Some things are beyond comprehension.

I went to the Goodwill drop-off to unload some perfectly good items that I no longer needed.

I pulled into a parking place a couple down from the actual loading area. I only had a couple bags of light items, no need to take the prime spots. As I was returning to my car, a woman pulled up and parked directly behind my car. Straight ahead was a fence. I was trapped. She brought her first load of stuff up and the kindly man who was working the drop-off made a comment to the line of “Ma’am why don’t you pull out of the way so the man in the pick-up can get out.”

She responded with a snippy, “I’m only going to be a few moments.”

Apparently, I am chopped liver. What in hell made her so much better than me? She was no beauty queen, she wasn’t fabulously young, didn’t drive a particularly nice car, nor was she dressed any better than me.

Have you ever wanted to bitch slap a complete stranger?

A view from downtown Chelan, WA

I don't know Chelan well enough to know if we are looking north or south or east (the lake is to the west, so I am throwing that out.)

The picture is a couple of days old, but dozens of homes have been lost.

Bad news turned to good news.

Yesterday, it was announced that St. Mary’s Academy, an all-girls high school in Portland had rescinded a job offer after it was discovered that the female applicant was engaged to another woman.

It should be noted that St. Mary’s is a Catholic school. I can feel Richard roll his eyes, only for the obvious fact that the chance of an all-girls high school named “St. Mary’s Academy,” would be anything but Catholic is so slim as to be non-existent.

Today’s news is that the Board of Directors unanimously voted to add “sexual orientation” to their non-discrimination policy.

From the President of St. Mary’s board;

“St. Mary’s is a diverse community that welcomes and includes gay and lesbian students, faculty, alumnae, parents and friends, including those that are married. We are proud of our work preparing the next generation of women leaders for service and leadership. We are still deeply committed to our Catholic identity.”

Wow, progress so fast it is blinding.

The smoke is back.

Mt. Hood had returned for a brief visit, but (s)he is gone again.

And the smoke is thicker than ever. It is kind of like being by a campfire and there is nothing you can do to keep the smoke from blowing into your face.

And I saw my oncologist today. Good news! The tumor on my adrenal gland has not grown. And my lungs sounded good. Yee haw!

I do a CT scan and another visit to the oncologist in early October.

I’m not saying it’s smoky in the Upper Hood River Valley, but

All indications are that Mt. Hood packed up his/her bags and moved to the coast. The state of Oregon will be issuing new maps as soon as Mt. Hood is found again.

All joking aside, my heart goes out to the many people directly affected by fires in the northwest, and let’s omit the smoke-whiners. The entirety of Okanogan County, Washington is on evacuation alert. A building burned in downtown Pateros, Brewster High School is being used as a shelter for evacuees. At one time or another, the towns of Malott, Riverside, Twisp, Conconully, Winthrop, Tonasket, parts of Okanogan and other towns have been evacuated, and some still are. Omak and Okanogan have fires to the east, west and north of town.

And a hats off to the brave men and women who are fighting the fires. And an open heart for those who have lost their homes. And a moment of silence for those who have died.

Travelogue: Day 8, I am home.

2,600.2 miles later, my vacation is over. (Come on people, let’s hear some sympathetic phrases!)

As I was driving north from Grants Pass, the smoke was as bad as in California. I heard over the radio, that with the exception of the coast, the entire state of Oregon was covered with smoke and there were warnings that people with breathing issues should stay indoors. Well, I was in an air conditioned vehicle, so basically I was indoors. The smoke was so thick through Eugene/Springfield that it was almost eerie.

And the view of Mt. Hood awaited me from the top of my driveway.

All that is missing is the mountain.

The cats are happy to see me! (And I am happy to see them!)

Oh, and it was 102° in Hood River, but only 95° in the Upper Valley!

Travelogue: Day 7, Volcanoes and Fire.

Leaving Reno was tough. My new best friend didn’t come with me. Promise me you’ll write, Ducky!

Lassen Volcanic National Park was my main goal. Yes, there were pretty rivers and big trees along the way, but I wasn’t satisfied until I saw the entrance to the park.

Mt. Lassen is pretty cool, in fact the entire park was amazing. I imagine that St. Helens will bare a strong resemblance in 70 years.

Sadly, smoke began to fill the air.

It was very smoky from Lassen until my stop for the night in Grants Pass, Oregon. I think all of northern California is on fire. Oh, and just a by-the-by, my plan to escape the heat didn't work. It was well over 90° in Reno and was 104° when I reached Grants Pass.

Travelogue: Day 6, Grrrr...Reno, redux.

I found my way out of Hawthorne and wound my way to Lake Tahoe, one of the many things I really wanted to see on this trip. I had never seen Tahoe before. Taking the advice of friends, I avoided South Lake Tahoe by winding through the mountains south of the lake. My first glimpses of the lake were as I was driving north on Highway 89. At that moment Highway 89 was two narrow lanes with a steep cliff on the uphill side to my left and a major drop off on the downhill side to my right. There were places where the asphalt had dropped off the precipice, taking the fog line with it. A sign said to share the road with bicycles. Better a bicycle than an oncoming car, or worse yet, a speeding semi!

Lake Tahoe is drop dead gorgeous.

 It would be magic, other than the throngs of tourists who ruin the place. Any place worth seeing had no parking spaces, there was road construction with delays in 4 separate places, and… well my list of whines could go on and on.

I did actually get down to the lake at one point. It was a pebble beach; no one else wanted to be there. But I can say I have put a digit in Tahoe! (“Toe in Tahoe” would be too corny!)

Don’t let my complaints dissuade you, at any time Tahoe is worth the visit, but if you pick your time better than I did, it really could be magical.

From Tahoe I went to Carson City. A small city like many other small cities; for some reason this picture captures the feeling I got better that any other I took.

I pressed on. Zak warned me that Virginia City was tourist kitsch, but I had time to kill so I went anyway. He didn’t lie.

What he neglected to mention was that the trip to (Silver City and Gold Hill) and the trip from (views of Reno) made it worth all the tourist traps.

And to make the day great, a visit with Zak and Whittney and the bunnies!

Travelogue: Day 6, Grrrr...Reno!

More later, decided to visit with Zak and Whittney instead of type!

Travelogue: Day 5, Where exactly is Hawthorne, Nevada?

It was another great day, albeit with some minor disappointments.

10:03 AM, 20 miles south of Beatty, Nevada, the thermometer reach 100°. A few miles west of Beatty is Rhyolite, where it was a frosty 98°. Not to worry, I put on a sweater. Rhyolite is a neat ghost town (with a couple of places that looked like they were still lived in.)

And from there, on to Bishop, California. It was smoky there from a fire at the entrance to Yosemite National Park. It was obviously drop dead gorgeous, but the smoke was so thick it bothered my eyes, and hindered all pictures irrelevant.

And Mono Lake, despite its iconic nature, was less than impressive.

And now I find myself in Hawthorne, Nevada.

Travelogue: Day 4, What happens in Vegas, stays in Vegas.

And I’m a happening type of guy so I stayed in Vegas all day, and will spend another night here. My mind and my hands (and the rest of my body) needed a break from the car. I did drive around some today in Vegas, but here is a piece of trivia that might interest you, when it is 106° degrees out, a steering wheel can be scorching!

I leave tomorrow. I was thinking about going through Death Valley, but it is forecast to be 120°-125° there. Think about the name and then think about a damn-near senior driving through alone. You see the ugly picture.

So I’ll be winding north, hoping to find some relief from the heat!

Travelogue: Day 3, Vegas. Really?

I am as surprised as anyone that I am in Vegas. I don’t like Las Vegas, why would I spend days driving here in intense heat? I guess because it is there.

And the drive made the destination worth it.

First thing this morning, I made an unexpected visit to McGill, Nevada. You can imagine the shock on the locals faces as I drove through town, with my map open. I couldn’t find McGill on the map, but it didn’t alarm me at first. Those of you who know me, know I pour over a map before I move. And I was working with two maps of Nevada. As I was pulling out of the north end of McGill, it dawned on me that there was trouble. McGill was two big for both of my maps to have excluded it. I pulled over in the shade, dammit, I was on the wrong road.

Not to panic, I know how to do a U turn.

Quick as a wink and 15 minutes later, I am on the correct highway. Because of my unplanned detour, I almost decided not to go to Great Basin National Park, but it was one thing I really wanted to see. I wasn’t on a time schedule and what is three hours of my life.  

Ummm… It turns out the visitors center is not in the park but in the small town of Baker, 6 miles before the park. I missed it, but I knew to take the scenic highway to the top. (Ain’t the internet a miracle!!!)

What they didn’t mention on the internet is that the road is narrow (Karla, think of the road in England where the oncoming carload spewed obscenities at us. Just make the road a little narrower and with a rocky, steep uphill side and a sheer drop of 14,000 feet on the other side.) There were few turn outs and no viewpoints until you got to top. And then it was meh!

After the Great Basin National Park I was feeling a bit down, like going to Vegas was a bad idea and maybe I should change my plans, but I had hotel reservations that were too late to cancel. So I trudged on.

And am I glad I did. I found Cathedral Gorge. Wow! Amazing!

And the drive on Highway 93 from Caliente to I-15 was one of the most beautiful drives I have ever taken. (Sorry, no pics… take the drive yourself!)

Rewarding day!

Travelogue: Day 2, Part 2, Eureka, I made it!

Got up and out of bed late this morning, and I think considering my late arrival in Burns last night, that was fair. I still got up and left the hotel a few minutes before my scheduled departure, Yeah, I took some time exploring Burns, but I still left just a hair late.

Approximately 93.1257 miles SE of Burns, you reach Burns Junction. There are no services there. You are given the choice of going to Winnemucca or Rome. You know what I chose, don’t you?

Yeah, you’re right. I had no idea you could drive there from Burns, but it is a magical corner of Oregon. I’m not going to say I was disappointed, but when the clerk at the convenience store scowled at me when I asked how to get to the Vatican City, I was appalled. 

Okay, that is one city I can kick off my bucket list. 

Then there were miles and amazingly straight miles until Winnemucca. I have to say, that is the best name for a town in America. Okay, I didn't actually find Great-Uncle Forrests's grave, but I found the cemetery he is buried in. I was running late, I hadn't planned on seeing Rome. It's a nice cemetary.

And after a few more hours and hundreds of miles, I found myself in the cute town of Eureka, Nevada. I am bedded in for the night.

Travelogue: Day 2, Part 1, the Long anticipated pictures of Harney County.

I am posting these first, as I know you are all waiting on pins and needles to see what Harney County looks like.

First, beautiful downtown Burns, okay it isn't Paris, but it had a good vibe.

And Harney County is miles and miles of miles and miles. There is something awe-inspiring about its vastness,

Travelogue: Day 1, the Adventure has begun.

I left Hood River almost on schedule. Okay, what is 15 minutes among friends.

My first detour was as I reached the Warm Springs Reservation. It seems there were a number of fires burning along US26, so we went on BIA roads for a few dozen miles. I got to see this great church in Simnasho.

Okay, now I’m about an hour late, but I am past the blazing infernos. If was eerie for a while.

I wanted to avoid the traffic of Bend, so I cut over to Prineville and cut down on Highway 27. Highway 27 follows the Crooked River; it is narrow and windy for the first 22 miles. It is quite beautiful (the picture does it no justice, but it does show that California is not the only place facing a drought.) 

No one told me the last 22 miles of Highway 27 was really Gravel Road 27. I pulled over and checked my maps. I turned around thinking I had made a wrong turn. But alas, I was on the right road.

My 7:30PM estimated arrival in Burns turned in 9:50PM. I’m hungry, but the nearby restaurants are all closed. I will live off body fat until morning.

I have now been in all 36 of Oregon’s counties. I’d show you a picture of Harney County, but all I know so far is it is dark.

An adventure I enjoy!

Happy Birthday, Annie!

I see a road trip in your future!

I was wrong.

I typed too soon. It turns out yesterday’s high was 103°.

This heat is beating the tarnation out of me!

Today is only forecast to be 97°. Not to panic, I know exactly where my winter coat is.

101°. Again.

So over this heat wave!