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Tioga
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Ebbetts Pass, Highway 4 Scenic Byway Itinerary | |||||||||||||||
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So now I can say I have really done all the routes from Groveland over the Sierra Nevada mountain pass highways to the Eastern Sierras. I know now why it took me so long to do Ebbetts Pass, it's got a serious Jaw Factor. As in oooooh.....my...goodness....! We chose this route so we could go to Murphys and
recycle the antique sinks that Victor recently upgraded in our
guest rooms. But...as luck would have it, the neatest antique plumbing
store in the world wasn't open on the 4th of July...Odd? But all was not a
total loss, we did some wine tasting at a few tasting rooms that aren't
typically open on our usual mid-week days off. Black Sheep Winery at the
end of Main Street has a cute tasting room and Irish at the opposite end
of town was very talkative. I even bought a
bottle of green wine from Irish. We continued west after Murphys to Calaveras Big Trees State Park, the best little park for the big trees. Even better perhaps than those big trees in Yosemite, no crowds, no traffic and you don't have to walk down a steep hill (or up one!) to access the trees. After a few photos and a stroll through the museum, we hit the road again, following a small stream, several camping areas and picnic grounds.
Highway 4 at this juncture is quite
So how in the world did the two of us savvy world travelers (hahaha!) end up in the oasis town of Minden, Nevada you might ask...Well as these getaways happen for us rather last minute, we had called our little casino hotel in Tahoe to get a room on the 4th of July and they were selling our $65 a night room for $299. We just couldn't do it. Knowing that even the best case scenario would likely be a very simple room at a steep price, we decided to head to Minden instead. Once there we discovered the Carson Valley Inn. You won't be disappointed in the customer service if you ever find yourself here, every employee was well focused on making our visit memorable. We ended up celebrating our "anniversary" here with an over-large room and dinner at Michael's (unfortunately, now closed.) Victor's meal was fabulous, the Kobe Flat Iron steak. This is where we discovered Kobe Beef to add to our own Cafe Charlotte menu. I chose the duck and wished I had the Kobe. We don't gamble much and this was true this night also. Our way back we needed to stop in Murphys at that great antique plumbing store to take care of the now well-traveled sinks, no need hauling them all back to Groveland. This time we took the less dramatic, but still beautiful Highway 88 across the Sierras and then headed back up Route 4 from Angels Camp to Murphys. Groveland to Murhpys, Calaveras Big Trees State Park, over Ebbetts Pass, to Minden in Nevada, back over the mountains, back to Murphys, Sonora and Groveland: 24 and a half hours. Another typical Hotel Charlotte getaway: Short, Sweet, Mind-Clearing with a few new discoveries along the way. Travelers following along this route might take it a bit slower and explore more of the visions and history. |
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normal by
state highway standards and I am waiting for the big cliffy stuff to
start. It isn't until after we reach Alpine Lake, an immensely appealing
stop, that things on the road changed, and immediately so. The road
narrows to the smallest of possible widths for two cars to pass with no
real edge, and quickly becomes quite twisted. The sign post at the top
indicates that you will drop down at a 25% grade, a phenomenal pitch.
Kindly, the portions of the road that were actually this steep were also
very brief. However, one does drive sitting on the edge of the seat for an
hour and a half anticipating with bated breath these catapulting moments. The
views are grand for sure! It is fairly remote for most of the trip.
Absolutely go for the experience, but know too that
Hotel Charlotte
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