It was well worth it as the views are spectacular. They were out of singles so I got a double for $88. They had decent food as well. Here are a few pictures of the view:
Here’s an old train that was brought in some years back.
Both the late evening and early morning views were great as some lower level clouds rolled in. Every so often it looked like a rolling fog bank would drift through.
While talking to the receptionist I asked about a stuffed black bear they had on display in the lodge. During that conversation I discovered there was a recent black bear sighting at the Pioneer Cemetery. Maybe those banjos were telling me something…..
The Caribou luggage set that I recently bought worked out great. A few of the Harley guys at the lodge asked about it, they seemed to have the impression that this type of travel was old hat for me. I didn’t tell them any different… I just acted like Mr. Experience. One would without a doubt be able to pick out the riders with real experience. For example an older couple rolled in on separate Harleys and we’re very impressive to watch. They parked side by side each dismounting their bikes in a ritualistic fashion. First removing one bag each and setting them on the ground, then making various adjustments and checks to the bikes and finally installing bike covers assisting each other at predetermined steps of the way. This wasn’t their first time at the redo. They walked by not really commanding but receiving everyone’s attention. I was impressed!
The Famsa tank bag and panniers that I bought were also nice and supplied ample storage space. The tank bag itself zips right off of the base unit for easy removal and has nice handles to carry it with. The downside of the tank panniers is that they are not designed to be removed quickly. Realistically it’s only a few straps but not a turnkey system. They were overloaded with supplies that I thought would be needed but most were never touched. Yes Mr. Over Prepared is still living and learning….
I had a good meal and a few drinks to bring day two to an end. I was tired, a little sore and ready for a good night rest.
Day 3 started with trying to beat the oncoming storm that the weather channel said was headed my way. I had raingear but no real experience in using it or with riding in the rain for that matter. I had a quick breakfast, put the luggage on the bike and headed out. There was one lesson learned here as evidently the parking spot I chose was on a slight incline. I made the mistake of pulling straight in instead up backing in. So with the bike facing slightly downhill I unlocked the handlebars to put them in position to reattach the tank bag. Well as your probably guessing the bike rolled forward off the side stand and down to the ground. I’m sure I was red with embarrassment before the bike actually hit. One of the few fortunate things about being “a big guy” is that the bike was fairly easy to upright and no damage was done. Well except for a little dent to my pride as the old couple walked passed back to their Harleys…. They just smiled and gave each other the look.
Leaving Wilhelmina I took what was probably the best but shortest road of the entire trip. It was only about 2 miles long but not a straight piece to it. It may have just been the excitement of what I felt the day was going to bring but I sure liked it.
It’s Hwy 272, I actually rode back up to do it again!
My plan was to get over to scenic Hwy 7 and head south to Camden where I had a room reserved for the night. Since it was July 4th I thought I might have a tough time finding a room so I booked one in advance. Knowing I had plenty of time to get there I wanted to head north for awhile just to see what was there. Now knowing what’s there, well I’ll spend more time going north next time but since I wanted to stick to my planned route I took Hwy 270 N to Hwy 71 N and then in Needmore I jumped on Hwy 28 W taking it to Hwy 60 and finally to Hwy 7 South.
I pretty much lucked out all day as it seemed like everywhere I went the rain had just stopped. The roads were wet and several oncoming cars had their wipers on yet I seemed to miss all of the rain. I know I just jinxed myself for my next trip!
Cruzing down Hwy 28 I saw the funniest thing, not to harp on folks from Arkansas but I saw a family that looked to be celebrating the 4th by burning a stump in their front yard. They had some regular 4th of July party favors but the stump burning is what caught my eye. I turned around to take a picture but was a little embarrassed to stop right in front of them to take the picture so I made a quick turn on a side road trying to be inconspicuous. This turned out to be a bit of a treat as I found more dirt….
Even a little hill to climb.
I decided I’d go back and get the stump burning picture so headed back to the pavement and ran across this:
By the time I got back to the stump burning party the flames were out, I did get a picture of the smoking stump…
The scenery on Hwy’s 28 and 60 was great, basically just long winding roads going through the mountains.
The VStrom comes in handy when looking for a place to take a potty break.
I think this next picture was taken in Plainview, being that it was the 4th of July I felt this marquee said it all.
Next up was a lake called Nimrod Lake, now pretty much being a Nimrod myself I just had to get a few pictures of the two of us together.
Then I found my way to the Scenic Byway 7.
This road was a lot of fun but a little on the crowded side. I wasn’t really able to stop and take any pictures but it was a fun ride into Hot Springs. This place seemed to have a lot of touristy type things to do but unfortunately I didn’t budget any time to check them out. Plus that rainstorm was catching up to me as it started sprinkling while I was walking around.
The sign on this next building kinda made me wonder.
So now were they actually saying that out-of-towners weren’t welcome? If it wasn’t for the oncoming rain I just might have checked this place out. All in all Hot Springs looked like a place to have some fun in. Lake Hamilton looked really nice and being a holiday there were a lot of folks enjoying it.
Continuing south on Hwy 7 I made a quick visit to De Gray Lake and the Iron Mountain resort, then in to Camden for the evening.
Part of the reason I had preselected Camden was because distance wise it made sense for routing me back to Whitesboro the next day. Also, I had called ahead to a few different towns wanting to see which one was going to have a 4th of July fireworks display and Camden was. I got to the hotel, unpacked the bike and rested for a bit before heading out to dinner. As chance would have it I chose to eat at KFC, while waiting for my food another customer asked about my bike and my trip. I basically mention having a few free days and wanting to get out of Austin. Come to find out this guy was on a bike trip heading back home to Austin! He was on a BMW and on this particular trip had completed his goal of riding in every state (I didn’t ask about Alaska or Hawaii). Kentucky and Michigan were the last two that he needed. I thought that was a pretty cool goal so I set the same goal for myself. Of course I’ve got a long way to go because so far my list consists of Texas, Oklahoma and Arkansas. But it’s a start right! Well anyway, you’ve all heard the “it’s a small world” line but I guess it really is to be running into people like that. The funny part was this guy is evidently big the McDonalds business but yet eating at a KFC……. What does he know that we don’t?
Well I ate too much and had a few cocktails and decided to forgo the fireworks display which is ironic because that is one of the main reasons I chose Camden. But I did dose off to the Macy’s firework show they were airing on TV. Yeah, I’m getting old….
Day three was fairly uneventful as the ride back to Whitesboro was pretty flat with not a lot of scenery. This is where I’ll do it different next time. Basically I should have spent another day in the north eastern part of Arkansas. After reading other posts on it, I could spend several days up there exploring.
After passing through Texarkana I jumped on Hwy 82 heading west and saw this plane just outside of Paris Tx that caught my interest. It was an old prop plane sitting in a field just off the hi-way so I turned around to check it out. I wanted to take a picture of my bike next to it, well because that’s just what we do right? There was a guy working in a building close by so I rode up to ask about it. Come to find out this guys father was a WW II pilot and evidently a bit of a hero. After the war he had some sort of business buying and selling planes. The son pointed to another field further back with several more planes. Now I really wish I would have written his father’s name down as I want to study up on him so if anyone else is knows about this guy please let me know. The son was really cool, his father had recently passed on so he was building a museum to share his dad’s history with others. He gave me the ok to ride out and get my picture. The ground was a little soft but I thought I picked a good enough spot for the kick stand but evidently not as after I got a few feet away this happened.
As tired as I was I just had to laugh. This time the bike was a little more difficult to pick up and took a few tries. Come to find out one of the hi-way pegs was buried in the dirt. I got it though and headed back west on Hwy 82. My only other stop was in Sherman. Since I spent five years of my life there I had a few friends to visit and also wanted to take pictures of the various places that I lived to show the kiddo.
I spent the next two days visiting with family in Whitesboro before an uneventful trip back to Austin. Here’s a pict of what we did for entertainment when I got back to Whitesboro.
It’s actually this really cool spring loaded dart gun with a fly swatter on the end of it…… It’s pretty entertaining actually!
Hope you enjoyed!
