When I first moved to Astoria in the late 1970s, it was not uncommon for a group of us single folks to jump in the car and drive off to some exotic location for a day of fun in sun. Well, I suppose one could hardly consider Seattle, WA or Portland, OR exotic, but they did offer plenty of opportunities to "get out of town" and travel the open road! As my single friends got married or left Astoria and the responsibilities of work and home ownership increased, the concept of the road trip died a silent death!
During a recent visit with a friend who also is a retired forester, we were discussing all of the locations in Eastern Oregon that we had visited while fight forest fires during our careers. Suddenly a voice whispered "road trip"; go and see what some of these places look like without the smoke and flames often associated with a forest fire.
With gas at $4.19 a gallon, I suppose a journey of 900+ miles doesn't seem like the smartest decision ever made, but then you are only in your midfifties once, so you better take advantage of it and try and have a little fun while you still can. Besides, with two of us, the expenses were split down the middle so the total cost was pretty reasonable.
Our trip took us to the Columbia River Gorge, Joseph and Wallowa, OR, the Hells Canyon Recreation Area, the Oregon Trail Interpretive Center, the John Day Fossile Beds Monument, and countless places in between. Over the next few weeks, I will post pictures of these must see places and my hope is that it will spur you to a road trip of your own!
2 comments:
Hi Steve: Looking forward to your comments and photos. I live in Eastern Oregon (Joseph, to be exact) and am always curious to see how those who don't live here perceive the region.
--Heather
This is a great idea (and since you're not driving back and forth to work everyday - you should have some "gas credits"!). I am looking forward to hearing your stories. I hope to have some road trips in my future.
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