So unfortunately, with only 30mls to go to our destination, we turn around and head back towards the rockies. We aren't to disappointed, because it was a fun few days, but it would have been nice to see the ocean. At this time in my life, I had only seen the Pacific ocean once when I was 7, so I was more disappointed than Gobbler.
About 6hrs into the journey back, we find ourselves driving through northeastern California. Unfortunately I cannot be more specific because there is NOTHING in this part of Cali. We are in a desert, the closest city is Reno, NV. Gobbler is driving (my 15yr old standard Honda) and says, quite casually, that he thinks we may lose 4th gear before we get back so we'll have to go easy on the clutch.
I don't know what this means. I know how to drive my car. I don't know how to identify problems, fix them, or prevent them for that matter. I don't even know what it means to "lose" a gear.
Gobbler explains it means that the gear doesn't work anymore, so we would be limited to the next gear until the clutch is repaired - which, yes, can be done.
Phew. Well then I don't care. I just want to get back to Colorado, and figure it out from there.
About 10 minutes later, we are going up a good sized hill (particularly in this flat landscape), and Gobbler says that it looks like we've just lost 4th gear - oh - wait. Actually, we've lost all the gears. The car rolls to a stop and we push it to the side of the road*
Here we are in the middle of the desert in California without having seen a car in at least a half hour, and we are stranded. We need to get home in 14hrs, and we don't have a vehicle and have at least 800mls to go. This is a problem.
Gobbler suggests hitchhiking. I have never done this before, and when you're from the midwest, hitchhiking is a well known way to get killed. People just don't do that unless they are trying to escape from prison or they are totally out of their element. All the same, they don't get picked up. So to me, this sounds like a BAD idea. However, we don't exactly have any options**
I reluctantly stand beside my knight-in-shining-armour-with-a-death-wish as he sticks out his thumb. He insists that we will have better luck if I stick out my thumb, because people are more likely to stop for women. After 30min without a vehicle even acknowledging Gobbler***, I agree to give it a shot. Gobbler hides down in the brush, and a dusty, very old, blue aerostar minivan passes us...but then, after about 150yds or so, slows down to a stop and pulls over. We run after the van - hurrah! we have a ride. But where do we want him to take us? Gobbler requests the first place with a phone when he asks where we need to go. I guess this was the best thing to say, but I didn't even know who we were going to call.
Judge Ito, keeper of the aerostar, drops us off at the next dot on the map: Doyle, CA. What is in Doyle? A gas station, a towing company and the remnants of a few motels. It has the classic look of an old west town that no longer functions due to the labryinth of interstates that have popped up in the last 50yrs.
I realized at some point on the drive that I had a AAA card that my parents had gotten me while I was living at home. I know there is some towing benefit, but I don't know what it is. Once we arrive in Doyle, we go to the towing office to see what they can offer us with the card. They inform us that we have to call AAA, and they will then send the closest towing agent in the area (probably these guys). We go to the gas station 20ft away and call AAA. After answering enough questions to apply for a passport, they inform us that help will arrive in 45min to an hour - from Doyle Towing!!! hahaa....
As we wait for our tow truck, a little girl, maybe 7yrs old runs up to us, barfoot- she's screaming "will you take my dogs? will you take my dogs?" She's in tears and pointing at a box by the wall. She's insisting that we need to take her puppies with us or her Dad is going to kill them. Gobbler nicely tells her that if she promises to take care of them and behave herself, he's certain her father won't kill the puppies. Right at this moment, a giant of a man - at least 6'7" with a 10 gallon cowboy hat - comes around the corner. He's got a shotgun slung over his right shoulder****.
He looks right at us and says, "I've got too many kids. I don't need no damn dogs. You can take 'em, cause they ain't stayin' here"
Clearly the man means business, there's a little girl crying, and we love dogs. Well, we agree to take one. I don't know why our bleeding broke hearts thought that without a vehicle and 800mls from home we should add a dog to the mess, but we did. We walk up to the box to choose our mut, and we can't do it. We can't just take one. We now have 2 (very large) puppies, a broken down honda and $52.
to be continued.....
*for this reason I love standard vehicles. pushing is easy.
**no cell phone yet....back in the day
***I can admit it now - he was a bum, he looked like a bum, and I wouldn't have picked him up either. Even now, when I generally will pick up a hitchhiker in certain area where its generally acceptable
****I know, this sounds just a little too Hollywood, but its the honest truth. There's no other way to describe the man
About 6hrs into the journey back, we find ourselves driving through northeastern California. Unfortunately I cannot be more specific because there is NOTHING in this part of Cali. We are in a desert, the closest city is Reno, NV. Gobbler is driving (my 15yr old standard Honda) and says, quite casually, that he thinks we may lose 4th gear before we get back so we'll have to go easy on the clutch.
I don't know what this means. I know how to drive my car. I don't know how to identify problems, fix them, or prevent them for that matter. I don't even know what it means to "lose" a gear.
Gobbler explains it means that the gear doesn't work anymore, so we would be limited to the next gear until the clutch is repaired - which, yes, can be done.
Phew. Well then I don't care. I just want to get back to Colorado, and figure it out from there.
About 10 minutes later, we are going up a good sized hill (particularly in this flat landscape), and Gobbler says that it looks like we've just lost 4th gear - oh - wait. Actually, we've lost all the gears. The car rolls to a stop and we push it to the side of the road*
Here we are in the middle of the desert in California without having seen a car in at least a half hour, and we are stranded. We need to get home in 14hrs, and we don't have a vehicle and have at least 800mls to go. This is a problem.
Gobbler suggests hitchhiking. I have never done this before, and when you're from the midwest, hitchhiking is a well known way to get killed. People just don't do that unless they are trying to escape from prison or they are totally out of their element. All the same, they don't get picked up. So to me, this sounds like a BAD idea. However, we don't exactly have any options**
I reluctantly stand beside my knight-in-shining-armour-with-a-death-wish as he sticks out his thumb. He insists that we will have better luck if I stick out my thumb, because people are more likely to stop for women. After 30min without a vehicle even acknowledging Gobbler***, I agree to give it a shot. Gobbler hides down in the brush, and a dusty, very old, blue aerostar minivan passes us...but then, after about 150yds or so, slows down to a stop and pulls over. We run after the van - hurrah! we have a ride. But where do we want him to take us? Gobbler requests the first place with a phone when he asks where we need to go. I guess this was the best thing to say, but I didn't even know who we were going to call.
Judge Ito, keeper of the aerostar, drops us off at the next dot on the map: Doyle, CA. What is in Doyle? A gas station, a towing company and the remnants of a few motels. It has the classic look of an old west town that no longer functions due to the labryinth of interstates that have popped up in the last 50yrs.
I realized at some point on the drive that I had a AAA card that my parents had gotten me while I was living at home. I know there is some towing benefit, but I don't know what it is. Once we arrive in Doyle, we go to the towing office to see what they can offer us with the card. They inform us that we have to call AAA, and they will then send the closest towing agent in the area (probably these guys). We go to the gas station 20ft away and call AAA. After answering enough questions to apply for a passport, they inform us that help will arrive in 45min to an hour - from Doyle Towing!!! hahaa....
As we wait for our tow truck, a little girl, maybe 7yrs old runs up to us, barfoot- she's screaming "will you take my dogs? will you take my dogs?" She's in tears and pointing at a box by the wall. She's insisting that we need to take her puppies with us or her Dad is going to kill them. Gobbler nicely tells her that if she promises to take care of them and behave herself, he's certain her father won't kill the puppies. Right at this moment, a giant of a man - at least 6'7" with a 10 gallon cowboy hat - comes around the corner. He's got a shotgun slung over his right shoulder****.
He looks right at us and says, "I've got too many kids. I don't need no damn dogs. You can take 'em, cause they ain't stayin' here"
Clearly the man means business, there's a little girl crying, and we love dogs. Well, we agree to take one. I don't know why our bleeding broke hearts thought that without a vehicle and 800mls from home we should add a dog to the mess, but we did. We walk up to the box to choose our mut, and we can't do it. We can't just take one. We now have 2 (very large) puppies, a broken down honda and $52.
to be continued.....
*for this reason I love standard vehicles. pushing is easy.
**no cell phone yet....back in the day
***I can admit it now - he was a bum, he looked like a bum, and I wouldn't have picked him up either. Even now, when I generally will pick up a hitchhiker in certain area where its generally acceptable
****I know, this sounds just a little too Hollywood, but its the honest truth. There's no other way to describe the man
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