Day 2: Bend to Lake, CA

I set my itouch up as the official weather reporter for trip destinations. I checked the current temperatures at 8:30 AM. Redding: 47, Las Vegas: 55; Tucson: 43; Bend: 18! Brrrr.

Yes, it is cold in Bend. My first big decision of the trip was whether to use my seat pillow (in an effort to avoid Monkey Butt -- see previous trip) or to use the seat warmer -- couldn't do both.

The seat warmer won out. As we drove out of the driveway, I made my next important decision and pulled out my sun glasses. It was clear and very bright. The day was beautiful. As we drove out of Bend, we had a fantastic view of numerous mountain peaks. I commented to Teresa about how impressive it was, and she said, "Well, it's like this all the time in Bend."

The high desert was beautiful with just a dusting of snow against the blue clear sky. The road was straight and lined with trees. As we proceeded south along highway 97, I noticed that the snow piled up along the road was getting higher. Then we passed what looked like it should be a slow vehicle turnout (Washington traffic lingo) but the sign clearly identified it as a

"snowplow turn around." Turns out we were entering the "snow zone" of Chemult, OR. According to Teresa, during a normal winter the snow piles up to about half the height of a normal house, then the snow from the roof is so heavy that it falls and the result is that the snow is up to the roof line.

Chemult is also known for the matsutake mushrooms. During the fall, folks flock to town, get their permits from the Forest Service, collect the mushrooms and set up farmer's market stalls along the road to sell them wholesale.

We went over a summit, road was still straight, not at all like the mountain passes I'm used to and then we headed for Klamath Falls. Teresa used to live there and verified the tour books claim that many of the folks there use geo-thermically heated water for heating homes, schools, businesses, and for melting snow. The area is also a winter nesting ground for bald eagles.

Just north of the city, Highway 97 runs 20 miles along the shore of Klamath Lake, the largest body of fresh water in Oregon. Mount McLoughlin peaks over the lake and there are some fantastic views along the way.

We crossed into California about noon and stopped at the small town of Dorris for lunch with a friend of Teresa's from the Forest Service.

The deli was "across from the flag pole" which you could see from miles. Turns out the town is famous for that flag pole. Teresa's friend said was the tallest flag pole west of the Mississippi. The sign said it was the tallest in America at 200 feet tall. Don't know if they recently put up a taller one east of the Mississippi, but this one was very impressive.

After lunch and a good visit, we continued on toward Weed, California. This is Mt. Shasta country. The mountain dominated the landscape for miles. And I started training Teresa in being a photographer's driver. She was a good sport and didn't seem to mind turning around and going back to a good view point.

You wouldn't expect a place with a name like Weed to be graced with beautiful scenery, but nestled at the base of Mt. Shasta, there doesn't seem to be anywhere that the mountain isn't right there in your face, larger than life.

Having worked for Freightliner, I couldn't pass up this picture (below) when we stopped to get gas at Weed.

Just south of Redding, only a few miles from our destination, we ran into a major traffic jam due to an accident bringing back memories of my days commuting on I5. During the stop and go, we opened the window and were pleasantly surprised that it was warm! After making it to the Cottonwood exit, we stopped off at a shopping center to get provisions for dinner and I saw someone in a sleeveless T-shirt; Teresa saw someone in shorts.

Conrad lives in a gated city. They have two lanes at the entrance; one for residents with key cards and one for guests with a guard on duty that takes down very detailed information. Then you go into the development and it goes on for miles and miles. There is a lake (hence the name Lake, CA) There are houses along the lake with boat docks, houses on the hill with great views of Mt. Shasta and everything in between. Even their own store and pizza shop. It is sort of like Black Butte Ranch on steroids. But I guess this is California.

We had a great visit with Conrad and will be on the road again early tomorrow to see much more of California..