Well, sorta. We left Long Beach in Washington, crossed into Oregon at Astoria, then crossed back into Washington to pick up I-5 going south, then back into Oregon and heading east on I-84. We enjoy the two-lane highways, but it was nice to get on "the slab" and make some miles.
We knew we would have a couple hours of curvy roads...
Driving along the Columbia River, near where it opens to the Pacific, we were treated to one more whale experience...
A humpback! I saw the blow out of the corner of my eye, and pointed it out to Joan... guess I am still "tuned in"... nice way to say good-bye to the "big water."
We turned south to cross the Columbia River, leaving Washington, heading into Oregon (for the first time today)...
Astoria looks like a great "water city" - a big marina and plenty of ship activity...
More curvy roads on the Oregon side of the Columbia...
And, apparently, trucks doing barrel-rolls...
Checking the GPSes to see the best way to avoid traffic...
Our Garmin portable unit acquires the satellites faster and gives us directions quicker than the expensive built-in unit. At least, they agree: back to the Washington side for a more direct route to I-5, then I-205, to get to I-84...
The timber industry seems alive here...
The traffic thickened up when we got to I-5, but the miles passed quickly. Across the river and into Oregon once more, then heading east again along the Columbia. I-84 has some less than smooth road surface, but the miles tick by...
We tried to stop for lunch in Hood River, OR, but couldn't find a place to park the RV; moving on. Plan B: stop for lunch at the next rest area...
We weren't the only ones...
Joan fired up the generator and we had hot meals in short order.
The drive along the Columbia is pretty...
Cliffs on one side the river on the other. Occasionally, it opens up a bit, and there is something on the right - here, it is a vineyard...
We started looking for a place to park it for the night. Joan found an interesting option: a city run RV park and marina in Boardman, OR. A big plus - they have paved sites. It was raining when we left this morning. As you can tell from the photos, it was gray most of the way. A pretty good chance we'll have some rain during the night, so we like being on pavement.
We had our choice of a "River Front site" or an "Inland site." I popped for the River Front site... well, we have a view of the river through our windshield. After getting set up, little Izzy was wanting to go outside... for a few seconds...
"Let me in! There are cat-killers out here!"
No there aren't. "Fine, they won't see me under the door."
The grounds are really pretty here. Izzy decided she might give it a try...
Yes, that is the river out the front of the motorhome...
There is a walking/biking path that goes around the park, by the river...
From the path, we watched barges moving down-river...
The marina at the end of the walking path...
Fun to come across RV parks like this along the way. It is surprisingly full - on a Tuesday night in mid-September. Joan said, "Look at who's here - it's all retired folks." Yeah, nice and quiet. ;-)
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