Day 16: Klamath Falls to Lake Tahoe

Wow, I have been gone for over two weeks now. The passage of time and how I observe it never ceases to amaze me. Last night, my inability to sleep returned.  This paragraph flows badly.  Oh well, it is my "I don't know where else these thoughts really fit" paragraph.

Despite having gotten up early the previous the morning, come 4 am, I am still awake.  I am not excited since I decided to visit the Lava Beds National Monument (I will abbreviate as LB) on my way.  It is not exactly on my way (through not out of my way either) and I am a fan of volcanoes and petroglyphs so I figure I will be a while.  I want to have enough time to see what I want to see without getting in too late.

I wake up at 7:15 and my room is freezing.  I never figured out the heater.  I get in the shower as quickly as possible.  It wouldn't hurt if someone would turn up the temperature on the hot water boiler.... By 8:30 I was checked out and on the road. My first and most important stop in the LB is petroglyph point.  I find it on my phone but am unable to locate it on my GPS.  I don't really want to have to use my phone so I manually pick a coordinate near my destination.  I go to get gas.  I am not allowed to pump it myself. I hate not being allowed to pump my own gas.  I tell the guy what I want and open my gas cover for him.  It requires a screwdriver since the key broke off in the lock years ago.  It is all iced up so I break the ice and finally get it open for him. He then tells me I am all good to go.  I ask if the gas cover is closed (the last guy that pumped my gas didn't lock it) and he says yes.  He then continues to tell me it does not need the key and said something about it being spring loaded.  I decide to argue with him that is is not. I have been pumping my own gas for years now and know this truck inside and out. It does not go well and I decide to just thank him and be on my way.  

I cross the California border and am directed to a check in gate.  I am reminded of the Canadian border.  I slightly panic about what they are checking at this gate.  If they are making sure I have chains, that is a problem since I still don't have any.  I decide to tell them I have snow tires and hope they don't know any better.  If they do realize the are technically all season tires, then I will argue with them since I have successfully used them as snow tires for 3 Alaskan winters now.  I then think about the California emissions.  I know they have something special with emissions. I hope they are not checking that because I know there is no way my exhaust is California legal. (even though ironically the shop I had it done at calls it the "California cat back") I slowly approach the stop gate.  A lady walks out and checks my plate.  She asks where I am from and I tell her that I live in Anchorage. She then asks if I have any plants, fruits, or vegetables with me. No, I do not.  She sends me on my way.  All that worrying for nothing. No mention of chains or emissions.

I see signs pointing to LB park and start following them.  My GPS then tells me to turn onto "county road *some number here*" so I turn onto this dirt road, and then another, and another.  I dead end in some farmer's tractor storage area with my GPS telling me to "drive 3.4 miles on county road whatever". Not happening.  I check my phone map and head back to the highway.  A quarter mile down the road I find a sign.  I successfully follow the signs to Petroglyph Point.

I get out and the wind is blowing at a good 30ish mph.  I bundle up and head outside.  I find a stand with a guestbook and flyers.  I open the guestbook holder.  The pages are loose leaf and one goes flying across the park.  I grab a flyer and chase after the guest book page.  I catch it and proceed to hike up the rock.  It is good sized rock.  The volcanic properties of it are beautiful.  I wish I remembered more from my Geology class to describe it better.  There are bits of all types of metamorphic rock scattered throughout the main lava of the feature. (if that makes any sense)  I get to the top and see no petroglyphs at all.  WTF? I find a few rocks that someone has recently carved their initials in.  Well that is not exciting, I can to to a bathroom stall to see that. I wander back down the formation and put the guestbook page back (after signing it of course).  I then notice a fenced off section at the foot of the rock.  I check it out.  There are the petroglyphs! (and a few random initials of people.  Seriously, go find your own damn rock to carve up and stop ruining these thousand year old drawings.... sorry, but your initials really don't have the same mystique to them)  I walk down the entire length, taking pictures of as many petroglyphs as possible. There are also a few pictographs as well.  Apparently, this is one of the few places that you can see the two together. (petroglyphs are carved, pictographs are painted)  I really like the ancientness of these glyphs.  They have been dated to between 4500 and 6000 years old. Amazing. By this time I am freezing and head back to the truck.

Frikin Awesome

Paint and Carvings!

I drive through the rest of the park, stopping at Captain Jack's Stronghold (the Modoc used the natural volcanic rock as a fortress), the Devil's Homestead, and Fleener Chimneys.  The rocks are awesome.  I decide that I am going to get my Master's Degree in geology of some sort. There are tons of caves in the park but I don't have time to check them out.  I am not properly equipped to explore them anyway. I see rain headed my way and it is almost noon so I decide to move on.  I put my destination into my GPS and set off. I want to modify the route so I start pressing things. I drive out of LB and into Modoc National Forest.

Captain Jack's Stronghold

Part of the Devil's Homestead Lavaflow.  It is huge!

Next thing I know, my GPS is trying to get me off the road I am on. No, I want to take a different route in 50 miles, not now.  And I certainly do not want to take "county road whatever" for 20 miles to the highway.  It is not even a road.  It is two tire paths with shrubbery growing in the middle.  For 20 miles, my GPS tells me to take every "road" like this that I pass.  There are probably about a dozen of them.  Finally, about a mile from the highway, I decide to take one of these paths.  I like off-roading and the path doesn't look too dangerous.  A mile can't be bad.  I turn off.  I start driving; this is fun.  I look at my GPS.  "Turn left on Highway in 31 miles".  It is the most round about dirt I don't even know what to call it possible.  There is now way in hell I am driving this for 31 miles. I will be here for hours.  If my goal for the day was to go offroading then great.  My goal is to get to Lake Tahoe before I lose mental capacity from lack of sleep. Also, there is rain coming and I am unsure of the flash flood situation in the area. There is no where to turn around. So, I find a less-shrubbed area and make my own turn around area.  I hear plants breaking as I run over them; is it illegal to destroy plants in a national forest?  I get back to the paved road and a mile later am on the highway.

My GPS thinks driving on this for 31 miles is a good idea how??

I drive for 50 miles and then deviate from my GPS route. The bartender last night had told me to take Route 395 instead of 139 and to go through Alturas.  I was on 139 so I took 299 to 395 (look at my map) and went through Alturas like he said.  My GPS wantes me to take 139 all the way which will take me over more mountain passes.  I am tired of passes.  It then spends a few miles telling me to make a U turn when convent.  It eventually figures out that I am not listening and adjusts the route to what I want. Excellent!

On my 20 mile trip along 299, I see a sign: "Tune to 97.7 for a traffic update when flashing".  Well the lights are flashing so I turn off my  iPod (I finally fixed the playlist once and for all back in Vancouver; no more mix tapes!) and tune to 97.7.  It is a recording about chains being required on all vehicles, but not on some (sic) on 299 East in some spot.  Good, I am not going that way.  It then reminds drivers that everyone must carry chains and to please not block traffic while putting them on. Also, apparently, there are checkpoints where someone will make sure you have chains on when needed.  I really should buy chains.

I make it to 395 and the road is still great.  The whole way the road has been mostly flat and straight with minimal snow.  I don't even need 4wd most of the time since the roads are dry!  I drive through several towns with populations ranging from 10 to 70 people. Cute.  I drive through farm lands and I drive by some beautiful landforms.  Around 1, I start to get distracted by the landforms.  I remember I have an energy drink in my back seat.  I start grouping around for it. I can't find it. I get irritated with myself.  Why would I put those in the bed?!?! I am only going to drink them while driving and they do me no good in my bed.  I pull off at the next rest station and look for them.  I find them in the back seat, cleverly hidden in a bag.  I decide to use the restroom while I am there.  No running water, which is fine but I would really like to wash my hands.  I then remember that I keep hand sanitizer in my truck and am thrilled with my forethought in the matter. I head on down the road, drinking my energy drink.

I hit a really long flat straight spot with great visibility.  I decide this is a great place to see what my truck's top speed is. Alaska roads are too narrow and bumpy to be any good for this kind of thing.  I floor it. I get to 90 just fine.  It keeps creeping up and tops out at just over 100 on my spedo.  My GPS reports 100 exactly.  Not bad for an old truck.  And the wind is still blowing pretty hard.  I am pretty sure it is a headwind too. I slow back to a normal speed.  A few miles later, I pass a cop going to opposite direction. Good timing. While the roads in California are slightly inferior in quality to those in Oregon (in my experience), I have seen more Cops on the road today in California than in Alaska, Canada, Washington, and Oregon combined.  I guess I feel safe.

I continue on, at a reasonable speed, and more or less alert.  Right before I hit Nevada, the two lane highway becomes a divided highway and gains two more lanes.  The landscape is also striking.  There is a desert-esque foreground that immediately gives way to huge snowy mountains that are practically right next to me.  The contrast is striking.  I continue through Nevada and it seems that Nevada likes wide roads.  At one point I am driving on an 8 lane road. (3 lanes each direction, suicide lane, and turn lane) I stop for gas in Carson City and see a Wells Fargo.  I owe someone money with a Wells Fargo account (the awesome person that set me up in this awesome Tahoe place for cheap!!!) so I decide to stop.  WTF, they are closed at 4 on a Monday?  Oh well, I am sure I will see another Wells Fargo.  A friend later reminds me that is is Sunday.  Oops.  That explains why the bank was closed.

See what I mean? 

I head on to Tahoe, happy that my drive today was easy compared to yesterday and almost completely snow free. The last 11 miles of my destination are up the side of a snowy mountain. Snow here is good.  It means skiing!  I finally reach my destination, at elevation 7,400.  I try to drive to the office and there is a car stuck on the hill.  I sit there and watch for a while.  They finally roll to the bottom to put on chains.  I make it up the hill OK. Biggg yay for 4wd.  I go to check in, sign paperwork, am told things to do and good places to eat and such.  The office tells me we have a snow storm blowing in tonight. Apparently, the resorts have been pretty lame up until last week due to lack of snow.  Not surprising.  However, they are predicting 18 to 30 inches in upper elevations tonight. Awesome!  This place I am staying is at the foot of Heavenly.  I happen to have a season pass to Heavenly.  Perfect!!! 

I find my room and put some of my stuff in it. I go to move my truck, put my parking permit in my truck, and get the rest of my bags.  I close the door and realize both keys are in my room. Shit. I go to the front desk "Ummmmm..... I need a new key, already.  I locked the other two in my room."  The lady looks amused and gives me another.  I go to move my truck.  It turns over, chokes, and dies.  It does this a few more times.  I panic. It was fine. What happened? It sounds like my dirtbike when I first try to start it and forget the choke. My truck is electronic and doesn't have a choke.  Then I remember the elevation.  The air is thinner and the computer needs to adjust.  I try one more time and T Rex finally starts up just fine.

This is right outside my door

Where I am staying.  Such a cute little ski lodge area thing!

I pull the rest of my stuff out of my truck and stumble up the stairs with my giant suitcase.  I throw my stuff down and immediately start making dinner.  (The place has a kitchen and I have brought some canned stuff with me) I haven't really eaten since breakfast and I am not a happy camper.  After dinner, I decide that since I have a kitchen, I may as well save money and buy some food.  I look up grocery stores.  There is one a tenth of a mile away.  I decide a walk would be nice.  I go outside (with my room key on me this time) and start walking down the hill (the tenth of a mile did not take the hill into account) and realize it is dark, windy, and snowing like crazy.  Walking around in this is stupid.  I don't even seen any lights at the bottom of the hill.  I turn around and go back.  On my way back I spot the spa.  I want to check it out so I try my key and nothing.  Damn.  I will have to ask about that.  However, the office has seen enough of me for today.  From my 3 minutes outside, I am covered in snow and my hair is drenched.  I am freezing and the spa sounds great.  Not that I can get into the spa.  So shower it is.  At least this shower gets hot.  It is sad that I am now using the shower as a means of staying warm moreso than a means of staying clean.

Tomorrow, I plan to do some skiing.  Depending on snow conditions of course. If the weather cooperates, it should be amazing.