14 riders made up this year's ride and it was a dandy.  The weather cooperated and we had rain the night before our first day which made the sand and soil tacky and just right for some excellent riding.  Friday (March 19) was the day we did a round through White Wash, Red Wash, Ten Mile Wash and assorted slot canyons and slick rock areas.  Then it was off to the Slick Rock park (up from Moab) and a late afternoon 12 mile ride before a great Mexican feed.  The next day we did Pritchett Canyon, Behind the Rocks Trail and Kane Creek - tough in spots but great fun and everybody helped everybody when needed.  The final day was a round on the Soverign Trail system.  Finally, everyone made it home safe and sound with only a few bruises and one flat tire.

More snow than usual on the way to Moab.


A great gang of riders.


Pritchett Canyon has its challenges.


One at a time.


Everyone helps.


Near the top of Pritchett.


The vista on top are great.


Up a slot canyon.


Better follow the leader.


A little water at the end of the day.

This year's ride was unusual because a big wind storm roared through the Clearwater area the day before we arrived.  As a change of pace, take a look at what its like to have downed stuff on all your pristine trails and and nobody brought a chain saw (dumb me).  At one point it took us 3 hours to go 7 miles and it wasn't even snowing.  Course we had to endure one day of cold and snowy weather - just to keep things interesting.  Actually, we had a pretty good time.  We all stayed in Stan Seehorn's motor home and the first night it seemed pretty chilly - next morning we discovered the front side window was down (freezing outside).  Once we got everything sorted, the accommodations worked quite well and we did eat in fine style.

The beautiful Clearwater


Love those pack bridges


The real work begins


If it isn't one it's 4


And more yet


And then things got more interesting


Bless those hot grips


All you can do is laugh


And help each other over another log


If you can't go over it, you go under it


Today there is a break in the weather


But still plenty of snow and logs




Just grin and bear it


Finally we are done and can go home

This adventure is not about riding motorcycles but an adventure never the less.  In late September Paul and Troy Winslow went to the island of Cozumel just off the Yucatan peninsula of Mexico for five days of diving in some of the most beautiful coral waters to be found anywhere.  We did 11 boat dives, including one night dive and a wreck dive.  We saw turtles, eels, octopus, squids, crabs, lobsters, barracuda, sharks, manta rays, groupers, and all kinds of fish.  Our hosts were the Blu Angel Dive Shop and Hotel and they took wonderful care of us.  Our dive groups were small (usually 4 -6 people) using fast dive boats we went to a different place for each dive.   We were fortunate to have a couple from Canada who had made over 400 dives at Cozumel and who passed on some of their professional pictures - as you will see.

We stayed right on the beach -


Funny looking fish -



Don't stick your hand too close -


A nice swimming companion -


Going about his business -


His color matches his home -


Patrolling manta rays -


A little guy -


Look at the colors God has made -


A killer fish from the Pacific -


A fish swarm from the deep -


Going through coral channels -


Time to go home -

Nick and the boys from California showed up at our house July 23 just before we returned from a study trip - some came by airplane and some by pickup (with bikes in tow). The first day was a ride in the North Coeur d' Alene mtns. on single track trails called Independence, Devil's Peak, Larch Mtn, Powder Mtn, Dixie Queen, Kick Bush and assorted connecting trails. Everyone got their game face on and did great. On day two the bar was raised with a ride out of Wallace, ID. - a lot of high mountain trails with many interesting variations. Again, everyone did well but were glad to jump into a cold stream at the end of the day. On the third day we went up a steep trail through a lot of overgrowth to the top of Chilkote (a former fire lookout site). We quit a little early as men and bikes were a bit worn out but we did come down Hell's Canyon (which was a nice end to the Nick Ride of 2009).

Lake Pend Oreille



North Idaho Trails



Getting across a pack bridge



Some uphill !



A little tired, are we ?

This year's ride is in the books - Spokane, WA west on back roads to Cascade Highway, then to Vancouver, BC - ferry to Nanaimo on Vancouver Island, then rode an interesting road to Ucleulet.  Went ocean kayaking to the Broken Islands for a day (guided tour) and and the next day dashed off to Victoria to catch the ferry to Port Angeles, then back roads to Mt. Rainer Park (too much snow to get through the park so) over the pass near Mt. St. Helens on highway 12 to Yakama and backroads home.  Interesting thing happened just two miles after the first day's early morning start - a shift lever fell off the KTM 950 and broke the bolt off inside the shift shaft (got it fixed in two hours) - we were so fortunate that did not happen out in the middle of nowhere.  Great time all around.

Replacing the shift lever that fell off



Crossing the Columbia



Cascade Highway early in the morning



Beautiful every where you look



Out comes the rain gear on Vancouver Island



The fishing village of Ucleulet, BC



Papa Seal and his harem



A BIG star fish



Kayaking through the Broken Islands



Everbody home safe and sound (after 1400 miles) - next to me is my 16 yr old grandson Matt