We've now spent two whole week soaking up Central Oregon. I should start by saying that it has exceeded all of my expectations for it! It's simply stunning. Much of it reminds me of North Carolina; the tall pines, green everything this time of year, and some of the culture as well. After our trek through the southwest, it's been a nice little taste of home for me.
We ended up spending about 10 days in Bend. Shortly after we arrived we learned two things that led to the extended stay. The first was that Bend was an absolutely FABULOUS little town! It had a great downtown area that was bustling with commerce and a lot of fun to walk around and explore. The Cascade Mountains were in the distance so there were views galore and the town just had a really cool, laid back . . . but active, soul.
The second thing that changed our course was when a customer from Oregon called and told us that the North West Bottled Water Association was going to be held May 11-13th in Portland and that we might be able to knock out a lot of stops in one by attending. We immediately got signed up and then had to deal with the fact that we were completely ill-equipped to have a trade show booth. We got the materials we'd need ordered and decided to just to hang out in Bend until they all arrived instead of gambling on having them shipped elsewhere.
I can't tell you how nice it was to sit still for 10 days! No long drives, no closing up and then setting the RV back up. We were in a fabulous park with huge sites, and we actually had what I would consider a "lawn", not just a strip of grass and picnic table, so we all enjoyed being outside quite a bit enjoying all the green and reveling in the cooler temps than we would expect in Florida this time of year.
We were actually able to have a real weekend, that didn't consist of a day of driving so the Saturday that we were there we packed up a picnic and headed off to the National Volcanic Monument, just 15 minutes away and did a little hiking and mountain biking. The Lava Fields were something to see and the park infrastructure was really great so we had a great day of exploring and Jeff even got in a little bit of trail riding in the Jeep.
That Sunday, we had a relaxing start to the morning and then Jeff took on the task of washing the bus. Knowing it was going to sit there for the following week and not get covered again in road grime, he took advantage of the nice weather and got us sparkling clean again. I took care of the inside "housework" and knocked out a few other chores and though we were technically working, it was nice just to be able to take our time and do some normal chores.
Though we really enjoyed our time in Bend, it became apparent to us by the end of the week there, that maybe the whole nomadic thing is getting into our blood, as we were both actually ready to move on to a new spot! We were both kind of surprised since we'd fully enjoyed Bend and could have happily stayed there for ages if needed.
We decided to get a little closer to Portland so from Bend we came on to Salem, Or, which was about a 4 hour drive just this past Saturday. We're in a nice park that is conveniently located in town, so it's been nice to knock out a few last minute errands before heading on to Portland tomorrow where we'll be booked up for several days.
Sunday, we headed about 40 minutes north to the Evergreen Air Museum in McMinnville, which ended up being a GORGEOUS ride through the Willamette Valley. Famous for it's Pinot Noir's, the landscape is winery abundant and I was terribly sad that I'd forgotten my camera. I wish I could describe how gorgeous all of the flowers are here. There is color EVERYWHERE you look from Azaleas, Irises and Tulips. I honestly didn't know you could find this kind of flora in the states.
The museum is the home of the famous Spruce Goose, so we stocked up on our Howard Hughes knowledge and enjoyed seeing the massive structure that essentially cost him his sanity. I have tagged along to one to many (in my opinion) air museums with my dad in my day, so I kind felt a little guilty for having the opportunity to visit one he hasn't been to. Sadly, I found that I had little to no more interest in them as I did as a kid, but Jeff did seem to enjoy seeing all of the planes. We got lots of Iphone pics for my Dad and our nephew who would appreciate them much more than we did! It was a great afternoon though and we really enjoyed McMinnville and hope to have some more time there in the future.
Now, our sights are set on heading up to Portland tomorrow and preparing for the conference. We are so excited to attend and to get meet so many past and potential customers face to face. Once it wraps up on Friday night, I'll be taking a red-eye back to Georgia, to take a week long care shift with my mom who had a major back surgery last Friday. We (my sister and I) are so fortunate to have the flexibility to be able to be there some while my mom and step father are going through this trying season. It's looking like a friend of Jeff's is going to fly out to Portland for a few days to hang out with him, so that will make it a bit easier to leave him if it comes to fruition.
So we're kind of on hold a bit longer before we can get back on the road and resume our 'new normal' of traveling and meetings, but we couldn't have asked for a nicer place to wait it out!