Carson River Road is an approximately 3.5-mile-long former alignment of California State Route 88 near the community of Woodfords in Alpine County. Carson River Road as the name suggests runs alongside the West Fork Carson River and generally is located in flood prone terrain beneath modern state highway grade. Carson River Road was bypassed in 1969 as one of the final projects which brought California State Route 88 and Carson Pass Highway to modern standards. Part 1; the history of Carson River Road Carson River Road is an older segment of California State Route 88 and the Carson Pass Highway near the community of Woodfords. As the name suggests this roadway runs alongside the West Fork Carson River below grade to the modern state highway alignment. California State Route 88 and Carson Pass Highway crest the Sierra Nevada range at the namesake Carson Pass located at 8,574 feet above sea level. The Carson Pass Highway is an all-year pass ...
Nostalgia. It sells. It evokes, and more accurately, warps memories of days gone by. Things were better, simpler, and we eat it up. Nostalgia can make you drive three hours and over a hundred miles out of your way just to reconnect with a dying fast-food restaurant you last enjoyed in the early to mid-90s. That person was me - that restaurant was Rax. I could go on about Rax's history, but in short, Rax was briefly a very popular roast beef fast-food chain. Growing up in the 80s and early 90s in Western PA, Rax was the good fast-food spot. The milkshakes. (Personally, the chocolate chip milkshake was heaven.) Uncle Alligator Kids Meal with the chocolate chip cookie. Take that McDonald's Happy Meal! The fancy salad and hot foods bar. Going to Rax was special. Like so many similar restaurants, various investments, management decisions, etc., led Rax to almost disappear overnight. By the time I graduated college in late 1999, abou...