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Scenic byways, small towns, a bunch of rivers, a ton of dams and wheat........lots and lots of wheat.


** Warning - Picture Heavy Thread **

Because of the picture quantity and bimmerpost photo limitations, this thread will be spread over 3 consecutive posts. First post is Days 1 -3, Second post is Days 4-6 and Third post is Days 7-8.

Overall Map


It was time to get back on the road again. Been stuck in Portland since Sep 2019. Not much travel in 2020 except day trips around Oregon during Covid. But we were fully vaxxed by the end of March and were raring to go. I swapped my 2019 Donington M5, that we took to Utah, (See post here: https://f90.bimmerpost.com/forums/sh....php?t=1784425) for a 2021 Brands Hatch M5 Comp just before Christmas 2020 and after 6,000 miles it was broken in and ready to get on the road. The only problem in 6 months was an A/C that seemed to have a mind of its own - got the compressor swapped out just before we left, so hopefully there will be plenty of cool air. Alas, it was still acting a bit goofy when we left.

I hadn't been through much of NE Oregon in decades, SE Washington a bit more recently and little of the corresponding Idaho part. bwhip inspired me with his M2 photo threads of his trips around the Wallowa Lake region - so I mapped out a 2,000 mile loop to get that done. No National Parks were on the route, but my goal was to see the Palouse area of SE Washington and Hell's Canyon on the border of Oregon and Idaho. We would also travel many roads in Oregon, that we rarely drive on, just to get there and back. (There and Back - that sounds a bit Hobbity)

There are twice as many pictures as the Utah trip - with less mileage and arguably less spectacular scenery. But, still, great scenery nonetheless. And a lot more car pictures. There was a recent thread asking to see Brands Hatch Grey. Well, TheBlackKnight , here ya go.

The trip turned out to be a total of 2,057 miles - yet the furthest I ever got from home was only 468 miles. This sure seemed like small potatoes after recently reading the monster threads by @white2abbit and @Wild Blue, but still fun to put together.

The car performed flawlessly (except for the A/C) and we averaged 24 MPG. Only 240 were freeway miles. Most days we were on the road at 9 AM and usually reached the final destination by 5 PM. Then, of course, dinner and some local drive around exploring. I always looked forward to the start of the next day. We call it "New Territory."


Day1 - Portland to Redmond (190 Miles)


An uneventful drive took us to Salem to drop the dog off. Then we got off I-5 and meandered thru small towns of Jefferson, Scio, Waterloo and Sweet Home in the Willamette Valley to catch Hwy 20 east over the Cascade Mountains. Spring has marvelously hit Oregon.

Stopped on the South Santiam River near Waterloo for a pic of the river and car.



Beyond Sweet Home are 2 dams: Foster and Green Peter. Foster Reservoir:


Green Peter is 327 feet high and 1500 feet long. View from Green Peter


Oregon has many covered bridges from back in the day. This one is Short Bridge - built 1945. You can map out a tour and spend a whole day (we have) just touring covered bridges between Salem and Eugene.

Short Bridge



Hwy 20 winds up into the Cascade foothills. Lots of Douglas Fir, fewer cars. Eventually the road ties in to Hwy 22 coming from Salem to Central Oregon and you crest the Santiam Pass at 5,000 feet or so. Mt. Washington quickly comes into view to the south. Just spectacular.

Mt Washington





Back down on the valley floor, and about 5 miles north of Hwy 22, lies the delightful little hamlet of Camp Sherman. A few homes, small resorts, camping and fishing will let you forget about the outside world. The Metolius River is literally born free flowing from a spring nearby and comes thru camp past a very quaint country store.

Metolious River


Store


A short stretch back on 22 takes us thru Sisters, then to Redmond for the first stop.


Day 2 - Redmond to La Grande (325 miles)


The road from Redmond passes thru the farming community of Madras and then heads up to a higher desert. Passed thru Antelope on the way to Condon. Antelope is kinda starting to look like a ghost town. Population: less than 50.






You then climb up into rolling hills thru ranch country. Very colorful greens this time of year. In 4 months the only color will be brown.



Next, we headed toward Condon, Oregon - Farming country. Haven't been thru here in decades. My only memory as a kid is driving along, coming in to Condon from the east, and my dad pulls over suddenly. We seemed to be losing gas at a furious rate. He crawled under the car and discovered a hole in the gas tank. He grabbed some sticks and leaves and hammered them into the hole. We limped in to town (maybe 10 miles) on fumes. It was about 6 o'clock on a Saturday night. Back then, the gas stations actually worked on your cars (instead of only selling sodas and Ding Dongs now). We went and had dinner across the street and came back an hour later with a plugged hole and full tank of gas.

Stopped for a few pictures at the John Day National Fossil Beds Monument. For a minute there, we thought we were back in Utah.



Since we travel mostly on back roads, its always fun to get to a new small town and look for Main Street.
Here is Fossil's. Population: under 400.


Old school house


Condon seems like a fair size town, but its probably less than 700 people. Main Street:




Farmers store their harvested grain here - these are really, really big grain elevators.


Found a great burger joint for lunch in Condon.


Had funny sayings on the walls


I also wanted to come thru here to see a farm that a friend of mine inherited thru his wife's family years ago. It's never the same hearing about something without actually having seen it. He has 1,600 acres and a tenent farmer plants 800 acres of wheat a year.

This might be my favorite shot of the trip. Mt. Adams in the background. Near Mikkalo


My friend's farm is left of the road



Lot of wind farming up here, too.



Turned east and headed to Heppner, then southeast and up Willow Creek Road, a Forest Service road into the mountains toward Ukiah.
Heppner Courthouse


Forest Service Road 53 is kind of a lonely stretch - the road had a lot of winter detritus and not much in the way of paint markings.
Then down into a grand valley and the town of Ukiah.





Followed Oregon 224 east from Ukiah through a spectacular stretch of the Blue Mountains. Got on I-84 for a couple miles and pulled into La Grande. Checked in to our hotel that had the water main dug up, so no water. At least not for a few hours. Hopped back in the car and went down to Union, OR. This is a quaint little town and we had giant meatloaf sandwiches at the counter in the Rexall Drug store. Takes ya back - waaay back. Really cool.





My wife's father was born in La Grande and we found the house he lived in with his mother and grandmother when he was a baby. Humble beginnings.
The house was built in 1920.


There is a cemetery nearby in Island City and we went looking for graves - we knew his grandmother and uncles were there. Found the cemetery, but couldn't figure out the grave locations. Stopped the car, thought about how to logically identify the lots and various additions of the cemetery. Looked out the window and there she was - my wife's great grandmother, and a couple of her boys, right next to the car.



Day 3 - La Grande, OR to Lewiston, ID (230 miles)


Car was quite filthy, so 16 quarters got it clean again before heading out. Damn bugs.

La Grande has a nice retro feeling Main Street


Meandered out of La Grande on Hwy 3 and headed up into the hills toward the Wallowa Mountains. Lots of rolling range land, a couple of small towns.

Elgin City Hall


Just out of Enterprise, the Wallowa Mountains come into full view.


Then, all of a sudden, there's Wallowa Lake. Just wow.





On the North Shore




Found the lunch spot


North Shore



It was still early, so we continued on to the south end of the lake. Wallowa Lake Lodge was just getting ready to open for the season. They were putting on a new deck. I thought I had stayed there just a few years ago. It was 2006. Where did THAT 15 years go?? Nice and Cozy.
Wallowa Lake Lodge



The view looking north is very different from the other end looking south.

The state park next door was very nice, so we changed plans, drove back to Joseph, got lunch, and came back to a picnic table by a stream flowing into the south end of the lake. Not a soul around.



Then back to Enterprise and north on Hwy 3 toward Washington on rather thrilling roads. Hells Canyon Look Out:


A little further on, the road loses about 3,000 feet and not much in the way of guard rails. Some passengers may have felt uncomfortable.


Then you cross the Grande Ronde River and take a steep, very windy road, to gain it back.
The view at the top is quite amazing.




Came out of the woods eventually and passed over a high plains farming region and then lost all the elevation again to get back to the Snake River at Lewiston. Found out I'd booked the wrong hotel, wanted the one next door. Cancelling at check-in usually results in a one night fee, but got it worked out and went to the new place. Much nicer.

Found a great place to eat on the water in Clarkston, WA across the Snake from Lewiston. The only obligatory food shot in this thread.


Got back in the car - no A/C all of a sudden. It's 80 degrees out. Shit. Windows down.

The Snake and the Clearwater Rivers meet up at Clarkston/Lewiston and become the Snake. The Clearwater comes out of the divide at Lolo Pass between Idaho and Montana. Hwy 12 east out of Lewiston follows it all the way to just outside Missoula, MT. Truly an amazing drive and highly recommended if you get the chance.

Drove around and found some nice bridge shots. Red Wolf Crossing Bridge on Hwy 128 across the Snake.



18th Street Bridge on the Clearwater River


(Days 4-6 continue on next post.)

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[SIZE="3"]Day 4 - Lewiston, ID to Grangeville, ID (225 miles)[/SIZE]


There's a great, windy road, called the Old Spiral Highway, that comes out of North Lewiston and ties back in to US 95 at the top of the hill overlooking the whole area. Missed the damn turn off for it, ended up at the viewpoint on top. Next time.

Old Spiral Highway. Lewiston, ID on left, Clarkston, WA on right - split by Snake River. Clearwater River flows past Lewiston and meets the Snake here, the Snake flows off to the right and to the Columbia River.



One of my main reasons to go this time of year is that the Palouse area of SE Washington is also wheat county. Although it covers about 19,000 square miles and is situated over parts of WA, ID and OR, the Washington part seems particularly scenic. Nothing but gently rolling hills covered in wheat as far as the eye can see. Really something.

Washington State University is in Pullman, WA. Very hilly and beautiful campus. I had come here for a track meet between WSU and the University of Oregon many years ago and wanted to see the wheat again.


A garden nearby was just getting ready to blossom


The Palouse really showed itself out of Pullman on Hwy 27. About half the fields are planted in a given year.








On to Palouse, WA for lunch. Along the way we detoured to Kamiak Butte County Park. A short hike of 400 vertical feet took us to a viewpoint overlooking the whole area. Quite colorful and expansive.



Same road, different sides:



Palouse, WA is a nice little hamlet with a spunky little downtown. Even found a great place for briskett.



Vintage Car Dealership



The destination sign on the bus says "Happy Hour"


More lovely Palouse out of Palouse on the way to Moscow, ID



Dropped down to Moscow, ID - home of the University of Idaho. It's only 9 miles from Washington State. Back in the '70s, Idaho lowered the drinking age to 19, while Washington remained at 21. Moscow became very popular with the students from WSU.

They play football in the Kibbe Dome


Left Moscow on Hwy 8, passed thru Troy and turned south on Hwy 99


Next little town was Kendrick - population about 300. Quaint little Main Street.





Wound down out of the hills to US Hwy 12 and headed east up the Clearwater River. Great river, great road. Turned off at Orofino to go find Dworshak Dam on the North Fork of the Clearwater River. Dworshak is a concrete gravity dam and is the 3rd tallest in the United States at 717 feet. Primarily used for power generation, flood control and recreation.




The A/C had been unfuctional all day and driving with the windows down at 65 mph gets very annoying. Stopped and called my local BMW dealer for an appointment for when I get back. 20 minutes later, while fiddling with the A/C menu, I selected the Rear A/C control and voila - cool air came back. However, it would still have a mind of its own. It would get cold. Then cool, then warm, then cool. No consistency. Didn't matter if the Auto was on or off.

Orofino to Grangeville took us back up to a high agricultural plain again. Spectacular rolling hills of color. Kamiah is a small town along the way, just off Hwy 12, with an appropriate City Hall


Another old theater in Grangeville


[SIZE="3"]Day 5 - Grangeville, ID to McCall, ID (215 miles)[/SIZE]


I don't particularly like to retrace any mileage, but I had read that the road to Elk City from Grangeville was quite nice. However, it is out and back. Hwy 14 follows right next to the South Fork of the Clearwater River for 50 miles to almost nowhere. Elk City is a tiny hamlet of about 200 in a pretty little valley high in the foothills. Gold brought settlers here in the 1860s. There is no wealth there now. It's not at the end of the world, but you can just about see it from there.

The river is spectacular. The grade is steep, the water is rushing and you could run rapids the entire time for about 35 miles.







Elk City


Backtracking - like driving a different road. No worries.





Managed to catch a couple kayakers having fun. I don't kayak, but this is where I would come.



Returned to Grangeville for lunch, then jumped back on US 95 and headed 95 miles south toward McCall. Coming out of Grangeville on Hwy 95 you leave the high plateau and begin decending down several thousand feet to reach the valley floor and the Salmon River. The whole region opens up at a couple of knock-your-socks-off viewpoints. The photos don't really capture the granduer.





McCall is a resort town on the south shore of Payette Lake and is surrounded by lake homes. With a ski resort nearby it is a very popular year-round destination for the Boise/Nampa crowd - only 110 miles to the south. Homes on the south shore go for $3M.

Waiting for the summer to start. Not too many ski boats yet.


[SIZE="3"]Day 6 - McCall to Ontario, OR (310 miles)[/SIZE]


McCall is located at over 5,000 feet. They had snow flurries the week before we arrived. I was wondering if I was going to miss my snow tires. The morning started cold, but sunny, and we drove to Ponderosa State Park, just north on the edge of town. Very large park with beaches, hiking, biking and camping.



Small backtrack west on Hwy 55 and you catch Hwy 95 south again at New Meadows. A very pleasant drive thru forests and then farming brings you to Cambridge after 45 miles.

West on Hwy 71 at Cambridge takes you up into the hills before decending to Brownlee Reservoir on the Snake River.


Brownlee Reservoir is immense. You quickly realize that the wild Snake River does not run free here.
The dam is rock and earthfill with a concrete spillway.


There are 3 dams in this area. Furthest downriver is Hells Canyon Dam, whose reservoir backs up 23 miles to Oxbow Dam, whose reservoir backs up 13 miles to Brownlee Dam, which has a reservoir that extends another 60 miles upriver.

Crossing the river below Brownlee brings you into Oregon. The Snake is the state dividing line. Oxbow reservoir:


A few miles further brings you to the small community of Oxbow and Oxbow Dam. Crossing the river again puts you back in Idaho and the Forest Service road hugs the east bank of the Hells Canyon Dam Reservoir. Its 23 miles to the end of the road.


The canyon thru here sits about 2,000 feet below the rim of rocky, grassy slopes. The canyon begins to dramatically change after about 10 miles and the slopes become steeper, higher and rockier. The road rises from the river bed about 300 feet to a spectacular view point where you can see several miles in each direction. Then drops back down to the river.



Cross over Hells Canyon Dam at mile 23 and return to Oregon. A quarter mile further brings you to the end of the road where there is a Visitor Center and Boat Launch. The river goes back to it's natural setting below the dam and the canyon rim can exceed 7,000 feet. The Snake runs free from here to the confluence with the Clearwater River at Lewiston, ID, 75 miles away. This is the launch point for several multi-day raft trips taking you down river and thru the most remote parts of Hells Canyon.





Looking downstream from the dam - the Snake runs free.


Visitor Center






Back at Oxbow 23 miles later, we had to decide on another backtrack: Go back 40 miles up the very windy road to Cambridge and down US 95 to Ontario or take OR 86 to Baker City and then 70 miles down I-84 to Ontario. That 70 miles on the freeway would have be backtracked the following day. We chose OR 86 and it turned out to be a spectacular road with fabulous scenery. It meant to doing I-84 twice between Baker City and Ontario, but that's a nice stretch anyway. No regrets.

Near Halfway, OR looking at the Wallowas.


So. Many. Bugs.


Went to our favorite wing joint in Ontario that we discovered 4 years ago and got the bugs washed off the car. (Again. 4th Car wash))

(Days 7 & 8 continue on next post.)

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Day 7 - Ontario to Redmond (315 miles)


Made mince meat of I-84 back to Baker City. Situated on a lush plain and surrounded by mountains, Baker City is a nice little town of about 10,000. Lots of nice streets with stone buildings.




Main Street is full of old buildings and fun shops. It was 10 AM on a Monday. Most seemed to be closed.




The Geiser Grand Hotel opened in 1889 and closed in 1968. New investors took on the project to rehab it and it reopened in 1993. We tried to get pics of the inside, but were shooed away since we weren't guests.



Baker City is also the county seat of Baker County


OR 7 peels off to the SW and the road rises up to skirt the Blue Mountains on the south. A short detour to Sumpter brings a small, but quaint mining/cowboy town. Just pulled in on a whim. Nice whim.





One of the attractions is the Sumpter Valley Dredge State Heritage Area. Gold was discovered in 1862. The dredges came along in 1912 and operated until 1954. They were shallow draft, would float upriver and bring their own pond with them. The buckets would dig up the banks and sift out the gold and spew mine tailings out the back. Took a crew of 3 to operate the machinery, 17 more to do various other jobs. Electric motors ran off an extension cord 19 miles long. They said you could hear the racket this thing made from 20 miles away. I don't doubt it. The dredges ultimately cost more than they made, even after extracting 130,000 troy oz. - equivalent to over $200,000,000 at today's prices. This one was $100,000 in debt when they shut down the operation.



Sumpter Train Station


Back on the road, eventually Hwy 7 ties in to US 26 after meandering thru some marvelous hills, meadows and forests.


Bates State Park


Hwy 26 decends from the Umatilla National Forest and opens up to a broad valley looking across to the Strawberry Mountains





Had lunch in Prairie City, population 750.


The land drys out as you pass thru John Day and Dayville. There is another John Day Fossil Beds National Monument just west of Dayville. Not many fossils, but looks like plenty of hiking. Bring water.


A few miles further west will bring you past the Shoe Tree. Go figure.


Just west of Mitchell lie the Painted Hills. Well worth the drive in (about 6 miles). From a 2017 trip:


Pulled in to Redmond for the night and grabbed dinner with a friend in town. He and his wife plus his sister and brother-in-law recently acquired 2nd homes at Eagle Crest nearby. Really putting the screws to us to come join them. Seems like a relaxing location.

Day 8 - Redmond to Portland (190 miles)


Short visit in the morning to my friend's place at Eagle Crest and a quick tour of the development.

Who wouldn't like this out your front door?? Broken Top, South, Middle and North Sisters. Been on top of all, except North.


Back on HWY 22 and over the Santiam Pass again. Before long we enter the burn area where last year several devasting fires tore thru here and wiped out thousands of forest acres and several small towns. The fires raged for weeks and smoke filled the Willamette Valley - all the way to our house. Some of the fires even made it to the doorstep of the Portland Metro area. Couldn't go outside for days.

Timber crews have been hired to take down thousands of trees. Barely recognize the drive now.



One of the towns hardest hit was the small resort town of Detroit at the east end of Detroit Reservoir. They lost nearly 70% of their businesses along with many homes and cabins. Rebuilding has started, but there is not much left.


One of my favorite restaurants, Cedars, was wiped out.


Jeez - this turned into a bummer ending. Sorry about that. Should have done this section on the way to Redmond the first time and then back home along Hwy 20 on the South Santiam. Who knew?

Swing thru Salem to get the dog and then 50 miles back up I-5 and home again. Done - can't believe it was only seven days.


Another great road trip with my best travelling wife at my side as usual. I'm ready to go again, but her? Not so much. Yet. We'll talk.

All in all, we averaged 257 miles/day. Not a lot of things are open yet. Many of the main streets are virtual ghost towns and we heard many restaurant folks tell us they can't find workers. We usually spend money on museums, atractions, gardens, estates, clothes, chochkeys and gifts. This time: zero. Only money spent was for gas, hotels and food. Sightseeing was free. Good thing, because that is virtually all we did.

But, still, awesome trip. It's a great time of year to travel thru those parts because they just get hot, dry and brown in a few more months. And, the roads were empty for the most part. The LCI F90 M5C is pure joy to drive.

I now have over 30,000 miles in two F90's - a Base and a Comp. Have to give the nod to the Comp, but not by much. The suspension upgrades for the LCI did it for me. The harshness is gone and the overall ride now exceeds that of the base, even in Sport and Sport+. Additionally, the Comp looks better (headlights, black bits here and there), sounds better and is way faster. (OK, a tenth to 60 mph) To be able to drive a car that is quicker than most exotics were not too many years ago (along with having a decent suspension, a back seat and room in the trunk for suitcases, too) is awesome. What a great time to be alive if you are a car enthusiast.

Hope you enjoyed the tale. Thanks for following along this far.

Be safe, everyone. Keep yer nose between the ditches and the shiny side up.

Washed and ready to go again. Honey?...........you packed, yet?

[bruza]

Always enjoy your road trip posts. Again WELL DONE.

I lived in both UT & WA for almost 9 yrs and travelled b/w the two a lot so recognize much of the country you posted. Looks fun and the proper car for the trip.

Living on the east coast now, we don't have near the same dramatic landscape. Actually taking my F90 on a 2k mile road trip next week (NJ to NC/ SC and back).

[Boiler Up!]

Spectacular, thanks for sharing!

[snowbimmer]

Originally Posted by bruza

Always enjoy your road trip posts. Again WELL DONE.

I lived in both UT & WA for almost 9 yrs and travelled b/w the two a lot so recognize much of the country you posted. Looks fun and the proper car for the trip.

Living on the east coast now, we don't have near the same dramatic landscape. Actually taking my F90 on a 2k mile road trip next week (NJ to NC/ SC and back).

Thank you. Your trip sounds like fun.

Post pics.

[pmatias03]

Thanks for sharing, this is great!

[saveywil1]

Thanks for sharing, would love to take a trip like that one day!

[TrevorM3]

wow.

[Wild Blue]

Great! Going to enjoy trading road trip journals with you.

Looks like you got some good weather. And you're reminding me to enjoy getting off the main highways and enjoy the small town life on smaller roads.

Isn't Antelope, Oregon, where that big cult came through and decimated the place? After taking over the city and renaming it "Rajneesh", they tried to take over the county and state. Mass poisoning, plot to assassinate a US Attorney, murder, fraud. Terrible story.

[MysticBlue]

Small world. I grew up in La Grande, and I am related to half the people in the little town of Union. My grandfather owned that Rexall drug store for many years, back when it was really a drug store. Wallowa Lake is one of the most beautiful spots in the world. I've snow skied on Mt. Howard in the morning and water skied on Wallowa Lake the same afternoon. Great pictures and great tour. Looking at each and every picture, I can honestly say, I've been there.

[Alberta]

Beautiful pictures!

Thank you for sharing your road trip with us.

[Used2be]

Another wonderfully annotated tour of some beautiful country. Thanks for posting. As a counterpoint it would have been fun to see your car pre-wash, covered with dead bug remains! I've done some motorcycle touring and at the wrong time of year there can be huge splats of something that used to be yellow inside.

[snowbimmer]

Originally Posted by Used2be

Another wonderfully annotated tour of some beautiful country. Thanks for posting. As a counterpoint it would have been fun to see your car pre-wash, covered with dead bug remains! I've done some motorcycle touring and at the wrong time of year there can be huge splats of something that used to be yellow inside.

Hahaha. The bugs are much more visible on a PC versus a tablet or phone. Zoom in. You'll see them.

How can you spot a happy motorcycle rider?
Bugs in his teeth.

[Used2be]

Originally Posted by snowbimmer

Hahaha. The bugs are much more visible on a PC versus a tablet or phone. Zoom in. You'll see them.

I am on a computer, but until I zoomed I couldn't see them. But in the last picture of day 6, your car is a mess! I can see why you needed to wash it so often.

[Simon H]

Wow, looks awesome, but i wouldnt have even driven down some of those roads, too many loose stones/rocks ?.

[VPRKLR]

Very cool, thanks for sharing.

[snowbimmer]

Originally Posted by MysticBlue

Small world. I grew up in La Grande, and I am related to half the people in the little town of Union. My grandfather owned that Rexall drug store for many years, back when it was really a drug store. Wallowa Lake is one of the most beautiful spots in the world. I've snow skied on Mt. Howard in the morning and water skied on Wallowa Lake the same afternoon. Great pictures and great tour. Looking at each and every picture, I can honestly say, I've been there.

We met the proprietor of the Rexall. Young gal, hard worker, bought the building. Great to see.

[snowbimmer]

Originally Posted by Simon H

Wow, looks awesome, but i wouldnt have even driven down some of those roads, too many loose stones/rocks ?.

All the roads were paved - no more stones than usual. The only gravel road I went down was in the last picture of day 6. I had to back up about 20 feet on gravel there to get the shot.

I never worry about rocks. I just travel paved roads. If a rock chip happens, it happens. In the end, it's just a car. A nice car, but still. I'd rather see places than worry about needing touch-up paint.

[illamint]

Driving from NYC to Seattle this summer in my '21 F90; thanks for the inspiration for a few detours. Great thread as always.

[Neptune7]

Originally Posted by illamint

Driving from NYC to Seattle this summer in my '21 F90; thanks for the inspiration for a few detours. Great thread as always.

If you do, you will find a BMW dealership waiting for you at the western end of I-90

[snowbimmer]

Originally Posted by Wild Blue

Great! Going to enjoy trading road trip journals with you.

Looks like you got some good weather. And you're reminding me to enjoy getting off the main highways and enjoy the small town life on smaller roads.

Isn't Antelope, Oregon, where that big cult came through and decimated the place? After taking over the city and renaming it "Rajneesh", they tried to take over the county and state. Mass poisoning, plot to assassinate a US Attorney, murder, fraud. Terrible story.

Terrible is right. A sad chapter in Oregon's history. The Bhagwan Shree Rajneesh bought a ranch about 18 miles outside of Antelope after coming to the US for back surgery in 1981 (it was never performed, he and his cult were fleeing India). Followers sold all their possessions, gave him their money and moved to the ranch. The population exceeded 7,000 at one point. They overwhelmed the little town of Antelope and took over all the elected positions. He also acquired 93 Rolls-Royces. So, I guess he was a car guy. After 4 years of mayhem, he and his lieutenant were eventually arrested and deported. He went back to India and died in 1990 at age 58. The ranch in now a Christian camp.