It turns out that Bella is much sicker than the original assessment.  Bottom line is that she will be on the operating table for three to seven days.  It turns out that Harleys are not tough enough to drag a trailer in 100+ degree weather.  That is this mechanic's opinion, and he certainly has the current evidence on his side.

I've seen a lot of Harleys and Goldwings pulling larger trailers that this, but maybe not in this kind of weather.  Last year, Bella pulled this same trailer 3,500 miles through Arizona, Utah, Idaho, Oregon and back through Northern California without a hitch.  That included going through the California desert and Las Vegas at well over 100 degrees.  This year, Bella tore her heart out giving it a valiant effort once more on my behalf.

So now the time has come (the walrus said) to think of many things.  Nice as it is, Phoenix is not the city where I want to spend a lot of time.  In particular, this motel is about a 4 on a scale of 1-10.  Not horrible but not someplace I would like to revisit ever again, nor spend any more time than necessary.

I'm considering renting a car and sight-seeing around this glorious state of Arizona until such time as Bella is all better.  After that, it might be wise to head north toward cooler climes to continue our trip.

I'm currently thinking that seeing our friends in San Antonio, Bloomington and other cities may not be achievable on this trip.

The exact plans are yet to be formed, I will keep you posted on this site.