Ok, I know you just heard the twang of Willie Nelson as you read the title. But yes, we are on the road again having said teary goodbye’s to our friends we left behind in AZ. We’ll be back.

This year is about more exploring, racing, hiking and looking for a new home. We have decided it’s time to start looking for a brick and mortar home. When we started this adventure 3 years ago, our plan was to find the area of the country where we wanted to settle. We new it would not be in AZ for a variety of reasons. After traversing the country for 3 years we decided southern Oregon was the place, the Grants Pass area to be more precise. So we headed north.

Before I jump into the story, I need to send a huge shout-out to my sister Dr Mary Porvaznik. After serving the Indian community as a doctor for over 20 years with the US Indian Health Service, following our father’s footsteps, and then as a provider for a medical clinic in Flagstaff for about a decade, my sister has hung her own shingle and has opened her private practice in Flagstaff. Super proud of you Dr Mary Porvaznik. Porvaznik Family Medicine I can’t express enough how proud I am of her for taking this huge step in her career.

Back to the travels. Something else was a bit different this year as well. For the past 3 years we have only towed the one Jeep. The consequence of that is that either we do things together, or one of us is stranded while the other is out doing stuff. Usually it’s me out on a bike ride and Teri is stuck at the motorhome for hours. She has always said it is not an issue, but I feel guilty leaving her behind. Sometimes my 2 hour planned ride has turned into 4 or 5 hours and it has always weighed on my mind. So this year Teri is driving her Jeep while I tow mine behind the motorhome. Teri used Google Maps to plan her route while I used RV Life’s Tripwizard RV mapping program. Tripwizard maps my route on RV friendly roads and advises of low bridges or weight restricted bridges and other hazards that affect big rigs. Teri arrived in Pendleton, OR in 2 days while I took 4 days. I don’t like to drive more than 6-8 hours per day. I drive at 60 mph (still a bit of PTSD from our crash) and take frequent stops so that a 250 mile day is more than enough for me driving the motorhome. Especially if the weather is less than ideal.

On the morning of our departure, all the crazies from our tribe showed up to say goodbye. Craig and Sherie, Brett and Callie, Darryll and Betty, Eric and Rikki were all there to wish us Bon Voyage. Teri crawled into her jeep while Sarge and I settled in. When Sarge was tired of sitting on the dash he crawled into the beautiful bed Monique had made for him and settled in.

Teri’s first stop was in Wikieup, AZ at Lucia’s Restaurant and Gifts, her favorite place for pie. Yes, she got a piece of pie and didn’t save me any! She roamed the open back yard which is home to several peacocks and a koi pond. The peacocks showed off their beautiful colors by fanning their tails and strutting through the yard. Then it was onward through Las Vegas to Ely, NV for her first night stop. The next day she was back on the road with windy conditions. She arrived in Pendleton and met with her AirBNB host and got settled in.

Meanwhile, I moseyed along and stopped for the night in Boulder City, NV. It had been a rough day with crosswinds that threatened to blow the motorhome off the road. Winds were 20ish but I had sunshine. After a night in Boulder City, it was time to continue north with my next stop planned for Tonopah, NV. There is some very interesting country between Las Vegas and Tonopah. Las Vegas is desert once you get away from the city with hills/mountains in the distance. Continuing north, the road leads into the hills and mountains and gold country. We wrote about this in our August 2024 blog, but the community of Beatty, NV is hoping for a revival as permits have been obtained to start commercial gold mining in the area. The welcoming committee as I arrived in Beatty was a herd of a dozen burros milling about near the edge of the road. Beatty is also a bit of a crossroads in the middle of nowhere. My drive through Beatty was uneventful, but as I arrived near Goldfield, NV and on up to Tonopah, NV I was hit with 30+ mph winds, then rain, then hail, then snow and 1/4 mile of visibility. As I pulled into the RV park there was a light blanket of snow on the ground, the temp with windchill was 15 degrees F. That night Teri and I discussed my route after looking at the maps and weather forecast. My original route was showing a snow warning in the passes with snow chain requirements. I don’t own snow chains. Who needs snow chains in the desert?! So, I re-routed a little further west before going north and stopped in Winnemucca, NV for the night. The next 2 days of travel were uneventful other than seeing the snow on the mountains, a rough road, a town of 130 population. The highlight was the road through Baker City, OR winding through the mountains like a river cutting a channel. The mountains are about 500 ft high and there are huge ranches settled in the valleys of these mountains. My arrival in Echo/Pendleton, OR was uneventful. All along the route between La Grande, OR and Echo, OR I saw large yellow signs with black lettering “Snow Zone, Carry Chains or traction devices”. There were also many pullouts for chain installation. Remember what I said about snow chains?? Well I sure hoped I wouldn’t run into any snow because then I’d be stuck on the side of the road until it melted.

We parked at the Pilot RV Park in Echo, OR. This park is attached to the Pilot Truck Stop so we were serenaded each night to the sound of diesel engines idling. We had picked this park due to it’s proximity to the first race course in Echo. I had about a 10 minute bike ride to the race start line so it was very convenient. During our stay I had the opportunity to pre ride the mountain bike course several times so I felt confident I knew the course. The second race was a gravel race starting and ending in Pendleton. The drive east to Pendleton is over a pass which still has snow on the ground. The views from the top of the pass are amazing. One of my training days we took a drive to La Grande which is southeast of Pendleton. Again we popped up and over a pass with amazing views. The Mt Emily trail system has some wonderful mountain biking and hiking trails. On this particular day, Teri got in an amazing hike. My bike ride wasn’t quite so amazing. The start of the ride was great with a few patches of snow on the trail. An hour into the ride and I was walking through snow more than riding and I had not done 1/2 the ride. Teri and I talked on the phone and after reviewing maps, we decided I should use the service road that paralleled the trail just out of sight to return to the jeep. I’m not sure that was the best decision. When I got to the road all I saw was snow and it was about calf deep. Oh well, it can’t last forever….. can it? Yes it can. I trudged on pushing the bike and eventually walking through snow up to my knees. I saw a path that I thought might be a hiker, but later realized it was probably elk. A paw print larger than the size of my hand with claws extending forward reminded me of a bear paw print. I’m glad I didn’t turn into a meal. Teri and I talked on the phone again and discussed the possibility of retracing my path or trying to get back to the trail, but neither was a great option. I continued on. Meanwhile Teri had been hiking in the same area but different trails and didn’t have near as much snow to contend with . The forest was green and wet and littered with pine cones. I made it back to the jeep and we headed into town for a bite to eat. I stopped in at Mountain Works Bicycles to meet up with Marc Harris, the manager. We had met him last year when we stopped in so I had to say hi. As I walked in the door, he smiled and said “John, so good to see you”! We had a great visit. We’re looking forward to meeting up with him again. Lunch was at a local bar and grill and the burgers were delicious.

One of our side trips took us to the Columbia Gorge and the Dalles. The drive through the Gorge is an interesting one from a geographical perspective. The road starts in the high desert with rolling hills and gradually and slowly drops into a wide canyon with tall steep walls on either side of the river and roads. We walked this historic town of Dalles and marveled at the old architecture. It still amazes us that buildings that were built in the 1800’s are still standing and are present day offices such as City Hall. This town is one of the major ports along the Columbia River. We stopped in town for some lunch before heading back to Echo/Pendleton. Our trip back took us along the river on the north, Washington, side which has a higher viewpoint. We stopped at one of the overlooks that happened to be by a small ranch/farm. As Teri got out of the jeep to view the river, several of the cows finished chewing their grass and wandered in a very direct line to where she was standing. I have since called her Cow Whisperer. From this vantage point we were able to view the expansive bridge across the river and up river. We found a sign that indicated an historic train engine so we stopped to see it in Wishram, WA. These steam locomotives were initially used for passenger travel and then for freight. This engine was massive.

Race weekend arrived. Saturday was the Echo mountain bike race. The race started in town with about 300 riders and we were led out of town by a vehicle (we call it a neutral start) for safety until we reached the gravel road which was about 1/2 mile. Then they let us loose and the race was on. The wind was blowing from the right/front at about a 2 o’clock angle which made pedaling all the more difficult while pushing up the inclined road. Then we dropped into the trailhead and started on the singletrack. I have no idea where I was in the pack, I just knew there were riders in front of me and behind me and no place to pass until we reached a steep climb. I passed a few riders and rolled along. The course wanders through ranch land that was donated for the purpose of building trails so the trail was a constant up and down through these rolling hills. As I looked forward it looked like an army of ants winding its way along the hillsides. Then we were back on the gravel road but now we had a tailwind. I rode up alongside a rider and he asked what category I was racing. I told him 60 intermediate. He said “Damn, now I have to race”. He followed me back into town about 10 yards behind. I thought I had dropped him. On the final turn he pulled alongside on the inside corner and pulled forward. I couldn’t stay with him and I finished 8th on the day. Kevin says a top 10 finish on the road in new terrain is a great start. This race was 23 miles and I finished in 2:21. I had hoped for sub 2 but couldn’t pull it off.

Sunday was the gravel race from Pendleton. This was a 47 mile trek through the back farm and ranch roads of eastern Oregon. There had been rain pretty much all week and we had wind and some rain on the race. The dirt/gravel roads all held some water so we were splattered head to toe in mud. During the ride, I would pass a few riders and get passed but I was always pedaling into the wind by myself with no help. It was tiring. 2 of the downhills in the last 3rd of the race had become mud bogs with 2-3 inches of mud. It was possible to see the tire ruts from previous riders in the mud. On the first of the downhills about 1/2 way down there was a group of 3. 1 of them was a first responder providing medical aid to a rider. I later learned he had broken his leg while trying to navigate down the mud. 2 riders in front of me had stopped at the top of the mud hill to figure out how to get down. At the bottom of the hill several riders were walking their bikes. Well, I figured I’m a mountain biker, I can do this and down the hill I went. As long as I kept the front tire straight, everything rolled smoothly and I was on firm road after about 50 yards. The second mud downhill was about the same. I finished in 4:50 and 8th out of 16. Again, a respectable finish.

We were in Echo for 10 days and then it was time to head west to Albany, OR. Throughout the trip I kept seeing the same signs for “Snow Zone”. It made me wonder if I should be getting snow chains for the vehicles. We found the Peavy Arboretum on the OSU College of Foresty property for biking and hiking. On one of the riding days, I met a couple who introduced me to the Chemeketans hiking club website. I told Teri about it and we met up with the group for one of the hikes. There were 6 of us to brave the wet, muddy and steep trail hike. It turned out to be a great day. Not content to sit idle, we found several activities to keep us occupied. The Cascades Raptor Center was a delight to visit. Lions, Tigers and Bears, Oh My but no it was Eagles, Hawks, Owls and Vultures were the animals of the day. There was a live demonstration in which the tour guide introduced us to a few birds and had them fly over our heads. Some of the taller folks had to duck so as to not get hit in the head with wings or talons.

While doing a walking tour of Albany we stumbled upon the Albany Carousel. When was the last time you rode a zebra, lion or tiger or a flying fish? There’s actually quite a bit of history attached to this carousel that made it quite interesting. Teri said we had to ride so I reluctantly got in line to get tickets. I felt so foolish but it turned out to be a great ride. As we stood in line to purchase tickets, I handed my credit card to the cashier. She politely told me there was a minimum purchase amount for the card and our 2 tickets didn’t meet the minimum. I started to reach for some cash but saw a young mother and her daughter, about 5 years old, in line behind us. I told the cashier to ring up 4 tickets and give 2 of them to the mother and her daughter. Then Teri and I stood in line to get on the galloping animals. While standing there, the young girl came up to us and said “Thank you”. Mom had already thanked us. So there we were, 2 old folks galloping up and down around in a circle. When the ride concluded we were treated to a tour of the carousel building in which there is a workshop. Volunteers use the workshop to create new animals to install on the carousel. It was fascinating to see all the work involved in building these creations.

Before we departed Albany, Teri drove north to Vancouver, WA to meet up with her daughter, Jessica, for the weekend. They stayed at the Heathman Lodge and on Saturday they visited the fish market and and Saturday Market in Portland, OR but didn’t stay long due to the horrific traffic. Instead they headed to the coast to visit Astoria, OR. This is a beautiful small town on the mouth of the Columbia River. They had a wonderful seafood lunch at Mo’s Seafood and Chowder then they headed back to Vancouver by a different route to experience more of the sights Oregon and Washington have to offer. The following morning they had breakfast at iHop then said good-bye. This was not the best time to be visiting this wonderful area as the weather was crappy and many of the visitor sites like the Rose Garden were still closed from the winter season. However, they had a wonderful visit and vowed to do it again.

And with that I’ll leave the rest to next month. As always, thanks for traveling with us. We hope you’ve enjoyed it as much as we have.

Stay Safe.