Hugh Mantooth:  

Life Packing a motorcycle for camping was an adventure especially when one has never par-taken of such an activity before and my longest ride before departing was a little over two hundred miles. Running into great luck, the weather was somewhat out of character for a Texas June as cooler temperatures prevailed as I moved West playing cat and mouse with thunderstorms that meandered too and fro. The Texas high plains provided a dramatic view for many miles and if I had not known the difference would have thought that I was in the canyon lands of Utah. Passing through canyon lands into the high plains and on into the Colorado Rockies was thrilling and yet peaceful as if an "ole" friend from a earlier time during my youth had come calling again as memories of backpacking, gazing down from 14,000' peaks, and standing in the clouds stirred memories locked away in my mind but not forgotten. It would have been nice to have experienced those memories again but better judgement prevailed and the "hum" of the 750cc motorcycle engine carried me over the Continental Divide. Arriving in Montrose late evening and soaked to the bone I was welcomed to a hot shower and a hot meal from a friend I had not seen in thirty years f...Expand for more