ANOTHER GOOD RIDING DAY!

Fire Prone area in Oregon - this one in 2003

DATE:  Monday, Sept. 26, 2011
HOME: Crescent Lakes Junction, Oregon  Willamette Inn
DISTANCE: 45
ALTITUDE: 1200ft
WEATHER: COLD this AM – 32 degrees, warmed up by 11 to the mid-60’s.  Nice day.
WIND:  About mid-morning became moderate head wind
OUR HEALTH: Bob feeling a little low – thinks it may have been de-hydration; forgetting to drink when it’s cold
NARRATIVE:
We made yesterday and today short riding days because it was supposed to be bad weather.  Again, no storm materialized – in fact, the weather warmed up nicely and it was a really nice day through very rural roads with no traffic.  The amount of climbing was only 1200 ft. today so it was a slow cruise – nice.
Our hotel – Willamette Inn is a really nice motel in a one-block street town.  We thought the closest restaurant was 2 miles away – but “food” was available at two places.  A nice, newly opened café opened for breakfast and lunch, and a “bar” that serves food.  Neither was a “real” restaurant but we were able to “eat.”  What a difference from the last 3 evenings of really good food. Back to the rural.
A note here about fires:  we are amazed at the number of wildfires we have seen over the last three days, beginning with Suttle Lake.  Each fire takes out many thousands of acres and wipes out the forest.  Many will have education boards explaining the fire – and all blame the extreme fire suppression measures of the 20th century that lead to high fuel load – add urbanization and the land burns up on a hot day with high winds.