It is agreed to by our group that the day can’t start without breakfast. Yakima, Washington appears to have strictly prohibited indoor dining. That creates somewhat of a dilemma. With some masterful quick thinking, we downloaded the McDonalds app and ordered online even though we stood right outside the doors of the Golden Arches. The only mistake I made was to select drive-thru pickup instead of delivery. Fortunately we had a willing driver (Mike) who went to the window while Max and I stood close by to assist with the drinks. This particular McD’s did not offer any outside dining facilities but where there’s a will ……….

There is one feature in this part of the country that dominates the landscape for miles and miles. Mount Rainier could be seen from about 50 miles away. We saw it just as we were leaving Yakima. It is an awesome site.

On this day I was ready for a short ride and chose not to tackle the twisting roads of Rainier National Park. Mike Rees and I escorted Max Butcher to the parks gate then turned around to take the lower and more direct route to our day’s destination (US-12 is very scenic and a great ride also.)

Max was kind enough to share some of his pictures so I could include them here. If you want to get the info directly from the source ask Max about it the next time you see him. Suffice it to say there is a lot of beauty in, on, and around this mountain.

While Max was exploring the mountain, Mike and I were making our way toward Kelso. Since we were unsure about gas availability along US-12 we thought it prudent to stop to fill up at the first opportunity. While we sat on the bench outside the gas station a herd of elk decided to have a snack directly across the street. There were a lot of does and calves but only 1 buck. He is hard to see in this picture but once I get home and can edit some of the video, you should get a better look at him.

The rest of our journey was uneventful. It was about 125 miles of great riding on US-12 followed by 30 miles of terror south on I-5. I’m not sure why there was so much traffic but I am glad that I wasn’t recording any audio. I said several choice phrases to some of the locals.

We skipped lunch and went straight to the motel – Best Western Aladdin Inn in Kelso. Max joined us about 90 minutes later. Once everyone had unloaded their bikes, we headed 5 short blocks to Stuffy’s 50’s diner. I ordered comfort food (meat loaf) and Twila our server brought our orders quickly. Sorry I didn’t get any pictures of the diner – the walls were all covered with old license plates. Fun!

Tomorrow we are debating about a visit to the other well known mountain in the area (or at least what’s left of it). Mount St. Helens is only about 60 miles from here. I haven’t been there for a very long time. It should be something special but it can’t dominate the skyline like Mount Rainier.