Sunday, 28 Aug 2016
Marc writes:
By 7 AM most of those who stayed at the Westerner were up and packing their bike for the trip home. In typical breakfast club style multiple groups of people took multiple routes with different stops for breakfast.
I left the motel about 7:30 and soon caught up with Carl. Harry and I followed Carl to the Kirkwood Inn where several stopped for breakfast. Some stopped just to say goodbye before continuing home – they’d already eaten elsewhere.
After breakfast I watched as everone else left. I planned on going a bit slower than usual with more stops to take pictures. Well, that was the plan. The inertia of continuing down the road won as it often does. I did bypass part of Highway 88 (see map) by taking Shake Ridge Rd and Rams Horn Grade Rd then turning on Pioneer Volcano Rd back to 88. I crossed 88 to picked up highway 26.
These pictures were taken on Shake Ridge Rd. They show some of the many dead and dying trees seen along the route.
I took 26 to 99. I did stop to take this picture of the dry pasture outside of Mokelumne Hill. The section of highway 4 between 99 and I5 was closed. I stayed on 99 until I could pick up 120 west and make my way back to the bay area. Tracy was a good place to stop for fuel and a short rest. I was home by 2 PM.