Motel 6 Archives - Iron Roamer

Three Sisters Ride to San Angelo

A new Facebook friend suggested that I ride the Three Sisters from Fredericksburg.

Weather

I had originally thought of spending time in San Antonio. However, the weather forecast was for rain coming in off of the Gulf. No big loss as I had been to San Antonio before. Looking at the weather forecasts, New Mexico seemed to escape the rain. So that is where I am headed.

Fredericksburg

I had picked the Fredericksburg KOA to stay because I heard that Fredericksburg was a quaint town to visit. Well, it may have once been, but now there is a 4 lane highway running through it and angled parking. The stores looked cool though. A German theme. But the traffic didn’t make it very nice to me.

Three Sisters

The Three Sisters route suggested by my Facebook friend was a loop including highways 337, 336 and 335. I didn’t want to make a loop so I only visited 2 of the sisters I guess 🙂

Unfortunately, some of the curvy parts on 337 were undergoing construction so there was pebbles on the road. Needless to say I was very cautious. Otherwise, the route goes through the Texas hill country, along rivers, and past big Texas ranches. It is a really nice ride. I can see it would be a lot of fun to spend a day doing the loop with friends and enjoying a nice Lone Star beer afterwards at one of the many bars catering to motorcyclists along the way.

Photos

I wish I had pictures to share here 🙁 I looked for pull outs to take pictures of the views but there were none that I saw. I could have taken a picture of a Texas ranch. Or of the vultures eating a dead deer. Lots of deer around grazing with cattle. But I didn’t. Sometimes I am just enjoying the ride too much to stop, and sometimes I am just not in the mood to take photos. I guess this was a combination of both.

I am still getting my groove in that area. I am always envious of people who have these epic motorcycle adventure pictures on their blog or instagram. It take a lot of work though. There is finding the right location at the right time. Then going there and setting up. This can take a long time …trust me!

San Angelo, Texas

I had originally planned on camping in San Angelo to save some money. But the campsite I checked out just weren’t that great. I am not a real rough it camper unless i have to be. I admire those who are.

There was a cheap Motel 6 in town though for $39.99 USD a night. And it was right by a Starbucks. Bonus!!

I really did enjoy relaxing at Starbucks though. My home away from home.

My Route for September 14, 2016

Long Days Ride to Huntsville Texas

It was a long days from to Huntsville, Texas, from Lafayette, Louisiana.

I am still a bit sick but my increased prednisone is starting to kick in to get rid of the fluid from my lungs.

It was also hot an humid. Although as I go closer to Texas it got less humid and more of a dry heat.

Things to do in Texas

I have lots of time to spend before heading into Mexico from San Diego sometime in October. As I mentioned in my last post, transition times can be great to see and do things I wasn’t really planning on.

As I entered Texas I stopped at the information booth in search of things to do.

I picked up pamphlets with ideas. I looked through them and picked out of bunch of things I would be interested in seeing in Texas. These included:

Blue Bell Creamery,
Seeing a High School Football game,
Texas Longhorns Football game,
Texas State Capitol,
Watch the bats at the Congress Avenue Bridge in Austin,
The Rose Gardens in Tyler,
LBJ Ranch in Fredericksburg,
The Fredericksburg Town Square, and
Fort Worth Stockyards.

There was one thing not listed in any of the books that I wanted to see, and that was the Clock Tower at the University of Texas at Austin. More on that later.

Motel 6 Huntsvillle Texas

Armed with the information I headed to Huntsville where I found a cheap Motel 6 to stay at. Only $35.99 a night! Of course, multiple that by the US exchange rate of 1.35 and you get $48.59 CDN. A bit over my budget but still cheap. And I need a comfortable place to rest.

When I got there the Motel 6 was perfect. It was clean and looked newly renovated with a new clothes washer. AND … it there was a McDonald’s, Starbucks, Taco Bell, and Buffalo Wild Wings, right there.

I decided to spend 2 nights there to further recuperate.

My Route for September 7, 2016

Start of Transition Across the United States

Today marked the start of my transition across the US. From Vancouver my goal was to reach the Arctic Ocean. Check.

Then I transitioned by riding to Itasca Park to start my ride of the Great River Road along the Mississippi River. Check.

Now I am transitioning to San Diego where I will start a new phase of riding Mexico for 6 months. Transitions are a time for seeing unplanned or un-thought of things. It should be good.

Sick

I left my hostel sick. My lungs were filling with fluid. Hence no pictures today except when I left 🙁 OK … this is my health story that has some effect on my travels.

BOOP

About 15 years ago I was hospitalized with a rare form of pneumonia and lung disorder called Bronchiolitis Obliterans Organizing Pneumonia, or BOOP for short. At the time, the only cure was high dose prednisone for a year. While this cured my BOOP, it suppressed my adrenal glands from producing cortisol.

Cortisol

Cortisol is sometimes referred to as the stress hormone. It is a life sustaining adrenal hormone essential to the maintenance of homeostasis. It regulates or modulates many of the changes that occur in the body in response to stress including, but not limited to:

blood sugar (glucose) levels,
fat,
protein and carbohydrate metabolism to maintain blood glucose (gluconeogenesis),
immune responses,
anti-inflammatory actions,
blood pressure,
heart and blood vessel tone and contraction, and
central nervous system activation.

Prednisone

Because my body no longer produces cortisol, I have to replace it orally with prednisone. Prednisone is a wonder drug. But it also has bad side effects such as:

aggression,
agitation,
anxiety,
blurred vision,
decrease in the amount of urine,
dizziness,
fast, slow, pounding, or irregular heartbeat or pulse,
headache,
irritability,
mental depression,
mood changes,
nervousness,
osteoporosis,
numbness or tingling in the arms or legs,
pounding in the ears,
acne,
swelling of the fingers, hands, feet, or lower legs,
visceral fat,
cataracts, and
weight gain.

Effects

Compounding these problems is that in the body, cortisol levels normally fluctuate throughout the day and night in a circadian rhythm that peaks at about 8 AM and reaches it lowest around 4 AM. Of course you can’t mimic this with medication. So the symptoms of adrenal insufficiency arise throughout the day.

If that wasn’t enough, while my BOOP was cured, my lungs were left a mess. Soooo I have to take asthma medications to keep them operating right.

I rarely feel 100% healthy.

Usually about twice a year my lungs will start to fill with fluid. When this happens, like now, I have to significantly increase my prednisone and then taper down to get rid of it.

These conditions have adversely effected my life. BUT … I know many people suffer from a lot worse than me. I take inspiration from them that I won’t let my ailments get in the way of what I want to accomplish. As a result, I won’t let what I have get in the way of what I want to do. I have traveled extensively in China, lived in Namibia, worked and lived Macedonia, and now riding around the world on a motorcycle.

Franklin

Ok … back to my trip. It was a short ride today. I took a few back roads just because they are more enjoyable.

Some of the towns were so nice. I especially liked Franklin. The city did a great job fixing up their historic downtown and a lot of the old homes.

What really caught my attention was a sign saying there use to be a WWII Prisoner of War Camp located there.

I looked for it but couldn’t find it. Perhaps it has been built over.

It was early and I made it to the Motel 6 in Lafayette to rest.

My Route for September 6, 2016

Natchez to Baton Rouge

I left Natchez to head to Baton Rouge. Baton Rouge had suffered a lot of flooding recently and I was wondering what it would be like there. The President had visited the area just a few days earlier.

Natchez

I had been to Natchez before and loved the history of the city. It one tine it was ruled by the Spanish and I passed the old Spanish Governor’s mansion.

In the 1850s, half of the millionaires in the US lived there. The result was a lot of mansions, which remained untouched during the civil war.

As I rode out of Natchez I passed many of these. I managed to get up the driveway of the Dunleith Mansion.

According to Wikipedia, the 12 room main house sits on 40 acres along with several outbuildings including a carriage house, a dairy barn, a poultry house, and a three story brick courtyard building that historically would have housed the kitchen, laundry and slave quarters. The main house has a Greek revival design and includes 26 Tuscan columns built of brick and stucco. There are porches around the entire building on the first and second floor. The first floor includes windows similar to those in Monticello which would roll up to become doorways. The 1957 film, Raintree County was partly filmed at Dunleith, as was a portion of the 1974 version of Tom Sawyer and Huck Finn by Columbia Pictures, and an episode of Promised Land for CBS television in 1998.

After leaving Natchez the ride was rather non eventful.

Baton Rouge

I arrived in Baton Rouge early. It was hot! The only sign of flood damage I saw were advertising offering assistance to flood victims.

I arrived at the Motel 6 in Port Allen that I booked at around noon. They wouldn’t let me check in until 3 pm. This was the first time I have ran into this. Usually if a room is available and clean they will allow early check in. Not this time.

I passed the time by doing laundry, watching others being told they have to wait until 3 pm., and setting up my Helinox one chair in the shade to read.

By 3 pm I got my room overlooking an adult emporium and the Crazy Horse Cabaret. I had to cover my buddy’s eyes to he wouldn’t get corrupted.

Route for September 2, 2016

My Vacation in Memphis

I decided to take a vacation in Memphis for the next week. There were a few things that went into my decision. I had been to Memphis before and it seemed like a cool city. Second, the weather forecast was calling for hot and stormy weather. And lastly, it was time for a bit of a break from riding and to let my budget catch up to me expenditures.

Motel 6 Memphis

I rode from my KOA in East Memphis to look for a hotel convenient to downtown and to my favorite cost saving restaurants. The second Motel 6 I checked gave me a weekly rate of $300 USD. A Starbucks was next door! And McDonald’s was across the street. No grocery store in sight though. Nonetheless, I took it.

The Sights of Memphis

The next day I decided to venture out into the city to see the sights.

I had been to the Lorraine Motel before but wanted to go there again. According to the New Yorker, “Martin Luther King, Jr., was the Lorraine Motel’s most famous guest. He stayed at the motel numerous times while visiting the city, and again in the spring of 1968, when he came to Memphis to support a strike by sanitation workers. On April 4, 1968, he stepped out of Room 306 and talked to friends in the parking lot below. He asked the saxophonist Ben Branch to play “Take My Hand, Precious Lord” at the rally that evening. As King turned to walk back into his room, a bullet struck him in the neck, taking his life instantly. Walter Bailey continued to run the motel, but he never rented Room 306 again. He turned it into a memorial. The room has been preserved to capture exactly what it looked like on that tragic night. There are two beds. (King was sharing the room with Dr. Ralph Abernathy, a friend.) King’s bed was not fully made because he was not feeling well and had been lying down. Dishes left in the room were from the kitchen where Loree Bailey prepared food for the motel’s guests. . . . In 1982, Walter Bailey declared bankruptcy and stood by helplessly as his high-end establishment became a brothel. The Lorraine would have been sold at auction, but the Save the Lorraine organization bought it and decided to transform it into a museum.”

This is the iconic picture.

These are the pictures from my visit.

The location is sobering as you think what transpired there.

Next I went to visit the ducks at the Peabody Hotel. David Cohen said in 1935 that the Mississippi Delta begins with the lobby of the Peabody hotel where the ducks swim in the fountain.

Across the street from the Peabody is the Kooky Canuck.

From there I walked to the park along the Mississippi River at the foot of Beale Street.

While I was trying to get a photo I stepped on an ants nest . . . again. While waiting for hte bus I intentionally stepped on an ants nest just for the heck of it. This time it was a mistake. This guys sting!!!! My foot was on fire.

I took my stinging foot to Sun records. In 1954 Sun Records released Elvis Presley’s first record. The place is an Elvis shrine now.

By this time I was hungry. Off I walked to Beale Street.

On my last motorcycle trip I had a great meal there at Rum Boogie Cafe. This time I thought I would try BB Kings.

The only thing was that the prices were too steep for my budget. So I only had a beer for $6.

After looking around I settled on Rum Boogie. There were one of the few with Red Bean and Rice, and it was at a reasonable cost.

It is actually one of my favorite comfort foods. It gives you that warm feeling in your stomach. And I really enjoyed sitting out on the patio watching people.

I had planned on staying late on the street. But I was hot and tired. And the predicted storm looked like it was about to dump some rain.

The Rest of My Vacation

For the next 5 days I did nothing! The temperatures were hot!! The local news had it at over 100 degrees F for each of the days. It was stifling, especially with the humidity. My routine went something like this:

8 am to 11 am – Starbucks
11 am to 6 pm – Air conditioned Hotel room to clean and organize equipment
6 pm – McDonald’s
7 pm to 10 pm – Watch TV
10 pm – Bed

This was actually good for me. I had been having a hard time slowing down. By the end of this time I felt a lot more relaxed.

My Route for August 24, 2016

My Route for August 25 to August 30, 2016

The Motel 6 ha ha ha.

Great River Road Wisconsin

I woke up to cloud and threatening rain to make my way through Minneapolis and onto the Great River Road Wisconsin.

The forecast today was for rain. I was bracing for the worst. I thought about staying for another day but rain was in the mix for the next few days. So off I went to see how far I could get today.

Wisconsin

In my previous 6 month motorcycle trip through the US I really liked Wisconsin. Something about the rolling hills of farmland that appealed to me. I was looking forward to riding in the state again.

When I entered Wisconsin, they had a Great River Road information Center. They had the map of the whole Great River Road that I was looking for. There was also great views of the Mississippi River from the Center. It keeps getting bigger! I have to say that before embarking on this trip I didn’t really realize the Mississippi River was significant above the state of Mississippi.

One thing I found out from the map is that the Great River Road really isn’t one road. It is more of a generic turn for basically 2 roads, one on each side of the river. So on this leg I could have taken the Minnesota road or the Wisconsin road. The numerous bridges across the Mississippi means you can switch back and forth.

I don’t know about the Minnesota side, but the Wisconsin Great River Road was awesome as it meandered beside the river. I loved the little historic towns I passed. If the weather had been better I would have loved to stop at a patio for a bite to eat.

By 1 pm the weather looked like it was deteriorating. A severe weather warning was in the forecast. I decided to stop at the Motel 6 in La Crosse.

Helmet Itch

Throughout the day I had suffered from helmet itch. A year ago I had a bad case of it and went to a dermatologist. She wasn’t able to solve it and it sort of went away. I made a few changes like getting a new helmet, wearing a skull cap, and using a different shampoo. Today it was back. Not as bad as before though.

I was early for the Motel 6 and decided get a haircut at Greatcuts. It was kind of nice to have a prolonged conversation with someone. Thanks Ashley! We’ll see if this helps. It will definitely make me look less unkempt.

Motel 6

I enjoyed another night of a hotel. And look Carllee … I even had a salad 🙂