May 15, 2011
Day 15 Biggs, Oregon Rest Day: Touring the Town
There is a special close (if not warm) relationship between the quarry and the predator, and this seems to exist between us and the truckers. We frequent their lairs, feeding places, and semi-trailer parking lots. We eat up their "Trucker Breakfasts" when they are not looking. And tomorrow we will head out on "their" Interstate, I-84.
For today we declared a rest day.
To stay limber, we went out on a tour of the town. It did not take long. Here is what we saw:
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We also plotted (or re-plotted or re-re-plotted the route ahead.) We know that we must use I-84 to at least get to Umatilla, via the South side of the River. Had we stuck on the North yesterday, we would have been 191 km without any supplies or campground.
Beyond Umatilla, one option is to hop the big highways past the Tri-Cities and on up to I-90 at Ritzville. From there we know our way to Missoula blindfolded because we have driven it in the van so often. On the plus side, the Interstates are flatter, wider, and usually most direct, and exits often have motels and some food. On the negative, they can be a desert for cyclists because they do not pass through towns, and they are noisy and brutal.
We decided to stick with our original plan to proceed East through Walla Walla and Lewiston, and then north through very barren parts of Idaho to Plummer, where we will pick up the Trail of the Coeur d'Alene, heading East again. Parts of the north south route through Idaho will be lonely and challenging. We will need encouragement. Keep those guestbook entries coming! We will be eagerly searching for them, (should we blunder into any Internet connectivity!)
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