Somewhere east of Portland, Oregon

  Portland, Oregon, United States
Monday, September 3, 2007

Danner was finally able to send a couple of pictures. They are back in the United States and expect to be at Dick's house later this week. They are planning on stopping at Mt. St. Helen's to check it out.
          
This is a picture from some of the campgrounds in Alaska and one of Danner at the North Pole.
  There was a cruise ship somewhere they stopped. This is my idea of how to tour Alaska. Forget all those bad roads and rain and waking up to frost on your bike!! I want my chocolate candy on my pillow!!

They were riding south in Washington state and noticed a guy on a Harley pulled over on the side of the road. They stopped to see if he was having trouble. He was just resting and so they all took off. The guy started riding with them and they all pulled into a restaurant to get something to eat. That is when Danner noticed that the guy had a passenger. Can you believe the pink accessories??

  More later, Katheryn

PS. You can click on the photo icon and follow the prompts or double click on the picture to see larger versions of the pictures.

Day 25, Mon, 03 Sep, Anacortes to Centralia, WA
 
Our hotel had a complimentary breakfast then it was off to the ferry about 45 minutes away.  The 30 minute ferry ride would cost $4.85 and that included the bike.  It was pleasant and took us to western Washington.  Thru Port Angeles, around the north side of Mt. Olympus, near Neah Bay then on to Hwy 101, we would ride three hours in the rain.  A possibly gay, Jewish, Harley guy decided to ride with us.  He was nice and had brought his dog along for the ride (see pics).
 
Day 26, Tue, 04 Sep. Centralia to Dick and Bonnie's house (Nehalem, OR)
 
We took the tourist route and went to Mt St Helens.  The museum and movie were excellent.  We could not see the volcano because of low clouds.  The forest has mostly recovered and it's hard to see any damage from the eruption except for filled valleys.  Lots of nice riding in this area.  We stopped at Astoria to see the column, then back on to the coastal highway to Nehalem.
 
 
Day 27, Wed, 05 Sep, another day off with the Speer's
 
We did laundry, got my tire re-plugged, dumped our pictures off the cards to CD's, and shipped our camping gear home.  Thanks Bonnie, 43 pounds I didn't need any more.  Dick and Bonnie gave us a tour of the area and we ate at a lovely seafood place.  Nick slept at the house, and I stayed at the antique shop apartment, nice!
 
 
Day 28, Thur, 06 Sep, Nehalem, OR to Gold Coast, OR
 
Time to get home!  We got back on 101 and were greeted with strong cross winds and fog.  But the views are beautiful and we stopped many times for pictures.
 
 
Day 29, Fri, 07 Sep, Gold Coast to Reno, NV
 
Continuing down 101 to Arcata, CA, then on to Hwy 299 to the east.  This road was the best riding of our entire trip.  We toured the redwood forests and the museum.  Our next  stop was Shasta Lake to tour the Russell shop (m/c seats called day long riders).  Then on to Susanville to spend the night.  Oops, there is a large forest fire and every room is taken by the firefighters.  The next rooms are in Reno, 80 miles east.  We get there at 11:00, not a fun ride.
 
 
Day 30, Sat, 08 Sep, Reno to Ely, NV
 
We took Hwy 50, called the loneliest road in America out of Reno.  It is lonely, in great shape, with interesting scenery, especially if you like desolate.     
 
 
Day 31, Sunday, 09 Sep, Ely, NV to Tropic, UT
 
Hwy 50 to Hwy 89.  There was lots of cross wind on the Interstate.  It was so bad we had to get off and ride the back roads.  We rode thru Red Canyon Park then Bryce Canyon.  Bryce Canyon was beautiful; we got some nice pics.  Hotels near the park were all full.  We finally found a dump for $80.