The Lonely Road

Day 5 of the Aubri Jo, Bobbin and Grandma Road trip.  We got a late start that day, we needed an oil change and trying to get in for one was quite the challenge.  Normally I go to the dealership, but they were booked up solid until 4 pm.  We ended up going to a local Goodyear and they had us on the road by 11 at least.

We headed into the desert.  Then we spied a picnic area called Miller's Point and stopped for a short time to stretch our legs.  Miller's point is part of the Cathedral Gorge State Park in Nevada.  I don't remember ever seeing Cathedral Gorge, but definitely on my bucket list someday.

You can learn more about it and see some awesome pictures here.  Cathedral Gorge.

We were then off to Ely, Nevada and the loneliest Highway in America, Highway 50. 

We stopped at the shoe tree which Aubri Jo found amazing.

Aubri took a ton of pictures.  I only took one since I had taken many the year before.

I don't know if there were more shoes or not.

We also stopped at the Sand Springs Pony Express historical site and read about the history.  The building foundations which remain are about a mile walk into the desert.   Not much to photograph, but you can read all about the Pony Express Station.

We finally reached Sparks, Nevada for the night.  The next morning we were up bright and early to head toward California, the reservation for a couple of day's rest at a cousin's house.  We drove through Susanville, and toward Mt. Lassen. 

Mt. Lassen is a volcano that last erupted on May 22, 1915.  It is now a National Park also with some great hiking trails. 

We stopped in Yreka, California to pick up some groceries and headed toward Etna, California where I spied this sign.

We wound up into the mountains across the Pacific Crest Trail

and through Sawyer's Bar.

Through Forks of Salmon, and around Grant's Bluffs (the one lane road clinging to the side of the mountain that my great grandfather built) and stopped to visit Jeff's grave.

 I placed some flowers using a dollar star vase.  I was amazed that the mountain side was covered with Columbine.

The Rose I planted had grown quite a bit and had flowered recently.

I stopped at a couple of swimming holes on the way down the river, but Aubri was not interested in swimming it was too crowded for her.  I finally stopped at a spot called Big Bar along the Klamath River and she did swim a bit and cool down.

We went on to my cousin's house in Hoopa, California and rested for a couple of days.  Monday morning I had some tribal business to do and we headed back up the river toward Oregon.  We stopped to take a picture of a quilt which I shared earlier.

I explained earlier this is across and down the river slightly from my great grandparent's homestead.

 The bluffs with the road going up the river.  This is a single lane road.

I dipped my feet in the cool clear water. 

And enjoyed the local wildlife. 

Finally we were on our way to Oregon, Aubri's home and my parents house.