Road trip day 1 - Sonoma to Portland

We left Sonoma just after 9 am on Sunday morning.
We arrived in Portland just after 11 pm on Sunday night.
It didn't take the whole time, despite the constant downpour. A brief overview of our day
:The drive through northern California was pretty uneventful. Our first non-bathroom stop was for lunch in Shasta. It was very wet and pretty cold, so we ate pre-packed sandwiches in the car. We did have a nice, albeit fairly obstructed view of the lake though.

The lake Shasta area was really beautiful. Trees were starting to turn yellow and orange, and the soil looked really red. We'd like to come back to Castle Crags and the lake and explore this area some more.
We'd also like to explore more of southern Oregon. The fall colors coupled with the green landscape was really something. There seemed to be endless rivers and valleys on our drive on the 5.
Our next major stop for the day was in Corvallis. In August, after loosing our jobs, we went on a backpacking trip to Henry Coe State park. Some friends of Jesse also came along, who now live in Corvallis. Even though we only met once, Carrie and Drew invited us over for an incredible dinner. They made a hearty bean, ham, and veggie soup and a winter vegetable salad. Almost all of this came from their garden. I'm very impressed!

Carrie's salad with home grown carrots, beets, and parsley

Dinner was followed by a delicious homemade blueberry pie (still warm!) and vanilla ice cream. I guess it's true that the way to ones' heart is through the stomach...

After our feast, Drew and Carrie gave us some insider tips to exploring Utah's parks. They also sent us off with detailed maps and directions. We are so excited. I'm pretty sure Clint would be okay scratching the rest of our road trip plans and heading straight to Utah...Too bad for him.

Thank you so much, Carrie and Drew!

We left Corvallis after 9 pm, and headed straight up to Portland. It was pretty late when we got in, especially considering it was a school night, but Brian was up waiting for us.

The road trip fun continues for us tomorrow...