Day 97 - Avoiding the Carr Fire, CA

We had known for a while that today's journey was going to be a long, arduous one. The Carr wildfire had been burning for 19 days, covering 190,000 acres and was still only 57% contained. As a consequence, Route 299 - the main arterial route from East to West across this part of the state - had been closed for some time and there was no expected timeframe for it opening. This was the route we had originally planned to get us from Lassen to Redwoods, so we had to replan.

The two main options were to go way north into Oregon and back down the coast, or to drop down onto route 36, which essentially runs parallel to the 299. The former option, although longer, was probably quicker. But I was loathed to hit Oregon before we had planned and then backtrack, so we went for the latter option. We knew this would be a long day!

Nonetheless, we still had a couple of sights to see on the way out of Lassen, so made sure to make these. We both felt that our whistle-stop tour didn't do service to this impressive National Park, so maybe this is one for a future trip.

After a quick stint down the interstate, we headed into the 36. I was expecting this road to be really busy with travellers making alternative arrangements to the 299, but this wasn't the case. Maybe they knew the road... For the first 60 miles it  was windy, with lots of small 'rollers' which gave more the impression of a rural rollercoaster than a road. The 45mph limit was restrictive too, although in all honesty you couldn't have done much more than this on much of the road.

Soon after, however, we hit the Shasta-Trinity National Forest. The windy rollers became more sweeping, impressive inclines and the scenery got a whole lot more interesting. We stopped for some pictures and to stretch our legs.

Pushing further West, we ignored the suggested route 3 that rejoined the 299 which was open this far away from the fire. The views were lovely, especially now we were seeing more Redwoods, and there was no reason to alter our trajectory. We knew there were roadworks ahead, and during the week these apparently resulted in 1-hour delays. Hey, it's Saturday!

The delays we did not hit, but some very interesting roadway we did. We couldn't fathom out what the construction was trying to achieve, but the single-lane gravel and pothole track was definitely an experience! Fin made it through like he always does and we got a real taster of our stay in the Redwood State and National Parks as we wound down lovely roads with mottled shade and sunlight provided by majestic pine trees.

The town of Eureka was on the horizon, and as time was ticking by we contemplated building a fire and cooking as soon as we arrived at the campsite. We were both tired, and decided to instead stop and treat ourselves to a beer and some food.

Sam found the Lost Coast Brewery on the map and we made a beeline there. Plonking ourselves at the bar, we ordered a sampler of their beers, and subsequently rated each one. The Lost Coast Wheat was my fave, so instead of us being even later to the campsite, I ordered a growler to take with us.

After picking up a few Connecticut recommendations from a couple we met at the bar, we headed onto to the town of Arcata a few miles up the road for some seafood.

The end of our journey was in sight, so we jumped back in Fin knowing that in about forty minutes all we had to do was pitch the tent and settle in for the night.

I'm glad we made the journey we did. But next time, fire-permitting, we'll try the 299.