Into The Great Wide Open

Our drive from Moab to Capitol Reef  was super windy and windy when we arrived.  We thought we found a great spot and set up for the night. We soon realized that it was way too windy and dusty.  About 5 miles down the road I asked Bryan if he grabbed our step stool and he said “nope”. So, we headed back to the spot to grab it 😁. We found a cool place to spend the night outside the park. There were several other boondockers camping with us. I now have my own personal “barista” every morning who makes my coffee and I lay in bed enjoying every minute of it.  We drove a few miles to Chimney Rock for a 3.5 mile moderate hike. We stopped at Goosenecks Overlook and it reminded us of a mini Grand Canyon.  Bryan pulled out our mini air fryer and heated up his left over fish and chips and I had cheese/salami and crackers.  We had one lady ask what we were having for lunch because it smelled so good up at the top of the overlook.  Maybe we should start selling f...

 Finally figured out how to add photos to blog.  We arrived in Moab around lunchtime and ate at the Trailhead Public house which was good.  We then went on a 4.5 mile hike to a natural bridge.  There were many river crossings, but we were able to cross on rocks and didn’t fall in once.  This was a very cool hike and as we approached the natural bridge a hail storm struck.  Shortly after, the sun returned to dry everything.  We met 3 nice people at the natural bridge who were on an annual trip from Colorado.  That night we just boondocked in an overflow parking lot of a hotel that had a decent view and was away from the road.   The next day I rented a mountain bike and took a 10 mile ride that was pretty extreme and unlike any ride I have ever done.  After picking up the bike and starting to drive up to where the trailhead started we came upon a campground right on the Colorado and since it was around 10:30 the previous nights guests were...

 We are now officially on our own after a couple family stops on the way.  After the stop in Bend we routed through Prineville and then to Painted Hills.  I had toured the area on Cycle Oregon last summer and wanted to show Paula how beautiful it is.  Definitely a gem that not many people seem to know about.  We hit Tiger Town Pub in Mitchell and had a great meal outside on their patio.  We then headed towards Ontario Oregon on hwy 26 to stay with Darcey (Paula’s sister) and John on their 500+ acre farm.  Cheech and Gus were welcomed into their home which allowed us to sleep in a bed which will be a very rare occurrence moving forward.  I enjoyed touring the property and seeing all the equipment needed for the farming operation.   From Ontario we headed out en route to Provo Utah Elks.  We stopped in Twin Falls to have lunch and take in Snoshone Falls which were on the Snake River and quite impressive.  Used our little toaster oven ...

The process of getting ready for the adventure we are hopeful to be embarking on is a bit overwhelming,  We are scared, excited, anxious, and optimistic.  Our first stop was to meet brother Chad in Salem at B2 Taphouse.  Paula and I shared a brisket nacho that was delish, great first stop to say see you late Bro..  They had a couple cases of tall boy beers for $10 ea which we quickly laid claim to.  Off to Bend where we encountered a decent snow storm at Hodoo.  Slept in the van parked in my Dad’s driveway since it was our cat Cheeh’s first night on the road.  The drive stressed him a little but he seemed pretty happy once it stopped driving.  This was the first night sleeping on our new mattress and.I thought it was very firm and comfortable.  The space heater made the van too hot so the sleep was not the best, but there are a number of things to tune in as we move along.  I met my Mom for a nice visit on Friday morning.  There wer...

Thanks to all who attended our party to celebrate our pending departure on road trip.  It was great to see people from all parts of our lives come together and have a good time.  It was a good reminder of how fortunate we are to have such a wonderful group of people in our lives.  A big shoutout to Pete and Courtney for sneaking back over in the am and cleaning up the basement while we were sleeping.  What an amazing change of emotions from dreading the cleanup as we walked down to ecstatic that someone cleaned everything up.  We then had a good time trying to figure out who could have done it.   Cheer!