Getting There
Looking to escape winter and find some summer we decided on a March trip to Death Valley. Needing some warmth and snowless roads we all headed out from our places of living to meet up in Deer Lodge, Montana. Jenn and I having a long day ahead of us left Edmonton at 5:00am, the day consisted of bare roads, icy roads and snowy roads, arriving in Deer Lodge around 4:30pm; we had managed to make good time. Aaron and Cassidy (his pup) arrived next, coming in from Rossland. With Mark getting a late start out of Cranbrook he wouldn’t arrive until 11:00pm. With a thirst for some beer and hungry tummy’s the three of us headed to the Broken Arrow for some beers and some very large cuts of beef while we waited for Mark.
The next morning we headed back on the road south to find that elusive summer. I always enjoy driving in Montana; the amazing views just never stop. I do not enjoy the drive through eastern Idaho, the cross winds through there are not fun, either on a motorcycle or an SUV with a RTT. Our little caravan, Aaron and his 3rd Gen 4runner, Mark and is Jeep XJ and our 5th gen 4runner, made our way into Twin falls, Idaho.
We stopped and grabbed food supplies before heading to the town of Jackpot, Nevada for the night. Two days of driving and still haven’t found summer yet; we got rooms at the four Jacks Hotel and Casino. Some slots, foosball, plenty of drinks and catching up with friends made for an enjoyable evening.
Waking the next morning to find fresh snow had yet again covered the landscape.
Some breakfast.
And some more driving.
We decided Ely, Nevada was a good place for lunch.
It was later that afternoon we found ourselves standing on the side of the highway looking at a closed campground and hot springs in the middle of central Nevada. With the sun setting and private lands surrounding us we headed to Tonopah to figure out a place to stay. Over supper the waitress gave us some local intel on another hot spring we could camp at for free. Done! Setting up in the dark we crawled into our sleeping bags and called it a night.