Goblin Valley State Park, Ut.

Trey has been a driving machine. He has been putting in close to 400 miles everyday. I thought it would take us 8-10 days to get to Denver. But after driving only five days we will be arriving today. I don’t think we would have driven so far yesterday but finding a place to boondock was next to impossible. We just kept driving and ended up staying at a rest stop just outside of Vail. Trey and I have been getting horrible sleep the last four nights and last night was no different. Between noisy rest stops and the heat we are finding it impossible to sleep. The night before last was by far the most ridiculous night of “sleep” ever. Our day started in eastern Oregon. We drove all the way to Southern Utah via Salt Lake City. Salt Lake City was a nightmare. A rock flew off a truck hauling mulch and put a huge crack in the windshield. So, we drove to three different glass repair places only to find them all closed down or not there at all. After watching Treys face go from red to pink back to a normal peachy color we moved on. We drove till it was dark and we could see an awesome lightning storm way off in the distance. We were headed right for the storm so I freaked out and wanted to stop driving because with our luck we would end up in it. I kept having visions of the camper being struck. So, we stopped. We were just north of Goblin Valley in Utah.

From the time it took me to get from the passenger seat to the camper door I had been bitten eight times by mosquitoes. It was about 90 degrees out and the bugs were horrible. We spent our entire night killing bugs. We couldn’t figure out how they were getting in. However, we do live in a paper house so I guess they can get in however they choose. We ended up turning off all the lights and sitting in the dark. I eventually just laid in bed but the bed left like a heated blanket. Trey and I ended up holding ice packs and using a wet wash cloth to try and keep cool. We were up most of the night. The next morning we woke to find that we parked right next to the only marshy water pit in Utah…sigh.

Goblin Valley was amazing and totally worth the drive. There is so much to see: the goblins are truly freaky and the mountains reminded me of the huge gothic church that stands out in Prague, CZ.  

John Day Fossil Beds "Painted Rocks"

Trey and I drove for hours yesterday. Our plan was to make it from Hoodriver, Or. to Boise, Id., with one stop to see Painted Rocks at John Day Fossil Beds Monument. Our turn off from hwy 84 was just East of the Dalles. We started heading south though every curve and mountain pass Oregon has to offer (bit of an over-exaggeration.) From the map we thought it would take about in hour or an hour and a half. It took closer to three hours just to get there. Neither one of was really paying attention to the clock but we left Hoodriver around noon and didn’t get to the rocks until 4:30ish.

Trey and I drove and drove and only saw a few other cars here and there. I was scared just because of being so far away from civilization. We would come across towns of ten homes and spend twenty minutes talking about what kind of life those people have. Then we would come across towns with only three homes and wonder if the town of ten was the “big city.”

We finally made it to “Painted Rock.” Very beautiful as you will see from the photographs. But, was it worth it? Only if you happen to be driving through the middle of Oregon and plan on passing though. In that case I would say, “don’t miss it.”

We haven’t made it to Boise, yet. After the fossil beds we drove for another hour and a half and went to sleep. But it is now morning and we have 172 miles of curvy mountainass passes to go.

Back on the Road again!!

Trey and I left Whistler BC Thursday and drove back to Oly for a few days. It just so happens to be the Capital Forest mountain bike race this weekend.

I got to ride the new course a couple of times and we got to hang out with our Oly gang.

Trey and I looked at the map yesterday and have set forth a plan of action. We plan to get back on the road tomorrow.

 Here is the plan.

Drive south to Portland (eat at the Mother’s Bistro)

Head East to Hoodriver. (Stay the night, I may bike)

Continue East into Boise

Head south into Salt Lake City

Even more south until we get to Hwy 70

Start heading east again and visit (Goblin Valley, Moab, and Fruita)

Continuing East all the way to Denver, where we will stay until October…

 October is the yearly family trip. This year we are headed to the Dominican Republic.

I’m looking forward to getting back on the road now that Trey is starting to walk with his crutches. He is doing much better however he is totally sick of using crutches and he wish he could do more for himself. He really wants to just get back on his bike and live his life.

I did it!!

Dirt Merchant Jump-in/Drop: Check and Check!

A-Line Drop: Check!

“Big” GLC Drop: F%@# Yeah!!!! Check!

Two more days left in the bike park...

Middle GLC

I wish I had pink on because I look like every other dude who drops off this thing. But really that's me...