Day 51 Reno, Nevada

I loved Oregon. The coast was shrouded in mist and fog all morning yesterday so that was not so great, but the great waves coming in and breaking on the rocks were magnificent. My business in Coos Bay finished much sooner than I expected and so I turned east away from the coast and by 2 p.m. the sun was shining brightly and temperature climbed into the high 80s. Got a good campsite and today I drove across the mountains to Susanville and south to Reno. Finally, at long last, I am going EAST for a change. What a huge country we live in!

Forgot to tell you about an unusual sight a few days ago. As I was coming into Portland, on a downgrade, I saw police car lights ahead and expected they had pulled someone over. But as I drew abreast, I saw a car with its front end completely engulfed in fire. Flames were shooting out of the engine, both above and around the wheel wells, up to six feet high and included the dashboard area. They were so hot they had started a grass fire on the bank next to where it was parked. The police cruiser was parked a good 150 ft. behind it and there was no fire engine on the scene yet. By the time they got there the car would have been nothing but a burned out hulk and they would have a good grass fire on their hands. I had never seen anything like it except in the movies. To make it more spectacular, it was nearly dark, so it really stood out.

Today I saw some wildlife coming over the mountains. Coyote, a small deer, signs that said "elk", but I didn't see any of them. Highest elevation of the peaks I came over today was 5000 ft, at least two of those. These mountains look very different from the ones I've crossed before. They look like they are sculpted by wind with smooth ridges and short grass and then trees up high. When I was up high, there were terrific fir trees 100 ft. high along the road for miles. I was in Lassen National Forest (California).

So it's on to Lamoille to visit sister, Martha, and Bob tomorrow. I may be too late to go rafting in Colorado. We'll see.