Well just hook the headlight to the battery to make sure it still works. Hard to do any other work if the headlight is burned out!
Once you verify the headlight is working, start at the headlight switch on the left side. If your starter button was shot, that could be too. They work close to the same way.
After that, it is tracing wires and checking connections. Old corroded connections certainly don't help.
The ride IS the adventure. The destination is just to get gas!