day 1: exiting CA
We had stayed the nite in Visalia ( Econolodge: not special, but clean and cheap, plus enclosed off-street parking; dinner at Red Lobster was surprisingly good), and in the morning Scott and I packed a few things that seemed surplus and UPS'd them home ( note to self: the heated vest should NEVER be considered surplus!), then hit the road about 9am.
A short run east on 198 got us to Yokohl Rd, which winds up into the grassy foothills typical of the south end of the Sierras. The terrain is beautiful and parts of the road are superb, but quite a bit of it is 'extra-goaty' too, with rough and sometimes broken pavement. Still, it's better than the highway (imho, anyway).
Dahl 'trucking' on Yokohl Valley Rd
IMG_4792 (1024x767) by
Don Serl, on Flickr
Yokohl Valley Rd - awesome terrain, sometimes not so awesome tarmac...
IMG_4796 (1024x768) by
Don Serl, on Flickr
An hour or so of this and we were dumped out onto CA 190, where we made a short jog west into Springville for fuel and and early lunch - potentially pretty deserted country lay ahead.
CA 190 is also known as the Western Divide Highway:
http://www.fs.usda.gov/detail/sequoia/recreation/?cid=fsbdev3_059482
In its lower section, it twists up thru the valley of the Tule River; then it runs south on a crest at 6500-7000 feet elevation; and finally it drops into the Kern River valley, transitioning into near-desert terrain. I had badly wanted to ride this in 2015 and in also on a So Cal week in 2013, but both times weather and/or conditions were wrong, so I was excited to finally get the chance to 'explore'. I was also a bit worried, as the high country had only been open a week, so I worried there would still be a lot of grit on the road. As it came to pass, there WAS grit on the lower sections, but the upper road was perfect - go figure!
Western Divide Highway - excellence in the lower valley
IMG_4818 (2) (1024x694) by
Don Serl, on Flickr
...but watch for the grit, Scottie!
IMG_4832 (2) (1024x620) by
Don Serl, on Flickr
Jee-zuz, wasn't that great!
IMG_4836 (1024x758) by
Don Serl, on Flickr
(p.s. I've gotta go back some time, a bit later in the year, when Sherman Pass is open, but that's up at 9000 ft and usually not open till June...)
The descent into the Kern valley is mostly sweepers till you get to Johnsondale, then tighter road leads into the relaxed terrain north of Kernville ( one of my favorite small towns in CA, btw).
Upper Kern valley
IMG_4850 (2) (1024x598) by
Don Serl, on Flickr
At Kernville, the terrain ( and the trip) changed. Ahead lay dry country, sweepers and long straights with few tight sections, more of a focus on scenery and less on actually riding... and wind! Seems it's almost always blowing in the desert, eh? Certainly was for us, as we wound our way up thru one final climb to Walker Pass on CA 178, then dropped into the desert at Inyokern. About 3 hours of 'droning' followed, south on US 395, then east on I-40, all thru flat desert country bracketed by parched hills: inspiring in a way, but not my favorite. Finally, just before twilight faded, we reached Needles CA, and given the rather scruffy appearance of most of the alternatives ( and the length of the day we'd put in), we opted for the last two rooms available at the Best Western - the most expensive of the trip, at US$175 a pop! After settling in, the neighbouring Juicy's River Cafe provided about the only available supper, which unfortunately was NOT very good. Still, sleep came easily, and now the wind was at our backs...
map:
https://www.google.ca/maps/dir/Econ...a6befe479e6!2m2!1d-114.622893!2d34.849505!3e0
615 kms 11 hrs