Chapter 1
Chapter One – The Road
The road“This is an old road, made from concrete with flattened stones in the mix for hardness and ridges every few dozen feet.”
The Road“The road is right there below you, blurring past your feet.”
The Handpump“To one side is the iron hand pump that's mentioned in the book.”
Roadside pond“Every small pool I pass seems to have a heron at one end, eying the fish or the frogs.”
The Eagle“There, lying beside the road, was a bald eagle, huge and glassy eyed, its neck twisted.”
John Sutherland“He lives now in a bungalow near downtown Minneapolis.”
Otis Ave.John Sutherland and John Curry at the former Pirsig house.
Workbench“The original workbench remains in the basement, well constructed and solid.”
Clarence Ave.The former home of Maynard and Harriet Pirsig.
Colfax Ave.The former Sutherland home.
About to leave “John Curry came out with a cup of coffee for me and a pat on the gas tank for the bike.”
Chapter Two
“The pavement is very hot, and the weight on the side stand might push it into the asphalt.”
“The sign was as 'big as a barn door'.”
Father and son outside the E&I
“There are a half dozen people at a table at the far end, and we join them.”
“For an hour, Ollie pressed a succession of ever-larger drills into the lock.”
“Ollie Foran is the man who owns the BMW that John and Sylvia Sutherland rode alongside the Pirsigs.”
Chapter Three
SE North Dakota“As southeast North Dakota slips by, the fields become drier and sparser.”
Jitters“There'd been an Internet cafe right on the main street that really stood out.”
Hague“I turn back toward town and stop opposite the abandoned gas station.”
First repair“The cable is not broken but has just shaken itself loose.”
Close escape“A small sign shows that the road leads to a cemetery.”
Chapter Four
Lemmon “The rain is falling in sheets on the northwestern horizon, gray and foreboding.”
Shadehill“Red clouds across the entire western sky and a red orb sinking past the opposite shore... And suddenly it's dark.”
Lacie“When the owner gets back, she says, she can leave with me.”
Oil change“It's an easy thing to change the oil on Jackie New.”
Waiting out the rain“It's wild to sit outside on a plastic chair watching the water bounce high off the ground.”
Chapter Five
Russian Mike“We end up outside with cups of coffee, sitting at a rickety metal table.”
The ring“With a bit of force it settles into the small white groove in the flesh, touching the Band-Aid on the finger alongside.”
Jenny the bartender“She ordered more drinks, fancy ones, and they were the beginning of the end.”
Shake of the day “She rolled the dice from the cup and landed five twos, which won the entire pot.”
Chapter Six
Outside the Olive“I'm sitting beside my motorcycle on a shady rock behind the Olive Hotel in Miles City, Montana.”
Chain maintenance“'You've gotta love technology!' he says. It's a pretty good picture, too.”
Bill and Bonnie“He turns the key and punches the starter and with a THUMP (the trike) proves it has all the sound.”
On the runway“'If you see a plane coming in, give it the right of way!'”
In the bike shop“He points to a piece of paper stuck with tape to the till's computer monitor.”
Chapter Seven
Star's Place?“So much for ill repute – it just looks ill. This was a brothel?”
Bad Road“The road turns without warning to unpaved crap.”
Close escape“(There's) a plastic pipe coming from the hill's undergrowth, with clear water splashing from it onto a tree stump.”
All alone“My dirt bike looks very alone, chained to a lamppost in the middle of the empty parking lot.”
Chapter Eight
Mountains ahead“The clouds are thick over the mountain ahead.”
On the Beartooth“A drop into the fog to the road I just travelled on, a hundred feet or more down.”
Wet rest“I ask the oldest man, the father, to take a photo as proof of my having been here.”
At the Summit“Beside the mountain pass sign is a Harley-Davidson cruiser, its rider standing alongside rubbing his hands together.”
Yosemite“Instead of a conquering hero I see a shabby motorcyclist with creased clothing and scraggly hair.”
Hillcrest Cabins“She takes a couple of pretty good pictures as the valve covers come off.”
Chapter Nine
Postcard perfect“The view back south is picture-postcard perfect.”
Montana Hall“He'd taught here, in Montana Hall, in the center of what's now Montana State University.”
Montana doors“The doors here, too, are locked.”
Inside the hall“It's easy to imagine that a ghost might live there, entombed within its structure, within its soul.”
Chapter Ten
Gennie DeWeese“She's long been the matriarch of the household”
The Yurt“The guest yurt is a little farther along the overgrown path”
Standing Guard“'I love this guy. I find him so comforting'”
At the tableClockwise from left: Nolan, Candice, Tom, Gennie, and Tina in front.
Chapter Eleven
Fixing the car“I drop the car back down and reposition the jack and start again.”
Welding the bike“Tom fires up his arc welder and dances his spark lightly across the metal of the luggage rack.”
Packards in the barn“When you take the time for a closer look and see inside it a little, you'll find gems like this.”
Valley of the flowers “Let's hope it will still be there if I return.”
Carter in Sudan“He took my proffered hand with a firm if slightly moist grip and shook it warmly.”
Chapter Twelve
Missoula M“The oranges and reds of the last of the sunlight are spectacular.”
Into Anaconda“All is gloom and dull light as the rain begins on the approach to Anaconda.”
After Anaconda“The sun's grown warm; the road is dry.”
77 miles“I head southwest now ... downhill all the way.”
Ken and Karl“A take-charge father and his young son making their first motorcycle trip together.”
Kent the Harley guy“This is a real high-miler, all right.”
Wedding 2004“In their eyes is a light of innocence and happiness and excitement for the future.”
Chapter Thirteen
Rafters“There are clusters of rubber rafts floating northward.”
Camping“(I) turn the flashlight into a little candle and read some more.”
Rear tire“It's worn almost flat in the center.”
Ripples“A boat ripples through the stillness a quarter-mile out in the water.”
Oregon Trail“The road is straight across the parched, rolling scrub.”
Chapter Fourteen
Dayville“The trees are the most distinctive feature of the town.”
Fountain“I put my head under the cool cascading stream.”
Lori Smith“She's a teacher and lives in the white clapboard house immediately opposite.”
Picture Gorge“The road approaches and follows the shape of the rock, then darts into the fissure.”
Tom-Tom “It's done entirely in a kitschy sea theme.”
Chapter Fifteen
Approaching Crater Lake“The approach road leads through the Pumice Desert.”
Wizard Island “(I) keep looking down into the caldera at the water and the little island that's close to the shore.”
Crater Lake “At a low stone wall I sit for a moment, gazing back down and across the water.”
Rest stop“Once the bike is parked, I take off the helmet and jacket and lie there on the grass.”
Shock puddle“There's a fresh pool of oil underneath her.”
Chapter Sixteen
California“I feel as if I could kiss the ground.”
Pacific at last“I step out onto a small rock in the water and dip a finger into the salty ocean.”
Coastal road“The coastal road is more than 400 feet above the beach and in the clouds.”
Jacuzzi“I sit in it for a long time, perhaps an hour, thinking of nothing at all. Absolutely nothing.”
Chapter Seventeen
Avenue of the Giants“It's no wonder this place is called a cathedral.”
Miranda“Time passes. There's little going on here.”
Ross at work “A couple more lifts and tucks and the bike is secure and straight behind the truck.”
Fixing the flatThe bike jacks up, still loaded with all her luggage, and the front wheel pulls off quickly.”
Chapter Eighteen
In the mountains“There's a bank of cloud moving through the valley down in the trees.”
The coast“There's water everywhere, but no rain.”
Trees“Here's a town with strange trees overhanging the road.”
Resolution“After the plains and mountains and now down at the coast, this is where Chris collapsed.”
Philo“The grass on the folded slopes between the vines shines golden in the soft light of early evening.”
Chapter Nineteen
Zen Center“I parked the bike outside the main entrance of the large, three-story redbrick building.”
Octavia-Haight“He crossed the street to collapse and die beneath a streetlamp. Was this the lamp?”
Progress“The entire eastern side of Octavia was ripped up and dug deep for a new development.”
Zen doors“It was easy to imagine that a ghost might live there, entombed within its structure, within its soul.”