The Road Trip that Wasn't

      We bought a used popup camper and fixed it up (the make over will be my next post). I spent at least a month planning our itinerary and making reservations. On October 13th we took off on a road trip to the Oregon coast. It didn't quite turn out as planned.

     The first night of our trip we stayed at a motel. Mainly because it was a long driving day and we were just trying to get there.  The second night was to be our first camping night. We would be staying at a hot springs in Oregon.  We got there, found our spot and got everything ready to raise the camper. There was a pop and nothing happened, the camper wouldn't go up. We found the cable had busted. The people at the campground were helpful in trying to find someone who might be able to fix it. To make a long story short, after talking to several people, we were unable to get the camper fixed in a reasonable amount of time. So I had to call and cancel all our reservations and then figure out our best route home. We thought we should try and salvage a little of our trip.

     So we headed back on highway 26, with a short side trip to the John Day Fossil Beds National Monument and the Thomas Condon Paleontology Center.

     From there we went on to spend the night in Baker City, Oregon at the Geiser Grand Hotel. We had stayed here once before and loved it. This time we stayed in the Cupola room on the third floor. To read more about the hotel see my post:A Bed Time Story. 

   

     The next day we continued on through Oregon and into Idaho, enjoying the fall colors along the way.

We made a stop at the Chief Joseph Memorial

      We continued on a two lane highway, sometimes steep and curvy.

We spent the night in a small town in Idaho. The next day we woke up to fog but  continued on, following the Lewis and Clark trail.

     There was plenty of beautiful scenery to enjoy even if the day was wet and overcast.

     My husband was sure I found every two lane highway between Oregon and our home in Wyoming. But we did finally reach an interstate in the big sky country of Montana.

     We stopped for the night at one of our favorite places, Chico Hot Springs. The hotel has been there since the early 1900's. It's a rustic and relaxing place to stay and they have a four star restaurant. You can find out more about this great place here: Chico Hot Springs.

     After a nice dinner and a relaxing soak in the hot springs pool, the next day we headed home.   I kept checking the weather on the Oregon coast and found that it rained pretty much the whole time we would have been there. So I do have that to console me. So our 16 day trip turned out to be 7. It wasn't the trip we planned but we tried to make a little bit of lemonade from our lemons.

P.S. Our camper is now fixed. We'll try again next year.

A thought to ponder: "One of the greatest blessings in the world is to be able                                   to be happy even when things in life are not going as                                       planned."

Participating in:Grand Social, Seasons, Share Your cup, Share the Joy

A Bed Time Story

     We recently returned from a trip to the Colombia River Gorge in Oregon. We saw some interesting things along the way (which I will cover in up coming posts). And we also stayed in a variety of accommodations. We spent the night at your standard chain hotels, mom & pop motel, a cabin at an RV park, a restored hotel and a Bed & Breakfast. I thought I'd share photos of my two favorites. If you like history and antiques like I do, I think you'll feel they're special also.

This is the Geiser Grand in Baker City, Oregon

      This lovely hotel first opened it's doors in 1889. It was occupied until into the 1960's, then sat empty for thirty years. In the late 1990's a restoration took place and it reopened. They did a wonderful job with the restoration. The dark orante mahogany through out is beautiful.

This is the second floor where our Parlour Suite was located.

This stained glass ceiling can be seen from the ground floor dining room. Where we had a very enjoyable dinner.

One of the many chandeliers. You can see more on their web site: www.geisergrand.com

     The other place we stayed which was also a delight, a Bed & Breakfast in Pendleton, Oregon. 

The Pendleton House built in 1917

     I have never stayed at a B&B before so was looking forward to the experience. And it did not disappoint. It has new owners, they had been helping out the previous owner. When she decided to retire she convinced them to buy the house. I have a feeling she knew they loved it as much as she did and would carry on the wonderful care of the home. You could tell our host Tracy took pride in the home, he was very gracious and welcoming. 

     It was wonderful to see the beauty of this old home preserved. Hardwood floors, silk wallpaper, crystal chandeliers and the original draperies made you feel like you'd stepped back in time.

     Not many B&B's allow pets. Since we travel with our dog Wally, I was happy to see that this one did. On arrival we learned that Wally would be the last, they will no longer be accepting pets. We told Wally he was privileged and should be on his best behavior. As you can see from the following picture, he wasn't impressed. But we were.

     

Here's a peek into the bathroom

No this is not some kind of torture chamber. 

It's the shower. It's original to the house. They were ahead of their time, it sprays from the top and all around. 

Here's a shot of the dining room where we had a most delightful breakfast prepared by Tracy.

Look at this beautiful poached apple to start things off. Yummy too!

     

     It was coming to the end of the busy season and there was only one other couple staying at the B&B. We enjoyed visiting with them the evening before and at breakfast. Towards the end of breakfast Tracy joined us and he told us more about the history of the house. We were all enjoying lingering over breakfast and visiting, we were reluctant to leave. To learn more about this lovely Bed & Breakfast: www.pendletonhousebnb.com

     If you're ever in eastern Oregon don't hesitate to spend a night at these two wonderful hostelries. 

A thought to ponder: "Put your thoughts to sleep, do not let them cast a shadow over the moon of your heart. Let go of thinking."                          Rumi

Participating in: Grand Social, Share the Joy, Mingle Monday