In my daily life, I’m a teacher. As summer vacation arrived, my principal wished all of us a “duck-tastic summer.” She requested we do something fun for our summer and send a picture to her with our duck. Naturally, I asked Bill to take my photo with my duck on my motorcycle because what could be more fun than a motorcycle ride on a gorgeous day? And I have a whole summer of rides ahead of me
The temperatures were kept pleasant due to a strong breeze out of the north; low 70s after Memorial Day are always welcome in southeastern Virginia. And the sun shone brightly down upon us, so brightly that patches of shade were nearly black. I used that as an extra challenge when looking for possible road obstacles.
I had trouble getting off from the curb at the start of the ride. I didn’t crest enough of the camber for my legs to hold me for my look, but I did something smart. I remained calm, let the R Nine T roll back and restarted. Bill had checked up due to my delay, but I caught up with him fairly quickly.
I also spotted my first butterfly fairly quickly; less than a block into the ride, and a little cabbage white was blown across the road in front of us into some hydrangeas and impatiens. I didn’t expect to see too many butterflies due to the strong wind gusts, but I did manage to spot a few more cabbage whites during my ride. I did spot a red admiral butterfly in my yard as I was unloading my riding gear—a spectacular black butterfly with orange/red markings.
During our ride, we spotted an eastern spiny softshell turtle attempting to cross a shady patch of road. We parked inside one of the church’s parking lots, and Bill hurried the turtle safely across the road and into the water. Soon after the turtle rescue, a great blue heron flew overhead, casting a large shadow on Bill in front of me.
All in all, it was a duck-tastic beginning of summer ride, and I look forward to many more this summer!
Flutterby Biker 