Posts

Day 29 - 5/2/2017 - 8,404 miles to Salem, Oregon

Image
We're home. Eastward Journey The trip odometer tells us that we covered 8,404 miles in our little excursion. Across and back. One small rock chip on the windshield, patched in Atlanta. One stop by a cop for speeding in a tiny town in rural Idaho on day 27, with only a verbal warning. Thousands of memories. Would we do it again? You bet. We both agree it was a wonderful trip. Genial people the entire way. Thirty different states, and the District of Columbia, in the following order: Oregon, Idaho, Utah, Colorado, Kansas, Oklahoma, Arkansas, Louisiana, Mississippi, Alabama, Georgia, South Carolina, [back to Georgia, Atlanta], North Carolina, Tennessee, Virginia, District of Columbia, Maryland, Pennsylvania, West Virginia, Kentucky, Indiana, Illinois, Missouri, Iowa, Nebraska, South Dakota, Wyoming, Montana, [back through Idaho],  Washington, and home to Oregon. Return Leg 1 Final Leg Home I called this blog Red States Driving because that is what we were go
Post a Comment
Read more

Day 28 - 5/1/2017 - Walla Walla Washington and Wine Tasting

Image
We got in a little late last night but we now have a day off to taste excellent wines in an excellent wine growing region . If we hit all 140, you would probably find us in the Emergency Room. We went to 4 wineries today and tasted, and bought, some very good wine. What we failed to do, was take some pictures. However, Vickie took pictures on her walk with Linda this morning. These were on the campus of Whitman College. Walla Walla is gorgeous in the spring. The vineyards just had bud break, and this weeking is the Spring Wine Release. What are you waiting for? Tomorrow we will be home.
Post a Comment
Read more

Day 27 - 4/30/2017 - Helena, MT to Walla Walla, WA - 463.8 Miles

Image
Sunday Afternoon in Idaho We had a great night last night with Vickie's old friends in Helena. It was much like last month when I met up with my old roommates Craig and Brad. Over 30 years, but it was also like we just saw each other yesterday. Real frienship endures all things. Time is inconsequential. We headed through Missoula to the Mountains of Idaho; the Lochsa and Selway rivers merging into the Clearwater. We stopped several times to see the rafters and Vickie got these shots. Retirement means you don't have to care about schedules. We picked up Linda Norris in Helena, so for these last few days we are the Three Musketeers. All for one, and one for wine. Driving through these mountains smelled of home, and long ago. One of the best adventures of my life was in 1978 when I spent 6 days on the Snake River in a dory exploring Hells Canyon, from the bottom. Just before the Snake gets to Lewiston, Idaho, it is joined by the Salmon River which was calle
Post a Comment
Read more

Day 25 & 26 - Custer, SD to Billings, MT to Helena, MT and The Little Big Horn - 595 Miles

Image
Deadwood, South Dakota Today started in the snow with a drive to see Mt. Rushmore. Only the snow and fog were so thick you could not see anything. So Mt. Rushmore does not exist for us. And when we got there, the odometer for the entire trip just hit 7,000 miles. Sigh! Well, just because one stop didn't "materialize" doesn't mean we had a bad day at all. We drove up through the Black Hills to Deadwood South Dakota . Where Dodge City Kansas was a colossal disappointment, Deadwood redeemed the saga of the Old West. Buffalo Bill, Calamity Jane and Wild Bill Hickock. The real deal. The Saloon where Wild Bill  was shot in the back playing poker holding "Aces and Eights" which became known as the Dead Man's hand. Growth and modernization have had their hand as anywhere else, but there remains plenty of the old bones of the bygone era. And by old bones, I'm not referring to the HBO Series Deadwood and the pigs used by the Chinese guy to dispos
Post a Comment
Read more

Day 24 - Norfolk, NE to Custer, SD - 425 Miles

Image
After our interlude in Norfolk Nebraska we headed north to Mission South Dakota where Vickie's mom grew up. But first a side note about this monument we ran into in Nebraska. We were on part of the Lewis & Clark Trail when we spotted a monument that we assumed was about Lewis & Clark. We were wrong, but we were also very moved by this more recent memorial. It was about two law officers who died in the line of duty during a flood, Trooper Fred Guthrie and K-9 Trooper Reed. This is very close for our family. You see Trooper Travis Matheson (now Captain) and K-9 Trooper Jack spent many years working to protect the people of Washington. Vickie and I were blessed that Jack got to spend his last year of retirement with us before he passed on. Moving on to the trip at hand we made it to Mission South Dakota where we went in search of the grave of Vickie's Grandmother Bessie who died back in the 1930's. A stop at the City Offices lead to a phone call to a woman
Post a Comment
Read more