Salem, OR - Last Day Out West

We have spent the last few days wrapping things up and trying to enjoy our last bit of time out here. Those two things do not go hand in hand!

August always likes it when the bucket comes out, and that morning was no exception.

Tuesday morning we got an early start out of Florence, driving north up the coast and then east towards Portland. The coast was really beautiful, and I've added it to my long list of places I'd like to spend some more time. We stopped at one of the many state parks along the way, and August made some friends while we were watching an informative but sleepy video on the oceanography of the area.

Highway 101 is an incredibly scenic drive. Lighthouses and waves crashing over dramatic rocks abound. This is a very popular road for all travelers, including bicyclists (we saw many), but we agreed that with its narrow shoulders and traffic, it's not a road we'd enjoy riding on. Give us the backroads for cruising.

We stopped at a quaint little diner called The Blue Whale for a classic breakfast. We even got a plate of silver dollar pancakes. They were just the right size for August and totally delicious (okay, mom had some too).

We pushed on, knowing we had a lot of work to do once we landed at our destination. We had planned to stay in Portland, but many of the hotels were booked up and what was left was ridiculously expensive. So, we booked a place in Salem, which is about an hour south of Portland and also a great city.

We checked into the hotel in Salem, and then pretty much immediately went to work sorting and packing the contents of our lives for the past 8 weeks. Some to give away, and a lot to mail home. Chris worked late into the night doing most of the work while I kept an eye on the little fellow. Around 10pm, he took a load of 12 boxes over to the FedEx store to mail home. It ended up being a little more expensive than we had estimated, but not too much more. $500, not including his bike, which was packed by a bike store and shipped separately so as not to get damaged since it's fairly valuable.

Wednesday morning Chris was all nerves preparing for the sale of the RV. We had listed it on eBay and the winning bid was from a guy in Washington who wants to buy it to take to his daughters' softball tournaments. They had spoken on the phone several times after the auction ended and we felt pretty confident that we were dealing with an honest and straightforward person, but you never know.

Thankfully, all went smoothly with the sale. I drove the rental car and Chris picked the buyer and his wife up from the downtown train station. They bank at the same bank we do, so we were able to exchange the funds immediately with confidence, and then we went to a gas station so Chris could show them all of the ins and outs of The Lep. They are brand new to RVing, we could tell they have no idea what they're getting into. Hopefully they will grow to enjoy it once they get used to the quirks, as we did.

Finally, we drove off in our rental car and were ready to enjoy the remaining part of our trip. We were very glad after driving in downtown Portland that we did not stay there. Taking the RV there once was stressful enough as it was, and driving in general there was tough. Portland is interesting because it is well known as a highly bike-friendly city. Bicycles are everywhere and both they and pedestrians always have the right of way. I think this is fantastic and all cities should be more like that. It also has a very unique vibe. Very hipster, and people are proud that it's different.

We had a little time before our evening plans, so we stopped by the famous Voodoo Doughnuts and waited in line for 45 minutes to try out the delicacies. I went way overboard and bought too many, but there were so many unique flavors that I wanted to try as many as I could.

Odd varieties included yeast ones covered in Froot Loops, Cap'n Crunch Berries, a maple bacon bar, and a few dozen other interesting combinations. They were all yummy, though I am partial to maple frosting and anything jelly filled so I liked those the best.

After that we had a real treat, meeting up with a good friend of ours who happens to live in Portland. Patrick and I grew up in houses next door to each other in Covington. He is a few years younger than me, closer to my brother David's age, but we spent a lot of time together on Elm Drive. He has been living in Portland since shortly after finishing high school, and we hadn't seen him since a wedding a few years ago.

He took us to one of his favorite eateries, a Hawaiian place called Roxy's Island Grill. It was so cheap, simple and delicious. I got the shoyu chicken and orange chicken, served with two scoops of rice and a scoop of macaroni salad. It just goes to show you, traveling with a local always pays off!

We went bowling afterwards at a nearby alley. I am proud to say that I won and came close to PRing, which is not saying much because I'm not a very good bowler. August was completely fascinated with the whole thing, and I'm sure we'll be bowling again soon with him. We said goodbye to Patrick and drove back to our hotel to rest up for one more day out west.

August has been easygoing on this whole trip, rolling with the punches and generally being fine with all of the changes and hardships we've thrown at him. Many hours in the car seat, a tiny living space, sleeping in a pack and play, being away from his friends, and countless meals out with mommy where he's not supposed to touch anything. He really has dealt remarkably well with all of it.

So, we decided to try to make today Auggie Day and as fun for him as possible. Very little car time, and all of his favorite things. We started out by going to brunch at one of Salem's best spots, Word of Salem. It is in a converted house and had a bit of a wait, but the food was amazing. August had the scrambled eggs with cheese and a blueberry pancake. I had the eggs benedict, and Chris ordered the country fried steak.

We both agreed it was the best country fried steak we'd ever tried. For starters, it was made with filet mignon. So, it was tender to begin with and the prep process only made it more so. Hand-breaded, and covered with some perfect sausage gravy. Served with a side of smashed yukon gold potatoes, a couple of eggs, and a big fluffy biscuit. Thinking about it right now makes me want to eat some more!

August took a nice long nap afterwards, and then we went to Enchanted Forest, a little theme park here in Salem. It was the perfect place for young kids, with lots of exhibits designed for little people. Tunnels, castles, and other neat stuff was all around. Even better, it is actually located in a forest where the tall trees provide a cool canopy for the whole place. The place was started by a highway worker back in the late 60s. He basically began building stuff in his backyard by hand, with his kids, and after 6 or 7 years was finally able to open it to the public.

It is still run by his children, and is a fantasy land containing folk tale scenes, a western town, a medieval area, and a few rides. August was intrigued by all of it and enjoyed all the climbing and his personal favorite - lots of stairs! It was a win for us to find something so fun for him.

We went back to the hotel, enjoyed some downtime, had dinner at the seafood place within walking distance, and then went for an evening swim before bedtime. Auggie Day was a success!

Tomorrow we travel home. We are looking forward to being there, but sad the adventure is winding down.

PACIFIC OCEAN (Heceta Beach RV Park – Florence, OR)

This afternoon Chris officially finished the journey, making it to the Pacific Ocean. I will tell you all about it, but first – the rundown on the last day or two.

Yesterday morning we left Blue River and headed to Eugene. It was a lighter day of riding for Chris, so we had the afternoon and evening to explore the city, home of the University of Oregon Ducks. Eugene has been named one of the Top 10 most bicycle friendly cities in the U.S., so we wanted to get a feel for it.

Chris was really hungry by the time we met up with him, and his choice for lunch was The Sizzler. We had never been, only heard of it, and he thought we should try it. If you’ve ever had a deep burning desire to see what The Sizzler is all about, I’m here to let you know that you are not missing much. The food was average, and the prices were pretty high I thought. I guess if you are a high quantity eater, you could get your money’s worth. Chris got the Malibu Chicken, which he said was pretty good. I had the fish and chips, just ok.

Afterwards we stopped by Camping World to get an item or two for the RV to make sure it is 100% ready for the big sale this week. August was falling asleep by the time we left the store, so we were all able to sneak in a nap in the parking lot with the generator on to keep us cool. There are some true conveniences to having an RV!

We had to go see Hayward Field, as the University of Oregon center is the Track & Field capital of America. Chris has coached middle school track for the 9 years he’s been at Avon, so it was neat for him to see the premiere facility.

Then we hopped on our bikes and rode through campus, stopping at a great little trattoria in an old converted house. We are feeling celebratory for being so close to the end, so we each got a big plate of pasta. Fettuccine carbonara for Chris, and egg noodles with a hearty tomato sauce and chianti braised beef for me. Both were excellent, and worth us taking turns the whole time placating a feisty little boy.

We camped just outside of Eugene, and this morning Chris took off relatively early to try to beat the heavy traffic he knew he would face on his last highway. It did have a very large shoulder, which was redeeming.

Meanwhile, August and I had a big breakfast to honor the last riding day. We came across a little restaurant a few miles from the campground called Our Daily Bread, which used to be a church. It still had the beautiful stained glass windows and wooden beams forming the vaulted ceiling.

Since it was a big day for us, Auggie got the special – a scrambled egg, bacon and a white chocolate raspberry pancake. I got a combination breakfast that was filling and delicious. We ate like kings today!

A short while later we found ourselves in Florence, meeting up with Chris in a parking lot just a couple miles from the ocean. Chris really wanted us to ride the last stretch with him, and we were happy to oblige. It was a beautiful cruise there, and August and I enjoyed the breezes.

Finally, we made it to a jetty and made the long walk out to the beach. Much of Oregon’s coast is rocky and/or not accessible, so we went out of the way to go to a park with sand and everything. It was beautiful, and surreal to be there. We agreed afterwards that it was almost anticlimactic as it hasn’t sunk in that it’s done, but we did have a great afternoon at the beach.

After dipping the front tire in, of course we had to do the ceremonial dipping of the August.

He had an absolutely blast rolling around in the sand, crawling in it, heading back to the ocean again and again to get his feet in the wet sand and feel the waves crash over him. What a beach baby he is!

We celebrated with an afternoon snack afterwards, and then rested for a little while before meeting up with Chris’ cousin Sam and his wife RaeShannon (sorry if I butchered the spelling!) for dinner at the Bridgewater Ocean Fresh Fish House. Chris had not seen him since he was 10, so it was really great to catch up and swap stories. RaeShannon is actually from Covington, so it was pretty funny to have two Cayuga-ites and two Covington-ites mixing it up on the Oregon coast.

Chris got a bowl of clam chowder while I got crabcakes, and we both enjoyed big salads. A great way to end a momentous day!

Patio RV Park in Blue River, OR

We are getting so close to the Pacific, it is almost tangible. And yet, the journey continues. This morning August woke up quite early again, but did not go back to sleep. This is probably good for him, as it may lessen the adjustment back to our normal schedule. But, it is not working out very well for me. I think I could sleep for 12 hours right now and it would be just right.

Also, August spent a good part of the morning demonstrating why toddlers and RVs don't necessarily mix well.

I could tell he had some energy to burn off, so we stopped by McDonald's for a mid-morning play and snack before leaving Prineville. I think at this point I have seen enough Playplaces to write a book about it. One interesting observation, I've noticed they're pretty popular as a place for divorced dads to take their kids. Kind of sad, really, to see them sitting with their food and looking at their phones while their little ones play, but I suppose I might do the same thing if I were in that position.

After about an hour and a half of playing, we took off for our next destination. The drive took us up through McKenzie Pass and then down to our campground. I saw a sign on the way up that said, "Last turnaround. No vehicles over 35 feet." This did not give me any warm and fuzzy feelings about taking the behemoth up there, but I didn't think we had any other choice so we pressed on. The combination of narrow roads, no shoulder, high walls in many places, and hairpin turns was rather harrowing. We made it, but my blood pressure was elevated through much of it. I learned later on that there was a much smoother route that apparently neither I nor my GPS knew about.

Putting aside the tricky driving aspect, it was a really gorgeous drive. Certainly the most striking and fascinating view is that near the summit is a 65 square mile lava flow. Dramatic black rocks lie in piles as far as the eye can see. It's obvious that they haven't always been there, as in many places you could see the tops of evergreen trees peeking through. I don't believe I've ever seen lava flow before, and I was happy to get to go through this area.

We caught up with Chris on the way down, and stopped for a second. Even though it was 20 more miles to our destination, he ended up arriving just a few minutes after us since we had to go so slowly and carefully down all those switchbacks. All of the cars were on bicycle speed!

Our RV park tonight is right on the McKenzie River, a beautiful little river. Our site is about 15 feet from the water, and the sound of the rushing water very strong. It's a rapid river and a common place for rafting, and it was really fun this afternoon to be able to sit at our picnic table and watch the rafts full of people go by. They were all soaked and moving quickly through the rapids, all seemed to be having a blast.

Tomorrow is one more medium leg to Eugene, and then on Monday the last short push to the coast. We are looking forward to the finish but sad to be leaving the adventure behind soon.

Crook County RV Park in Prineville, OR

Today was Chris’ last 100+ mile day, so he was up early to get going. August was too, but thankfully went back to sleep and ended up staying asleep pretty late. I did not mind the extra rest!

Since it was closer to lunchtime than breakfast, we stopped at the Snaffle Bit Dinner House for a bite to eat on the way out of town. I figured why not, and ordered a steak and baked potato. They were good, but actually the house salad I got was the highlight. Iceberg lettuce, carrots, peas, cheese, and croutons with ranch dressing. I’m not sure what made it so special, but it was delicious.

We saw this sign in the window of a small business. I love to see towns embracing bicycling as something normal that everyone should be able to do as part of their daily life, safely and without stigmas.

After a full lunch we headed out of town, looking forward to seeing the John Day Fossil Beds that would help break up our long drive. By the way, John Day was a 19th century fur trader. Much of this area is named after him. In the 1800s it was discovered that the area was rich with fossils dating up to 45 million years old.

Probably of most interest to me is that while many of the fossils found here are regular old mammals and flowers still around today, at one point the climate here was subtropical. So there were fossils of exotic rhinoceroses, palm trees, and avocado trees. August and I enjoyed strolling around the exhibits at the visitor center. I can’t say that he was enraptured by the displays, but there was a miniature Australian Shepherd sitting outside waiting for its owner, and that made it all worth it for him.

I have to admit that I don’t get that excited about seeing old partial bones of squirrels and such. I guess I have Jurassic Park-level expectations when it comes to this kind of thing. There is a working paleontology lab here that visitors have a window to see into however, which is pretty neat.

Perhaps the best reason to visit the fossil beds if you aren’t that into the fossils themselves is the magnificent coloring of the strata in the hillsides here. Below is Sheep Rock, very close to the visitor center.

We moved on and towards Prineville, our destination for the night. It was a long day for Chris, around 12 hours, and we were all ready to eat and crash. We picked up some pizza at the fine establishment of Pizza Hut on our way into town, and then came to the RV park here at the fairgrounds. There was a horse race going on at the fairgrounds tonight, so we had the pleasure of listening to the announcer’s booming voice late into the night.

Just as I was settling in with my Kindle for a few minutes of quiet reading while Chris played with Auggie outside, there was an eager tap at the window. I looked out to see Chris’ wide eyes peering at me. “You have to come out here! Now!” Of course, I was expecting to see Burt Reynolds in a limousine at this point. Not quite, but still good. We finally found our RV’s identical twin!

Ye olde 1998 Coachmen Leprechaun. The trip is now complete.

Grant County RV Park in John Day, OR

This morning we were up and at it bright and early in order to get the RV to the HVAC repair shop. What we had hoped was a small issue keeping the air conditioning from working turned out to require a replacement of the whole unit. Fortunately, the owner of the shop and his team were able to set us up with a used one in good condition, and the whole deal was done in two hours at a cost so low we could hardly believe it. Thank goodness for honest people in the right place at the right time.

The silver lining is that we got to spend a delightful morning tooling around town on our bikes. First we stopped at the Smoke House, a great little diner. Chris got the biscuits and gravy, I ordered eggs, bacon and toast, and August had French toast. All were delicious. The place had an old-fashioned setup, with booths along the windows and a bar in the middle. I am going to greatly miss the luxury of being able to eat a full breakfast nearly every day when the trip is over.

Afterwards we stopped at Safeway for a few groceries and a park at a nearby school so Auggie could get some playtime in. As usual, he wasn’t afraid to tackle the big slides. This playground had a neat little platform attached to a spring-loaded metal frame so you could bounce up and down easily. August loved it, and kept stomping his feet to get it to shake (though of course his 25 lbs didn’t do much so mom and dad had to help a bit to really get it to move). We got back to the HVAC shop just as they were finishing up.

We headed back to Baker City to resume the route, and Chris started off for his 75-mile ride from there. We entered the Oregon I was expecting to see, and it was a beautiful drive. Tall pine trees, green valleys and crisp air abounded. The whole day felt like a perfect October day in Indiana, and made me think of fall.

Our destination for the night was John Day, an interesting name for a town. I will explain the origins more tomorrow, but for now I will talk about the place. It was late afternoon and I was pretty hungry so we stopped at The Outpost restaurant. I had a personal size Islander, a ham and pineapple pizza. It gave me the energy to continue on to the library.

August, as usual, was able to explore to his heart’s content at the Grant County Library. He perused several books (before throwing them on the floor), enjoyed hugging all of the stuffed animals, and tried unsuccessfully to boot up the computers. We spent nearly two hours there, and I was glad it worked out as tonight was a late arrival night for Chris since he had gotten a late start.

Did I mention the weather here is amazing? It was a perfect evening to sit outside while August tinkered with this and that. Our RV park is on the county fairgrounds here, and every spot has nice shade trees. I made a dinner of smoked sausage with green beans and fried potatoes.

We are on the last push of the quest, with only four riding days left for Chris. Trying to enjoy it as much as we can!

Eagles Hot Lake RV Park - La Grande, OR

I bet you didn't guess this was Oregon, did you? When I was driving through it I found it a little hard to believe I was still in the U.S., it was such an exotic sight. This morning Chris got an early start from Cambridge, ID and we followed in the late morning.

Today we took the road less traveled. The GPS suggested we take the interstate to our next destination, but for once I decided it was worth an extra 45 minutes of drive time because a) The other route was in the opposite direction of Chris' route, so we wouldn't have been much support, and b) I wanted to see Hell's Canyon. Since Auggie was up bright and early (about 2 hours before normal in fact), I knew he was up for a long nap.

Hell's Canyon didn't disappoint. It is basically a large reservoir at the bottom of a very deep canyon. The mountains surrounding it are tan and mostly barren, and the road going through it was winding but not at all unpleasant. I saw lots of motorcycles, and could see why this highway was popular with them. This is also where you crossover from Idaho to Oregon. Our final state of the 10 we've visited!

We came upon Chris shortly after lunchtime, and we were all glad for a little break together. August had been practicing his independence all morning, so even a 20-minute sojourn for me was much appreciated. Afterwards we wished Chris well for the second half of his ride and moved on.

Shortly before getting to Baker City, we stopped at the Oregon Trail Interpretive Center to see and learn. August had a blast, and particularly enjoyed engaging with the fake animals all around. He spent a few minutes yelling at a buffalo. Funny stuff! I couldn't take a picture because he refused to let go of my hand while this was going on.

Near the interpretive center is a place you can easily access the wheel ruts that remain of the Oregon Trail. The original trail was around 2,200 miles long, and I was surprised to learn that 300 miles of that are still visible today. I had always assumed it was long gone. August really tried to absorb the historical significance of this. I could tell based on pushing an umbrella stroller through about 10 feet of the trail that the settlers had it rough. In all seriousness though, it was a great museum and experience I would recommend to anyone passing through the area.

For those of you tracking our route mile by mile every day on the map, you'll see La Grande is not on it, and yet here we are. A small issue with the A/C in the RV came up yesterday, and we really need to have everything in good working condition for the sale, so we took a detour to La Grande to have it looked at in the morning. Ah, the joys of RV ownership.

The bright side is that we were able to get Chris the Chinese food he has been craving. A local place called Golden Harvest was pretty good, and we had a nice dinner there. We each got different types of chicken, Chris got a potsticker appetizer. A polite young Chinese gentleman who worked there was asking us all kinds of questions about babies, and it was fun to see how curious he was and realize how much you learn by necessity when you are going through the parenting phase we are in. The man guessed August to be about 7 months old. I remember when counting ages in months was a totally foreign concept for me.

The little guy got a grilled cheese. I love that it was served with an American flag in it.

Another bright side to the detour, we found a great RV park for the night that has a pool and spa that are fed by a hot spring. We all went for a post-dinner dip before tucking in for the night. Wish us luck for a quick fix in the morning so we can get on our way!

Classic Auggie bedtime moment, going nuts with his crazy hair.

Frontier Motel & RV Park - Cambridge, ID

The detailed work of selling this rig and getting home has started, even though Chris still has several hundred miles to ride. This morning we spent a couple of hours pulling everything we have with us out of the RV and taking pictures and video to create an eBay listing. We know there are several consignment shops in Portland that are willing to work with us, but we thought we'd try our luck with this before we get there. If you happen to know someone looking to buy a fully equipped motor home in Portland, send me a message and I'll put them in touch with the listing!

Today Auggie became an official TransAm-er. Since Chris' route followed a trail for part of the day, the Augster got to join along in riding about 12 miles with "DA!". He was happy to be able to joyride, even if he fell asleep toward the end as it was very close to nap time.

Afterwards we headed on to Cambridge to find a place to stay and wait for Chris. There was a nice little park in town, and happened to be right next to the library, so August and I had the rest of our afternoon planned out. He tried very hard to be the loudest person there, and he succeeded.

I have become quite the connoisseur of libraries, and it's been interesting to compare all of the different ones. We are happy to find one at all, of course, but it's fascinating to see how even the smallest towns can have some truly creative and inspiring children's areas, while others (even bigger ones), may just have a small table and chairs.

Once Chris arrived, August spent some time playing in the grass while RV maintenance was done and I got a much needed little break. Then it was an average homemade dinner in the RV. No pictures of awesome food today, as we didn't eat out and none of our home cooked meals were noteworthy at all. Big plans for tomorrow though!

Evergreen Campground in Payette National Forest - Tamarack, ID

This morning Chris took off from Grangeville after a couple early morning runs into town to get some maintenance items for the RV. August and I headed to the library to find some fun. He had a good time hanging out with the stuffed animals there and some other kids. He seems to be a favorite with little girls who are about three years old. They are fascinated with babies, and like to ask me all sorts of questions about him. "Does he talk?"

Afterwards we walked around downtown for a while and then took off towards our destination. We caught up with Chris around Riggins, a small town with several rivers nearby. It seems to exist primarily for rafting outfits. It looked like a lot of fun, and something we'd like to do when August is older.

We stopped in Shelly's Back Eddy Grill & Ale House for some lunch. The elk tacos were definitely the highlight. They were served like street tacos, with the soft corn shells and garnish of cabbage and herbs. They didn't taste too much different than beef tacos, and we could see why they're popular there.




We took off towards our destination for the night, leaving Chris to bike the remaining 35 miles in the rain. He is a trooper!

August and I headed into Meadows, our planned stop for the night, and went to the RV park we had tentatively picked out. It looked pretty rundown, and had more of a trailer park feel than someplace you'd want to camp, and I recalled seeing some other places on the way into town. I took a few minutes to do some research on my phone, and decided to go back into town to make a plan before committing. The reviews online didn't have much positive to say about the place, so I thought I'd look around.

As I was circling around, a woman in a late model Lexus SUV came up behind me and then pulled around alongside my door, essentially cutting me off. I rolled down my window, and she said, "Can I help you?" in a none too friendly tone. I told her that I had turned off but wasn't sure if I was in the right place, and she just gave me this angry look. "Are you looking to stay here tonight?" I told her I wasn't sure where we'd be staying, and that I needed to go back into town to get some things. The weird, rude stare continued. "Well, my manager just called me and said someone was here", she said gruffly and then glared again. She was so surly, and acted like I was bothering her just by existing in her space. We could not get out of there fast enough.

So, Auggie and I went into New Meadows, got a cold beverage, and waited for Chris. When he arrived we grabbed a late dinner at Subway, and enjoyed talking with perhaps the most overly competent Subway employee ever. He was so nice, made sure to get our orders exactly right, and let us stay a little past closing to eat while he cleaned up and did his closing duties. Speaking of that, I need to figure out how to leave some positive feedback for him with his corporate employer.

We decided to head to a campground in the Payette National Forest just a few miles up the road. It is basically just a place to park with no hookups, but is cheap and I feel good about doing my part to keep our public campgrounds in operation.

So, another night with no phone or internet service. That seems to be a trend within the National Forest areas. At least it forces us to get to sleep a little earlier than we would otherwise. We are closing in on Oregon, I think only about one more day in Idaho!

Bear Den RV Resort - Grangeville, ID

This morning it was rainy and chilly at the campground high in the mountains. Chris took off early anyway since he had a lot of miles to ride today, and August and I didn't waste any time leaving after breakfast in the RV since there wasn't much to do in the wet conditions.

I was looking forward to being back in communication with the outside world. We found this bumper sticker at the lodge yesterday that really sums up the general feeling of being in a wilderness area where you get no cell phone signal, no internet, and not even a radio station.

This sign greeted us shortly before we arrived at the campground last night. Rather foreboding, especially for a cyclist! You'll be happy to hear that Chris traversed those 99 miles today without incident.

We caught up with Chris shortly before a tiny town called Lowell and stopped in for an average lunch at the restaurant there. No word on why the population number changed?

Afterwards August and I kept on to Grangeville. It is fun traveling the same road as Chris and imagining what his ride is like. The first 70 miles was basically a downhill coast for him, on a road hugging the beautiful Lochsa River the entire way. It's a very shallow river, and many times I wanted to park the RV and go do some wading. I didn't see that working out very well with my klutziness and Auggie, so I'll put it on my list of things to do once he's big enough in a few years.







The last 20 miles of the drive was a very steep and very long uphill. I started to feel quite sorry for Chris. The good news is that we had finally re-entered cell territory, so I sent him a text to let him know we were rooting for him, knowing he would get it right about the time he started the ascent. At least he was rewarded with an amazing view that would make anyone feel like a champ, understanding that it was your own two legs that had taken you up that far.

We had a few hours to kill, so we found the park in Grangeville. The play equipment was age-appropriate for Auggie, and there was a family of nice kids that didn't mind playing with him even though he was a little younger than them.

We found Little Kid Paradise, a big dirt box with dump trucks, fire trucks, tractors and other vehicles to push around the terrain. I remembered how much I would have gone nuts for this set up when I was a little one and could easily understand his glee.

If amount of dirt on a child is a measure of summer success, this guy is winning!

Eventually we got a site at the Bear Den RV Resort, a really nice place on the edge of town. I talked with the owner a bit, a friendly guy who visits Indiana often in the winter when he drives truck. He gave us a prime spot next to the laundry and shower house (I think he felt bad for me having to lug the toddler around!), and invited all of us to a family dinner he was having tonight on the deck. He has four daughters and the whole extended family seemed to have a great time at their cookout. We have met some truly salt of the earth folks on this trip.

Speaking of fine folks, it started storming when Chris was a couple miles from town, and a kind farmer stopped and offered him a ride in. We don't mess around with lightning, so he was happy to accept. Funnily enough, the farmer had already heard of him as Chris had happened to have stopped and talked to his father-in-law (also a farmer) a few miles back. Word of outsiders travels fast here! Idaho, you're on par with Kansas for friendliest residents so far.

We took the RV to the car wash here tonight to start de-griming it in preparation for selling in just over a week. It's shining like a bright new penny. It's too dark to take a picture, but trust me that The Lep is looking fine. Now, it's getting late and we've got laundry to finish so I will sign off.