Friday–Monday, 9–12 Oct 1998
Marc writes:
Friday
The 1998 fall ride to Death Valley is over. If there is any single statement that could be made about the weekend it would have to be this: Perfect Weather.
Three separate groups made the trek southwards this year. Carl and Tom left at 5:00 AM, a bit early for the other groups. Dave, Jesica, Mac, and Paul left at 6:00 AM picking me up at the west side of the San Mateo bridge and Jill at the east side. First stop was breakfast in Tracy where we met the met the second group, Glenn, Chris, and Paul, coming out of the restaurant just as we were going in.
During breakfast Dave and Mac were carefull to warn Jessica about the Priest Grade which we were planning on taking. “It’s steep” Mac said. “Don’t get to close the the vehical in front of you so you don’t have to stop” warned Dave. So of course when we got to the Priest grade turnoff I supose no-one was surprised to find a road closed sign.
We stopped in Oakdale for gas and a chance to peel off a layer of clothing. It was getting warm and I stowed scarf and winter gloves. Next stop would be at the Oak Flats entrance to Yosemite. I had my $10 ready. A quick stop at the top to lose that final cup of coffee and we were off, Paul in the lead.
Paul led us through the park at a quick pace. Not a ranger in sight (which was probably a good thing!). It cooled down a bit at the summit. I turned on my heated grips as we headed down to 395, thinking that maybe the summer gloves weren’t such a good idea after all.
Paul kept up his quick pace as we turned onto 395 but I held back as my radar detector was blipping at me every time the road came out of a dip. As I was in the shotgun position the others went at my pace. Paul also slowed down, but was still ahead. I think it took about 3 miles before we passed the CHP at the side of the road. Paul must have been feeling guilty as I saw his break lights flicker 4-5 times even though we were only doing the limit as we passed.
After lunch in Bishop it was about 15 more miles on 395 and then up and over Westgard pass – what a great road. The only bad thing about it is there is no good place to stop between Bishop and Beaty.
Well almost no good place. As we pulled into the parking lot of the Cottontail who should we find waiting but Chris, Glenn, and Paul. They took Sonora pass and the combination of a longer ride (about 25 miles) and our quick pace through Yosemite made up for their 30-45 minute head start.
The ride from the Cottontail to Beaty went quick, even with a 5-10 minute wait due to road work. We arrived about 5:00 PM. My GPS unit said I went 448 miles at an average speed of 55 MPH. Not bad at all. Once at the hotel it didn’t take long for our group to meet in or around the hot tub. While there Carl and Tom dropped by having ridden in from Stovepipe Wells. They left before it got dark.
Saturday
A little after 11:00 AM Dave, Paul, Jill, and I left to meet the group for lunch. We didn’t time it quite rite so they were already eating when we got there. After lunch Jessica and Mac headed off to Bishop. Dave, Paul, Jill, and I took up Carl and Tom’s offer to join then around the pool at Stovepipe Wells. We left around 4:30 and headed back to Beaty where Paul discovered how good Tequila can be. Total for the day was under a 100 miles. Easy!
Sunday
We hit the motel in Bishop before noon. By early afternoon the entire the group was there. Beer, war stories, and naps were the order of the afternoon. Then a chance to finish off the second bottle of Tequila before dinner. Where does Dave hide them? Jill took pictures during dinner. I seem to have forgotten to bring my camera.
We left a little before 8:30 the next morning after mis-calculating that this would get us into the bay area around three. The first stop was at the 395/120 intersection. It was cold on the east side of mountains. Some of us put on an extra layer. Most of us had an extra cup of coffee. I think the stop was a little longer than planned.
The trip over Tioga pass was uneventful. There was a single stop at the Oak Flat gate to get rid of some of that coffee we had below. It was also quite warmer than on 395. Off came the extra layers and out came the summer gloves. Paul took the lead for a different route back: J20 (Greely Hill) through Coulterville and then 132 til 580 and back into the Bay Area.
This was the second mis-calculation. The place we stopped for lunch took long enough to slaughter the cow and bake the bread. The hamburger was pretty good, though. Once we got back on the road things went well until Modesto. 132 through Empire/Modesto is a 25/35 MPH road with a stoplight on every other corner. Slow. The end result was hitting the San Mateo bridge around 4:00 PM – later than we wanted to be but still not too bad.
I think it’s safe to say that a good time was had by all. Come join us the next time we get on the road. You might have some fun!