We stayed in a resort town of Seaside, Oregon last night – just south of Astoria.  The motel room was really nice but had one feature that I just can’t explain.  There was a window between the bathroom and the living room area of the suite.  When I go in the bathroom, I don’t want anyone looking in.  There were shutters and an extra shower curtain but I’m pretty sure they are not odor barriers.  I had to take a picture.

We got up this morning.  The bikes and everything outside was soaked.  We were informed that it didn’t rain in this part of Oregon – it just has a heavy mist (all the time).  I don’t think these people ever actually see sunshine.  Most of them are really pale.  We wiped the bike off and headed down the block for breakfast.  I’m tired of continental breakfast’s at the hotels and wanted some real eggs with real bacon.  We found a great place and were lucky enough to beat the rush.  We walked down to the “beach” and wished we didn’t have to go home.  Don’t get me wrong – we miss the kids / grandkids but the thought of going back to real life – ugh.

We jumped on the bike and headed for Fort Clatsop – 18 miles away.  I know it seems goofy but I was really excited to get there.  It was one of those places on my “bucket list”.  It is a little off the beaten path but that was no challenge for the “Quartet of Discovery” (Lewis / Clark = Corps of Discovery, our group = Quartet of Discovery).  I used my Golden National Park Pass (that means I’m old and recognized so by the National Park Service).  We saved the $3 per person fee.  We skipped the movies and the narrative explaining the fort.  I had Jana take the picture you see below to prove that I was really there.  Funny but I got a little teary eyed at the significance of the place for me personally.  Ask me sometime to explain why – I can’t right now.

We walked the 100 yards to the fort.  It was just as described in the “Journals of Lewis / Clark”.  It is really small and housed 20+ people for 3 months.  The original fort is long gone but this recreation is as close to the original as the written plans would allow.

We left the fort and walked to the river where the Corps had landed.  My visit was complete except for the required hat pin.  The bikes fired right up and we headed for Astoria.  It figures there was some kind of “event” going on in downtown Astoria – at least it wasn’t quilting.  We finally turned off of US101 and headed east on US30.  US30 is an interesting road.  It winds past Mt. Saint Helens and Mt. Rainier.  Both of these mountains are beautiful but we were rushing to avoid the rain and didn’t stop.  The rest of the day was spent dodging rain, stopping for gas, dodging more rain, and finding the hotel which wasn’t well marked.  Not sure how I survived prior to GPS.

We’re in for the night after some great burgers at Bob’s Burgers and Brews.  We’re headed for the Yakima (Washington) Harley dealer which is only a mile from here.  We don’t have enough Harley t-shirts already.  The plan from there is to get to Missoula, Montana tomorrow night.

Thanks Lewis and Clark for their service to this country and for inspiring me to make this trip.

I know I’ve lead a sheltered life but a window from the living room to the bathroom makes me nervous.

We made it.

The replica of the original fort (built from original plans). Standing where Lewis / Clark built theirs.

Leaving Oregon behind.