We had a great time visiting Lewis and Clark's Fort Clatsop near Astoria, OR and then exploring Portland!
We rode the excellent public transportation (it was nice to park the bus for two days) and had our Voodoo donuts. We,walked along the river and saw Mount Hood from the city.
We ate excellent food from food trucks - Polish, Mexican, Chinese, Thai and others. The kids discovered smoothies made with fruit and vegetables. We visited neat shops and museums and we interacted with some interesting people. One man in particular (we named him "Max Rider") has entertained us for hours as we reflected on the absurdities he spouted as fact.
The Saturday Market was an experience not to be missed - even in the the 93+ degree heat. Sasha and Elliott both bought paintings that spoke to them. Portland was a great city to visit!
On the way home, trekked to a ghost town -an abandoned gold mining town in the mountains in Montana. The 8 mile, one-lane, unpaved road to get there was crazy bad and we destroyed an ABS sensor. The "better" one-lane road back was even worse, but afforded some great views. Meeting a couple trucks coming the other was provided was white-knuckle moments on the mountain.
We made it through Oregon, Washington, Idaho, Montana, and North Dakota. We are in St. Cloud Minnesota now. Minnesota feels comfortable and familiar like home, even though we are still ~ 1000 miles away.
We are working our way to Pittsburgh for a family reunion this Saturday. Pictures to follow...
By the time you get home I'll have mastered this whole blog comment thing...
ReplyDeleteVerKuilen and I were in Wisconsin for a week so I didn't follow your adventures as closely as while home. You made amazing progress and had so many wonderful experiences. Can't wait to hear more about "Max Rider" - seems he embodies the slogan, "Keep Portland Weird."
Safe travels the rest of the way home. We are looking forward to seeing your sweet faces again! Bravo!!!