Sponsored by Team Strange

Springfield, MN

6/18 was the next opportunity to pick up some nearby locations so we headed for Toronto, SD and also got the Minnesota state sign.   We had to head home for an appointment but were soon on the road for Little Rock and Spirit Lake, IA.  After looking over the Toronto picture I didn't think it would pass inspection; we'll have to get it again on the way to North Dakota and be more careful with the rest of the pictures.  4 down.

7/1 we went for the southern Minnesota locations, Ottawa, Waterville, Houston, Reno, and Bangor WI.  If you ever have the opportunity to tour SE Minnesota, take it.  The roads and scenery in Houston county were made for motorcyclists.  When we got home we weren't satisfied with the Waterville picture, it was botched too, we'll add it to another trip. 8 down.

7/21 we head for northern Minnesota, get close to Hackensack and setup camp in Pine River.  FYI - Doty's campground in Pine River is motorcycle friendly.  7/22 we get Hackensack, Fond du Lac, Buffalo, Dayton and Kingston.  We start blowing fuses for our taillights so we quit for the night. 7/23 still can't get the fuse problem figured out but it's daylight so we press on.  We get Chaska and Waterville (again) on the way back home.  15 down.

Hackensack, MN	Fond du Lac, MN	Buffalo, MN	Dayton, MN
Kingston, MN	Chaska, MN	Waterville, MN

8/4 we head for North Dakota, pick up Toronto, SD (again), get Davenport, can't find a decent and legal place to pull over in Fargo so we decide to get it on the way back and head to Turtle River State Park to camp for the night.  8/5 we leave Turtle River State Park (hereafter known as "Camp Mosquito"), get Devils Lake, Larimore, and finally find a sign in Fargo (west side of town with the landfill in the background, who cares, it counts).  20 down.

9/9 while attending the Davis Rally in New Hampton, IA we head over to a "possible" location and YES it is there, Eldorado, IA does exist. 9/10 on the way back home we take a detour and get Waterloo and Parkersburg, IA.  23 down.

9/29 it's going to be one of the last warm weekends of the year and one of the last opportunities to finish the IBET tour, so after work we head for western Iowa to pick up the last 2 for the pin and try for another "possible."  9/30 we get Panama, and Jacksonville (the "possible"), where our friend, Bob helps out by taking the photos of the Pj and I together for the first time on the tour.  10/1 we leave our friends home in Omaha in   90 degree weather and get Sioux City on the way back home and finish the trip in the coldest weather we've ridden in this year, approx 50 degrees by the time we get home, good thing we packed for weather like this.  We finished with 26 locations. 

Pj and I enjoyed the tour and learned a few things on the way, such as a town doesn't really need to exist to have a sign (Reno, MN).  Larger cities can be more difficult to get because the signs are usually away from the road and you can't just stop on the interstate, also their post office might not show the city name either (Fargo).  We also learned that even on a Gold Wing the stock seat gets uncomfortable after 300-400 miles, a better seat is now on the shopping list.

Home | Our Wing | North Shore Vacation 1999
I've Been Everywhere Tour 2000 | Davis Rally 2000
Saddle Sore 1000 | Links