Day 1 – Vancouver, WA to Ontario, OR

Miles driven today: 386 Cumulative miles: 386 Daniel spent the day loading the Element (our car) and finishing up with all the last minute to do items before heading out on our 3+ week road trip. I spent the day at work making sure everything was in order for me to be gone. Daniel met me at work (Mom dropped me off this morning so Daniel and I could head out from there) and we headed east around 4:00pm. Since Dad just flew in today from his current job in Northern Alberta, Canada (only for the weekend and he may be assigned to his next job – Saudi Arabia? – before we return), our first stop was near Gresham, OR to meet for a quick bite and say hi/ bye. Got back on the road again at 5:45 going east on beautiful I-84 through the Columbia River Gorge. The drive was nice and uneventful (which is a good thing on a car trip). Our only stop was in La Grande, OR to get gas. I believe that Oregon is one of only two states in the US where you do not pump your own gas (the other being New Jersey?). Some people say, “Awesome, I don’t have to pump my own gas.” Sounds great… in theory. In actuality, it means ‘I can’t pump my own gas’ or ‘someone else has to pump my gas.’ And if that someone else only works until 10pm, then the gas station closes. Hence the first minor dilemma – finding an open gas station in the small town of La Grande, OR (ironic name, huh). So, we got to see most of the town and managed to find an open gas station. We finally pulled into the Safeway gas station where we were helped by a friendly and talkative attendant – from Guam. Now, how you end up in a small town in the middle of nowhere from Guam, I’m not sure. Anyway, the attendant was asking us about our car while the gas was pumping and while he was scrubbing hundreds of bugs off our windshield. This is a service that, for whatever reason, we don’t normally get back in Portland. This leads to my next minor dilemma – are you supposed to tip the attendant for this service? Neither Daniel nor I were sure, but we thought it would be the nice thing to do. Then we discovered that all we had were big bills. So, we didn’t tip and felt a little guilty and we still don’t know the proper etiquette. Back on the road again and we continued to Ontario, OR (near the border of Idaho) where we had hotel reservations for the night. Got checked in around midnight local time (11pm at home). The plan for tomorrow is to get an early start as we have about 10.5 hours of driving to reach Bryce Canyon, UT tomorrow evening. Wildlife seen: 2 deer (butts)