Carson City, Nevada to Klamath Falls, Oregon

295 Miles, Tuesday, September 11

My original plan was to ride through Lassen National Forest taking as many of the lesser roads as possible then hit I-5 and go a few miles north to Mt. Shasta for the night. That would have been a ride of about 320 miles. Unfortunately a fire broke out along I-5 which had it closed for a few days with some major detours in place. The highway opened again but with just one lane in each direction. I decided to avoid possible traffic and smoke problems and change the route to head for Klamath Falls. That would give a ride of about the same distance and make an easy day into Oakridge the next day and still allow a loop around Crater Lake. Most of the riding today would be in California.

The ride starts off in a dry desert area and gradually sees more trees and green approaching Klamath Falls.

View looking into the distance from the Honey Lake rest area in California.

I encountered some road construction. Around this corner the pavement ends to be replaced by a mile or so of dirt, gravel, and rock in various amounts with some moderate curves and slopes. Perfect for the adventure bike I was not riding and calling for some caution on a loaded touring bike.

The Klamath basin. Water in demand by both fish and farmers.

I was watching my trip computer count down the miles remaining and calculated that I would make it to Klamath Falls with about 7 miles remaining. That is probably conservative but I didn't want to test this so stopped at Tule Lake. I spotted a farm store with a rather old looking gas pump out front but the place did not look open. I stopped at a store and asked about gas in town. I was told that the farm store should be open but gas was nearby in Merrill and much less expensive. So I continued on to Merrill and added 5.8 gallons of fuel. The tank capacity is 6.6 gallons and Merril is 20 miles from Klamath Falls so I would have made it with plenty of fuel but I don't really enjoy riding with the low fuel warning on.