US RoadTrip 2012 - Day ??? + 4

Great time in San Francisco and area, touring Alcatraz, walking Fisherman's Wharf, Pier 39, Golden Gate Bridge, etc. and of course taking the obligatory cable car ride up and down some big hills to scenic architecture. Also spend a good deal of time several hours north in the Humboldt Redwoods State Park area in absolute awe of the giant redwoods.

Yesterday we left SF via the Bay Bridge and crossed through Oakland and took I80 East on the way to visit friends in Reno, Nevada. Seemed simple enough, until we hit a hail storm and return of winter in the Donner Pass high in the Sierra Nevada Range, which closed the highway for a bit and made the eventual trip over the summit considerably more dramatic.....and it's already fairly dramatic. We made Reno, albeit later than expected, and enjoyed a free place to stay and the company of friends.

This morning we left Reno and detoured to historic frontier mining town Virginia City, before picking up the I80 East again and spending the rest of the day amid foothills and mountains across the rest of Nevada and Utah, before a considerable change in scenery for the Bonneville Salt Flats. We carried on through beautiful Salt Lake City and crossed yet another mountain range, this time the Rockies, before stopping for the night in southern Wyoming.

Tomorrow we will spend most of the day driving through Wyoming before we stop for the night in historic Deadwood, South Dakota, and nearby Mount Rushmore.

Tons of great pics to share once we get home....which hopefully will be Friday night, t which point we can relieve poor Bridget of cat care responsibilities. Currently sitting at close to 7500 km and counting, but the Juke is bearing up very well. Great road trip car!