Trip Home
July 7 – first day of the trip home
Boise ID – Evanston WY
I did all my laundry and had a relaxing night in a bed. I had made plans for breakfast with friends and we had settled on 9am so I slept in. They picked me up at the hotel and we went to a local place to eat. Food was great and so was the conversation.
Now that is a breakfast!
At 11am they took me back to my hotel where I packed up and headed out on my way to the finish line which was 900 miles away. I made a quick stop at the final checkpoint to get a copy of the final route and spoke with a few riders as they passed through. I was on my way by noon and around 5pm I was really low on gas and needed a restroom. I pulled into a gas station in Malta ID on I-84 which looked familiar, probably from the 2021 Iron Butt Rally which started and ended in Provo UT. They had a number of different animals and which you could buy food for and feed. Kind of hard to forget that.
Once full I ran over to the building to use their restroom only to be greeted by a sign saying no public restrooms and directing travelers to rest stops off of I-84 down the road. With that I hopped back on my bike and made a beeline for the rest stop about 5 miles away.
After that I had an uneventful trip and made it to Evanston WY where I stopped around 9pm. My route was mainly highway. My late start and the heat really slowed down my progress.
Before I checked into my hotel I stopped for gas and took on a bit more than comfortable in my 4.5 gallon tank
4.1 gallons in a 4.5 gallon tank
I made a quick stop to grab a sandwich from Subway and relaxed in my hotel room where I ate and read the responses from my Facebook post regarding my withdrawal. To my surprise there were over 100 responses. It felt good knowing so many read my post and took the time to respond in a supportive way.
And with that I took another shower and slept in a comfy bed again, I could get used to this!
Total miles for the day were 380
Trip Home
July 8 –Second day of the trip home
Evanston WY – Hot Springs SD
I slept through my alarm and was up at 7am rather than 6 as planned. I ate breakfast consisting of scrambled eggs, and was on the road by 7:30. I was still headed to Hot Springs SD to watch my fellow riders finish and also to hang out with my friend Mike who lived in the area. As the crow flies Hot Springs was only 300 or so miles away, however there is no direct route.
The morning went fine as it was cool, but as time wore on the temps increased and I needed breaks more frequently. I stopped at a gas station in Point of Rocks WY and after fueling up I got something to eat and drink. On the way out the door I stumbled on a marker for the Lincoln Highway.
A sign behind it gave the history and drew my attention to a steel shack across the lot.
I checked it out and was on my way.
As I was pulling out of the gas station, I caught a movement out of the corner of my eye. I checked it out and it was for the Overland Stage that ran close by.
I swung by the larger sign on the other side of the highway to look it over and was back on my way.
A good part of my ride was on US Highways, and I found that relaxing. Two hours later I stopped for gas at Three Forks WY on US-287. This was another gas station that looked familiar but I had no idea when I had passed through this area
Along the way I was treated to some great scenery which was the norm for this trip, so I pulled over near Alcova WY
Alcova Reservoir
Half an hour down the road near Bessemer Bend WY I came across a marker for the Oregon Trail
I passed through Casper WY and tried to swing by the Harley Dealer to grab a quart of oil, but they were closed, as in gone. Bummer!
Near Lusk WY I pulled over to take a short break and took in the scenery
Eventually I made my way to Hot Springs around 5:30pm. I hung out with some friends for a while, and we decided to walk into town for some dinner. We had an enjoyable night and headed out separate ways around 9pm. I found my hotel and checked in.
Downtown Hot Springs SD
Total miles ridden were 540
Total miles for trip home 920
Trip Home
July 9 –Third day of the trip home.
Hot Springs SD
I did no riding this day other than hanging out at the finish talking to other riders. It was great seeing other riders come in but sucked that I was not a finisher. I really regretted my withdrawal but I knew in my heart it was the right decision as the last leg was a difficult ride and no place for me when my thoughts are on something other than riding.
At 6pm was a dinner which consisted of burgers, fish sandwiches, French fries, etc. After eating we made our way back to the park where the finish was located and enjoyed a life band. Some of the local residents were also there and there were food trucks. There was also a young boy with his family selling lemonade and they had no idea what they had gotten into. Many of the riders were buying a cup of lemonade and handing him a $5, $10, or in some cases a $20 bill and telling him to keep the change. I asked him what he was planning on doing with the money and he said they were going to donate it to a worthy cause which unfortunately I forget what it was.
Around 11pm I rode back to my hotel and called it a night
Trip Home
July 10 –Fourth day of the trip home.
Hot Springs SD – Mount Pleasant IA
This was actually my wedding anniversary, I don’t recall which one, but I am sure my wife will remind me when she reads this.
I slept in until 8am, dressed, packed, ate some breakfast and was on the road by10am. I had an hour or so of state highways before I was getting on I-90 and more or less riding highway the entire trip home. I stopped at a rest stop near Chamberlain SD and took a short break due to the heat
30 minutes down the road near White Lake SD I pulled over when I saw my odometer turning 321,000 miles
From there I just buzzed east on I-90 to I-29 near Sioux Falls SD to I-80 north of Omaha NE and continued on to Mount Pleasant IA where I stopped around midnight.
And I did remember that this was my 23rd anniversary
Total miles ridden were 813
Total miles for trip home 1733
Trip Home
July 11 – Fifth day of the trip home.
Mount Pleasant IA – Wheeling WV
I had to swing by my friend Lew’s house to get my work laptop and clothes I left with him. I also had a friend of mine, Mike, who was on a trip and was passing through Mount Pleasant. When he realized we were going through the same town but on different days he re-routed his trip so we could meet for breakfast.
I invited Lew to join us but he was working. There were very few restaurants in town and those that looked the most promising were closed on Mondays. I thought that was a motorcycle dealer thing??? Lew suggested Hy-Vee which was a gas station. I was skeptical but we really had no other options so I suggested it to Mike and he was fine with it. He pulled up shortly after I did and commented this was a great place to eat. Who’d have thought? I guess that is the difference between living on the east coast and living in Iowa.
We hung out for a few hours catching up, but around noon decided we both had to get on our way. I was headed home and Mike was visiting many of the places he was doing a remembrance ride for his father whose funeral he was riding to attend.
I had an uneventful ride and stopped around 1:30am just east of Wheeling WV
Total miles ridden were 637
Total miles for trip home 2370
Trip Home
July 12 –Sixth and final day of the trip home.
Wheeling WV - Home
Since I had a relatively short ride and got in late I slept in until 9am. After packing and having breakfast I was back on the road headed east. I had an uneventful ride and got home around 4pm.
Total miles ridden for the day were 343
Total miles for trip home 2713
Total miles since leaving home 13109
June 23 – July 12 (20 days)
Trip Home Route
Entire Route
2022 Hoka Hey - The Trip Home
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