I guess it is time for an update. I will not be writing as much because we will be relatively stationary.
We were sitting on the boat in Alabama on April 15, when I got a call from our grandson, Will. He told me that he wanted to start riding motorcycles again. He quit riding about 5 years ago for a reason, I still do not know. His family came to our ranch and met another boy that was about his age that wanted him to ride with him. He asked his Mom and she told him that he would have to talk to his grandfather. That is all I needed to begin packing, and plan the move back to Missouri. We were getting tired of just siting on the boat in the marina anyway, so we were trying to decide when it would be safe to make the move.
I called the car rental agencies and was pleasantly surprised at the cost to one way a car to Missouri. Total cost for this very nice Dodge Charger was only $60 for the 48 hours it would take us to make the 8 hour drive. The only problem was that I would need to go to Meridian, Mississippi to pick it up. A trip of about 50 miles. I asked my slip neighbor, Steve if he knew a way to do that. He quickly offered to drive me over. Thanks Steve! Cruisers are the best!
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Dodge Charge with 2700 miles, Texas Plates
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The few days before we left we watched as the water in the river was rising. This is very common in the spring. Unfortunately, the geese lost their nest to the rising waters. I got this shot of the 6 eggs under the water.
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Geese Eggs
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The drive to Missouri was pretty uneventful. We stopped once for fuel and lunch just north of Memphis and then found an open rest area in Arkansas to use the bathroom.
When we arrived at the ranch we moved into our other movable home. The trailer had no issues after being stored for the winter. Both the car and truck are now running well after a little scare with the truck.
All of the grandkids are doing school from home on-line. Will came to the ranch to live with us for a week. We did school until noon each day and then rode motorcycles in the afternoon. As I expected, he has progressed quickly and is riding a TTR125 with a clutch with excellent skills. In the past three weeks he has put on over 20 hours on the bike. Luckily, I have two of them, so I just need to keep one of them running for his frequent visits. I could not be more proud.
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Will on the TTR 125
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It has been very busy at the ranch. We have been preparing for a race that was scheduled for May 10th, but was cancelled by the Chairman of the Series on Tuesday before event. We were not happy. Many riding areas are closed and people are looking for a way to get out of the house, so coming to the ranch has been a popular idea for the members. It has been great catching up with many old friends and meeting new ones. After the long layoff, I have been excited about riding again also, so I have been getting some exercise on the bike.
This time of year the Ranch is beautiful. The Dogwoods were in bloom when we arrived and then many other wildflowers are making an appearance.
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Dogwoods in Bloom
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Spring rains fill the creeks
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Love the Sunsets at the ranch
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Indian Paintbrush
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One of the most difficult trails at the ranch - Somethin' Special
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We are planning to head back to the boat at the end of the week for a couple of weeks. We will take our grandaughter, Isabella with us to get some good one on one time. She is 14. I want to spend some time checking out the motor to determine if it is in need of a rebuild or not. It looks like the restrictions related to the virus are easing around the country. We are still hoping to make a trip in the RV to Colorado this summer, but we need the campgrounds to open up out there, before we can do that. I will write again when I have some pictures to post or something interesting to write about.
