My annual trek down Hwy 395

"Hot Tub" is my favorite along Hwy 395 in California.
I camped 20 yards from the pool for 2 nights.

From my camp spot near McGee Creek.
That's Lake Crowley in the background.



I left Reno, NV after enjoying the Street Vibrations Bike Rally, an afternoon with my ex-husband and a 2 day visit with Kay, my friend of 39 years, and headed south down California's Hwy 395. This time of year brings a variety of weather conditions. I expect tomorrow mornings temp. to be in the low 20's. I won't be staying here very long!!

Oregon to California to Nevada

After a fun weekend in Mt. Angel, OR at the annual Octoberfest, having my fill of lively music, potato pancakes and beer sausage, it was time to continue my journey south. I spent one night in Springfield, OR then traveled on scenic Hwy. 58, soaking in all the green, knowing I would be spending the next 7 months in the AZ and Southern California deserts. I learned that fuel stations are few and far between on Hwy 395 between Alturas and Susanville. And I learned that when my fuel gage says "E" I still have 5 gallons of fuel left. When I got to the Atlantis Casino in Reno, where lots of RVers park for the night, I discovered light posts in the parking lot move and dent RVs when you least expect it. Don't ask me how I know this. :-)
The annual Street Vibration Motorcycle Rally was in full swing when I arrived in Reno. One day while there I had a “date” with my ex-husband, who lives in the Reno area. We got on our Harleys and rode the short distance to downtown Reno where we perused the multitude of vendors selling motorcycle paraphernalia, chatted a bit about our daughter and remembered a few good times.

Boy Did I Screw Up!

At 8:30 this morning (Sept. 14th) I checked the Patriot Guard web site to see if there were any rides going on in the area I'm in, Portland, OR. There was. I've been wanting to participate in a Patriot Guard ride for almost a year now, ever since I first heard about them. Well, I checked into where the riders were meeting, found it on my computer trip program then headed off on my motorcycle, in a drizzle. I stopped about 15 miles down the road to put on my rain pants and a keep-my-face-warm thing. The rain subsided, for awhile, but it started pouring before I got to my freeway offramp. Now the bad news: I never did find the right meeting spot. The address I looked up didn't exist and since it was raining very hard making the roads very slick causing me to fishtail at every stop, with wet, squeeky brakes, I gave up and headed back home. I missed one of my freeway interchanges due to low visibily from tire spray and wet, fogged up glasses. After my very wet 70 mile round trip ride , I returned home soaking wet and freezing cold. I should have done a better job researching the location of the meeting spot. Next time I definitley will.

http://patriotguard.org/

Final Itinerary - Sgt. 1st Class Richard J. Henkes II, 32, of Portland Ore - 14 Sep 06

PS I was hoping to post details of my very exciting and patriotic Patriot Guard Ride experience. Maybe another day.

To Seattle, Los Angeles, then back to Seattle

I was in eastern Washington heading west on my way to visit my Grandma in the Seattle area on Aug. 28th when I received a phone call from my mom saying Grandma passed away that morning. My mom and I were meeting in Seattle at my sister's house where we all were going to celebrate Grandma's 98th birthday. We had to plan her funeral instead. The arrangements took us on a plane ride to Los Angeles for the service and burial. Upon returning to Seattle, we cleaned grandma's apt. then on Monday Sept. 11th I headed south to the Portland area to visit my friend Marlene.
While in Los Angeles I attended a Labor Day Rally (to protest Illegal Immigration) sponsored by IWW, UTLA, CNA, SEIU, Teamsters, the EAA, Radical Women, ANSWER-LA, the International Socialist Organization, and the Peace and Freedom Party. I was accompanied by eleven Patriotic Americans who were members of SOS (Save Our State) and various Minutemen organizations. Our small number of 12 made quite an impression on the 2,000 or so pro Illegal Immigration advocates. The Los Angeles Police had to escort us out of the park “for our own safety” because our signs, such as I.C.E. WHERE ARE YOU? , Unite America - Not an Illegal Foreign Workforce, Unions Embracing Illegals Are Selling Out Their Members and Support HR 4437, upset our opposition. We attracted numerous newspaper and local TV news crews who shoved cameras and microphones in our faces. We attempted to explain our position that unions are pandering to ILLEGAL ALIENS to boost their enrollment, which lowers wages for American citizens, etc, etc.

Here’s one newspaper article on the day’s events:
Wilmington Says No to Minuteman Invasionby Leslie Radford Monday, Sep. 04, 2006 at 4:18 PM leslie@radiojustice.net A handful of minutemen attempted to invade and disrupt the annual Union Labor Day picnic but are led out by union workers and police.
WILMINGTON, CA, 4 September 2006--Apparently without respect for unions or workers, a handful of minutemen attempted to invade and disrupt the annual Union Labor Day picnic and festival at Banning Park today. At about 12:15, about a dozen minutemen with signs managed to get about a hundred feet into the park before they were confronted by a couple of hundred union members. Coincidentally, as they approached, the SEIU speaker was talking about the "most vulnerable" workers, those who work for less than minimum wage without union protection. As the words "cazamigrantes" and "minutemen" spread through the park and the crowd grew, the police and union workers intervened to move the minutemen out of the park. By 12:30, the minutemen had re-assembled across the street and protested unnoticed for the rest of the rally celebration.
The family fiesta, with classic cars and classic rock, speakers, and booths for IWW, UTLA, CNA, SEIU, Teamsters, and today's heros, the EAA, continued without incident. They were joined by numerous organizations supporting the workers' struggle, including Radical Women, ANSWER-LA, the International Socialist Organization, and the Peace and Freedom Party.