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One of the things I discovered about the Nav II GPS unit is that you can't start a new route at some point other than the actual start. I talked to Garmin about it and they say, "Sorry."
In planning this trip then, I decided that because the GPS would be turned completly off each evening, that I would plan each leg as a separate route. I planned a total of 5 routes. They worked great. I only had to override it a couple of times and that was because of planning glitches and spontaneous decisions on the fly. And, to make them all appear in the order in which I needed to use them, I named them 1-Home to Raton, 2-Raton to Los Alamos, etc. When selecting a route each day, it was easy to find them and they were all at the top of the list.
So, for my 66th birthday, my wife and I departed Longmont, CO on Thursday afternoon and headed south to Raton, NM. Our new 05 LT Hannigan Trike performed flawlessly and we arrived about 10:30 PM. We took CO 93 to loop 470 and then I-25. Denver rush hour traffic kept us from making very good time to Colorado Springs, but then we expected that. When we left Pueblo, I noticed some signs saying "High/gusty winds may exist". Those were a gross understatement. When we finally reached Raton, I felt like I had been making one long right turn as the winds were coming from the west. Since we were the last arrivees at the Comfort Inn, we got the "handicapped equipped" room and enjoyed a king size bed and a large bathroom. Their hot tub was closed for the eveining as was their pool, but we had hot showers and ejoyed the king size bed.
Friday morning was bright and clear and I thought it would be a nice warm ride to Taos, but didn't realize that to get there from Raton, we would be passing through Cimmaron Canyon (high point 9100 feet) and my LT reported the temp at 42F at the highest point. We passed through Angel Fire and then reached Eagle Nest Lake, and by then the temp was at a comfortable 59F. We stayed warm with our heated seats, heated grips and leathers. We had lunch in Taos at the Guadalahara Grill and then headed for Los Alamos. The new road from US 285 to Los Alamos has incredible scenery and is well worth the ride. We then headed to Santa Fe to celebrate my 66th birthday. I've included one pic of me by the old original US Hwy 66 sign there (in Santa Fe). Actually, Hwy 66 moved before I was born, on south to Albuquerque (1937). I also included a pic of me with an original Phillips 66 gas pump that is now an acquarium at a station in Espanola.
At Santa Fe, we checked into our Travelodge motel and walked to the Plaza where we dined at the "Ore House" restaurant. It overlooks the plaza and is one of the premier restaurants in Santa Fe. Got the waiter to take our picture there also.
Saturday we visited several points of interest in Santa Fe and before leaving, had lunch at a Walgreen's lunch counter where we had "Frito pie". They split open a bag of Fritos, dump in the chili and cheese and you eat it from the bag. Mmmm! Delicious.
We headed back to Raton, this time on I-25 and saw some really beautiful scenery, all the while battling the wind gusts (i.e. making one long left turn).
Sunday morning, we left Raton and headed back to Colorado Springs, where we stopped and had lunch in the Tavern Green Room at the Broadmoor Hotel. This is a 5-Star establishment. The service is really fantastic. The food is superb and the menu had things like, Grilled Swordfish Nicoise Salad. That's pronounced Knee-swah. (Well, it's close.)
From there, we whipped over to Garden of the Gods and toured it. Our Trike garnered oohs and ahhs everywhere we went and comments like "that's the way to see this place".
I've been lots of places in my life, but touring by motorcycle is the most rewarding and pleasurable I've ever experienced. I've never been able to see the scenery like you do on a motorcycle.
We left GOTG and headed back to Longmont, arriving about 7:30 PM. Tired, but really happy and feeling like I'd just had the best birthday celebration of my life.
In planning this trip then, I decided that because the GPS would be turned completly off each evening, that I would plan each leg as a separate route. I planned a total of 5 routes. They worked great. I only had to override it a couple of times and that was because of planning glitches and spontaneous decisions on the fly. And, to make them all appear in the order in which I needed to use them, I named them 1-Home to Raton, 2-Raton to Los Alamos, etc. When selecting a route each day, it was easy to find them and they were all at the top of the list.
So, for my 66th birthday, my wife and I departed Longmont, CO on Thursday afternoon and headed south to Raton, NM. Our new 05 LT Hannigan Trike performed flawlessly and we arrived about 10:30 PM. We took CO 93 to loop 470 and then I-25. Denver rush hour traffic kept us from making very good time to Colorado Springs, but then we expected that. When we left Pueblo, I noticed some signs saying "High/gusty winds may exist". Those were a gross understatement. When we finally reached Raton, I felt like I had been making one long right turn as the winds were coming from the west. Since we were the last arrivees at the Comfort Inn, we got the "handicapped equipped" room and enjoyed a king size bed and a large bathroom. Their hot tub was closed for the eveining as was their pool, but we had hot showers and ejoyed the king size bed.
Friday morning was bright and clear and I thought it would be a nice warm ride to Taos, but didn't realize that to get there from Raton, we would be passing through Cimmaron Canyon (high point 9100 feet) and my LT reported the temp at 42F at the highest point. We passed through Angel Fire and then reached Eagle Nest Lake, and by then the temp was at a comfortable 59F. We stayed warm with our heated seats, heated grips and leathers. We had lunch in Taos at the Guadalahara Grill and then headed for Los Alamos. The new road from US 285 to Los Alamos has incredible scenery and is well worth the ride. We then headed to Santa Fe to celebrate my 66th birthday. I've included one pic of me by the old original US Hwy 66 sign there (in Santa Fe). Actually, Hwy 66 moved before I was born, on south to Albuquerque (1937). I also included a pic of me with an original Phillips 66 gas pump that is now an acquarium at a station in Espanola.
At Santa Fe, we checked into our Travelodge motel and walked to the Plaza where we dined at the "Ore House" restaurant. It overlooks the plaza and is one of the premier restaurants in Santa Fe. Got the waiter to take our picture there also.
Saturday we visited several points of interest in Santa Fe and before leaving, had lunch at a Walgreen's lunch counter where we had "Frito pie". They split open a bag of Fritos, dump in the chili and cheese and you eat it from the bag. Mmmm! Delicious.
We headed back to Raton, this time on I-25 and saw some really beautiful scenery, all the while battling the wind gusts (i.e. making one long left turn).
Sunday morning, we left Raton and headed back to Colorado Springs, where we stopped and had lunch in the Tavern Green Room at the Broadmoor Hotel. This is a 5-Star establishment. The service is really fantastic. The food is superb and the menu had things like, Grilled Swordfish Nicoise Salad. That's pronounced Knee-swah. (Well, it's close.)
From there, we whipped over to Garden of the Gods and toured it. Our Trike garnered oohs and ahhs everywhere we went and comments like "that's the way to see this place".
I've been lots of places in my life, but touring by motorcycle is the most rewarding and pleasurable I've ever experienced. I've never been able to see the scenery like you do on a motorcycle.
We left GOTG and headed back to Longmont, arriving about 7:30 PM. Tired, but really happy and feeling like I'd just had the best birthday celebration of my life.
