MC Cannonball/Hwy 16 Farewell to Summer Ride

Some men like a fishin’. Some men like the fowlin’. Some men like to hear, to hear the Cannonballers roarin’.

Mush-a-rain dum-a-do dum-a-da. Whack for my daddy, oh.

Whack for my daddy, oh. Make sure you take, take your whiskey in the jar, oh! (fractured Irish folk song)

The bi-annual vintage motorcycle event, the motorcycle Cannonball Run, usually runs from coast to coast – Atlantic to Pacific..

This year, after being delayed a season by the COVID, it heads to the Gulf coast and finishes on South Padre Island.

We visited the Cannonball a few years ago when it went through Hot Springs Arkansas. We rode up to the Springs and observed the bikes coming in to the convention center and the following morning we were there at wave-off.

We shouldn’t miss them as they come through Texas, so let’s make a run to South Padre!

Also, I’ve been wanting to ride Texas State Highway 16 from end to end for a couple of years now but it’s southern terminus is so out-of-the-way.  So, I’m adding it to this ride.

*Added a visit to the Port Isabel Lighthouse and a visit to the last remaining border crossing suspension bridge  (decommissioned) and the 1820’s Historic District in Roma TX on the Zapata/Hwy 16 leg.

https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Texas_State_Highway_16

While we are in South Texas we’ll visit the USS Lexington “Blue Ghost” aircraft carrier, the Texas State Aquarium, the SpaceX Texas launch pad, and some of the Spanish Colonial architecture in Brownsville.

Ride starts in DFW and runs to Victoria to watch the Cannonball overnight at the Victoria Mall. Day 2 heads to Corpus Christi to see the Blue Ghost and on to Padre to overnight. Day 3 visits the local sights around Padre as we wait for the Cannonballers to arrive at the finish. Day 4 heads to Zapata to start the ride up Hwy 16. Day 5 runs Hwy 16 through San Antonio and on to Kerrville for the night. Day 6 runs out the rest of Hwy 16 to the Windhorst and Antelope area and circling back to DFW for the end of the ride.

As of this posting, all hotels are under $100 so get your reservations in quick!

Sept  24th – Victoria – Best Western – https://www.bestwestern.com/en_US/book/hotels-in-victoria/best-western-plus-victoria-inn-suites/propertyCode.44562.html

Sept 25th & 26th – S Padre – Best Western – https://www.bestwestern.com/en_US/book/hotels-in-south-padre-island/best-western-beachside-inn/propertyCode.44716.html

Sept 27th – Zapata – Best Western – https://www.bestwestern.com/en_US/book/hotels-in-zapata/surestay-hotel-by-best-western-zapata/propertyCode.54064.html

Sept 28th – Kerrville – La Quinta – https://www.wyndhamhotels.com/laquinta/kerrville-texas/la-quinta-kerrville/overview?CID=LC:LQ::GGL:RIO:National:53197&iata=00093796

The final Cannonball route and arrival times have not been posted as of yet, so the time schedule will adjust as we get the final news, but the hotels will be the same.

Feel free to head home after the Cannonball finish or join me in marking the length of Hwy 16 off my Bucket List.

If the above hotels are full, there are more in the area. Some even lower priced if you are of that persuasion.

To Download the Garmin Route Files    Click Here