Blog #18

April 1-7

Before we left Boise (really Caldwell) we had to re-explore the Idaho-area we visited in 2017.  We first went for a cup of coffee at the NW chain called Dutch Brothers. Then we went back to The Cowboy Supply. Yep.  Really.  This is a very cowboy part of Idaho. If you’re near some feed lots and the county fairgrounds, there must be some rodeo around.  Cowboy Supply doesn’t have pretend Yellowstone Ranch duds, only the real deal. Cowboy hats and lassos are not props. The store had a great bag made out of repurposed saddle blankets. And David is always looking for boots that fit – they didn’t have ‘em.

On our drive, the countryside changes from flat desert with mountains in the distance to something that is not quite rolling hills. It’s more like desert mounds.  They’re really tall and broad — not really hills, not really mountains.  If you know what they’re called, let me know.  

Finally, those give way to more high plains of eastern and central Oregon. It’s all flat with the snow-capped Cascade Mountains in the distance.  I’m sure one was Mt. Hood and we’ve got some other beauties here. Maybe Mt. Washington, Jefferson, the Three Sisters?

We drove through Bend and felt like there is more to explore.  Seems like a pretty big town/suburb, but we were heading to an RV park between Bend and Sisters, so we kept moving. It was love at first sight when we pulled into the Bend/Sisters Garden RV Park.  We got a spot on the outskirts of the beautiful camp far from the road. Turns out, our spot backed up to a small farm with ducks and alpacas!  Lots of pine trees and beautiful landscaping really make you feel like you are in a cared for garden.

Another feature of the Bend/Sisters Garden RV Park is that it abuts the Sisters Rodeo grounds.  It comprises 32 acres that is essentially a great flat dog park most of the year. Our dogs had a blast running around and meeting some other good German Shepherds who only wanted to chase balls.

We found out that there was an opening celebration for the Sisters Rodeo which is held the second weekend of June every year. Except Covid — so there was no Rodeo for the past two years. Anyway, when they said the opening party was at the Sisters Saloon, we had to go. Live Country music, people doing swing country dancing, raffles of logoed Sisters Rodeo paraphernalia – it was a real hoot.  David and I had some fun and then high tailed it to the food court and brewery around the corner for some Mexican and pizza.  

We loved Sisters, a town named after the triple peaked mountains that loom large in the distance, the Three Sisters. The post office simplified the name 100+ years ago. The town governance decided to pay homage to the municipality’s history by requiring all storefronts retain the Wild West architectural feel.  Did I mention that Sisters has a Cowboy Store too?  David found his boots! In his size!!! Thanks to my friend Lesa Starkins who told us not to miss the Sisters Smokehouse and Meat store. Adorable!

We spent two days in Sisters as we were having so much fun.  We knew that come Monday at 9am we had to be in Eugene, OR to drop off our Airstream at AM Solar, the nationally known distributor of solar supplies and batteries for RVers. We bought a DIY kit from them before and David installed our system on our last Airstream. Since we no longer have a workshop let alone a home base, we wanted to have AM Solar install the system. You probably know that the solar panels obtain energy that will be stored in a battery bank. Our new system is more complicated because we have a special controller that allows us to use all three sources of energy at the same time: energy from an electrical outlet, stored energy in the lithium battery bank and solar energy coming in.  Anyway, David could probably do it, but why not let professionals who do this every day handle the installation so we don’t blow ourselves up?

Why Did We Leave So Early Anyway?

So, knowing that we had to be there at 9 am, we woke up at 6am for the 2-hour trip. The pitter-patter of rain on the RV roof didn’t bother us; we’re used to driving in rain. We added two  extra days to our trip to account for snow delays.  Pulling a trailer across mountain passes in the white stuff didn’t sound like a good idea, so we knew to be in Eugene a night early. Unfortunately, our “we’re-having-fun” goggles blurred our vision to our original plan. Also, we forgot that rain forecasts in lower elevations are snow forecasts on a mountain.

Ut Oh. 

Oregon has a great DOT. They have cameras set up at all the passes so you can see road conditions updated every five minutes or so. As we started driving, I looked at our route via the TripCheck app. There were white out conditions at the top. Chains – something we’ve never had to use on our tires – are required according to the app.  Yikes. I informed David.  He wanted to turn around but I nudged him to drive a little more.  At the first “Chain Install Area” we turned around in the slush.  Sigh.  We called AM Solar to tell them our start date would be delayed.  

The woman at the RV Resort reception area was super helpful when we came back, tail between our legs, asking for another night.  She said we might just need a late check out.  She showed us the TripCheck app on a larger screen and things looked worse, but she said that by noon things might warm up and get sunny.  We hunkered down into the RV and David got work done.  By 12:30, I looked up at the skylight to see sun actually streaming in! I checked TripCheck and the Santiam Pass was clear! We drove to the front desk to tell them we were on our way and we left.  

Then I checked the cameras again.  It looked like the snow was starting up again. Dare I tell David we might have missed our chance? Weather was due to get worse soon, with 50 mile an hour winds that night. I told him anyway. The tracks were still clear. We decided to go for it, with trepidation. What was the worst that could happen?

Driving over the pass at 30 miles an hour we saw a sign for HooDoo Ski Resort (family joke since we had been to Bryce National Park). Are we at the pass yet, David kept asking.  I finally said yes, it was downhill from here, literally.  And then we saw a sign saying “Avalanche Area. Do Not Leave Your Vehicle.” REALLY. I only got a photo on the other end.  But as we drove down the mountain, the snow magically disappeared and became rain. 

We giggled at our luck, enjoying the beautiful stream that turned into a raging river and finally a still, dammed little pond which paralleled the road on the way into Eugene. We made it to the solar installers by 3:30pm and had an opportunity to review what they were going to do and where they were going to put the batteries.

The same pass back to Sisters led on to the hotel that we booked for the next four nights. The drive was a bit snowier and at one point we even skidded a little, but we were secure in knowing that our heavy truck with 4-wheel drive would climb the higher elevations and still make the descent to the plains of Central Oregon.

The Tetherow Lodges and Golf Club is a beautiful place to stay just south of the city of Bend. Bend has grown a lot in the past 10 years, almost doubled in population from what I understand. It’s a bustling metropolis with great breweries, coffee shops and wonderful restaurants.  Right outside the city limits (and maybe inside too) are great biking and hiking trails, rivers to kayak and stand up paddle, and everything else from hang gliding to paintball. The resort had a great fitness facility that we took advantage of. It also is only 30 minutes away from Mt. Bachelor Ski Area. While Tuesday had the freshest powder, the front desk told me Wednesday would have groomed trails with all new snow, perfect for someone getting back their ski legs.

On Tuesday, I headed up to ski with a little trepidation. It was sunny and while it started out at 25 degrees, the temperature was supposed to rise to 60 over the course of the day. Skiing alone is not what I usually do and while I had a successful day at Park City, I was a little nervous that today would be my day for an injury. After renting skis, I headed up a green trail and then a blue. On my way down, I intended on going on one trail, but found myself on a different part of the mountain. A Ski Ambassador saw me stop and asked if I needed directions. I actually did, but Charlie was guiding some friends for one or two runs. He introduced me and I ended up skiing with Brigette, Clyde and their friend Matt for the rest of the day.  They have a ski house in the area and have skied Mt. Bachelor extensively.  They pointed out the surrounding mountains and lakes by name, told me of their adventures in triathalons and other road races and brought me to the summit for my last run of the day. I loved every minute of it, following them down trails they knew well, skiing with people at my ability level. The warm day concluded with a beer at the outside base lodge. And my Mt. Bachelor app showed me all the runs I did and which lifts I took. Amazing!

On returning to the hotel, David informed me that Toby was not himself, panting in anxious pain and doing laps around the room. We took him to a vet with no conclusive results. We got him a shot for his back pain and some anti-anxiety drugs. Toby seemed better.  We found the most delicious Lebanese restaurant, Joolz.  Who knew we’d have great ethnic food in Bend, OR?

Wednesday was a work/ workout/ brunch out/ and barber day. We came back to take a dip in the hotel hot tub, but found that the 80-degree day was a siren call to every man, woman and child (but mostly just children) to the pool/hot tub area. It was fun for a while but we realized there was probably more urine than water and we had to leave.

Soon we head over a different pass to pick up the Airstream. We’re looking forward to getting our rig back – with all the solar power we can handle.