Nevada

November 13, 2008, Thursday: Frankly I'm not much of a fan of northern Nevada. There are a lot of prisons along I-80 and there are numerous signs warning motorists not to pick up hitch hikers. The largest vegetation is seemingly the sagebrush since trees are non-existant. The economy seems to revolve around the slot machine. Sorry, it's just not my cup of tea so we're moving on. As quickly as LaFawnduh can carry us. We are moving according to the weather forecast. Anywhere there is high wind or snow, we are hoping to avoid it. RV'ers will understand this while those of you who only get around by cars might be questioning are rationale? Believe me, it's necessary. But, even though we are trying to avoid the wind, sometimes it is just there. So we can either sit still or move onward at a reduced speed. So, today we moved westward on I-80 and lo and behold we were immediately in gusty winds slamming into this sail that we so fondly have named, LaFawnduh. Fortunately, the winds were much less than along I-40 east of Flagstaff and that, along with light traffic leant to a fairly easy travel day. Over Emigrant Pass (elevation 6,115 ft.), pass Pilot Peak, and on to Winnemucca, Nevada before saying ado to the four lane highways for awhile. We then turned north on US 95 and pointed LaFawnduh towards the northwest on Highway 140 through a unique National Wildlife Refuge, into OREGON (our last state on the journey). The only animal that we saw on the refuge were burros. Descendants of beasts of burden that hauled ore in the local mines. Onwards through the Fremont National Forest, and into Lakeland, Oregon where I write this blog from. Light, spotty rain in Nevada was inconsequential. Here in Oregon we were greeted with mostly sunny skies and clouds that were pink from the sunset. Controlled burns in Fremont NF at dusk leant to a truly Western scene as we drove by forests that were ablaze. The Forest Service were doing what they could to reduce the likelihood of large, catastrophic fires by burning away the underbrush at a time of year when the trees and plants had a high water content, the humidity was low, low air temperatures, and wind speeds are low (it was calm as we drove through and I believe that the USFS regulations are that the winds be below 10 mph for a controlled burn). Now, along highway 95, and also on 140 we had absolutely straight as an arrow sections of roadway that were up to 80 miles long as we moved along the east side of the Black Lake Mountain Range. No trees for 130 miles, until we were about ten miles into Oregon. In Oregon we drove pass a magnificent gorge along a river with numerous waterfalls, yellow leaved aspen and green pines in the Fremont NF. Lakeland has hang gliding, a ski area nearby, and geysers as in Yellowstone. As we drove into town from the north we passed homes next to erupting geysers. Hannah was impressed. LaFawnduh did great today. At least six passes that she leapt over and 452 miles of pavement beneath her. A record total for one day of driving during this trip. We started out the morning moving to “somewhere” and we ended up moving further than anytime during the trip. Hannah remarked that if we start out with a destination that is 200 or 300 miles away she feels that it is a long day; but if we start out without a destination then the days driving is much easier for her. Hmmmm. Tomorrow, well, we'll wait and see what the mornig weather forecast is for central Oregon and the coast.