Unexpected DIversion

Road Trip Day Sixteen

We stopped at Bishop for supplies a few miles on from the hot springs. I also popped into a local Barbers. "Where you heading?" he asked. When I told him Yosemite he asked me if the passes were open. I knew the first pass over the Sierra Nevada's might be closed but never thought all of them might be shut. What we had hoped to be a 3 hr, 150 mile journey now had the distinct possibility of being a 3 day, 500+ mile trek!

We made haste and soon came to a sign informing us the first three passes were shut. Bugger! We still had a chance to cross on the 88 from Minden but that was not guaranteed. As we continued north with the Sierra's towering above us to the west the road carried on climbing and soon we up at 7000 feet. 

No way to Yosemite!

Weather signs were now warning to be careful whne driving in high sided vehicles due to increasingly windy conditions and there was also snow forecast for later in the day. We pushed on. The wind was a continual battle -  the fierce gusts challenging me to maintain steering control as they came at unpredictble intervals. My hands were sweaty as I kept a tight hold of the wheel.

Tired we arrived in Minden and refuelled. The 88 was open! The long straight road began a winding ascent after about 20 miles and shortly after the snow arrived. Visibilty dropped and still we were climbing. We risked being stuck on the pass or, worse, leaving the road in the conditions. We decided to turn round.

Doing a turn in the road using forward and reverse gears is something that doesn't normally concern me. However, when you are driving an RV with no view out the back on a slippy road where the edges are hidden by snow it becomes an altogether different prospect. Wifey was dispatched out into the blizzard conditions to help guide the reversing. Succesfully accomplished, we retreated back down the pass. What a team!

 Coming down off the 88 pass

We carried on to Reno to stop for the night before using the I80 to head west tomorrow - destination to be decided. We found an RV Park behind a casino/hotel at Boomtown. The wind and snow continued to increase and the I80 was variously restricted to vehicles with snow chain/tyres or shut altogether. The weather was forecast to improve over the next couple of days but it looked like Yosemite was no longer going to be an option.