The last hour of work slowly ticked by. I even started this little excel spreadsheet to keep track of how many minute I had left. I would update it every few minutes. “58 minutes”….”52 minutes”….”49 minutes.” Then the time had finally come and I quietly gathered my stuff and headed for my bike. I was home in 10 minutes and started packing. I usually go over the packing list the night before so I can just load up when I leave.

Sleeping bag, check, tent check, cot check, clothes bag check, fold up chair check. Bungy everything to the bike. Umm, what am I missing? Oh, blanket. Tank bag is ready with the camera and music near the top for easy access. Pull the bike outside the garage and I’m off.

I’m anxious to be under way. I always am before a road trip. It’s the worst time for me. I always forget something and sure enough this time I did also. My rain suit and I didn’t realize it until I was in Idaho, two states away.

I stop in Auburn about 30 miles from home just to give everything a good check over.

(click on any picture to enlarge)