Buffalo Wings

There are times in life when you just have to ask, why not? It all begin after I met my friends Mike, "Mr. Fix It" and Mike, "Mr. Pickels", yes those are their nick names, for lunch at the Brickhouse Tavern on a Friday.  What you doing for the weekend was the question that started all.  You see, I had not made any plans for the weekend yet and so I was free to follow them to whatever adventure their were going to come up with.
Let me explain, our motorcycle club has a tag game running and Mike, Mr. Fix is an avid player.  He had picked up the tag so now it was his turn to place the tag anywhere as long as it was more than 100 miles from the center of NJ.  This tag is for the Iron Butt Tag-O-Rama so it was with apprehension when I asked where were their thinking of going to place the tag.  Mike also loves to ride so I knew it wasn't going to be close but it still surprised me when he answered back with a definite "Buffalo".  Located in Western New York on the eastern shores of Lake Erie and at the head of the Niagara River and very close to Niagara Falls is the city of Buffalo.  Buffalo I said, why Buffalo? for the wings of course, he quickly answered.

But it's almost 500 miles one way, when are you leaving I asked, tomorrow he answered.  I thought for a moment and quickly answered, why not! I wasn't doing anything for the weekend in any case.  Why not embark on a 1000 mile round trip with two good friends for the weekend.

I left the house around 7 and met Mike at the famous Clinton Dinner in Clinton at 9am Saturday, he was already having breakfast and I quickly joined him while we waited for Mr. Pickles, the other Mike to arrive. We had a quick breakfast and hit the road around 10am.  We entered I-78 West and quickly crossed into Pennsylvania taking route 33 North.  We hit I-80 West and followed it until I-380 where we again proceeded North.  We passed Scranton and then followed I-81 North passing Binghamton until Syracuse when we veered left on I-90, the New York State Thruway and followed it until Buffalo.

This wouldn't be and adventure without some hiccups along the way.  The first one happened when we noticed Mike's number plate moving with the wind.  We signaled him to stop and saw the cracks on both sides along the bolts that hold the plate to the back.  After straightening the plate Mike figured we could make it to the next town along the way to find a frame to secure the plate properly.  We hit the road but not long after realized the plate was about to break off and fall and once again signaled Mike to pull off.  His nickname is not Mr. Fix It for no reason, he quickly pulled the plate off and using the bottom holes managed to jam the plate between the light and the screws at the bottom.  With the plate now properly secured we hit the road again.  It wouldn't be his last problem.
At the next gas stop we ran into a group of German tourist in a minivan on the way to Niagara Falls.  Mr. Fix It, being German, quickly established a conversation in German leaving me to walk around with the camera taking pictures and that's when I noticed Mr. Pickles Honda Valkyrie front brakes covered in oil.  Mike knew all about it and explained to me his front forks were both leaking and the oil had found its way onto the brakes and rotors.  I asked him if the brakes were still working properly and he quickly replied sarcastically and with a big smile that he still had the rear brake and he would start slowing down before us.  You see, Mike was the tail rider and he's coming at us on an 800lbs bike, it's always comforting to know he still has the rear brake.

We finally reach the outskirts of Buffalo and even though we had our camping gear, with the temperature at 69F we decide to look for a motel where we would share a room.  We got off the highway and immediately came upon the beautiful Garden Place Hotel.  We knew it was outside our price range but it had these beautiful sculptures in front so we pulled in to snap some photos and take a break while we decided where to go.

Famous Metal Sculpture

The inside of the Garden Place Hotel

We found a nearby hotel but with only two beds in the room someone had to sleep on the floor and Mr. Fix It decided he would use his sleeping bag and sleep on the carpet.  We unloaded the bikes and quickly left for the city center on the way to the Anchor Bar, home of the original Buffalo Chicken Wings.  The place was packed but we quickly managed to find three empty seats at the bar.  We were starving, we were not going to wait 1 hour for a table.  I don't like wings, I decided on the chicken nuggets called Anchor Bar Bites cooked the same way as the famous wings, they were delicious.  The two Mikes feasted on multiple buckets of the famous wings and we all downed a few beers.
The phenomenon created in 1964 by Teressa Bellissimo has spread across the globe. Although many have tried to duplicate Buffalo Wings, the closely guarded secret recipe is what makes Frank & Teressa's the proclaimed "Best Wings in the World."
 

Anchor Bar

We left the Anchor Bar a few hours later but the night was not over.  We quickly found out the place to be late at night was on W. Chippewa Street.  This street is where the late nighters and college kids hangout and with places like the Bada Bing Bar & Grill, Croc Bar, Bacchus Wine Bar & Restaurant, Omega Lounge and the famous Chocolate Bar, you are sure to find a place to have fun.  We had a few more drinks, watched the crowds arriving in limos and some very expensive sports cars and by 1am the place was in a frenzy, with guest moving from bar to bar with all kinds of music permeating the street.  We got back to the motel very, very late but safe since we are all responsible drinkers.  Mr. Fix It did run into another problem, loosing his front headlight on the way to the city so I led the way back to the motel.

Niagara Falls

The next morning we headed to Cracker Barrel for a hearty breakfast before heading to Niagara Falls.  We arrive at the famous falls and after circling around for a while looking for a place to park the bikes we finally parked them nearby and walk to the falls.  Sunday turned out to be very hot and with the sun beating on us, we were quite happy to relieve ourselves of riding gear.  I have been to Niagara Falls multiple times but it always awes me when I approach the falls.  The power of nature is truly amazing.

The Niagara Falls are voluminous waterfalls on the Niagara River, straddling the international border between the Canadian province of Ontario and the U.S. state of New York. While not exceptionally high, the Niagara Falls are very wide. More than 6 million cubic feet (168,000 m³) of water falls over the crest line every minute in high flow, and almost 4 million cubic feet (110,000 m³) on average. It is the most powerful waterfall in North America.  The Niagara Falls are renowned both for their beauty and as a valuable source of hydroelectric power.

The USA side

The Canadian side

After admiring the falls and taking a few photos we headed back to the bikes and by 2pm were leaving Niagara Falls.  With the temperature soaring, it felt good to be at speed again.  This time it was my turn to run into a problem.  After being on the road for a few hours, at one of the gas stops, Mike looks at my bike and notices one of the side bags has fallen down a few inches and was resting on the signal.  Turns out a bolt had worked itself out, probably due to the vibrations on the bike, and had fallen off.  We looked in the gas station for a bolt but they had nothing.  I decide a few bungee cords would hold the mounting bracket until we could find an auto parts place.  After a drink and a snack we hit the road again and a few miles down the road Mike notices a parts place as we were passing a little town on the highway.  We managed to exit and quickly found the place.  I was able to find the bolt I needed but ended up having to buy tools to install it.  A little latter we were back on the road with the bracket properly holding the side bag.. We retraced our way back most of the way only stopping for gas and a quick meal at a Taco Bell around 7pm.

Mr. Fix It and Mr. Pickles

We crossed into NJ and Mr. Fix It was the first to leave the group ride in Phillipsburg, Mike's hometown, with us continuing on I-78 East.  Finally Mike splits from me with him going into route 22 while I continued on my way with still another hour to go before getting home at 11:30pm.

Mike got the shot of his bike parked in front of the Anchor Bar for the tag game and I got to taste the famous chicken at the Anchor Bar.  We also got to hangout together and enjoy the camaraderie.  Round trip for me was 1014 miles.

The 3 Musketeers

RED's Birthday Party

Brenda, aka "RED", was celebrating her birthday and she has made it a point to ride on her birthday in the company of friends for the past 3 years.  When she posted "RED's Birthday Surprise Party" on the Central Jersey Motorcycle Riders Group forum I immediately signed up to what I was sure to be a great ride and party.  I was not the only one, in quick succession more than 40 other friends signed up.  The interesting part was that she announced the party but not the location, she kept tormenting us with details about the location, the food "Steaks and Burgers are all cut right on the premises in our Butcher shop for supreme freshness", the live music and the fun.  All we knew was that it was in NY State and we "could relax on one of the adirondack chairs on the sandy beach overlooking a babbling brook".

Rhodes North Tavern

She finally announced the place a few days before the party, Rhodes North Tavern located in the heart of Sloatsburg NY, but it didn't matter where it was, we were ready to follow her and help RED celebrate her birthday in style.

The group planned on meeting at the Tom Sawyer Diner in Paramus and then ride together to the Rhodes North Tavern but being "bikers" at heart a few riders decided to meet at the Vauxhall rest Area on the Garden State Parkway in Union and ride together to the Tom Sawyer Diner.  Some of us, myself included, live far south and so my friend Roger came up with a plan, lets meet at 8am, go for a ride and join the group at the Tom Sawyer Diner.  Roger took us through central New Jersey on some very nice winding roads, through parks I had never been on and when we arrived at the diner over forty of our fellow bikers were already there including the birthday girl.

The Birthday girl :-) AKA "RED"

The group was too large to travel together so it was broken into three separate groups, each with a leader with a route on the GPS.  Roger, myself and two others decided we would go on our own and meet at the final destination.  Roger again lead the group through some amazing roads through Harriman State Park and eventually lead us to Bear Mountain State Park.

Park roads

Harriman State Park is the second largest state park in New York and is known for its 31 lakes.  We passed some of them on the way to Bear Mountain State Park which is located on the west side of the Hudson River in Orange and Rockland counties of New York.  The park is also home to the United States Military Academy at West Point. We took the scenic drive to the top of Bear Mountain, called Perkins Memorial Drive.  We arrived at the top of the mountain joining hundreds of fellow riders, parked our bikes and enjoyed the views of the surrounding parks and lakes on a beautiful and clear day.  These parks and mountains are well known to riders as they offer beautiful scenery with windings roads leading to some amazing views.

Top of Bear Mountain State Park

View of Queensboro Lake

From the top of the lookout tower

My "Goldie" in the background

We left the park and headed towards Rhodes North Tavern passing Peekskill Bay and again through Harriman State Park arriving at the final destination to join our fellow friends at a very busy and chaotic parking lot.  Somehow we managed to park the bikes in the middle of what seemed like hundreds of bikes.  Shiny American Harley Davidson's, BMW's, Japanese cruisers and sport bikes with a few Italian Ducatis sprinkled in between filled the parking lot.

We headed inside and proceeded to have a great lunch accompanied by our fellow Central Jersey Motorcycle Riders friends and celebrated RED's birthday with a huge birthday cake.  The food was great, the cake was delicious and the camaraderie was even better.

RED and fellow members of CJMRG

The adirondack chairs on the sandy beach

Wharton State Forest

I guess I spoke too soon, the "bang" was more like a whisper and the cold weather returned last weekend.  Hopefully last weekend's good weather was only the first salvo of beautiful weekends to come and a good indication of what lays ahead for the rest of the year.  Nevertheless, a little cold weather is not going to stop me from going out, specially now that I have fitted heated grips to my Goldie.  I never expected I would need them, I have always been one to tough it out in the cold but on Sunday I switched them on and never turned them off until I got home.

Our group with the two red Triumphs

My friend Wayne had invited me to take a ride to the Polar Bear rider's meeting place in South Jersey, I called my brother and the three of us were ready to go in no time.
We decided to meet on route 206 at the Vincentown Diner in Vincentown and over a cup of coffee decided to go around Wharton State Forest before meeting the Polar Bear group at the Pic-A-Lilli Bar & Restaurant.  Wharton State Forest is the largest single tract of land within the New Jersey State Park System. It encompasses approximately 115,000 acres (465 km²) of the Pinelands northwest of Hammonton, in Burlington, Camden, and Atlantic counties. The entire park is located within the New Jersey Pinelands National Reserve. The park is located in the forested watershed of the Mullica River, which drains the central Pinelands region into Great Bay.

The Pic-A-Lilli bar and restaurant on the edge of the Wharton State Forest

We were joined by another friend and the four of us departed south on 206 and then went east on Retreat road after passing through Vincentown.  We continued south until we met County road 563 where again we proceeded south approaching the edge of Wharton State Forest.  We entered the park and took a right on County road 542 on the south edge of the park near Green Bank.  The park has nice roads and winding curves through the forest.  One always has to be careful around the turns though as water runoff will bring sand and pebbles onto the curves.  The group consisted of two Triumphs, one BMW and my Kawasaki Concours, AKA Goldie. We quickly covered the 55 miles and after passing Hammonton Municipal Airport made a right onto Route 206 again, this time going North, arriving at the Pic-A-Lilli Bar & Restaurant in short order.

The Polar Bear riders group meet

I was surprised to see so many bikes out, with the weather turning worse and a few sprinkles starting to come down I expected even the Polar Bear riders would stay home but alas lots of bikers were already there.  It was time for lunch, after a few pictures outside, we went inside and had a good meal.
We came out of the restaurant and it had started raining.  We got on our bikes and went north again on route 206 until route 70 where we made a right and proceeded north east to Whiting where my parents live.  They always enjoy seeing their two sons together and a cup of coffee and cake was waiting for us.  We had just finished a huge sandwich but you can never refuse cake from mom, not when she has just finished baking it and it is still warm, the thought about not having cake hadn't even crossed our minds in any case ;-)

A pink Ridley, America's automatic motorcycle

A beautiful Indian Motorcycle

Spring

SPRING....it finally arrived and with a bang.  The weekend was going to be hot, all the weatherman were elated pointing to all kind of graphs showing how the weekend was going to be warm and not a cloud in the sky.  Weatherman are known to get overly excited over little things but when it comes to good weather even I get giddy at the possibility of spending some quality time with my Goldie.  Saturday was going to reach 70 they all said and so we decided to put some mileage on the bikes.  My wife decided she would accompany us on this trip up north, we really didn't have a destination other than we would travel to Port Jervis and then go up to Hawk's Nest on Highway 97 along the Delaware river in NY State.

Port Jervis is located just north of the point where New Jersey, Pennsylvania and New York meet. The first fully developed settlement in the area was established circa 1690, and a land grant of 1,200 acres (4.8 km2) was formalized on October 14, 1697. The settlement was originally known as Mahackamack, and was still known as such when it was raided and burned before the Battle of Minisink in 1779. River rafting, kayaking and canoeing are popular summer activities, drawing numerous visitors.  Hawk's Nest just north of the town is also well know by motorcyclist because of the sinuous curves up the side of the mountain.

We left Jackson with a planned stop at "Xtreme Machines" in Millstone for their open house.  Xtreme Machines sells Kawasaki, Suzuki, Yamaha and Can-Am.  We arrived at Xtreme Machines but to our surprise the usual was on display with nothing special other than Yamaha special financing and some cash back offers.  The usual display of bikes inside the showroom.  My wife bought some gloves while my brother and I looked at a Can-Am a customer was taking delivery.  He had just installed a new set of pipes and the Twin Rotax 990 sounded awesome but we were surprised when the guy told us he was buying it for his wife. He had bought it automatic because his wife couldn't use the clutch, she had some problem with her hand.  It's nice to know that you can still enjoy the feeling of biking regardless of your disability, where there's a will there's a way.

We then traveled to Metuchen for a visit to Cross Country BMW where my brother planned on buying a tank bag for his BMW 1200 GS Adventure.  After a little negotiation he picked up the tank bag, just a little north of 170 bucks, ouch!

We left Metuchen and our plan was to hit I287 north and then pickup US route 206 just north of I78.  For much of its length, US 206 is a rural two-lane undivided road that passes through the Pine Barrens, agricultural areas, and the Appalachian Mountains of northwestern New Jersey, with some urban and suburban areas. The road is known as the Disabled American Veterans Highway for much of its length.

We encountered light traffic most of the way until we ran into a Saint Patrick's Day Parade in Newton.  With roads closed for the parade we had to take a detour but thanks to the GPS we were back on the correct route after a small delay.  The day was getting warmer and we were glad to pickup speed again on the way to route 94 were we proceeded north until Hamburg, we then made a left on route 23 north and proceeded north into High Point State Park.  The park is located in the northwestern part of New Jersey in Montague, in the Skylands Region of New Jersey and is the highest elevation in the state at 1,803 feet (550 m). It is just southeast of Port Jervis. High Point is the highest peak of the Kittatinny Mountains.  At the peak is the High Point Monument, a 220-foot (67 m) tower, built in 1930 to commemorate the war dead. Three different states can be seen from the top: New Jersey, New York, and Pennsylvania.  By the time we reached the park we were starving and we had to skip the monument but we will be back to tour the park in the summer when the leaves are green and the flowers in full bloom.  Route 23, as it crosses the park, has beautiful curves that can only really be appreciated on a motorcycle.  We passed Steeny Kill Lake, entered New York State and then made a quick stop at Deer Park Cafe for lunch.

It was 2PM, lunch time but after a quick look at the menu we all looked at each other and with a laugh decided it was time for breakfast, we all picked something from the breakfast menu.  Half an hour later, with two fried eggs, some bacon, ham, sausage and french toast in my stomach, or as my brother calls it, a cholesterol explosive breakfast, I was ready to move on.
We passed Port Jervis and entered US route 97 north into the Delaware State Forest along the upper Delaware Scenic and Recreational River area.  This part of the road is known as Hawk's Nest in the upper Delaware Scenic Byway.  It's a stretch of road that winds itself up and down the side of the mountain offering beautiful views of the Delaware river and sweeping curves that are so enticing to motorcyclists.
We stopped to admire the scenery, see bikers testing their skills on the sweeping curves and admire the other motorcycles nearby.

After a few photos we made our way north until we found a gas station, my Goldie needed replenishment's, it was her time to have a drink of the High Octane fuel.  Six gallons later we were back on the road and this time heading south towards home.
Again we passed Hawk's Nest but this time without stopping, it was our turn to enjoy the sweeping curves.

We passed Port Jervis again and continued south back on route 206 but this time continued onto route 15 which took us to I80 East towards New York.  We traveled east on I80 for a few miles until I287 where we took the south bound direction towards route 24 which starts in Morristown.  Route 24 passes the by the Short Hills Mall, a high-end mall in the Short Hills area of Millburn.  We didn't stop, there are no motorcycle farkles at the mall.  We made our way to I78 East and onto the Garden State Parkway south where you always run into moderate to heavy traffic around the Union area.  It's always fun and challenging to compete for position on the parkway with the mom's and their minivans but we stuck together and made it home safely having complete just shy of 300 miles for the day.
We were already planning our next trip as we parked our bikes in my garage.  I can't wait for summer.

January's first ride

It's January, it's cold, it's dreary out there but every Friday I peak at my Goldie just to make sure she's still there waiting for me.  I glance at Goldie and hope the weather will be good for the weekend.  The sun streaming in through the garage window keeps her heart warm, faintly warming her beautiful sleek body with the gold paint glowing in the sun. The weekend finally arrived and the weather is good, no time to waste, lets get out there and enjoy the day while the weather holds.  I called my brother and his Bimmer was ready to go in no time.  Our good friend Wayne joined us on his beautiful red Triumph.  With the early morning still on the cold side, my heated liner was plugged in and we hit the road. The plan was to ride out to the BMW dealer in Metuchen to take a look at riding gear and then follow back roads to Frenchtown where we would have lunch.

We left Jackson towards Freehold along Jackson Mills Road and then turned left into Georgia Road which has some nice fast winding turns.  We crossed Freehold and rode past Monmouth Battlefield State Park where dense smoke filled the road from controlled burning by the State Park rangers.  We continued on Co. Rd. 522 through Englishtown and then followed Co. Rd. 527 until Route 18.  After a few miles on 18 we entered Route 1 and then crossed over to Route 27 and made our way to Cross Country BMW.  We had coffee, talked to friends, looked at gear and promptly left.  The temperature had risen high enough by now and the heated gear was promptly disconnected.
We made our way to Route 22 and followed it until Route 202 where we proceeded west, quickly dispatching with the light traffic and enjoying the rolling country side along Route 12, cows lifting their heads to look at us, probably annoyed by the buzzing sound of our bikes.
Three very different engines producing a symphony of sounds.  The BMW's twin, the Triumph's triple and the Goldie's quad cylinders going through their motions with a beautiful staccato.

We enter Frenchtown, a quaint and charming and quite photogenic little town.  Frenchtown is a little Victorian village on the Delaware River and probably the best kept secret in NJ.  We park our bikes and after a quick stroll we make our way to "The Cafe Greco of Frenchtown", a small but cozy restaurant on Bridge Street.  If you ever go there you have to try one of their Panini sandwiches, their are tasty and the bread is made on location.  They also offer an assortment of scrumptious fresh cookies.

After lunch we crossed the river into Pennsylvania and turned south on River Road, Route 32 towards New Hope.  The road along the river passes through little towns and is a favorite with riders, the undulations and left right sweeps providing a beautiful riding experience.  In the cold months, one has to pay attention and be alert at all times, as water coming down the side of the mountain can freeze on the road and surprise even experienced riders.  It's better to stay towards the center of the road as it offers more time to view road obstacles and dangerous road conditions around the turns.
We arrive in New Hope with daylight dwindling fast, the town still brimming with people walking along it's sidewalks and enjoying the many restaurants.  We decided to continue as we still had another hour to get home.  We continued along Route 32 South past the Washington Crossing Historic Park and then made a left on General Washington Memorial Blvd and crossed back to New Jersey.  Back in home territory we followed Route 29 until it turns into Interstate 195 and proceeded East towards Jackson.  We arrived home, the sun going down fast and another great ride on a short winter day.

My friend Wayne and my brother with our respective rides parked in Frenchtown

Photos of charming Frenchtown

 Charming little guy