How Can You Tire Of This?

With our last trip dragging out for so long, it felt good pulling into Kansas City, Missouri, being optimistic about this next railroad load going....wait for it....back to Washington! I do love the drive out there and we'd hope for the best where the truck was concerned. 

Leaving KC we headed west, eventually into Nebraska. We passed by several places that were becoming very familiar: Lincoln, York, Kearney, North Platte, Ogallala. We drove on into the late afternoon, seeing flocks of Canada geese migrating in their v pattern. When we got out to let Jax walk around a bit we could hear them all calling to each other. It's a sound I like to hear. 

On into Wyoming the next day, we came across an unexpected sight.  There, at a rest area near Laramie, is a monument dedicated to President Abraham Lincoln. It was commissioned to mark his 150th birthday. 

We keep a pretty close look out for gas stations and truck stops that offer different programs to get deals on fuel prices. Of course there are the well known ones that criss cross the country; Loves, Pilot, TA, Flying J, etc.... I was tickled to start seeing one crop up that I hadn't seen before. Stinkers is pretty popular in the Midwest and states further west. 

One of my favorite stops, however, has become Little America, WY. It is a traveler's oasis, featuring many fuel pumps, made from scratch food, showers, fitness center, convenience shopping and even a post office. 
Let's not forget, they also offer 75 cent ice cream cones!  In previous posts, I've stressed the point that making time for snacks, especially homemade pie when you see it, is all important. Plus, my Daddy taught me at a young age, that no matter how cold it is outside, ice cream is appropriate. Therefore, at 47 degrees that day, I got a yummy ice cream cone. 

From there we dipped down just a little into Utah. We were planning to stop outside of Salt Lake City. In Ogden, we finally pulled off the interstate and settled in for the night. McDonald's was calling out to us, so we quickly hiked across the street to answer. Once we got outside the restaurant, we realized only the drive thru was open. I guess those Golden Arches had been calling out across the parking lot to other truckers. Several of them led the way, and we simply walked through the drive thru. 

With that, we had our burgers while watching a little TV, and then called it a night. 💤 

The next day we discovered yet another pit stop worth mentioning. This one is the Middle of Nowhere station in Malta, Idaho. We pulled in needing fuel, but found them closed. However, we found a small Petting  zoo instead!  Literally in the middle of nothing, we went for fuel and found alpacas and donkeys !  It is a good way to keep people remembering you, that's for sure. In fact, when I told our oldest daughter Becca about it, she said that she & her little family found the same place on their move to Texas. Go figure!  We exchanged pictures and laughed at the coincidence!

Eventually we found ourselves at our destination in Easton, WA. It was another rail yard load. We ended up waiting about 2 hours for someone to be able to unload us. Deciding to take a walk was a good plan. We jumped out, unstrapped the load so we'd be prepared, and took off with Jax. The location was up in the mountains with gorgeous scenery. The air was a little cool and damp, and the smell of pine trees filled the air. All in all, it was a good wait. 

After getting unloaded, we were needing to take our 34 hour reset. We chose to do so in a neighboring town at a hotel. It was a little outdated, perhaps, but clean and cozy. It felt just like it should, nestled up to the foothills of the mountain we'd sat on all morning. As I unpacked and tried to get us settled in, Hubs took ol' Trusty to a shop for some routine maintenance. The mechanic himself offered a ride back to the hotel, as he'd be keeping the truck overnight. I just love small town hospitality. It sometimes feels as though that's becoming a lost art. Sadly. 

Unfortunately, we got a call not long after Hubs returned that more was needed on the truck than we had noticed. It would be ready for us to leave Monday morning, however. That was a good thing, because we already had orders to head toward the coast of Oregon. 

Come Monday, we were up with the sun, fueling the truck from our drag up tank, and off once again. 

For a few miles, at least. 

Before we could make it to Seattle, we were losing power. With just enough umph to make it to the exit and edge of the road, Hubs popped the hood and went to investigate. 

Here's what happened next.....👇🏻

'Someone' was trying to keep this truck on the sidelines. It was getting extremely expensive and taking its toll on our morale. 

Another ride in a tow truck with Jax on my lap....

Hubbs found a mechanic in town who said we could leave the truck safely on his shop's lot even though they were closed till morning. Once we gathered our belongings, we hopped into an Uber and off we went to yet another hotel. This was beginning to be all too familiar, and we didn't like it. 

By morning the mechanic called with an ungodly estimate! 😡. Would this never end??  Hubs got on the phone with the friendly mechanic from the weekend. He, along with our son and son-in-law, thought we were getting a very raw deal. In the end, it was cheaper for us to get a tow the 2 hours back where we'd started yesterday. So that's exactly what we did. Hubs had come to trust the man who'd taken care of things on our reset. Leaving Trusty in his hands, we checked into another hotel. I should be writing reviews as a secret shopper for hotel evaluations!

Three days later we checked out.

Very hesitantly, we  accepted two more orders that could be loaded onto our 40' trailer at the same time. Our first stop would be Dallesport, WA, and then Camas, WA. Let me say, the scenery we took in over the next couple of days MORE than made up for some recent disappointments. 

I saw some of the most beautiful places on that drive. The Dalles is a gorgeous area; an oasis if I ever saw one. It is 75 miles east of Portland, within the Columbia River Gorge National Scenic Area. It was a prominent trading area years ago, and still plays a roll in Washington economy. I can understand the tourism there. 

Further down the road we entered Cascade Locks, a lovely little village. The town got its name from the massive navigation project that was built on the Columbia River back in the 1840's. The locks that were carved right into stone made basically an elevator system to raise boats up when water levels changed. With this in place, steamboats could more easily navigate the river. I was fascinated! It's fun to think about all we are learning on our adventures. Things are not only a feast for our senses, but educational as well. 

I almost hated to leave the area without further inspection.Little did I know how many more times we'd get to travel there. 

We were set for a very long haul back to WY and CO. I could've taken pics all down the highway, and never grow weary of the sights. 

Close to our first drop off, we were able to see parts of the Bridger-Teton National Forest. While driving through we were treated to a relatively rare sight of several bighorn sheep. 

Not far from there, we found a hospitable spot by a gas station where we were allowed to rest for the night. We did so happily, and ordered a pizza from across the street. 

Our journey continued into Colorado the next morning. Another very scenic drive. 

By the time we neared our last drop off, we were ready for our next 34 hour lull. We checked into a hotel in a small town surrounded by the Rockies. Jax made friends with a couple of Chihuahua pups. Ok. He was actually unsure of their yipping, and ran away a time or two, but he decided they were pals before we left. 😂 

On Monday morning we were prepped for a new week and heading down the mountains toward Denver. 

We got to drive through a pretty impressive tunnel.  
The Eisenhower - Johnson Tunnel  is known for being the highest vehicular tunnel in the world and the highest point in the Interstate Highway System. 

On the other side of the tunnel, a few miles ahead, I spotted a large, visible water wheel on the side of the highway. I discovered it is the Charlie Taylor Water Wheel. It is a historical landmark built in 1893 by miner Charlie Taylor. The wheel was used to power a stamp mill. It is often decorated for holidays, I learned, and would like to return to see that!