Unholy Smoke

Went for a run to the SF Bay Area to bring my 18-year old niece back to her suffocating family and away from my "evil" influences (I think she should get her driver's license NOW - and not have to wait until she has finished college, has a full-time job and a $100K in the bank - what a horrible, nefarious thought ). So we left here Sunday under beautifully clear sky (after a midnight thunderstorm) and headed west. By the time we hit Reno the smoke from California was so bad you couldn't see the Sierras. We climbed through I 80 and only caught a breath of less-dense smoke at Donner Pass before descending into the choking clouds. I was going to use I 80 to get all the way to the bay, but visibility (and just breathing!) was so bad I opted to cut through the Sacramento Delta backroads instead, which was smart as the smoke was less there. It was also a far more beautiful ride - if you're out that way take a trip to Isleton and have some crawdads at Isleton Joe's tavern.

Even so, by the time I got her to her folks, the ash on us was so thick on us that we probably didn't need sun-block. I heard that some of the fires burning there are in areas that hadn't had fires in over 50 years - so lots of fuel. Well, they'll be brush-free soon enough!

Good luck to any of you out there. I didn't need cigars that ride.

sounds like a /cough cough/ good, cough ride:roflmao: think i had some of it in indio last week then got back to the house about noon yesterday and it was cool and clear, headed to salty and up to boise again today comming down parleys i got a full view of what you rode through but it isn't bad up here in iza ho hardly any sign of smoke.