July 31st ride- KY10/22 with pictures

There was a nip in the air as I set out at approximately 8:00am toward Kentucky. My plan was to ride on KY10 for about 20 miles, take some pictures and turn around before it got too hot. Instead, I ended up riding the entire July 3rd route.

(Click on the thumbnails for a high resolution version of the pictures)

This first picture is very similar to pictures in previous posts, a meandering road under a canopy of green leaves. The temperature was several degrees cooler when passing through this spot.

A few minutes later, I stopped again clicked these pictures. The scenery all along KY10 is pretty much like this- gentle hills, valleys and farms.

I had stopped here to take a picture of the “twisties” sign board when I spotted a barn in the distance. I was hoping to see some horses there.

At the barn, I didn’t find horses, but I saw a very disinterested cow and a grumpy old bull. When I pulled over to take a picture, he quickly stood up, expressed his displeasure with a loud snort, and turned away. And the cow, she didn’t even glance my way once. (I’ve expressed this very sentiment several times in my life, usually when I’m in a bar! )

A couple of miles down the road I spotted more cows grazing and took some more pictures. By then the sun was high up in the sky and the pictures came out highly overexposed. I’ve tried to fix them with some post processing but this is as good as I can get them to look.

As I continued riding on KY10, I had an interesting adventure: an encounter with a dog! I had taken a narrow by-road hoping to find some horses when I passed a trailer-home. Out of the corner of my eye, I saw a very annoyed dog running full tilt toward me, barking at the top of his lungs. I was quite far away from him, so I didn’t worry about it. A couple of hundred yards down, the road dead ended and I realized I’d have to turn around and go back the same way. And this time the dog would be waiting for me! I desperately searched my mind for the protocol to be followed when on a motorcycle and approached by a rabid dog: “Downshift, approach the animal slowly. As it nears the motorcycle, open the throttle and accelerate away. This will startle it and throw its timing off.” And it worked! As I sped away, I glanced at the rear view mirror and though I saw a bewildered expression on his face. “……and stay away…” he barked.

As I neared Falmouth, KY I saw three horses trotting about in a farm. I stopped to take some pictures. When they saw me, the horses came over to the fence to investigate. I guess they were hoping for a handful of sugar or some carrots. As I was getting my camera out, I kept talking to them, so that they wouldn’t lose interest and gallop away.

I didn’t stop again for pictures and just focused on enjoying the rest of the ride on KY22. Overall, I’m quite pleased with the pictures, although all of them were severely overexposed. I need to get an SLR.

Old routes, revisited with a friend.

This past weekend, I took a passenger with me on my rides. A good friend from high-school was in town and she had indicated to me that the primary reason for her visit was not to see me but to go riding with me. I was more than happy to share the thrill of motorcycling, so we set off to do the Big Bone Lick/ Rabbit Hash run on Sunday morning. I will reserve my comments on her thoughts about the ride because I have asked her to write an article for this blog about her experience. Suffice it to say that she was so enthralled and excited by the whole experience, she now wants to learn to ride motorcycles and get her own bike.

On Monday morning we explored some of the roads near Cleves and Ross, OH and also rode all the way to Brookville, IN. One dilemma we both faced while riding was whether or not to interrupt the zen-like state of mind one is in when riding on a stretch of road in the countryside, to stop and take pictures. We ended up not stopping too often. I realize that some of the pictures I’ve posted will make anyone who knows anything about photography cringe, but I intend to improve the quality of pictures I take. I am even getting some help from another friend, an excellent photographer in my opinion. (Check out his photoblog)

Click on the thumbnails below for a high resolution picture.

Somewhere near Big Bone Lick State park, KY

Interesting name, isn’t it?

A farm in Indiana

Biker Chick!

Yours truly!

Gort or Darth Vader?

A colleague of mine thinks that instead of going with the rather trite comparison to Darth Vader( see previous post) I should opt for a more romanticized image, like Gort the robot from a 1951 sci-fi classic, The Day the Earth Stood Still. You decide!

The Day the Earth Stood Still (1951)

Rain rain go away…. !!!

I was hoping to go riding with a good friend of mine this weekend on some of the routes I’d already explored. Being a new rider, he is understandably reluctant to ride on the freeways. And he rides a Kawasaki Ninja 250, so I guess he’s not very comfortable doing 3-4 hour rides in a slouched position on his sports bike, as opposed to the upright riding posture of a cruiser. But I had persuaded him to check out last Saturday’s route and ride with me this weekend. Too bad its going to be a rainy one. Oh well…there’s always next weekend ! Anyway, check out this picture of me in my riding gear. Looks like Darth Vader reincarnated as a biker eh?

Darth Biker?!

July 9th ride pictures

Buffalo Ridge Rd1

Buffalo Ridge Rd 2

Buffalo Ridge Rd 3

Ferry to Kentucky (from S.R. 50)

Click on the thumbnails for high-resolution versions of the pictures.

Upcoming Saturday morning ride

This Saturday, I will be unable to go on a long, all-day ride. That is because I will be heading to Kettering, OH to see Mark Knopfler (of Dire Straits fame) in concert, something I have been looking forward to for quite some time. I do plan to squeeze in a 2 to 3 hour ride in the morning. A friend recommended some roads near Cleves, OH so I pulled up the satellite map on Google’s amazing new (and free!) software Google Earth and plotted a course. I also plan to take a digital camera and click some pictures along the route, so remember to check back in a couple of days!

Saturday morning ride.

July 3rd ride- KY 10/22

I had been looking forward to this ride for weeks, and I certainly wasn’t disappointed. When I headed out around 9:30am, it was still relatively cool outside at about 65°. I took I-471S out of Cincinnati and I-275W to the AA highway (Route 9 southbound). I stopped to top off my tank before turning right onto route 915, which meets route 10 near Alexandria.

Route 10 is a single lane road with so many twists and turns that it demands a rider’s full attention at all times. The road snakes up and down the rolling Kentucky hills, through farms and woods. Speaking of snakes, I spotted one somewhere along route 10. He was curled up on the tarmac, catching some rays, completely unaware of how close he came to becoming snake pudding. I saw several horses, cows and even a couple of vultures feeding on a carcass by the road. Traffic is almost non-existant, except for a few bikers or the occasional pick-up truck. The speed limit is 45-55mph but it pays to follow the posted yellow signs on recommended speeds at the curves. Thanks to the wide ratio gearbox on my Shadow VLX 600, I could stay in 3rd for all but the sharpest of turns and I dragged the pegs on more than one occasion.

At Willow, I turned right onto route 22 and headed west toward Falmouth. I stopped there to grab a bite and continued on 22 to Williamstown. Route 22 is exactly like route 10, with slopes, twist and turns and almost no traffic. At Williamstown I took I-75 to Cincinnati, a 36 mile ride back.The next time I ride this route, I intend to stop more frequently and take a few pictures to post here.

July 2nd ride

My long weekend began with some basic motorcycle maintainance. I cleaned the bike and lubed the chain for the many miles of riding I had planned. The weather was perfect, the temperature hovering around 80°. I took I-74 to Indiana and took US 52 toward Brookville, the same road I’d taken last week. But this time, instead of continuing on 101 from Brookville, I decided to turn right onto route 252. I was immediately rewarded with a series of zig-zag curves. Route 252 has long straight stretches along cornfields and curvy parts through wooded areas where you would need to slow down if you are not familiar with the road. The speed limit is 55mph but there is always the chance of encountering a slow tractor trailer right around a bend. Route 252 splits into 129 and 126. Choose 126. It is a brand new road, smooth black tarmac, not a single pothole. A biker’s dream. Again, this road is very curvy in some parts and the straight parts have undulations, so one moment you’re cruising along at 55 and the next you are airborne ! At Ross, OH instead of making a left to continue on 126, I stayed straight on Cincinnati-Brookville road for about a mile and turned right onto East. Miami River Rd. This is a low speed road (35mph) but a lot of fun nonetheless. I made a left on Harrison to take I-74 back into town.

I’m excited about the route I plan to ride on tomorrow, KY routes 10 and 22.

Covered Bridge Scenic Byway

I hope to do at least one long, overnight road trip on my bike this summer. A good choice, I think, would be the Covered Bridge Scenic Byway, starting at Marietta, OH ( about 200 miles from Cincinnati). Getting to Marietta would in itself, be quite enjoyable, riding on Route 52 along the Ohio River for about 160 miles to Burlington OH and then following Route 7 all the way to Marietta.
The Covered Bridge Scenic Byway begins in Marietta. Take Highway 7 eastbound and after about a mile, turn left onto Route 26 northbound. The scenic byway goes on for about 45 miles on Route 26 along the Little Muskingum River and will take you through open pastures, forested hills and of course, several covered bridges. Some pictures of the sights on this scenic route, obtained from www.byways.org :

Knowlton Covered Bridge (OH)
©2004. Gregory S. Hamilton.

Hills Covered Bridge (OH)
©2004. Gregory S. Hamilton.

Hune Covered Bridge (OH)
©2004. Gregory S. Hamilton