First Ride 2011 Davenport, IA to Savanna, IL

Go figure.  It's Saturday, March 19 2011 and I was only on the road for a few miles and already killed my first flying insect of the year.  Little bugger landed splat dead center of my Harley's windshield.  An official rite of spring for us bikers I guess.................

After finishing a few errands following breakfast and my weekly call to my Dad I aired up the tires and adjusted the pressure in the rear shock to the appropriate pressures. The tires weren't extremely low from sitting all winter but I felt a bit vindicated in my decision not to ride my Ultra to work two days before when I hadn't yet done my safety checks.

After suiting up and kissing my wife goodbye I headed out on my first ride of the year to where I still wasn't sure.  When I reached the exit to our neighborhood it became clear that I needed a ride up the river somewhere so I headed north on Utica Ridge road and motored out of town.

Everything felt great and any cares I might have had quickly melted away as it seemed like my bike felt, once again, a part of me as I twisted the throttle.  I'm always in awe of the view as I clear the last rolling hill on the way into the little town of McCausland and this time was no different.  At the bottom of the hill is the entrance to the Cody Homestead  where Buffalo Bill Cody was born in 1846.

On the way out of McCausland I noticed a few more remaining snow banks that had not yet totally melted, reminding me to watch for sandy spots, especially at intersections and on curves, that might remain from the winter snow removal efforts.   At the little town of Follets just 5 miles east I had another decision.  head back down the river or on into Clinton and across the river.  On to Clinton it was where I was pleasantly surprise by the improvement they'd made on the highway 67 route to downtown where I planned to cross the Lincoln highway bridge.  the roadway is much improved, although the sweet oder from the ADM corn processing plan nearby is still the same!
Seeing barges being moved on the mighty Mississippi as I crossed the bridge over to Illinois were yet another reminder that spring was imminent.   The river was high and rising with the promise of another potential major flood on the way.  With a quick check of the clock at the the four-way stop at the intersection of Illinois 84 I decided there was still time to head on up to Savanna and cross over the big iron bridge before heading back down the Iowa side with time remaining before dinner.  Illinois 84 is a fairly flat road with just enough curves and tree-lined areas to keep in interesting and the ridge, once the shoreline of the river, running about a mile East was a reminder that the glacial melt at one time ran right where I was.

 Just before Savanna, as I rounded the curve I noticed the railroad crossing arms coming down for one of the many local freight trains to pass through.  I've been past hear many times but this is the first I had to stop for one.
Down the road there were a few bikes at Poopy's  but nothing like there will be in the coming weekends as the temps warm and other riders take to the road.

Before crossing the bridge in Savanna I made a quick stop at the boat landing and noticed a few empty fishing boat trailers in the lot and took the opportunity to get  a picture of the bridge that crosses over to Sabula, Iowa.  as of 2005 it carried an average of 2500
 vehicles per day.

It's a little strange crossing the bridge since its constructed with steel truss through deck design that allows you to see through it to the water and also causes the front tire to wiggle a bit.  Best advice is to hang on lightly and go with it.....and go slow.

once you enter the bridge its almost 6 miles of bridge or causeway and island before you pass through the island town of Sabula, Ia and make it completely through all the Mississippi channels and backwaters and back on to solid land again.  An interesting and scenic ride you won't forget.  

As I mentioned, Sabula is basically an island town on the river and the aerial photo (above) I found  provides a good perspective of how it sits in the middle of the causeway.  The one on the left is one I took from the small rest stop on the causeway.

Taking highway 67 another mile West I headed back down to Clinton and took the bypass around town, past the Wild Rose Casino and back down to Follets and on through Princeton, IA to Le Claire, home of Antique Archaeology where Mike and Frank are famous for their American Pickers TV show.  Le Claire is one of the many river towns that have a lot of tourism and recently upgraded their down area to further support and encourage more of it.

 In Le Claire you can visit antique shops, a distillery, a Bier Stube,  an historic steamboat, craft shops and a very old tavern named Sneaky Pet's that still has bullet holes in it's old tin ceiling left over from the late 1800's.

I finished my ride on an old road running along the bluff above lock and dam #14 and at pleasant Vally headed back home via forest grove road and past the old Forest Grove one room school house.

115 miles later I was home and my first ride of 2011 was completed safely.  

For a map of the ride leaving from Wiebler's Harley Davidson, click HERE

Sunday ride on Great River Road

The Steppenwolf track that started this morning as I entered the turns coming out of Loud Thunder Park was just ending as I approached the turn leading up the hill to Illinois City so I turned off the radio and just enjoyed the rumble of my ‘09 Ultra as I passed a slow tractor and climbed the hill, accelerating just enough to ensure the V-Twin made its presence known to any deer that might be lurking close by.
Weekend mornings in October often start out with temps in the 30’s and this one was no exception. It was only 38 degrees with bright blue sunny skies at 8 AM. With two granddaughters due to arrive shortly after noon my two-wheel time was limited for the day, so after some coffee and a quick scan of the Quad City times I suited up with warm full leather protection, kissed my still sleeping wife goodbye and headed out for an enjoyable, solitary Sunday morning ride while the temperature finally edged a bit over 40 degrees..
The heated grips I was waiting for were still on back order so with a little redneck engineering I dug out a couple “Hot Paks”, rubber banded them around the grips for a little extra warmth, put on my insulated gloves and pointed my ride out the driveway.
As usual, I had no idea where I was headed so after a left turn toward the mighty Mississippi I decided a trip down the Great River Road to New Boston, Illinois seemed like as good an idea as any. Crossing over the Centennial Bridge from Davenport to Rock Island it was obvious the recent rains in Wisconsin and Minnesota were finally making their way down river as the water was nearly over the flood wall near John O’Donnell stadium and the Marquette boat docks were barely visible a few hundred yards down river.
Before long I was headed toward Andalusia, Illinois on highway 92 and starting to acclimate a bit to the cool morning air and I noticed the ambient engine air temperature gauge was still stuck on 40 degrees. A few miles West of Andalusia a tent camper along the rising backwater was cooking breakfast on a wood fire reminding me that I wasn’t the only one braving the cool fall temps. Shortly after the road turned south up a long, steep hill I took County Road 59 through Loud Thunder Park and cranked up the radio when the Steppenwolf tune came on.
At Illinois City I picked up 92 again and followed it toward Muscatine stopping short of crossing the river again and turned south toward New Boston. The New Boston Road is 15 miles of sweeping curves that run 15 miles along a ridge that, although today is nearly two miles from the current river, was the east bank of a huge flowage resulting from the great Wisconsin glacier melting 18 thousand years ago. Over time the location and route of the river changed and eventually became the mighty Mississippi river we know today.

After passing the “exit” to lock and dam #17 and a right turn at highway 17, two short miles later I found the road ended on the banks of the Mississippi in downtown New Boston, a quiet little town that at one time was home to a ferry that saved many people a 34 mile round trip to the other side of the river.

Not enough time to work my way the rest of the way down river and cross over at Burlington so I decided to retrace my route back to Muscatine. The scenery looked different on the same road in reverse and I found that with fresh knowledge of the road I was able to twist the throttle a bit more and take most of the sweeping curves at a much higher pace to get out ahead of a couple good old boys in a pickup truck that kept tailing me a bit too close after I left New Boston. Before long I was crossing the bridge into Muscatine and decided to stop for a photo of the bridge from the Mark Twain overlook. Sam Clemens (better known by his pen-name Mark Twain) actually lived in Muscatine in the summer of 1855.

Then it was on up the Iowa side of the Great River Road on highway 22. Like the Illinois river road, highway 22 has some sweeping curves and a few small hills but also runs much closer to the river. Not far upstream I stopped at the Fairport hatchery, the oldest fish hatchery in Iowa.

A A local DNR retiree carved a couple statues of fishermen and a large fish out of dead trees on the property and they are easily visible by the entrance to the hatchery.

Farther up the river toward the little city of Buffalo, the oldest settlement in Scott County, each of the numerous small parks on the bank of the river seemed to be full of “campers”, most of them the 30 ft plus aluminum type complete with heat and air conditioning. I wondered what the tent camper across the river would think of them!
After two and a half hours on the road the ambient air temp gauge was finally creeping up past 40, I was starting to warm up a bit more and decided to head toward home and some left over chili. It was a great 121 mile ride with plenty of solitude and fresh air. Although I do enjoy rides with a group I often prefer to go it alone and allow myself the privilege of turning whichever way I want when straight ahead is not an option. Whatever you prefer, try this route sometime and enjoy the view.

To see a map of the route click here: http://rideplanner.harley-davidson.com/rideplanner/road.jsp?roadId=357823&locale=en_US

Ride Safe!

Halloween Ride from Davenport to Gilbertville, Iowa

“Are you going to ride your bike today?” Those words were music to my ears. Then as she sat down with her tea to read the morning paper my wife followed with: “If you are, then maybe you can go help my Mom get her new cable box installed.”
Sudden thoughts of Halloween jokes that included, a mother-in-law and broomsticks quickly passed as I realized this was an opportunity to enjoy what might be one of my last chances this fall, try ouot my new heated grips and put some more miles on my ’09 Ultra before the snow started flying. After all, it was 120 miles each way if I took the shortest route and I could sure make the trip a bit longer on my Harley if I tried! So, after noticing the thermometer was still stuck on 45 degrees, I jumped into some extra warm layers, put on my leathers, kissed my tea drinking bride goodbye and headed out for a day of two wheel solitary road time.
“D” towns were first as I started out in Davenport after gassing up at the BP next to Wiebler’s Harley Dealership and headed up through Donahue and Dixon. From Dixon to Wheatland, the road is hilly with enough curves to keep your attention, especially during harvest season when it’s important to watch for farm equipment entering and exiting the county roads.
From Wheatland I worked my way west and then north to Oxford Junction where city hall is located in an old restored DX Gas Station building.
From there it was on north to Hwy 64 and in to Anamosa, home of the National Motorcycle Museum. http://www.nationalmcmuseum.org/ No time to stop there today so I continued on west via country road E28 past Stone City known for its limestone quarry and historic buildings and is also a favorite bike stop for great food in an old building by the Wapsipinicon River. In Central City a few miles farther north and west I stopped for a quick photo of the dam on the Wapsipinicon.
Not really sure what Central City is central to, or for that matter what Center Point, a little farther west, is the center of. What I do know is that I can attest to the claim of Jonesy’s Restaurant in Center Point that they do indeed have the biggest and best pork tenderloins you’ll ever sink your teeth into. They’re not open on Sunday’s but I’ve enjoyed the platter sized super thick sandwich many times before.

County road E2W to Urbana is a short, but very winding road that crosses of I-380 and the Cedar Valley Nature Trail http://www.trailsfromrails.com/cedar_valley_trail.htm , an old 52 mile inter-urban railroad Between Waterloo and Cedar Rapids that was abandoned and later converted into a bicycle/hiking trail that runs through the Cedar River Valley. From Urbana I worked my way west a bit on highway 150 and then up county road V71 to the little town of Brandon, home of the world’s largest frying pan. I stopped long enough for a quick photo and found two girls trying to get their own photo “in the pan”. I as happy to assist while I pondered why I was bundled up and the one girl was only wearing shorts and a t-shirt………


From Brandon it’s a fairly short ride through local farm grounds west and north to Gilbertville where I spent about 30 minutes installing the cable box, making some small talk, and changing a few clock batteries and then I was on my way home on another indirect route via a quick stop in La Porte City to see my parents. Nobody home there, so I was off again, this time through the small town of Mount Auburn on my way to Vinton.
Both the sun and temperature drop quickly after 3 PM on the last day of October so I wasted little time gassing up in Vinton while resisting the urge to grab a quick sandwich at Mickey D’s and worked my way out the back side of town on a route I vaguely remembered from years ago and found my way down the Cedar valley back roads to Shellsburg. The ambient engine temperature gage that had started around 40 degrees and slowly climbed to something short of 50 earlier was now creeping back down and a cloud bank was beginning to cover what was left of a late fall sun so I turned up the dial on my heated grips and wasted no time heading down to highway 30 and on through the south side of Cedar Rapids and on my way through Mt Vernon and Lisbon to Mechanicsville where I planned to drop south on X40. My four-year-old grandson had left a small electronic game in my car the day before and I remembered to bring it along with me so I could drop it off on my way back. After a quick stop to see him near Cedar Valley I headed back toward Tipton to pick up Highway 130 for the diagonal trip back to the Quad Cities and home in time for a dinner of baked Iowa pork chops.
Here’s a link to my ride on the Harley Ride Planner tm
http://rideplanner.harley-davidson.com/rideplanner/road.jsp?roadId=361748&locale=en_US