I have a very ordinary final nights sleep at Jim’s place as I was thinking too much about getting up early.  In the end I get up at 3:45 am and finish off getting ready.  I roll Stan out of the shed and down the hill so not to wake everyone up and I am on my way by 4:30.  The reason for the early start is that I wanted to avoid the heat given that by mid morning it would be in the high 30’s.

The temp is already 24’c so it is pleasant riding even though I am in the dark.  It gives me a chance to try out Stan’s driving lights and they work great which is reassuring given the big threat deer pose.

When the sun starts to come up the scenery is special;

I ride a solid couple of hours and after Susanville the temp drops to a a very unexpected low 9’c.  I was riding through the Lassen National Forrest and together with the high altitude it had become freezing which is weird given I am bathed in sunshine.  I stop and put on every bit of clothing I have;

Now in warmer clothing I ride another hour on Highway 48 which takes me through the forest and up over the mountains.  I am delayed a couple of times due to roadworks but eventually pull up at a small town called ‘Old Station’.  The town is basically a trading post where you can refuel and a diner that makes a great breakfast;

The National Forest makes the area popular for camping, hiking and fishing.  I think it would be a great place to hang out particularly if you were on a family holiday – it did not seem to be over crowded and I only saw locals.

I have a cooked breakfast and the waitress calls me sweetie and honey while she fills my coffee cup up numerous times.  It makes me laugh as that is definitely not the norm back home.  I thaw out and take all of the gear back off as the next section to Redding will be a warm 32’c.  Back on the road I take more photo’s;

It takes me over an hour to get to Redding and the temp as been steadily increasing the closer I get.  My aim was to get to Redding be it was 40’c so I was happy to do it when it was only low 30’s.  I ride through the town and not much further along when I see the devastation of recent bushfires;

I had ridden through the area back in 2017 and was shocked at what was left of the beautiful forest – thousands of acres burnt.  I can only imagine what it would have been like when everything was on fire.

After a while I am starting to feel tired so I stop at a small store and get a red bull – because I don’t drink them normally they work well to wake me up;

As I come out of the store with my red bull in hand I find an old guy staring at Stan’s number plate.  I am sure he is a local given by his appearance and the conversation went something like this;

“Dang, SA – where’s that?”

“Stands for South Australia – a State in Australia”

“Australia?  Well I be darned!”  (spits a big stream of tobacco on ground)

“Ust better watch those rocks fallen on the road – they’d kill ya”

“Thanks mate I will”

I then jump back on Stan safe in the knowledge that a rock slide is now likely to take me out (picture is of the very first corner after our chat);

I keep going and as expected the temp drops as I get back up in altitude heading for the coast;

I have a long ride through the mountains and run into trouble for the second time on this trip thinking I am about to run out of fuel.   I had been looking for petrol for a fair while and again it was flashing empty.  Fortunately I made it to a small town called Lakeside where I was able to fill up.  The joke was that it was only another 10 miles up the road to where I was going.

After a very big haul I finally pull up in Bram’s driveway at 1:30 pm.  All up it had taken me 9 hrs to go 631 klms.  I did have a few delays re road works but the majority of the time was spent twisting and turning through the mountains.  The ride actually felt more like doing 2000 klms as it was both physically and mentally exhausting;

It was great to see Bram again and meet his partner Maggie.  I did not meet Maggie in 2017 as she was away.  After unpacking Stan I have a much needed 30 min nap.

Later that evening I get taken over for dinner at Maggie’s parents (Luis & Siobhan).  They live on a 40 acre block that has thick old pine trees that Luis farms to make custom lumber.  We go for a walk and they point out historical markings dating back to the 1800’s;

After the walk it was time to kick back in front of the fire and be entertained by Luis with his stories of when he worked as a Sheriffs Deputy in the 1970’s;

Luis also told me about the time his goat was killed by a mountain lion in the back yard.  I fell over when he produced pictures (he set up a night camera) that show the lion eating it when it came back in the middle of the night.  Lucky I did not know that before the nature walk.

We wrapped the evening up and headed back home.  On the way back I was lucky enough to see some deer and a raccoon.  The raccoon reminded me of a possum wearing a lone ranger mask.

Next morning I decided it was time for a day off and to just have a bit of a planning / chore day.  I managed to get a bit more of the route ahead of me sorted and also do a bit of maintenance.  I was even lucky enough to skype Helen who was about to go to work (I make sure that I tell her I am having a good time but not too good given she has to work!).

Bram did show me pictures of their recent trip to Canada and was urging me to go up and have a look around.  I was convinced until Helen told me during our skype how a suspected serial killer is on the loose and its all over the media back home.

I spend the rest of the day just hanging out with the dog (Charlie) and reading a book that Bill had given me, “Mistakes were made but not by me” – sounds perfect.

Breakfast the next day and Maggie comes back from walking Charlie.  She tells me that he got spooked and would not go up the track – she finds what appears to be mountain lion tracks.  The neighbours have also lost a couple of cats recently so I get told to be careful if I go for a walk.  I am thinking that I am with Charlie and will be hiding under the bed!

Maggie heads off to work and Bram appears for a 10:30 start at work.  These guys get absolutely flogged over here with the hours they work – money is good but I don’t envy them.  I say goodbye to my mate as I will be long in bed by the time he gets home at around 1:00 am.

Another lazy day and much the same as the day before I hang out with Charlie.  We did manage to watch an episode of Magnum PI – I can remember watching it when it was new!  I manage to get Stan washed and all of my gear sorted.

Maggie arrives home and cooks a fantastic pasta dinner for us.  Again I have been spoilt by my hosts who are just a great couple.  I look forward to the wedding invitation guys. ha

Tomorrow I am back on Stan and we are off making our way to the Motocross – I have 2 full days to get there in time for the racing on Saturday.

WP Rocket