Sounds like good fun, except for the alternator part.

Was that weight with driver aboard?

Thanks, Jake

On 9/25/07, Don Hanson <dhanson@gorge.net> wrote:
>
> Just had a wonderful trip to the Eastern Sierras in California.  From
> Southeastern Wa. state down the high desert, through the Reno Carson
> valley
> and to Bishop, California for another bicycle race.
>   First day out, I camped at a BLM campground off US 395 just northeast of
> Susanville, Ca after about 9 hours on the road, with one detour, an hour
> on
> my bike to keep my legs loose.  Odd campsite, up high on a juniper mesa,
> with only the campground host there and some snow on the ground from an
> early fall weather system I was playing tag with all weekend..  The 84
> with
> inline 4 1.8 liter ran great, the abbreviated westy interior worked
> perfectly to give me a good rest for the next day.
>   Down 395 again, through Reno and it's normal traffic jam,  right at the
> morning rush hour.  Thousands of Harleys on 395...no exaggeration.  The
> trees were still fully leaved, just starting to yellow.  There were
> spectacular thundershowers around, spewing snow and rain, putting a full
> white cap on the peaks of the Sierras.  Not exactly what I was wanting to
> see for our bicycle race, which involved climbing up the highest paved
> roads
> out of the Bishop area..
>   Camped at Brown's Town Campground just south of Bishop at around 4pm,
> Friday evening,  just in time to pick up my race entry, mix up all my food
> and drink for the race's early start, and hit the sack to listen to the
> rain
> and hail on my van's roof...A nice commercial campground, interesting to
> watch the urban campers from LA showing the cattle to their kids...."Look
> at
> that, Jason, that is a C.O.W......Like what you get at McDonalds.."
>   Camped there again Sat. nite, then down to Big Pine for Sunday's racing,
> which took us up to the base of the glaciers north of  Mt. Whitney, then
> to
> the rim of Death Valley across the Owens Valley and then up to another
> mountain top finish amongst some ancient Bristlecone pines..
>   Back in the van Sunday at around 2pm and headed north, quite a bit more
> tuckered out.  Planned on spending some time flyfishing near Paisley, Or.
> on
> the return, but my alternator quit.  That saga in another thread.
>   Weighed the van at a weigh station and saw 4100lbs total, with 1900 rear
> and 2100 front, full travel mode...
> A very fun outing.  Learned a lot about electrics on the van, and became
> intimately acquainted with all the mountain side road in the Owens Valley
> of
> N. California's Eastern Sierras..
>   Don Hanson
>

--
Jake
1984 Vanagon GL
1986 Westy Weekender "Dixie"
www.crescentbeachguitar.com