On to Leaburg, Oregon and more April 10-20

When I last posted I had arrived in Portola, California and had put down the jacks at the Elks Club.  I spent the next day running errands in Reno and checking out the camp ground which was going to be my home for the summer.  The campground still had snow on the ground, and after inspecting the "host" site, Joel decided there was no way he would spend any part of the summer there ...no sun for solar, trees blocked the satellite reception for internet and TV, no cell coverage, and no wireless internet coverage.  All told, not an ideal spot for 5 months of dry camping. I was more concerned about the potential lack of communication in the case of an emergency.

The Born Free had been sitting since January, so I readied it for travel and hooked up the Jeep and Joel and I caravaned  to Oregon (about 20 miles from Eugene, ).We made a quick overnight stop in Klamath Falls and arrived in Leaburg on Wednesday at Walt and Pam's house on the Mckenzie River.

This is the view of the McKenzie River from Pam and Walt's house.

 The grounds are beautiful.  These flowers make the rain and fog a little more bearable.

Walt (Joel's brother-in-law) has a beautiful house right on the river bank. The grounds include a very large wood working shop which Joel and Walt share.  Needless to say, Joel is in heaven puttering around the shop.  The original plans were to ready my Born Free for the summer hosting job and I was to head back to California by the end of April. At this point, plans have changed and I'm not going to host, at least for the time being.

There is a canal and fish hatchery nearby along with many logging roads  to walk  and explore and offer spectacular views. This view  is of the "Sisters" in the distance.

 There is lots of moss everywhere.

 And different creatures I haven't seen since living on the coast.

I can't get over how green everything is...and wet...and mossy. I sure hope the rain stops soon.

Portland is only a few hours away, and we did drive up for the day to see Joel's son and daughter and will be returning for a longer visit. I haven't been to Portland for several years but it seemed much busier that last time.  There are so many little districts to explore, and this time we explored the Pearl District, which is one of the more well known districts.

There is lots to see and do in Oregon and I can't wait until the weather gets better...I guess we are just a little early.  Stay tuned.