You Can Never Go Home, Or Can You? Ridin’ w/Rosa,,,9/19-9/25

So although Rosa and I didn’t ride from Spokane to Tonasket, we did manage to ride every day.  Our rider were only 6-16 miles but they were all good rides and gave her a lot of confidence in herself which she didn’t have prior to starting.  Rosa had told me she had been close to canceling her trip out of fear of the ride, so taking these short daily rides was a good call.  We had a blast riding around the area.

One of her first climbs.

We’d had a pretty good time with Mom and Gene all week-long.  Riding during the days with little excursions here and there and evenings spent on the patio around the fire pit.

Another beautiful evening out….

Yet another morning ride in the Oakanogan Valley

Another bit of fauna watching over us…he kept us company over the course of a couple different days.

Since I’d gotten home I’d been giving more and more thought to not coming back to Vegas.  I’ve been in Vegas for the better part of 36 years, but it’s never been home to me.  Home is where the heart is…now I’ve just got to narrow the playing field.  I want to stay in the valley through most of the latter part of this year.

I decided it would be a good idea to find a decent ‘cheap’ beater to drive around when the weather turned cold, so I found an old Subaru in Wenatchee I wanted to look at.  This car lives up in every way to the description of ‘beater’.  Holy shit, I probably would have given the kid an extra $100 bucks if he’d taken the time to clean it up a bit.  I got the last laugh as I must have gotten at least $10 bucks in change from the interior….I mean I did get the last laugh….didn’t I????

I didn’t dare drive over 60mph….which was kind of a guess since the speedo/odo doesn’t actually work.  I’d go more into what doesn’t function but I don’t want to get the answer to my previous question.

The weekend rolled around and that brought Wes, Mikala, Brad and Kathy (son and daughter-in-law) over to spend a couple of days.  Kathy’s family lives about 40 miles away and raises Vizsla puppies.  Vizsla’s are generally considered to be a premier hunting dog.  Rosa and I accepted the offer to come meet them.

The area I grew up was (and still is) a major area for orchards…apples, pears, cherries, peaches, apricots and lately more and more grapes.

Nice peaches….er, ah, I mean pears of course.

Another view of the valley.

On Monday, Mom, Rosa and I drove up to Canada and decided to visit LaStella Winery.  None of us had been to this particular winery.  We enjoyed the tasting and picked up a couple of bottles…I’ll let you know how they are.

Mom and Rosa at LaStella Winery.

Tues came all too soon and it was time for Rosa to head back to Vegas.

I decided to take Rosa to Spokane in the beater (Wes had taken the truck over the weekend at my request).  We had a damn fun drive over stopping every now and again for photos…Grand Coulee Dam, my Dad’s gravesite etc…

Omak Lake…I’ll be fly fishing here soon.

A different point of view.

Lake Roosevelt near Grand Coulee.

Below Grand Coulee Dam.

It wasn’t long before Rosa was on her flight bound for Vegas.  I don’t think she wanted to leave.  I know I didn’t want her to….

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Rest Days in CDA & Spokane 9/8-9/16

It’s been a while since I’ve posted…and more than a few have commented on it, sorry for taking so long!

I stayed in CDA for a couple of days.  The combination of a good inexpensive hotel combined with the local scenery prompted me to stick around.

Lake Coeur d’Alene…though not much of a photo

On Sunday I decided to call my brother Wes who lives in Spokane and give him a heads up that I’d be coming in.  He surprised me by saying they were only a few miles away in the pickup.  Never one to miss an opportunity I decided to take him up on his offer of a ride.  So it was that I arrived in Spokane not under my own power…I know, big surprise!

Rosa hadn’t been able to get the bike packed in time to have it shipped up and it turned out to be a good thing.  Having her bring it up via SW air only cost $50 as opposed to double that to ship it.  I love it when a plan comes together!

Regarding Rosa and the bike…I had been telling her that she would regret not having some saddle time, but I really couldn’t get after her too hard considering I had done the same thing prior to going to Mexico, so what could I say?  Wes told me that I could borrow his pickup, and drive us and the bikes to Tonasket if I didn’t think Rosa was up to riding there.

Prior to her arriving though I had some really good time with Wes, Mikala and their family (to include Max).

Max, Wes, the Spokane river and a tennis ball…need I say more? Come to think of it yes…Mikala sits in the background.

Finally Rosa arrived late Sunday night (actually early Monday morning).  It didn’t take long to realize there was no way she would be able to complete the ride to Tonasket and she agreed.  So the next morning we got the bike put together and headed off for a day of sightseeing in downtown Spokane.

Rosa and friends at Riverside Park.

The beautiful Spokane falls.

We set off for Tonasket Tues morning with the idea of getting home by late afternoon…well, that was the plan anyway.

Glad it was him and not me!

An all too familiar sight, but it was worthwhile!

I decided to take the more scenic route along Lake Roosevelt and over Sherman pass.  I think it’s the most beautiful route home.  Rosa thought it was pretty spectacular too.

Lake Roosevelt was created by building the Grand Coulee Dam. It’s a rather long lake going all the way up into Canada (though some may say it ends around Kettle Falls).

Another shot of Lake Roosevelt…oh and Rosa too.

Tall evergreens at Sherman Pass.

So with all the sightseeing we did it’s no surprise that we didn’t get to Mom and Gene’s till it was just about dark out.

Garfield to Tekoa & (pronounced TeeKo) & a Lift to Coeur d’Alene…9/7

I pulled out of Garfield about 8:30 in the morning.  The B&B was in the shade of some big trees so it was a good time to try out my jacket for the first time.  It only took about 20 minutes of riding before it came back off again.

This is where the jacket came off so I decided to get a shot of the bike next to the rail cars. This is probably what the final look of the bike will be for a while.

Figured I ought to at least show what was next to the bike…

Washington is truly home for me even though I don’t know this area of the state too well.  So although I have a map and a GPS it doesn’t always mean I have an idea of the actual best way to go.  So it was with this in mind as I continued northbound on Hwy 27 that I came to the Farmington Road crossroads.  Now, both ways would get me to Tekoa (where I figured on stopping for lunch), but usually one way is a better way.  At this particular crossroad there sits a pretty good-sized salvage yard where Darrel junks out decrepit, old, ruined, dis-used machinery (think semi tractor-trailers, tractors, combines, etc…).  Darrel told me that taking the road through Farmington would be the best choice.  However, once again, I was told to watch out for the semis going to and from the fields.  Thankfully the is near the end of harvest season as opposed to the height of it.

Darrel

I can imagine that the operator attempted to take this on a hillside which was just too damned steep. You should see the inclines they farm down in this part of the state.

For what it’s worth Darrel assured me the ‘ol IH wasn’t headed for the scrap heap.

Just my day for old IH rigs I guess.

Beautiful farm land.

I guess Darrel hasn’t gotten around to this one yet.

The ride was all about rolling hills.  No big grades, just a hill…after a hill…after yet another hill.

Although all the rolling hills I can see what lay ahead.

The hills of Idaho lay in the distance.

I had been told there was a couple good places to eat in Tekoa.  Interestingly they were both said to be “at the far end of town at the top of the hill”.  Well they weren’t kidding.  It’s not as though Tekoa is built on the side of mountain like Pioche, but still why does there have to be a hill just before lunch?  It did make this a bit tastier…

Yummmm

This previous little treat came from “Eclair’s” coffeehouse in Tekoa.  An absolute gem of a spot in a little town.  I had the chance to speak with my waitress Kayla.  Kayla was wearing a Team Scaroni t-shirt.  The t-shirt is a tribute to a local athlete who competed in the London Paralympics; Susannah Scaroni.  The entire town was pulling for this young lady to win in the women’s marathon.  Susannah finished eighth.  Small towns…ya gotta love em.

Kayla in her Team Scaroni shirt.

So the place I was told to eat is a local tavern; C&Ds.  Good food, inexpensive, and oh yeah, cold beer!

I had been told that the next town I was going to hit, Plummer, ID, was not exactly a garden-spot variety town.  Rough around the edges is how it was referred to.  So after my third beer I decided to hitch a ride with a worker who was headed towards Coeur d’Alene, ID.

I’m still deciding if it was the right decision.  I missed out on riding a dedicated bike trail which runs alongside the eastern side of Coeur d’Alene Lake.  I can imagine it would have been a beautiful ride.

Regardless I had a good time chatting with Jeff as we drove towards his hometown of Post Falls, ID.  He was picking up his daughter and taking off to Lewiston, ID to go Steelhead fishing.  Needless to say, he was stoked at the prospect.

I managed to find a really nice motel…the Budget Saver Motel.  Honest to God, this was really a nice place.  At $50 a night I haven’t stayed in a nicer place.  Thankfully, even though it’s not directly downtown there was a great place to eat right across the street; Moon Time and an even better place a few blocks towards downtown for breakfast called Jonesy’s.

Rest stop is over….Colton to Pullman and on to Garfield…9/6

Well, I certainly took my time at my big brother’s house.  I have to say that Greg, Jeannie, Tom and Taylor were very patient with me spending a week with them.  But like all family, as glad as you are when they get there they are equally glad to see you head out.  Now don’t get me wrong, we had a great time together, but just like leftovers in the fridge….well, you get the drift.

Anyway Thurs morning rolled around.  Jeannie and I had a good chat prior to her heading off for work.  She commented that it seemed I was searching for something in my riding.  She wasn’t critical about it, but was glad that it was me and not her.  I completely understand what she means…and she’s right.  Hard to say what I’m searching for since I’m not sure what it might be myself.  But I promise to let you all know when I find it.

Thankfully I managed to find (with Taylor’s help) a chiropractor in Pullman to set right what had gone wrong after my fall outside of Hood River, OR.  The good doctor managed to get most of me back into alignment and his massage therapist, Tia, helped get everything else settled into place.  It was a happy ending to my time in Pullman.

Getting back to Thurs morning….I had asked Rosa to send me up some longer metal stays for my rack, but the more I looked at it the more I realized it should work without changing them out.  So, while Tom got some much-needed sleep, I worked on my bike set-up and was able to get it all dialed in without the new stays (a little metal part that lengthens the distance of the rack from the mounting point), but don’t tell Rosa I didn’t wait for ’em.

Anyway, about the time I finished Tom roused himself and agreed to give me a ride to Pullman…hey I’ve seen the road between Colton and Pullman, I didn’t feel the need to ride it.  We had a good lunch in Pullman and then went to my brother’s work at McGregor’s.  Greg works out of this office once or twice a week, but the bulk is spent in Uniontown just south of his house in Colton.  For some odd reason they seem to like him around there….

I think the point of the photo was to showcase my ability to get a ride when desired…..HA!

So I actually started my ride just north of Pullman with my destination being either Palouse or Garfield…just north of Pullman.  These were little towns on a map that I had driven by countless times, but had never taken the time to actually visit.  With that in mind I set off.  The temp was great, warm without being hot.

Rolling fields of the “Palouse”….

Found in a shed just off the road to Palouse.

Massive powerplant

I got to Palouse and had a great visit with a couple from…well, she was from the “Palouse” (the “Palouse” is considered a large swath of land in southeastern WA usually connected with wheat, barley, soybeans or garbanzo bean farming) and he was from OK.  She commented that I was an inspiration for them…that response always throws me for a loop…

I went into the local tavern and learned they didn’t have a place to stay…although they did have cold beer!  I enjoyed two before realizing I better hit the road.

The following nine miles to Garfield had just enough hills to make me re-think my decision on leaving the tavern!  By the time I got to Garfield it was just getting dusk.  I found myself in Grumpy’s tavern (a common thread).  I enjoyed conversation and a couple of cold Oly’s (Olympia beer).  It was a damn site better than I remember!

I had left a couple of messages with a local B&B but hadn’t heard back from anyone.  Cell service is at a premium out here so I left a message using the tavern’s phone number.  An hour or so later Donna called from the B&B.  She apologized about the delay and let me know she’d be willing to forego the usual room rate for a “donation”.  I was on the bike in a flash (but I would be remiss to not mention the bar manager offered his semi tractor-trailer cab and “Tennessee”, a patron, offered his couch, just in case the B&B didn’t work out.  I used my bike lights for the first time on this trip and made my way to the McCroskey  House where I met Donna Gwinn.  She had a room ready for me and I must say I slept damn good…although the wireless was non-existent.

Late afternoon harvesting…

The weight of the world….God I know that feeling…no shit, I really do!

A meeting of the minds…almost done!

A shower finished off the day…damn it feels good not to stink too badly!

Share A Ride w/Wes…8/31

Before going to bed I pursued Portland’s Craigslist and found an ad asking if anyone wanted a ride from Portland to Pullman.  Viola!  How lucky can you get.  I left the guy a message and kept my fingers crossed I’d hear back.

I got up early and saw that “Wes” had replied to me.  He wasn’t too sure how well the bike would fit in his Rav4, but he was willing to try.

Ashley took me back to the restaurant (where we kept the bicycle overnight), went over to the Hood River Hotel for breakfast and then said our goodbyes.  I can’t express how grateful I was meeting her and having a place to stay the night.

The wonderful Ashley

I had told Wes to meet me in front of the hotel and about 3:30 he showed up.  We managed to get the bike in without too much issue and we were off.  Wes is all too familiar with the drive from Portland to Pullman.  He works in Portland, but his wife and family live in Pullman.  So every other weekend he makes the trip.  He’s done this for four years!  It’s a testament to their relationship.

The drive went by without incident except for stopping to help out a carload of kids headed to Seattle from WSU.  The car was stopped in the middle of nowhere.  It seems that the engine had gotten too low on oil so shut itself down.  Lucky for them Wes had two quarts and we were able to get them on their way.  We asked if they had contacted anyone, but they hadn’t and really had no idea what they should do or where they should have gone had we not stopped.  Needless to say they were very thankful we had.  We followed them for about 15 miles just to make sure they were not having further problems.  Wes did this although he was desperately tired and wanting to see his family.  This is a testament to the man and I’m always glad to know people like him.

This is what the countryside begins to look like about an hour east of Hood River. It becomes very dry and barren very quickly.

One of the many dams along the Columbia. I believe this was John Day dam.

We made it to Pullman around 9pm and were glad to get here.  My oldest brother Greg was waiting in the parking lot of McDonald’s.  We transferred everything into his truck, but I told Wes to get hold of me if he found I had left anything behind.  We said our goodbyes and took off for Greg’s house.

A beautiful Palouse sunset

…followed by a beautiful full moon.

We had a beer while waiting for Tom (Greg’s youngest) to show up.  He’s in the Army Reserves and had been out of state on two different training missions for a month.  He was damn glad to be home and we were glad to see him.

A Rest Day in Hood River…What a Cool Town 8/30

I have to admit I was glad to have the sunshine in my eyes waking me up this morning.  I stretched while laying in bed and quickly recalled doing my best imitation on that old bag of cement.  What really surprised me was my knee (though banged up) was fine…it was my shoulders and right wrist that ached like hell.  Someone quick, call the Weeniehut General (those of you with Spongebob experience know what I’m talking about), ’cause I’m on the way!  Whiny Bastard!

I got up and put together a few blog posts and went across the street for some coffee and breakfast.  As I was sitting down with AAA map in hand, another man walked in, also with AAA map in hand.  We ended sitting together and enjoyed talking about our respective travels and adventures.  He lives in Thousand Oaks, CA and is taking a couple of weeks to explore the Pacific NW.  He was a lot of fun to talk to.

Mt. Adams (in Washington) as seen from Hood River, OR

I started to bicycle out of town and got about three miles when I realized I really did feel like crap.  I limped back into town and after checking the net, I found a transit bus which would take me to The Dalles, about 25 miles further down the road towards Pullman.  The local pickup point was in front of the Hood River Hotel. I propped my bike up against a lamppost using my Click-Stand.  I noticed a pretty young lady looking at me as I set it up.

I went in to the Hotel to confirm the bus pickup location and stopped by their bar for a beer as I waited (seems most places here have at least one, to several local beers on tap).  I went out to the patio where I could see the bike and the young lady, Ashley, struck up a conversation.  She works as a chef at a local restaurant.  We had an enjoyable time chatting.  She got up to leave and told me that if the bus didn’t work out she would be able to host me for the night.  A few minutes after she left the bus pulled up…and promptly left!  I guess the driver doesn’t stop unless someone wants off the bus or is standing right there.  Needless to say he didn’t see me wave him down.

Ah well…I’m a firm believer that things happen for a reason.

Another couple sat down for breakfast.  They were in town to see their son.  It turns out their son, Pierce Louis, is the driving force behind http://www.dirthugger.com a local composting operation in The Dalles.  Some of you may know my keen interest in composting so again this was one of the serendipitous moments that I love.

Well, since the bus left me behind I decided to kick around town for a bit.  I ended up mailing off a bit more gear to Vegas, bought a fly fishing reel (more on that sometime later) and enjoyed the microbrew which had eluded me the previous evening.  It was fun to watch the boardsurfers/kitesurfers catching air in the river.  Very colorful and cool to watch.  Studs and studettes all!

Inside one of many board/sail shops in town.

Boards galore

The Hood River just east of town.

I stopped by Ashley’s restaurant to confirm she really wanted to host me for the evening and she assured me that her Grandparents had an extra room and would be more than happy to have me stay.  I love meeting people.  It was the end of yet another great day!

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

Mt. Hood