I'll spare you a lengthy narrative. A couple of years ago I was invited by the AMSC to judge the sweepstakes at the 2001 National Specialty in Los Angeles. (AMSC is the American Miniature Schnauzer Club). I decided to drive, and to stop in Idaho for some shows, and show one of my own dogs there. It's about a 3500 mile round trip.

I knew I'd have lots of spare time to play, and some good roads to play on. So, Aretha came along!

Click on the thumbnails for the full size version of the pics.

    Parked outside the house

   I could have cleaned the bugs off the windshield. This is typical of Southwestern Saskatchewan.

   Nobody leaves Saskatchewan without going through Climax.

   Just north of Harlem, Montana. God's country.

   Looks like she's tied in well enough.

   If one could live anywhere one wanted, this would be high on my list.

The Snake River Canyon. If you turn off your bike, you can almost hear the ghost of Evel Knievel... I say "almost" because he, eh, isn't dead.

 :

YAHOO-TAH! Uintas National Forest. My very first real twisties. Unfortunately, there were few places safe enough to stop and take pics that show just how much fun this mountain highway is! These will have to do. The map should give you an idea, though. Rte 92 - just outside of Provo, Utah. Go there.

Back on the road, these pics are from the desert, from the Virgin River Canyon, and south of Las Vegas. My 15 year old truck ran well, but couldn't handle the hills, the heat (108F south of Vegas) and the air conditioning, too. So, it was a challenge to keep my dog cool.

My friends, John and Janet Corpin, live in Ranchos Palos Verdes.... I pick my friends well. It's high on a rock, south of LA, next to the ocean, and covered with twisties! I just rode around and explored. Took a few pics. Rode along the beach highways. Met some old Hardley types at Walker's Cafe, who assured me it was a famous place.

This is me in the ring. Believe it or not, this was also a blast. And later that day, I pulled my second-ever, much improved wheelie. The end to a perfect day.

And, a few shots on the trip home. The bike stayed in the truck - about 1700 miles, in 48 hours. Left Sunday night to beat the heat, slept in the truck a few hours in North Vegas, and drove to Butte, Montana that day. Made it home by suppertime on Tuesday. Enough time left over to clean the house.

   Kind of cool, eh? Tried to take a pic of the Luxor Casino at night, as I drove by.

    Just a shot of the desert, near Death Valley.

    Larry reminded me of Mad Max, somehow. Great Falls, MT.

I do love Montana. There were fly fisherman around the bend, pelicans, the scent of clover on the air. And it was finally COOL! I suppose I should have taken a pic of Delisle, to round off the series, but well, I didn't. Maybe later.