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Scott & Eric's route
-- Click to enlarge -- |
Sunday, May 20
Riders: Scott,
Paul, Eric & Don
Distance:
Scott & Eric
Flagstaff, AZ to Van Nuys, CA
495 miles
Paul & Don
Flagstaff, AZ to Tucson, AZ
259 miles
Highlights:
- A hearty breakfast at
Munds Park
- Switching back and forth
between the FJR and FZ-1 with Eric
- Swimming in Eric's
backyard pool immediately upon arriving home
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Well, it's time to pack up and head
for home. We scoot back to Munds Park for a hearty breakfast and lots of
coffee before saying goodbye, splitting up and going our separate ways. Eric and I take I-40
West while Don and Paul take I-17 South. It's nice riding while we
are at high elevation among the pine trees of the Coconino National
Forest. But, inevitably, we begin our descent into the Mojave
Desert. As hot as it is, we don't imagine that it's hotter than the Sonoran Desert Paul and Don are traveling through.
When Eric and I reach the outskirts
of the LA basin,
the traffic is starting to stack up so Eric diverts us onto a back
route behind a range of low mountains and we emerge just North of
LA. Once again, I'm impressed with the LA freeway traffic. It's
fast, real fast, and with all the ramps and crisscrossing freeways,
it sure helps to be riding with someone with local knowledge. Before
I know it, we're back in Eric's Van Nuys neighborhood and within a 3
square mile area, we see more cops than we have on the entire trip.
But no worries; we're feeling mellow and laying off the throttle
now that we are on surface streets. Anyway, a dip in Eric's backyard pool
with my 2 nieces immediately remedies sore muscles
and feeling a bit cooked by the desert heat.
It's been a truly amazing ride.
Tomorrow, I'll be on the plane back to Seattle with
memories to savor until the next one.
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Photos |
-- Click to enlarge --
Packing up camp for the last
time
Motoring through the Mojave
Our average speed while
crossing the
desert |
