We took advantage of the chance to visit old friends and explore some fantastic natural scenery at the same time. In Portland, Oregon, we stayed with an old friend from college, Dave, whom I had last seen years previously in Madison, Wisconsin, when he made a breakfast of steak and eggs for me before dropping me off at a highway to hitchhike to Mexico.
After a couple of days with him, we drove down to Eugene, Oregon, where other friends lived and then preceded down the North Oregon coast along Hwy 101, near town of Yachats.
We first camped along some oceanside dunes in Carl G. Washburne State Park along Oregon coastal Hwy 101.
Next campsite was near Olallie Lake, North Oregon Cascade Mountains.
Mt. Jefferson, a volcanic mountain in the Cascades and the second highest mountain in Oregon at 3,199 meters.
Last evening at that campsite
Our friends had to return home and to work, and we continued to northern California to see the redwoods.
Then we had our longest drive of the trip, which took us to Vancouver Island in Canada.
Beautiful coast
The campsite offered horse-riding, which we couldn’t refuse our daughter.
Nice hiking trails
On to Vancouver
The city was certainly undergoing changes with the great influx of Chinese immigrants, first from Hong Kong to get a Canadian passport before it was handed back to China, and mainland China, I suspect to get their tremendous wealth out of China before it was confiscated, since I can’t believe that many people can become super-rich unless there was some shady dealings.
We also saw many homeless Canadians and figured that they had traveled as far west as possible and consequently collected in Vancouver, or maybe because it is does not get freezing in the winter. But this guy had some unique street art to make some money.
Totem poles
Back to the US where we camped near Burroughs Mountain near Mt. Rainer. Great views and hiking, although the mosquitos were a real plague.
Found a friend
The trail
Parents can be really annoying at times!
Last stop Mt. St. Helens, which had erupted a few years previously. Nature was making a comeback, but you could still see some of the devastation that the eruption and subsequent lava flows had caused.
Back to Portland to visit Dave and his girlfriend before a long flight home. Wonder whether I will ever see him again this life, but the memories remain.
Wonderful pictures. Loved the Oregon coastline when I visited some time ago have to find my pictures.
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Qwest do spend all of our free time in the Rockes but Oregan and Washington look beautiful too. Merry Christmas!
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And Season’s Greetings to you! Enjoy your trip through Columbia (I’m sure you are)
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These pictures are spectacular!
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Thanks again!
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Looks like a great trip. Oregon is so close to us and yet I’ve never been. Your pictures are great, I think we’ll have to go on a road trip this summer!
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Your home turf also has some great landscapes, so I can imagine that you spend lots of your time there when not traveling abroad. And then Oregon is probably 1,000 kilometers from there.
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