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Austin bound

A 24-day adventure by 2haralds Read more
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  • Trip start
    August 21, 2023
    2haraldsAustin bound2haralds

    Luggage packed? ✅

    August 20, 2023 in Germany ⋅ ☀️ 30 °C
  • 2haraldsAustin bound2haralds

    Headed back to Seattle

    August 21, 2023 in Germany ⋅ ☀️ 25 °C

    For the grand finale of Haukur's sabbatical, we're picking up our bike and riding down to my hometown Austin to see family and friends. Added bonus, we will be able to take our own bike to join the BMW GS Club Mexico trip in the spring. 😍Read more

  • 2haraldsAustin bound2haralds

    Morning chores

    August 22, 2023 in the United States ⋅ ⛅ 18 °C

    While Haukur is in Seattle having the bike serviced and new tires put on, I ate breakfast from Joan and Ed's garden.

  • 2haraldsAustin bound2haralds

    Prototype of a 15-minute city

    August 22, 2023 in the United States ⋅ ⛅ 20 °C

    Redmond, Washington of Microsoft fame. Very few historical buildings left to see. Everything's been torn down and replaced with 6-story condos and the new "downtown" is an open air shopping mall.

    One of the few old timers left was this nice hamburger joint, which had some pictures of Redmond's historical past on display.    Read more

  • 2haraldsAustin bound2haralds

    The mighty Columbia River

    August 22, 2023 in the United States ⋅ ☀️ 23 °C

    This is our second crossing of the Columbia River as we rode across the Vantage Bridge and up to the Wild Horses Monument overview. If you missed seeing the Petrified Forest National Park in Arizona, you'll get a chance to see one here at the Ginkgo Petrified Forest State Park, but in a more relaxed setting. Plus it has petrographs that are quite stunning.

    A friend of mine tells me she and her family always sing "Roll on, Columbia" whenever they cross the Columbia River. I think that is a great tradition

    For those of you who don't know it, take a listen to the late, great Woody Guthrie.

    youtu.be/2sH6CcsTafw?feature=shared    Read more

  • 2haraldsAustin bound2haralds

    Ephrata, Washington

    August 23, 2023 in the United States ⋅ ☀️ 18 °C

    For a town of 8,477 souls, I was surprised at what a long main street it has. Almost as though they decided to emulate their airport, which in 1939, had one of the longest runways in the state.

  • 2haraldsAustin bound2haralds
    1This flag is typically flown at the homes of a police officer who has died in action.

    Bake sale

    August 23, 2023 in the United States ⋅ ☀️ 19 °C

    Driving through small-town Odessa, Washington, Haukur spotted a bake sale on Main Street.

    A bake sale is a wonderful bit of Americana, when women join efforts to raise money to help their fellow man or support some other need in the town by baking cakes, cookies, muffins or such.

    In this case, it was for a family whose father had been out of work due to health reasons and wasn't able to buy school supplies for his kids.

    Certainly, his needs are greater than what will be gathered by the bake sale, but it is a moment for neighbours to come together and say, "we are family".    Read more

  • 2haraldsAustin bound2haralds

    Quick stop to tank up

    August 23, 2023 in the United States ⋅ ☀️ 21 °C

    ... on coffee, that is. Washington State, home to Starbucks, is where Americans learned the fine art coffee. It took years to wean us off Folgers, but the Turks gift to Vienna now has deep roots in the new world.Read more

  • 2haraldsAustin bound2haralds

    Coeur d'Alene, Idaho

    August 23, 2023 in the United States ⋅ ☀️ 21 °C

    Extremely picturesque, vibrant town, which Trip Advisor lists as a great place to visit. That wasn't our raison d'être, however. Haukur read about a great family-owned hamburger joint called Hudson's, which has been cooking burgers for five generations.

    While Haukur was parking the bike, I went in and was greeted by a local at the diner's bar who gave me the skinny. "They don't serve French fries, order a double hamburger because if not, you're gonna to want a second."

    Simple menu: hamburger, cheeseburger, double hamburger, double cheeseburger with lettuce, tomatoes, onions and pickles, and drinks.

    The burgers were indeed scrumptious. The meat was incredibly tasty and people were lining up to get in.

    Later on, Haukur realized why the meat was so good. He thinks the meat was "seasoned" with monosodium glutamate. Having eaten one, I started to wonder why MSG gets such a bad rap.

    hudsonshamburgers.com    Read more

  • 2haraldsAustin bound2haralds

    Center of the universe

    August 23, 2023 in the United States ⋅ ☀️ 19 °C

    In case you didn't know, a manhole located on the corner of Bank Street and Sixth Street in the mining town of Wallace, Idaho is the Center of the Universe.

    "In 2004, the mayor declared the town to be the center of the universe. Today, a manhole cover represents the exact spot of the Center of the Universe, and it is celebrated yearly by the citizens of Wallace. The entire town of Wallace is on the National Register of Historic Places, and it has the notable distinction of being officially declared the Center of the Universe. Two pristine mountains, Silver Mountain and Lookout Mountain, are both within 10 miles of Wallace." Atlas Obscura

    And all this time I thought I was the center of the universe. 😂    Read more

  • 2haraldsAustin bound2haralds

    Day is done. God is nigh.

    August 25, 2023 in the United States ⋅ ⛅ 18 °C

    Challis-Custer Ghost Town-Salmon River Scenic Byway-Stanley-Sawtooth Wilderness-Galena Summit-Ketchum -Sun Valley-Crators of the Moon National Monument-Arco

    387 km / 240 miles