Road Trip - Day 16 - Klamath Falls to San Jose
8 a.m. 45 Degrees. Bright and clear
Tom and I wake at 6 and we get up and have our showers. We spent a very comfortable night here. All is quiet in the rest of the house and we try not to disturb anybody. Coffee is brewed and ready and while Tom drinks it, we stand out on the deck to watch the sun rise.
Dirk came down at 7 and started to prepare breakfast. He’s a great cook and we enjoyed our sausage patties, eggs and French toast. Maria came down as breakfast was being served but, before she could start on it, Jacob woke up so she went to deal with him. Jason came down just before we left to say goodbye.
At 8 we were on our way. We enjoyed our short stay at Running Y and we are looking forward to our next visit in December.
It is a beautiful day. We head south on Highway 140 then turn south on Highway 97 until it joins I5 at Weed. In the distance we can see some of Mt. Shasta but the top is covered in cloud.
The first part of the journey us through the Klamath Wildlife Area. Egrets and herons were patiently waiting for breakfast in the shallow waters at the side of the road.
At 8.30 we crossed into California. Soon after that we drive through the small town of Dorris. We leave farmland behind us and start to climb, passing Mt. Hebron and Deer Mountain and we are back into pine forests. Mt. Shasta is getting nearer all the time. I d0n’t think we are going to see the top of it today.
There are a lot of trucks on this road - and it’s a Sunday! Mitch told us that a lot of trucks take this back route to avoid the long, steep grades on I5 through Grants Pass.
At 9.30 we roll into weed. After a restroom stop, where I read on a newsstand that the Ducks lost to Cal yesterday, we are on our way again and soon join I5 going south. Mt. Shasta is still hidden. The cloud shrouding it is smooth and looks like a spacecraft.
We cruise downhill towards Shasta Lake, drinking in the beautiful scenery. The level of the lake is well down. At 10:25 we cross Shasta Lake.
Between Shasta Lake and Ref Bluff the scenery is reasonable but below there we enter the top end of the Central Valley, where it is very flat and there is not much to see. I call this the boring bit but, you know, it is not as bad as the road between Vale and Bend we did on Thursday. At least it is freeway and we do not get stuck behind trucks and R.Vs.
After another restroom stop north of Corning, which by the way was filthy, it is just a short haul to I505. Soon after that we join I80 and we are into familiar territory.
We arrive home about 3, tired but happy. It’s great to go on vacation but it’s wonderful to be home again.
October 13 2007 04:08 pm | Further Afield
