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Here's a selection of photos I took while I was on my road trip.

I left on May 29th, and went from Forest Grove OR, to Revelstoke BC, to Calgary AB, to Great Falls MT, to Pullman WA, and then finally back home on June 3rd.




Posing by my car just before departure.



A shrouded mountaintop near Hope, BC.



A valley in the mountains - perhaps carved out by ancient glaciers - along the Coquihalla Highway, a section of Highway 5 between two points of Highway 1.



I saw a few of these trucks carrying gigantic tires along the trip while in BC - I speculated that they were bound for the oil sands in Alberta, but maybe they're just headed for some other big project.



The land around Merritt. A drier climate, it seemed.



A gorgeous view from Kamloops.



Myself, at Kamloops, shortly before refueling.



Myself at a rest stop, which happened to also include the site of the "last spike" driven to complete the Trans-Canada Railway. While I was there a train happened to go by.



Saturday morning in Revelstoke, looking west across the Columbia river.



A beautiful mountaintop.



Stopped at a rest stop at the summit of Rogers Pass. Gorgeous views all around.



I saw this little fellow at that rest stop.



Another view from the stop.



Moving on now - a view from along the way.



Made it into Calgary... and there's two inches on the ground?! I'm told this is attributed to the Chinook winds.



Monday morning, breakfast at Cora. This clumsy American struggles to comprehend the menu. "Where's the big piles of grease and starch? Are you sure this is a breakfast house??"



Holy crap that's a big trestle.



ASSHOLES. Fuck the American border patrol. (Canadians, be proud; I have never experienced nor heard of anything but polite and professional behavior from your border patrol officers.)



I saw this mountain to the east while I was driving south towards and from the border crossing - not sure what mountain it is. Seems big though.



I-15S is empty and just stretches on.



Seen at a rest stop. Rattlesnakes?! Of course I noticed that after I'd traipsed through the grass to the restroom building rather than taking the path... fortunately I didn't run into any snakes.



I was still quite disgruntled after my ordeal with those inbred shitlickers at the border crossing.



Tuesday morning in Great Falls. A pretty town, in places.



The Great Springs, just outside Great Falls.



Wednesday on my way out of Great Falls. The octane ratings seemed odd to me.



The promised land.



See those mounds? Underneath them are bunkers where chemical weapons are, or used to be, stored by the US Army. They're currently working their way through incinerating the stockpile - Wiki says they used to carry sarin gas, VX gas, and mustard gas, and right now all they've got left is the mustard gas.



A rest stop west of Umatilla. I'm happy to be in my home state, and just a few hours away from home.



Wind turbines are pretty impressive to see in person. Those blades are enormous.



A dam on the Columbia river - much bigger here than it was in Revelstoke.



As I got closer to home, the climate got wetter, as did the weather... seemed appropriate.



Portland! Big Pink is centered in the distance.



Finally, I'm home, after over 2000 miles.

I think I recognise that Cora's, is that the one in Northland Mall?

I think it is.

Monday morning, breakfast at Cora. This clumsy American struggles to comprehend the menu. "Where's the big piles of grease and starch? Are you sure this is a breakfast house??"

It's not that hard, you order the "Cora's Specia" which is pretty much bacon, eggs, and sausage. Our local store also has the "Construction workers' special" which is all the above with extra toast & butter, and more eggs.

Wednesday on my way out of Great Falls. The octane ratings seemed odd to me.

Probably the altitude. They drop the octane in higher altitude places since the air's thinner and engines are less likely to "knock".

That Coquihalla is sure a beautiful stretch of road. I live in Kelowna which you wouldn't have been through but could have reached along that same highway. Even having seen it many times on my way down to Vancouver it always takes my breath away to see the mountains and the trees looking so untouched by man.

Man, you should try driving it in reverse next time. The ride down from Kelowna to Vancouver is fucking wild. It was pouring rain when I did it the day after you came back home, it was intense.

Of course, my perspective may be skewed on account of being born and raised in Edmonton. Parkland isn't as flat as the Prairies, but it's close.

Maybe I'll do that someday; heck, the original plan was to run east to Great Falls and west to Vancouver, so I know it's practical. (And maybe the US Border Patrol agents are a little friendlier in Blaine WA than they are in Sweet Grass MT.)

America is...beautiful. That's all I can say - I adore mountains (I was born by the sea, so they're a doubly amazing sight for me), and intend to hike in the Rockies one day.

Lovely pictures, including some real keepers.

PeZook wrote:America is...beautiful. That's all I can say - I adore mountains (I was born by the sea, so they're a doubly amazing sight for me), and intend to hike in the Rockies one day.

Go visit Austria.

Thanas wrote: Go visit Austria.

Pfeh...Alps...



And Austria doesn't have giant moon rocks and entire strategic bombers hanging in their museums

*grrr*

I shall stay my hand for thou art to post images of a naval beauty, still...