Fire, fire, everywhere. So my last post said that we couldn't visit Yosemite because it was burning and that we would instead go to Sequoia - but we had to ditch that too because it was burning. Pretty much the whole of the West Coast is choked in smoke from all the forest fires. We decided to just head on up to Oregon, which meant I had to go on 'radio silence', as we were embarking on a surprise visit to Scott's foster mum, Rhonda, whom he hadn't seen in seven years and we didn't want her seeing where we were and guessing that we were on our way to her.

So all the routes we were intending on using were shut down due to, you guessed it, the fires. So the route we finally chose was to travel up the I-5 to then take the 97. Whilst we were stopped at a petrol station, another couple of bikers pulled in, and of course we all end up chatting. They were a couple of Canadians, Chris and Allan, on their way back to Alberta. We ended up riding together, in search of lunch. I would like to take a moment to point out - Scotty ended up riding in a Commonwealth Convoy, 1 Aussie, 2 Canadians, and one lonely American :) Chris' bike, which I named Stella (I named Allan's Audrey), was having some issues, the engine kept overheating and cutting out. We found lunch, in a little town called Cottonwood in California - it is nothing like Cottonwood Tennessee where my Aunt Heather lives. We ate at the Cottonwood Eatery, the food was ok, and we were hungry. Then it was time to get back on the road. We were not far off from the junction for the I-97 and there was a big electronic sign - "I-97 closed due to Wildfires". We took the next exit to consult the maps and gather local knowledge to plot the route change.

We jumped back on the I-5 and were heading to US-66 to get up to Klamath Falls. But whilst on one of our stops to let Stella cool down, we noticed the rear tire on the Vulcan was looking decidedly worn. So a shuffle of baggage cleared Allan's pillion seat and I caught a ride with Allan on Audrey, while Chris and Scott limped their bikes into Ashland where we found the closest shop that could get us a new tire for the Vulcan was the next town over, about 15 mins further up the I-5, in Medford, and this is where we parted with my fellow Commonwealth Comrades, as they then continued onto Klamath Falls, as we had to wait for the morrow before we could get a new tire.

We heard from Chris and Allan in the morning - they had managed to make it to Klamath Falls, though they did get rained on. The afternoon of the next day was when we were able to get back on the road. At that late hour, we hoped to make it to Klamath Falls that night. And I am happy to say that we did. We had a tent site booked at the KOA and were racing against the looming black thunderclouds to get our tent up - we grabbed the gear off the bike, chucked in on the ground under a tree, staked out the corners of the tent, and the heavens opened! We threw the tarps over our gear and then the hail came. So we abandoned our site and ran back up to the office and shelter, running through an instant river to do so. Once safely inside, we said to the staff - we'd like to upgrade to a cabin please! Pity was written across their faces as they explained that they were fully booked out and they would be happy to give us a refund. Whilst we stood dripping on their floor, the manager offered to drive Scott in her SUV across the now lake to retrieve our belongings. The staff at the KOA in KF are fantastic. Their solution to our problem was to close the games room an hour early and let us use it - it would give us heaps of room to be able to air the tent out so it could dry, it was right next to the laundry - as in they shared an internal door, so we could wash all our now muddy clothes and bedding without being too far away from everything or having to traipse it across the grounds, and we could sleep somewhere dry, we also had our very own toilet, so we didn't have to tromp across the grounds to go to the loo :)

From Klamath Falls, we rode off to Redmond, Oregon and a surprise... The closer we got to Redmond, I noticed the more wound up Scotty was, like when a dog gets all excited but knows it has to sit and wait, you can see their skin rippling and they seem to be shivering. When we finally pulled into Rhonda's driveway, he could barely contain himself - he set the bike and then took off for the doorway - and that was the sweetest hug I'd ever seen, when Rhonda met him on the ramp.

The next couple of days was just quiet time with family. Lots of sitting around and chatting, lots of hugs, and affirmations. It was such a special and rejuvenating visit. Leaving was such a very difficult thing to do, but sadly, time was our enemy and we had to get back on the road. Good-byes took about 3 hours to be said and for us to actually get on the bike and go.

We were leaving Rhonda's to go see Scott's sister, Wendi, whom he also hadn't seen in seven years. The plan was to get to Pasco in the state of Washington. It was the halfway point between Rhonda's and Wendi's. Well, the road was beautiful, we left the dry grassland behind and entered into the forest - tall, quiet, green sentinels lining the highway. Maybe a little too beautiful, as we missed our junction and travelled an hour in the wrong direction :/ We backtracked, and got back on the correct route, but it was worrying as gas stations are widely spaced in this area and the needle on the gauge seemed to be dropping very, very fast. There was a break in the forest and a town of sorts popped up. Well, it was more like a cluster of houses. We pulled into what appeared to be a gas station, but it was derelict, grass growing through the concrete, windows covered over in grime, and a small, sad looking for sale sign on the door. With anxiety levels rising we pulled back on the road and kept going. In what appeared to be a deserted hamlet, we saw a couple of dogs and their human in the front yard as we were heading out, so we stopped and approached for info on the nearest gas station. He advised it was in Eugene and if we were quick about it, we would make it in time before they closed for the day. Well, we got back on the bike and went - and we were never more relieved to see the lonely gas station pop up on the side of the road. There was nothing in either direction, just a lonely stretch of highway, with an occasional ranch/farm, and the blessedly beautiful site of the gas station. We fuelled the bike, and ourselves, and then hit the road again. Thankfully it is summer here, as the sun stays up late. But we could already tell missing the junction was going to get us into Pasco rather late.

We pulled off at a truck rest stop to stretch our legs and watched the sun go down. The sky was spectacularly on fire behind us. The sky in front was layered in soft blues and mauves, and the moon slowly rose. Eventually the sky darkened and the stars came out to join the moon, and still we rode. Another pitstop to fill the tank turned into a longer stop than planned or expected. In the parking lot was a white sedan, a mum with baby on hip peered into the engine bay and her husband's legs were poking out from under the car. Scott walked on over to offer his help, and I trailed behind. Their fan belt had come off. Scott ended up under the car and I ended up with the baby and the two older children, kept them entertained, while Scott helped their mum and dad fix the car. By the time we finally pulled into the campgrounds in Pasco, it was 11:30pm and we were rather tired. A quick assessment of the weather had us feeling confident there would be no rain, so we didn't bother with the tent, we just threw down the sleeping gear and went to sleep.

The next morning we were on our last leg of the journey to Wendi's. Breakfast was a protein bar and gas station coffee - not too bad all things considered. Lunch was a much better deal. We stopped at Dayton and had lunch at a local BBQ joint - the meat was devine and Scott tells me the onion rings were perfect. We checked out Mace Mead Works next door, as Scott has a thing for mead ;) They had a decent selection and the flavour was good. But it was more a trendy boutique place than a real deal mead bar/pub. But it was still nice to check it out. Back on the bike and an hour later we were pulling up at Wendi's.

Another touching reunion occurred - and it was hard to not notice how tiny Wendi is when she is being engulfed by her brother's hug, or being tucked under my chin as I hug her. She's a pocket dynamo though - full of energy and mischief - exactly like her brother. We've been here a few days, and will be heading out tomorrow. The three of us are sad that the time has gone so quickly. I have had many moments where I have been chuckling away, as I see how much alike Wendi and Scott are, habits, sayings, humour, it's sweet.

Well, Wendi and I are hanging out today for a few hours, so I best post this and get going. We don't want to leave Scotty unsupervised for too long, who knows what mischief he could be up to! :p