My October 2013 Road Trip

I like an occasional automobile road trip.  I just returned from an adventure to St. George, Utah for a week long excursion billed as "improve your golf game". This was a Road Scholar program.  It was the first Road Scholar adventure for me.  It was a lot of fun; golf instruction in a group environment for three mornings, 9-holes of golf with foursomes picked by the programleader from the 19 participants.  A bus tour of Zion followed on day four.  Day five was 18 holes using the  scramble format.  The golf courses in St. George are almost surrealistic with multiple shades of green against backgrounds of beautiful golf course homes and distant red bluffs and mesa.  I don't normally golf alot but have played some and knew about the scenary in the area beforehand.

Following the conclusion of that program, I took the long way home.  Highway 50 in Nevada is billed as the loneliest highway in the USA.  I drove it long ago and wanted to experience it once more. I made a hotel reservation using Hotwire.com in Elko, Nevada thinking that I would have a leisurely three or four hour northerly drive to Elko, overnight and then drive back to Colorado Springs the next day.  When I used Mapquest to confirm the distance and time, I was shocked to discover that I really wanted to make a reservation in Ely rather Elko.  The distance and time were therefore considerably longer, about seven hours, plus a time zone change. Unable to change a non-refundable reservation, I decided to go to Elko anyway and drive an additional section of Highway 50 heading west.  I stopped in Ely on the way at the Hotel Nevada and enjoyed an incredible $6.00 steak and eggs breakfast in an old timey hotel/casino restaurant that played soft 70's rock music. One of the walls were adorned with pictures of race cars from the Silver State Classic Challenge. I made it to Elko in time for the last half of the Bronco's football game, stopping at a Pony Express memorial along the way.

Now I was faced with the decision as to whether to drive I-80 back to Colorado Springs and forgo Highway 50 or return to Ely once more and drive the section of Highway 50 that I had already covered.  I decided to return to Ely, stopping for breakfast once more at the Hotel Nevada, and drive Highway 50 Easterly across Utah to connect with I-70 near Salina, Utah.  This was a long day, almost 18 hours from Elko, leaving in the dark at 6:00 am and arriving at my home in Colorado Springs about midnight.  I stopped for a few naps, still I was glad to see that of course I still have it --- the ability to drive long distances.

I took a single CD on this trip - A Traveling Wilbury's edition that I played repeatedly when I couldn't listen to the local NPR radio.

I should have road trips out of my system for a while. I finally bonded with my car - a 2010 Ford Explorer XLT with cloth seats that I have come to appreciate for how warm, quiet, efficient, and reliable it truly is.

My Grand Prix Story

After recent outpatient surgery that included anesthesia I became possessed by an incredible urge to own a Grand Prix. Its not like I never owned a Grand Prix before. Way back when, the first car that I bought on my own in Pueblo, Colorado was a one year old 1963 Pontiac Grand Prix - an incredibly beautiful and fast car for the day - it was gold with a white Naugahyde interior, front bucket seats, 4-speed stick on the floor, blue dash lights. I let it go after about two years thinking I would be another Bob Dylan. However, that didn't work out and I subsequently went back to work and bought in Colorado Springs, Colorado was a ten year old 1957 Pontiac Bonneville Convertible with blue trim off a used car lot for $500. The car had "Fuel Injection" in reverse slant block letters on the front fenders. I was later to learn, much later, that it was one of only 630 manufactured. Plus I believe mine had air-conditioning, one of eight. Air conditioning in those days was not integrated with the heater, it was a separate box that hung under the middle of the dash, so I recall. It wasn't in the best of shape. Under the hood, the fuel injectors had been replaced by a four barrel carburetor, wore tires badly, and the horizontal speedometer was so erratic so I couldn't tell how fast I was driving. After about two years, I let it go in favor of a beautiful white 1965 Chevrolet Impala Super Sport convertible with black top and interior from Red Nolan Cadillac in Colorado Springs, Colorado. I never owned another Pontiac but I always remembered those two cars. So I decided I wanted one of the last Grand Prix series.

At first I was excited by the GXP's but decided they might be a little too radical. I found a beautiful crimson red 2007 GT with black leather interior. That was the last year for the supercharged 3.8L V6. It has a nice history; started out as a rental in El Paso, Texas for one year racking up 19K miles, then sold as a GM certified car into the Colorado Springs area to one owner who traded it in at the Red Nolan, now Infiniti, dealer earlier this summer with 91K miles. It was subsequently immaculately detailed and listed for $10,500 for a month or so but didn't sell. It was then sold to the South West dealer in Pueblo where I bought it for $9,000. (I paid the same for a six year old Honda Accord 10 years ago.) It seems perfect, Carfax history shows great maintenance. Cruises I-25 at 75 mph turning only 2,000 rpm, fascinating. A great Grandpa car.

Here's a few pictures as it appeared on the the dealer site:

Eurovan Gas Mileage on June - July 2013 Road Trip

Eurovan Gas Mileage on June - July 2013 Road Trip
Date	Location	$/gallon	# gallons	$	Mileage	Delta Miles	Delta MPG	Cum Miles	Cum Gallons	Cum MPG
6/25/13	Colorado Springs, CO	3.699	15.282	56.6	135644
6/27/13	Burlington, CO	3.939	7.399	29.1	135846	202	27.3	202	7.399	27.3
6/28/13	Ogalla, NE	3.809	14.497	55.2	136044	198	13.7	400	21.896	18.3
6/30/13	Alliance, NE	3.595	9.829	35.4	136244	200	20.3	600	31.725	18.9
7/03/13	Spearfish, SD	3.549	15.775	56	136536	292	18.5	892	47.500	18.8
7/05/13	Exit 42 off I94, ND	3.799	15.822	60.1	136824	288	18.2	1180	63.322	18.6
7/07/13	New Town, ND	3.699	10.776	39.9	137036	212	19.7	1392	74.098	18.8
7/08/13	Mandan, ND	3.699	8.848	32.7	137217	181	20.5	1573	82.946	19.0
7/08/13	Glendive, MT	3.804	13.147	50.1	137416	199	15.1	1772	96.093	18.4
7/09/13	Glendive, MT	3.809	11.688	44.5	137655	239	20.4	2011	107.781	18.7
7/09/13	Gilette, WY	3.669	13.346	49	137903	248	18.6	2259	121.127	18.6
7/09/13	Fort Collins, CO	3.699	16.215	60	138205	302	18.6	2561	137.342	18.6

US Highway 385, Day Four

Left Lake McConaughy and continued north easterly on US 26.  This was a detour from US 385 per se in order to camp at Lake McConaughy. Took the time to puruse the historical markers along this stretch of highway that parallels the North Platte River and was a natural immigration route for early fur traders, Christain missionarys, the Military, Mormans, California Gold Rushers, Cattleman, Homesteaders - the usual suspects. There are not any State Parks along the section of US 385 that I bypassed.  Our destination was Chardron State Park in the Sand Hills of Nebraska.

This is the railroad tracks parallel to US 26.  Notice the ceramic railbed members and the consistent rock fill that enable the near perfect alignment of the rails and consequently the highest efficiency in carrying freight.

Narcissa is a most unusual name, but perhaps not for a massacred missionary.

Lunch stop in Bridgeport at a local Mexican restaurant that featured excellant food at cheap prices.  The place was popular with Mexican laborers as well, about 25 showed up just as we were leaving. Discovered the place using my GPS road navigator.

US 385 is locally named the Gold Rush Byway.

The Sand Hills become greener and less industrial.