Motorcycle lessons I have learned

Beware of wind. Out on the prairie it can get damn windy. I have ridden for hours on bright sunny days and been hammered by high winds the entire ride. When you stop you can feel a little beat up from constantly adjusting your driving to compensate for the wind. There are times riding on a windless day where a strong unexpected gust of wind will hit you hard and throw a bit of a scare into you. I have a windshield which helps. The advantage of a windy day is less bugs. I don't know what it is with the insects in this province but when they hit your bike it is as if they become welded on and are a pain to remove.

Tires seem to last about one season. I started off in the spring with a new rear tire and by the time I parked the bike at the beginning of November it was "squaring off". In the spring I think I will replace both tires and I will definitely get the brakes checked. I have found that I need to change the oil about every five thousand miles. I bought the bike used and it did not come with an owner's manual. I was also too cheap to buy one. Since I parked it for the winter I am budgeting and setting aside some money every month for the bike fund. 

I am really looking forward to spring.

Red Rock Coulee, Alberta

From the sign:

Red Rock Coulee has a diversity of features from bare arid slopes, to native grassland and plateau. The main feature is a large area of exposed bearpaw shale out of which appear dozens of sandstone concretions. These spheroids in size range from 1.5 to 2.5 metres in diameter and are exposed to varying degrees from the soft bedrock.

These concretions were formed in the very sediments upon which they sit. The process by which concretions are formed leaves them harder and more resistant to erosional forces than the surrounding material. When the parent material erodes the spheres are left exposed and they in turn begin to erode.

Photos were taken September 20, 2014.

Elbow Falls

Just west of Bragg Creek, Alberta on October 26, 2014.

Bearberry, Alberta

August 15, 2014 I was on my way up to Drayton Valley, Alberta. I was just about to leave Sundre, Alberta when I saw the sign for the road to Bearberry. I have driven past the road to Bearberry many times but this one time I decided “What the hell . . . “ and made a side trip to Bearberry. It was only twenty minutes out of my way. When I got there I wasn’t sure if I should be disappointed or amused. There is a pub and a community hall/art gallery there and that is about it. I took a look inside the bar. It was a bit on the rustic side and advertised live entertainment. I was kind of curious how good the acts were and what kind of crowd they could draw as you were kind of in the middle of nowhere with hardly any civilization. I really expected to find a general store. I made a mental note to return sometime with some friends to check out the nightlife. It could be fun.

Frosty beginnings

I struggled with this one. It was difficult to catch the juxtaposition between shadow and light and still maintain the integrity of the ice crystals clinging to life. Sometimes you play the waiting game until all of the elements are in harmony.

Or I was yakking with my buddy at his acreage sipping a beer outside and just tried out the camera on my iphone. Likely the latter.