DAILY UPDATES.... This page will have updates from my trip, I'll try and post something everyday. If you have any comments or ideas please send me an email.

APRIL 6 - 12      APRIL 13 - 19      APRIL 20 - 26       APRIL 27 - MAY 3      MAY 4 - 20     MAY 21 - 27      MAY 28 - JUNE 5

JUNE 6 - 15       JUNE 16 - 30      JULY 1 - 8       JULY 9 - 16

May 21, 2005
The Museum of Flight was boring so I took a little drive around Puget Sound in the rain and clouds. The drive was nice until I ended up on the far side of Puget Side (about an hour from Seattle), so I took a spin on the ferry to get back to Seattle. The ride was great, it takes about an hour - the passengers and the boat are very similar to the Staten Island Ferry except the view is just a bit different!

Not a real exciting day - cloudy and rainy....

I had a great time visiting with my cousin Steve, his wife Kristine and their daughter Hazel (she's about 6 months old). I won't bore you with family conversations.

That's cousin Steve and his daughter Hazel (Kristine is camera shy).

Puget Sound

Steve & Hazel

Hazel

May 22, 2005
The road trip is finally going again - it's nice to be back on the road. I'll be heading down the 101 for  a while - going from WA to CA. 

I stopped for a bite to eat and heard this gem come from the mouth of a real classy broad sitting next to me. Quote of the Day: "I'll take a Coor's Light in a wine glass" ....overheard at the River Front Lanes Restaurant in South Bend, WA.

In South Bend, WA they like to litter the road, I mean display metal artwork, with images of fish, fisherman, birds, hunters, animals, people and anything else they can cut out of metal. it was so lovely that I had to take a few pictures to share with all of you - not much to do in the south west part of WA.       

Heading south on the 101 you see a lot of trees, I'm going to go out on a limb and call it tree country. The tree companies also put up these signs to tell you about the progress of the new tree growth. I imagine it's their attempt at keeping the local "tree huggers" off their back and let the world know about their care for the trees and the environment.

When I finally got to Astoria, OR I stayed at this great little hotel - the Lamplighter Motel. The price was right and when I asked the guy about internet service and he said they had it, but you need an internet cable. I told him I didn't have one so he just reached behind the office computer and gave me the office cable. He said he didn't think they'd need the web till the morning so I could just borrow the cable - now that's customer service!

Bird art

Tree updates

May 23, 2005
I like taking pictures a lot more than I like writing - I'll put some words with these pictures soon - or maybe I won't....

I have a couple words...  Driving on the beach is very cool - I even kept my car in 2-wheel drive - it's just wide open beach and the smell of salt water.

Astoria, OR bridge

Cruisin on the beach

Seaside, OR

May 24, 2005
The coast of Oregon is absolutely beautiful, although it's pretty much the same look mile, after mile, after mile. The beaches are huge and sandy, not much seaweed, rocks or other stuff on the beach - just miles of white sand and small rolling waves.

Small towns (and a few bigger towns) dot the entire coast, they're pretty much filled with gift shops, candy stores (lots of candy stores), art galleries, restaurants, motels, boutiques and bars.

I've also found out where all those millions of RV's go on vacation - US Route 101! I've seen more RV's and RV parks than I ever imagined - they're everywhere. And they drive really slow - you know how that cramps my style....

I did a little couch surfing last night. Couch surfing is a great way to meet new people and sleep for free and get a shower (www.couchsurfing.com). I went online last week and connected with a person named Rose in Salem, OR. We talked on the phone for a couple minutes over the weekend and set a plan for me to do some "surfing" at her place on Monday night. After a long day on the coast I headed inland (about 50 miles) to surf my first couch. I arrived at Rose's apartment around 10:30pm to smiles (her sister and fiancé were also there) and a bowl of pasta. Rose is a great girl who recently graduated from college and really has her act together. We sat on her second story balcony and talked till about 3am. I felt like I was back in college - staying up all night, talking about life, religion, photography, travel and a touch of politics - and then crashing on a couch only to get up 5 hours later. It was great!

Oswald West State Park

Cannon Beach

Cape Meares State Park

Rose and J.B.

May 25, 2005
Not a whole lot going on, small towns and beautiful scenery. Besides stopping in about a half dozen little towns I did manage to take a few pictures. I swore to myself that I wouldn't shoot another seagull picture, but these gulls caught my eye and I couldn't resist. 

They say the Haceta Lighthouse is the most photographed lighthouse on the west coast so I couldn't resist taking a crack at it too. It was a hazy, windy and cloudy - so I did my best - and that's really all you can ask for  :)

Haceta lighthouse, OR

May 26, 2005
I took a few pictures and drove most of the day - I'm glad this was my last day in Oregon. I can only look at the beach, the ocean and those rocks that stick out of the ocean (I'm sure their is some geological name for them) for so long! However, I did snap a few more pictures of "those" rocks.

Here's my take on Oregon - it's a mix of Maine, Maryland and North Carolina, except those damn rocks stick out all over the place and the ocean is out the right side of your car window when you're going south.

The picturesque 101

May 27, 2005
I didn't get to far today - I only drove about 50 miles.

I stopped to smell the flowers in Crescent City, CA because it was cold and foggy and I couldn't resist the great orange colors. After stopping in the library to do some web updates and email some more couch surfers I headed south - it was already 2pm by then... 

I ran into Mike (no last name) at a beach rest area along the 101. We ended up talking for an hour or so while he ate his lunch, Mike's riding his bike (a $100 special from KMart - he likes cheap bikes, when they break you just get a new one)  from San Diego to Alaska. Attached to his bike is a kayak, fishing pole and assorted camping gear - he pulls it with a basic hand truck rigged up to his bike (this is his 3rd hand truck since leaving San Diego).

I finally made it to Eureka, CA in the early evening and instead of just driving through town and continuing on my way I stopped in Samoa, CA (I thought the town had a cool name) looking for a good place to eat dinner. Instead of finding the restaurant I found the "Thursday night" drag races. People pay 10 bucs and race their cars on a drag strip - they race anything: Geo Metro's, pick-up trucks, mustangs, dusters, motorcycles and even a quad runner. I spent about 4 hours there and when it was all over I just got a hotel and called it a night.

Mike: Going from CA to AK

Burn-outs at the Samoa, CA drag strip