Wednesday, September 19, 2012

On We Go

We left Sandpoint Idaho -- and began our slow trip south, still seeking adventure but well aware that the summer season was quickly chilling down.

A day in Spokane to do a bit of business and rest.  We both managed to get head colds and so felt a bit less energetic than usual!

Then on to Joseph, Oregon and the Wallowa National Forest.  All summer long we had heard raves of this area and so it seemed the time to go and explore.  It is really at the end of the highway!  And a lovely lake and a small artsy town.  But we just didn't find it to be the stunning vistas we had heard about.  OK, the fires in Idaho were creating a haze and that did not help.

So on we headed, west and south.  We camped 2 nights in central Oregon in a lovely forest campground.  It is bow hunting season so most other campers were into deer hunting.  It was a bit creepy to see a dear head hanging up and the body suspended from the cross bar of a nearby campsite.  Well, better a bow hunter than a crazy drunk with a gun.  We rode our bikes on quiet roads:  30 miles, 30 cattle guards, 15 cars, and 1 fox.  They got to lose those cattle guards before they can claim bike friendly!  We also managed to get another little mouse in the car.  I have never seen a mouse in a campground, but this season 2 have found a nest in my car.  For a day or so anyway.

It was freaking cold in the mornings....low 30s....so we quickly left; bought a mouse trap and headed to John Day Fossil Monument.  WOW!!  That spot was a total surprise to us with an incredible visitor center and movie, etc.  Too bad you can't just go out and dig around and find your own fossils.

Onward to Bend....well, sort of.  The Sisters area (just north and west of Bend) is in the throes of a major forest fire.  The air quality is not good; the views are not there; and ash is falling on everything.  So after a time of being on line....south we go!


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