Tuesday, Day 21

We arrived in Reno at about 5:30 pm, after a long, hot, boring drive.  At first there were mountains around us and the drive wasn’t too bad, but the sun was getting hot. We stopped in Carlin to make lunch.  In a brochure that I’d picked up, Carlin was written up as a good place to visit.  Its main claim to fame is that it’s half way to Reno from the border. All that we saw were two truck stops, both with convenience stores and casinos, a post office, another bar/grill/casino and a boarded up motel, all at one corner.

Once we left Carlin, the topography became very flat. We thought the salt flats were boring, but this was far worse. We could see mountains in the distance but it took four hours to reach them. The sun, by that time, was shining very hot through the window. Both the motor home and I were suffering so we had to stop for a break so we could all cool down.

When we finally pulled off the highway in Reno, with no plans yet as to where we’d stay, our faithful motor home once again protested. She stalled and sputtered and we had to park on the side of the street. I couldn’t blame her.  The inside thermometer read 104 degrees Fahrenheit! While we let her cool down we went into the motel that we just happened to be parked beside, and picked up a map so we could locate a favourable RV Park. We called the Grand Sierra Resort RV Park and booked a spot.  However, the motor home still wasn’t ready to move on, so I made dinner. When we finished Jim did get her going, with a little protest, and we found our home for the next few nights. It is a grand hotel and casino that also has an RV Park. Because we are provided with all the amenities of the hotel guests, such as access to the pool and fitness centre at no charge, we expected the fees to be much higher than previous parks, but it was actually less!

Once we got everything hooked up, we turned on the a/c and took a walk over to the casino while it did its job. We joined the “gamblers club” and took our free $5.00 credits to the slots.  In no time at all, it was gone save for Jim’s last six cents. We now each have a six cent credit souvenir.