DAY 9: Sunday, November 2, 2003 8:00PM Just talked to Jim. On his way back home, he's in Alpine, TX. When he got up and started packing the bike around 7:00AM, there was ice on the bike. He took time for coffee before leaving. Rode the same route back from Creel that he took on the way down. He's had a good ride. Only took about 30 minutes at the border crossing today. Staying at the first motel he came to in Alpine on Hwy. 67 -- nothing to brag about, but it's a decent room. Said he's going to Subway for supper, then going to bed early. Wants to get a good start in the morning. Plans to follow I-10 through Houston, then, once he gets over into Lousianna, he'll turn up toward Natchez, MS and take the Natchez Trace up to US64, turn east and follow US64 to I-24, go into Chattanooga, TN and connect with I-75, then get back on US64 east which will bring him all the way home to Franklin, NC. He should be home by the middle of the week. Jim said he really enjoyed meeting all the riders who were in Creel for the meeting this weekend. Learned a few things, too. One of the best pieces of advice he got was: If someone ever approaches you when you're on the road, and they tell you or show you that they seriously want your motorcycle, drop it and walk away. If the bike's down, it'll be difficult, if not impossible, for them to pick it up to take it away. With any luck, they'll leave it alone. Dave Jefferis, our friend from Ohio who met Jim in Creel for the weekend meeting, was planning to leave mid-mornig today and ride with the group with Juan Carlos Ibarra (see www.ibarra-bros.com). The group's headed toward Mexico City near Juan Carlos' home. Dave Jefferis is on his way to Costa Rica... for a long winter's nap. |
DAY 8: Saturday, November 1, 2003 12:30PM I ran into Deputy Dog and Morris down at the flea markat in GA. Talked to Dave for a while. He didn't get to read this page yesterday, so he asked about Jim's trip. Said he would have really liked joining Jim on this Mexico trip, but just couldn't take the time off right now. Told me about the new, top of the line, Jesse panniers he's just put on his bike for his upcoming trip with Dork. They are heading leaving for Central America, the day after Thanksgiving. |
6:30PM Just got a call from Jim. Know it's just been 2 days since our last talk, but it was good to hear his voice. Our conversation was interrupted briefly by the sound of the Policia driving by the phone booth and honking their horn -- long and loud! Anyway, Jim told me that they spent part of the day on a 44K (kilometers x 0.62 = miles) drive out to get a bit of a look at the area. Took lots of pics... I hope his camera was working! Saw the local Indians, the Tarahumara, but was not allowed to take pictures of them. Had beautiful views of the canyon and enjoyed the interesting rock formations in the vicinity. Said I would have loved it! Tomorrow's the Day of the Dead in Mexico. There will be all kinds of celebrating in Creel. Check this site: Day of theDead. The Horizons Unlimited dinner tonight will be at the KOA meeting hall. The Tarahumara, Indians of the Copper Canyon region, will entertain the group with native dancing. Note: The Tarahumara or Raramuri, as they call themselves, inhabit the Copper Canyon. They are Mexico's second largest native Indian group with between 50,000 & 70,000 people. Jim said that the train that goes from Creel toward the coast, down near the Gulf of California, has its train cars completely loaded this afternoon with probably 50+ huge RVs and trucks w/pull behind trailers. There're tons of tourists traveling through there this time of year. Meeting all sorts of people -- young and old -- from all sorts of places, Jim met an older guy from California, Dennis, who rode the gravel road on his Honda Nighthawk down to Batopilas, MX at the bottom of the canyon. Said the road rocky and is in miserable shape right now and he strongly advised Jim not to take the Transalp down. His advice was well heeded. Met another fellow from Medellin, Columbia in South America who, after learning of Jim's interest in touring there next winter on his Transalp, stressed to him, "Don't go to Columbia!" Jim's getting great bits of useful info and is glad he made the trip to Creel for this Horizons Unlimited meeting. Planned activities will continue tomorrow and Sunday. What a blast! ADDED 11-2-03: Jim said that the authenic dances of the Tarahumara at dinner tonight were really spectacular. |
DAY 7: Friday, October 31, 2003 4:30PM Found this site for those of you who want to sharpen up on your Spanish: learnspanish.com For those of you who want to translate English to Spanish, try this site: onlinetranslator |
Some facts about the Copper Canyon: ~The copper was never mined in great quantities. The term refers to the copper/green colored lichen that clings to the canyon walls. ~Copper Canyon Mexico is the largest canyon system in North America. Most people who visit the area do so on the train, catching only glimpses of three of the seven major canyons. Try these sites for more info: |
DAY 5: Wednesday, October 29, 2003 9:00PM Jim just called from Creel, MX, about 185 miles from Chihuahua, Mx. Makes his trip @ 1882 road miles for now. When Jim got to town, he looked for Dave Jefferis, but didn't find him right away. Had a mix up with first, rooming with a biker, Daniel, that he met during the afternoon, then later changing to a room with Dave. They ate dinner tonight at a nice local restaurant with a couple from Portland, Oregon, a veterinarian and his wife who travel all around the world on their BMW 1100GS. Jim said things in Creel seem a bit expensive, but the Chili Relleno (not sure of the spelling) was the best he's ever eaten. Jim thought he'd mentioned before that he was having bike trouble. Felt like the brake was freezing up, but, this afternoon, when he and Dave got a closer look, they found that the trouble was with his rear wheel bearings. Was about to seize up. Jim said he wished he'd gotten a camera shot of the bike jacked up on a rock with a 2x4 under it and the rear wheel removed. Took the wheel to an auto shop where the mechanic took a punch and knocked out the worn out bearings. Back at the bike, Jim used the special tire tools he made for this trip to punch the two new bearings in place. Said the bikes running good now. He already talking about going through it with a "fine toothed comb" and planning to replace the front bearings when he gets back home. Creel is at an altitude of 7,850 feet, more that 6,000 feet above the town of Batopilas at the bottom of the Copper Canyon which is only at a 1,600 foot elevation. The gravel road from Creel to Batopilas, Jim was told, is quite rocky and has lots of traffic including big trucks that take the road for themselves. Jim thought, before he left home, that it might be an interesting ride, but after talking to the locals, I think he's decided against it. Doesn't want to get into trouble with the bike. For more info and photos, click here: BATOPILAS. Jim said it's cool in Creel tonight. There's a nice wall heater in the motel room and hot water. Not sure why, but Jim and Dave are changing motels tomorrow... about three blocks away from were they're staying tonight. The campground cost $8 per person per night. The motel room with hot water and a heater will only be $15, which he and Dave will split. And they're only 4-5 blocks away from the campground where many of the bikers will be camping. Jim and Dave are meeting motorcyclists from lots of places. More riders will be coming into town tomorrow and Friday. They're looking to have a fun-filled weekend. Hope it's grand! |
Check these sites: |
SEE OTHER TRIPS OF INTEREST TWODOGSMC.NET |
Deputy added artwork to Jim's PELICAN bags. The soft, carry-on bag is by Helen Two Wheels. |
COPPER CANYON 2003 TRANSALP RUN FROM OCTOBER 25th - NOVEMBER 5, 2003 photos of the trip at the end of the tale |
JIM'S 1st TRANSALP RUN: COPPER CANYON FROM FRANKLIN, NC, USA TO CREEL,CHIHUAHUA, MEXICO FOR THE HORIZONS UNLIMITED MEETING |
COPPER CANYON 2003 TRANSALP RUN FROM OCTOBER 25th - NOVEMBER 5, 2003 photos of the trip at the end of the tale |
">
">
">
">
THE BIKE |
">
">
">
">
">
">
">
">
The HONDA TRANSALP: loaded, ready, waiting. |
Rear view of bags showing added w/reflective bands. |
">
">
">
">
">
">
">
">
">
">
">
">
">
">
">
">
Grip guards. |
Deputy added artwork to Jim's PELICAN bags. The soft, carry-on bag is by Helen Two Wheels. |
Tank bag. |
Dash detail. |
THE TRIP |
Day 1: Saturday, October 25, 2003 6:30AM Jim was on the bike for a quick photo shoot at 6:15am... before daylight. We've had tremendously heavy fog every morning this week, 'til today. The skies were perfectly clear and the temp was at 40 degrees when he started on his first lengthy journey on theTransalp. |
">
">
">
">
The stars were not the only things glowing in the dark this morning! |
I'll try to keep the trip log up-to-date for those who want to go along for the ride. Liz |
SEE OTHER TRIPS OF INTEREST TWODOGSMC.NET |
12:30PM Dave Jefferis, our friend from Cleveland, OH came a bit out of his way to visit us two weeks ago and went with JIm (Oct.3-5) to the 6th Fall Transalps in the Blue Ridge gathering in Suches, GA. He was on his way out west to Arizona. He and Jim plan to meet in Creel, Chihuahua this coming Tuesday or Wednesday for the meeting of Horizon's Unlimited there next weekend. Dave sent e-mail today to say he's planning to leave Phoenix early on Monday, expects a two day ride to Creel, and will see Jim there. 8:30PM Jim called a while ago. Said he was one "tired puppy". He caught some rain just as he was coming into Vicksburg, MS, his stopping point for the night (568miles). Said he had a good ride today except for a ton of football traffic between Birmingham and Tuscaloosa, AL with lots of team flags waving and probably lots of early cocktail drinkers, too. Lost his speedometer today. Actually, I picked up his cable clamp at the end of our drive today when I walked out to check the mail. Jim's got the bike pulled up under the overhang at his $39.95 motel room tonight. It was still raining when he called. Radar on the weather site shows heavy (red) rain right over Vicksburg, but it should move eastward, out of the area overnight. Glad Jim's safe and settled in for now. |
Check these sites: |
I got a surprise this afternoon. Tim and Kay Cecil and their two dogs, Tippy & Pepper, are here!! They drove up through Clayton, GA to trade campers with Rooster and Moana and rode on up to Franklin to visit. Knew they might come up, but wasn't sure when. |
DAY 2: Sunday, October 26, 2003 7:00AM (Daylight Savings Time) Tim and Kay got on the road toward home at the break of day this morning. Wanted to get ahead of all the leaf-lookers bottle-necking their way down through Rabun County, GA--- heading back to & through the Atlanta area. Was great to have them visit! |
2:00PM Still enjoying autumn colors here at the house. Caught these leaf pics this morning! Traveling along I-20, Jim's probably enjoying peek colors all the way into and through Texas. Had a good, steady rain here from 9:30AM 'til 1:30PM... heavy at times. Weather channel was showing rain and snow in central & western Texas along and below I-20 this morning. Jim may hit and miss rain as he travels cross Louisianna and into Texas today. He, Deputy Dog, and Shelley hit an early season snowfall, a THUNDER SNOW actually, on the Interstate in Arizona the first week in November three years ago on their way to the BAJA 2000 race. Hope the rest of this wet weather moves southeastward as Jim gets closer to Midland, TX and beyond in a day or two. |
">
">
">
">
">
">
">
">
">
">
">
">
7:25PM Jim just called from the Levine residence! Got to Waco, TX earlier today. (It's 568 miles from Vicksburg, MS according to our Rand McNally TRIPMAKER software, making the trip @ 1022 highway miles so far.) He had very little rain today. Jim had the same high, gusty winds today that we rode through for a long stretch of road going into Waco this past July. He got a little messed up today on the actual time of day. With our turning back to Daylight Savings Time added to traveling westward through a couple of different time zones, plus overcast skies, Jim thought it was about 3:00PM, but found out, when he asked someone, that it was only noon. (Ha!) Mike, Sarah, and Jim were gettin' ready to sit down for supper, so we had to cut the conversation short. |
DAY 3: Monday, October 27, 2003 6:15AM Good news. Looks like the skies are clear & the temp's at 46 degrees in Waco. Jim will have near perfect traveling weather down toward Presidio, TX and reach temps in the 80's. I'm not sure what route Jim will take from Waco. 5:30PM Jim's leaving on Saturday was a good move. He's missed the rain and cold for the most part. It's rained 2 1/2" here since yesterday morning and temps are expected to drop to 35 degrees here tonight. It should be clear for the rest of the week and stay much warmer once he crosses over the Rio Grande into old Mexico. 7:00PM When I got back from the store a few minutes ago, I found a message from Jim on our answering machine. He's in Alpine, TX 50-60 miles south of I-10 on US67. Has a $40 room at a dinky motel. His only choices in town for supper looked like pizza or Mexican food. Said he was going to have a pizza and would call again when he got back to his room. 8:20PM Jim woke up this morning at 4:00 and went back to sleep, then woke up at 5:00 and got up, got dressed, went down stairs and wrote in his journal. Said the skies were crystal clear leaving Waco this morning. Jim traveled west on US84 to Hwy.16 to US190 to I-10 just west of Ft. Stockton where he took US67 down to Alpine, TX. That's 452 road miles today; trip's at 1474 total. Jim told me about driving through the Lampasas River region. Said the area was real pretty, but was a serious killing field. There were many dead animals that marked the roads with varying degrees of red. Some splotches were bright red, some were dull red and some were dark -- determined by the freshness of the kill. Also, the buzzards were very aggressive, not wanting their feasting to be interrupted by passing traffic. Both Lassie and Sarah had warned Jim to look out for deer in the area. He saw an abundance of deer crossing signs along US84. Was a dangerous treck, one he knew he wouldn't have wanted to ride at night. Some other tidbits he shared were: US190, took a hook to the left into the hills where he saw field after field of 3-bladed windmills. Thought they were pretty neat. There was a gentle rise to the higher elevations (4480 feet) at Alpine where it's a bit cooler than Jim had expected. He didn't like the fact that regular gas was averaging $1.60 /gallon today. The road turned due west outside of Alpine. Jim said the sun was a killer during those last 8-10 miles. Decided to stop riding for the day once he got into town. Thought about using duck tape to band the top of his face shield as a visor for the sun... has already used duck tape to help control the noise of the wind that's coming through the vents in his helmet. |
Added 10-27-03: Jim left Vicksburg in fog and mist. Had about a 10 minute glimpse of the sun, them rode into the mist again. Going into Palestine, TX, he had a light sprinkle and cold breeze. Was cool and misty coming into Waco. Learned a trick with his new fullfaced helmet. When it gets wet, he can turn his head sideways to catch the wind which will act like a blower at an automatic car wash to dry his face shield. When he crossed into Texas from Lousiana, Jim stopped at the Welcome Station. Bought some stickers and went out to the bike to put them away for safe keeping. When he opened the zipper of his address book and flipped a few pages, something sparkled and fell out of the book, fluttered a bit, and landed in Jim's hand. Was a small, irridescent, paper angel. Jim said it blew his mind! He put the angel back inside the book with the fun stickers. Plans to keep the angel with him for the rest of this trip. |
DAY 4: Tuesday, October 28, 2003 6:00PM Jim signed the guestbook on the TWO DOGS home page. He wrote: "Having a ball -- in Chihuahua, Mexico at the moment, headed toward Creel and the Copper Canyon. Will rest my weary head tonight in a local motel (read whoretel)-- $20 bucks and all the xxx tv you can stand." 7:00PM Jim phoned from a street corner in Chihuahua, Mexico. Our phone card costs us 3.6 cents per minute in the US; it's costing Jim 36 cents per minute from Mexico. Yikes! He was on the road at 7:00 this morning. It took 1 1/2 hours to get through the border crossing (Presidio, TX / Ojinaga, MX). The road, MX16 was a twisty one. Once he got to Chihuahua, it took another hour to get through the city. Tired of the traffic, he decided to stop at 3:00 this afternoon and find a motel. Said it was cheap, but a large, clean room. That's good. Had a nice meal this afternoon: Polo Asada(roasted chicken) with pickled onions and tortillas with salsa. He called it lunch and supper. Jim talked to some locals today. Was advised which route to take tomorrow. He will take MX16 to just east of La Junta, then turn south on a road that will take him south and into Creel. Thinks he should get there between 1:00 and 2:00PM. Will check in with the folks with Horizons Unlimited at the campground once he's there to see if Dave Jefferis has arrived yet. |
">
">
">
">
Border crossing |
Creel, Mexico |
>>> Continental Divide of the Sierra Madre Mountain Range |
Copper Canyon, near Creel ~ The Rio Unique flows through the bottom of the canyon, 1 mile below the rim. (Photo at the top of this page.) |
DAY 5: Wednesday, October 29, 2003 9:00PM Jim just called from Creel, MX, about 185 miles from Chihuahua, Mx. Makes his trip @ 1882 road miles for now. When Jim got to town, he looked for Dave Jefferis, but didn't find him right away. Had a mix up with first, rooming with a biker, Daniel, that he met during the afternoon, then later changing to a room with Dave. They ate dinner tonight at a nice local restaurant with a couple from Portland, Oregon, a veterinarian and his wife who travel all around the world on their BMW 1100GS. Jim said things in Creel seem a bit expensive, but the Chili Relleno (not sure of the spelling) was the best he's ever eaten. Jim thought he'd mentioned before that he was having bike trouble. Felt like the brake was freezing up, but, this afternoon, when he and Dave got a closer look, they found that the trouble was with his rear wheel bearings. Was about to seize up. Jim said he wished he'd gotten a camera shot of the bike jacked up on a rock with a 2x4 under it and the rear wheel removed. Took the wheel to an auto shop where the mechanic took a punch and knocked out the worn out bearings. Back at the bike, Jim used the special tire tools he made for this trip to punch the two new bearings in place. Said the bikes running good now. He already talking about going through it with a "fine toothed comb" and planning to replace the front bearings when he gets back home. Creel is at an altitude of 7,850 feet, more that 6,000 feet above the town of Batopilas at the bottom of the Copper Canyon which is only at a 1,600 foot elevation. The gravel road from Creel to Batopilas, Jim was told, is quite rocky and has lots of traffic including big trucks that take the road for themselves. Jim thought, before he left home, that it might be an interesting ride, but after talking to the locals, I think he's decided against it. Doesn't want to get into trouble with the bike. For more info and photos, click here: BATOPILAS. Jim said it's cool in Creel tonight. There's a nice wall heater in the motel room and hot water. Not sure why, but Jim and Dave are changing motels tomorrow... about three blocks away from were they're staying tonight. The campground cost $8 per person per night. The motel room with hot water and a heater will only be $15, which he and Dave will split. And they're only 4-5 blocks away from the campground where many of the bikers will be camping. Jim and Dave are meeting motorcyclists from lots of places. More riders will be coming into town tomorrow and Friday. They're looking to have a fun-filled weekend. Hope it's grand! |
From Alpine, TX this morning, the run to Chihuahua was only 223 road miles. Not counting the ride through the city and around, Jim's trip's @ 1697miles. I got this e-mail from Dave Jefferis tonight. He's already in Creel, MX and trying to locate Jim. |
Hi Liz, I'm in Creel, thought I'd check the internet before I got a hotel to see if Jim got here first. I had an awful lot of trouble on the way down. I got stuck at the border for 4 hours. There was a group of eight Americans in front of me bringing dirt bikes into the country on trailers. Unfortunately, one of the trailers wasn't registered to the owner of the truck, so they were having a great deal of trouble getting in. After those guys gave up for the day, the next people in line couldn't get in because they forgot to check their car out of Mexico the last time they were there. They had to return to their home about 60 miles away, and come back with the car in question. By the time they got to me it was 4:30. I left the building at 5: 30. Had to stay just down the road from the customs building. Oh, they had two windows open for checking your vehicle through the border, but only one person working both windows. It would have been very comical if I wasn't standing in that line. As I arrived in the town of Creel I saw a sign directing me up a road to the right, promising a spectacular vista. I had to go. Unfortunately, about 3 miles up this barely passable dirt trail, I got a flat rear tire. The slime anti flat liquid in the tube didn't help a bit. I had picked up an 8 penny finish nail. I spent the next hour installing a new tube, and another 1/2 hour inflating the tube with my hand pump. Well I'm in town now looking for a room. The guy that runs the internet cafe also has rooms for rent just down the road, 15.00 per night, I'm going to take a look at them as soon as I get off line. I'll try to e mail later tonight, or in the morning to let you know where the hotel is. That's all for now, <D.J. |
Dave surely had an interesting day. Hope the rest of the week for both Jim and Dave will be safe, informative and fun. |
DAY 6: Thursday, October 30, 2003 5:30PM Jim signed the Guest Book on the Two Dogs web site again today. This is his message: Wish you were all here with me. You would enjoy it. The temperature here this morning was right at freezing 'cause frost covered everything, but as soon as the sun came up, so did the temp. Must be 75 or so at noon. Will stay in my $7.50 a nite room 'til Monday morn when I'll head home. |
Some facts about the Copper Canyon: ~The copper was never mined in great quantities. The term refers to the copper/green colored lichen that clings to the canyon walls. ~Copper Canyon Mexico is the largest canyon system in North America. Most people who visit the area do so on the train, catching only glimpses of three of the seven major canyons. Try these sites for more info: |
DAY 7: Friday, October 31, 2003 4:30PM Found this site for those of you who want to sharpen up on your Spanish: learnspanish.com For those of you who want to translate English to Spanish, try this site: onlinetranslator |
This shows the road down into the canyon. Looks a lot like the Horse Cove Road from Highlands, NC down to the bottom of the cove. This road's just not paved, doesn't have the thick growth of roadside trees, and probably has no signs for on coming curves or speed limits. Does have lots of heavy truck traffic, we heard, and the trucks think they "own" the road. |
">
">
">
">
6:30PM Just got a call from Jim. Know it's just been 2 days since our last talk, but it was good to hear his voice. Our conversation was interrupted briefly by the sound of the Policia driving by the phone booth and honking their horn -- long and loud! Anyway, Jim told me that they spent part of the day on a 44K (kilometers x 0.62 = miles) drive out to get a bit of a look at the area. Took lots of pics... I hope his camera was working! Saw the local Indians, the Tarahumara, but was not allowed to take pictures of them. Had beautiful views of the canyon and enjoyed the interesting rock formations in the vicinity. Said I would have loved it! Tomorrow's the Day of the Dead in Mexico. There will be all kinds of celebrating in Creel. Check this site: Day of theDead. The Horizons Unlimited dinner tonight will be at the KOA meeting hall. The Tarahumara, Indians of the Copper Canyon region, will entertain the group with native dancing. Note: The Tarahumara or Raramuri, as they call themselves, inhabit the Copper Canyon. They are Mexico's second largest native Indian group with between 50,000 & 70,000 people. Jim said that the train that goes from Creel toward the coast, down near the Gulf of California, has its train cars completely loaded this afternoon with probably 50+ huge RVs and trucks w/pull behind trailers. There're tons of tourists traveling through there this time of year. Meeting all sorts of people -- young and old -- from all sorts of places, Jim met an older guy from California, Dennis, who rode the gravel road on his Honda Nighthawk down to Batopilas, MX at the bottom of the canyon. Said the road rocky and is in miserable shape right now and he strongly advised Jim not to take the Transalp down. His advice was well heeded. Met another fellow from Medellin, Columbia in South America who, after learning o |