A Big Adventure to Oregon

For as long as I could remember I have always wanted to do the all American road trip across the country with just a map and loose plans. The goal would be to not use google maps, not make reservations ahead of time, not do any real research of places to see, things to do, where to eat and just see where the road and local recommendations takes us.

So when we decided to head up to Bend, Oregon to see Cody and Brenda during the kids’ potato break (1 week off of school) we decided to not make formal plans other than two nights’ accommodations in Bend and see what would happen.

The goal: Drive as far as we could on Monday (stopping when we got tired), get to Bend Tuesday for two nights and then make our way home the long way starting Thursday.

The Reality: Things started out good… I made reservations for Bend for Tuesday and Wednesday and “convinced” my Type A self that the rest we would leave up to chance. But once on the road, the googling, mapping and researching began. How much farther until the next big town, if we stopped in City X what would the hotel options be? Were there good restaurants nearby? How much further would the drive be to Bend the next morning? How late would it be if we just drove through to Bend all the way.

Yup, looks like I might need some more discipline if we (meaning I) will actually hold to the dream if and when it happens.

My Type A personality aside the trip was so much fun. And allowed us to experience autumn in the best ways possible. 

We decided to push on through making it to Cody and Brenda’s just in time for dinner and since our rental accommodations weren’t until Tuesday we spent the night at their house. And the fun continued the rest of the week: 

Lunch at Smith Rock

Pumpkin Patch at DD Farms

Don't be fooled by the pictures... Oskar and Alva were too busy playing with trucks to pick out pumpkins

Pumpkin carving, a warm fire and tacos at Cody and Brenda's

An "autumn" walk around Todd Lake

Originally planning to leave on Thursday we opted to stay an additional night to check out some more of Bend and Sun River. Thursday morning I was able to meet up with the sisters Heidi and Tami from Rancho la Puerta.  And we spent the remainder of the day playing chutes and ladders and candy land, making puzzles and sitting by the fire. We also managed to check out the local pump track and walked through downtown Bend before dinner and bed.

Checking out downtown Bend

Consistent with the original plans, we took the scenic route home through Reno and Truckee, staying the night at Ange and Scott’s Friday night and seeing Amber, Todd and Jack on Saturday morning before heading back to San Francisco.