FANCY COLOURS

Going where the orange sun has never died And your swirling marble eyes shine Laughing Burning blue the light Bittersweet the drops of life Memories only fading

Fancy Colours – Chicago

Introduction:

Each year, when the Earth spins around to the autumnal season, we look to piece together a number of routes that will highlight some yearly blazes of reds, yellows and orange that swing us towards the dreaded winter.

This year we try to follow a somewhat odd theme.

So, follow along and we hope we… make you smile! West Virginia Fantasies

We will start and nish this Mountain State loop in the small city of Buckhannon and it is our hope it is a great ballad of superb roads and bright and vibrant colors.

From, more or less, where Route 20 meets Route 119 we’ll be heading south on Route 20. In a state full of outstanding roads, Route 20, running north and south, is its longest at nearly 260 miles. Densely forested in most places, it runs through many little towns.

We will be riding along just 50 miles, but a great 50 miles to be sure.

Along the way we’ll be passing Holly River State Park.

With 8,101 acres of dense forest, Holly River is West Virginia’s second largest state park. Located in a narrow valley in the Mountain Lakes region, the park is surrounded by heavily forested mountains, some reaching more than 2,800 feet in height. The dense forests of Holly River provide riders with a natural setting where they can nd peaceful solitude…. before getting back to throwing gears in a vibrant manner.

Down the road make a left onto Route 15 in the town of Addison, which the locals call Webster Springs. I am not sure if it is named after the character in Moonlighting or Emmanuel Lewis?

Truth is, the town was famous in the late 19th and early 20th centuries for its numerous salt sulfur water wells. People believed that the water from the wells had medicinal qualities. Many still do.

Banking onto Route 15 in an easterly vector, we will ride the entire 65 miles of this West Virginia nirvana.

At the Tygart Valley River which, if you seek it out, actually could be called part of the Mississippi River. Go gure.

Banging right on Route 219 we’ll be heading south, but then tilting left onto Route 66 through Pocahontas County – one of the nicest regions in West “By God” Virginia.

Ahh, Route 66 I know it well. I rode it four times in one hour in May.

I suggest to gas up at this turn off and, if you have time, take the railroad at Cass. It is phenomenal. The ride to Bald Knob will give you a completely different view than the road.

The Cass Scenic Railroad is the same line built in 1901 to haul lumber to the mill in Cass. The locomotives are the same Shay locomotives used in Cass during that time, and in the rainforests of British Columbia for more than a half-century. Many of the passenger cars are old logging cars that have been refurbished.

When we took it the noise, coal dust and power were more than impressive.

Cass is the home to the world’s largest eet of geared Shay locomotives. Five Shays, one Heisler, and one Climax reside here. The legendary turnof-the-century class C-80 Shay, #5 has been toiling up Cheat Mountain for 115 years, making it one of the oldest engines in continuous service on its original line, and the oldest operable Shay in existence!

It is well worth the time.

Ahh, but now it is time for the more cerebral stuff.

SETI. The Search for Extraterrestrial Intelligence. God, we’re looking for terrestrial intelligence at this point.

The Green Bank Radio Observatory.

With over fty years of experience in radio astronomy and uniquely located within the National and West Virginia Radio Quiet Zones, the Green Bank Observatory is home to seven large radio telescopes ranging in size from 14m – 100m in diameter. The site also has signi cant infrastructure which allows for the installation of any instrument which may bene t from the radio quiet location of the site (do not try your cell), as well as an excellent test range for receivers and other hardware and a large anechoic chamber out tted for testing antenna beam patterns and radio emissions from all types of equipment. The primary function of the GBO is for scienti c research of all types.

We like the ET thing.

This is the most fascinating place and take a walk along their scale Solar System – you will be stunned at how big our little part of the galaxy truly is.

Moving on we will be taking a left onto Route 250 – one of our favorite West Virginian byways. Well, at least in this state, as 250 runs from Richmond, Virginia to Sandusky, Ohio on Lake Erie.

But we can get to Cedar Point and the Valravn roller coaster some other time. (Side note: we are actively looking for large bald men to play the part of me on this ride)

But right now, the Monongahela National Forest, with its deep and old Ents, should be our focus.

Heading north on Route 219 will keep us along the Monongahela until we head west on Route 33 back towards Buckhannon and the end of this nearly 190-mile loop. Oh my God, we had to have this…

But West Virginia Fantasies has always led into Colour My World.

We really don’t have a route called this – but it is your world to colour.

This is your Autumn to colour – so nd your own roads, but share them in words and pictures and all our fellow readers will appreciate it.

Download .gpx here: www.sendspace.com/pro/dl/av9lme

Does Anybody Really Know What Time It is? Don’t know where to go Don’t know where I am Can’t see past the next step Don’t have time to think past the last mile Have no time to look around Just run around, run around and think why? Chicago Transit Authority Why? We just want to ride! In Columbia, PA, not far from the Susquehanna River and the city of Lancaster you will nd an outstanding museum. You do not know about it? Well, it’s about time. Welcome to the Watch & Clock Museum. Operated by the National Association of Watch & Clock Collectors, the Museum features the largest collection of timepieces in North America – more than 13,000 from around the world, including a German table clock from about 1570.

When we visited, we realized the NAWCC Museum is the closest you can come to time travel. From prehistory to the space age, the items on display delight visitors of all ages.

At the museum one can enjoy the sights and sounds of watches and clocks from around the world, be inspired by the artistry and science of timepieces, and marvel at the inner workings of timekeepers of all shapes and sizes.

Spanning centuries, you will see so much.

The 18th-Century Gallery features tall, or grandfather, clocks from the United States and Europe. Although the mechanical technology is similar in both types, European clocks far surpassed American clocks during this period in artistry, dial design, and cabinetry; adults try to decipher how to tell time on the Franklin Clock, an unusual timepiece invented by Benjamin Franklin in the 1700s.

The only thing that will be almost as much fun as this museum is the ride there from one of our favorite eateries - Thisilldous.

Enjoy… but take your time. Simply download the GPX route and Bob’s your uncle!

Download .gpx here: www.sendspace.com/pro/dl/prt687

When I’m with you, It doesn’t matter where we are or what we’re doing, I’m with you, that’s all that matters. Time passes much too quickly when we’re together laughing. I wish I could sing it to you, oh no. I wish I could sing it to you. We wish we could all sing it to you….

In 1997 Backroads held it rst rally, up along the Finger Lakes, starting from Watkins Glen. Back then we had just a dozen riders attend – but like most beginnings, it sticks with us more than two decades later.

The Chateau Leon at Hector Falls, the rst for our friends….

While this little slice of heaven, at least for the vegans in our group, is no longer around, there are plenty of great places to lay your head while exploring the Finger Lakes during the autumnal changing of the colours and the beginning of the best riding of the year.

The town of Watkins Glen offers a gem of a place – the Seneca Lodge – which houses one of our all-time favorite bars next to our own Monkey with a Gun. Mr. Donald Brubaker, back in 1944, moved his family to this spot from Altoona, PA. He built and grew what is now Seneca Lodge, bringing both the National Field Archery Assoc. and Formula One racing to Watkins Glen. In 1951, the rst NFAA Tournament was held in Watkins Glen and Mr. B. invited the winners to shoot an arrow in the lodge wall, beginning a tradition which still continues. We loved it so much we have one of their arrows in the wall of MWAG.

We have held a few Backroads’ Rallies at Seneca Lodge, and we highly recommend it as a base camp for your explorations. Because it is as close as we can come to our Beginnings, we’ll originate this ride from the Lodge and hope that your ride will be tinged with the beauty this area has to offer. Sample some of the farm fresh foods and stop at the award-winning wineries to enjoy when the bike is parked back at the lodge.

So, ride with us as we loop The Finger Lakes. We’ll start you with a stop at the Glenn Curtiss Museum in Hammondsport. Take your time to immerse yourself in all the amazing things this man brought to the world of motors. Then it’s on to the Bully Hill Winery, one of the more whimsical vineyards on the Lakes. You’ll loop up Keuka Lake before cutting over to Seneca Lake, the largest of the Finger Lakes. Pass through the town of

BACKROADS • OCTOBER 2021 Page 29 Geneva and head south for a bit, enjoying the colors of the season. Vector to the east to hook up with Cayuga Lake heading north where you will nd the peacefulness of Montezuma National Wildlife Refuge. Stop at the visitors center before making the loop, seeing what birds and other wildlife you may encounter. The road is gravel but very well maintained and meant to

be ridden at slow speeds so as not to disturb the residents. You’ll then ride the length of Cayuga, the longest of the Lakes, and your reward will be a stop at Purity Ice Cream Co. Known as ‘The Ice Cream of the Finger Lakes,’ Purity has been delighting patrons since 1936. We’ll then send you back towards the beginning at Seneca Lodge, but not before passing the sight of the rst Backroads’ Rally at Hector Falls. Back at the Lodge, park the bike, pop a cork if you will, and drink in the splendor of this idyllic spot before joining the folks at the bar and savoring the splendid food served in the dining room. , Download .gpx here:

www.sendspace.com/pro/dl/a8kiaa