Day 2 of the VROC dirt ride

Clicking on a picture will enlarge it.  At the bottom of the current post, click on "OLDER POSTS" at the bottom right of the page and the blog will continue.

Friday morning, Lanny is loading up.  Pretty scarry riding up that steep ramp!

Mexican breakfast on Thursday.

Street in Los Algodones, Mexico.

Katie and Pat parked the Green Lizard at the border and rode in and out with us. We just ate, and are heading out.

Bikes go to the head of the line, that's why Pat didn't drive the car or walk in.  You can spend more than an hour waiting in either line, but it took us about 5 minutes to get out.

About 50 miles North East of Yuma is the old mining town of Castle Dome.  There is a museum and ghost town there.  The pictures of today are out of order, some were from Lanny and the rest mine.  Lanny took some great shots, he let me use SOME of them :-)

Jim didn't make any 'wrong turns' all day!

The snack bar is on the honor system.  You put your money in the green tool box, and help your self.  Everything is a dollar.

No explaination needed :-)

Jim contemplating whether or not to rob the bank 

One of several saloons in town.  There were 7 mines in the vicinity,  some buildings and fixtures were moved in from all of them to rebuild this little city.

Biglefti is about ready to punch out this cowboy and  smooch on his lady.

An old miner, and a young bike rider!

Inside the church.  

The jail is pretty real looking.  Well, all the building are real looking because they are.

Most of the exhibits are "hands on".  Everything used to be out in the open, but now there are a few glass cases for the more pilfer able things. 

Things in here were mostly from a 1950's gas station down at Stone Cabin

After leaving Dome City, we explored the trail to Big Wash Mine.

It wasn't as rough as we expected, but after a couple of miles, we turned back for time and darkness concerns.

For being a relatively new dirt rider, Jim is doing real well!

The Aerostat came down for what ever it comes down for.  It's an observation and communications balloon that is usually in the air in this area.

Katie checking out the old Butterfield Stage station.

A little Hor d'ourve I made from a tortilla chip, cucumber,  Mexican  cheese, tomato and cilantro.  Very tasty!  We're back in Mexico at our favorite street food cantina.

Taken by our waiter.

Jim & Kate both had "Carne Asada y Huevos"  Stake and eggs.  They are doing low carb for awhile, and limited themselves to one tortilla each.  The rest didn't go to waste.

Katie, Jim, Sherm, Pat, and Lanny (Biglefti)

If you enlarge the picture you can see the square thing on top of the mountain in the background.  That's where we rode to yesterday and took pictures that are in this next blog post.  That is the Colorado River below us here.

Laguna Dam, built in 1926, primarily for flood control

Gun ship at the Army Proving Grounds

Visiting with Adam, a resident of Dome Valley City

Prince Albert in the can

Checking out the brass rail

Underground.  It's dark in the tunnel, goes in about 20 feet, then there are some lighted exhibets, and then back out another tunnel.  There is no electricity in Dome City, except solar and wind that charges up some batteries.  I wouldn't want to be in here if the batteries went dead.

Lanny reading displays

Painting of the old store at Stone cabin.  We're inside this store now, it was moved up here to the museum.

Picture of the original Stone Cabin.  Built by a couple of Frenchmen that were very early miners here, back in the late 1700's.

The church, with Castle Dome behind it.  You can see the Dome for miles and miles away.

Lanny found some gold dust in the bank vault

He's making his "get-a-way"

The door man at another saloon

Biglefti & Wrongturn spent a lot of time in the Old Saguaro Bar

Pretty drab, but they looked this way back in "the day".  There are some real nice ones besides this kind too

This was on some kind of advertisement, but can't remember what. Some of you older folks may recognize her.

It takes more than one Ayer to make an Ayers.

And here's an Ayers sharpening his knife

A Sentinel in the Desert

The Dome

From inside the church.  This is right behind the pulpit 

Lanny's father was a preacher, I think Lanny would have made a good one!

Nice REAL guns in the jail and Sheriff's office

Lanny picked up this leg iron, it was  heavy.

Sheriff Sherm

Aces and 8's ??

One of the machinery spaces

Looks like an old vroc'er

3 replicas, and 2 real pistols that are in working condition.  The black powder replicas can be fired too.

End of a long day in the mine.

Part of the old Stone Cabin room

From the 1950's gas station.  This was a state of the art engine analyzer back then.

When these two get into a converstaion, you may as well sit down, you'l be there awhile :-)

Outside the barber shop

Lanny combing it up before the trim

Aerostat starting to come down.  It's on a tether.

It's nose goes into a frame, and the body rotates in the wind even when it's on the ground

Lanny had the "Ulitmate" at Jecotor's Burritos for Friday breakfast.  Bacon, Sausage, ham, potato, egg, and cheese, with logs of good hot sauce.  There are 27 kinds of burritos on the menu,  6 Quesadillas, and 6 lunch plates.  One of my favorite places

Loading up the T-dub.  We had an excellent time riding, eating, and site-seeing.  Lanny, thanks for coming over, and sharing some of your "handiman" skills!

Last 7 pics are from Lanny's camera.  Some of the others are too.

Kawasaki coat on a Yamaha!

Fishing pier and boat dock on Mitry Lake.  This is also the Colorado River.

Some pretty rugged country

Jim & Sherm and a small Ocotillo

Vantage point on top of a mountain.  The road getting up here was where Redd had his crash.  He's mending well, except he may have some bruised or cracked ribs.

Inside the little gift shop at Castle Dome.  Lanny accused me of looking at the skivvies, but it was a table cloth.