May Ride

Day 1: Before my big motorcycle trip I had an appointment with my doctor.  Instead of delaying my trip, I decided to leave right from the Dr.'s office.  Here is my bike in the parking lot.  Due to a scheduling error, my visit was cancelled and I got right on the road.


The weather was perfect!  I had checked the weather for all my destination points and I was looking forward to a lovely weekend! 

I headed up I-5 North and went west on Hwy 42 towards the coast.






Stopped by the Sandy Bridge.

Saw some great barns.

 

And stopped at Highway 101 Harley Davidson in Coos Bay.

                                                     
Saw this great Victory in the parking lot!

 

I had lunch in Coos Bay right down the street from the dealership.

                                                    Got a picture for the H.D. bike rally.

 

At Florence I turned east on Hwy 126 towards Eugene.

 

Spooky looking abandoned farmhouse.

                                                             And another barn or two.

 

Nice roads.

Harley Davidson in Eugene!

 

I was pretty tired so it was time to find a hotel.  Because of my previous trip, I told my IPhone to navigate to the Red Lion Inn.  When I "reached my destination" this is what I found:

 

Well, I guess I needed to find an alternate! I finally found a place and I was pretty tired.  I had gone 312 miles.  I pulled into the hotel parking lot, kicked down my kickstand and was leaning the bike over and it just kept going!

 The stand didn't go down and I did a slow motion tumble to the ground.  I was laying on the ground laughing - I was not hurt and was very embarrassed.  A couple of guys were walking by and stopped to help me up and pick up my bike.

I looked it over and there wasn't a scratch on my bike.  I did have a scrape on my elbow and the young lady at the hotel desk gave me a band-aid.  The Days Inn was nice and clean and I walked to a local restaurant with a great dinner. 

Day 2: Eugene to The Dalles.  It was overcast when I woke up.  I slept in and had some breakfast at the hotel.  As I got on I-5 North it started to rain a little.  How bad can it be?  The weather reports said it would be cloudy but no rain in the forecast.

As I went north, the rain picked up and kept getting worse.  I pulled over to call Charlie and it wasn't raining too badly but on the freeway it was very wet and going around the big trucks was like being inside a washing machine!

As I got to Portland the traffic got very heavy and so did the rain.  It was stop and go traffic on the interchange which was interesting in the rain!  I got to Hwy 84 which ran along the Columbia River and was pretty excited I could see Washington!  As I went further away from Portland, the rain let up and by the time I reached Multnomah Falls, it had stopped raining.

 

 

 

I headed out for my next stop: Bonneville Dam.  Thanks to Kim Vandermolen for telling me about this awesome place.

 

 

One really big screw.

 

 

 

 

I stopped at a rest area to stretch my legs and met another guy on the road.  His name was Mike and he was headed towards Minnesota to see his grandkids. 

 

I saw this cute pair of faces in a trailer in the parking lot.

 

I made it to The Dalles and it was a lovely town.  Great old buildings!  I checked into The Dalles Inn and walked around town like a tourist taking pictures.  I found a great restaurant and had dinner.

 

Lewis and Clark were here!

 

I had a great dinner at the Baldwin Saloon!

 

Day 3:  The Dalles to Bend.  I slept in and had a light breakfast and headed across the river to Washington.  Next stop: Stonehenge!

 

 

The view from the hillside was beautiful.

 

 And Mt. Hood in the background.

 

 

Sherman County Courthouse

 

Found these old gas pumps out in the middle of nowhere.  Not only was it 66 cents a gallon, there was no place on the pump for making it more than 99 cents!

 

I rolled into Bend in the afternoon.  The first hotel I tried said they had a king bed with a Jacuzzi room overlooking the river for $198.  I told them I would pass and went on to find another place down the road.  The Sugarloaf Mt. Motel was nice, clean and pretty quiet. 

 

I got gas, snacks and unloaded my bike.  I took a nap and then set out for some dinner.  I walked down the street and saw these huge squirrel like creatures.  They ran up the hill and into the bushes at a shopping center.  I followed to see if I could get another peek.

 

See the little faces peeking out of the bushes?

 

 

 A lady in a nearby truck told me they were rock chucks and she fed them Vanilla Wafers.

 

Dinner at Applebee's and drinks and I walked back to the hotel.  I went in around the back and passed by a truck with a man and woman smoking pot and helped another woman off the ground who was too stoned on something to walk straight. Wow, I pick all the nice places!

 

 Day 4:  Bend to Medford

The next morning I headed out and stopped by the Harley Davidson dealership for a picture.

  

 

There were lots of people in the parking lot - a meeting place just like in Medford.  We all stood around and traded ride stories for awhile.

 

Saw this creepy two-headed axe man.

I made it to Crater Lake.

 

 

 

I'm finally home and unloaded my bike and my dog was rolling all over my stuff on the bed.  Yes it was a ton of fun but I'm glad to be home.  Longest solo ride now - 886 miles.