The picture above looks like a blue line on a not-too-colorful map. The line goes from Lewiston, Idaho to Yakima, Washington. The total distance was about 215 miles or so which doesn’t seem like a lot in the big scheme of this adventure. The milestone I mentioned is that this distance put us over 3,000 miles for the trip. That’s a lot of miles sitting on my ….. uh …… motorcycle seat.

It was once again over 100 degrees and we were following US-12 for most of the day. To speed things up a little, we hit Interstate 82 for the final leg into Yakima. I’ve been to Yakima many years ago. I have a picture that shows my long time riding buddy and me in front of a big apple at the entrance to the Yakima KOA. I’ve got to dig that out when I get home.

We stopped for gas twice and for refreshment once. That one stop turned out to be really enjoyable. We were looking for a small cafe or diner where we could sit for a little while in the air conditioning and enjoy a cold drink. Bingo!!! We found a great little cafe in Waitsburg, Washington. It was around noon and the temperature was already into the mid to upper 90’s. The cold drink became less important when ice cream was discovered in Mill Creek Cafe and Bakery. Ice cream is certainly one of my weaknesses, as is A/C when the temp is pushing 100.

The staff there made our visit a real joy. The owner told us about the 7 acre farm she owned outside of town that had a river running through the back yard. They had named their farm “Dusty Britches” – she didn’t offer an explanation.

Across the street from the cafe a nice bronze sculpture of 3 gentlemen was prominently displayed on the sidewalk. There was no sign that explained who these people were. The staff at the cafe had no idea either. I thought they strongly resembled Moe, Larry, and Curly. (If you don’t know who that is, you’re too young. Google is your friend.)

• 

• 

The day ended with a dinner at a local Mexican restaurant, the El Mirador in Yakima before we settled in for the night at My Place (meaning the new hotel chain with this name – not my actual home).

I’m trying to decide whether to join my riding companions tomorrow for a ride up Mount Rainier. It’s supposed to be close to 100 degrees again tomorrow. In the morning I’ll make the choice to either ride with them or head straight for our next nights hotel at Kelso, WA. Either way, we passed the 3,000 milestone – heading for more.