Day 17 out of Three and a Half!

Day 3...deja vu all over again.  You know when I volunteered to help drive to California, I just imagined the romance of the open road, forced me time, and good think time.  I've experienced all that and now my ass is beginning to go flat!  Tomorrow it begins to re-inflate.

Actually, for driving 1800 miles, it hasn't been bad.  The cockpit of the U-Haul cab is quite comfy, all things considered, and Alice switches between the trucks to liven things up as needed.  And then there's the scenery, the weather, the roadside surprises, and the frequent fill-ups.  Sounds like I want to be an over-the-road trucker...no, but to drive Alice and David to the promise land, it's easily doable.

Below are a few more memories from today's road show...

Leaving out of Salt Lake City this morning,...what did we parallel FOR-EVER?
The Great Salt Lake and the home of Morton Salt.  That white pile will be
heading to a supermarket near you soon.

An even bigger salt pile, a few more miles down the road.

This sculpture next to I-80, along the Great Salt Lake, is called
"Metaphor: The Tree of Utah"...other than Googling that, I don't get it,
but it does get your attention away from the  largest salt water lake in the
western hemisphere...for a minute, depending on how fast you're driving.

Towards the western end of the lake, the view of the lake was less obstructed
and these were the result.

Minutes later, we hit the land of 24-hour casinos and a way more mountainous
landscape that I imagined.

Our first fill-up in the Silver State.  Here, Alice ponders getting back in the
truck or running across the street to drop a few nickels at the Rainbow.

The weather held out, but turned cloudy most of the day.

The mountain ranges, capped in white, seemed to follow us all day.

Then things began to run amok in Winnemucca.  Two things I witnessed,
mosquito-like insects so thick, you dare not breathe...

...and the other...what's wrong with this picture?  A and D where???

Eating here deformed my head, evidently.  My head caved in and my neck
disappeared into my shoulders.  Must be from the special sauce.

This pic is special, just because I took it while
driving and not really looking.  David was passing
us after getting back on the road all jazzed from his
McHigh!

Passed this in the middle of nowhere...really...nowhere!  Good paint comes from
nowhere

Coming into Reno.

After the trucks came to rest in Susanville
for the night, guess where we ate?

I'm a bigger boy for it!

I was in good company though.  This dude
ate there often.

So, another day down and a few more snapshots from the cab of a cross-country U-Haul.


My Zen from the Road:  Expect the unexpected.  I'm not sure how you do that other than trying to be prepared for anything.  Well, how do you do that?  Well...I guess just be open to whatever comes your way.  Whether it is "The Tree of Utah," or watching an odd old couple eat at McDonalds for the first time in decades, breathe it in and exhale it out, with a couple of yuks in-between.  Expect the unexpected and go with it!