Day 79:
On the move again this morning, zombie-like at the beginning but after coffee and breakfast, feeling much better. Under bright clear skies and an armour-piercing sun, we launch into the freeway jet stream northbound, destination Lodi, CA, on Interstate 5.
Very steep climb right away, twice as many semi-trailers on the road as cars. Finally the top in sight, then attained, then the signs that warned of 6% grade for 6 miles, trucks limited to 35 mph in the two right lanes, radar patrolled, runaway lanes, etc, etc. And, just as we started down, this incredible mist rising up from the hidden valley below into the roadway gap between the hills, a thick grey fog. We go from both windows down and bright sun, warm air to cold and grey, windows up. A sharp and dramatic change. Down we went, had a few heart-in-the-throat moments of sheer abject terror as the trucks popped in and out of the right two lanes into the two car lanes - while going far slower than the cars overtaking them. I guess they had no choice, but still ....
We counted the trip a success since neither Jan nor I wet our pants today. Buoyed up by this, or reduced to a false sense of security by sensory overload or perhaps post-traumatic-stress disorder, we sailed through the rest of the trip. We branched off of I-5 onto US-99, then headed through Bakersfield, Turlock, Merced, Modesto, Stockton, and finally Lodi where we have stopped for the night. Did a drive around Turlock, storied in American Grafitti. No Deuce Coupes or '55 Chevys, too bad.
Tomorrow, wine tours, then north again.
