We started the day with a visit to the dealership in Bend Oregon, then headed east on U S 20. The landscape continues to change as we return to more desert-like conditions, the first 130 miles the 2 lane road veered no more than a couple of degrees left or right and was relatively flat in contrast to what we saw yesterday.
Once in a while you learn something new, today I was informed by a gas station attendant in the town of Burns that, due to safety concerns, it is against the law to pump your own gas in the State of Oregon. This explains why I have seen nothing but full service stations for the first time in 30 years. Apparently the people here never got the hang of self service or the state legislature took too seriously the emails of the thousands who have lost their lives filling their own tanks. I am not sure how these people cope when they travel outside their own state.
After lunch we began a gradual ascent through the mountains in the eastern part of the state, and signs reminding us to check our snow chains. We stopped for ice cream in Vale, an small town on the Oregon Trail with murals painted on the sides of many of the old buildings along the main street. We continue to pass other riders along our route, many with camping gear and some hauling trailers behind their bikes. Many of these are Europeans, and one from New Zealand I met at a traffic light earlier, but none have ridden as far from home as we have on this trip.
Other than the two I have mentioned, I don't think we passed anything that could be confused with a town, only a few remote gas stations and questionable eating places.
We ended our day as we started, with a stop at the Harley store, and arrived in Meridian Idaho just outside Boise with 4,625 miles behind us and something more than 3,000 left to go before we are home again.
Once in a while you learn something new, today I was informed by a gas station attendant in the town of Burns that, due to safety concerns, it is against the law to pump your own gas in the State of Oregon. This explains why I have seen nothing but full service stations for the first time in 30 years. Apparently the people here never got the hang of self service or the state legislature took too seriously the emails of the thousands who have lost their lives filling their own tanks. I am not sure how these people cope when they travel outside their own state.
After lunch we began a gradual ascent through the mountains in the eastern part of the state, and signs reminding us to check our snow chains. We stopped for ice cream in Vale, an small town on the Oregon Trail with murals painted on the sides of many of the old buildings along the main street. We continue to pass other riders along our route, many with camping gear and some hauling trailers behind their bikes. Many of these are Europeans, and one from New Zealand I met at a traffic light earlier, but none have ridden as far from home as we have on this trip.
Other than the two I have mentioned, I don't think we passed anything that could be confused with a town, only a few remote gas stations and questionable eating places.
We ended our day as we started, with a stop at the Harley store, and arrived in Meridian Idaho just outside Boise with 4,625 miles behind us and something more than 3,000 left to go before we are home again.
1 comment:
This is the kind of service I like... full service! Maybe we need to move to Oregon... this sounds lovely!!
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