'Roll on Columbia' - Woody Guthrie.
It is an offence, punishable by a $500 fine, to pump your own gas in Oregon. It doesn't apply to diesel, oddly.
A very varied days driving today. We started off on the high plains with lovely views of some of the cascade volcanoes; perfect, snow covered cones. Delicious. Mount Hood was particularly impressive and sparkled against the deep blue sky. We then caught sight of Mount St. Helen which lost 1400 ft during the 1980 eruption giving it a horseshoe shaped crater and a flat top.
Then on to the Columbia River Gorge, which we crossed at Hood River, entering Washington. We followed the Clark and Lewis Trail and wondered at their achievement all those years ago. The terrain changed to hot, dry desert (sorry, soggy British people!) with the odd, incongruous, brilliant green vineyard contrasting with the baked earth all around.
Our home for the night is Umatilla, back on the Oregon side, which lost its reason for being in 1869 and hasn't quite recovered since. Until last October, when the last was removed, it was home to part of the US army arsenal of nerve gas. Good to know that Oregon and Washington are no longer at risk of being contaminated whilst we are passing through. We're right next to the freeway and our background 'music' is the roar of the traffic. But it's hot, the beer is cold and we can make a speedy escape in the morning.
A very varied days driving today. We started off on the high plains with lovely views of some of the cascade volcanoes; perfect, snow covered cones. Delicious. Mount Hood was particularly impressive and sparkled against the deep blue sky. We then caught sight of Mount St. Helen which lost 1400 ft during the 1980 eruption giving it a horseshoe shaped crater and a flat top.
Then on to the Columbia River Gorge, which we crossed at Hood River, entering Washington. We followed the Clark and Lewis Trail and wondered at their achievement all those years ago. The terrain changed to hot, dry desert (sorry, soggy British people!) with the odd, incongruous, brilliant green vineyard contrasting with the baked earth all around.
Our home for the night is Umatilla, back on the Oregon side, which lost its reason for being in 1869 and hasn't quite recovered since. Until last October, when the last was removed, it was home to part of the US army arsenal of nerve gas. Good to know that Oregon and Washington are no longer at risk of being contaminated whilst we are passing through. We're right next to the freeway and our background 'music' is the roar of the traffic. But it's hot, the beer is cold and we can make a speedy escape in the morning.
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