The First Leg

Getting into the groove of not having a schedule, timeline, or commitments is harder than we thought. Leaving Tuesday with high hopes of making Portland from Modesto in one shot, for no reason really- we had no where to be...

Why rush it?

Anyway, coming over Siskiyou Pass around dinner time, with plans to eat with Aunt Laurie and Uncle Art in Ashland, we started discussing the idea of an 11PM arrival in Portland. “We can do it!” we were telling each other- both feeling the drain of a long drive up the 5 in the rain with a cat. Then Annette looked at me from the passenger seat and asked why were we in such a rush to get to Portland. Why hurry through dinner with our friends? Why not stay in Ashland and finish the drive tomorrow?

By far the best idea of the day

We hit the road later than we expected Wednesday (again, learning to flex "the schedule”) and made a quick pitstop in Eugene to say hey to cousin Callie.

Then finally- PORTLAND! 

Our awesome cousins are going to keep and eye on the cat, and I think She is going to love it here

Who wouldn't?

 Hitting the road tomorrow to check out the Columbia River Gorge and do some boating- maybe..

The Last Hours

Another beautiful California Friday morning. We were both up at 4:00 AM tossing, restless like elementary school children before the last day of school. 

Walked outside, looked at the river with coffee in hand and had a reflective sip. 

Going to miss seeing this every morning out of the front door. Listening to the river and watching the steam rise while drinking the daily coffee. 

Even olivecat knew something big was happening

or maybe she just wanted breakfast

Anyway, today is the last day of work for the next while, and we couldn't be more thrilled at this opportunity of a lifetime we are fortunate enough to have. It is a bittersweet goodbye, however, leaving great jobs that we sincerely enjoy, moving out the beautiful cottage on the Stanislaus River we were lucky enough to call home for the past three years, and saying goodbye to the wonderful community we grew into. 

Our house is in disarray as we have been moving out for the past few weeks, organizing the van, and figuring out what we will really need on the road and what we can do without. 

But things are coming together nicely (trust us) and we will be ready to set sail by Monday!

Also- check out the link on the upper right side of the page (click the van image). It should take you to a GPS tracking site you can use to see where we are at. Please let us know if there are any issues with it. 

The Final Countdown

Counting down the last few hours at the ol'desk and thinking about the few last mods needed to complete our future home- a pearly white 2002 ASTROVAN!!

Throwing our few non essential belongings into a small storage facility, strapping the boats to the car, and hittin the road.... After one last glance up to Yosemite to paddle the newly opened Merced River. 

Stay tuned...