Can’t believe I’ve been on the road for seven days now. And almost 3,000 miles. But I can sure feel it. Just sitting at the picnic table hurts my butt. Back is still holding up pretty good though.
Another cool start this morning. Low to mid 50’s. But not as bad as yesterday. I started with all my layers, didn’t want the chills and never got them. Temps warmed into the 80’s by lunch time and I was ready to shed a layer.
The smoke from wildfires wasn’t bad in Roseberg, Oregon but could still be seen in the distance. I headed north on I-5 (or as they say out here, the 5) towards Washington state. Very little traffic and was able to move quickly. Deep green forested mountains surrounded me but much of the view was farmland. Some fruit or nut tree fields and a lot of empty ones. Dust clouds popped up all over, farmers tilling their land.
Stopped to fill up in a little town called Cottage Grove. Now, I’ll remind you that in the state of Oregon you do not pump your own gas. Motorcycles are an exception apparently. I only stopped for gas twice in Oregon. First time was nothing out of the ordinary except I noticed no one else was pumping their own gas. This time, the attendant watched, and proceeded to try and teach me how to use the pump. I felt obligated to inform him that this wasn’t my first rodeo, I knew how to obtain a receipt from the machine. Saw an old water plane sitting behind the station and found it pretty cool. Carried on, north to Portland and the Washington border.
More farmland for a bit and then more mountain like scenery. Evidence of a recent fire could be seen for several miles. I’ve seen this on the hillsides in California, but this came right up to the roadside. The smell of charred wood still hung heavy in the air, but the smell of smoke wasn’t present. These fires had been out for a couple of days.
Hitting Portland I saw more traffic. I expected it, it is Portland after all. Finally made it through and to the border. No welcome sign photo. The only sign they had looked more like a street sign and said “Entering Washington”. It hung above the center lane of a bridge. No photo op possible. Maybe possible but certainly not safe. Once I crossed the Columbia River I was into Washington and only about 75 miles from cutting back east.
Stopped at a little place called Peper’s 49er Restaurant. Small time place. Kind of joint that has mostly regular customers. Also had hot sandwiches on the menu. I ordered the Big John. Beef, turkey, bacon, lettuce, tomato and mayo. And hot. A hot sandwich and cold beer hit the spot. Shed the newly acquired sweater but kept the jacket just in case. I’m coming up on more mountain roads so figured I could be hot for a while if it meant keeping warm later.
I reached highway 12 and began my trek back east. Roughly 250 miles on the day so far, 150 to go. The road was pretty flat for about 50 miles. I could see Mt. Rainier off in the distance on my left, covered in clouds and snow. For a moment I could even see Mt. Saint Helens on my right but was never able to get to a good spot to pull off to get a photo. The road eventually wound into the mountains, up and over White Pass. The road signs out here were a bit unnerving. All in reference to snow. These are up year round so I didn’t think too much of them. The “Motorcycles Use Extreme Caution” sign raised a few hairs though. Eventually came to a scenic pull off and caught Mt. Rainier in all her majestic beauty. Covered in snow and still surrounded by clouds.
Highway 12 is slow going. Top speed limit is 55mph and for much of it too slow in my opinion. Getting up to and past White Pass was mostly uneventful. A few slow turns but nothing noteworthy. The tree filled mountain road was beautiful to ride through but what was to come was so much better.
Shortly after passing the scenic spot for Mt. Rainier I came upon a large mountain lake, Rimrock Lake. It’s waters looked very inviting but I imagine they were cold, at least to this southern kid. The lake is man made, and once I passed the damn, the Tieton River began. The road followed its rushing waters for a good 20 miles or more. As I neared the end of Highway 12 the Tieton ran into the Naches River. A right turn towards Yakima and followed the Naches much of the way.
At this intersection the landscape changed drastically. The deep green forested mountainsides vanished instantly and were replaced with brown, barren ones surrounded by desert like valleys.
Today was a pretty good day. Spirits were high and no rain aside from a few drops as I neared my destination. I found myself singing along to the radio on several occasions. Singing like know one was listening, because no one was. And if they were watching, I didn’t care. I’m out here to have fun, enjoy life and learn to deal. Perhaps I’m finally learning how to build a better boat.
Idaho tomorrow.
The Motorcycle Diaries of an Easy Rider 