Maiden voyage

[darrellbeck]

Yeah, I'm back. It has been a long time since I've posted anything, but I have excuses. I finished (?) my teardrop in about March amid several health issues that have at this point had me in the hospital four times since the first of the year, leaving the TD to be a garage Queen, as we have never had it out. Hopefully that is all behind me now, so we are leaving Thursday the 24th on our first trip in five years. We thought that we might as well make it memorable, so we will be (starting in Surprise AZ) going through Las Vegas and Reno Nevada, then to Susanville CA, on to Eureka Ca, then up the coast to Seattle Wa, stopping several times along the way for fishing, etc. From Seattle we will go east as far as Rapid City SD. From there it is the trip from there back home.
We plan to take five weeks to do this, and what you see is pretty much the extent of the plans. As you can see, that leaves plenty of time to "smell all the roses" and most other things we might want to do along the way.
I would love to hear suggestions from anyone that is familiar with those areas.

Darrell

[PKCSPT]

Have fun,,, hopefully the hospital will stay far in your rearview mirror.

[48Rob]

Darrell,

Congratulations!

Spearfish Canyon in South Dakota, just South of the town of Spearfish, which is top center of the Black Hills, on your way to Rapid City, is worth an entire day's diversion!

The highway through the very scenic area, route 14A, is speed restricted to 35 mph, which makes it a very pleasant drive.
If you need more diversion, Custer state park is well worth the time, and would be on your way back home.
Making a big loop around/through the Black Hills would be a lot more memorable than speeding down the interstate in a hurry to get to the days stop...

Happy camping!

Rob

[Catherine+twins]

Loved Custer State Park! Watch out for the donkeys, they will stick their heads right in your car and steal any apples/carrots/muffins you have in hand! Oh, and we got caught in a buffalo stroll (they were too mellow for it to be a stampede, but there were too many of them for us to escape).

Catherine

[desertmoose]

Vegas to Reno means pretty much driving Hwy 95. An alternate is north from Vegas to Alamo, then on to Rachel and then Tonopah to catch 95. Quite a detour, and the only "attraction" is Rachel and the Lil Ale'e'inn. Highly overrated in my opinion, a run down diner with a lot of chinese made "alien" trinkets. You can get a photo of yourself at the "Extraterrestrial Highway" sign...

Ok, on 95 from Vegas to Reno, there's Beatty with a couple of shops, Goldfield (not much there), Tonopah has the most expensive gas/ diesel on the trip. About 10 miles past Tonopah is a little gem of a rest area with trees, etc. Look for Miller's rest. We've spent an overnighter there a few times on our way across the state. Nice spot, a bit of noise after dark from the big rigs, but not too bad.

A couple of blink and you'll miss it spots, then you hit Hawthorne. Not much going on there since the truck bypass went in. There are a lot of army ammo bunkers visible along the road. Right after Hawthorne is Walker Lake. There are a few camping sites there, but we prefer the last one right before you go past the lake. It's called 20 Mile Beach, and has a pit toilet at the end of the road. No other amenities there. It is free to camp, and except for some truck noise after dark, it's a nice place to stay.

After getting through Reno, you hit 395 north to Susanville. Easy road, no grades to speak of, and fairly straight. At Susanville, you turn onto Hwy 36. this takes you over the mountains to Red Bluff. A bit winding, but nice scenery. There's a fairly nice rest area by Lake Almanor before you get to Chester. Supposed to be an 8 hour limit on staying there, but we've pushed it to 11 hours for an overnighter without any problems. High enough still, it's cool by comparison. Red Bluff and the central valley will be HOT. Might not hurt to plan on driving straight through without an overnight stop.

As you get closer to the coast, 36 becomes quite a bit more winding. Lots of 20 MPH corners. Go with the flow and enjoy the scenery. Once you hit 101, it's past where I can talk about it.

Enjoy the trip.

Sam

[bc toys]

Well hope you have a safe trip and enjoy this time as you go on your adventure. You do know this is the hottest part of the year for your southern part of the trip. But do enjoy it

[darrellbeck]

Thanks to all for your replies, and all for different reasons.

To 48Rob and Catherine. Thank you for your nice replies about SD. What really made me enjoy them is that I lived in the area (either Rapid City itself, or Gillette Wy) for most of my life and hearing you describe the area was just about like driving down those highways again. I'm very happy that you enjoyed the area, and please continue to tell others about it.

To Desert Mouse. Thanks for the detailed information, especially about the camp and rest areas. It's exactly the kind of information I need.

To BC Toys. You gave me my giggle of the day when you said that the southern part of my trip would be hot. You live in Las Vegas (forecast for today 105), I live in Surprise AZ (forecast for today 110).
The area I'm headed for is usually around 75 to 95 degrees. Brrrrr!!! I don't plan on spending very much time out of my air conditioned TV and TD until about Reno, AND I'm taking a jacket along for the evenings!

Anyway, thanks to all for all the replies.

Darrell

[48Rob]

Darrell,

Gillette is windy and dusty, much different than the Black hills!
Kind of like Illinois where I live, very flat.
Places like Custer State park and Spearfish canyon are real treats, much like the cooler weather will be to you

Please take some pictures along the way to share with us!

Rob

[Jerry Bleeg]

If you are going up the Northern CA coast, and north on 101 into Oregon, you will find Boardman State park just north of Brookings Oregon. All along the drive from Brooking to Gold Beach, there are nice pull off spots for sight seeing, picnics, and hikes. It is just gorgeous. Keep an eye for pull outs just past guard rails for nice little spots to take a nap or make a cup of coffee and enjoy the views. I am headed up that way this Thursday for a family reunion and some crabbing.
http://www.huffingtonpost.com/2014/07/19/samuel-h-boardman-state-scenic-corridor_n_5589314.html
Best weather for this area is late August into Fall, but even if you have some fog, it sure beats 110 AZ degrees.

[Shadow Catcher]

Good on ya and have fun and by all means we will expect

[ctstaas]

Hi Darrell, Glad your feeling better.I'm from Nor Cal so I have been there done that here. Susanville is high desert and very unforgiving, that's why there is a prison there. After that is heaven. First is Mt. Lassen. Not a bad hike to the top but i'm not sure all the trails are open. The Park has boiling sulpher pots that are easy to get to. Lake Almanor is close. I live in Chico so would most likely travel to the coast that way but you could go to Redding, and get to the coast that way. Mount Shasta is a sight to see even from Redding. I would prefer to travel from Chico to Fort Brag and start my coastal exploration from there up Hwy 1.
Enjoy your trip, Chris