Big Boomer Busts a Hose in Idaho and Hello to Oregon from First Time Visitors

We headed to our final stop in Montana, SoJo Norwegian Farms in Missoula.  Sonja, our Harvest Host (HH), along with her adorable trio of golden labs, greeted us warmly.  She was great fun to chat with and highly accommodating, giving us free reign on where to park since we were her only overnighters (we sure were glad about that—some nights she has up to 5 guests per evening, which would have made it more like an RV Park).  Despite the rain we encountered along our travels that day, the ground was firm and offered us an easy entry/exit.  Sonja has a wonderful assortment of home-canned condiments and sauces as well as farm fresh eggs, making it easy to meet our $30 purchase obligations.

 

We said farewell to the marvelous state of Montana, where, I must say, we received extraordinary customer service everywhere we went. 

 

We left on a sunshiny day for what was to be an easy 3.5-hour commute to Athol, Idaho, along I-90.  Mom was taking her turn at the wheel as we crossed over to Idaho.  She was maneuvering the winding mountain roads like a champ.  And then Big Boomer set off his alarms, flashing the “turn off engine” light.  Mom, quite a bit frazzled, got us pulled off safely to the shoulder just as the engine shut down completely.  Dad diagnosed the problem: We lost antifreeze/coolant from a cracked hose on the upper portion of the engine EGR.  Thankfully, Dad shares character traits with my rodent brethren, the packrats:   he ALWAYS hoards spare parts.  (He had an extra piece of hose from our 2024 Quartzsite, Arizona lower engine antifreeze/coolant hose fiasco.)  Within an hour, he had us back on the road.  

 

 

We arrived at our next HH, Awesome Acres, in Athol, Idaho.  Karen is a friendly fellow RVer.  She has flat fields in which to park the biggest of setups, located in a quiet rural area within 20 minutes of I-95 and Silverwood Amusement Park.  Karen graciously allows extra nights of stay for $25/night, which we gladly paid to facilitate our visit with RVing friends, Curtis/Stephanie.

  

Full moon over us at Awesome Acres Harvest Host.

We met Curtis/Stephanie in 2015, when we all attended the 10^th Anniversary Gathering of Montana Owners Club Members.  And although we now have “some other brand”, we have remained close friends with these wonderful folks.  Though we all chat on the phone regularly, this was the first time since 2020 that we all were together in person.  We hiked together in Panhandle National Forest and picked enough huckleberries for pancakes for Curtis/Stephanie and for homemade ice cream for yours truly.  We all enjoyed Stephanie’s and Mom’s delicious homecooked meals, but the stimulating conversation was even better.  We are so grateful for the wonderful memories we just created.

 

Views from hiking trails...

...at Panhandle National Forest.

Dad got goosed by a spruce when picking berries!

Hello Washington!  It’s been a while since we were in the State, but it doesn’t take me long to remember why.  Double towing is forbidden, so I must ride shotgun with Mom in the Rambling RV Rat Pack Rubicon.  Don’t take an apple from your neighbor’s apple tree as a snack on your road trip if you plan to pass through an apple maggot quarantine zone, for you will put Washington’s apple orchards at risk of being infected with maggots.  (These pesky little fruit flies feed on apples, seriously impacting Washington’s renowned apple harvests.)  Want inexpensive fuel?  Washington isn’t the place.  $5/gallon for both unleaded and diesel at a truck stop in Hatton, Washington.

 

Welcome to Oregon (where double towing is prohibited, too).  Other than driving over the border from Idaho for the starting point of our Snake River white water rafting trip in 2020, we have NEVER stepped foot in Oregon, so this is a new state in which we will be doing some touring (specifically, Crater Lake National Park).  I observe several things as we stop at the viewpoint of the Columbia River.  Visitors are reminded that using a mobile device while driving comes with “criminal” penalties.   Littering comes with a stiff fine up to $6,250, yet the viewpoint has garbage strewn all over.  The view of the Columbia River has been massacred by all the power lines, cell towers, and wind turbines, and I see virtually no boats on the River.   

 

We overnighted at Echo Ridge Winery, a HH in Echo, Oregon.  It offers a beautifully repurposed grain silo with a huge, flat parking area.  Unfortunately, it also comes with loads of loud trains rumbling down the tracks directly across the street.  But for an overnight stay, we didn’t mind.  We enjoyed the winery’s atmosphere and the chance to chat with some fellow HH guests.   To fulfill our financial obligations, my parents savored some good wine, and I helped them consume a platter filled with delicious local meats and cheeses while relaxing on the back patio.

I hear the train a coming, its rolling 'round the bend--right outside our bedroom windows!

Afterwards, we walked a half mile to the center of Echo, following in the footsteps of the pioneers who camped along the Umatilla River as they traversed the Old Oregon Trail.

 

St. Peter's Catholic Church, circa 1913.  The Archdiocese sold the structure to the Echo Heritage Association, who plan to restore it to its former glory.

A portion of the Old Oregon Trail runs through Fort Henrietta Park.

Fort Henrietta Park has several displays, including some about the pioneers.

Who made this supply list?  What were they thinking?  There isn't any CHEEZ listed under required supplies!!!!

I  can envision the pioneers lining the banks of the Umatilla River. 

Our route the next morning included some of the Lewis and Clark Trail and the Journey Through Time Scenic Byway, appropriately named because the area has not changed much since the pioneers traversed these high plains.  We rendezvoused for a potty and lunch break at the City Park in Grass Valley, Oregon.  I learned these agricultural areas were once known as Goldenland because of all the grain grown here.  We stopped to view 3 Sisters, Mt. Hood, and Mt. Washington within the Cascade Mountain Range.

Then the scenery changed drastically.  We were no longer in bucolic, pastural lands, but instead in urban Redmond, Oregon.  We stayed overnight in Redmond to pump/dump/do laundry in a full hook up pull through site for $56.35/night at the Expo Center RV Park.  The site includes an extra concrete pad on which to park our Jeep.  But it is located on the left side of our RV, right smack under the awning and next to the door of the neighbor’s RV.  We couldn’t park on it anyway, since the neighbor was using it to store her kids’ toys.  She moved them pronto, but we decided to just park the Jeep at the laundry facility instead.

This picture was taken as we were ready to depart.  Our "neighbors" were already gone, so no toys in our parking spot behind their picnic table.

I may have cotton for brains, but isn't this, a deserted and gated entrance to the Expo Center, a VERY WEIRD place for a ballot box?

Well, your favorite stuffed rat just got himself in a heap of trouble.  While in Idaho, I had another pop-up party (you may remember I had one in Minnesota in 2022).  Two of my rodent friends decided not to leave and hitched a ride with us.  I told each of them to be quiet as a mouse as Mom has super senses.  She has the nose of a bloodhound and the ears of Horton the Elephant.  But my friends didn’t listen, and they squeaked too loudly.  Mom asked me point blank if I had another party.   I could not lie, for I feared Mom would cut my cheese allowance.   So, I ratted them out.  And in the blink of an eye, the duo were evicted, with an extra peanut each for the road.

 

 

I must sign off now, for we have arrived at Crater Lake National Park.  I’ll tell ya all about it in my next post.  Talk to you again soon!