vlangel Posted July 7, 2015 Author Share Posted July 7, 2015 Finally this is a view from Wolf Creek pass on rt 160. We came into Durango this way but it was so daunting that Dave had no intention of going up over that mountain again. He found a beautiful scenic route down through New Mexico. There is a funny 70s country song about Wolf Creek pass if you care to look it up. Link to comment
markalot Posted July 7, 2015 Share Posted July 7, 2015 So did you all camp, or stay in motels, or inns? Link to comment
teenyreef Posted July 7, 2015 Share Posted July 7, 2015 Wow, great pics! I enjoy living near the beach but I'm always jealous of people that can do mountain trips Link to comment
Nanofreak79 Posted July 7, 2015 Share Posted July 7, 2015 Finally this is a view from Wolf Creek pass on rt 160. We came into Durango this way but it was so daunting that Dave had no intention of going up over that mountain again. He found a beautiful scenic route down through New Mexico. There is a funny 70s country song about Wolf Creek pass if you care to look it up. Wow, how beautiful! I can smell the fresh air if I close my eyes and pretend I was there. Wow, great pics! I enjoy living near the beach but I'm always jealous of people that can do mountain trips [/quoteI'm landlockedneed the ocean in my life, but rich enough to do so, not so much. Link to comment
Felicia Posted July 7, 2015 Share Posted July 7, 2015 Looks like a fun getaway! Glad it all went well except for the issues with the bike and that the tank is doing well! Thanks for sharing the fun photos! Link to comment
Sk8n Reefer Posted July 7, 2015 Share Posted July 7, 2015 Great pics and story thanks for sharing. Ya, the landscape pics never seem to do the area justice. Glad you made the best out of a bad thing- atleast Ya got to ride another bike you probably never would of tried. How many hrs. a day did you guys ride? I am totally jealous and need to ride my Cushman on longer trips. Glad the tanks are doing well ? Link to comment
vlangel Posted July 8, 2015 Author Share Posted July 8, 2015 Vacation! Looks like you had a fun adventure.You are so right nanofreak, it was an adventure. Even the troublesome aspects add to the adventure. Dave and I have a deep faith in God which helps us face both adversity and adventure.I think you are also right about things being made more to last in the 'old' days. My motorcycle no doubt has more plastic parts in it. Dave's old Honda was made of metal. It has over 70,000 miles and still runs great. So did you all camp, or stay in motels, or inns? Will we disappoint you if we admit that we stay in hotels? We always know that we can ride in rain or blazing sun so we want a prepared meal, a hot shower and a nice soft bed at the end of the day. Maybe if we were 20 years younger we would be more rugged, LOL. Wow, great pics! I enjoy living near the beach but I'm always jealous of people that can do mountain trips I actually love the beach too! I guess most of us on NR probably do. Looks like a fun getaway! Glad it all went well except for the issues with the bike and that the tank is doing well! Thanks for sharing the fun photos! It was a really fun get away. The bike problems just make for a better story. After a little drama always makes a story better, right? Thanks for looking at our pics. Link to comment
Nanofreak79 Posted July 8, 2015 Share Posted July 8, 2015 Body of an older gentleman here, equals sore back more aches and pains. I feel my best after a hot shower and some fresh clothes, laying on the sofa for a bit. I have my kids Friday-Sunday, lots of things planned. Link to comment
markalot Posted July 8, 2015 Share Posted July 8, 2015 No, not disappointed, I would do the same! Link to comment
vlangel Posted July 8, 2015 Author Share Posted July 8, 2015 Great pics and story thanks for sharing. Ya, the landscape pics never seem to do the area justice. Glad you made the best out of a bad thing- atleast Ya got to ride another bike you probably never would of tried. How many hrs. a day did you guys ride? I am totally jealous and need to ride my Cushman on longer trips. Glad the tanks are doing well Yes, riding the Vulcan was fun. It was so responsive and nimble compared to my bike. My bike is an 800 cc so it is a bit heavier than the 650 Vulcan. I also carry the bulk of our luggage since Dave's bike does not have the room. I like the extra weight on an interstate because i don't get blown around as much when there are cross winds. We ride any where from 8 to 12 hours a day. If we ride hard for 2 days we try to plan for an easy day of riding or a day of sight seeing. Body of an older gentleman here, equals sore back more aches and pains. I feel my best after a hot shower and some fresh clothes, laying on the sofa for a bit. I have my kids Friday-Sunday, lots of things planned. Ha ha, I am afraid everything on me is older at this point and I have my share of aches and pains too. Of course when you are on motorcycles there are only so many fresh clothes. We change our underwear everyday but usually put the same T-shirt and jeans back on, LOL. Maybe that was too much information? Body of an older gentleman here, equals sore back more aches and pains. I feel my best after a hot shower and some fresh clothes, laying on the sofa for a bit. I have my kids Friday-Sunday, lots of things planned. Have a great time with your kids this weekend! Link to comment
Felicia Posted July 8, 2015 Share Posted July 8, 2015 I'm 27 and I wouldn't want to camp after being on a bike all day, so I do not blame you at all for staying in hotels! Link to comment
markalot Posted July 8, 2015 Share Posted July 8, 2015 The wife and I are going to drag our teenagers out west, probably next year. Will will be in hotels no doubt! We thought about flying but I don't mind driving and once past the first day the scenery turns fairly unique (even though people say Kansas is boring). Link to comment
vlangel Posted July 8, 2015 Author Share Posted July 8, 2015 The wife and I are going to drag our teenagers out west, probably next year. Will will be in hotels no doubt! We thought about flying but I don't mind driving and once past the first day the scenery turns fairly unique (even though people say Kansas is boring). Dave thinks Kansas is boring but I enjoy all scenery that is different. On a bike it is nice to relax just a bit from being so intently focused so on the way home we took a 2 lane artery road rather than the interstate the whole way.Be sure to see the Grand Canyon as it really is spectacular. Another place our boys loved was Slide rock at Sedona, AZ. Colorado and Arizona really have some amazing topography and scenery! I'm 27 and I wouldn't want to camp after being on a bike all day, so I do not blame you at all for staying in hotels! Wow, 27! I had my 3rd boy when I was 27 and that was 28 years ago. O man, I am feeling very old, LOL. Link to comment
Felicia Posted July 8, 2015 Share Posted July 8, 2015 Not old at all! Seems like you're pretty young at heart what with the aquariums and the fun motorcycle trips I however now feel old that I am 27 and don't plan to have kids anytime soon Link to comment
vlangel Posted July 9, 2015 Author Share Posted July 9, 2015 Not old at all! Seems like you're pretty young at heart what with the aquariums and the fun motorcycle trips I however now feel old that I am 27 and don't plan to have kids anytime soon Age is a funny thing. Your spirit and soul is kind of ageless, so you can be young at heart, especially if you still have the physical capability to do those things that excite you. It's when the body starts to put limitations on you and hold you back from what you want to do that makes you feel old. When that happens maybe the trick is to find new interests that don't require as much physical stamina. I am not there yet fortunately. Link to comment
Nanofreak79 Posted July 9, 2015 Share Posted July 9, 2015 Hey, clean underwear and even socks can give you that just showered feeling. Bring some axe spray, they have it for chicks and guys. Commando works too! Hahaha anyway, looks like a lot of fun. I've been missing I could get a bike for awhile. Don't think I can ever afford both. I need a sugar momma, BAD! Not old at all! Seems like you're pretty young at heart what with the aquariums and the fun motorcycle trips I however now feel old that I am 27 and don't plan to have kids anytime soon Your only 27? Hmmmmm Link to comment
gena Posted July 9, 2015 Share Posted July 9, 2015 Wow...what an adventure! Gorgeous scenery! Scary about the car and big rig. I was traveling those roads a few weeks ago by car, heading back west from Indiana. I love to cross country travel. I don't overdo it. No night driving. Only about 10 hour days. I can't wait to do it again . I'm glad you had so much fun and made it there and back safely . Link to comment
vlangel Posted July 9, 2015 Author Share Posted July 9, 2015 Hey, clean underwear and even socks can give you that just showered feeling. Bring some axe spray, they have it for chicks and guys. Commando works too! Hahaha anyway, looks like a lot of fun. I've been missing I could get a bike for awhile. Don't think I can ever afford both. I need a sugar momma, BAD! Your only 27? Hmmmmm Actually nanofreak, used bikes can be very affordable. Dave's Honda is a great example...he bought it from a guy who bought it new but got spooked. It's a '76 and had 1200 miles on it in 2002 when Dave purchased it for $1200. It did needs the seals replaced shortly after he bought it, (because it sat in a barn for 25 years). We have been in every state with it but 7. It has over 70,000 miles and is still going strong. And insurance is dirt cheap...we pay about $100 a year for the 2 of us combined. We only have liability because on a bike you really try not to be in a wreck and if you are and you walk away that's reward enough.O yeah, better make sure your future girl likes bikes! LOL Link to comment
vlangel Posted July 9, 2015 Author Share Posted July 9, 2015 Wow...what an adventure! Gorgeous scenery! Scary about the car and big rig. I was traveling those roads a few weeks ago by car, heading back west from Indiana. I love to cross country travel. I don't overdo it. No night driving. Only about 10 hour days. I can't wait to do it again . I'm glad you had so much fun and made it there and back safely . Thanks Gena! Yes it definitely was an adventure. Cross country is certainly a cool way to experience our diverse nation. On a motorcycle you can even smell the difference of the states. Iowa and Nebraska both smell like corn. Kansas and some of Colorado smell like ranches. There is the diesel like odor in industrial areas. It is just kind of a neat experience. Link to comment
gena Posted July 9, 2015 Share Posted July 9, 2015 Thanks Gena! Yes it definitely was an adventure. Cross country is certainly a cool way to experience our diverse nation. On a motorcycle you can even smell the difference of the states. Iowa and Nebraska both smell like corn. Kansas and some of Colorado smell like ranches. There is the diesel like odor in industrial areas. It is just kind of a neat experience.Darn..wish I would have kept the windows open . Had the A/C going the whole trip. You can certainly tell when you have entered a new state which is so cool. Link to comment
vlangel Posted July 10, 2015 Author Share Posted July 10, 2015 Well I kind of made some drastic changes to the reef! I offered some LPS frags to a local Reefer who is getting back into the hobby. I mentioned that I would like to re-home my pair of anthias since my tank has 4 fish that are yellowish orange. Also that would reduce the bioload on the system. He offered to take the anthias so now I was faced with seriously figuring how to catch them! I decided on the lowering the water method and hoping they would not squeeze into tiny crevices in the rock work. Guess what, they squeezed into tiny crevices so I had to dismantle most of the rock, uhgggg! Well I eventually nabbed both of the little stinkers and they are awaiting their new master. As you can imagine the rock work did not go back the way it was, LOL. I moved huge dense rocks that have not been moved in 2 and a half years so lots of detritus kicked up. To hopefully combat that I did about a 20g WC and sucked out as much detritus as possible. I added fresh carbon and Seachem stability. Even though the RBTA and a few other corals were out of the water 15 or more minutes everything looks pretty good. I am worried the most about the clam, I couldn't get it under the light as directly or as high up as before. And of course since the seahorse tank is connected I worry about them too. O well, nothing ventured nothing gained! Link to comment
vlangel Posted July 10, 2015 Author Share Posted July 10, 2015 Here it is, the reef tanks new look! Nothing is fully extended since I only just did all this 2 hours ago or so. Link to comment
teenyreef Posted July 10, 2015 Share Posted July 10, 2015 Good luck! I live in fear of having to dismantle the scape in my 10g. I'd never get the rocks back in the right place Link to comment
vlangel Posted July 10, 2015 Author Share Posted July 10, 2015 Good luck! I live in fear of having to dismantle the scape in my 10g. I'd never get the rocks back in the right place When you dismantle the rock work you have to believe that there is more than 1 right place and embrace the possibilities of new 'right' places. That takes the fear out of it, mostly, ha ha! Link to comment
vlangel Posted July 11, 2015 Author Share Posted July 11, 2015 Well so far everything looks pretty good in the reef tank. Unfortunately the trauma caused my RBTA to split. I was so excited the other day when my 2nd RBTA was on the glass and I could re-home it at the lfs. I thought it would be great to only have 1, but alas it seems I am destined for 2. My PH was a bit low at 8.0 or even 7.8 but that doesn't surprise me with the gunk I stirred up. Water changes should fix that in time. Everything else wasn't too bad, nitrates 10ppm, and phosphates .25ppm and alkalinity at about 9. For my system with the seahorses that is pretty good. The anthias are happily in one of my spare 5g with some rock I didn't put back in the reef and they ate this morning. Their new owner will be by this afternoon. Link to comment
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