The picture above — it’s not me in that picture. And the woman on the back is not my girlfriend. But the bike is the same model, year, and color as mine (that’s a 2003 Silver Honda Gold Wing, which is the touring motorcycle).

I bought my Gold Wing in May, 2003 and have enjoyed every minute of it…well almost every minute of it (I had an accident on August 30, 2004 that left me with a pretty sore neck and big bruise on my tailbone but I was fine otherwise.)

I’ve ridden about 25,000 miles on my Wing. When you consider that my daily commute is only one mile each way, that means that I’ve done a lot of riding in my spare time.

One of the many joys of living in Folsom, California is that we’re in the center of a lot of great places to visit. A friend of mine who was a long time resident of San Francisco asked me why I wanted to live in a place that was “an hour from so many things”. I had to pause and think about that. He did raise a good point but when it came down to it, I wouldn’t want to deal with the congestion and the fast tempo of living in San Francisco and, on the other end of the spectrum, living in Lake Tahoe would be too laid back and folksy for my taste.

So, I’ve plopped myself down here in Folsom and enjoy having access to some of the most beautiful sights in the world.

Some of the places that are close enough for a day trip or a weekend trip:

Jasper and Banff National Parks, Alberta, Canada — a 2 days out, 2 days in Jasper and Banff, 2 days back. Read about it here.
San Diego — I didn’t take the Wing - I didn’t take a cage - I flew and then rented a cage. Gaaack! It was great for sightseeing, though.
Volcanoville — an abandoned town in the Sierras that proved to be “a puddle too far”.
Emigrant Trail — a hop, skip, and jump up the Sierras from here and great way to spend a beautiful, Northern California afternoon
Wine country — El Dorado and Amador counties have some excellent wines, my favorites being Zinfandel
Apple Hill — a wonderful place to visit at harvest time in the Fall
Desolation Wilderness — never been there. Philip Carrollo loves this place so I’ll take his word for it
Tahoe — one of the most beautiful lakes in the US
Yosemite — breathtaking beauty and excellent hiking. Glacier Point provides a view of the park that is overwhelming
Death Valley — a “must see”. I spent time there in November, 2003 and in August, 2004.
Lassen Volcanic Park — great hiking and scenery around this volcano was last active about 90 years ago
Lava Beds National Monument — awe inspiring natural beauty and some California history, as well
Napa — some of the finest wines in the world are less than two hours drive
San Francisco — great place to visit but couldn’t live there
Monterey — beautiful setting for one of the greatest aquariums in the world
Los Angeles — I’ve never seen a city so big! Twenty something million people living in one metro area. And you can see the air!
Mount Shasta — the largest volcano in the US and it rises 10,000 feet from the surrounding countryside. Click here for a trip report of my hike of part of Mt. Shasta in late August, 2004.