End of the road....in a manner of speaking

I have been doing a lot of exploring since I picked up the new motorcycle.  I rode to the west end of Ray Rd and the west end of Pecos road in Phoenix today.  Ray road loops around and drops you onto Chandler Blvd while Pecos ends at the foothills of the Salt River Mountains where the land becomes Indian Reservation.  Very scenic, the neighborhoods are nestled right into the foothills and in some cases go half way up the mountains. Great day for a ride- low 80's, blue skies.

Tempe Art Walk

Arizona Wine Tasting

Several Jazz bands played over the course of the afternoon

Diana, John, and Karen enjoying a sit, some shade, and vino

John and Diana returning with new samples

What a beautiful day in the Valley! Went to the Tempe Art Walk  and enjoyed seeing all the artisans and their wares.  Enjoyed the wine tasting of some of Arizona's wonderful vineyards and will be looking for them at the local Total Wine.  Tried a couple of the Jerome wines and look forward to trying them again with a motorcycle trip that I have planned there in two weeks.

Lunch at Queen Creek Olive Mill

Had an excellent motorcycle ride down to the Queen Creek Olive Mill for Lunch. Beautiful day, clear skies, high 70's.  Picked up some excellent Feta Cheese Stuffed Olives along with some Blue Cheese ones to bring home.   They had a very nice jazz quartet playing, sitting under the shade of a tree while eating lunch.  Total ride of almost 65 miles...because of course you never take the shortest route on a motorcycle ride.

Breakfast in Coolidge, AZ

Had some coffee this morning and decided a 50 mile ride down to Coolidge would be nice.  Stopped at the Casa Grande Ruins- very cool.  Nice way to spend a Sunday morning.

Casa Grande Ruins 

So much for the early flight home

Yup, changed my later flight to an earlier flight out of OAK........and got home at the same time. Awesome!  Overhead light was broken in MSP, fixed it there, after they boarded us in SLC the ground crew realized it was hanging down..... maintenance duct taped the crap out of it and then......we waited an hour for the fix to be approved by an engineer in  Atlanta.  Way to cut through that red tape Delta.

The Mother Road: Historic Route 66

Getting the bike and then planning out this trip for two parts- this year to LA and next year to Chicago

The Mother Road: Historic Route 66

Dinner at the Valley Brew- good Black Cat Stout

The Stockton CA Hilton is much nicer than expected.

Way too much snow for me

Just past the Grand Canyon on the way to Salt Lake City......beautiful views today from 30,000ft. 

Spring Training In AZ

What a great day for a baseball game in the valley- high 80's, plenty of sunshine, good friends.  Only complaint is that the hot dogs were some of the worst I have every had!  Man they were nasty.

A beautiful evening in the valley

Sitting and having dinner outside with some family and friends when the clouds and sunset worked together to create this scene.

Taken in Chandler, AZ