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| Ravishing Red Rocks |
We celebrated our first week of traveling by cooking up a $23 dollar boneless ribeye steak that we bought in Kimball Junction, Utah at the Whole Foods. Because it was me, I didn't look at the price at the time, but no matter, we would have done it anyway. We came to Kimball Junction to see my cousin, Joan, who thanks to Douglas (her brother), we discovered was just a half hour away from Rockport State Park. it just so happened that Joan's lifelong friend, Claudia Curran, was visiting. Claudia and I have a history, albeit a brief tete-te-tete as middle schoolers, so I was in the company of three hot sixties babes. I'm married to one, played house with another, and flirted like a Greek god with Roman hands with the third. It could only get better if they were redheads. We found Palisade State Park to be another of Utah's excellent state parks. While it is quite far from civilization, it suited our needs nicely. We circumnavigated the lake after a nice lunch at the Lakeside Grill, which is connected to a fine little eighteen hole golf course. The second day, we mounted our tandem speedster and road a thirty mile loop from the park into Gunnison out to Mayfield and back. It was an excellent tandem riding experience, especially since we got the ride in before the twenty-something winds kicked up. Oblivious to the raging wind, we spent the afternoon curled up with our books, music, cards, and computers. Thin gruel most certainly! On the tournament front, Miss Judy, the cheater, won the Rockport Cribbage open, and on the strength of back to back skunks, the Palisade Open, too. I did contemplate a drive into Gunnison because I saw a sign advertising guns when we rode through town in the morning, but I resisted the temptation. We have driven 1237.5 miles so far. Our traveling days have usually been just under 200 miles. We look forward to an extended ten day stay in the Kodachrome basin beginning tomorrow. On the way, if the forecasted weather front isn't too ominous, we'll ride a rail trail near Sevier, Utah called the Candy Mountain Express. It is a paved seven mile trail through what is reported to be a beautiful canyon. With riding and the more than ten thousand steps a day we're walking, we'll soon round into shape instead of being just round. Life is good, especially today!
The sixties babes out back of Joan's condo: Judy, Joan, Claudia.
Jukele practice in the back of Frac: "Take me out to the Ball Game"; "House of the Rising Sun"; "Wayfaring Stranger"; "Little Liza Jane"; More to come...
So far the online reservation system used by the Utah State Parks has been flawless.
View from Frac's "Great Room" window: Palisade Lake
Home made curly fries complimented by turkey avocado on chiabatta: Walking food.
I found this Señora wandering around on the lake trail. I promised her a wedding.
Look at this rock!
The Señora had to wait while I carved the proposal. It was a decent one!
According to the locals, the lake has been low due to drought for two years.
Turn around and you see this valley. Without irrigation, it would be sage brush.
Sunset view from our "Great Room".
Riding the back roads from Gunnison, Utah (Population: 8,000) to Mayfield (Population @ 235). Good road, good view, sparse traffic, light wind. What more could tandem riders want?
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