Go North, young man...

 

Yes, I know the quote is "Go West, young man," but if you said, "Horace Greely, the American author, in regards to the concept of Manifest Destiny," you get 500 bonus points.

Another solo scoot outing for me today, as Joan was planning for a grocery excursion.  My plan: a ride through Vanocker Canyon, north on Nemo Road, south on Highway 385, then decide how to get back to Hart Ranch.

Joan packed me a lunch and I hit the road.  Since I knew I wouldn't be talking on our helmet communicators, I put in foam ear plugs.  Nice and quiet, but I frequently found myself exceeding the speed limit because of the quiet and the smooth pull of the Vespa.

I stopped just outside of Sturgis to top off my gas tank (90.5mpg) and decided to look for a shady spot to have my lunch.  By myself, I don't need a picnic table - I remembered a big tree near a monument for motorcycle hill climbing (one of the early origins of the Sturgis Motorcycle Rally)...

It is right at the parking for the local hospital and made a good lunch location.  From there, it was off to cruise Vanocker Canyon...

 I was facing into the sun most of this stretch, making for challenging lighting for the Insta360 One R camera.  I thought it did a fine job, though...

Without Joan along, the photo options are: the road ahead or looking back at me - that's why it is mostly road photos, but these roads make me smile.

The curves on Vanocker Canyon Highway and Nemo Road are mostly "sweepers" - fun to ride at a good clip.  They don't require the finesse of the twisty roads on our southern outings, but the pace is considerably faster (especially so with ear plugs in ;-) ).

From there it was south on Highway 385...

Very little traffic today, in either direction, and some fall colors to take in.  It was a great ride.  I decided to take RimRock Highway (Hwy 44) back to Rapid City, rather than going south to Hwy 16.  More fun sweeping curves and pretty views...

I made an appointment to get my Vespa in for a new rear tire as we go through Austin.  The repair (patch and inner tube) is holding up well, but the possibility of a blow-out is greater with an inner tube than a fresh tubeless tire.  There is some tread left, but this will be peace of mind.  The patch got me through more riding (so far) here in the Hills.

Maybe one more ride before we need to start the packing-up-for-the-long-haul process.

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And a short video of today's ride...