Say What?

We were only away not quite two weeks but it feels like we were gone much longer than that. Each of our days was so full that we were exhausted at night before the sun went down. Bryan and Sue went out of their way to show us around the area and points beyond, driving us several hundred miles to visit family, vineyards and the coast. Tammy and I both fell in love with the area. I used to say that if I didn't live in Lakeville, I wouldn't mind living in western South Dakota. I may have to rethink that #2 spot. The Pacific Northwest is appealing to me on many levels, one of those being cycling. I found myself daydreaming about being on my bike and exploring all it had to offer. Some of the roads were a little sketchy from a cycling perspective but there were many other roads that were more than fine, especially the shoulder along the Columbia River Gorge drive. And speaking of the gorge—wow! What an amazing stretch of highway that goes on like that (in the video) for well over...

Our hummingbird feeders are awaiting the return of our tiny friends from their vacation homes well to the south. It's going to be a couple weeks before I can replace the sugary mix they contain because we're leaving town in the morning to visit family and friends in the Pacific Northwest. My brother Bryan and his family left Minnesota nearly 25 years ago and I have yet to make a trip out west to visit them. He's been back here several times as has his wife Sue. We're overdue. Toby and Charlie will be with us so Tammy has reserved rooms at Airbnb's along the way as they seem to be more accommodating for those traveling with pets. We found a cute Airbnb in Sherwood, Oregon to rent where Bryan and Sue live. It turns out that Bryan did the photography for the woman who owns it. How cool! It's been 4 years since our last vacation so we're excited to be hitting the road again. Tammy's Subaru Crosstrek is packed and fueled and waiting. We'll have SiriusXM ...