Blogs from Oregon, United States, North America - page 133

Hi Everyone We are now in the process of packing for our BIG summer trip to Vienna, Austria and Israel. The race is on and Fran is in the lead believe it or not. Fran is mostly packed except for a few odds and ends and it all fits. Marisa is coming in second and the boys are slowly coming up from behind. The goal is to be done by Tues. and off we go early Wed. morning. The Berg's ... read more

We're starting out this sail with a bit of a disappointment: Brother Dwight, from Arkansas, was leading us on for a bit that he might be joining us for this last leg. But his clients just need him too much. And they won't let us have him. Durn. But we're working on next year, when we can slap a patch behind his ear and get him out on the water. Our sail plan on this leg is pretty simple, if not particularly relaxing. We'll leave Newport as soon as the weather settles, and sail to Neah Bay, Washington. It's a passage of about 250 miles and will take us about 40 hours, assuming we make good a speed of 6 knots. We'll be sailing between 25 and 50 miles off shore, well beyond the 50 fathom ... read more

We set sail once again! Harry, Shayla and I will get on the boat in Newport tomorrow (Wednesday, July 25). Harry and I are both so itchy to get back on the boat that we’ve had to stop scratching, for fear of making scabs. So unsightly. As of this afternoon, the weather is suggesting we may need to wait until Thursday to head out. Our original “plan” was to leave Wednesday around 3 in the afternoon. At any rate, the journey will begin tomorrow and we’re eager for that. We were able to take all three of our girls over to Newport a couple of weeks ago to show them the boat. We didn’t sail, but we did have lunch on board so I was able to gloat and preen over my enormous galley for ... read more

Faithful blog followers, our trip is nearing its end. So far we’ve covered 8,200 miles of North American highway. We have roughly 1,400 more miles before we reach our final destination…”Colorful Colorado”. Looking at the recent temps in Denver I’m guessing “Brown Colorado” is more accurate. Many great friends and pastimes await us in our hospitable home (Ultimate Frisbee, winter skiing…etc.). One can only imagine our legs our getting a bit “road weary” from the countless hours logged behind the wheel after six plus weeks on the road. As if 9,600 miles wasn’t enough for me (Ted) this summer, I’m going to fly to Milwaukee on Aug. 3rd to drive my car back to Denver and log another 1,000 or so miles. I’m beginning to wonder if a career as a trucker might be my ... read more

After Stewart Springs, I ventured through the remaining miles of California. This is where a simple idea such as a "road trip" turns into something very different, where whole governments and people change while the landscape remains the same. It was almost like going uphill, the dry and expansive Pacific Coast I know in California became intimate and lush. The terrain was defined by forested hills and large but distant volcanos. My destination? The mythical National Park of Crater Lake. Crater Lake is easy to understand. Imagine a massive volcano much like Mt. Ranier- 4000 meters high and covered with glaciers- violently exploding. The hollow foundation of the giant then fills with the abundant snow of the North American Pacific Coast. Sheer 600 meter cliffs ring the surface of the lake, which is 1800 meters high. ... read more