Getting Closer ~ Episode Ten

By the time we had breakfast, looked around Minden, NV and filled up on gas it was almost 2 pm.  Bob had been stressing out over the "lost "driver's license incident so when we got to Carson City, he went into the Department of Motor Vehicles and told them his story, and asked if he could get a Nevada license. The answer~"sure for $21 we'll give you a license."   So he produced his Passport (his only picture ID other than his Costco card) and $21, stood for his photograph and 30 minutes later he had an official Nevada Driver's license complete with his Washington state address on it.  He had called the DMV in Washington several times, begging them to send him a duplicate of the license he lost but they kept telling him, they couldn't do that.  So this was the path of least resistance. At least once again, he's an official licensed driver.

After that we continued on to the home of his aunt & cousins, where we stayed on our way down south.  We just stayed the one night with them and then the next morning at 11:30am we continued our trek north.  We headed north east on Highway 80 arriving at Winnemucca, NV about 7pm that evening. We got some dinner, then gas and got a spot at the Model T Casino & RV Park.   We had breakfast there the next morning and continued on (now on Highway 95) and came to McDermitt, Nevada.  We stopped there at the last casino on the Nevada/Oregon border. 

We drove about 60 miles on Highway 95 and then headed north west on Highway 78.   That afternoon, the weather turned very ugly.  First of all we were driving thru "open range" which translates "cattle on and along the highway." 

This area was so desolate but beautiful.  We drove thru miles and miles of just nothing.  And all day the weather was horrible.  Snow, sleet, hail and wind.  It's a winding 2 lane highway for the most part and I don't think more than 10 carspassed us all day. At one point we were down to about 20 miles an hour because of the hail...the road was white, it was blowing and it was scary.  We went up a hill and came around a corner and thankfully we were going very slow.  There were about 8 head of cattle standing right next to the highway....looking at at us.  I did what any normal red blooded person does...I rolled down my window, stuck my head out and said "moo"  several times...they just looked at me like I was an idiot.   Bob and I laughed about that for awhile, wishing we could have read their minds.

We finally came to Burns, Oregon and stopped at the Safeway for a few things.  It was snowing hard there and we decided to not go any further.  So we found a spot in a privately owned RV park and settled in for the night.  They had cable TV, so we hooked up the little TV Bob keeps in the camper and kicked back, eating dinner and watching the tube.