November .. and back to Florida

This has been one of the most amazing years in my life -- my first year of 'retirement.'  And (as usual, apparently) I have been irregular in my posts to this blog.  Some things just don't change, despite my every intention.  But enough of the self-deprecation and let's play 'catch-up.'

I left Florida in late February and headed West.  My first destination was near Benson, AZ -- about 60 miles southeast of Tucson -- along the rim of the Texas Canyon in the Sonoran Desert.  I worked 3-days/week in a gift shop along I-10 selling Native American jewelry and crafts. Details of that 3+ month stay are highlighted below -- see March 11, 2018.

The perfect work schedule allowed me to do some extensive sight-seeing.  The Chiricahua National Monument, the Coronado Trail, The Grand Canyon North (my favorite) and South Rims, Mount Lemmon, and Route 66 are just a few of the amazing places I went. 

From Arizona I went north to the Black Hills of South Dakota.  I ended up finding perhaps the most-fun job I have ever had. I drove the tour bus from the Welcome Center at the Crazy Horse Memorial to the base of the monument and back -- about a 30-minute round-trip.  Besides being incredibly fun interacting with 30-40 people on each of my rides, I learned a lot about our American history during the late 1800s as the European-Americans moved west.

I have been to the Black Hills multiple times in the past 24 years.  It has always been one of my most favorite places to ride my motorcycle.  Mt. Rushmore, Crazy Horse, Custer State Park, Iron Mountain Road, Needles Highway, Spearfish Canyon, the Badlands, and Devils Tower are but a few of the sights to see.  I was there for the Sturgis Motorcycle Rally this year.  I must be getting old because the gathering of 4 or 5 HUNDRED THOUSAND motorcycles in one place for a week was a pain-in-the-butt this time for me.  Riding the roads of South Dakota was WAY more fun after they left town.

On Sep 23rd, after a 2 1/2 month stay in the Black Hills, I was off to the Red River Valley of North Dakota -- about 100 miles north of Fargo -- for the Sugar Beet Harvest.  I had never even heard of a sugar beet until reading about this workkamper opportunity.  Of course I knew what a red beet was .. but a SUGAR beet?  I soon learned that it is a 'root crop' (think of a potato or carrot) grown for it's high sucrose content and used mostly in commercial applications as a sweetener.

The harvest lasts 12-15 days and is very dependent on the current weather conditions.  This years harvest produced about 200 MILLION TONS of beets -- thousands of truck loads!  The farmer owned processing plant is unable to handle that volume at one time so they put them into piles when they come out of the field.  These piles can be 20-30' HIGH, the width of a football field and a couple of football fields in length!

There were eight such piles in the yard I was working.  They had several other locations up and down the valley with just one or two piles.  Some of the piles are set for 'long-term' storage.  Large fans blow cold air into the bottom of the pile thru 24" perforated culverts allowing the pile to freeze without rotting (composting).  It will take until April or May to process this years harvest. 

The work itself is not very difficult but the conditions can be difficult.  This year was very wet and there were several mornings the temps were in the 20s.  And there is a degree of risk working around some very large equipment .. not all the workers have construction or farming experience and their sense of awareness was questionable at times.  But the Co-Op is very focused on safety and seemed to do as much as they could to make the situation the best possible.  They've been at this for 27+ years so they have a pretty good idea of what needs doing.  And the pay is quite excellent, other than the weather-delayed days you're on-call for but not paid.

My motorcycle never came off the trailer in ND.  The 12-hour shifts left little time for fun and games.  Not too mention the weather was not very friendly.  When I finally got my release after almost a month, I was quite anxious to get back south!

And now I'm back on the west coast of Central Florida .. where it's been in the mid 80s all week.  I will spend the next couple of months here.  I'm not sure where I am going to spend the winter -- but probably someplace here in FL.  I am also looking to make some changes in my travel method. 

Presently, I pull a fifth wheel RV with my motorcycle on a small utility trailer behind that.  This "double-pull" setup is not legal in all 50 states.  So I'm shopping for a small (28-32') Class A motor coach that I can put a trailer behind with my toys.  I think I will be back at Crazy Horse this summer sometime.  Probably the Sugar Beet harvest also.  The rest of 2019 is still under construction.