Sarah needed to pick up a prescription in Truckee but the pharmacy didn't open until 9 so we had some time to kill. We made the very chilly 2 mile ride into town and settled in at a Starbucks next to the pharmacy and grocery store.
With time to catch up on communication and planning for the next few days, I have a better idea of what is ahead. Long days are ahead. It looks as though we will have a few 70+ mile days and a long climbing/long mileage day through Lassen Volcano National Park in a few days. The mileage is definitely starting to grow as we move out of some of the largest climbs in the southern portion of the route. We have traveled farther in the last 4 days than any other 4 days of the trip and we are getting longer from here. We should see Oregon pretty soon at this rate.
After groceries, it was time for the road again. The route took us through historic downtown Truckee which was really quite nice with lots of little shops.
Quaint and fun
With the latest start of the trip (9:30 from Truckee), we had some time to make up if we were to get all the way to Quincy today. The plan was to stay at a county fairgrounds. We called to arrange it but were only able to leave a voice message. We headed out with the hope that we would be able to connect again later.
With a few small climbs, the road was generally flat to downhill today. We passed Donner Camp on the way by Donner Pass road but we weren't hungry and didn't stop.
The first lunch stop was in a speck on the map town. The only shade to be found was at the local volunteer firehouse.
Elevation goes down and the heat goes up
Today the road will get below 4000 ft for the first time in weeks. The first time I climbed to 5000 ft I definitely noticed the thinner air but not so much at this point. I guess I have started to acclimate.
There were still a couple of small passes to get over and of course, pictures to take along the way. Randy is about a day behind at this point so the pass signs have also become an occasion to leave messages for him.
Low enough it doesn't even get a name
If Randy stops, he deserves to have a summit named after him
I am noticing more flowers as the temperature warms up and the road gets a but lower. I have seen them all earlier but today they seemed especially nice.
Like bluebonnets but purple
Coming through Lake Tahoe yesterday, I was on the lookout for a big welcome to town sign for a photo opportunity. No such luck at any of the large towns along the way. It made me laugh then when approaching the small town of Graegle that there was a huge sign in the middle of the woods for the 700 folks that live there.
Small town...big sign
It turns out that Graegle is a planned recreation town and the main activity seemed to be promoting the town. It is also the first place I have seen folks riding segways on the highway.
Cars scoff at bikes...bikes scoff at segways
We were able to connect again with the fairgrounds manager before he left for the day. He turned out to be a great guy and was very helpful and understanding. He would leave a note and map for us to find a spot to camp and (most importantly) he would unlock the restroom/shower building.
On the road again, I saw the first road sign in miles and kilometers. Surely that must be an indication that we are getting close to Canada, right?
Canada is close, right?
One more tiny summit and photo stop. The notes left for Randy are not nearly as clever as they should be. The temperature has been in the low 90s again and the brains are fried. As we passed some road construction I got two messages from different ends of the project; "Way to go!", and "It's too hot for that s$!@"
Sign says summit, I take a picture
Not clever but it was hot...and I did pee
It was mostly flat to downhill the remainder if the ride. Today we finally worked out a bit of drafting and were able to travel a but more quickly because of it. In spite of being the second longest day of the trip it was the fastest average speed day of the trip.
The drought in California is pretty serious and so are the efforts to prevent fires in the dry conditions. Signs about it are everywhere. I saw my favorite sign so far as we entered Quincy.
Kids know...Don't be lame!
There was a market just before the fairgrounds so a quick stop was made for cold drinks and a little extra for dinner. There is a larger grocery store to be passed in the morning to stick up.
The fairgrounds were nice and everything was set for us as arranged by phone earlier in the day.
Welcome to the fair
It was my first time camping at a fairground and it was pretty nice. It was fairly private as no one else was camping. There were electric outlets everywhere for charging. There was a clean restroom and shower. A coooold shower. Nit sure why but there was no hot water in the men's shower and I didn't find out that the women's had hit water until after freezing everything. It was a toss up between clean and warm and clean won.
We ended up camping near the restrooms behind some barns (actually right behind the sheep barn). Fortunately it is not fair season and it didn't smell like a barn.
Camped by the sheep barn...my sister would be proud
A much warmer evening with some reading (I have a new book) and dinner before bed.
While your attention to detail is great, you probably don't want to announce that you're going to rob a grocery store on your way out of town : ) - K
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