Waking up, with barely drinkable coffee (I had one sip and moved onto espresso beans), and way too many bags in the room, we discovered getting back into the car in the morning was not easy. Once on the road, walkie talkies still not charged, we headed south towards Ashland. The snowy mountains were breathtaking. Mackenzie asked to get out and play in it. I was very glad we left Ashland to experience in the daylight.

The road got flatter as we headed to Sacramento, with not much to look at but dirt hills. My game of “what do you see” got old pretty quickly. We sang may verses of “the wheels on the bikes/ bus/ car/ truck”. Driving through Sacramento we lost sight of hubby’s car, and did not see him for quite some time. The traffic got thick and stayed that way. We made a silly route mistake and headed back to far west, following 5. I think this added almost 2 hours to our day. Then there was the scary rest area as the sun was setting.

Dark and quiet, hours later, I drank coffee to stay awake on the highway covered in semi-trucks and aggressive drivers. This was not the California I knew. I was used to highway 101, visiting beaches, and the neat neighborhoods of San Francisco. When we finally pulled off I5, 20 miles to Bakersfield, after 10+ hours on the road, I was thrilled to stop at the first road side hotel.

Road trip rule #5: Don’t eat tuna from a gas station (broken)
Road trip rule #6: Stop at crowded gas stations not rest areas if you may not be in the best part of town (broken)
Road trip rule #7: When AAA and your gps tell you something, listen! (broken)

Continue to Part 3 – California to Flagstaff