Part 2
Washington
State number 47.........You meet the nicest people on the road sometimes. We were informed by a couple of guys from Kennewick that a new Harley dealer had just opened up and that is was also open on Mondays. Kennewick was only 120 miles away! We left that morning with hope. We did take our time getting there, using the front brake only. Tried to enjoy the scenery of eastern Washington--apples, apples everywhere. And apples boxes ready to be filled. Must be harvest time. We even saw dozens of coyotes hunting in freshly cut wheat fields. That has been about all the wildlife seen since the vast herds of antelope seen on the plains.
Nerves were still raw but were greated by some 'harley-friendly' faces at Rattlesnake Harley. "Loose belt"! Fixed for free, well maybe not free, it cost Leroy a soda. And were sent on our way with spirits now soaring.
The first check on our list was Mt. Rainier. I have often admired pictures of this mountain in magazines and documentories. We could see both volcanos from Yakima but the closer we got to them, the more magnificant they were. The Cascades themselves were breathtaking. But riding around that final corner---WOW. I can say that even those in Colorado does not compare to Mt. Rainier. We met a couple from the area and said that ever seeing Mt. Rainier in this clear weather was slim at best, and that we extremely lucky and just had to drive up to Sunrise Road-the highest place passable by car. We knew that this would cut the time from Mt St Helen but this was also a once in a life time view for us. It did not disappoint.There was still 6 foot of snow on the ground in places along side of petite mountain flowers. Buy the time we left and headed toward Mt. St. Helen, we knew that we would not make it in time to see everything we wanted to but--oh well--gotta pick your battles. We were in position to see the north face where the mountain blew away during the eruption and noticed a couple of pumice stones fall into our bag.....Oops..my bad. Even though it was later in the day, you could clearly see the lava dome. It was amazing to see the scarred landscape of the eruption, even though it has been over 30 years since that fateful day......May 18th, 1980.
By the time we made it out of the Cascade it was getting dark......."deer:30" by "biker time" and needed to find someplace warm for the night. We were on the south edge of Seattle but decided to head south a to be a little closer to the Oregon coast. We stopped in Kelso, Washington........frozen to the bones.......this is August, isn't it? The hotel clerk was so nice as to give us a couple of cups of hot coffee from her own supply as we were clearly miserable. Hot shower and hot meal was the only agenda for the night.
Part 3
State number 48......We had now entered the last state of our 'lower 48' bucket list. Stopped in the coastal town of Astoria to get maps and a little info of the 'must see' of the Oregon coast. We plan on staying of Highway 101-the 'Pacific Coast Highway'. Our first stop was 'Haystack' rock in Cannon Beach. Was not to disappoint. It is the most photographed area in Oregon. We also witnessed some whales swimming off the coast.....too far away to photograph......but close enough to tell that they were whales. Guess we'll save money this trip by not having to take a boat out to 'whale watch'....can do it for free from the shore......ok, it cost me a quarter that it put into the magnifiying glass thingy on the beach. We were informed that there was a whale swimming in a river just down the road (I'm thinking this may have been in California-who knows..) It was not had to miss the area as there were hundreds of people standing on the bridge. Got some great pictures.........don't ask me what kind it was as I am not a 'whale connoisseur'.
Leroy however is a great 'clam chowder connoisseur'....me?....not so much......I can't even fathom the thought of eating beef or pork outside of the midwest. My meals have consisted of the eggs and hashbrowns, occasionally chicken if I don't think about what they're feeding them........unless something is 'corn-fed'.....I don't want anything to do with it..........'Omaha Steaks' have spoiled me.......
I must say that the Oregon coast is incredible..........I had no idea how rocky the entire coast line is...........steep cliffs interlaced with sandy beaches.
All anyone can do is walk on the beach as the weather is cold and the ocean even colder.........
We spent the entire day being typical sight-seers, stopping at almost every 'scenic view' taking pictures...of course Leroy saying "it's just rocks in water"......however, Leroy would never admit to it, but he was just as in love with the Oregon coast as I was. Headed to towards Coos Bay tonight to again----warm up in a hot shower after a hot meal.