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<\/a><\/p>\na relatively light load it took over three hours until we were finally out the gate,<\/p>\n later still leaving Gerlach [note need for chains or snow tires] where the new postmaster has short-cropped maroon hair and wears calf-high boots.\u00a0 At least on a Wednesday morning.<\/p>\n Just about where the AC went out last year we experienced a considerable wait<\/p>\n for roadwork,<\/p>\n after which I was obliged to pass a Taco of Cali lamos all decked out in camo for fall hunting, for<\/p>\n some reason, to catch up with and keep pace with the pilot car, then it was Fernley for minor<\/p>\n groceries, Fallon for gas at which point L. took over while I remained fairly comatose all the way<\/p>\n to Ely – with a small pause for lunch at the Antelope<\/a> turn after Cold Springs – for refueling, after which I drove again. We made a small stop in the Western Desert’s intense winds for the dogs<\/p>\n and us to pee, careened in crosswinds into Delta for motel and, great find,<\/p>\n the Ashton Burger Barn<\/a> on the Topaz Highway, then back to the motel with this anomalous<\/p>\n Texas M3 in the parking lot for another not so great sleep.<\/p>\n Groggily up in the morning I drove an hour into the sun to Salina<\/a> where Linda<\/p>\n took us onto the Interstate while I drank motel coffee and dozed<\/p>\n all the way to The Trail Through Time<\/a> which seems to have had a burn since we were there<\/p>\n last…94 degrees, with breeze. Linda continued on 70E through spectacular geology<\/a> to Rifle, famous for Lauren Boebert<\/a> [“she wants your freedom”], gas at the Cum ‘n’ Go and me to drive<\/p>\n less interesting country to Minturn where we turned onto 24, climbed steeply past Gilman<\/a> and<\/p>\n after two nameless passes [one being the Continental Divide at 10,400′] descended to Leadville<\/a>, which proved to be a truly awful wannabe tourist pit with stationary traffic, cheaply tarted up victorian architecture and trashy backstreets which, seen while avoiding downtown’s clogged main, were actually kind of interesting in a down-at-the heel way…photogenic, even, but it was late and tired and not worth making the effort despite the weirdness. Fortunately we’d decided<\/p>\n ahead of time* not to stay in Leadville so pressed on to The Loyal Duke<\/a> in Salida, who were great, as was dinner outdoors at The Fritz<\/a> as live music played in the Riverside Park across the<\/p>\n street where this MGTF, visiting from Connecticut, was parked.<\/p>\n After dinner we retrieved truck and dogs, returned to the Duke <\/a>for rest only slightly better and<\/p>\n<\/a><\/p>\n<\/a><\/p>\n<\/a><\/p>\n<\/a><\/p>\n<\/a><\/p>\n<\/a><\/p>\n<\/a><\/p>\n<\/a><\/p>\n<\/a><\/p>\n<\/a><\/p>\n<\/a><\/p>\n<\/a><\/p>\n<\/a> <\/a><\/p>\n<\/a> <\/a><\/p>\n<\/a><\/p>\n<\/a> <\/a><\/p>\n<\/a><\/p>\n<\/a><\/p>\n<\/a><\/p>\n<\/a><\/p>\n<\/a><\/p>\n<\/a><\/p>\n<\/a><\/p>\n