Our outward bound journey accomplished, we would planning homeward bound journey from cathedral-like Samuel Taylor State Park in California. Had I not forgotten to renew my passport last year, we probably would he heading north tomorrow (see red line on map), camping in the redwood forests and ocean-front camps on our way to Vancouver Island, where we would be pitching our tent for a few days right on the cusp of the beach on the western Pacific ocean beach at Wye Resort. But that journey would have been somewhat problematic, given the unpredictability of the weather crossing the northwestern and central states in October, which the Defender could have handled, but I might not have been able to with my haste to get home fast to deal with Donner’s situation.
Would-be Day 16: So, given Donner’s situation, my guess is that we would be heading east (see blue line on map) from California, returned to Lake Tahoe, and camped in Sugar Pines camp (if reopened after the Caldor fire). It was there in 2014 that a huge back bear tried to get to the containers on top of my Defender, five feet away from the tent (13-year old Erde, bless her heart, slept through the entire incident), but was stopped by my whistle. (See damage to Defender in photo below).
Would be Day 17: From Tahoe, we would have headed into the Nevada high desert, taking a roundtrip detour of 100 miles off route 50 to head to wonderful, isolated Berlin-Icythyosaur State Park, to enjoy the 360 degree panorama of the desert. We were alone, about 100 miles from civilization that night, which happened to be the night before the Defender took its third timeout at freezing Great Basin National Park. But we were 100 miles from civilization the other way that night, so it did not matter.
Would be day 18: From Berlin- Icythyosaur, we would have headed back to route 50 and spent next night at Petroglyph State Recreation area, were Leben and Erde and I camped in 2001 (and Donner and I in 2019) and where had and would have had the whole park to ourselves. It was like camping in an old movie set from a 1950s John Wayne western.
Would be Day 19: From Petroglyph, we would have driven to Ely, Nevada, just to stop to give our regards to Dave, the mechanic who worked miracles on the Defender back in 2016 after its third timeout on that trip. and then driven up route 50 to Cave Lake, where on September 8, 2001, I was so mesmerized by the billions of stars overhead, I lay down ion the picnic table for hours, just staring into the sky, wondering about life out there. I had never seen stars like that before, or seen them since, but I did see three stars in the DC sky last night.
This probably would be our camp at Cave Lake, as it was in 2019.
Would be Day 20: From Cave Lake, we would be traveling along route 50 through the desert to little Salina Utah, the site of our fourth and last Defender time-out in 2016, and probably staying at the Ranch Motel where we bivouacked for two weeks until I shipped the Defender back in 2016 and flew back home with Donner.
Would be day 21: From Salina, we might have attempted to head to the Moab area to try our luck at a campsite at a state park just outside of Arches National Park to enjoy the view (below) we had in 2018.
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Would be day 22: From Arches, we would have travelled along I-70 with a stop at Glenwood Canyon Camp right on the Colorado River (see photo). Besides camping next to that great river, this camp had the added attraction of a railroad track right across the river, on of the great pleasure in my life. (I grew up in a community on the banks of the Hudson, with a railroad track on both sides of the river.)
Would be days 23-26: From Glenwood, to save time, we would probably would be overnighting on the east side of the Rockies in convenient motels for the rest of the trip in order to get home quickly to get Donner’s situation taken care of,
Would be day 27: As our last stop, perhaps we would be staying at one of the quaint Lost River cabins or the Cheat River lodge in West Virginia, or maybe a cabin at the Savage River Lodge in western Maryland, all places we stayed before as the last stops on our journeys. My guess is that it would have taken 11 days to get home at 240 miles a day.
Unless there were unexcted interruptions, as have happened, that would have concluded OTR-11, but for my doing what was right and turning around to deal with Donner’s situation, of which I will write more tomorrow. As for OTR-11, please stay tuned.
ED and Donner, from Basecamp in DC
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