Home and thoughts, FAQ's

We're home for a week and after lot's of catching up on bills, appointment's and just stuff, it's time to reflect. 

Jeff:
This has been a amazing journey.  I have been fortunate to have had some outrageous trips in my time to parts near and far, short and extended yet I have to say that this trip has been one for the ages.  Every day was an adventure, discovery and just plain joy.  For all of you that thought it could not be done without coming home wanting to strangle, bludgeon, stab, mutilate or any other form of hostility, you were wrong.   I have no scars, other then where my flesh met up with barb wire on the Imnaha River.  This first week back has been stressful and I find my mind taking five by going back and playing movies from our trip.  Although the trip was costly monetarily, it actually was quite the bargain when all of the good times are factored in.

Kathy:
I haven't had nearly the traveling experience that Jeff has had. But I am so thankful that I had the courage, resources, and well, mostly courage to embark on this journey.  I have so much greater understanding about distances and places, and parts of the USA that I had heard and read about but really had no concept of.  One thing stands out.  There is a heck of a lot of rural and unsettled land out there.  I naively thought that the "East" was crowded with city after city.  I had no idea that just a few miles out of Cleveland, for instance, we could be in the countryside very similar to my home in Oregon.  We had lots of warnings before we left about being careful and avoiding dangerous situations and people.  But not once was I frightened or felt threatened on our trip, other than by the weather (those thunderstorms were overwhelming).  Without exception, the majority of the people I met were thoughtful, kind and helpful.  Also, the highways that we traveled were for the most part, in good repair and uncrowded.  And (although Jeff might disagree) most of the drivers were sane and careful.  And there are a hell of a lot of trucks going back and forth across America.  What a glorious and wonderful country we live in and how lucky we are.

I have to thank my traveling partner, Jeff.  Throughout the trip he was considerate, calm, loving, easy going, and yet paid attention to details.  I loved being able to share my thoughts without censorship or worry about repercussions.  I will hold on to strong memories of miles of laughter and music and spectacular scenery and also to withstanding problems of heat, humidity, boredom and constantly changing plans without rancor.  We took care of each other along the way.  My theory about traveling with anyone is that there is always someone who is the "weakest link".  If you don't take care of the one who is "weakest" then you come to a screeching halt.  We took care of each other so that neither of us was "weakest" for long.  We shared driving, finances, opinions, cooking, chores, decision making,  and practically every minute and (as Jeff so succinctly stated) didn't kill each other.  In fact, there were a lot of discoveries about us as a couple that won't make it into print or onto the blog.  But our relationship continues to grow and get stronger. 

I also want to thank those in Jeff's family who opened their homes to us.  Dennis and Laurie, I loved the cottage at Bayfield and especially your comfortable house in Rochester.  It was such a relief to have a home base from which to regroup.  Dixie, I can't thank you enough for your respite outside of
Cleveland.  I would be so stressed out from meeting many new people and moving around so much, and coming back to your house with the dogs and cats and coffee in the morning was so relaxing.  And Shelley and David, even though it was definitely too hot to go anywhere, we made the most of it with music and photos and I loved the guest room--so private and quiet and cool.  Thanks to you all for your hospitality and warmth.....I can't tell you how much it meant to me. Also, thanks to Jon and Sharon for hosting the gathering at the cabin.  It was a wonderful way to be reacquainted with Oregon. You are all the best!

Here are some facts, figures and memorable moments.

Length - 41 days, one day shy of 6 weeks
Miles traveled - 8601.4
Fuel costs - $2,346.92
Cost per mile - $ 0.27.2
Cheapest gas - Laramie Wyoming, 3.19.9 per gallon
Most expensive gas - Enterprise, Oregon 4.09.9 per gallon (Question, does Oregon have a bigger gallon?)

Best memory
J - Lunch on the Yaak River in front of the falls
K - Magic around the Campfire on the Yaak River

Worst memory 
J - The bloody battle at Lake Misbegotten against swarms of crazed mosquito's that I believe had been genetically enhanced to seek and destroy.
K - My meltdown at Dixie's in the heat of Cleveland.  Second Choice:  Stranded on the freeway outside of Limon, Colorado......so frightening.

Most touching moment:
J - Meeting a young girl (17 or so) at the Yaak general store who had adopted two baby chipmunks whose mother had been killed by the girl's brother.  She was determined to take care of them in a kind and gentle way till she could have someone adopt them or she could turn them loose.
K - Den and Laurie's surprise birthday cake at the B and B at Mackinac.  Close second, watching J's excitement at seeing all his old haunts in Cleveland.

Best Breakfast
J - Corky and Lenny's - chicken livers sauted with onions and eggs - sounds weird but you got to try it to believe it.
K - The Beachmont Country Club buffet.....sumptuous.

Best lunch
J - Tic Toc in Cleveland--City Chicken
K - Tommy's in Cleveland

Best dinner
J - Mackinac Island, The Woods  Second Choice: BBQ pork over the fire at Jon and Sharon's
K -Mama Dipps in NC.  Second choice:  Cajun Food in Detroit

Worst meal
J - White castle, sometimes it is best to leave things as memories as things sometimes get worse over time, or my taste has become more discriminating.
K - Dennys in Limon CO.....hard chicken fried steak with fake potatoes covered by wallpaper paste gravy and I was so hungry I actually ate it.  Yuk!

Biggest joy
J - Hugging Maia, my grandniece
K - Driving, driving, driving with destination unknown, music on the iPod, my hand on Jeff's leg, and the freedom to stop wherever we wanted.

Biggest disappointment
J - Cedar Point, too too hot with long lines and high prices
K - Winemucca.  Not the gambling mecca I had imagined.

Best Hotel
J - Haystack Inn, Cannon Beach
K.- Bayview B and B on Mackinaw Island.  Second choice....any of the Hampton Inn's....they were great.

Worst hotel
J - Comfort Inn, Sandusky, Ohio, forever to be known as "The Discomfort Inn"
K -Super 8 in Devils Lake MT.  Close second:  The Santa Fe in Winnemucca....those chairs!

Best Campground
J - Jon and Sharon's cabin, Flora Oregon
K - Yaak River

Best sunset
J - Bayfield, Ontario
K -Lake Pend de Orelle,  ID.  Second Choice: KOA Kampground in Wyoming

Best joke
J - Neil D. who said (and excuse the lack of PC edness) "What do you tell a woman with two black eyes..........nothing..... you've already told her twice."
K - How can I top that?  (Please send your objections to this joke to Jeff's personal email!)

Best ice cream
J - Goodberries, Raleigh N.C.
K -That place in Detroit with the weird flavors....amazing

Warmest memory
J - Seeing family and friends, close second - introducing K to the people I love
K - Getting warm and sincere hugs from Jeff's family.  Also, my reunion when we got to Flora.  That hug from Carol will last a long time!

Most hospitable State
J - North Carolina
K -Montana followed closely by Michigan

Most inhospitable State
J - Kansas, close second, Wow! It's Kansas
K - Minnesota followed closely by......Yup, Kansas.  I can see why Dorothy ran away.

Prettiest State
J - West Virginia
K -  Montana


Best recreation inside the camper (besides the obvious)
J - Ditto on below! and having a place we called home.
K- Watching Taxi and playing backgammon

Things to think about before leaving on another adventure
J - Pack and then take everything, and leave half of it behind
K - Ditto.  We took way too many clothes and stuff.

Favorite pix
Some pictures that are definitely blog worthy but failed to make the cut the first time around, and some which need repeating.

The beauty of Mt. Ranier park

One more from Yaak

Sunset at Pend de Orelle, Idaho

The crew at Bayfield cottage

The traditional foot shot on Lake Huron

The beautiful people of Detroit

Holden Arboretum East of Cleveland

Me and my Uncles

Kathy kissing some.......

I have always looked up to great art

Me and my new bud at the R & R Hall of fame

Cleveland rocks, Cleveland rocks

Sis at work (posed)

Us, the Atlantic and watch out for those sharks

Abe in Utah, question, was Abe ever out to Utah?

Great Salt Lake, close and...

Far

Oregon's hidden beauty

Carried the damn kite for 8000 miles, we were going to fly it, wind or no wind

Kids who have had there central nervous system removed, playing at the coast

We've got a full tank of gas, etc........

Rest stop

Another view of the sunset at Bayfield

Indiana Hibiscus

On the way to Troy, Oregon

Taking a break by Lake Michigan

The damn dam at Lake Winnie

Our trip, add .4 miles, (Just trying to be accurate)

The camper coming off :(

August 5th and 6th- Nehalem to Lincoln City, Corvallis and Home!

This was a day for relaxing, a day to record the least miles traveled from point A to B.  Mellow morning of breakfast and straightening up the camper as we realize that last night was our last night sleeping in our "home".  We do a bit of gawking and decide to follow a sign off 101 to Munson Falls.  To our surprise, up this winding, narrow dirt, gravel road there were quite a few folks looking for the road less traveled.  An easy quarter mile trail lead us to a nice viewpoint, but it was no Sahalie Falls.

Munson Falls

Jeff plays Hobbit

We make it down to Lincoln City by 3:00 and check into "The Sandcastle" and go out for a leisurely stroll out on the beach.  As anyone who has gone to the beach in Oregon knows, as far as the weather goes, hope for the best, expect the worst and reality will be somewhere in between.  Today, amazingly was better then the best.  Not enough wind to fly a kite, temperature in the low 80's, no clouds, sparkling clean sand and miles of beach to walk on with relatively few people to share it with.  The perfect way to spend an afternoon. We sat on a log and watched the tide come in around the rocks, the pelicans skimming the waves, and people using boogie boards, skim boards and surf boards to get into the ocean.  I didn't envy them....Brrrrrrrrr!

After our walk and a nap on the deck, we went into town looking for a special meal and decided on Thai.  We walked in to this restaurant and once again, K and I seem to be able to read each others minds.  After sitting down and waiting we noticed a lot of other people, without food, waiting also.  The only server seemed to be one surly teenager who was slow by any standard.  Neither of us thought we were going to see any food soon at that location, and rather then stay, we bugged out after 5 minutes and drove over to a Steak/seafood house.  Excellent choice, as we had the best steamers either of us had ever eaten.  We then checked out the local gaming casino where once again, neither of us left with our picture hung on the wall proudly holding a check with a bunch of zero's.

We both realized that this was our last night on the road and we were up until after 2:00 walking down memory lanes from the past 6 weeks. 

In the morning, we checked out of the Sandcastle, and headed down the coast to Newport.  We were going to check out the Yaquina Head Outstanding Natural Area (and lighthouse), but the $7 fee was too outstanding for us.  We made a U turn and took a walk on Agate beach instead.

K was eager (no desperate) to get home, but agreed to a brief stop in Corvallis to see my old friends (and diehard Beaver fans) Gabe and Barb.  They have a lovely home and garden East of Corvallis.  We had a tour and a beer and caught up on our lives.  K's whines alerted me to her need to get back to the farmette, and after a few more miles we pulled onto Lajoie Rd.  Our long journey was finally complete.  We added up the miles and calculated that we had travelled 8601.4 miles on our trip.

As for the blog, we have a few more pages to write.  K and I want to add a couple of pages about our individual impressions and feelings about the journey and we have a few FAQ's to answer.  If any of you faithful readers have questions about the details of our trip, email us and we will answer them.

August 4th Cannon Beach to Nehalem

We left the warm comforts of Haystack Inn with a deep sleep under our belt and 2 Costco muffins (chocolate and blueberry) soon to be under our belts.  The plan - get to a wonderful campground right on the ocean and check in and claim a primo spot and veg out for the day.  The reality - every campground was manned and womaned by smug, arrogant employees who smiled knowingly, gave a slight titter and spoke to us as if we were mentally impaired.  Seems to be that there is no room at the Inn, Mary, as it is mid summer and every yahoo from Ontario to Yachats is here with reservations they made back in November.  How could we be so "stupid, stupid stupid"!!!

Suddenly, minds start turning to plans B or even C.  We are lowering our expectations from primo to a parking spot with a view of the back side of the local Walmart.  We spot a sign that is partially hidden by bushes advertising an RV park up on the Nehalem River.  We check it out and once again, fools are rescued from their own lack of planning.  The park is basically a spot where folks plant their single wides and launch their boats from the dock to fish for King Salmon.  They have one spot set aside for the likes of us and we take it, gratefully.  Our spot sits right on a quiet river, looking at a dock with various sorts of small boats gently rubbing against their moorings.  The place is spotless and the bathroom is our own, as everyone else has indoor facilities.

Home on the Nehalem

Nice view upriver

We register and take off down the coast to explore.  We have the idea that maybe, just maybe we will run into plan A but we are still covered by plan C.  We do find some private RV parks right on the ocean but one park is inhabited by the extra's from "Deliverance" and another sits right next to a sawmill where the sounds of the ocean are drowned out by the steady whine of a 30 inch blade making 2 X 4's.

Down by Garabaldi, we run into a massive traffic stop caused by a bicyclist becoming one with a Dodge Caravan.  We spend our time creating new and better verses to Neil Young's song, "The Needle and the Damage Done."  Each verse dealt with road damage and helped to pass the time.  All that waiting and singing can create a powerful thirst which in my mind can only be slacked by a DQ chocolate shake.

We then headed down to Tillamook, ignored the cheese factory - (whey to many curds) and took the 131 to Cape Mears lighthouse.  A very nice stroll but disappointing as the lighthouse itself was vandalized in 2010 by two 25 year olds with IQ's that matched their ages.  The good news was that they were caught and actually making restitution - they won't be doing that again!  It was a beautiful area looking out on 3 Arches Park - a series of large rocks a mile off shore with arches carved in them after eon's of the ocean's forces.

Cape Meares Lighthouse

Three Arches, one is revealed, you will just have to take our word there were 2 more.

Heading back North, it was nap time for me, fortunately, K was driving.  We spent a wonderful evening in our chairs, reading and watching Heron's, Hawks and Bald Eagles fish for their dinner.  The night was rounded out by beans and weanies and a few episodes of "Taxi".

Harry the Heron stopping by at dinnertime

Dusty, dirty worn but still going strong!