Posts by Louella Bryant
The Mystical Mount Shasta
From Santa Rosa, Harry and I wended our way inland to Route 5 and turned the Bug north toward Dunsmuir. Brittany, our son Bryant’s girlfriend, grew up there and asked us to stop and say hello to her parents. Brittany’s folks welcomed us in, and over coffee and muffins we learned about what it was…
Read MoreBob’s amazing Santa Rosa house
“I played hockey with a Canadian guy who lives in Santa Rosa,” Harry said. “He wants us to stop in. Bob’s got oil money, so I’m sure his house is amazing.” This Bug trip was Harry’s idea, and I had promised to go along with whatever he dreamed up. “Okay,” I said, “I’m ready to…
Read MoreGolden Gateway to Spring
When the Bug crossed into California, sun broke through the clouds. The evergreens thinned out, and sticky chartreuse sprouts appeared on the hardwoods. The temperature gauge crept toward seventy. We hadn’t felt seventy degrees for six months. In Sacramento, we stopped at a Black Bear Restaurant for lunch. Harry parked the Bug in front of…
Read MoreBugging over Donner Pass
Nine miles outside Truckee, Donner pass is a mere seven thousand feet in elevation, but the road to the summit is steep. Cars are required to use chains in bad weather. And the weather is usually bad. Donner Pass is considered one of the snowiest places in the United States. The all-time record low temperature is forty-five…
Read MoreTrucking to Truckee
In Truckee, Nevada, the River Street Inn was originally a gambling hall and brothel. The antiquated Inn is now run by Wendy and Mark, a cute couple in their thirties who moved near Lake Tahoe to ski. I’m not much of a skier, but the skiing here is reputed to be the best in the…
Read MoreRoute 50 ~ Loneliest road in America
Route 50 through Nevada is lonely any time of the year, but in March it’s particularly desolate. On our left the White Pine Mountains of Humboldt National Forest guarded us, followed by the Monitor and Toquima ranges, and then the Shoshone and Toiyabe Mountains, snowy sentinels that kept their distance. On the right, hills gave…
Read MoreUtah’s Mystic Mike
Harry and I said goodbye to Boulder and pointed the Bug west along Route 70 into Utah’s hilly desert. Beside the road, bulbous outcroppings grew from treeless hills looking very much like the crusty flesh of giant warts. In the distance ochre mountains stood bare and wind sculpted. Atop buttes, stony crowns laced by wind…
Read MoreWall Street, Boulder Style
In 1972 I bought my first ten-speed bike at a shop in Boulder. There are nothing but mountains around Boulder, but I had gotten into shape hiking with my boyfriend Rick for the previous weeks and thought I was ready to roll on two wheels. We didn’t wear helmets in those days, and I had…
Read MoreClayton, New Mexico ~ Where the deer and the dinosaurs play
To avoid the metropolis of Albuquerque on our way to Boulder, we took a shortcut through the farthest northeast corner of New Mexico. I’ve always wanted to see a bit of New Mexico, and a bit is all I got when we stopped in the tiny town of Clayton New Mexico calls itself “The Land of Enchantment,”…
Read MoreCadillac Ranch
“We have to go to Amarillo,” I told Harry. “Why Amarillo?” he asked. “Cadillac Ranch, of course.” I’m not sure what my fascination has been with Cadillac Ranch, but since I first heard of the art installation years ago, I’ve been longing to see it in person. It’s not about the Bruce Springsteen song from…
Read More