First blog entry of 2010 Fall Trip - out of sequence

Hubby, Muffin, William and I left Corvallis for our annual fall trip. We had a pretty long day of driving and took a very different route out of Oregon to Winnemucca, NV. When possible, we like to vary our routes to ones we haven’t done before, after all, life isn’t about the destination, it’s about the journey, right?
We left Corvallis at approximately 10:30 AM, Tuesday September 28, 2010; since we’re probably going to be gone over a month, packing the car and leaving the house the way we want it takes some time. We have checklists that we are constantly revising and of course leaving Corrie on her own for that length of time takes some additional planning. Frankly the weeks before our departure are a bit stressful. We both usually have projects we’re trying to complete, so once we’re actually in the car and on the highway there is a calm that descends, at least until we realize we forgot to pack something or finish something. Thank heaven for cell phones and computers and wonderful people in our lives.
So we took Hwy 20 to Burns and from there we took Hwy 205 south through Oregon. Both routes are very isolated but stunningly beautiful. In some areas we didn’t see another car for quite a while and I’m sure our cell phones wouldn’t have done us much good if we had broken down. Thankfully the little packed Prius kept us safe.

No one in sight for miles

As you know if you’ve been following this blog, I am intrigued by unusual signs; which translates to mean that I plan to share these signs with my readers of this blog. The first sign that caught my attention was at a rest stop in Oregon. Like most rest stops we looked for a pet area where Muffy and Willie could potty and we found the sign pointing the way to the area we needed, but we also saw a sign we hadn’t seen before and here it is:

Seen at remote Oregon rest stop

The terrain we saw was predominately open range flanked by mountains. It was very open and periodically there were warning signs with different types of animals on them. This is common, so when I saw a sign for an elk crossing or a demure cow that might cross it didn’t seem out of order. However, when I saw a warning sign with a bull that looks like it is ready to attack, I took notice:

Attack bull?Gentle elk crossing warning sign

I was hoping I’d see the agngr bull; and hoped the Prius could out run him!
This morning we took our time leaving Winnemucca to begin driving to Salt Lake City. Again, my attention was captivated not only by the beautiful scenery but this sign:

Very dangerous hitchhiker, don't stop!!!

You really have to be on guard when you’re traveling!
Shortly after crossing the state line from Nevada to Utah on Hwy 80 we saw signs for the famous Bonneville Salt Flats where land speed records are set. You drive about 5 miles off Hwy 80 and then the road just ends and you are driving on the salt flat; sweet!
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=WnyUFCycrv4
Tonight we’re settled safely in a Salt Lake City motel and it’s time for lights out. Tomorrow we’ll travel to Park City, UT. Good night for now.