After a few days of rain, finally sunshine broke out and got in a motorcycle ride with my friend Phil (seen at left on his Star Motorcycle). Phil used to be my boss when I worked here in Concord-now we just ride when I am in town. We are at Badin Lake which is in the town of Badin, NC.
Badin is a very small town, founded in 1913. Alcoa took over a factory there, and ran it until 2007. The remains of the factory (looks like it may be in the process of being torn down) still dominate the small town. I believe the population may be something on the order of 2000 people, give or take a few.
This is me, on my Kawasaki Vulcan 1500...I often mention it, but don't often have photos of it on this site (or of me for that matter). I have had this motorcycle since 2005, and have been on a number of great rides and adventures on it. Planning to take it to Charlotte tomorrow in fact, love riding around the city, there is a lot to see and do there. With Christmas shopping in full swing, and of course the traffic from everyone getting off work today, we thought it a good idea to stick to the two lane backroads. There are many small towns in this area, and its also really scenic riding in the Badin/Albemarle area.
Here at Badin Lake, there are a number of seagulls. Local lore is that they really made it here in great numbers on the winds of Hurricane Hugo a few years ago. Funny birds, who will put on a real air show for you if you toss some chips into the air-soon you will have quite a gathering circling you. Sans chips these birds seemed content to let me take their photo.
Badin Lake was made by Alcoa in 1917. It has 115 miles of shoreline. The water system has long been a moneymaker for Alcoa, but the company and the State of North Carolina are currently in conflict over the water rights and that is a big subject in the state.
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