North Platte, NE, July 22-23

Lincoln Highway (I-80) Wyoming

Lincoln Highway is the first transcontinental highway in the United States, having been dedicated in 1913. Originally it connected Times Square in New York with Lincoln Park in San Francsico.

It was the first memorial to Abraham Lincoln, predating the Lincoln Memorial in Washington DC by 9 years.

Since then, it has gone through numerous realignments.

Much of the route Sash and I have been on from Utah to here in Nebraska, has been along the current incarnation of the Lincoln Highway. Four years ago, on my way back from Alaska, I wrote about riding a portion of it along US-93 through Ely, NV.

Evidence of Lincoln Highway's presence can be seen along the entire stretch of the I-80 and paralelling US-30. We've seen bridges with "Lincoln" in the name. There's a Lincoln Memorial Statue between Laramie and Cheyenne. There are restaurants and cafes with menu items like "Lincoln Burger" or "Lincoln Highway Omelette".

But the Lincoln still doesn't seem to have all kitsch and celebrity that Route 66 has. Even though Lincoln Highway predates Route 66 by about 13 years, and it runs a longer distance, it seems to generate less interest. Perhaps it's because it opened up at a time when automobile travel wasn't significant, or maybe because folks preferred to go to Los Angeles instead of San Francisco.

Once Sash and I left Wyoming and entered into Nebraska, the Lincoln Highway leaves the I-80 and continues along the US-30.

There's actually a Lincoln Highway Association that displays a map of all the routes it once ran, and they publish some cool media about the entire length: http://www.lincolnhighwayassoc.org/

We pulled into North Platte, NE on a Tuesday night, with storm clouds rolling in from the north.  It was a really long day, and our bodies were full of aches and pains.  After some tacos and burritos from a nearby Taco John's, we hit the sack early.

Here's photos of our day from Rawlins, WY to North Platte, NE...

Sash met a new friend Stacy a fellow motorcycle rider	Having lunch at CK Chuck Wagon in Laramie, WY	The Lincoln Memorial along the Lincoln Highway
We're along the I-80 near the Wyoming / Nebraska state line	They apparently live pretty well in Nebraska	Sash's reflection in the back of her turn signal
Sash's motorcycle behind tall grasses in Sidney, NE	A shot of Sash's motorcycle against Nebraska fields	Our bikes at a butt break in Sidney, NE
Flies eating the bug splatter off my bike	This fly held on for 12 miles at 80 MPH until he lost grip	Cabela's in Sidney, NE is big enough to be its own city
Sash along the I-80 in Nebraska	Nebraska should be called The Road Construction State	Sash still misses her sport bike
We met a V-Star 650 rider carrying as much stuff as Sash	Our bikes at a Flying J Truck Stop in Nebraska	My Honda ST1300 along the I-80
Dusk over Nebraska	If Darth Vader had married a biker chick...	Storm clouds coming in from the northwest