Hartman Travels - USA 2018
16 March 2018 – Early Start and Qantas Seat Fiasco
Stuff 5:30 am flights—give me the red-eye anytime. I’d rather lounge in Melbourne for a few hours than drag myself out of bed at 3:30 am. Check-in got off to a bad start when Qantas claimed my pre-booked bulkhead seat was an exit row, barring me because of my post-op sling. I’d booked bulkhead for legroom, not exit row. Turns out it wasn’t an exit row at all—so I missed out for nothing. Same story on the Melbourne–LA leg. Two flights, two missed chances for comfort. Stupid Qantas.
16th March – Perth to Victorville
Both flights were smooth enough, Perth to Melbourne QF480 left a minute or three late. I was in the seat Maria had and Maria had my extra leg room seat.
Transfer in Melbourne was a breeze. Very quiet, no lines for security or immigration and we strolled through to Gate 9 where we arrived just at the scheduled boarding time.
Flight QF95 was in a 10 day old 787. Inside its mostly just a plane like any other plane although I suspect it has just slightly more leg room. Of course I didn’t have as much leg room as the seat I paid $180 for but wasn’t allowed to sit it but we won’t go there.
The flight was as smooth as any we have been on. 13 hours and 25 minutes after departure we arrived in LA. Again, Immigration, bag collection and customs was very quick.
Maria’s hubby Charlie met us and drove us to the Alamo Rental Facility. Rental was smooth, only a half hearted attempt to give us a ‘bargain’ upgrade at double the price I could have got it when I originally rented the car online. I was hoping for a Mazda CX5 but there was none so we chose a Kia Sportage of 10 or so cars we had to choose from.
Rayls is doing most of the driving on this trip due to my shoulder op. She did very well too, her knuckles were very white but it was tough going.
We need to be in Vegas tomorrow night so we headed out of LA straight away, along 105 and 60 to Riverside which was around 110k’s. After some lunch we headed along 215 and 15 to Victorville which was a further 85k’s. We are in a Holiday Inn, nice enough.
Much needed showers and rest, the days of trying to stay awake to kill jet lag are behind us, too old for that. So here I am at 11:17pm Friday night typing this.
13 Walmart trucks today, a good start. No shops.
Las Vegas tomorrow, around 310k’s away.
17th March – Las Vegas – Livin On a Prayer
Rayls got us to Vegas safe and sound. Around 310 K’s of driving.
We are both a bit jet lagged still but not as bas as other times we have travelled.
Saturday night in Vegas, combined with the fact I wanted to be within walking distance of the stadium, makes for expensive hotel rooms. We are in a cheapie on Tropicana just opposite the MGM Grand, next to Hooters.
After a stop for lunch and a quick look at an Outlet Mall, we arrived at the hotel just after 3pm. Just enough time to unpack and have a rest.
The walk to T Mobile Arena took about 2 minutes. The arena is amazing, we had nose bleed seats and had to go up 2 flights of escalators. The second escalator was as long as any i have seen. Then, on the very top level, you have to go down a real steep aisle to get to your seats. There were some middle aged women, so younger than me, baulking a going down. It did feel a little unsafe but makes for better viewing.
The concert was usual Bon Jovi. He (they) put on a good show.
Walk back to the hotel via a Walgreens. All the entertainment on the strip and we go to a pharmacy! Back to hotel around 11:30 and bed. 5:00am I’m up typing this.
19th March – Las Vegas to Cedar City
It was a comfortable 300 kilometre drive from Las Vegas to Cedar City today, 3 states – Nevada, Arizona and Utah.
We left Vegas around 8am and stopped for fuel and breakfast just next to the Nellis Airforce Base just a few K’s north of Vegas. Traffic was heavy and roadworks didn’t help.
After an hour we made a short stop in Mesquite before continuing on I15, into Arizona and through the Virgin River Gorge up to the Utah border and into St George. Rayls did all the driving and she is going really well.
At St George we met up for lunch with Amy and Steve. Always nice to meet up again. After lunch, instead of taking the direct I15 route to Cedar City we took the longer way through the town of Veyo where we stopped at a pie shop. Nice banana cream pie to enjoy over the next few days.
In CC we will stay with Amy and Steve until Friday. We are both dog tired but managed a Wal Mart stop and dinner at Sizzlers before chatting with Amy and Steve until around 9pm.
We both slept as well as we can these days.
20th March – Cedar City
Just a quiet day in CC. Rayls and I headed out to Home Depot, Rayls managed to sneak away and buy my birthday gift.
We went to a few other stores before buying lunch and heading back to the house. Pottered around the house, Rayls and Amy did go to a Quilt Shop Rayls found but apparently not so good and no purchases made. Amy made a nice chicken dinner and we watched a movie. Nice day.
21st March – Cedar City
Dreadful nights sleep for me but we push on.
We all went up to Brian Head to drop Steve off. Brian Head has an average annual snowfall of over 360 inches, and has an elevation of 9600 feet. Steve was going cross country skiing with some friends. He was going around 8 miles and it would take about 4 hours. Seems tough going to me.
Brian Head is about a 40 minute drive from CC. Having dropped Steve off we headed back to CC and it’s mere 5000 feet altitude. I was dropped off at the house whilst Rayls and Amy went to Joann’s. They also bought lunch which they brought home.
After lunch they went back out to Ace Hardware and I tagged along. Rayls checked out the fabric, major purchase, and I checked out the store. They are developing the lay out of the store and it seems the firearm section is only about half the size it was before. the fabric section seemed much larger. Good sign.
The car has an error message referring to the front right tyre being under inflated. The service went to didn’t gibe air readings, it just filled up the tyre. Now it is over inflated and the error message remains. Pain. Need to go somewhere that gives air pressure readings.
22nd March – Cedar City
Rayls and I headed off to the main street so Rayls could check out a quilt shop. Then to Walmart and back home.
Lunch was Amy and Steve’s treat at Market Grill.
Quiet afternoon.
We all went to Applebees for dinner.
Leaving for Salt Lake City tomorrow.
Salt Lake City – 23rd March
Always sad to say our goodbyes to Amy and Steve. Everybody who knows me knows how much I love it here in CC.
It’s just a tad over 400 k’ from Cedar City to Salt Lake City. Rayls drove whilst I did the hard work of keeping the music playing and keeping a tally of the Walmart trucks. We made a stop at Draper which is about 60 K’s short of SLC. Rayls checked out the quilt shop which is either called Thimbles and Threads or Quilters Lodge. The sign out the front says the former, they welcome you inside as the latter. It is a goodie as Rayls was here well over an hour.
The drive between CC and SLC is very scenic – the mountains are at your side the entire way and are often snow capped, The speed limit is 80mph, so it’s fast going.
After Draper we headed to Gardner Village. Brick-lined paths and 22 boutique-style, locally-owned shops surrounding the historic Gardner Mill. It is a sensational setting and I had a good time wandering around as Rayls checked out Pine Needles, a quilt shop. I love it here, it was around 15C, the sun was shining and the water in the stream is crystal clear. None of the shops interested me but the setting is just great. Rayls enjoyed the quilt shop and then we were on our way.
It was dinner time and the GPS was set for a Texas Roadhouse which was packed. There was a waiting time of an hour and half so we continued on towards a Black Bear Diner near the hotel but we stumbled across a Cracker Barrel restaurant and that was where we had dinner.
It was just dark as we arrived at our hotel – 420 K’s from CC. Good day and tomorrow we head back into Nevada.
Elko – 24th March
330 K’s today, Salt Lake City to Elko in Nevada.
Lots of salt lakes either side of the road as you start out on I80 towards San Francisco.
We stopped at a Maccas for breakfast (it was nearly midday) – overheard one of the staff talking about the 3 jobs he juggled. One of them was picking up road kill from the side of the road. Nice!.
Rayls is still doing all the driving, I’m still 2 days from being able to drive.
Elko is an exciting place. It has been the home of the annual National Cowboy Poetry Gathering for the last 33 years. Luckily its in January so we missed it. Elko is also home to legal prostitutes and contains active brothels. Under Nevada law, any county with a population of less than 400,000 is allowed to license brothels if it so chooses.
Just before dinner we called in at a K Mart, dreadful store but it had a casino. Amazing.
Very disappointed about the news from Cricket Australia. No room for cheating.
Tomorrow on to Reno.
Reno – 25th March
A long day driving. Years ago we could do 700, even 800+ in a day but the 460K we did today was tough. Nice scenery, light traffic but still tough. However we are getting closer to our goal of reaching the redwood forests north of San Francisco.
We stopped at Winnemucca for a look see. Nice town. Then onto Reno. We passed the town of Lovelock which has a correctional facility which housed OJ Simpson until November last year.
Reno is pretty much a smaller version of Vegas. Not much for us here but we sure had a nice dinner at the Texas Roadhouse. We were in bed early and even I managed s decent sleep. We are still at altitude, nearly 5000 feet which seems to play havoc with sleep patterns. Tomorrows drive to Red Bluff is just 320 K’s but takes us 4500 feet downhill back to sea level.
I keep looking at the news outlets hoping all the cricket disaster was just a bad dream but alas no. Disappointed does not even come close to expressing how Rayls and I feel. It has kept the conversation going though.
Tomorrow my sling can come off and I can start to drive a bit!
Red Bluff – 26th March
320 K’s today, Reno to Red Bluff, very scenic and I drove the entire way! Lake Almanor was a particular bonus.
Red Bluff is bisected by Interstate 5 and is situated on the banks of the upper Sacramento River. Interstate 5 runs from San Diego north to Seattle and the Canadian border.
In the evening we went to a movie – “I Can Only Imagine”. The story line looked interesting and it was a very good movie. Only problem was that it was religious based and the large church group that were there sang along and waved their arms to the two songs that were in the movie. Never had that happen at a movie I’ve been to before.
Eureka – 27th March
Eureka, we made it. Todays 230 kilometre drive on State Route 36 was white knuckle driving at its best. Windy roads, up 4000 feet and back down to sea level. Speed limit was 90kph most of the way but often there was long stretches way under that. Many hair pin bends and some road works that held us up for up to 20 minutes waiting for the pilot vehicle. Then we had to stop many times to best take in the magnificent scenery. We drove from Red Bluff to Fortuna and then a few K’s further to Eureka which is pretty much on the Pacific Ocean.
The last few kilometres into Fortuna saw us get a glimpse of the mighty redwood trees. They were so thick and close to the road it was like driving at night.
Tonight we are in Eureka and tomorrow start down the Valley of Giants road as we start heading to San Francisco and then LA.
Avenue of the Giants – 28th March
Long Day. Started out in Eureka and ended up in Garberville.
We started out with a short drive to Ferndale which contains dozens of well-preserved Victorian storefronts and homes. Lots of interesting shops including a quilt shop. At the suggestion of locals we to the cemetery which is on the side of a hill and at the top reveals wonderful views over Ferndale and beyond.
A short drive took us to the Pacific coast and Fleener Creek Overlook. It was a pretty dirty day and the ocean reflected that. Still a nice time looking out at the ocean. The sand is black, nowhere nice as the white sandy beaches back home.
Back to Fortuna for lunch. Burger King, dreadful service but the ice cream cone I got at the end was enormous. Made my day!
Then onto Highway 101 and The Avenue of the Giants which is a scenic highway running through Humboldt Redwoods State Park. The highway is notable for the Coast Redwoods that overshadow the road and surround the area. Its a drive of around 50 k’s with numerous stops to walk the trails and admire these amazing trees. Some are over 300 feet high and 40 foot round at the base. The Dyerville Giant once stood 362 ft. tall and was considered the tallest tree in the park before its fall in a 1991 storm. The redwood’s crash to the ground moved the earth so much that it registered on a nearby seismograph and one local, who heard the impact from half a mile away, thought a train had crashed.
The walks we took were very peaceful, so quiet and green. We just kept commenting how awesome it was. We spent time near a creek, very pleasant.
We ended up in Garberville, a small town of less than 1000 people. No restaurants of note so we got stuff from the grocery store. The hotel we are in owned by an Indian gentleman, originally from New Delhi. He was very polite and didn’t mention the cricket. I see some South Africans booed Steve Smith at the airport as was about to fly out to Australia. What scumbags.
29th March – Lodi
The road to LA didn’t start well. In fact it was one of the worst days ever. It was traffic from beginning to end with not much achieved.
We started out in Garberville with a few stops away to admire the views. Lunch in Santa Rosa where we decided to try for Muir Woods just 30 k’s north of San Francisco. We have been there before and enjoyed the walk so went for it again. Sadly they have changed the rules and you need to have a reservation now. So now, having got that close to San Francisco we decided to head east and spend the night at Lodi which is on interstate 5 just below Sacramento. That took us away from San Francisco and its traffic but into different traffic. We crawled much of the 150 k’s to Lodi.
In Lodi, we went to an Applebees hanging out for food and a drink. The service was poor and it just finished off a poor day.
30th March – Bakersfield
400 k’s down to Bakersfield. Just 200 k’s out of LA.
Pottered around Lodi, drove, pottered around Bakersfield. A couple of crashes on Highway 99 heading the other way saw traffic bank for miles. In one crash an ambulance was leaving as we went past in the opposite direction. A car was upside down in the middle of the road.
The rental car keeps warning that the air pressure on one of the tyres is down. It was the front right in Cedar City. The problem is the air compressors at the servo only put air in the tyres, they don’t have a gauge to tell you what the air pressure is. I am not inclined to buy a gauge I would get little use from. Steve helped me out in CC and all tyres were 35. Then a few days ago the warning came back on and it was the right rear tyre this time – back to 21. Yesterday I stopped for fuel and put air in the tyre. Just have to guess how much as no gauge. You have to drive a few k’s before the warning resets. So now I have the right rear at 27. I pulled up at a server here in Bakersfield and to use the air compressor is $1.50 and no gauge. With all the USA has to offer, paying for air and with no gauge. Crazy.
I have to say I have seen a different USA on this trip. Seen a fair amount of poor behaviour, hooning, tailgating and more. One dude on a motor cycle going between heavy traffic thumped my right side mirror. Dickhead. Things are a lot more expensive, its almost like Australia now! Still love the place and overall the trip has been great. Just seen a few things that have surprised me.
The traffic light system in the USA was a lot better when I first started coming here. No waiting at red arrows when there is no traffic coming like you do back home. Now, its much the same here as it is back home. Pain.
31st March – Moreno Valley
Today we headed another 300+ k’s to Moreno Valley, about 80 k’s inland from LA.
Those of you who know me know I love the sixties, it was the time I grew up and I would go back there in a heartbeat…. as long as I can take my mobile phone with me!
I had 3 bucket list items from the sixties that I finally finished ticking off today. Number 1 was seeing Scott McKenzie sing San Francisco (Be Sure To Wear Flowers In Your Hair). Did that in 1994 and had a wonderful friendship with Scott until his death in 2012.
Number 2 was to meet Jerry Mathers, the Beaver from Leave it to Beaver. As a youngster in the early 1960’s I watched Leave It To Beaver each week. It was always a dream to meet the Beav and that that happened in March 2014.
Number 3 was to meet Dawn Wells, Mary Ann from Gilligan’s Island. Today she had a meet and greet at the Soboba Casino in San Jacinto. We booked a hotel nearby and at 6pm went off to the Casino. Horrible smokey place but after some formalities Rayls and I got to meet the lovely lady. Believe it or not, she will be 80 in October. Only time for a short chat but it was great to meet her. We had photographs taken which will be online tomorrow. Got a T Shirt and an autographed photo. All for free.
We tried to use out $15 credit gambling voucher but couldn’t figure out the complexities of the one armed bandit which took $2 off us in the process. We got a $2 credit slip but then couldn’t find the cashier. Gave up and went back to the hotel.
2nd April – Los Angeles
Nice quiet day in Carson with Marie, Charlie and Harley.
Lucille’s for dinner.
3rd April – Los Angeles
Today we went to the Westwood Village Memorial Park and Mortuary which is located just off Wilshire Boulevard. Although it is the resting place of some of the entertainment industry’s greatest names, it also contains the graves of many uncelebrated people. For example, when Marilyn Monroe died in 1962, Joe DiMaggio, responsible for Monroe’s arrangements, chose Westwood not because of its celebrities but because it was the resting place of Monroe’s mother’s friend, Grace Goddard, and Goddard’s aunt, Ana Lower, both of whom had cared for Monroe as a child.
There are hundreds of celebrities at rest here. Monroe, Jack Lemmon, Walther Matthua and Burt Lancaster to name a few. I particularly wanted to see Don Knotts and Bob Crane.
4th April – LA
Just another quiet day, very pleasant.
5th April – LA
Our last day and as always… we enjoy our time in the USA but look forward to going home.
Our hosts Maria and Charlie have been wonderful. Sadly Charlie has been away looking after his elderly Mother.
We left the house around 7pm, refuelled (that tyre is down to 8psi but ehh). Our last US meal was to be an iHop but we couldn’t find it so ended up at at Maccas. Sad!
Getting to the airport took a little longer due to losing the 405 for the 110. Then traffic in the airport was just horrendous – took 30 minutes to get to the international terminal where I dropped off Rayls with the luggage. Then I battled my way through the traffic to the Alamo Rental office and left the car. We did 4726 kilometres in the car. Apart from the tyre issue it went fine.
The shuttle bus got me back to the terminal – Rayls had managed to get a trolley and was waiting in line. Check in and security was quick and we were a bit over an hour early. Sadly QF12 to Sydney was at our gate and ran very late and so our flight was delayed about 45 minutes which we picked up on the way to Melbourne.
Going home – 7th April
6th April didn’t last long.
The flight to Melbourne (QF96) started 45 minutes late but landed on time. There is work at Melbourne Airport, we were bussed from the plane to the terminal.
Immigration was a breeze but waiting for bags took ages. They didn’t start coming for nearly a half hour and then ours were towards the end. Customs was relatively quick but we find the transfer to domestic difficult. The bag drop wouldn’t read the tags and just a pain. We had a 4 hour layover so all good time wise but tired and cranky.
Flight home, a 737 was OK and we landed on time.
All good!
Another trip finished. Thanks for following along
— Gary
