Salt Lake City -> Reno, 518 mi, 7:22, Ramada by Wyndham Reno Hotel & Casino
We left for California on Saturday April 20. Our destination that day was Salt Lake City. We headed off I-25 in Fort Collins to take US 287 into Wyoming. As we neared the border the elevation began to rise and the weather turned snowy. It was a little dicey on my summer high performance tires. Luckily we got through it OK and did our first stop near Laramie.
On the drive through Wyoming we were met with picturesque views of snow capped mountains.
After our 500 mile drive that day we arrived in Salt Lake city at about xxx and stayed in the Comfort Inn Downtown. We walked to dinner at a Venezuelan restaurant about four blocks from our hotel
Time Zone Change; clocks back 1 hr.
The Shore Room in the Renaissance
Sun, April 21: Reno -> Sonoma, 203 mi, 3:22
On Sunday we travelled to Sonoma through some heavy traffic around Sonoma and in Napa. We checked into the Fairmont Sonoma Mission Inn in time to attend the Welcome Reception. After the reception we headed into downtown for a delightful dinner on the Square.
After an early breakfast we drove to the tour staging area before heading out for a tour of Napa vineyards, mountains and lake. After a rest stop at the Turtle Rock Cafe we passed Lake Berryressa and stopped at the Maxville Winery for lunch and a tour. In the evening we had a social at the hotel’s golf course.
Wednesday was a day on our own. After breakfast we headed out toward San Francisco. Our first stop was the Marin Highlands with a view of the Golden Gate Bridge. After some pictures on this cloudy day in the citywe headed across the bridge. We passed through the Presidio and stopped at Land’s End and the Cliff house.
We drove across the city and the Bay Bridge to have lunch with a friend in the East Bay. We drove back to the hotel via Vallejo and make a point to drive by our first home.
In the evening we went to the Closing dinner in the hotel.
It was a fun day to see many sights from our early days!
Sonoma -> Yosemite Visitors Center, 4:08, 228 mi.
On Thursday we checked out and drove to Yosemite National Park and arrived there about 2 PM. we took a late lunch at the Base camp Eatery (chicken gyros). We spent the rest of the afternoon sightseeing in the park enjoying the spectacular views.
We had dinner in the park at the Ahwahnee Dining Room and headed to our hotel in Mariposa about 7:30. The Best Western Plus Yosemite Way Station Motel was about 20 Miles away.
Yosemite -> South Lake Tahoe, Drive: 4:33, 200 mi.
On Friday we headed for South Lake Tahoe. Shortly after leaving Mariposa it started to rain, but as we travelled up the mountains of the High Sierras, the rain turned to snow. With the summer tires on the Porsche, conditions were a little dicey. Conditions cleared as we neared Lake Tahoe.
Since we got there about noon, we needed to kill some time before we checked into our hotel. We had lunch at a local Starbucks and did some sightseeing around the lake. After checking to the Quality Inn, we were treated by a spectacular sunset over the lake before a great dinner at Izabella’s Restaurant.
South Lake Tahoe -> Salt Lake City, Drive: 8:28, 579 mi.
The next day we headed on out way to Salt Lake city. Passing by the Great Salt Lake there were some spectacular views of couds reflecting on the water. We stayed at the same Comfort Inn as on our trip out.
Salt Lake City -> Home, Drive: 8:16, 522 mi.
We arrived home on Sunday
