Left home on the freeway with tons of people heading for the mountains. It is Memorial weekend after all. Very glad we got outta town earlier than planned. Crowded ride up highway 80 to Truckee for Panda Express lunch. Quick with outdoor seating to keep eye on the bike. Perfect.
Heading out of Truckee, took highway 89 past Squaw Valley ski resort and past thru Tahoe City with very cloudy skies. After passing thru some light sprinkles, we rode around Lake Tahoe to south shore. Lake Tahoe is absolutely breathtaking. The clarity of the water along the shore is amazing.
We got super lucky with a reasonable, clean, comfortable motel close to the main strip. Bluelake Inn at Tahoe. They even moved our room when they realized we were on the bike. That way we could park in front. After a Subway sandwich dinner and wandering around a surprise car show, it was early to bed.
Leaving about 8am, we went over Kingsbury Grade and hopped onto highway 395 south. This is one of our favorite rides. With high, steep mountains on one side, desert on the other, and many summits to go over, it is just beautiful.
One of our big concerns this trip was the heat. So, we had been thrilled that the weather has been perfect. 75 degrees at 5000 to 7000 feet. Then, we came off the mountains and hit the flats. Oh, the heat and the wind….. but, no complaints! An hours of wind gusts pushing us around and here we are in Lone Pine. Just in time too. Thunderclouds are coming in.
As we pulled into the lot we we happy to see bikes. Lots of bikes. Turns out that a motorcycle group stays here at the Dow Villa Motel every Memorial weekend. I tell you. Some of the nicest people you will meet are bikers. Yes, some clubs are notorious, but overall they are friendly and only want to talk bikes and riding.
I told my husband as we went to bed, “you don’t have to worry about the bike tonight. No one in their right mind will mess with any of these bikes tonight. They’d get their butts kicked by a bunch of angry bikers”.
Rocklin to Tahoe. 97 miles. Tahoe to Lone Pine 232 miles. Total= 329 miles
Living the Two-Up Life 