Steve Dilling has agreed to share the ups and downs, in and outs of a long IIIrd Tyme Out road trip with our readers. They will be traveling from coast to coast, and back again, this first two weeks of April. Here is his fourth report.

Day 8 (4/10/09) found us performing at the Trinity Alps Performing Arts Center in Weaverville, CA.  The drive up to the venue was one of the most beautiful drives you’ll ever see.  We were fortunate enough to see some of the Redwood trees that you hear and read about, along with some springtime, snow-capped mountains.  It was absolutely GORGEOUS!!  The sad part was that many acres of the landscape had been burned in recent fires.  Still, it was a sight to see and it makes you realize that there’s still a lot of undeveloped land in this country!!

We arrived a the venue around 4:00 p.m. and loaded in, got our sound check out of the way, and were treated to a delicious dinner at a local Italian restaurant by the promoter, Jim French.  We got back to the venue just in time to change clothes and hit the stage at 7:00 p.m.  It was another great night for us!  Many who attended the show had never seen us perform live, so it was a chance to make new fans, and that is exactly what we did!!

On the second set, it was our pleasure to bring two young men, Cody and Jesse Winton, on banjo and mandolin, respectively, up on stage to play a song with us.  These two teenagers brought the house down with Bill Monroe’s Bluegrass Breakdown!  It was a treat to have them on stage with us!  We finished up around 10:00 p.m. and loaded up and pulled out around 10:30.  We decided to stay in town and not travel that night, so we bedded down and got a good night’s rest.

Day 9 (4/11/09) started with breakfast, then it was a 250 mile trip to our next venue, Willits, CA.

We were excited about this trip because it took us to Eureka and right down through the heart of the Redwood forest!  Some of these trees were 8 to 10 feet in diameter, and we didn’t even get to see the really BIG ones!  I couldn’t even imagine how big those were.  We weren’t allowed to go into that section because of the length of the bus.

We arrived in Willits and went to the promoter’s home (Bruce Burton) around 3:30 p.m. where we encountered some trouble with the bus.  The rear wheel, on the right side, was leaking gear oil.  We will have to watch this for the rest of the trip.  We did our sound check and then went back to Bruce’s house for a reception and then back to the school for our show.  As was the case the night before, this was a chance to play to many people who had never seen us perform.  The sheriff of the town was our emcee and he got the audience charged up with some ad-lib comedy and then we hit the stage.  It was a great night!!  The audience was very enthusiastic and we made many new fans!

After the show, we went back to Bruce and Linda Burton’s home for a fine southwestern dinner!  Many of the people who attended the show were there and it was great to get in a visit with them!  We finally got in bed around 2:00 a.m. and, after a few hours sleep, Russell fired up the bus around 7:00 a.m.  Today is Easter Sunday.

Day 10 (4/12/09) is kind of bittersweet.  As happy as we are about our tour on this Easter, we are missing our families terribly!  We were off today and certainly glad of that after five straight days of performing.  We pulled out and headed toward Nevada.  We made several stops to get fuel and, of course, a Wal-Mart stop, and to check the condition of the leaking rear wheel.  Russell, Jack and myself all took a turn driving.

We arrived in Reno, NV. At 3:00 p.m. at the Circus Circus hotel.  It has been a blast here in Reno!  I’m not sure who has won, lost or broke even.  Maybe I can let you know in my next report.