The Conclusion

They say all good things must end and this GREAT thing certainly has. It has taken a while to get to writing this for a couple reasons. I didn't want it to end and I got sick coming home.
We arrived back in the UK on Fri Oct 12. Sat morning a local motorcycle rider came by the hotel and took delivery of the trailer. I had posted it on the UK Ebay site and he was the winning bidder. We loaded it into the back of his van. Deb and I decided to do a trial run out to the airport and find out where we needed to go to check in etc on our departure day Wed Oct 17. We would be leaving the hotel in the predawn hours and wanted to be sure we knew where we needed to go. This would be the only time we would actually ride one of the famous doubledecker transit buses in the UK.

That adventure turned out very well and we also managed to check in with the airlines and get seats assigned for the flight.
Sunday we hoped to spend the day again sight seeing London but Deb managed to catch a cold and didn't feel good. So we stayed close to the hotel and spent the day reading.
Monday Oct 15 we left London and headed for Chester a little over 200 miles away where we were delivering the motorcycle to the dealer that was purchasing it. Not the bright sunny day we would have hoped for but it wasn't raining. The fall season has arrived and we managed some color even though most of this trip was on the motorway.

When we were sure we would make Chester by the appointed time we decided on a lunch break and were directed to a terrific English Pub, Dysart Arms.

Directly across the street from another beautiful old church.

Once finished with a truly wonderful meal we finished the journey to the dealer and completed the sale of the GL1800 motorcycle that gave us just over 6000 miles of a truly wonderful adventure.

We had a few hours before our train back to London so decided we would go back through the city of Chester and see if we could find a good book store. We saw some beautiful colors near the Chester Cathedral.

We walked back along the city wall where they had finished the renovations of the King Charles Tower.

We found a couple really nice books stores and picked up a couple for the plane ride home. We continued our walk headed for the Chester train station and crossed a bridge over the River Dee.

Chester being a relatively small city the train station was only a 10 minute walk from the city center and we arrived with plenty of time before we would board.

Tue Oct 16, our final day abroad and this time it was me that would feel the effects of a cold.  While we had planned to go into London and spend the day at the Tower of London, we instead spent the day entertained by thte departing aircraft from Heathrow Airport.

One final sunset before the journey home.

Our flight would take us over Iceland.

This amazing trip would come to a conclusion after 57 days covering just over 6000 miles.

The yellow highlight on the map above provides an overview of the entire route. I joking estimated that Deb took about 2000 photos during the trip. I wasn't far off as the count now is over 1800 and we have deleted many that were out of focus because of the moving motorcycle. She has already spent the better part of 3 days adding captions and has manage to get only half way through. She is working on putting together a slide show we can put on the web. We will be sure to let you know when that has been finished.
Until Next time, Adios

After the Cemetery and Memorial

There is almost 30 miles of coastline that covers the area used for the invasion that fateful day in June, 1944. Once we left the Omaha Beach site we traveled 8 miles to the next monument at Pointe du Hoc. This is a monument to the Rangers that scaled a 100 foot cliff to disable German guns threatening both the Omaha and Utah Beach landing sites. While the guns had obviously been removed, the concrete bunkers and the craters from the bombing activities that had occurred in an effort to knock these gun sites out still remained.

226 Rangers attempted to take this position and only 95 remained after 2 days of fighting. President Ronald Reagan went to this site and made a dedication to this fine group of young men.
Leaving there we traveled yet another 10 miles to the Utah Beach site.

We drove through several small villages and in each one there was a war museum with equip, tanks, guns, aircraft that had been restored and photos, stories and videos of the events that took place over the next 90 days as the Allied forces drove the Germans from France and effectively ended the war.
Fri Oct 12 we boarded the ferry in Ouistreham, Fr. and headed for Portsmouth, UK. We have a nice enough room at the IBIS Heathrow Hotel across the street from where we will catch our plane home Wed Oct 17. Ironically our room number is 534, the same as our home address back in Ca. From this room we are entertained by watching the aircraft take off and land at the airport, almost as if we were in the tower. Fortunately the hotel is very well sound proofed and it has not impacted our sleeping at night.
We have one more journey of significance, delivering the motorcycle to Chester on Mon. A drive of about 200 miles. We will then take the train back to London and public transportation back to the hotel. This will be the last entry to the blog until after we have returned to the USA.
Hope you have enjoyed seeing some of Europe through our eyes and experiences!

Normandy American Cemetery and Memorial

I was not yet born when WWII was fought. Sure I have seen movies and read stories about the war and the D-Day invasion. None of it really hit home until Thur Oct 11 when I visited the site named in the title.
One of 14 permanent WWII American military cemeteries on foreign soil, this land was provided by France for use in perpetuity as a permanent burial ground without charge or taxation.
This site overlooks Omaha Beach, one of 5 invasion points and by far the most costly in American lives that day June 6, 1944. Until I came and visited I never fully understood the enormity or scope of this invasion.
This memorial site covers 172.5 acres and holds more than 9000 departed souls, 3 of which were Medal of Honor recipients.

The weather was grey and overcast as we approached the visitors center. While free of charge to enter, we had to go through a screening process similar to going through an airport. Once inside I was struck by the reverence of the France staff. When we finally exited the visitor center and started to stroll the grounds we were met with a rainbow falling into the channel as the waves gently rolled up on the beach.

 

 I have heard some negative things about how the French perceive Americans but I can tell you that the French in this area show more appreciation of Americans than our current crop of politicians. I saw several French homes flying American flags. The monuments and Chapel at the Cemetery were meticulously maintained.

The Road to Caen

We discovered the trike would not be available any time soon so we departed our friends' home in Finestart about 12:30 pm Fri afternoon. We have ample time to wind our way to Caen, France where we will spend a couple extra days and sight see along the Normandy Beaches, the site of the D-Day invasion of WW11.
Leaving Finestrat we followed familiar roads to Alcoi at which point we jumped on the A-7 and headed for Sagunt where we then switched to the A-23 and made for Zaragoza. Just north of that we stopped for the night at the Norte Hotel, a very nice modern hotel with a full bar and restaurant. The staff spoke very little English but the dinner menu was printed in English as well as Spanish so we were able to make reasonable decisions. I ordered a Cod Fillets dinner which was melt in your mouth WONDERFUL with a fabulous sauce.
Sat we got a reasonable start, about 9:30 and made our way to Huesca, Spain where we made the first selection of a backroad, A132. The first 20km were pretty straight running through farm land and then the fun began. The map did not do justice to the twists and bends and the canyons we would run through for the next few hours. At the N240 we jogged left and continued north on A137 to Isaba and then left and over the border to France crossing the Pico d'Orhi in the Pryenees Mountain range. We then backtracked a bit hoping to get near the coast and a view of the Atlantic Ocean. We continued on nice scenic roads working toward Bayonne, however the weatherman had other ideas and started forcing us more inland and we finished the day in Peyrehoarde, France.
Sun. was the start of the ugly weather and since then we have worked our way north through light rains, then heavier rains, a couple breaks and then constant rain through Limoges and Chartres, until we landed in Caen Tue afternoon about 3pm. The next 2 hours was spent trying to figure out our way to the hotel, as none of the roads are marked with the route numbers visible on the map. We made so many turn arounds you would think would would have the city figured out, but alas that is far from true. Thank goodness we have 2 days to discover how to find the ferry to the UK Fri.
Below are some of the sights from Fri. and Sat.'s riding including fall colors, canyon and incredible rock formations as well as the picnic spot where we stopped and had a nice break, just before crossing the tops of the Pyrenees into France.

Week 2 in Finestrat

Our wonderful hosts have kept us for a second week in their home here in Finestrat. The trike repairs have taken longer than hoped and in fact as I write this on Fri 10/5 we will make a call today to determine if we can get the trike back today or not. We are hoping for one more ride with our friends before we depart and head for the beaches of Normandy.
Last Sat we had the fun of going to the Amusement park here, Terra Mitica, with Rowland and Betty's son Carl. The park boosts of having 3 of the top 10 thrill rides in Spain and I was not disappointed.

Sun Deb and I took off and went to the coastal fishing village of Calpi. This is the area that Rowland and Betty first lived in when they came to Spain years ago and is home to an impressive rock rising out of the Sea, Penon de Ifach. The first rock they climbed here and they scaled it many times as they ran there courses there. Leaving the village we continued along the coast to Fanadix then on to Benissa, Senija, Liber, Xalo, Murla, Benigembla, Castell, Gorga, Alcoleja, Relleu, Oxerta and back to Finestrat. The mountain riding is fantastic with excellent roads surfaces that wind through the hills.

Mon was a shopping day as we had wiped out their refrigerator. We also begin to start packing things for travel as we are planning a Wed departure. A nice dinner in our friends' favorite Chinese restaurant and another day is done.
Tue without the trike we decide on a car trip. We decide to go back to Calpi and take the glass bottom boat tour (it was closed on Sunday). Very nice trip around the penon showing us views of the amazing reefs just off the coast.

Wed, the day we planned to depart gets interrupted with an email about dealing with the UK customs folks so I can legally sell the motorcycle. The day is spend going in circles with gov't offices and as most know, not accomplishing much. Departure delayed as we need to sort these issues out while we still have phone access.
Thur is more of the same until mid morning when we have finally got things handled. Since it is possible the trike will be available tomorrow we decide to spend the day and we go into the hills and watch as Rowland and son Mark spend some time climbing the rocks. They do make it look easy. They have created several routes here and it has become a favorite climbing site. Betty takes Deb on a walk up to the top for an overview of the surrounding valleys. A very nice day.
Today is Fri and we will soon make a call to determine if the trike can be picked up today or not. If not, Deb and I will be off and headed for the Normandy Beaches. If it is available we will get the trike and depart tomorrow is that direction with Rowland and Betty riding along for our final journey together on this adventure.

Week 1 in Finestrat

Arriving as we did, near 1 am Thur night we were in no hurry to get up Fri morning. This would be a down day with our friends needing to take care of some business. The bikes and trailers were unpacked, though for us not completely. Rowland completed his business requirements and then decided he needed to look at some of the issues the trike was having. He discovered the brake caliper on the left wheel was not operating properly and in the process of taking it apart realized a couple seals were bad. Living remotely as they do, parts needed to be ordered, so the trike was down for a few days.
Sat. Deb and I took off on a nice local day ride. I am amazed at where these people build small towns or villages. Perched on mountain sides. The hills are almost all terraced to create more farm space and villages dot the hill sides in the most unlikely places. We have learned that Spain is the most mountainous of all the countries in Europe, they are just not as high as the mountains of other places such as the ALPS. The switchbacks here are much more like we regularly see in the US with 15-25mph type speeds. The roads are so small they can't be found on most maps. The thing that strikes me is the colors remind me so much of Utah and Arizona with lots of sand colored and red rock. Possibly with Google maps you can follow the ride as we went from Finestrat to La Nucia, Polop, Guadalest, Alcoy, Xixona, Sant Joan and then back to Finestrat.
Sun. we walked through the local village of Finestrat which is about 1 kilometer from our friends' home. The terrain was like walking through San Francisco, uphill and down but the houses were build to the street's edge in places. The streets were not wider than a single vehicle.  Then by car we went back to Guadalest for a walk around the village there, and to the base of a mountain top castle.
Mon. we spent looking for a place to exchange travelers checks to Euro's. They don't do that in banks here. That was quite the adventure but we were finally successful in Benidorm. TIP: If you come to Spain get your Euro's before you leave home.
Tue., since the parts for Rowland's trike have not yet come, our friends dropped Deb and I off at the beach for a dip into the Mediterranean. The water was a very comfortable temp and the beach was filled with mostly retirement aged folks. I suspect the locals are glad the schools have started back again.
Wed. Rowland had tired of waiting for the parts and got the trike in decent enough shape to lead us on a nice day ride through some hills. The route started like it did when we went alone last Sat. However when we got to Polop we altered the route and went to Callosa, Bolulla, Orba, Tormos, Sagra, Vall D'Ebo, Vall d'Alcala, Planes, Benimarfull, Benilloba, Benifallim, Sella, Orexta and back to Finestart. During the ride we stopped and entered the Cova De Rull, an amazing section of underground caves. Photos were not allowed because the light from the flash would do damage to the cave walls.
Thur. the weatherman decided we were having too much fun and dampened things a bit. Rowland had also become even more concerned about his trike, as it developed new noises from the rear end. A quiet day was had and more reading was done than had been done so far during the entire trip.
Today is Fri 9/28 and after a removal of the left rear tire of the trike it was discovered a wheel bearing was going bad. The tire was replaced and I followed Rowland to his mechanic's where a quick look indicated a job that required leaving the trike until at least Mon. For the first time in nearly 50 years, Rowland got to ride the back seat of a bike, and the first time ever on a Goldwing. He was amazed at the comfort. More weather is expected today and tomorrow before a clearing to sunny days starting Sun.
Enjoy a few photos. The first is the mountain behind our friends' house where they hold rock climbing classes.

Headed for Spain

Tue morning Sept. 18, we learn of the need to return to Spain a little earlier than planned. The people we are riding with own and operate a Rock Climbing school in Finestrat and there are issues that need their immediate attention. It will take a few days however as we are over 1000 miles from their home. Unlike America, the road system is not really designed for 1000 mile days, and our friends prefer a slower pace as well.
The first day finds us traveling westward along the northern portion of Italy before we luckily find a campground after just crossing into France. We have covered the largest distance yet on this trip in a day at just over 300 miles. This campground is not the first we find where the shower building and water closets (toilets) are a single building with one door in and one door out for all patrons (no Men's/Women's). This campground is at a higher elevation than we have used for a while and we awaken to a chill in the air. That slows the departure but not the resolve and we again cover 300+ miles on day two headed for Finestart.
We have spent a fair amount of time on the toll roads here as we have had a couple of small issues to deal with. A flat tire on our friends trailer and a failed suspension on their trailer have caused them to seek the smoother and straighter roads of the motorway. While only my opinion, their motorways are not much smoother than the primary roads we had been on, but they are faster and certainly more costly.
On Thur we cross into Espana where the toll roads are yet even more expensive than in France. We try to avoid them for a short while but in an effort to make the final destination today decide they are a must. Under normal circumstances we are ending our riding day at or near 5pm. Today we push through arriving at our friends home just before 1am having covered 550 miles for this final leg.
We will unpack and sort things in the morning.
A few photos on the way down