Journey's End - Finding Zen

George and I spent Wednesday with Carol. We meandered around Ashland. Ate a great lunch at a place in Medford. Talked, napped, and went out to dinner at the brewery in Ashland. A perfect day. George's brother, Sandy, and his roommate, Steve, stayed nearby at a hotel, and we agreed to meet them for breakfast on Thursday when we would begin the long, hot ride home. Carol kindly offered to bring all of our belongings to Sacramento later in September when she was coming to see my sister. So, George lassoed the box on the back and we hoped for the best. The ride from Medford to Sacramento is my least favorite. It is always hot, we are at the end of the fun, and it is long. This time I am riding on a bike with an unstable backrest so I decide to ride with Sandy. By the time we hit Corning the box is like a loose tooth that is barely hanging on. George has a bit of a weep over his baby, pulls it, we take a few pictures, and he leaves it by the garbage can. At some point we separate from Sandy and Steve as they have to go their own way and I rejoin George on our bike. Wow! I am holding on for dear life as we hit it at 70mph on the freeway. Of course it is Thursday and we hit commuter traffic. We finally make it home of course our Jack and Gracie were over the moon to see us. Sam, we're not sure. He warned us about a gigantic bill for air conditioning. Taking a vacation of any type is hard. Taking a vacation on a motorcycle could be an oxymoron. After a few days I made the decision that I would never do this again. My head itched from the helmut, my butt hurt, I was never comfortable, and there was constant stress about finding another hotel. Where was the fun? Then I had an epiphany. Life and motorcycle riding have a lot in common. They are both more about the journey then the destination. Finally I was able to slow down and relax into the ride and let everything else be. And then my vacation began....and it was amazing. Until our next big adventure - Jenson and George By the way, we traveled over 2,800 miles

Carol and George saying - "Until next time!"

Sandy, Steve, and George

George saying goodbye to his baby

George hugging baby goodbye

Home Again!

Bear Camp Road

Owen- Carol's Grandson

Tiffany and Steve

Carol and Jenson relaxing in Carol's beautiful backyard.

The Gold River Inn is truly a wonderful place to stay. We started the day with a long walk down the sunny beach, holding hands, laughing, just like two cute love birds. It was sort of sweet. We even had a song. We saw a silly seal in the water We saw a silly seal in the water but it turned out he wasn't a seal at all, he was a silly little otter!

Happiness is being together at Gold Beach.

Okay, I sang the song and George ignored me. But we still laughed and had fun. After the walk we took a hot tub on the beautiful wood deck. There are two hot tubs, one without a cover, one with, and one being built. There is also a room to relax in. We could have stayed another day or two at Gold Beach. We hope to go back next year and spend some more time. We started down the Rogue River and at some point we took a route that had been recommended as a scenic ride. It should have been called the Ride From Hell. Forty five miles of windy roads, 75% were paved, the fun part was waiting for the 25% which were not. The road was bumpy, hazardous, and 45 miles long. When we got to Carol's house George discovered that the luggage box cracked during the wild ride. So, we have no way to transport our suitcases home. But the ride was scenic! The good news is we arrived at Carol's wonderful home and moved in. We had a delicious dinner last night with her daughter, Tiffany, son-in-law, Steve, and grandson, Owen. We sat outside in her beautiful patio and enjoyed a terrific evening. Today we are going to have a whole bikeless day! George's brother Sandy and his friend, Steve, are riding up to meet us and, have dinner, and make the final ride home tomorrow. My final post will be made from the comfort of my own computer and I will add the pictures that will perk up this blog. So, kind readers goodbye for now. Jenson and George from Medford

Unsolved Mysteries

Well, the first unsolved mystery is where my blog from last night went. Something went very wrong.... A few days ago George and I passed a man standing on the roadside dressed in cycle wear looking very perplexed. The weird thing is that he did not have a bike. George says he did, but there was no bike. We watched for a car with two bikes on it...but never saw one. On another day as we rode by the ocean there was a turn off for Hug Point. I was intrigued. Was this a shout out to the 60's? A place where hippies would meet and have hug fests? My imagination went wild. I will just say that Goggle takes the mystic out of mystery. Yesterday we had breakfast at our hotel and were fortunate to meet a cyclist who was also eating. This gentleman appeared to be in his late 60's. He was riding his bike from Salem,Oregon to Santa Rosa,Ca. Wow. He said he rode about 80 miles a day. We talked about the riders who camp on long trips. He said he met another rider who did not appear to have a lot of money, or any camping gear and he was sure that he was going to sleep under a tree. George and I rode through the heavy mist - later there was very heavy rain which caught all of the riders. So, the unsolved mystery here what drives these cyclists? And where do I get some? And, is there still glass at Glass Beach? We stopped in the lovely little town of Bandon and walked around Old Town Bandon. There is a low fence around the harbor and hanging on the fence are 2by3 paintings done by children. There was also beautiful wood carvings of different animals and benches donated by families for loved ones. We took a lot of pictures. We arrived at our hotel, the Gold Beach Inn, and immediately took a long walk down the beach. Our room has a huge window and we have an amazing view of the ocean. The sounds of the waves lulled us both to sleep. We want to return and spent a few days here. Before we slept though, we had dinner at Spinners. Three years ago we ate there and I got terribly ill. Getting on the bike the next day - well let's just say how I did it remains a mystery. So, back we go. We ate in the bar because it was so busy, I had a simple baked potato and veggies, and we ended up talking with our waitress and her husband. So much fun. They got to take the gigantic bone from George's prime rib to their dog. This is our last day in a hotel. Today we will be riding to Medford to stay with our friend Carol. By the way, one last mystery...I goofed up on the date of my friend Marsha's birthday. How did that happen??? Happy Belated Birthday Marsha! The count down is on...Jenson and George

George wants to have this dragon tattooed on him.

Bandon, Oregon is a tiny town with a famous golf course. We loved it. Particularly this huge anchor with GEORGE on it.

Happy Anniversary Liz and Ben

Happy 6th Anniversary Liz and Ben! We saw the picture of your new waffle iron. Wow! Beautiful piece of machinery. Enjoy your waffles tonight. We will be thinking of you from our rainy room in Reedsport. We started our day off with breakfast at Tillamook. It was lovely being there at that time as we were almost alone. The breakfast was great and we went on another tour. The tour consists of walking through the cutting, weighing, and packing cheese process. It is very cool to watch. We were totally mesmerized watching how everyone did their jobs and wondering what happened to the extra cheese.

George always loved his VW Bus.

Marsha, Marsha, Marsha, wearing a shirt your son gave you is one thing. Buying your entire wardrobe at Tillamook when you don't work there is, well,uniquely different. You were right though, I should have bought you a bright yellow one that said, "I loaf you." Tillamook calls their cheese hunks, loafs. OK, I took a break and found I have more to say on this matter. I just never get people buying t-shirts from restaurants, wineries,stores, etc. That's just me. Having said that, I just bought myself one today from a business we had lunch at! Life is more interesting for its inconsistencies. What a wonderful day! It was totally overcasat which made it darkly romantic fashion. Our new camera flashed a, "totally exhausted battery", which I could so relate to, but which meant no wonderful pictures. A funny little story...my friend, I'll call her Lisa, from CPS, was recently up in Newport, Oregon. She is Native American and her tribe is from the Newport area. Her Native American name is Girl Who Plays Naughty Tricks On Friends. Anyway, I told her we had visited Newport and it was such an upscale little town. She laughed and looked confused. This is why. I was really talking about Cannon Beach, which is an upscale beach town. The funny part is that today George and I had lunch at Rogue River Brewery in Newport. What a hoot. Oh for a camera. The plant is located on a river bed. There was no signage for the restaurant. You walk into a large smokestack with a giant hole cut out of it and then enter the brewery. There are a lot of tanks and pipes and stuff all around. It was really busy. While we were eating, George said that he was sure that the last time we took this trip, we ate on the other side, sat out in the sun and watched the seals. So after lunch we took a ride over to the Historical Bayfront and sure enough, George was right. I asked him how he knew and he said it is because he has such a giant brain that he never forgets anything. I almost fell off the bike laughing! On with the journey. Quite a beautiful, windy, twisty, wet ride. We were treated to lots of ocean views, forest tunnels, and very drizzly skies. I wish I knew more about the coastline as there are so many small towns to get a hotel right on the beach. However, we ended up in Reedsport, a dinky town with a 75 year old Safeway and a Dairy Queen. We were very happy to be in a warm, dry room though. So family and friends, what have I learned today? Don't judge others for wearing quirky t-shirts, always wear leathers in Oregon, and never buy George a hat because his head is so big with that big brain. Today is the 7th day of our trip. The time has gone too fast. Until tomorrow. Jenson and George

Queen of Astoria

The days are going by so quickly. Day seven was the bomb! But before we get there I need to finish up on the older gent from yesterday. After he zipped himself into his fully heated suit and put on his full head helmet, he sat smartly on his seat with excellent posture, and totally left us in the dust. Take that Harley! One of these days when I have time I am going to figure out how many hours he was riding a day to end up at the same place we did. The only good thing about our hotel last night was, it was cheap, and Domino's delivered pizza to it. There is not a restaurant within miles of the place. This morning we left at 9:30, which for us, was very restful. We took a really long bridge over to the town of Astoria. George says, Astoria is at the mouth of the Columbia River. We have been there before, but I have very little memory. Today was different. We walked around and found a great place to have lunch called The Wet Dog Cafe. It was over looking the river and the menu was great. George had a blonde beer, two oyster shooters, a cup of clam chowder, and a grilled salmon burger with fabulous french fries. I don't know how he didn't pop. I had a wonderful quesadilla with beans and guacamole. YUM. We need a place like this in Sacramento. We had such a great time. I love Astoria. It is really a strange, beautiful place. I can't quite describe it or figure out what defines it, but I want to be queen. Well, I don't, but George said I could move there and be queen. I just want to go and discover all the hidden mysteries about the place. Our next stop was Cannon Beach. We stopped here on our last trip. It is a cute town, build on the ocean, lots of shops, restaurants, dogs, tourists, and cars. We won't stop again. We have been fortunate with the weather. Today has been clear and cold. It seems that no matter where we ride there is road work and there are always traffic stops. But as the sign says, "This is your tax dollars working." We just fly down the road most of the time and enjoy the moment. Our final stop for the day is in Tillamook, Oregon. Yes, we are now in Oregon. We stopped by the Tillamook plant to have a giant ice cream cone. We will be returning tomorrow morning for breakfast. One of our best memories from our previous trip was breakfast at Tillamook. Today the parking lot was packed and the lines were very long. I saw a lot of people, well a few, buying Tillamook t-shirts. Who wants to wear a Tillamook t-shirt? We will miss Was

This is where we had the BEST food!

Cannon Beach

hington. In the show, How The States Got Their Shapes, the host said that the shapes had a lot to do with giving each state access to water. I thought about that a lot as we rode through Washington. What a lucky state to have so many sources of water. Perhaps LA should be negotiating with Washington and not Northern California! Food for thought. It has certainly been a wonderful journey. Time to chill. Peace out my family and friends. Jenson and George

Solo Adventurers

We took the ferry this morning from Coupeville to Port Townsend. There are folks who commute by ferry everyday. The motorcycles line up in one row and go onto the ferry after the walkers. After we parked we spoke with a gentleman who parked next to us. He was also on the sixth day of his journey. Except that he had started in Wisconsin. And he was in his 70's. I have thought a lot about him today. Does he get lonely? He had a wedding ring on. Is he a widower? Does he travel to get away from or to have something to travel to? He was on a BMW which is the antithesis of a Harley. I was telling George that BMW's don't have foot pegs and he said they don't need them because they are equipped with hands that come out and massage the owners legs and butt! Anyway, this made me think about the woman we saw biking up the Cascade Mountains by herself. She had really bright bags on her bike indicting that it was not a day ride. I am in awe of people who not only push themselves physically, but do it alone. I can't even buy clothes without my sister. We had a pleasant, cold day. We stopped in Sequim (rhythms with swim) and went to a few lavender farms. If you have read my past blogs you will know that we have been in Sequim before and it is the famous for its lavender production. They have a lavender festival in the summer and people come from all over to celebrate. I love lavender. The rest of the day we rode through the Olympic Forest. Long cool tunnels of tall green trees went on for

Here's the ferry!

miles and miles as we rode silently hour after hour. At one point the trees gave way and the sun bounced off of the ocean warming our very cold bones. What a view! I did read some interesting factoids about the Olympic Forest on Google, but I am especially tired tonight so I will skip sharing those. At some point in the day I sit down and decide where we will end up the next day and begin reading reviews on hotels. This takes a lot of time and patience and it was a real challenge for the weekend. It turns out that we are at the same hotel tonight that we stayed at during our last trip to Washington. It has a different name now. I know. Big deal. But when we are 80, we might find that really funny. Time to go, Good night from Aberdeen Jenson and George

Jenson and George at a Lavender Farm in Sequim

Half Way Where

We left Lake Chelan with some reluctance today. What a fun place. Our waitress last night said that having a job there was like getting a job in Disneyland. She said that she had grown up there and many of her classmates worked with her. She also said that it was a very insulated community....during the off season, when it is too cold for visitors, the townies band together. On day five we floated down the trail with the dark blue glass of the Columbia River rolling beside us. The different waterways in Washington get confusing as rivers and lakes wend indiscriminately through the canyons. We began a steep climb into the Cascade Mountains and the weather became quite brisk and there was actually snow on the ground. Thank goodness for heated jackets. We road by Diablo Lake, which is the most brilliant turquoise. The color is created by the glaciers that drain into it. Glacial flour is created as glaciers grind rock into fine sediment. In summer, meltwater washes this sediment into the lake where it is suspended to refract the striking color. Marsha, anyone can read the back of a postcard! Anyway, it was unique. After what felt like many hours we finally got to our destination in Oak Harbor. We are staying at Candlewood Suites, a fact I mention only because it is a great place. Free washer and dryer. Wow! It's interesting being back in the Pacific Northwest. I keep rereading the blog from our first trip up here to find out where we stayed, what we did, what our experiences were. The weather was better the first time. Well, I am out of interesting factoids and George is exhausted. Peace out. Jenson and George. PS. At the halfway point we have gone about 1600 miles.

Cascade Mountains

Diablo Lake

George at Lake Chelan

Our Wonderful Hotel

Dry Falls

Riding by the Columbia River

Dry Falls, Washington

Day 4: We were actually out of bed, packed, had breakfast, and on the road before 7am. Our goal today was Lake Chelan. So, in order for us to get to our beautiful room overlooking the lake, we had to move early and move fast. Apparently Lake Chelan is to some folks (a lot) in Washington what Lake Tahoe is to some people in California. I noticed as we rode along that the entire first hour of our drive we were in hay country. And most of the second hour and some of the third. Oh, we left Idaho behind and the farming community in Washington. Here's the thing... hay farming is fascinating. We must have seen over 5,000,000 acres of hay. The hay fields extended so far back that we could not see the end of them. Paved roads were put in so trucks could drive down to get to the backs of the fields. Now, you Americans define deserts as either long stretches of land with strange green stringy plants, or maybe hills with the same weird plants. Those of us who have seen the Sahara know that deserts are made from beautiful white sand. But I prevaricate. The farmers attack these grizzly hills, tame them, and plant hay. Somewhere along the line they have to go fallow to allow the ground to rejuvenate. So as you drive by you see hay, cut fields, and brown areas. The amazing result is millions of acres of golden hay. And questions. Who cuts it all? Who eats it? Who owns the farms? Do they keep spreading? We then had the wonderful pleasure of riding along Lake Soap. Wow. We were really blown away by how powerfully we were both touched by the remarkable wonder of the whole setting. The lake, which seemed more like a river, was surrounded by giant columns of rocks similar to those in Southern Utah. Fabulous. Later we were racing to get by a slow RV when we caught sight of a gigantic hole in the ground. It turns out that Washington has been hiding some pretty cool stuff. The hole is called Dry Falls and in its day it was 400 larger then Niagra Falls. That was before the Ice Age stole its water and left some sizable puddles in the bottom. It was pretty amazing too. We were glad we stopped. Now, up at 7:00, stopped for gas, stopped for George, stopped for the big hole. Finally roll into Lake Chelan about 1:00. More on riding on the back of a motorcycle for a vacation some other time. We check into the Best Western, and sure enough we get a beautiful room. The funny thing is, we always get handicap rooms. I think it's because I mention we are AARP members. Jeez. So now there is some creepy wooden chair in our shower that I wouldn't sit on if I fell. And they always give you a hand held shower head....which I find really creepy too. All in all it has been a wonderful day. We had a lovely lunch and a delicious dinner. George is snoring next to me. Writing on the IPad is very challenging. I am certain there are many errors, but is no way to go backwards on here so I don't. Thank you all for your wonderful comments. It is so reassuring to here from friends when you are so far away. I wish you all a good night from sweet Lake Chalin. Jenson and George

Does Anyone Know What Time It Is?

Day 3; Yesterday after we escaped from the Bates Motel we stopped in Jackpot around 9:00 at have breakfast. Now, Jackpot is exactly 3 casinos and a gas station. We choose one and are soon seated looking at the menu. This is when we discover it is 10:00. All of a sudden George is no longer hungry, we have a quick snack, and Jackpot is looking at our backs. Today we stop for lunch and when we come out, the time changed...again! Are we the only people in the US who are unaware of the time zones? We were totally taken by surprise by both of them. The Platts...world travelers. We spent the day on Highway 55 and 95. Idaho is amazing. The terrain is so diverse, enormous, beautiful, and empty. At dinner last night, Sue told us that the Bureau of Land Management owns 65% of Idaho. The ride was fabulous. We would ride for miles and miles in a canyon between fabulously huge brown mountains with the Payette River rolling along at our side. The terrain then changed to for

rest, with the river still weaving its way through the trees. Somewhere alone the line we got behind trucks hauling giant pieces of concrete I beams for bridge repairs. It would be as if Hw 5 were one lane. We were on our way to a town called McCall for a little break. we stopped off there and it was so reminiscent of Tahoe. Beautiful lake, cute houses, lots of realtors. We got rained on a bit and stopped for lunch in Riggins. It is perhaps the whitewater capital of Idaho and on the Salmon River. Very, very beautiful ride. We were awed by the sandy white beaches, unobtainable, pure, clean, empty, and once again surrounded by the giant bald brown mountains. Then we entered the golden hills of hay that went on forever. It's this great wide openness that makes Idaho so enchanting. There are certainly not a lot of malls. Which is lovely. The ride today was really amazing. Tonight we are staying at a Day's Inn in Moscow, Idaho. It is a college town and quite cute. It is the home of the University of Idaho. A few asides: Marsha: there were no neon lights at Sharon's aka The Bates Motel! Karen,I miss you too. I mailed cards to the kids. I forgot to put stamps on them.... Mark, keep trying, we want to hear from you. Nancg and Marc, thank you for writing so much. We miss you! Well, once again I am tired, my head hurts, and I smell. Time to go. These are good days my friends. I wish you were all with us. From Moscow, Jenson and George