Day 1 - 7/18

What a long day of riding this first one turned out. I think I was in the saddle a good 7 hours total! But man....that highway 49 is some road. Lots of twisties - hairpins galore! A good number of sweepers, and enough straights to keep the Harley guys happy.  Newer asphalt on almost the entire length - although there were black snakes in quite a few areas - something tells me that they were intentionally added to the surface of the road to keep the bikes from getting too crazy. And I sure could feel the rubber responding to them and not in a good way. Throughout the day, the 49 seemed to be either totally wide open (no cagers), or stacked up with weekenders trying to find some outdoor fun. It was a hot one today - mid 90's for most of my trek and I sure felt it under the riding gear. That said, I really enjoyed many of the stops along the way north. There were certainly quite a few places one could stop so I had to be quite selective otherwise it would have taken me even longer today.
One stopping point,

Along the way, multiple (shocking) examples of the severity of the state's drought. So sad. 

When I did finally pull into Grass Valley, it didn't take me long to find my accommodation site. Charming little California bungalow that has a real warm welcoming feeling about it. Maria, my host, is a retired, down-to earth school teacher and was quite welcoming. Made me feel right at home.... right away! 

After chatting with Maria for a bit about her life as a teacher, current undertakings, and the general area, I unpacked the bike, hit the shower, and made my way into town (on foot, of course) to grab a some dinner.

I decided to take up Maria's recommendation and dine at Diego's - Latin American restaurant. "No good Mexican food here in Grass Valley" (according to Maria). But Latin American? OK then....Turned out to be a good choice. I was able to get a nice quaint corner table and do a bit of reading, thinking, texting. and of course eating once my food arrived. 

What to order? What to order? The entire menu sounded delicious! I finally decided to give their vegetarian chile relleno a try. It came with a delicious salad served with cilantro lime dressing which was refreshing and lovely. The relleno was fantastic! Lots of very fresh roasted veggies, not too much cheese on top, and the sauces (green and red) where mouth watering After literally eating every last bite as well as every bit of the rice and beans, I was now the relleno at the table. 

The plan tomorrow is to hit the trails after a bit of breakfast and try to "work off" some of this dinner before packing up, suiting up and heading up to Lake Tahoe.

Good night for now.

-MB