The Journey to the Mitten Begins

Yesterday, Mom and I set off for Michigan from Bend, Oregon. We were going to get an early start. Does 7:30 p.m. count as early? If so, we accomplished our goal.

We landed in Burns last night, 130 miles from Bend. At least we were out of town! And this morning, taking Maggie for a walk, we met the nicest people.

The booming metropolis of Burns, when combined with the nearby town of Hines, boasts a population of about 5,000. It's a pretty quiet, unassuming place in the middle of the eastern Oregon desert. So imagine my surprise when, upon commencing a chat over a triple-decker birdhouse in a neatly-cared-for front yard, it turned out that the owners of the house were from the Basque country in Spain!

Oh! I said. I've been there! and told them about biking from San Cristóbal to Bilbao, busting out my Spanish. Oh! they said. We lived in a town near Bilbao! Would you like to come in and see a picture?

Of course we would.

Well, the blistering pace we had intended to set for today went by the wayside, but we didn't mind. And when we finally left Burns, we only drove 55 miles before arriving in Juntura, home of "The Oasis," a place famous (with my mom) for its delicious, very chocolate-y milkshakes. Of course we had to stop there for lunch.

Then, as we made our way east on Highway 20, we found ourselves in Vale, surrounded by interesting murals depicting life in the town's early days. Of course we had to stop and walk around there, too, and take many pictures!

One stop to pick up a directory of Motel 6's (no pet fee!) and one rest stop later, and here we are in Twin Falls, Idaho.

300 miles for today...2000 to go!

TOMORROW we will set a blistering pace.