Awesome Day On "The Loneliest Road In America"

What an awesome drive I had today! More than 250 miles on "The Loneliest Road in America" took me across seemingly endless stretches of desert, often on a roadway that was absolutely straight for ten or more miles. I crossed numerous mountain passes -- several 7,500+ feet in elevation -- but only passed through very few, very small settlements. It was probably the single most awesome day I've ever spent on the road!

About 100 miles into my drive, I stopped in Austin for something to eat at the International Cafe. I was the only customer in the place, so the young waitress Brittany and I made small talk while I ate my sandwich.

She has just graduated from Austin high school where her senior class numbered an "unusually large" four students. Next year's class will be just two boys, about normal in a town of 300 or so people. Austin is one of the two "big towns" on US Hwy 50 between Fallon and Ely… Got it?

About an hour further down the road, I needed to make a personal pit stop. There are very few places to pull off the road, but since I could see there was no traffic for 5-10 miles -- which equals about 5-10 minutes -- in both directions, I just slowed to a stop and got out. I also took the opportunity to snap this photo of Darth, who performed spectacularly on what may well have been his single most difficult day of driving ever!

I've looked through all the photos from my DashCam, and picked out the one above as being the single best to share with you as an example of what I experienced all day today: Long straight drives punctuated by distinct mountain passes. What a day!

I've pulled into a KOA here in Ely and booked myself in for two nights. I plan to take it easy tomorrow, probably do a little exploration of this little town, and catch up on a few chores. Come Monday I'll be back on the road headed east and into Utah… Stay tuned!

Click here to see exactly where I am on Google Maps.