Farley Heads for the Pacific Coast, Day 1: Roll On, Columbia, Roll On

Today was the first day of a three-week Farley trip.  On the itinerary:  Bend, Oregon (for some transmission work at German Transaxle, a VW specialist, and maybe, coincidentally, some beer); maybe Portland, to meet our friend Rick Alton, unless he meets us in Bend); the Oregon and California coast; Nevada (by default, because you can't get to Salt Lake from California without going through its endless scrub-brush desert); and finally ending up in Salt Lake City at the end of the month for the Warped Tour all-day punk concert.

Today was also pretty uneventful.  We met our friend Andy Hander in Coeur d'Alene, Idaho, for Vietnamese lunch and pre-season Cougar football talk.  Another stop outside Tri-Cities, Washington, at one of those tourist traps that sells jellies, sauces, salsas and candies, as well as a little fresh, local produce.  I got a whole pint of raspberries for just $2.49.  That's insane.

OMG, hot and spicy Vietnamese chow mein.

Then we headed on to Paradise Park on the Washington side of the Columbia across from Umatilla, Oregon.  Another freecampsites.net find and perhaps one of the best.

Room with a view.

There's even a waterfront swing!

Walking the shores of the mighty Columbia.

There was a sign about sturgeon fishing on the access road to the park.  I'm assuming that's what someone was trying to catch with this thing I found on the beach.  It's now hanging from Farley's rear-view mirror.  And I might need a tetanus shot.

I grew up picking raspberries every summer. Sometimes I really miss Washington.