Heading out at 6:45AM we still weren't sure which route to take to accomodate Barb's two shopping stops. Route 1 was Santiam Pass, while route 2 was over Mt. Hood. Breakfast at Black Bear in Madras gave the edge to route 2.
Having made this drive a 100 plus time over the last 10 years we expected nothing new. Surprise. The recent fire on the Warm Springs Reservation had burned well over 64,000 acres and the highway ran right through it. It's been a bad year in the Northwest.
After a quick stop at Bridgeport Plaza and Washington Square for shopping and a bowl of clam chowder we headed out to the Oregon Coast for a two night stay at McMenamins's Gearhart Hotel. Due to our Cosmic Tripster status, earned by completing the McMenamin's Passport challange, this and four other nights in the future would be free. McMenamin's is made up of pubs, breweries, wineries, hotels and more in Oregon and Washington. Checkout the Passort challange at www.McMenamins.com/Passport.
After checking in we took a drive around Gearhart and Seaside, both of which proved uninteresting. Barb suggested we head back to McMenamin's for a beer, which we did. Ruby for her and Terminator for me. Later we had dinner at Dooger's in Seaside.Barb had sole and I went after pan fried oysters. Not just any oysters mind you, these were local Willapa Bay oysters and they were great.
Now back at the hotel I'm settled in with a little Myers Rum and coke while reliving the day.
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