hwy 34

[julsh]

Hey burners,

has anyone ever entered BRC from the north through route 34? Coming from Gerlach, everyone will spend a couple of miles on nevada state route 34. But this route actually extends much further into the north and eventually gets you back onto the 299. Coming from the US northwest, it is only a couple miles longer than going through Gerlach, but would probably save you a lot of the stop-and-go during peak inbound traffic. I remember last year right before turning into the road to enter BRC I looked at this part of the 34 and wondered why there was virtually no car coming from that side. Are they blocking the road or something? Or is it really just that everyone defaults to the route suggested by Google maps and hardly anyone ever considers the slight detour to potentially skip a lot of the traffic? Curious to hear if anyone has thoughts on this

[Molotov]

"Here there be dragons..."

[BBadger]

State Route 34 is a former state highway and not (well) maintained. While you can probably still drive on it, you'll probably want an off-road capable vehicle, repair equipment in case you get stuck, and supplies to make sure you can make it through. You can even take a look at the state of the highway by using Google Maps Street View and see that the striping eventually ends as you approach the last stretch Google bothered to photograph.

Traveling SR34 is not a good choice for anyone who isn't feeling adventurous and willing to deal with a repairing a vehicle that may get damaged due to adverse road conditions. You'll probably not shave off any travel time because the roads are in such poor condition. Probably the only reason to take SR34 further north than BRC is to visit Fly Geyser, if you're allowed in to see it (it's not open to the general public). I'm guessing that's the only reason the road is even maintained that far north.

Overall, you're not going to save much travel time anyway. Traffic is not really the concern. Most of the wait you'll suffer is in the lines in and out of BRC in the last few miles, not the roads leading up to that point.

[theCryptofishist]

Hm. For a dragon, that dragon looks awful like a trunkless elephant...

[BoyScoutGirl]

Hm. For a dragon, that dragon looks awful like a trunkless elephant...

I was thinking of a baku, the dream-eating spirit of Japanese lore:

[julsh]

Gotcha
See you guys in Gerlach then!

[some seeing eye]

There are motorcycle touring blogs which cover adventure roads. I believe I saw one covering 8A/299 to 34 South. You might consider renting a sat phone or a SPOT on that route.

I have always found 447 from Cedarville traffic free, with enough passing traffic that if you have an emergency you can get help. It is also a pretty route.

Inbound coming down 447, watch carefully for the turn to the West to connect to 34 North towards the gate. Reverse outgoing. Going into Gerlach is a clusterfu*k.

[brainbolt]

I'm driving from Northern California (Redding) for the first time this year, and it looks like all the recommended routes go south to Gerlach, and then north to the gate. I'm wondering about the possibility of taking 299 to 8A, then taking 34 south to the gate. Is there some reason why this is a bad idea?

[trilobyte]

I'm giving this a nudge over to the Transportation board, since that's a better fit for discussions about Transportation.

I can't really speak to how viable 34 north of the playa is, as I've never traveled on that highway.

[BBadger]

YES THERE IS.

[trilobyte]

Thanks for the link, Bbadger, I'm merging the threads. Mmm... transportational soup...

[some seeing eye]

http://clikrf8.wordpress.com/page/2/

Smart, they talked to the local BLM office.

[brainbolt]

Good deal. Thanks for the feedback.

[tatonka]

If ya leave the playa , everyone turns left on 34 to 447 , what is the road like to the right it goes to a town called fly geiser and then north to cedarville. Must turn into dirt somewhere and looks like another pass b4 cedarville you would have to cross. Just wondering if anyone has been on it.

Ok read above posts after merging

[Popeye]

34 was decommissioned as a state highway back in the late 70's. Whatever maintenance is gets is from the County (Washoe??). It used to go up to Vya, Oregon. Not completely sure, but I think Fly Geyser is part of the closure order until several weeks after the burn. This might help http://www.americansouthwest.net/nevada ... ck-desert/
and http://www.legendsofamerica.com/na-indi ... les-3.html
Looks like it might be a fun ride.BTW I was just looking at some swag and that BM turtle is pretty sweet.

[some seeing eye]

Fly Geyser was bought by BMORG. It is adjacent to the BMORG Ranch. Private BMORG land, not BLM land subject to closure. But those DPWs are pretty good with a rifle, just sayin'.

[Thecatman]

It's a nice drive. I've been on it two times from Gerlach to about Swedes Place....a little more than half way to Vya. It's basicly a graded dirt road with a few rough spots and a minor stream crossing. The highlight is a fenced off petrified tree. A lot of obsidian. Heading south, shortly past fly geyser it's paved.