Road Trip: Eastern Washington to Sacramento, CA

We spent the first night in Bend, Oregon, where we happened by a bed and breakfast called the Mill Inn. It was within walking distance of Old Town Bend and about six blocks from the Deschutes Brew Pub (picture at left), where we planned to eat dinner. We’d already visited the Deschutes Brewery, and after having more beer with dinner, we weren’t about to drive anywhere! It was risky enough as we made our way back through a blizzard and slipped and slid on icy sidewalks. 

The main industry in Bend is tourism. If you love vacations that include hiking, fishing, camping, skiing, snowmobiling and beautiful scenery, this is the place to go.

Between central Oregon (Bend) and Redding, CA, we drove on compact snow and ice. It was tedious to say the least, and besides that, a blizzard made visibility poor. I would’ve loved to have seen Upper Klamath Lake when the sun was shining, and also Mt. Shasta. Maybe on the trip back.

When we finally got through what we thought was the end of bad roads, we stopped at Weed, CA, for a latte and a sweet treat and to congratulate ourselves. Little did we know.  

Our misery had only just begun. We started up a little hill, which turned out to be a major mountain pass, and were stuck immediately in stalled traffic. Literally, miles’ worth, and literally hundreds of semi trucks had stopped on the road, as they were required to chain up. Cars didn't need to, but neither could we get through the traffic jam. When we finally got over the pass, we saw the same thing in the opposing lanes, only the lines of trucks went on for many miles more.

We’re now in Sacramento for the business part of our journey. Monday morning, we’ll head to San Francisco, about an hour away. We went to SF for our honeymoon, and would like to revisit Fisherman’s Wharf and see if we can order Lobster Thermidor in a swank restaurant. It probably won't cost $7.00 this time. We’ll visit the Redwood Forest and drive up into Napa Valley wine country. We'll pretty much retrace our steps, except we decided UC Berkeley wasn't on our list. The Hippie movement and Vietnam Protests have been dead and buried for decades. No need to see what's up at Berkeley ... 

My single, most important “must see” is the ocean. It’s not warm enough for swimming, but my astrological sign is Cancer. I am a moonchild who loves the sea. I live on rolling wheat fields and when the wheat is tender and the wind blows through it, it looks like an ocean of grass.

Even so, I like to see water as often as possible. It's the perfect objective correlative for our subconscious minds, inspiring right-brained thought and deep insights.