August 17th

A peaceful night, with our goal now being to reach Astoria, OR at the mouth of the Columbia River.  Surprise, surprise .... we spent two hours trying to find a motel room in Astoria.  I guess we didn't realize that this was one of the last weeks of summer vacation before kids headed back to school.  Oh well, time to make another decision.  After checking motels along the coast and not finding any vacancies, we decided to push on.  We opted to go along the Columbia River toward the Kelso/Longview area, then heading north on I-5 to Centralia, then onto WA 507, 702, to highway 7 and home.  By now it was almost midnight and we were both exhausted.  We telephoned ahead letting Cindy and Mary know we were on our way home.

Even though the hour was late, lawn chairs were set up in the driveway with adult beverages on hand to take the chill out of our bones.

WE MADE IT - WE MADE IT - WE MADE IT!  AND WE MADE IT SAFELY!

Another item can be crossed off our "bucket lists". 

Reflections:

When you think about it this was quite an undertaking.  Not only did we cross America using mostly the backroads in a 51 year-old car, a car whose history was unknown to me, with absolutely no background information on maintanence, repairs, updates, etc.  We tried to anticipate potential problems by having in-depth maintainence done before the trip.  As it turned out things cropped up that we had no control over, e.g. fuel pump and alternator failures, inner tube valve stem failures, windshield wiper blade blowing off (the one time we needed it), ripping off exhaust hanger .... just to mention a few.  All in all the car performed admirably.  Yes, we had to monitor engine temperature on a regular basis, but this was to be expected since we crossed America during the hottest summer on record. 

I think what I will remember most about this trip are the hundreds of people that we met along the way; from the simple mountain folks in the Smokey Mountains of Tennessee to miners in Kentucky, small and large farmers in Missouri, Iowa, Nebraska, South Dakota, and Wyoming.  We truly saw America through the eyes of Norman Rockwell, something we would not have seen had we stayed on the interstates.  I don't know how many people had their pictures taken standing by the car, sitting in the driver's seat, husbands, wives, children, grandparents and grandchildren, all telling us their life experiences, their plights, their hopes, their dreams and an ocassional teary-eyed man who recalled those days of yesteryear when he drove a TR3 as a teenager.  I'd like to think we brought some joy into their lives.  I know they brought lots of joy into our lives.

This concludes the cross-country odyssey in the TR3A but it is not the end of the story.  For now it is time for my wife Cindy and I to be hosts to Russ and Mary and show them the beauties and splendor of the Pacific Northwest.  On our agenda are tours to Mt. St. Helens, Mt. Rainier, the city of Seattle, the Olympic Penninsula, and Victoria, B.C.

I hope you've enjoyed my blog.  I look forward to any comments.

August 16th

Today we continued along the California coast with stops at California State Redwood Parks as well as the Redwood National Park.  We made stops in Klamath and Garberville, Klamath being a small town on the edge of an Indian reservation and Garberville being a small "hippie town" that time forgot.  Specifically, the town seemed to be frozen in time in the 1970's.  As you walked through the town the poignant aroma of marijuana (yes, we knew what it was .... afterall, we grew up in the 60's and 70's) was everywhere.  VW Lovebugs and VW buses seemed to be the accepted mode of transportation.  Fashions also were from the '70's; long hair, tassled shirts, mumu dresses, sandals, large sunglasses, etc.

We pushed on to the Oregon border, stopping in Brookings, OR where we had an opportunity to visit one of my old friends whom I hadn't seen in 40 years.  After a brief brunch we continued on to Gold Beach where we arrived just in time to catch the afternoon 80-mile round trip jet boat ride up the Rogue River.  We were not disappointed with the amount of wildlife to be seen.  We encountered osprey, eagles, deer, bear, and even a cougar.  When we left Gold Beach the temperatures were in the 60's; when arrived 40 miles up-river we were in the 90's.  We didn't return to Gold Beach until after 6 p.m. at which time the temperatures were again in the 50's.  We had an exhausting day and were fortunate to find accommodations right on the shore of Gold Beach.

Another spectacular day.

August 15th

All good things must come to an end and today we continued our westward trek.  We drove through Lake Tahoe and on through the Donner Pass continuing westward on California highway 20 toward Yuba City.  From Yuba City we continued westward past Clear Lake, the town of Willits, where we caught U.S. 101 heading north through the coastal range to Eureka, CA on the coast.  We now encountered our first major temperature change.  Going through the coastal mountains the temp. dropped down to the low 50's.  We weren't ready for that.  We dug out our sweats and parkas in an effort to keep warm.  Can't believe it, one day in the 100's, the next day in the low 50's.  By the way the TR3A heating system works well.  Just a side note: on those ocassions where the car ran extremely hot, we turned on the heater and the fan to allow water to circulate through the heater core, thus providing additional cooling for the engine cooling system.  Unfortunately that meant our legs were roasting from the heat but the good news is that the engine never overheated. 

Basically we made it from Reno to the Pacific Ocean in one day, going through deserts, mountains, and finally cooler temps. along the coast.  We found lodging in Eureka and got a good night's rest.

August 13th and 14th

Today was going prove to be very interesting.  We heard many stories about the "loniest road".  Not only were we going through deserts and mountains exceeding eight thousand feet, but we also had to contend with temperatures above 105 degrees.  As we approached the Sand Mountain area, which is about fifty miles from "Fallon Naval Air Station" our solitude was interrupted by navy F-14's coming out of the north, flying across the highway in front of us and then dropping bombs off to our left.  It was disconcerting to say the least.  When we first saw these fighters, they crossed the highway and then shot straight up into the sky, followed by large booms, which we thought were sonic booms.  Just as we came to that conclusion, we realized these fighters had dropped bombs on targets just off to our left.  My hats off to these Navy flyboys - they hit their targets and gave us a spectacular view of their abilities.  We continued on to Fallon, Sparks, and finally came to Reno.  We hit Reno late in the afternoon with temperatures exceeding 105 degrees and our temp. gauge showed 235 plus.  Luckily we made it to the "Grand Siera" (formerly the MGM Grand) where we had complimentary hospitality rooms at our disposal for two nights.  Needless to say we never did catch up with rest as we spent many hours playing in the casino.  As luck would have it Russ and I held our own and walked away with money in our pockets. 

August 12th

Today started out with a "decison-making session"; which way to go?  West or south?  We opted to continue south heading to Twin Falls, ID.  It was here that an unusual phenomena ocurred.  The Triumph seemed to develop a mind of its own and directed us onto highway U.S.93 to Ely, NV.  This stretch with the Egan Range to our west and the Shell Creek Range to our east, was absolutely breath-taking.  We encountered very few automobiles and on ocassion saw no one for up to thirty minutes.  We didn't expect to have any difficulty finding a room in Ely, NV, afterall, it is not what you'd call a tourist town.  However, as we approached Ely, we encountered numerous hotrods and roadsters both approaching and leaving the town.  We knew something was up.  As we entered the town, the first thing that caught our attention, was that every motel was booked and no vacancies anywhere.  Thanks to a helpful clerk, we were directed to a small motel off the beaten path where we eventually got a room for the night.  However, this was not without difficulty.  Navigating through the small town of Ely was a virtual nightmare.  We drove past the park where a hotrod competition was taking place which explained some of the traffic.  However, talking with locals as we normally did when fuelling the car, we discovered the U.L.N.V. football team had their preseason football training camp in Ely.  Well, that explained the traffic!  We continued onto our motel and as entered the pot-holed driveway, the rear muffler exhaust clamp and hanger was torn off.  So before checking in I looked through my emergency travel kit and found I had sufficient clamps and hardware to reattach the exhaust.  As a matter of fact, it was more secure than the old system.  Needless to say, since we were in Nevada, there were casinos on every corner.  Russell found a Texas Hold-em table and I headed for some slots and Blackjack.  As before, at one of our previous casino stops, we both walked away winners.  There wasn't very much sleep that night and the next morning came quickly.  We were ready to tackle the "loniest road in America" at dawn.

August 11th

All we heard in the news for the last few days was the progress in finding the escaped felons from Arizona who were believed to be headed toward the Yellowstone area. We hoped that we would not encounter them. We approached Yellowstone from the east entrance by way of Cody, WY.  Before getting to Cody we had to go through the small town of Meeteetse. The town consisted of a gas station, two taverns, a grocery store and a church (this was the main part of town). As we're topping off the fuel tank we asked a passerby if there was any news regarding the escaped felons. She asked us to take five steps backward and then said "that's where we got one of them last night." It appears the felon earned some money working at the local church, then went on to the tavern where he became loud and obnoxious, drawing attention to himself, which prompted the locals to call the marshall. When the marshall showed up the escaped convict surrendered peacefully right there on the spot.

We continued through Cody, entering Yellowstone through the canyon at Pahaska, along the shores of Yellowstone Lake.  We decided to take the loop road via Inspiration Point, Tower Junction, Mammoth Hot Springs, Fountain Paint Pot, and of course Old Faithful.  The elevation gain and drop on this route brought us as low as four thousand feet and as high as eighty-nine hundred feet.  After Old Faithful we headed back north to highway 20, leaving the park through the west exit going through the corner of Montana, then heading south on U.S. 20 toward Idaho Falls.  We couldn't make Idaho Falls and decided to grab a room in Rexburg.  What a day!  Russ and I thoroughly enjoyed the splendors of Yellowstone.  It was truly an amazing national park.  When you think about it we spent a day driving over the most dangerous ground in America .... the Yellowstone caldera.  I guess if this volcanic region ever erupts it means the end of mankind; a hell of a thought. 

August 10th

We returned our rental car first thing in the morning and picked up the Triumph which now had air in all tires, including the spare.  After a quick breakfast we headed north by northwest toward Yellowstone by way of Casper, WY.  This was going to be one of the most difficult legs of our trip.  It meant through the Rockies fighting high temperatures and high altitude.  We made it through the mountains ok, stopping every couple of hours to allow the engine to cool down.  I adjusted the idle to keep from stalling.  The carbs were starving for air.  The trek from Casper to Yellowstone by way of route 20 was absolutely breath-taking with many stops along the way for photos and again talking with locals and bikers.  We made it as far as Thermopolis which still left us well over one hundred miles from the entrance to Yellowstone.  We stayed for the night in Thermopolis, home of the world's largest mineral hot springs.  We took full advantage of the hot springs, soaking in the hot mineral baths .... it was soothing and put us in the right frame of mind to continue our journey the next day.