Finally got to take the Super Hawk on a decent ride. Got invited to go ride Big Bend National Park with a friend from work. They do this ride the first w/end in November every year. They rode the whole way, I on the other hand had to trailer it down there cause.....ahem....the pathetic range of the SH.
November 1: Left Houston around 7:30PM and made it to around the Kerrville area before I had to snooze for a few minutes. Took I-10 the whole way which was a mistake. Too long and too boring. Got to Marathon, TX around 9:30ish the next morning. Miles=548.
Stayed the night in the Gage Hotel. Got the cheapest room which has no bathroom. Shared bathroom with showers down the hall. Not bad actually.
Hotel is totally cool. Great restaurant, great bar, great people. About the only thing Marathon has going for it.
http://www.gagehotel.com/




Me (gray sweatshirt) on SH, and riding buddy on '03 VFR. Other riding partner on '03 Fatboy.


November 3: Marathon to Big Bend.
Friend tells me that we are going to do a hike. I'm thinking a mile at the most to go look out on the park from some scenic vista. Wrong! 12.7 miles on the most punishing trail I've ever been on. Thought I was going to croak. I could hear my heart pounding in my head. Sounded like the SH at idle. Bup-Bup-Bup-Bup-..Bup. Took us about 5 hours. Reality check on my age, lard content, and overall state of being.



After the death march we headed back through Marathon on the way to Marfa, TX. Marfa was the setting for the movie Giant back in the early fifties. The cast and crew stayed in the Paisano Hotel which is where we stayed that night. This was also a cool old hotel. Lots of history.
Paisano Hotel:



Giant, starring Rock Hudson (yeah I've heard the jokes), James Dean, Elizabeth Taylor, and a very young Dennis Hopper.
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Giant_(film)


Presidio County courthouse, Marfa, TX


November 4:
Rode from Marfa along the Rio Grande back into the park then on to Marathon for the night. The road along the river is twisty with alot of blind crests. Lots o' gravel too. Pretty fun though. Stopped in Terlingua for lunch. The big chili festival was going on there. Looked like a big drinkin party.
http://www.chili.org/terlingua.html
Picture of the Rio Grande. Mexico is on the other side of that pic.


November 5: Marathon to Houston/497 miles. Left around 0730 and got in around 3:45PM. Very foggy and cold. I was the chase vehicle for my two partners on the way back. Due to all the traffic on I-10 they left me behind. Going back on highway 90 to San Antonio then I-10 the rest of the way was a hell of alot quicker and more scenic.
Leaving Marathon


The "Hawk" performed great. Luckily there are plenty of gas stations out there. Before the next trip I'm going to repack the Jardines. Felt like a total *** disturbing the peace. Had to have been the loudest bike I heard all w/end. Also, need different seat
A great trip. A great group of friends. I love the desert! Can't wait until next November.

 

Wow, that is outstanding man....I sure miss Texas....

Great pics...

 

Oh man, missed you by one weekend. Riding out to BB was the impetus for coming up with my patented long range VFR tank mod! :-)

Here's a link to last year:

https://www.superhawkforum.com/forum...ead.php?t=1489

I took the VFR this year. I prefer to stay in alpine to save $$ but also 118S is a WAY better route than the Marathon road into BB and 118N is one of the best roads around as it heads up to the observatory.

Luckily, I did a MUCH shorter hike than you that still had me suckin wind and I'm in pretty good shape (exercise daily) but we're not use to the altitude; keep telling yourself that. LOL. You got some AWESOME pics for your effort tho'.

 

I hear ya on the $$ part. I probably spent around $650 total on this trip and I'm not complaining considering I didn't do much research on what is available. The Gage and Paisano were cool so I don't mind spending money on the rooms. The problem though was there isn't much in the way of places to eat. Especially in Marathon. I'm not much on spending $45 on "Chicken Fried Venison" even though it was excellent. I would have been just as happy eating a plate of tacos.

Ya know I'm not in the best of shape but I'm not that bad for being 42. Obviously I wasn't prepared. I didn't know. I had on jeans which are baggy and not condusive to hiking. Had on Doc Martens which weigh a ton. And finally I had a pack filled with clothes and such cause unlike my fellow riders who have saddlebags, etc., the SH has jack. So I'm hoofin it with baggy pants, giganzo boots, and a pack that weighs 10+ pounds. I'm thinkin they were purposely trying to off me.

Make plans for next year and bring the Viffer (you are smart for buying that). November 1 we are doing it again. And Alpine will be an overnight stay this time. Hell, since I own a trailer queen and drive the truck I might even bring my cot and do a night under the stars.

I'm so glad I'm back in Houston

 

Nice pics... thanks for posting.