1 bus to Denver CO
... spending the night at Winnemucca NV
No alarm, awake a few minute before it would have gone off. Breakfast was the to-go bag that we had filled out last night.
It is Friday and the permit company is busy so I am on hold for a while. That means we pull out of the parking lot a little later than planned.
When we leave the hotel and enter the freeway, we are going up hill. Up enough of a hill that I don't get over 45 mph until I am to the top a mile or two later. Then as soon as we start down the other side ...
... one of my side panels has come open and is sticking in the next travel lane. No shoulder to park on right away so I had to put on the four way flashers and straddle two of the four lanes. As soon as we were to the bottom of the hill, we loose one lane, but there is still pavement for a little further and that is where I parked. I remembered to check the panels last bus and they were good. Every time they need to be checked I guess.
Morning fog. Once the lanes narrowed to two north of Stockton, one lane was going 55 mph and the other was going 60 mph. In a 70 mph zone. Fog finally lifted 100 miles later as we came into Sacramento.
Coming through Sacramento I noticed ...
Two cops talking to someone on the shoulder of the road but no car around. But there was a 'homeless' tent up against the sound barrier wall behind them.
We pass the end/start of their light rail. The parking lot has 250 spots and used to be mostly full. Today, Friday AM, there were less than a dozen cars.
1st stop is the rest area at Gold Rush.
No stop this trip at the Donners Pass rest area. This morning I had ordered my permit to start at 11:30 AM. We crossed the state line at 11:32. If we had gotten out of the motel on time this AM we would have had to wait at the border until 11:30.
Because, as soon as we cross the border there is an inspection station, and today it is open. Open, but only two cops working out of one pickup. But they are both busy checking out one truck so the rest of us keep moving.
2nd stop is in Fernley at the Loves for fuel and food. Some trips I am really good at doing the fuel, other times I really make a mess. Today was one of the mess days. First fill I am getting 6 mpg. I will only need one more fuel and then maybe a top off before dropping the bus.
Last night we did a lot of research and math and found it would be cheapest to get a car from the airport. But if I didn't want to drive the bus into the airport, it would still be cheaper to get a local car, drop the bus, pickup a 2nd car from the airport and drop the 1st car. Then we thought about 'Covid' and decided we will stay away from the airport and all the people.
... at Fernley we got food from Arbey's and ate standing by the bus. Today it seems to be warmer outside than in the bus. I am plenty warm up front but the heat doesn't seem to be working in the rear. And we are now 100's of miles from the pick up.
3rd and final stop is at the Quality Inn in Winnemucca. It is 3 PM but we have most of the first 400 miles behind us. (hours later we realize that we may have been better to keep going. We need to be out of the state by 11:30 AM tomorrow and now have to be out of the motel by 7 AM to make that)
After checking in, we go for a walk and then walk to The Pig and order food. It is ready in 10 minutes. I got my usual Philly with Au Jus but this time I got chips instead of potato salad. The potato salad is good, but too much food. Chips don't need a fridge.
Load board
US - 264
IA - 123
MN -0-
WI - 8
Nothing new on the IA load board today, that means 17 RV's were taken off the load board today.
Plan is to stay in Evanston tomorrow night and Cheyenne Sunday night. That will get us down to Denver about 10 AM and deliver by noon. IF we deliver by noon, we should be home, or in MN, Tuesday afternoon. We could leave again, maybe. We would have 10+ days to make another run to just about anywhere but the west coast.