Arriving in Eugene after surviving Murphy's Law
Okay, first, remember the running out of gas story in my last post? Well it wasn't until the next day that we figured out why gas was never an issue until Oregon. So Oregon and New Jersey are the only states that do not allow their citizens to pump their own gas...ironic we have now lived in/by both of them. So if you need a gas attendant, then 24 hour gas stations aren't really worth it unless it's a highly traveled road, right? Most of New Jersey is densely populated so the stations can afford to pay attendants to work through the night, however east Oregon is very desolate and truckers only travel the road that goes straight to Portland, I assume. Well we were on 20 West which goes through the center of the state and apparently has no reason to staff gas stations all night...or even through the evening. Hence, no available gas. I'm guessing that the new law got passed so that there can be gas stations open in these tiny, far spread towns without someone being on duty. At least I hope that is the case for future naive east Oregon travelers.
So back to the travel story, we were driving down 20 West in search of food and water. We were pretty much out of both (the water in our jugs had frozen solid) and the rest stop from the night before had no stores or vending machines and only sinks that ran for a limited time when turned on. This was the part where we got to see the smallest "towns" ever. I do not know the rules on what designates a town but in this part of Oregon, it appears that the minimum standards are a building and a vehicle must exist there. Literally, multiple times we were coming up on a "town" as shown by Google Maps, and once we got there, it's like someone cleared out a few dozen sage bushes, built a 300 square foot building, and parked their camper behind it. I made Chris stop at the first couple in hopes we could find something to eat, or at least refill on water. No luck. One was a bar type place that had a sign saying 'ring bell after hours', the door was unlocked so we walked in and found a dark room with crushed cans on the counter and no one to be found. At least we had gas!
We drove on and reached Sisters, a town with a population in the 1000s just east of Bend. It was gorgeous because the pines had begun to rise around us and we were finally climbing the Cascades. We stopped at a more helpful rest stop with gas (attendants present) and food. I got our waters filled while Chris got the gas and then we had a quick breakfast at the cafe next door. Not far down the road, we reached Bend. It seems like a great town with lots of new construction and plenty of activities to do. I would definitely visit there but they still had a lot of sage bush so I wanted to get into the western forests I had read so much about. We were only two hours from our destination, Eugene, now! This section of the drive was my favorite, I felt like I was in a mystical land where the mythical creatures lived and everyone loved all things nature. We climbed the Cascades with no problem, observed the lush green forests, appreciated the small river side homes, and kept an eye out for fairies and big foot.
We descended the mountains and arrived in Eugene just before noon on March 16th. It felt so good to finally get to be in our hometown, we were ready to explore and set up our lives. First, we went to the house we intended to rent and coincidentally met and befriended the neighbor. We were skeptical of the property because the property managers had requested unreasonable things for a clearly un-maintained home. The lot was over 9 acres of woods and cleared land on the very edge of Eugene but the home appeared similar to the house in Fight Club. We learned from the neighbor that the owners had died years ago and the property now belonged to the kids who lived in Bend. The floors were practically gone, the bathrooms were moldy, the kitchen dirty and highly outdated. Having grown up in the suburban part of Philly, we knew we could find (and afford) better. This place had a wood burning stove and a fireplace neither of which you were allowed to use under the lease. We had submitted our deposit and gotten our renter's insurance but not signed the lease yet so we decided we would look further.
Next on the agenda was our meeting with Jay from State Farm. We rolled up to the office in our full travel rig, un-showered, in day old clothes and they welcomed us right on in. Jay was excited to hear about our journey and our plans for the future in Eugene. He was extremely helpful and efficient in setting up our account. After we departed there, we found a campground to stay at until we solidified a home we could move into. Chris was ready to eat and I was ready to shower. We spent that evening relaxing and planning our new life.
Chris and I at the start of our first hike in Oregon, Mount Pisgah
The view as we climbed Mount Pisgah
The view from the top of Mount Pisgah
Chris and Ratchet looking at the Mount Pisgah memorial
Zena and I at the top of Mount Pisgah