Day 10 - Elko, NV to Redding, CA

I knew today would be a long one, but I didn’t think it would be over eleven hours from motel to motel. Anyway, we grabbed a couple of muffins from the motel and a Starbucks and headed West on Interstate 80. The first rest stop provided a sunny spot to down the muffins and then it was off to Winnemucca.

Winnemucca? Yup. Barb has always wanted to go to Winnemucca. Why? I haven’t a clue. It’s not much of a town. Kinda old. Well, I needed a little walkabout (can’t drive as long as I used to) so we took a stroll through Winners casino. Once again I had the magic touch, putting in a $20 and cashing in $21. Now I’m two for two in walking away with just a touch more than I want in with.

The drive along Interstate 80 was very nice. Lots of construction signs, but no work being done on Sunday. The scenery was great. There is a lot of space filled with mountains and thankfully only a few towns to interrupt the views.

We spent some time wandering around in Sparks, Nevada looking for the Red Robin. Finally did locate it near where the GPS said it should be and had lunch. After a quick stop for gas we found some of the worst roads we have ever been on. Interstate 80 up and over Donner Summit is terrible. To their credit (California) is working on the road, but for now (and probably for years to come) it is a rough, noisy, narrow and distracting road to drive. Had I known what we were in for I would have taken another route.

Fortunately we were able to take off on Highway 20 to Nevada City and Grass Valley. The next part of the day was a long, slow drive through Oroville and Chico. If you saw the two lane and occasional four lane roads we drove you might wonder just what we were doing. Well, the answer is we were heading for Corning, California. Corning, also known as Olive City, is home to Bell Carter Olive Company, the world’s largest ripe olive cannery. More importantly, Corning is the home of the Olive Pit, which offers dozens and dozens of different kinds of olives. My favorites are the pitted dried black olives in the Greek style. Bought two containers. Also bought some sun dried tomato stuffed green olives.

rom Corning to our motel in Redding was a short drive and we are in a very nice upgraded room. Dinner was a shared pasta dish at Olive Garden. Tomorrow we go home and both of us are ready for it. A long 522 miles.

Day 9 - Green River, UT to Elko, NV

Today started with thunder and lightning at about 5:30 and because we thought today would be another long day we were out of the motel at 7:06. Only when passing the “Pacific Time Zone” sign did we realize there would be an extra hour. Later on I’ll tell you how we spent that hour.

So right out of the motel parking lot was one of the best rainbows we have ever seen. It was a complete arc from one horizon to the other and the colors were…every color of the rainbow.

Just outside Green River we took a shortcut on Highway 6 to Spanish Fork through Helper and Price, Utah. Helper got its name from “helper” engines the Denver and Rio Grande Western Railroad stationed there to assist trains in making the steep, fifteen mile climb up Price Canyon. I have no idea how Price got its name. However it is the hometown of Cassandra Lynn, who was Playboy’s March 2006 Playmate of the Month.

You may have noticed there has been no mention of Starbucks. And with good reason. For the first 143 miles there weren’t any. Not until Orem did we meet up with a mocha and latte.

I’ve driven Interstate 15 from Provo up through Salt Lake City several times and it’s always busy and under construction. Since our destination was Nevada instead of Oregon, we were able to plot out back roads that took us South and West of Salt Lake before meeting up with Interstate 80. The drive through Cedar Fort, Fairfield, Stockton and Tooele was scenic and I would do it again. It took awhile, but I finally figured out the objects atop poles along the road were sirens. Which made sense since the Tooele Chemical Disposal Facility was nearby. I guessing the sirens were to have gone off if there had been any accidents in disposing of the huge amounts of Sarin, VX and Mustard Gas stored there.

Heading West on Interstate 80 we were surrounded by salt and near Wendover, Utah was the road leading to the Bonneville Salt Flats. Since 1914, the flat, hard-packed salt of Bonneville has been used to attempt setting land speed records.

Somewhere along the road we came across the time zone change. Thinking ahead to Elko, we decided this bonus hour would be best spent in one of the friendly casinos. I wonder what a jackpot on a penny machine lots like.

Tomorrow we will be heading for Redding via the Olive Pit in Corning for some of their Greek Style dried black olives.

Update: Slipped a $20 bill in a slot machine and walked away 10 minutes later with $32. Even though I had to cover Barb’s $4 loss I consider the 20 minutes well spent and the $8 profit went toward two Coronas. 425 miles today.

Day 8 - Colorado Springs, CO to Green River, UT

Knowing we were going to have one of our longer days, we were out of the hotel at 7:12. After a short stop for breakfast and Starbucks we were headed West on Highway 24. Forty-eight miles down the road we stopped at a Forest Service site, from which could be seen more than a dozen mountains over 14,000 feet. Over a distance of more than fifty miles, a wall of peaks more than 12,000 feet stretched before us to the West. During our eight years in Colorado, we had the opportunity to venture into many of these mountains and we can both attest to the care necessary when hiking and camping above 12,000 feet.

Near Buena Vista we headed South on Highway 285, with the Collegiate Range to the right and Arkansas River on the left. The Collegiate Range includes Mt. Harvard (14,421), Mt. Princeton (14,204) and Mt. Yale (14,202) plus six more over 14,000 feet. Colorado is a really big on altitude. Down a little lower the Arkansas offers some great fishing, especially around a big rock sitting near the bank. While I was fishing nearby, Barb fell off this rock into the river not once but twice, taking her book and my camera with her both times. She recovered, camera didn’t.

Arriving in Poncha Springs we turned West on Highway 50 for about five miles and then turned into Heart of the Rockies RV Park. There we spent a half hour with the same Redmond neighbors we had met earlier on day four.

Continuing west we quickly climbed up to Monarch Pass, which tops out at 11,312 feet and is the home to a large ski area. Just before noon we stopped in Gunnison for a quick lunch and then followed the Gunnison River to the Blue Mesa and Morrow Point Reservoirs. Near Montrose, Colorado we dropped below 6,000 feet and were pretty much out of the mountains. The little known fact for today is that the town of Montrose is named after Sir Walter Scott’s novel ">A Legend of Montrose. For me, the town’s claim to fame is that it’s where Ross Reels are made.

A few miles north of Montrose we encountered the town of Olathe, Colorado, which with a population hovering around 1,500 may be more of a wide spot in the road than a town. However small it may be, Olathe is big on corn. Olathe sweet corn that is and it grows everywhere. Each summer the town hosts the Olathe Sweet Corn Festival, which has pulled in such performing stars as Three Dog Night, Styx, LeAnne Rimes, Travis Tritt and Clint Black. Pretty impressive.

As we neared Grand Junction, Colorado a quick call to our motel for the night confirmed we had a microwave in the room. Knowing that, we stopped at Olive Garden for some take that would be dinner later on.

Now on Interstate 70, it was a quick drive to Green River, Utah and our motel. Sure enough, there was a microwave in the room and as planned the soup, cheese ravioli and spaghetti were great. My task now is to find a way through Salt Lake City for tomorrow’s drive without going through Salt Lake City. Its miles of traffic that I just don’t like. I’ll let you know tomorrow how I did. 419 miles today.

Day 7 - Colorado Springs, CO

Well, today was maintenance day, but first there was the now dreaded continental breakfast. Yup, the old English muffin and orange juice. Probably the same thing tomorrow. Boring.

So then it was off to the Laundromat. About half way through a chatty lady came in and by the time we left we had a pretty good understanding of her goals and aspirations for retirement. Interesting what you can learn when surrounded by washers and dryers.

Next we headed for the full service car wash. The attendant was not all that sure they could remove 5 states worth of bugs, but promised to do the best they could with their full array of chemicals. They were successful. Upon close examination every one of the little devils was gone.

The next few hours were spent driving around The Springs in awe of what had been accomplished in a short 7.5 years. New overpasses. A large new hospital. Roads that now go somewhere. Lots of new businesses. And one very favorite Italian restaurant (opera while you dined on Sunday) now replaced by some sort of New York Style Restaurant, whatever that means.

Later we took a short drive down to The Broadmoor, Colorado’s 5-star 5-diamond resort. Built in 1918, it was a premier destination resort during the golden age of railroads. Now it’s simply a premier destination resort.

Back to the motel for a well deserved rest and some great thunder and lightning. Dinner was at Old Chicago, where we meet one of my very best friends from back in the dark ages when I had to work. How nice that was to spend a few hours going over old times and catching up on the new stuff. Thanks MG.

By the way, Old Chicago is a very special place for me. Somewhere on one of its walls is a small plaque with my name on it, indicating I drank 110 different beers and thus completed the World Beer Tour. My time in The Springs was not wasted.

Well, that’s day 7. Tomorrow we are planning to make our day a little longer by passing up the Interstates in favor of some of the lesser traveled roads on our way to Green River, Utah.

Day 6 - Denver, CO to Colorado Springs, CO

Left the motel at 8:10 and headed out for a Starbucks and an Einstein’s bagel. Having retrieved both, we stopped at a park in Castle Pines for breakfast. The rest of the drive into The Springs was uneventful.

Since it was early and we figured our room wasn’t available yet, we did a little tour of our old stomping grounds. First off we headed up to Peregrine to see the house we built in 1995. Appears someone is taking a lot better care of the yard than I did. Next we drove through Garden of the Gods. Don't pass this drive up when in The Springs. Then a short drive over to Old Colorado City for an hour plus window shopping walk. Half the time was spent in Michael Garman’s gallery. Another place you must visit if ever in the area.

Since it was getting close to noon we headed to Jose Muldoon’s, which is just about the best Mexican restaurant in The Springs. Lunch was Dos Equis Amber and nachos. Doesn’t get any better. More window shopping and then we were back to the motel for a little rest before meeting friends for dinner. Splitting burgers and beers (ok, we didn’t split the beers) finished the evening. Yes, as you may have noticed, it was too late to put anything on the blog.

Tomorrow morning will be maintenance, which means washing clothes and car. After that just driving around to see how much the place as grown/changed in 7+ years. 105 miles today.

Day 5 - Estes Park, CO to Denver, CO

Really short driving day today. We were up about 6:45 and after a quick continental breakfast were off at 7:39. Highway 36 took us down to Lyons and along the St. Vrain River. Those of you who fly fish may recognize Lyons as the onetime home John Gierach. John is the author of a number of books based on various fly fishing adventures. My first read of his was Standing in a River Waving a Stick and I was hooked (get it, hooked.)

Boulder and Broomfield took us into stop and go traffic on Interstate 25. Living in Central Oregon, I’d forgotten what four lanes of stopped traffic looked like. Pretty impressive and it’s amazing what some drivers will do to gain one car length.

After passing downtown Denver off to the left traffic thinned out and we headed for our motel. We were being way overly optimistic thinking your room would be ready at 9:35, but to our collective astonishment it was. After dropping off a few bags we made the short drive over to Park Meadows Mall, where Barb led on a two and a half hour tour of every square foot.

Lunch was at Champs. We split a turkey sandwich and I had a bowl of French Onion soup. And a Newcastle Brown (that’s a beer.) Barb opted for Corona. We spent a couple of hours back at the motel and then meet some Denver friends for dinner at Brio Tuscan. Excellent dinner.

Today’s bargain: Gas in Estes Park for $3.34 a gallon. Boy was I surprised. Resort town up in the mountains. I was thinking at least $3.80.

Today’s best deal: Two and a half hours at the mall and Barb didn’t buy a thing.

Today’s freebee: Our room at the Hilton for free.

Tomorrow another short drive, this one to Colorado Springs for a 2 day stay. 181 miles today.

Day 4 - Steamboat Springs, CO to Estes Park, CO

Another early start. Up at 5:45 and drove off at 6:51. First stop was Safeway for an apple fritter/mocha (Bob) and banana muffin/coffee (Barb), which we would get to somewhere down the road. The gas tank was filled for the amazing price of $3.42 a gallon.

Shortly after leaving Steamboat Springs we started a long assent up to Rabbit Ears Pass (elevation 9,426), which straddles the Continental Divide. For those not familiar with the Continental Divide, it defines which way water flows. Generally speaking, watersheds on the East side flow towards the Atlantic, while watersheds on the West side flow towards the Pacific. About halfway up we found a sunny place to stop and have breakfast. My guess is that the name came from a rock formation seen from the summit that looks like...rabbit ears.

We passed through Kremmling, Parshall, Hot Sulphur Springs and Granby before reaching the Rocky Mountain National Park visitor’s center. After a 10 minute wait our neighbors from across the street showed up for a short visit. Based on their schedule and ours, we might meet up again in Gunnison, Colorado.

Once entering the park, courtesy of the Golden Age Pass, we began a slow steady climb up to 12,220 feet. From about 10,000 feet on you best stay on the road, as there is absolutely nothing to stop an instant drop into the abyss. I probably averaged around 25 MPH, which was about 20 MPH too fast for Barb.

We got into Estes Park at 1:00 and went in search of lunch, which turned out to be splitting fish and chips, a bowl of chili and a couple of beers. The next few hours were spent window shopping and a short drive along the Big Thompson River.

We are now debating what to do for dinner and at this point going without seems to be the leading contender.

Today’s best deal: Breakfast for 2 - $5.25

Today’s high: 12,220 feet

Barb’s thought for the day: I don’t need to be at 12,000 feet to enjoy the scenery.

Tomorrow we have a short drive to Denver to visit a friend. 181 miles today.

Day 3 - Green River, WY to Steamboat Springs, CO

Much better start to the day than yesterday. We wanted to get away early today, so up by 5:30 and driving out of the parking lot at 6:55. We did the continental breakfast at the motel, which was something on half a bagel. It was good and I’m guessing the something was probably egg and cheese. We didn’t expect to find a Starbucks in Green River and so weren’t disappointed.

Following the advice of a friend who had just visited Flaming Gorge, we started down the West side on Highway 530. What a nice drive. Yes, I’m beginning to change my mind about Wyoming. Maybe it’s just the drive along Interstate 80 that I don’t like. Anyway, the views were great. It was a little strange that there wasn’t a tree in sight for the first 30 miles or so and then suddenly we were in a forest.

After crossing into Utah we continued South on highway 44 and took a side trip to Red Canyon Visitors Center. Trails take you right up to the edge of the gorge and getting a little too close can result in an 1800 foot drop to the lake. Take the warning signs seriously.

On the way down to the Flaming Gorge Dam we stopped at the Red Canyon Lodge and picked up a sandwich to split later on. The dam was kind of a let down. Small. Not much of a visitor’s center. After about 10 minutes we headed back up the hill and off to Vernal, Utah.

About 20 or so miles before Vernal, the highway becomes a little interesting. It starts with a large warning sign stating 10 miles of 8% downgrade with 10 switchbacks. 8% is pretty steep, usually the most you will see is 6% and occasionally 7%. At the first hairpin turn was a sign that said 9 more. There were several runaway truck ramps, however, unlike most which head uphill to help stop a truck, these went downhill. Must have really deep gravel.

We stopped at a really nice Welcome to Utah visitor’s center in Jensen, Utah for our sandwich and then continued East on Highway 40 to Colorado. At the town of Dinosaur, Colorado I made a game time decision to take Highway 64 down to Rangely, Colorado. I have fond memories of Highway 64, having exited a 1958 Oldsmobile through the rear window in 1961. The Rangely hospital is still on the right as you drive through town. I’ve forgotten my room number.

From Rangely it was only 2 plus hours to Steamboat Springs, by way of Meeker and Craig. Turns out our motel was on the very far side of town, but we did manage to find our way back to a nice Italian restaurant.

Today’s question: When driving out in the country have you noticed how some people tend to store stuff in their yards? It’s really amazing. Why do you need 7 broken down pickup trucks sitting around your home? Or a collection of old travel trailers? Or camper shells? Or just plain junk? All of this and more today. Email your answer.

Tomorrow we are off to Estes Park, Colorado through Rocky Mountain National Park. 339 miles today.

Day 2 - Burley, ID to Green River, WY

Interesting day. We were both up very early. Entirely too early. Mind you I’m not saying it had anything to do with the restaurant last night, but we were sick. Really sick. Good thing today was a short drive, as we didn’t get on the road until 9:44. No Starbucks today.

What stands out today? For one thing lots of road construction. Miles of one lane on the interstate 80 and 84. We have been driving these highways back and forth between Colorado to Oregon for over 16 years and it seems they are always under construction. On the other hand, the weather was great. High 80’s in Utah, with some clouds most of the way.

Southern Idaho along Interstate 84 is a very nice drive. Mostly farmland, with lots of potatoes (famous potatoes according the Idaho license plates), corn and some wheat. Utah seems to favor wheat and hay. Wyoming? Sagebrush. Wyoming from Evanston to Green River is a very depressing drive. Gray colored dirt hills sitting on various shades of tan. Occasional splotches of faded green failed to add much to the overall picture. However, one must always remember that Northwest Wyoming holds the beauty of Yellowstone and the Tetons. So, you take the bad with the good. Tomorrow we should have more of the good with a visit to Flaming Gorge.

More on Wyoming: Trona. Ever heard of it? Trona is a water bearing sodium carbonate compound that’s mined underground and then processed into soda ash and bicarbonate of soda. And where is the world’s largest deposit of trona? Wyoming, of course.

Today’s dining: Breakfast (light and bland) was continental at the motel. By lunch we were feeling a little better so it was burgers and beer at Suds Brothers Brews in Evanston. Short on atmosphere, but the burgers were good and the chocolate porter was great. Dinner? What dinner? Green River is a little short on eating establishments, so it was some of Myers best dark rum and a few pretzels in the room.

Today’s bargain: $3.47 a gallon in South Ogden, Utah (compare that to $3.89 in Redmond.)

Today’s technology moment: Hadn’t even finished the first sentence of today’s blog when my laptop began ringing and there was Earl’s face on my screen. Clicked the answer icon and we had a nice 20 minute video phone call with our friends in Chicago. What will they think of next?

Barb’s thought for the day: Don’t eat Mexican food on vacation.

Tomorrow we should be up early on off to Steamboat Springs, Colorado.

Day 1 - Redmond, OR to Burley, ID

Ok here we go again, only this time it will be a short drive of 10 days. Denver and back by way of Flaming Gorge, Rocky Mountain National Park, Colorado Springs, and San Isabel and Gunnison National Forests. Piece a cake.

Left the house at 6:45 and headed directly to Starbucks in Redmond for mocha and coffee. Having crossed Oregon on Highway 20 way too many times, we elected to take Highway 26. Both will take you from Redmond to Ontario, but 26 has trees. And altitude. And towns. And is much easier on the eyes.

Anyway, we made a quick stop in Prineville to pick up a sandwich to share later on and headed East. This is truly a nice drive. The first 80+ miles out of Prineville there was neither a car in front of us or behind us. Along the way we passed through Mitchell (too early for lunch, but great hamburgers at the Little Pine Café), Dayville, John Day, Ironside (the town that isn’t), Jamieson (yet another town that isn’t) and finally Vale (the town of murals.)

Having spent too much time driving through downtown Ontario, we opted to stay on Highway 26 for Nyssa, where a nice city park provided a spot to share the sandwich. After lunch a short drive and we crossed the Snake River into Idaho and soon were on Interstate 84. Speed Limit 75. Never see a sign like that in Oregon. Another couple of hours and we were in Burley, Idaho for the night. Dinner at El Caporal was good and inexpensive.

Today’s interesting sight: A hawk crossing right to left about 25 feet in front of the car at an altitude of 5 feet with a snake in its talons.

Today’s crop report: Once close to Vale there were fields of corn (lots of corn), wheat and what were either potatoes or sugar beets. The presence of a sugar beet processing plant near Ontario makes me lean towards beets. Idaho had lots of corn , some wheat and alfalfa, and what I’m pretty sure were potatoes.

Today’s weather: 48 leaving Redmond and 91 somewhere in Idaho.

Today's bargain: Fairfield Inn - free

Tomorrow is a short day with a drive to Green River, Wyoming.498 miles today.