Day One. 336 Miles

We left home in NorCal about 9 am this morning and headed west toward Winnemucca, NV. What? Winnemucca is east of us! Well, the GPS kept telling us to drive directly north toward Interstate 80, then east. Having lived here for 40+ years, we knew that the indicated road was narrow, twisty, and steep. Fun to drive a car on, but not anywhere near fun in a motorhome. Our alternative was to head west toward the Bay Area and catch Business 80, which led us to I 80. Whew! Only added 50+ miles, but worth every second.

The Interstate is in good condition, considering that it's a major artery from the east into the San Francisco Bay area. After crossing the CA/NV state line, the road condition improved even more, which speaks to the way CA maintains their infrastructure. Getting through Reno was no big deal, and after 6 1/2 hours of Nevada desert, we pulled into New Frontier RV Park in Winnemucca. This park is only about 5 years old, so the trees are still small and shade is precious. The upside is that all sites are paved and the utility connections are very convenient. And the price ain't bad either.

We're in site 24 with a mix of rv's around us. Some nice and some nicer.....

The temp is 83 F, quite a change from the 60's and low 70's we've become familiar with, but welcome nonetheless. We understand that a cold front is moving in so we'll be cold again, I'm sure.

So, Day One is in the books. Just under 2% of the trip. We're on our way!

Time To Get Going

 Our extended but short trip to Redding a few months ago was so exciting that we needed to stay home and recuperate. We enjoyed Christmas as much as possible with family and friends and probably ate too much, but what'r ya gonna do these days?

At the end of January we hooked up with some friends and took the motorhome and Buddy to Arizona. What's/Who's Buddy?

Meet Buddy: 

And this is his happy owner:

The first photo was taken alongside the Colorado River near Parker, AZ. The second was taken near Ridgecrest, CA, at an OHV area called Charlies Place. In the background are the Trona Pinnacles, a natural and phenomenal series of formations left behind by ancient lake sediment.

We started our offroad adventures at Quartzsite, where we camped in the desert for 14 days. There are hundreds of miles of trails and thousands of things to be seen. This petroglyph appeared seemingly out of nowhere near an almost hidden "dripping spring".

Abandoned and operating mines dot the landscape. This was one of the first we happened on, and it seems to be still functional.

The desert is known for spectacular sunsets. We checked them our whenever we could:

We found an American Flag set in the middle of nowhere. It was set on the favorite place of a longtime desert rat, in his honor.

Apparently some others had the same idea! Lunch in Brenda, AZ.

We stopped along some semi-unnamed trail for a quick break.

OK, back to the sunsets.

Notice anything missing on Buddy? He's the one on the left.

There's supposed to be a spare tire mounted on the rack above the rear window like the SnS buggy on the right! Somewhere along the way the straps loosened up and the tire took flight. Once we realized that we had lost a part, we backtracked and found the entire assembly along side the trail! I'm sure that other riders had passed it, but not a soul took it. Thank you!

We took a ride one day to the town of Bouse, AZ. Now it's a wide spot on the road with a small park commemorating the town as the site of General George S. Patton's desert tank training facility. On the way, we wandered through an amazing area of red rocks.

And, yes. Thats a hundred dollar bill being used as a flag.....One of several, I might add.

Trona Pinnacles is an awesome sight. Accessed from Charlies Place, it's a nice desert trail ride to get there. Scattered over a wide area, the formations boggle the mind.

A visit to Charlies Place would not be complete without a photo of the buggy on Picture Rock.

Or any available rock...

A last photo of the friends we traveled with for more than a month, and who guided us through the growing pains of newbie utv owners.

Near sunset one night, we caught a glimpse of a hawk preparing for his evening meal.

Ok with the sunset again.

Home again at the end of February, we jumped into some "honey do's" and started prepping for the manufactured home that our daughter has kindly allowed us to place on her property. 

Here's son Jeff taking care of some concrete work for a remote electrical panel.

I guess some things never change. Here's a shot of a California driver who decided that he needed to turn left. Apparently the fact that there was limited space between other vehicles didn't bother him!

Another significant event that we've enjoyed in April was the 101st birthday of my Mother! Happy Birthday again, Mom!

Mom spends a bit more time in her recliner these days, but she is as sharp as the proverbial tack. Good on ya, Mom! Keep that sense of humor!

So here we are. Tomorrow we'll see if the motorhome will start, and if so, we'll be in Nevada tomorrow night. this trip is shaping up to be somewhat of an endurance contest, but we'll have a go and see where the wind blows us.

Stay tuned!