Reno Day 8: Day Trippin'

Seeing that this is a holiday weekend, we decided to stay away from Lake Tahoe for one more day. We really wanted to get out on the bikes today and planned our morning accordingly. It was a comfortable 70-ish degrees when we got out to the bikes and the sky was a beautiful blue, punctuated with fluffy white clouds. We were looking at a perfect riding day. 

Dressed and ready to go, we started the bikes, and Lin's bike wouldn't start. After about half hour of trying to figure out what the problem was, Lin sent Donna and I on our way and she stayed to get some expert advice from the local Harley-Davidson dealership. As luck would have it, the fix was simple (isn't it always?); the battery in her starter fob was low enough to affect the security system. 

Donna and I took a "short" (~200 mile) day ride. We took off up US Hwy 395 thinking to ride through the mountains. Traffic was moderate and we encountered a little wind and the occasional nasty gust, but overall we had a pleasant ride. One of the things we saw along the way was a shoe tree. 

We rode around a high mountain valley through little towns with names like Doyle, Chilcoot, Sierraville, and Loyalton. In Sierraville we stopped at a little place called Smithneck Farms and had a tri-tip sandwich that was to die for. This place was smoking the meat as we rode up. Everywhere we went, people were friendly and welcoming. 

Donna and I rolled back into Reno around 4:00 and we gathered Lin up and went to dinner. The hotels (El Dorado, Silver Legacy, and Circus Circus) were much less busy this evening than the last couple of nights. Now that the long holiday weekend is over, maybe traffic won't be quite so bad when we go to Lake Tahoe tomorrow.