Albany, South of Portland, (Yuma trip)

I left Eureka, California  at 8 am and arrived here at 6 pm.  I did Eureka to Florence Oregon distance  312.6 miles (688 km)  (6 hr 15 min)  on the US 101 N.  I did this to miss Grant’s Pass whose weather report was rain and snow. I had sunny day till afternoon rain.  It was flat though.  I then drove East 61 miles. (98 km) on the OR 126E.   I continued on the Interstate 5 to Portland making it to Albany This was 45.5 miles (75 km)  10  hours driving.  I only did 418.5( 920.7 km).  I can only assume the longer driving and shorter distance was a result of 100 km driving in the rain and winding roads.  I was going slow enjoying the spectacular view.  I was also listening to a great Michael Connelly audio Bosch book, called Dessert Star.  

It became dark at 5 and I saw the Motel 6.  I was lucky to get a ground floor dog friendly room .  Motel 6 is my go to travelling with a dog. They’ve always welcomed us.  I like Best Western and Holiday Inn but each had limits and individual hotels don’t accept dogs. Motel 6 is great/. No rugs helps.

I loved passing the area where Gilbert , my last cockapoo became blind and I brought him to Oregon to run on the beaches, I still cry seeing him running down the beach knowing he wouln’t run into anything He’d been banging into everything and had lost his confidence. Here on the beaches of Oregon I cried to see him regain his joy. Cocapoos love to run. Madigan meanwhile found a dead bird but did run on the beach some. Gilbert was a boating dog so we were always dinging ashore from the Giri and he’d run like the wind down the beach.  

It’s fun to have Madigan along. I’ve been able to walk more on the way back. The sciatica on the way down made our only exercise limping from the car to the pet area for pee and poop.  This trip I’ve had a bit more capacity for walking, The pain is much less .  He’s happy. We’ve had many stops, pee breaks for me. Oregon is just like BC with loggin roads an lots of wilds to pee breaks for dog and man.  

I liked passing through Coos Bay remembering putting in there when the SV GIRI filled with smoke and Sherry Tom and I initially  thought the engine was on fire. Instead it was a leaking exhaust manifold and no flames just black smoke.  .  I contact the American Coast Guard to say we were coming in to Coos Bay and would be crossing the sand bars at low tide.  That all went well and we docked.  The next couple of days Tom fashioned an exhaust manifold that worked there after. We were then on our way.  

I’d stop at Coos Bay when I sailed solo to San Francisco. 

Laura and I drove down to San Diego with Gilbert.  The US 101 has a lot of nostalgia attached to it.   I’ve driven back this way several other times before with the VW Bug and the VW Volkswagen and also the car I had before the Mustang.  I love the coast and scenery.  I bought terrific Norwegian Fish and Chips 

Google says the distance from here to Vancouver Canada on the I5  is 384, 4 miles or 6 hours.  That should mean I’ll at the US Canada border crossing tomorrow after noon.  This driving is a marathon, I’ll be glad to back home and stationary for a while.  Madigan is going to like being in charge in his home with more space and attention.  He’ll be glad to see his friends Emory and Bella and Luka too.  He’s not had a lot of socialization with other dogs on this trip.   We’ve both been pretty much alone other than work so it will be nice to re encounter the world.

Coos Bay