Eastbound!

Left Sparks NV about noon Friday. I-80 through Donner Pass was open. The roads were mainly dry but there was still a lot of snow on everything else. We made it to our campground in Vallejo and promptly ran into a fellow camper that was a UK grad. After chatting for a few Elise (Jean) and I went to make the obligatory visit to my mom and sister in Oakland. After a pleasant visit we returned to Vallejo to start preparation for departure eastbound. We were wore out so that didn't go very far. Saturday morning we felt confident on arrangements for the day until we found out the campground in Sacramento were we had planned on staying for 1 night was charging a 3 day minimum and everything else was full due to state fair and jazz weekend. OK go to plan B. Found a place in Placerville just past Sacramento. Alright now, just drive down to the ferry....surprise! They are having a street festival today on the street to the ferry. With the trailer in tow on narrow city streets we couldn't very well go looking for alternate routes so we decided to launch just up from the ferry. Looked for a place to pull over but the only available space was a bus stop so we did a comedy routine of off loading the bike and getting ready to ride in double time(hurry before a bus shows up ) The moment finally came, I was riding! The weather was perfect, sunny and 81. The trail had a lot of twists and turns necessitating stopping. often to read the directions so I did not set any speed record. I did travel 75 miles with a little climbing on the coastal range. I found fellow riders to be unfriendly, would not acknowledge a "hi, hows it going?" The drivers were about like the ones at home...occasional unpleasant screaming or hand signals. I was happy when I met Elise at our rendevous spot and could relax and breathe a sigh of relief. Tomorrow she will take me back out to where I left off to continue toward the Sierras.

Evanston,WY to Sparks,NV

Woke up to a sunny but chilly morning. By the time we reached Salt Lake it was about 70. Just the other side of SLC we noticed large areas of black clouds ahead. As we approached the summit of one of the many grades we passed into the edge of the blackness. The temperature dropped to 42 and we were pelted with watery sleet. Oh and I forgot to mention that the wind had been blowing 4o mph all day. We ran in and out of the showers all day. We had to stop at Sparks because we would have to have chains to go through Donner Pass. May 27th and I-80 is closed due to snow....go figure. Happily we are in an RV park with wifi and cable tv so being underneath the Reno airport flightpath is just a minor annoyance. Guess we'll hang here till the roads are clear.

On the road again

Left North Platte, elevation 2779 ft this morning and spent several hours climbing to the summit of South Pass,elevation 8640 ft. The Ford would probably turn us in for abuse if it could. It did not like hauling the camper up the grades, but did. There is still some snow behind snow fences in some areas. Just how much snow did they get to still have it at the end of May? It is still snowing in Kirkwood where the bicycle trail goes through Carson Pass. Hopefully the weather will be better next week when I am riding. In the morning we will depart Evanston WY for NV.

Well we have finally departed on our journey. We spent the last several days trying to pack a 3 bedroom house with garage into a 25 ft trailer. We left late Monday morning, I had trouble disconnecting the kitchen sink and had to leave it behind. We are on break in Lincoln, Nebraska and will be continuing westward. More later.

Ready or Not

For so long this trip has just been an idea but now it is becoming a reality. The to-do list becomes ever longer but today I can mark off one thing...create a blog.