Today, we followed a bit of history, taking in several sites related to the American westward migration.

Best Laid Plans

For Day 17 (June 25, 2010) the plan was this:

Today, the plan is to leave Crater Lake and keep going south, where we will leave Oregon, heading south toward Lake Tahoe. Along the way, we plan to pass Mount Shasta and stop at Lassen Volcanic National Park and Donner Memorial State Park (in recognition of the ill-fated Donner Party in Truckee, CA), before crashing for the night at the William Kent campground, near the shores of Lake Tahoe.

What Actually Transpired

This morning, I got up early and called AAA, who sent a locksmith to rescue Kianu’s key from his trunk. Once that was accomplished, we were on our way again. We passed Mount Shasta, which was humongously huge, and then headed to Lassen National Volcanic Monument. Unfortunately, CA89 – our key route for the day – was closed in the middle of the park. So, once again, we had to choose some back roads on the fly (we asked a ranger for advice this time!), which eventually got us to where we were supposed to be.

After lunch, we made it to Donner Memorial State Park (motto: “serving your fellow man…”) and went through the exhibits and a cheesy 1970’s film about the Donner Party, before heading on to Lake Tahoe, where we set up camp at William Kent Campground – our last night camping.
Tomorrow – Vegas, here we come!

Odometer Start: 39453
Odometer End: 39834
Total Miles: 381 miles

Funny/Deep/Odd/Profound Observations

“When your mother gets old, she’s supposed to go live with you, not vice-versa. I’m sure what every girl in this building is looking for is ‘oh boy, your mother makes a good living! What is it you do?’” – Mark Driscoll

Pictures

Here’s a link to the day’s photo album and its slide show.