Yreka, CA to Creswell, OR 04-29-15

I didn't drive so far today, instead taking a few breaks to relax and enjoy the scenery.  There are so many images that can only be in my memory that I cannot share with you.  One was a big brown cow in a green field knee deep in grass, nearby were a pair of little brown calves stretched out in the sun.  In the background the deep green of Douglas Fir and a rim of Scotch Broom.  So serene.

 

I drove off I-5 at Ashland so I could visit a quilt shop I liked a lot - QUILTZ - only to discover that it is no longer there.  Sad. 

Ashland is an old town with some old fashioned plants and I noticed these lilac bushes along a side street, so I stopped and asked the man if I could cut a few.  We then had a conversation about how much his grandmother and my mother loved the old fashioned single lilacs.  He said this bush was started from his g'mother's bush. 

 

I cut half a dozen about 10" long stems and put them in a water bottle in my cup holder.

 

The car smells so wonderful.

 

 

I saw a sign "Breadbasket Restaurant" and thought how nice a sandwich would taste.  I decided on a tuna melt, something I haven't eaten for many years, and it was delicious.  I ended up eating it with fork and knife because it was so delightfully juicy.   As I got into my car I looked out through the trees (Ashland is pretty much built on the side of hills) and could see I-5 in the distance.  That is the light colored line about mid picture.  The grey are rooftops and the trees are hophornbeams.

 

Further up the highway I stopped at the Rest Stop at Rogue River State Park and sat in the car checking my mail and calling a few  people.  This elderly lady was walking two little dogs while pushing her walker - one dog would pull one way and the other pulled the other way.  She was making a zigzag path down the parking lot.  When she came back my way I got out of the car and talked to her while I got a little doggy loving.  The shitsu was a little standoffish, but the poodle mix was loving the loving; she was sitting on the seat  of the walker because she was getting tired.  You can just see her little white head below the lady's left arm.  Sometimes when I travel alone I just need some human contact and will talk to a stranger (what would my mother say?).  I have always admired people who can talk to anyone - like my friend Liz and Nancy Ota's husband Mike.  Little old ladies are frequently widows who spend their time alone and are happy to talk to anyone!

 

I'm just south of Eugene, so it is about 100 miles to Portland, so I can surely make it there in time for the 12noon check in. 

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