The Route

Cross-country Christmas

Into Oregon!

First taste of winter driving

Hood River

And a welcome coffee break

Following the Voyage of Discovery

in the Columbia River Gorge

Multnomah Falls

Self West! We made it!

The long and winding road

2,223 miles later!

We're in the Willamette Valley!

After two hours of snow packed roads in eastern Oregon and a brief stop in the winter wonderland of Hood River in the Columbia gorge, the temperatures rose to 45, the sun came out, and we rolled down into Eugene in time to watch the Huskies demolish Fresno State. Five days of amazing weather, one cracked spark plug, two hours of snow, one sweet traveling cocker spaniel--beating the Oregon Trail average of 4-6 months by some days. Fantastic trip.

Pictures follow.

Thanks for watching our journey west.

Love,

Bob, Lois, Cully

Sunny Western Traveling

Lois is in here somewhere!

northern Utah

Southern Idaho

Boise: Humanitarian Bowl tomorrow!

No beer for the driver!

We're here.

And the mountains keep on going

Snake River on the Oregon Trail

Pioneers on the Oregon Trail

Leaving Ogden, Utah at daybreak, we've enjoyed another day of  stunning scenery and have arrived safely in Oregon.  Once again, the weather gods smiled on us and we had clear sailing with only a little daunting  driving (such as  the six-mile downhill grade into Pendleton at sunset).  On the way,  we enjoyed a fun break for lunch at a  brew pub across from the site of tomorrow's NIU Huskies game  at the "U-Drove Humanitarian Bowl" in Boise, Idaho.    We showed the NIU colors, took a picture of the stadium, took Cully for a much-needed walk on a nearby bike trail and drove on. 
   
Go Huskies!! 

In the morning, we head out for Eugene and  the last leg of this part of our northwestern holiday adventure.  Since the previously predicted "big snow storm" seems like it will pass south of us (and what's a few inches snow with mild temperatures to us midwesterners anyway?) we plan some sightseeing along the Columbia River Gorge, Hood River, and Portland on the way.  Meanwhile, we are very thankful for our great trip thus far and all  three of us are eager to wrap up this trip and settle in for Christmas with the family.  We send you our warmest wishes too!

L, B & C

Smooth Sailing

Crossed the Continental Divide three times today. How can that be?

We had a nervous beginning at the auto repair shop in Cheyenne this morning--but the problem turned out to be a cracked spark plug, quickly fixed, in and out in 50 minutes, on an 11 degree sunny morning without a cloud in the sky. We flew across the wonderful, weird, vastly empty Wyoming plateau and arrived for the evening at Ogden Utah, another beauty, nestled in snowy mountains overlooking the Great Salt Lake. Still can't believe our weather luck--except for a few minutes here and there where black ice and leftover snow reminded us how treacherous it could be out here. We may have tomorrow before a "whopper of a storm" (TWC) heads into the northwest, so we'll miss the Huskies playing in the Humanitarian Bowl in Boise Saturday,  push on, and hope precipitation is only rain along the Columbia River.

Travel in the winter is tricky--

If the weather is good, you want to move out,
So you miss all the cool spots going by
(like the Wyoming Territorial Prison "Historical Place,"
Or the Fossil Butte National Monument,
Green River Flaming George)
But if the weather is usual and road-closing bad,
Then you're stuck
In Carbon County,
At the Sinclair Oil Refinery
Sucking fumes.

Thanks for following our christmas travels!

windy wyoming

open road to winter

 

Wyoming Dog Park

Bob's 50 cent ice cream

Western wild life

natural cathedral

It gets pretty awesome out here

upscale digs in Ogden

Great Plains

Central Nebraska--just like home

Amazing highway sculpture

Celebrating us pioneers

Sidney NE--"where the West begins"

Uh-oh--it's still winter?

Wyoming--two sides of the highway...

at the same time. Lovely!

Cowboy Dodge in Cheyenne....