More rain and wind this morning due to the storms hitting the Pacific Northwest.  I decided to immediately head to some sight seeing while working my way East, inland.  Today I took 167 pictures and 14 videos.  It’s going to be tough choosing which pictures to post in tonight’s update.

I started with the Vista House.  This house / observatory was built over looking the Columbia River that separates Oregon and Washington.  Upon arriving, the rain and gusts were strong enough that I dug out my leather coat to replace the hoodie I had been wearing.

The view from the outside overlooks quite a bit of the river in both directions.

Much of the inside walls are either granite or marble.  The windows are stained glass.  Even the stall dividers in the restroom are made of the same marble or granite!

There was a gift shop and snack shop on the bottom floor so I grabbed a healthy breakfast of black coffee and shortbread chocolate chip cookies.  🙂

After the Vista House, I continued on the old highway towards Multnomah Falls.  I didn’t realize there would be several more picture opportunities and waterfalls on the way to the Falls and after them.  The Multnomah Falls have been famous enough to appear on TV and in several pictures over the years.  I had a picture of them set as my background on my work computer a few years back.

First stop was Latourell Falls.

I’m not a fan of heights (high edges), especially on narrow paths without guard rails while it’s raining.  Nothing I saw today would give pause to any experienced hikers, but for those of us that get a bit of vertigo with heights, some of it was a bit of a challenge.  However, I wanted the pictures more, so I overcame that in some areas today.

I crossed over a small bridge that I thought would make a nice picture.  When I parked and walked up to take the picture, I noticed a path of steps down from the side of the bridge.

Of course, I HAD to see where that went.

And a view of the same bridge from near the bottom

Next stop was Bridal Veil.  This had a few trails and wound around an overlook area where you could see the river, US 30 / 84, and railroad tracks.  I walked one of the trails and noticed a tree I’ve not seen before.  I don’t know what it is but the ‘leaves’ appears like clumps of moss on the tree.  Unless that’s just some kind of moss I don’t know.

Next stop was another waterfall, and I forgot to get a picture of the name, but I grabbed a picture of the dedication plaque.  Someone was kind enough to take a picture of me near the base of the trail.  I don’t even attempt selfies anymore as they turn out terrible.

Next stop was the famous Multnomah Falls!  Hard to select just a few pictures from this place

This next picture was taken from the bridge seen in the above picture

On the way down the trail, I stopped and stood next to this smaller side waterfall in the rain for a while.  I love waterfalls.  They’re probably my favorite thing in nature.  I would like to have a house not far from a waterfall like this where I could go and sit and listen to it while reading.

Next stop was a Oneonta Gorge

Oneonta Tunnel was next to the gorge and has been decorated with modern graffiti

The leaves falling from some of these trees are massive

Last waterfalls of the day were Horsetail Falls.  These were quite close to the road and I was able to feel the spray and hear the thunderous crash of the water.  Something about these falls seemed a bit ferocious

After the waterfalls, I stopped at one of the dams along the Columbia River.  Had to go through a security checkpoint to cross the dam and get to the visitor center.  Most of the pics are not very interesting. This shows the backside(?) of the dam holding the water back with the electrical lines going out for the electricity generated.  Some crazy amount if I recall… 2300W at 115,000 Volts.  Might have those numbers wrong.

I stopped in The Dalles, Oregon to charge the car and get some lunch.  The restaurant was Cousin’s something.  So, I walk in and the hostess greets with me, “Hi, Cousin!”.  That was a first.  I sat in the saloon side next to an active fireplace.  That felt good as most of my clothes were wet from rain and waterfall spray at this point.  The server carded me when I sat on that side of the restaurant.  I immediately liked her. 😉

During the drive today, I stopped at a rest stop that had a sign friends from my generation may appreciate

The rest stops in Oregon give out free coffee and sometimes snacks.  Definitely appreciated.

I decided to drive into Washington before calling it a day and head towards Spokane.  I ended up stopping at the SuperCharger in Ritzville because the location was just great for the night.  The SuperCharger is in the parking lot of a Best Western hotel, in a dark area of the lot without too many lights shining in the car.  Also means a 24/7 bathroom is available in the lobby.  Walking distance from the SuperChargers are a Circle K, Chevron, Subway, McDonald’s, Starbucks and a Taco Del Mar.

I had thought about staying in a hotel tonight since I didn’t get a shower today and feel gross, but this is about as good as it gets for sleeping in the car.  I also found a Petro truck stop going into Spokane so I can get a shower there in the morning.  I walked over to the Taco Del Mar to get some dinner.  When I entered, the guy behind the counter commented on my Path of Exile shirt.  So, we geeked out about video games while I ate dinner.  I then drove over to the front of Starbucks so I could connect to their wifi and type up this post in my car.  Nice not to use the data tethered from my cell tonight.

Thanks again for everyone’s comments, texts, calls, emails, and suggestions!  It is great to hear from everyone on this trip. 🙂

Tomorrow I’ll see if I can find an attraction or two around Spokane.  I need some downtime to catch up on laundry.  Then I’ll head into Idaho.

Miles: 3055

I woke up this morning to a semi truck maneuvering so close to my car that I thought he was going to hit me.  Checked the clock, 6:45am.  It was a delivery for the restaurant in front of the SuperCharger lot, Black Bear Diner, where I ate last night.

I had kept the car on and the heater running all night set at 70F.  That used up 37 miles of range over 10 hours.  Not bad.  I also noticed at this point that I had a crack in my windshield.  I had heard the rock last night but it hit very low, below the visible edge of the windshield.   The crack had gradually spread during the night drive and I think it spread a bit more today.

I charged up a bit and then left for the SuperCharger in Springfield, OR.  While charging in Springfield, I met the owners of a P100D Model X.  We talked for a while and the husband told me how much he grins to do 0-60 in 2.9 seconds… in a SUV.  Said his BMW X5 remains in the garage since getting the Model X.  I told him about the A B charging stalls.

After charging, I went a few miles up the road to a Truck Stops of America for a shower.  After that I headed to Corvallis to catch up with a friend I hadn’t seen in years.  Alice is nearly 90 and just as sharp as anyone else I know.  We spent a few hours talking and I met more of the family.  Even did a few group pictures.

I then drove up to Portland where I was to meet my friend Chris that I also haven’t seen in years.  On the way to Portland, I stopped at the Woodburn SuperCharger to add more energy since I didn’t know how much driving I would do in Portland.  I noticed the cables weren’t magnetically grabbing as well as other SuperChargers.  The first spot I tried, the car said the cable was bad.  As I went to put the cable back in its socket, it slipped out and fell on the car.  Unfortunately, it left a small dent in the rear of the car, near the charge port.  My first dent on the Tesla 😦  The next stall over worked fine.  That cable also slipped out on my first attempt to re-hang it when done charging.  While charging, I walked over to the outlet mall and again tried to find some new Asics.  I found them in two stores, but didn’t find a pair that fit right.

Going into Portland, I had some time before meeting Chris so I routed to The Grotto to check it out.  Traffic became very backed up and I ended up arriving at The Grotto just as they were closing.  I may try to return in the morning, depending on the weather.  I drove over the stack in the center of Portland.  I tried to find some information about it online because it gets very high above the river.  I was curious just how high, but I didn’t find the details tonight.

A few minutes later Chris called and we agreed to meet at Elephants Delicatessan.  Quite an interesting place!  The food was very good and there was also a store section with pre-made goodies.  We ate, talked quite a bit, grabbed a few things to go and then Chris suggested I see Pittock Mansion.

Pittock Manion is on top of a hill overlooking a good portion of Portland.  It was night time when we went up and a cloud rolled in around us while we were up there, giving an eerie feel to the place.  Of course, Chris mentioned that the rumor is the old mansion is haunted, which just added to the feel in the air.  Very cool! 🙂  I grabbed a bunch of pictures up there.

Chris and his girlfriend

A view of Portland and then the same view zoomed in a bit

A few more pics from around the outside of the mansion in the night fog, ending with our cars in the lot near the mansion

After the mansion, Chris wanted to take me to the Salt & Straw ice cream shop.  Apparently its a very popular tourist place after being mentioned by some celebrities.  Parking in Portland is not easy.  That took a while to find spots.  We then walked up to the shop to find a line going outside.  Chris works nights so we opted to go across the street to a gellato place, instead.  Just outside of that shop were three statues of pigs.

After that, we called it a night and I left the city for a SuperCharger in the foothills east of Portland where I figured I could sleep.  I’m writing from there now and could sleep here but it’s fairly bright.  There is a church nearby so I’m going to try that lot for the night.

On the way here, I noticed a sign for Boring, OR.

Tomorrow is going to depend on the weather.  The wind is forecast to be severe near the coast and in Seattle.  I’m going to hold off on going to Seattle tomorrow.  I may stick around this area and see The Grotto, Vista House, and Multnomah Falls.  Or I may see those and head into central Washington.  Or even start heading East.  I also should find a laundromat.  I’ll decide in the morning.

Miles: 2744

I started the day at the Wild West Inn.  I took my time getting ready and missed breakfast by 15 minutes, so I had oatmeal in the car while adding air to the tires and checking on things.  Car was very dirty, but I figured I might be hitting rain soon.  I tried to get the weather channel on the TV while getting ready in the hotel, but I wasn’t able to get the TV back on the Dish input instead of the over the air channels, so I had only a vague idea of the storm hitting the Pacific Northwest.

I drove up the 101 North to the entrance to the Avenue of the Giants. I decided to skip the tree you can drive through since I looked it up last night and I don’t think the Tesla will fit.  The Avenue of the Giants was an amazing drive!  I took a bunch of pictures but found I was having a very difficult time trying to show scale.  I tried a few selfies, but they were terrible, as they usually are.  The best picture was my car next to a piece of a fallen tree.

The Model S is a large sedan.  It’s the largest car I’ve owned.  Larger than the G8.  These trees are massive!  Two more pics:

I used the SuperCharger in Eureka and walked around a bit.  I tried, again, to buy new shoes, this time at Kohl’s.  They had Asics in women’s but none in men’s.

Based on my friend Alyssa’s suggestion, I went over to the Cafe Waterfront restaurant for lunch.  The food was excellent!  I had halibut over wild rice, with a salad and a side of bread.  I ate it while drinking a beer, listening to The Doors and looking out at the bay.  The building is an old saloon that had a brothel on top.  So, that was lunch.  🙂  Picture of the plaque outside the front door of the restaurant:

Just down the street was a waterfront mansion.  I grabbed a few pictures on my way out of town.

At this point it was clear I was driving into the storm.  I figured I would head up to the SuperCharger at Crescent City and decide what to do from there.  On my way, I saw a nice view of the waves coming in as the 101 came over a hill crest.

While charging in Crescent City, I realized I need to either go on to Grant’s Pass, Oregon or backtrack.  I decided to press on.  The rain was coming down at this point and I had to choose between charging extra and driving some in the dark, or leaving with less of a charge and more sunlight remaining.  I chose the extra charge.

The drive over to Grant’s Pass was not fun.  Heavy rain, poor visibility, mountain roads, one lane pieces, falling rock signs, animal signs, wet leaves on the road and flying in the wind, etc.  I stopped twice to relax a bit.  I finally made it to the SuperCharger and stepped out of my car into a puddle.  Sure hope this one is grounded… yup 🙂  I’m behind a Black Bear Diner, so I decided to finally try it.  As I walked across the lot, both feet submerged in that puddle, so both shoes and socks are socked as well as the bottom of my jeans.  Glad I wasn’t wearing new shoes. 🙂

I ate a turkey dinner and thought about where to go from here.  I’m trying to coordinate seeing my friend Chris in Portland tomorrow, but I’m concerned about pressing North into the storm remnants of the typhoon.  Based on the forecasts I found online, it looks like it will rain well into next week for all of the cities North of here I had planned to visit (Portland, Seattle, Vancouver).  Also, there will be high winds around Seattle.  If I don’t go North, I’ll have to backtrack into California, again, to stay on a SuperCharger route through Nevada.

I’m thinking I’ll try for Portland and decide from there.  I don’t want to miss out on the cities, but this weather is not great for driving.  Still figuring out next places on the journey.

I’m running the heat in the car overnight tonight for the first time. So far it’s used about 5 miles of range in an hour and a half.  Not bad.  I’m close to the SuperCharger so I can add energy in the morning.

Miles: 2415

 

On my way back to Fremont this morning, I hit a milestone in the car:

I also grabbed a pic of the countryside coming into the San Francisco Bay area from Napa.

Tesla has tour attendees sign a NDA before the tour.  No pictures, no recordings of any kind, and we’re not supposed to talk in detail of what we saw on the tour.  As such, the only picture I have is turning into the facility.

Most of what was shown and discussed on the tour can be found online and on YouTube.  I think NDA may cover “just in case” something is accidentally revealed.  I am glad I did the tour, but I wouldn’t tell anyone to make a trip out to California just for the tour.

I drove over the Richmond-San Rafael bridge again on my way North out of San Francisco.  I tried to grab a few pictures, but they didn’t turn out so well.  The best of the bunch:

The traffic was slow and I didn’t get as far as I planned before stopping.  I intend to get back to some sight-seeing tomorrow.

Something I didn’t anticipate is trouble finding places to sleep in the car.  The actual sleeping in the car is comfortable.  I have the two custom pieces of foam that convert the back of the car into a bed.  The top piece of foam is covered by a sheet and then I have two blankets and two pillows.  I have a full windshield solar shade and the rest of the windows in the car are tinted with a high reflectivity tint.  Finally, I can set the car to run the climate control all night.  After trying to sleep lying the other direction last night, I’m quite comfortable sleeping in the car.

However, finding somewhere to park for the night has been a bit tougher than expected.  Tonight I thought I would try a SuperCharger location, a campground or a Walmart.  The Ukiah SuperCharger is in the center of a small town (Ukiah).  It’s actually in a small parking lot next to houses.  I was uncertain of parking there, but then thought that might work with the trees for shade.  I walked the lot and saw a sign that said 2-hour parking only.  So, scratch that.  I could try it, but not really wanting to be woken in the middle of the night and told to move.  Perhaps in time I will get more comfortable trying that.  So, I searched for a Walmart.  There was one a few miles back from where I was, but I could not find one further along my path and I wanted to go a bit further if possible.  I searched for a campground and found the same story of needing a reservation and $35 for a night.

The next SuperCharger is in Eureka.  It’s a bit of a stretch at 155 miles plus mountainous roads.  So, I wondered if there might be a hotel in between with a destination charger (slower than a SuperCharger, but can be used overnight).  Turns out I was in luck.  I found The Wild West Inn in Willits.  It’s themed a bit like the “Wild West”.  I called to verify the destination charger is available.  Turns out it’s broken, but they have a “universal charger”.  I said I would try that.  I arrived, found the right adapter in my bag for the charger, and my car is plugged in for the night. 🙂   I have it charged to 90% now and will charge the final 10% in the morning while I’m getting ready.  That should be plenty to get to Eureka with mountains and such.  I was amused that the Wild West Inn is owned by an Indian couple.  So, more expensive than sleeping in the car, but this place includes a shower, breakfast and wifi!  😉

Tomorrow I plan to get pics of the giant redwood trees along the Avenue of the Giants, perhaps some pics in Eureka and Crescent City, and push for Portland.  Not sure I’ll go that far tomorrow.  We’ll see.

I forgot to check the miles tonight, but I think I’m around 1900 on the trip so far.