2017 Southeast Trip; Part 1 (To Florida)

Back in May of last year I took a trip out to the Southeast region starting with Florida. Usually I'm not a fan of flying but my flight path from Fresno to my layover in Denver is one of the more scenic that I know of in the Continental United States. The snow pack flying east over over the Sierras and the Minarets region was massive after a stormy winter.

Mono Lake in the background and Crowley Lake in the foreground on the eastern slopes of the Sierras entering the Great Basin. Crowley Lake is a reservoir in the Los Angeles Aqueduct Project while Mono Lake is a large salt water body with volcanic islands.

The White Mountains at the state line boundary of California and Nevada. The high peak in the White Mountains is White Mountain Peak at 14,252 feet above sea level.

Traveling eastward into Nevada the Crescent Dunes Solar Energy Project could be seen to the north of Tonopah and US 95/6. The Crescent Dunes Project was completed in 2015 but was turned off-line for about a year after completion due to leaks in the molten salt tank.

There wasn't much to see in Utah and the Colorado Plateau due to cloud cover but upon entering Colorado I could see Black Canyon of the Gunnison National Park.

There was cloud cover over Denver which meant for bumpy conditions but a good portion of the Front Range of the Rockies could be see poking above the clouds.

After a brief layover at Denver International Airport I bordered my flight for Tampa. There wasn't much to be seen out the window as the cloud cover was thick but it cleared up enough by Louisiana to see the Lake Pontchartrain Causeway. The Lake Pontchartrain Causeway is about 24 miles in length which carries traffic from I-10 in New Orleans to US 190 on the north side of the lake. The Lake Pontchartrain Causeway southbound lanes were completed in 1956 while the northbound lanes were completed in 1969.

After crossing the Gulf my plane landed in Florida and thus the Southeast began proper. This was a massive trip with about 3,000 miles planned in; Florida, Alabama, Georgia, North Carolina, Tennessee, and South Carolina.

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Abandoned US Route 40 in the Truckee River Canyon

Within the Truckee River Canyon in the Sierra Nevada range numerous abandoned portions of US Route 40 can be found alongside modern Interstate 80. This segment of highway was opened during 1926 as a bypass of the Dog Valley Grade which carried the early North Lincoln Highway and Victory Highway. The corridor of the Truckee River Canyon State Highway would be assigned as US Route 40 when the US Route System was commissioned during November 1926. During 1958 the segment of Interstate 80 between Boca, California and the Nevada state line was complete. When Interstate 80 opened east of Boca numerous obsolete portions of US Route 40 were abandoned. Some of these abandoned segments have been incorporated into the Tahoe-Pyramid Trail. Part 1; the history of US Route 40 in the Truckee River Canyon The Truckee River Canyon for centuries has been an established corridor of travel known to native tribes crossing the Sierra Nevada range. The first documented wagon crossi...

Former California State Route 41 past Bates Station

When California State Route 41 was commissioned during August 1934 it was aligned along the then existing Fresno-Yosemite Road north of the San Joaquin River. Within the Sierra Nevada foothills of Madera County, the original highway alignment ran past Bates Station via what is now Madera County Road 209, part of eastern Road 406 and Road 207. Bates Station was a stage station plotted during the early 1880s at what was the intersection of the Coarsegold Road and Stockton-Los Angeles Road. The modern alignment bypassing Bates Station to the east would be reopened to traffic during late 1939. Part 1; the history of California State Route 41 past Bates Station Bates Station was featured as one of the many 1875-1899 Madera County era towns in the May 21, 1968, Madera Tribune . Post Office Service at Bates Station is noted to have been established on November 23, 1883 and ran continuously until October 31, 1903. The postal name was sourced...

Former US Route 50 and the Pioneer Route Lincoln Highway on Johnson's Pass Road

Johnson's Pass Road is one of the oldest highway corridors in California. Johnson's Pass was part of the Lake Tahoe Wagon Road as it was completed during 1856 over the Sierra Nevada. The pass would later be incorporated into the Pioneer Branch of the Lincoln Highway in 1913 and US Route 50 in 1926. Johnson's Pass Road would be bypassed by a new alignment of US Route 50 over Echo Summit in 1938. A replacement of the Meyers Grade east of Johnson's Pass would be opened to traffic in 1947. Johnson's Pass Road remains accessible to traffic and is still signed by the Lincoln Highway Association. Pictured as the blog cover is the view from the top of Johnson's Pass Road overlooking modern US Route 50 and Lake Tahoe. Part 1; the history of Johnson's Pass Much of the history of what become the Lake Tahoe Wagon Road is discussed in the September 1950 California Highways & Public Works during its Centennial Edition. The or...