In the middle of the San Luis Valley near Hooper, Colorado is an interesting Roadside attraction – the UFO Watchtower. About 25 years ago Judy Messoline decided to build, as far as she was aware, the only UFO watchtower. In picking the location, the San Luis Valley is perfect for this, with extremely low light pollution and surrounded by the beautiful Sangre de Cristo mountains, the watchtower gives you amazing views of the night sky.
We rode our bikes out, and during the off-season we were the only people there. We were able to walk around the site, go up on the watchtower, and view the “Garden”. In the early 2000s Judy began construction of a garden, the corners of which were marked out by psychics surrounding two vortices. Over the years, the garden grew with people bringing more items and art (Beulah left one of her own!). Now it’s a pretty large installation, even if you’re not planning on trying to meditate or absorb the energy, it is fun to walk through!
Check it out if you’re heading through the San Luis Valley. There’s also seasonal camping, maybe you could be lucky enough to spot a UFO on your visit!
As Beulah mentioned in the last part we got pinned down for a couple days in Missoula. It was A big change of plans as originally we had planned on heading up to Glacier National Park and doing the ride to the sun road. I was very much looking forward to this as I’ve never been, but when it starts snowing and you’re on a motorcycle… That is not the type of road you want to ride! It wasn’t a total loss, we got to spend a couple days exploring Missoula, eating good food, and resting up, as well as seeing her kids longer.
Day 9
The weather mostly cleared up so we started heading our way south east towards Yellowstone National Park. We enjoyed riding through the beautiful countryside and took our time getting to Mammoth, Wyoming. We passed through the Roosevelt Arch in Gardiner, Montana, and crossed the border of Wyoming and headed right to the Mammoth Hot Springs.
I’ve been to the Mammoth Hot Springs before, and I can say that every time I’ve been there it’s different. Several of the springs were fairly dry this year, but others were more active than in past years. We took our time walking the entire area and enjoying all of the surreal sites!
After this, we backtracked to Gardiner, Montana where we were staying for the night. Considering this was full tour season the town was not overly packed and we were able to enjoy a great meal at The Yellowstone Mine restaurant.
Day 10
We started out on our bikes early in the morning and dropped back into Wyoming and into Yellowstone National Park. We beat the morning crowds and bypassed Mammoth Hot Springs since we’d already seen them the day before, and enjoyed the beautiful roads and riding through the national park. We made plenty of stops on the way, watched some buffalo roll in the dirt, stopped at waterfalls on the way, ultimately making our way into the thermal areas.
We stopped and hiked around many of the springs and geysers, and of course the Grand Prismatic Spring, spring overlook, one of the most beautiful places in the park in my opinion.
And what trip to Yellowstone is complete without seeing Old Faithful Geyser? The timing couldn’t have been more perfect, we walked up and it erupted minutes later. The photos unfortunately were not so perfect as Bee’s lens was unknowingly dirty! We took the time to go to the Old Faithful Snow Lodge to admire the architecture and grab lunch.
From here we headed to Yellowstone Lake and hung a right, heading south towards the Grand Tetons. This was never part of our original trip so all of these beautiful roads and scenery were just a huge bonus and helped to make up for the fact we had to Skip glacier. I can definitely say that the Grand Teton Mountains are some of the most impressive mountains in the country, riding along the Snake River and the base of these mountains is pretty amazing, especially on a motorcycle with nothing obstructing your view
We made our way southeast towards Dubois, Wyoming. This is a really cool little Western town which I’d always wanted to visit and had never been to before. We stayed at the Stagecoach Inn and walked down Main Street and decided to have dinner at the Lone Buffalo Steakhouse. An absolutely fantastic meal and a couple cocktails closed out the evening.
Day 11
We kicked off the morning with a huge breakfast at the Cowboy Cafe, and started heading south for home. A lot of the area is pretty open prairie, for several hours we skirted some storms and pushed our way through before hitting the Colorado border. Because of the weather, we just pushed hard through the Medicine Bow-Routt National Forest and rolled into Leadville, Colorado just ahead of the storms.
We were both pretty exhausted, but went into town and grabbed a good Mexican meal, but didn’t take long to explore the town since it was late and we were both exhausted. We headed back to our hotel, got cleaned up, and called it a night.
Day 12
The next morning we hit the road fairly, it was just above freezing, the rain from the night before frosted over on our motorcycles. Luckily, leaving Leadville at 10,119 feet elevation, we dropped down the valley quickly, heading towards Buena Vista, and down into the San Luis Valley. At this point, we were more less than our backyard and we were excited to knock out the last few hours and get back to our own mountain home in Creede, Colorado!
Overall, this trip was really amazing, about 2500 miles in a little under two weeks, crossing multiple state lines, exploring areas we had seen before (but not together), as well as new areas for both of us. We got to spend time with family, and hit tons of attractions and national parks. We had to dodge a little weather, but overall it was just an amazing trip and a ton of great memories. Just laying this post out and looking through the pictures brings them back and gets me more excited for this summer‘s adventures!
It’s day 4 and we are in Montana for family visits. My sons Jakob, Ethan, and I haven’t been in the same place together since November of 2022. This part of our trip was more focused on family time than 2 wheeled adventures but we still got to squeeze in some fun on the bikes. Kyle and I saw rain in the forecast for the next leg of our trip and we visited another motorcycle dealership to find more gear before checking in to our airbnb for the weekend. I already have a full set of rain gear and we wanted to find some for Kyle too. We visited Five Valley Honda Yamaha just up the road from my son’s place in Lolo, MT and were able to find a pair of FrogTogg pants to add to Kyle’s all-weather arsenal. The owner was super helpful and also let us take a spare helmet on loan for the weekend so I could ride with my future daughter in law (more on that later), Cynthia, on my bike while we were in town.
When we got back to Ethan’s place I threw Cynthia on the back of my bike for a quick little rip down the highway to our cabin for the weekend. The road was straight, the traffic was minimal, and the weather was warm; it was a good day to be on 2 wheels.
Our first full day together with the family started off gray and chilly so we opted to jump in Cynthia’s truck and be chauffeured around. As we drove towards our first destination the rain started and we were glad we decided to stick with 4 wheels instead of 2 today. We drove an hour and a half in to Idaho where Ethan proposed to Cynthia on a bridge over the Lochsa River. We planned on hiking to Jerry Johnson hot springs from there but it was fully raining at this point. The proposal went ahead as planned but the hike did not, so we opted for a dip in the Lolo Hot Springs before a celebratory dinner at the Lolo Creek Steakhouse.
This steakhouse is no joke. There were at least 50 people lined up before the doors opened at 5pm and not a second sooner. This well-oiled machine had staff lined up to greet each table of guests to get everyone settled as quickly as possible to get the orders up and the steaks cooking. Friendly staff, delicious food and a cozy atmosphere. Zero complaints, 10 out of 10 would recommend (and would recommend getting there early to line up, it’s absolutely worth the wait.)
Day 6 was a day of rest (and food!). We saw that it was going to be snowing at our next destination, Glacier National Park, so we had to scramble to change the details of our trip. We were so disappointed because months earlier we had scored passes for Going To The Sun Road that are only valid for one day and we had to cancel that whole part of our trip. We ended up staying at the C’mon Inn in Missoula for 2 nights to wait out the cold wet weather. We explored the town and a few local spots for sight seeing.
First we visited the Garden of One Thousand Buddhas and took our time walking around and through the whole path on the grounds that are open to the public. Then we drove about 20 minutes more to the Bison Range in Charlo, MT and drove through the short loop of the 18,766 acre preserve and saw buffalo and deer roaming near the roads. We didn’t get too far in, there’s a longer loop that my son drove through after our visit and saw bear, elk, deer, and buffalo and said it was definitely worth the second trip out.
On Day 9 the weather was in our favor and we were able to start the next leg of our trip back towards home. Kyle is going to take over for this part of the journey. I was a little disappointed we had to cancel parts of our trip for weather but it gave me more quality time with my kiddos so I really can’t complain.
On our first day heading towards Montana, Kyle and I left Creede while it was still in the low 50’s and by the time we made it through the canyon it had warmed up considerably. Our first stop was at the Durango Harley Davidson to pick up some all-weather gloves because being on a bike for 2 weeks leaves you at the mercy of the elements and we wanted to be prepared for the cold and rain we were sure to encounter. After our gear stop we started our trek over the million dollar highway and we were lucky that there was not a ton of traffic over this scenic byway on this particular afternoon.
We got in to Silverton just after the lunch rush from the Durango-Silverton round trip train stop. We were seated right away at the historic Lacey Rose Saloon but had just missed the live entertainment that the earlier guests had enjoyed. After lunch we continued our way towards Ouray with views that I think are best taken in on 2 wheels. Every turn and overlook was so stunning it would have taken me 3 days to make it all the way through if I had stopped to take a photo every time I saw something amazing.
Kyle made the reservation at the Historic Weisbaden Hot Springs in Ouray for us. They have an outdoor pool, a private soaking tub and underground vapor caves all fed by the warm, natural hot springs on the property. After taking a dip in all the pools we walked a few short blocks to dinner at the Outlaw Restaurant then took our time meandering back to our room, checking out quaint town tucked in to the mountainside.
Day 2 was the start of what was going to be a long hot day. We were coming out of the Colorado mountains now and started to hit the desert. We crossed our first state line of the trip and made a quick detour to Dinosaur National Monument in Utah. I had never been but Kyle has and knew where he could take a dip in the river. I was impressed by the dramatic landscape as we rode closer to the river. Afterwards we took the shuttle from the visitors center up to the Quarry Exhibit Hall. The building is built around an area of exposed rock that holds over 1,500 dinosaur bones as well as other exhibits and information on the excavation and the surrounding area.
We decided to go as far as Heber City for the day. We got out of the desert heat and had a lovely scenic ride past Strawberry Reservoir and through a buggy mountain pass in to town. This was just a place to stop and rest for the night and we weren’t expecting anything exciting to happen. While we were checking in we got a recommendation from the front desk to try Don Pedro’s for dinner which was walking distance from our room. We had an excellent dinner and fun funnel cake fries for dessert!
Our third morning started with a surprise view of a hot air balloon over our hotel! We wanted to avoid Salt Lake City and the traffic around it so we chose to take the 89 out of Utah and it criss crossed state lines so our route today was UT-WY-UT-WY-ID-WY-ID-MT. We stopped at Yankee Doodle’s Cafe in Wyoming to check the weather and consider our route. We checked the conditions and there was a flash flood warning further on up the road we were currently on, then we checked the radar but it didn’t look ominous so we decided to try to keep heading northwest to Montana. We were aiming for Lolo to visit my family but still had one more night before we needed to get there. If the weather was bad we were going to stop in Idaho Falls but we were able to keep pushing forward and didn’t hit any bad weather. Stopping in Dillon MT for the night meant that the next day to Lolo was going to be a short ride and we wouldn’t show up exhausted.
I was familiar with Old Tucson Movie Studios, although I had never visited. Back in the day Old Tucson was an active film ranch with 300 acres of space used for a movie and television productions; over 500 films and shows have been shot there over the years! As a fan of westerns, I was excited to see some of the areas where movies such as El Dorado, Tombstone, Joe Kidd, Rio Bravo, Three Amigos, and many more were filmed.
Unfortunately, there was a large fire in April 1995 and many of the historic western buildings, sets, props, and wardrobe were destroyed. Since then entire new buildings were constructed, and the streets were widened, (unfortunately the movie studio soundstage was not rebuilt). During the pandemic Old Tucson was closed down and sat vacant until they were purchased by American Heritage Railways (Also owners of The Durango & Silverton Narrow Gauge Railroad in Colorado!) and reopened in 2022. Here is a great article about the reopening with tons of historic photos.
The park today features and old W. Main St., including staged gunfights by stunt performers, a small narrow gauge railroad which circles much of the property, and tons of attractions for the kids (We made sure to swing by the petting zoo to pet the goats). There are still exhibits featuring original movie memorabilia and some of the buildings you would have seen in the old westerns, blacksmithing demonstrations, snake oil salesmen, and events for Halloween and Christmas.
It’s an interesting stop, however, I wish I could’ve seen it in its heyday. The studio is currently working with the state of Arizona on tax incentives to try and encourage filming to return, so maybe Old Tucson will be home to some future western classics!
We are big fans of roadside attractions, so we decided maybe we should do some spotlights on fun and quirky stops along the road. On our way home through the panhandle of Texas we stopped off on I-40 passing through Amarillo to see the Cadillac Ranch.
The installation was created by Chip Lord, Hudson Marquez, and Doug Michels, members of the San Francisco art group Ant Farm and unveiled in 1974. The Cadillacs all range from the years 1949-1963, and are all “planted” in the ground at 60 degree angle. Originally the installation was located on Route 66, but was moved in 1997 and is now located on private land along Interstate 40. Texas Highways has a great article you can check out HERE on the history behind the attraction.
Besides the striking visuals of a row of Caddys planted in a corn field (we visited off season giving it an even more desolate feel under the huge Texas sky) the fun part is looking at the graffiti…. and if you bring your own or buy a can from the trailer at the entrance, adding your own mark to the layers and layers of spray paint. Bee did just that, scrambling up on the roof to leave our names. It is a quick stop, but a fun one!
Wendover Air Force Base was an interesting afternoon exploration while attending Bonneville World of Speed 2024. Located in the town of Wendover Utah, stradling the Utah and Nevada state lines was a WWII air force base used for training B-17 and B-24 bomber crews. It was also the training site of the 509th Composite Group, the B-29 unit that carried out the atomic bombings of Hiroshima and Nagasaki. We were able to walk and drive the grounds and visited the Historic Airfield Museum, located in the service club building which containing tons of exhibits on the people who trained there, information on the mission of the base, and even replicas of the Fat Man atomic bomb.
The base was chosen for its location, 100 miles from Salt Lake City, in a mostly uninhabited region, but still serviced by the Western Pacific railroad. After the beginning of WWII it became the Army Air Force’s largest bombing and gunnery range, and the base was also assigned the research and development of guided missiles, pilotless aircraft, and remotely controlled bombs.
During 1943 training began to prepare for the use of atomic bombs. The 509th Composite Group was created on December 17 1944 and practiced dropping non-nuclear prototype atomic weapons until they were ready for deployment overseas. The training of B-29 aircrews and the testing of prototype atom bombs was the last major contribution of Wendover Field during World War II.
After the war’s end the base was continued to be used for various purposes and was officially listed on the National Register of Historic Places on July 1 1975. Today most of the hospital complex and many barracks remain, as does a chow hall, chapel, swimming pool and many other World War II-era buildings. In 2009, a hangar at the base dubbed The Manhattan Project’s Enola Gay Hangar was listed as one of the most endangered historic sites in the United States and a local group, Historic Wendover Airfield, is attempting to preserve the former base. The base has also appeared in many films and shows including Con Air, the Core, Independence Day, Hulk, and Fallout. If you ever find yourself in Wendover it is worth the visit to see one of the most original remaining Army Air Bases.
I have been attending the Bonneville Speed Week and Bonneville World Of Speed land speed racing events since 2010, the first year I ever participated in land speed racing. I’ve taken the past few years off while moving and settling into a new home and state, but went back to the salt flats this year to support my brother’s racing efforts!
Tyler preparing to run his dual engine Triumph at Bonneville World of Speed 2024
For the uninitiated, Street Muscle Magazine has a great article on the history of racing at the Bonneville Salt Flats you can check out Here. But if you can imagine racing it, you may see it on the salt.
This year my brother Tyler Malinky returned to the salt with his dual engine 1950 Triumph, the first time racing this bike on the salt since he wrecked it in 2021. Bee and I jumped in the truck and headed from Creede, Colorado to Wendover, Utah to meet the Lowbrow Customs race team.
As always, it was great to be back on the salt and with friends and family who have been attending and helping for years, even our friend Phill, came in from Australia to help crew. Making it even more of a family affair Tyler’s wife Julia, and his girls Darly and Virginia joined us on the salt!
Bonneville is a family affair!
Day one of racing, the bikes had already passed technical inspection and been fueled up, the morning started with the drivers meeting as it does every year, and we proceeded to the start line. It’s hard to explain how special it is to see the sunrise out on the salt. Not to mention the sound of hundreds of cars and motorcycles being fired up, and the smell of race gas and nitromethane in the air.
Day 1 drivers meeting
Slowly but surely we moved further up in the line. Finally it was Tyler‘s turn to run and he had an absolutely beautiful takeoff, running the 3 mile course and exiting with a speed of 156.34 mph, enough to qualify for his class record of 151.175 mph!
You would think that this is time to celebrate, but nothing on the salt is easy. At Bonneville you have to exceed the current record, you then go into impound (you have a few hours to rest and inspect your vehicle but can not make major changes), and you then have to back the record up – Run again, taking the average of the two speeds. If the average speed is higher than the existing record, that is the new record for the class.
Normally they do the backup runs in the morning, however they gave Tyler the option of running the same day. This is a shorter event, only 3-1/2 days not a full week like Speed Week, so Tyler decided to jump at the opportunity to run again.
Time to focus
Back at the starting line Tyler got into his race leathers and fired the bike up, waiting for the signal for a clear course so he could start his run. Another great sounding take off, and I ran back to the truck to listen to his speed called out over the CB. I either missed it or they didn’t call it, so I headed back to impound to hear the good or bad news in person. It ended up being great news, his second run was 153.50 mph, making an average of the two runs 154.88 mph, a new world record in his class!
Hurry up and wait
With a couple days of racing left the crew reset the bike and made further attempts to raise his new record speed, although we were not able to push the speed any higher. Besides the lines of other racers waiting to run there were delays for electrical issues with timing equipment on the track. This as they say is racing: Hurry up and wait; Equipment issues; Sourcing parts or welders in the middle of a salt desert and far from any major city; mysteries to solve. In the end, Tyler left Bonneville with a new record, and a list of work to do to prepare for next year, the goal to raise his own record, and switch classes to try and capture the fuel record as well.
Sunrise on the salt…indescribable.
It’s been several years since I’ve raced on the salt, but this whole experience lit a fire under my ass to pull the bike out of storage and begin working on it for next season. What they say is true, once the salt gets in your blood, you’ll never get rid of it!
Kyle and Bee at lands end, the entrance to the salt flats.
Sometimes these posts come way out of order, in this case we stumbled into the Tintic Motorcycle Works and Museum in Eureka, Utah on our way home from Bonneville World of Speed….a blog I have still not finished writing!
At any rate we passed through the small mining town of Eureka and stopped for gas (at the Gas Hole filling station, I kid not), across from a motorcycle museum! It was Bee’s “fifth element” of traveling in full effect.
We walked across to the former US Post Office and headed inside to check it out. The first floor was pretty packed with some great motorcycles, tons of parts, and miscellaneous motorcycle memorabilia.
If you ever pass through Eureka, take a quick stop and grab a cup of coffee, and check out the @tintic_motorcycle_museum
We had a gorgeous fall weekend here in the high country of Southern Colorado, and decided to take the motorcycles out from Creede, through Wolf Creek Pass, and over to Chimney Rock National Monument outside of Pagosa Springs, CO before it closed for the season.
“This undiscovered gem is an intimate, off-the-beaten-path archaeological site located at the southern edge of the San Juan Mountains in Southwestern Colorado. You’ll walk in the footsteps of the fascinating and enigmatic Ancestral Puebloans of the Chaco Canyon, following primitive pathways that haven’t changed for 1,000 years. Archaeological structures and artifacts, abundant wildlife, and its setting in the breathtaking San Juan National Forest make Chimney Rock a must-see.
Chimney Rock covers seven square miles and preserves 200 ancient homes and ceremonial buildings, some of which have been excavated for viewing and exploration: a Great Kiva, a Pit House, a Multi-Family Dwelling, and a Chacoan-style Great House Pueblo. Chimney Rock is the highest in elevation of all the Chacoan sites, at about 7,000 feet above sea level. From the base, the hike to the top is just a half mile and it’s rewarded with dramatic 360-degree views of Colorado and New Mexico.”
360 Degree views of Colorado and New MexicoThe Great Kiva at over 7000 feetThe rock chinking is amazing
After the short hike to the Great Kiva we spoke with a docent a bit about the history of the dwelling, the construction of, and its relation to others in the area such as Chaco Canyon and Mesa Verde. We also took time to watch the Peregrine Falcons and Turkey Vultures fly and dive around the chimney.
Chimney Rock from the top at the Great Kiva
You can do both short hikes as well as the visitor center in just a couple hours, and this is a worthwhile stop if you are passing through Southern Colorado!
Ramble Around 