SIX PACK TO LOOKOUT

 Five other Wednesday night riders joined Bob on his leaf looking/lunch ride on Saturday.  Meeting at Casey's were Mike and Bill on bikes.  They were joined by Dave, Roger, and Bob on trikes, while Richard arrived with his slingshot.

STILL TIME FOR COFFEE

ROGER JOINS US AGAIN

WE'RE JUST ABOUT READY TO ROLL

FULL TANK & EMPTY BLADDER FIRST

LET'S GO!

The plan was to leaf look all the way up to the Lookout Bar & Grill near Arcadia and have lunch there.  On the way back the plan was to tackle some of the backroads starting with Alligator Slide.

The six of us left Waukon under sunny skies, with the outlook of a beautiful fall day ahead.  We took HWY 76 north to Caledonia, jumped on CR 10, back to 76, and on into Houston.  Along the bluffs with the sun shining on them, the gold color in the leaves was spectacular.

Just outside of Houston we ventured onto CR 9, followed it through Looney Valley and on up to CR 11.  We traversed along CR 11 up to Ridgeway (MN) where we met up with CR 12.  We raced along parallel to I 90 under repair until we got to Witoka, and then took CR 17 down the mountain and onto HWY 43 just outside of Winona.  After several round-a-bouts (training in Prarie du Chien paid off), we arrived on HWY 61.  After a couple of miles, we turned onto Huff St. and made a stop for a break at the Winona Visitor Center.

MIKE & RICHARD GET PARKED

DAVE EYES LAKE WINONA

A VIEW OF LAKE WINONA

ANOTHER VIEW--NOTICE THE TREES

BILL PARKS UNDER THE FALLING LEAVES

Before we were eaten alive by the Japanese beetles, we departed the visitor center and made our way through Winona passing by the university campus.  We crossed over the bridge on HWY 43/54 into Wisconsin and onto HWY 35 north.  We soon arrived at our first backroad across the Mississippi and took CR YY up the hill to CR M.  We followed M up to HWY 95.  Both of these county roads offered some great views, but nothing compared to the spectacular scenery we were to see on 95 all the way up to the Lookout.

Once we arrived at the Lookout, we were amazed at the small number of motorcycles and other vehicles in the parking lot.  Years before, it was always a chore finding a spot to park.  But not today, and we soon found out why.  When we thought we were going to have some lunch, we found out that the Lookout did not have a cook that day, so no food!  Quite a disappointment!  After visiting with some other bikers there, we learned that they got no food when they were there earlier in the summer.  It would seem to me that for this place to survive, they had better find a cook.

The Lookout was not a total loss.  We ordered some soft drinks and sat on the deck enjoying the view that this place is known for.

Once we were done with the drinks and the view, it was time to start our journey back.  This started with negotiating the most famous backroad in the area, Alligator Slide.  We were able to "slide" down the Slide without any problems.  The views from this road are amazing, but you'd better watch your way, or could slide right down a steep enbankment.

After our adventure down Alligator Slide, we arrived at River Road and wound our way over to CR J.  Again we rewarded with some great color as we made our way to Dodge (no Boot Hill) and onto CR P.  This last stretch of backroads took us on a colorful route down to HWY 35 and we headed south.  Everybody in this part of Wisconsin and Minnesota must have had the same idea we had.  Every tourist stop, including the fruit and berry places, were jammed with parked vehicles.

But still hungry from no lunch yet, we rolled into the Jailhouse Saloon, a place where some of us had stopped before in previous excursions.  It had been good food then, and it was now, except the place was very busy, and it took us a long time to get fed.  Wanting to make sure we got everybody back home before dark, we sped on HWY 35 through Centerville and Trempealeau to HWY 53 and took that four laner over to I 90.  We followed I 90 over to HWY 14 and stopped at LaCrescent Kwik Trip to refuel.  We then made our way to HWY 26 and headed south where eventually Mike and Roger departed for home.  Following 26 to HWY 9 in Lansing and then back to Waukon ended a great ride with some amazing scenery including color on the leaves.  Bob had 206 miles on his trike when he arrived home.