First Road Trip

New car therefore a road trip

February 9th, 2015

We sold the sixteen year old Tundra last fall. Certainly got our moneys worth out of it, 245000 miles. Border to border several times; many times into Canada.

We went with only one car for the winter. Well, Betty was here with her car for most of that time. But she was planning to leave about Feb 15th so we put the money down and signed up for a replacement.

A replacement that should get 50+ miles per gallon instead of 15+. 4cylinder instead of 8, fwd instead of 4wd. The first four door sedan I've owned since I bout Charles' 1960 Ford for $20 45 years ago.

March 20th St George to SLC

We had a pleasant night with Michael. But an uncomfortable night on the bed. That was one of our oldest beds by years and it was kind of lumpy/slumpy. Drove by Oakcliff on the way out of town. Looks like the new owners are doing some major surgery on the wall between the kitchen and living room. It's their house now; just hope it doesn't fall down on them. I would have guessed they'd put on a pitched roof as the first remodel; but....

March 21st SLC to Boise

Stopped at a small museum on the way to one of Suz's cousins. They had some great artifacts from Vanuatua. 

The trip was to deliver some family heirlooms from Daris to his male nephew. We haven't seen them for a a year of Sundays at least. Had a pleasant dinner with in a repurposed Masons Hall. And a very pleasant chat recalling good memories (and bad). They're both retiring this spring and are looking to a pleasant retirement.

They promised to come down to visit this fall. It will be fun to have out of town visitors.

March 22nd Boise to Carson City

We were planning to go back via SLC but the weather looked better on the west side of the Great Basin instead of the east. So we set out heading to Death Valley. So we had Egg McMuffins and headed south on US95 from Nampa toward Winnemucca.

I've never done this route before; basically it's up and over the Owyhee Mountains and over the Owyhee River. The Owyhee drains a fair chunk of Basin and Range into the Snake River. The road leaves Idaho into Oregon before passing into Nevada.

The Nevada stretch includes part of the drive from Winnemucca to Lakeside. But coming from the north you pass through Denio; going to Lakeside you never quite make it to Denio, despite road signs for 90 miles after Winnemucca telling you the Denio is the next town.

The Winnemucca to Denio road was the shortest way to the Oregon coast so we've traveled it many times. But lately I've been avoiding the stretch as too boring.

The first town in Nevada is McDermitt. We were ready for a pit stop (no gas/diesel now where near our 700 mile limit). Good food for the middle of BFE. Then off over more miles of range basin range.

Got to Winnemucca too early for dinner; next stop due south would be Tonopah and that would make a late dinner; so we headed west to Carson City. 

This is usually a boring stretch of interstate, but there was a front coming in so at least the skies were entertaining.

By the time we got to a hotel in Carson City the wind was really moving. I got a reading of over 30mph in the parking lot. Had a nice night -- except for a barking dog -- with a cheap dinner from the local supermarket.

March 23rd Carson City to Lone Pine

Had breakfast at the hotel. First off was a tour of the Nevada State Capitol. We started touring state capitols in Santa Fe New Mexico several years ago. The New Mexico capitol was a great mixture of a working capitol and an art gallery. Nevada capitol is three buildings - the original building now holding just the governor's office, a building for the Supreme Court another for the legislative branch. 

Susan got a check mark (Be a supreme court judge) on her lifetime bucket list. 

The safe on the right was the original one in the state treasurer's office. I wonder how much of the financing of the civil war moved through that safe.

After touring all three buildings. And spending an hour on the phone with VW Carnet regarding error messages saying our brakes were going to give out and we could die. We drove up to Lake Tahoe.

Pleasant ride up the hill, stopped at several scenic viewpoints and had lunch on the California side of the lake. Last time we were up here was on a bus tour arranged by Daris fellow school employees. We took a cruise on the lake then; that's snow squalls on the lake in the picture. 

Then off to Lone Pine. We saw a lenticular cloud near Willow Springs, this is what it had morphed into by the time we got to Lee Vining (where's Glen Campbell when you have this great inspiration?)

  Found a nice old style family owned motel in Lone Pine and had a nice steak dinner.

March 24th Lone Pine to home via Death Valley

Another hotel breakfast (shared with a geology class road trip) and then up and over, and up and over to Death Valley. The only corner of California not having a severe drought this year is around Death Valley, where they're only having a moderate drought. So we had a day of wildflowers. The highpoint was one called the Mojave Five Spot:

We also Mojave Daisies, Asters, Indian Paintbrush and several others.

Of course I can not drive through Death Valley without doing geology pictures; camelbacks, faults, alluvial fans, and a new one this time, a road cut called Charlie Brown's road cut. Named after a state legislator who lobbied to get that highway added to the CA state highway system. It is on CA178.

Then on to Las Vegas for the buffet at South Pointe and then on home. 

So with under 5000 miles on the speedometer the Passat has been in UT, ID, OR, NV, CA, and AZ -- six states. It's going to be a good road tripper.