Our garage, the launch point for all our riding adventures. The bikes were washed yesterday and the saddlebags emptied in preparation for the day's haul. I chose one of our favourite routes that would take us along some of the quietest country roads with the best scenery.

 First stop was a gas station. Actually, it was the second stop... the first one happened on one of the county roads when a small bird decided to end its life by flying across the road and smacking into the fairing lowers on my bike. I stopped to see if it had wedged itself into the front cylinder but Angie pulled up and said it had been thrown clear from the impact. I felt bad for the poor little fella.

One of the reasons we took this particular route today is because of these fellows - Llamas! One of the farms along the way has a herd of them and we make it a point to stop and say hi whenever we travel down their road. They go absolutely bugnuts when they see us come over the hill and by the time we stop they're all gathered around the fence, ears up, prancing about and making weird snuffling noises in greeting. Now, I'm no expert on Llamas but if their body language and behaviour were comparable to that of a dog I'd say they were happy to see us.

This is about as close as I like to get to them. I've heard they will spit on you and I'm not curious enough to see if that's true. The one on the left is my favourite; she is the liveliest of the lot and will follow me wherever I go. She usually chases me when I ride away, tracking me along the fence line until she runs out of room. I'll watch in my mirrors as I ride away and she'll just stand there watching until I round the next corner.

This one didn't seem to be too impressed with our visit; she just lay there in the hay the whole time with her ears back and a scowl on her face. I don't think she was feeling too well, because the last time we were there she had come running up to the fence with all the others.

As we neared Prince Edward County we stopped at a small gas station to get some bottled water. As we stood there we saw a pack of bikes approach and make a turn down the road we had just traveled. The lead and tail riders were wearing reflective vests and the bikes were all Suzukis. It seemed a bit odd at first then it dawned on me - this weekend was the Ride To Remember, an annual charity ride put on by the local clubs. Just before we left a few minutes later we saw the entire Yamaha lineup go by, so the demo rides were obviously in full swing.

Our first winery stop was at the Huff Estates. Interesting spot, it's only a year old and resembles more of a top-secret military installation than a vineyard, but the wine they offer is pretty good. We bought a bottle of their Pinot Gris and grabbed an updated copy of the winery region map.

As usual, our bikes were a hit with the wine crowd and we saw many people stop to admire them while we were inside. Angie always gets double takes, I guess women riders still aren't all that common a sight these days.

Next up was The Grange, our personal favourite. It's another new operation that's doing well and putting out some great wines. The owner is quite a character; he's a former securities lawyer and one of the most down to earth people we've met in the wine industry. He came over to chat as soon as he spotted us and we talked for awhile about the vineyard's progress, then left him to tend to the other customers while we went upstairs to view the weekly art exhibit. The "art" was pure crap and the gaggle of pretentious twits wandering about making worldly comments while sipping from their glasses of wine and nibbling their bits of cheese from the food trays were too much for me, so I went outside to wait for Angie.

Angie came out a few minutes later, shaking her head. She's an artist herself and normally can appreciate work done by others in all of the different mediums, but this one clearly failed to impress her. We were just about to leave when she noticed the small patio next to the entrance and decided to take a photo of it. She's always on the lookout for new painting opportunities and she figured this one would be nice to do. Half a minute later she had me moving chairs and tables about to arrange the perfect setting, then had me take one of our purchased bottles out of the bag and sit with it. I'm not sure what she'll call this painting once it's finished... "Reflective biker wino", perhaps?

By now it was mid-afternoon and we were getting hungry, so we decided to start the return journey. We stopped at one more winery, The Black Prince, just outside of Picton. They have a medieval feast and jousting match every year, unfortunately we won't be able to attend this year's event because we'll be away on vacation.

This was taken just inside the entrance. I've always liked medieval things and one of these days I'm going to get a suit of armour for my den just like this one. Only mine will be holding a beer stein, not brochures.

We stopped in for a late lunch at our favourite spot, The Hungry Belly Diner in the town of Deseronto. The owner, Jeff, is a certified chef who was formally trained in Bermuda and he can do amazing things with food. If you are ever in the area, you MUST stop in for a bite. At the end of June he'll be moving his business to an Inn just down the road; a larger place with a better dining room and an attached motel unit. I'm thinking of organising a ride there to attend the grand opening on the first weekend of August, there'll be a report posted here if this happens. (Hey, maybe you should bookmark my site now, hmm?)