Southbound and Out

All of us together, FINALLY!

Utterly elated, relieved, and rejuvenated we phoned James when we knew the car was ready and told him to get ready! We were out! We tossed all our junk in the car and finally jetted out of Corvallis around 10:30 pm with Tahoe in our sights. Navigating cloying banks of fog and steep passes we cruised through the night, rolling into Tahoma, CA in the late morning sunshine

James and his girlfriend, Meghan, have a little love loft nestled amongst massive cedars and ponderosa pines eight blocks West of sapphire-blue Lake Tahoe. With a bathroom, quite literally a one butt kitchen, and a small room with a tiny loft it does not take much from the woodstove to heat their nest.  As we parked the car, a slightly hung-over James Teeter, replete with pajama pants and bleary eyes meandered out of the house

“LET’S GET PACKED!” Brian, Josh, I excitedly exclaimed.

“Whoa” James replied, “Let’s just chill out for a moment.” After a cup of coffee we headed out on an allegedly “half-mile” hike down to the lake. An hour and a half later we were back at the cabin laughing and relaxed, the majestic pine forests and pristine water rekindled our sense of purpose. We did not need to be rushing. Nature reminded us to enjoy the moment.

While we were a week and a half behind schedule, we were together and in exactly the right place. We quickly realized that our roof rack needed a few modifications so James and I scurried off to the plumbing office to cut and rethread our galvanized pipe. A few hours later after bolting pipe to the car and sealing with Lock-Tight, our roof rack was ready and our gear was organized and loaded into the car. 

Organized in boxes

All the gear

We stopped to say a quick goodbye to Ms. Meghan, James’ lovely lady, at Alpenglow outdoor gear shop where her boss pulled out a bottle of Fireball and encouraged us to take a swig for the road. James, the driver, abstained and the rest of us drank a little liquid courage and off we rolled down to Bridgeport hot springs in the eastern Sierra-Nevada.

After a couple hour soak in the springs, my hands resembled my great-grandfathers’ so we headed back up the steep hill and camped for the night. The temperature dropped to the low teens and we were damn cold. Nobody slept well and we packed up as fast as we could in the morning and cruised towards Bishop, CA.

In Bishop, James, Josh, and I took a trip down memory lane, stopping at Josh’s favorite Chevron to fill the gas tank and at Joseph’s market to grab some food. This time Josh chose not to purchase any Peach Snaps and was able to hold it together at the Chevron. Always a good sport, Josh posed for some photos.

Josh at his favorite Gas Station

Best,
    Elliott