Oregon Coast! Day Two

July 8, 2026: Highway 101 wasn't too noisy at night, but every now and then a semi would pull in behind me and idle his engine for an hour. One guy had his talk radio up full blast. Why are they so thoughtless and rude? Like parking on the side of the highway in Alaska, this might get really old. 

When I woke up at the crack of dawn (literally) to another semi behind me, I moved back to the Sisters Rocks parking lot which is a little off the highway. I parked facing the gorgeous view of the ocean. Can you see the little speck of blue at the top left corner? Probably not! But Big Blue is there!

This dashing, adorable seagull kept circling my van hoping for a handout. At one point he jumped on top of my van and it was only then did I exit the van and chase him away...he came back. He's very well-mannered and patient, although relentless. He just stands there close by waiting. And so clean and pretty!

I worked all morning then went for another hike on the Sisters Rocks trail. The tide was out so it was fun to see the whole beach when yesterday it was barely a small patch of sand. However, this time I was on a mission. I love beachcombing. I can't stop myself even though I have no room in this van for rocks or shells. I can't resist the gorgeous white quartz rocks that shimmer wet like little jewels. Yesterday I found a little scallop shell that was so perfect and bright orange. That should have been a clue. I looked inside and didn't see anything until later that night when I washed the shell and there was a little scallop in it! I felt so bad. I tried finding an accessible beach where I was overnighting, but I was parked up on a cliff again. So today I felt obligated to walk it back to its home and throw it in the water. I hope it survived one night in a plastic cup with filtered water!

This is yesterday's tiny beach with the tide out. It's a totally different beach now!

I also hiked a different path today and found a cave with waves washing into the inside of it:

They always look so beautiful on a beach and wet...

After hiking I drove north on Highway 101. I stopped in Port Orford and went to the co-op. OMG! They had fresh Oregon strawberries!! I continued to Bandon. I was always told to visit this town and how beautiful it was, but I wasn't impressed. It was a little boring, but I did stop at the food co-op. Most of the shelves were bare so matching the town, not impressive. Beyond Port Orford the highway goes inland so no more beautiful views of the ocean.

I headed next to Coos Bay visiting the Ford dealership immediately and for the twentieth time whined about how the van isn't running well and it creates too much stress knowing something is wrong, but everyone telling me there is nothing wrong. I begged for help! This service agent seemed way more knowledgeable than all the others and sounded helpful. He asked how often I get the tires rotate. I said with each oil change so every 5,000 miles IF the mechanics actually do it which I have found they don't and then lie about it. He said I should be getting the tires rotated every 3,000 miles or my all-terrains will start cupping which will create a whole lot of noise and bad handling. OMG! YES!! Finally someone who knows what they are talking about! He also said the tires are really excellent tires, but too big for the van. He asked if a tire shop sold them to me and I said, "Nope, another dealership." He was shocked at the incompetence as I sat wide-eyed, nodding, and yelling, "YES, I TOTALLY AGREE!" LOL! He also said when his dealership suspects a tire issue, they will actually take the tires off the customer's vehicle, put his manager's  high-quality tires on, and test drive it to see if it makes a difference. No one has every offered that before! I WANT THAT!! So I've made appointments trusting this man was willing to help and not just use me as his next cash cow. It would be such a relief to get all this fixed after a year of torment and incompetent mechanics not knowing what to do! The first appointment isn't for a couple days so I'll be exploring Coos Bay and the environs in the meantime.

I headed to the outdoor swimming pool for some swimming! I recently made it my goal on this adventure to try all the outdoor pools in Oregon. This pool is located in Mingus Park - adorable little park with a Japanese-style garden, bridges, a paved walking path, forest trails, and lots of greenery. Very quiet and peaceful.

Well, peaceful unless you walk by the pool! The Mingus Park Pool did NOT have bugs floating all over! It was really clean, but small with communal showers (eeeww!) and button timers (eeeww!) so you have to try to wash all the chlorine off your body while at the same time punch a button to keep the water coming. That shower water was NOT hot. Getting out of the pool with the cool wind was also very cold. No dressing rooms and the floors were wet and muddy. The swim team ended their practice so a bunch of teenagers hung around screaming and throwing footballs in the water while I'm attempting laps. Then small, screeching children came for swimming lessons. It was NOT relaxing nor to my liking. I fear after eight months of glorious, well-organized swimming in Arizona, nothing will come close! I'll try again tomorrow in the afternoon.

I did swim at 5:30pm failing to realize my towel and swimsuit will not dry in this cold, damp nighttime air. I headed to the only laundromat still open. One dollar for only ten minutes of drying, the machines taking only credit cards for payment, and it didn't even dry my towel completely (but good enough). They did not have top loaders. Not a laundromat I care to patronize.

An obsession I've acquired lately is getting the van weighed at every weigh station. I can't believe it took me a year and a half to learn how to do this and now I'm addicted! I started doing this after too many stupid mechanics tried to tell me my mechanical problems might be because the van was overweight. I argued, "No, it's not!" But I didn't really know for sure. I just know it's not converted like so many others. It doesn't have wood walls, a kitchen counter, a stove/oven, refrigerator, a shower and toilet, nor do I have a husband, two kids and four dogs like some do. It can't be overweight! Problem is every weigh station weighs differently! So which one is right??? 3,500 (my first try during a pounding thunderstorm and I don't think I had all the wheels on the scale!), 6500, 7000, 6900, 6950, 7100??? I'm just taking an average ignoring the 3,500 number. At 7,100 lbs with cargo it's actually about 2,500 lbs under the maximum weight with cargo which is 9550 lbs. I wish there was a class that taught people who own a Ford Transit how to do all these things!

The Walmart here, like every other town in Oregon, is NOT friendly to nomads. They all claim it is the city ordinance. However, there is 24 hour public parking lot right downtown Coos Bay that people recommend although with warnings the homeless mill about in this area all hours of the night. There was a group talking for hours in the parking lot with some woman cackling constantly and loudly. People!! I don't care as long as they can't get into my van and I stay locked in. I'm not sure how "24 hour parking" works? Can I leave for the day, come back at night, and the 24 hours starts again? I have no idea. Once the group left, it was a nice, quiet night.

End of day two on the Oregon Coast!

Oregon: Klamath Falls on the Rebound

I was initially interested in Klamath Falls due to a tiny house that was for sale. It had been on the market for almost a year. I contacted the seller's agent who reeked of perfume. She claimed she was wearing so little perfume I would not even smell it. I could smell her twenty feet away.  I told her to stay away from me. I didn't think anything would come of this house or I would have told her I could not use her as my agent. I ventured forward, but it was a royal pain to have to avoid her all the time when I needed to ask questions. She screwed up several times just before I made the offer and I fired her. I found another agent who told me she can't be around perfumes or scented candles without dire consequences. I immediately latched onto her and I expressed my profound gratitude. We submitted an offer and the seller would not come down. I walked away and left for my eastern Oregon adventures telling my new and fragrance-free real estate agent I'd be back in a week or two.

After the eastern tour, I came back to Klamath Falls. My agent didn't answer my emails for a few days and I worried if she gave up on me. Then she responded...she had been diagnosed with a very aggressive CANCER!!! WTF???!!! I tried, I waited, then I gave up. Although she seemed really eager to find me a home and said she'd let me know the timeline, she never got back to me and I really didn't want to bother her during this stressful time. I figured this was a sign...I wasn't meant to be in Klamath Falls.

In the meantime, I stuck around just in case she reappeared and experienced Klamath Falls. I think is what one needs to do anytime one is considering a permanent residency. What is really going on? Is this where I want to be? Besides...I have another three months. Why not stay in one place for a time and save gas money? I had my voter's ballot forwarded to Klamath Falls so I had to wait for it.

The problem with this reconnaisance plan is something a friend of mine told me. She is a retired real estate agent. She said, "Time kills all deals." She's right.

I stayed at the Great Meadow Sno-Park about thirty minutes to the east of Klamath Falls. It's has an awesome hiking/mountain biking trail through the woods. More importantly, a huge parking lot that is paved! 

I'm so tired of parking on dusty dirt so this was a gift. It was usually very quiet. Every now and then another van or RV would pull in for the night, other trucks would stop for a rest - mostly men going to the bathroom right out in the open pointing into the grass or hiking a bit into the bushes to do what I don't even want to imagine (eeeewww!) But it was a good place to spend some time while I lurked in town and big enough for privacy. One advantage of this location is it has internet and cell service! One huge issue, besides the man pee and defecation, is the garbage all over. And I mean all over! People are disgusting not caring about the environment!

So back to Klamath Falls. Here are the good things about Klamath Falls:

First, the people here are really nice. Yeah, there are a lot of bad drivers and defecating men, but most people are friendly, helpful, and conversational. 

Second, the town of Klamath Falls is cute, maybe a little depressed with vacant buildings downtown, but a good size. It has basic amenities: a library, multiple parks, a Walmart, a FRED MEYER, a WINCO!!! (I haven't seen a Winco or a Fred Meyer for a long time! I must be in the northwest...), a Natural Grocers so plenty of gluten-free and organic food, a laundromat with top loaders, and an outdoor swimming pool!

I discovered the outdoor swimming pool! It's geo-thermal heated with the hot springs that run under the town! I've been told a lot of the houses are also geo-thermal heated. Wow! Now you'd think this water would be hot, but it's not. I've been told during the winter the water's temperature is 85 degrees and although the weather is freezing, the water is steaming! It's a small pool, only 6 lap lanes with the far end third of the pool is designated for swimming lessons and another end for open swim. Their schedule is weirdly confusing with overlapping everything. This is totally unlike the Arizona pool that is incredibly organized. Once one pays the monthly ($40 for an outsider), or six month fee, or one day for $5.00, you can come and stay for hours (unlike the Arizona pool). There are classes one can take by just showing up! There is equipment hanging or in large storage containers to use for free (!) and lounge chairs and picnic tables all around. It has a lot of advantages, however, it can get crowded really fast. Lap swim is shared lanes (eeewww!), open swim is noisy and chaotic with children screaming and jumping in the water usually on top of you. The number one issue are the BUGS! Bugs flying out of the water and floating in the water covering the surface. It's so gross. The breast stroke is a must just to be able to push the bugs out of the way while you swim.

Last, but not least, beautiful landscape with pine trees, rivers and lakes. One of the best parks is Moore Park. It's huge, right on the lake, with paved trails all around and hiking trails up into the hills. It's gorgeous. I spent many days in the parking lot using the garbage receptacles, the bathrooms, and enjoying the scenery. I even accidently encountered the Klamath Kinetic Club doing their annual races on the water using people-designed and people-powered machines that can roll, float, and climb. That was really fun to watch!

Now for the disadvantages of Klamath Falls:

The first time I saw the lakes I was so excited about so much water after months in Arizona. However, closer look, or rather a closer smell, and my impression has definitely changed. They announced at this water race, don't fall in the water...it's filthy. It smells horrible! There are so many birds bathing and shitting in it. Mostly ducks of every kind, but I've seen herons, cranes, pelicans, storks, Canada geese, regular geese, and smaller floating birds of unknown species. Not just a few here and there, but HUNDREDS in every pod!

It smells like a sewer or a really dirty, shit-covered farm. It is so gross! The docks are covered with layers and layers of bird shit. The water is tinted brown with duck shit sludge. I would never try to swim in this lake.

Then there are the BUGS as mentioned above floating on the top of the swimming pool. They have these weird little bugs that look like mosquitoes, but don't bite. If one drives down by the lake, there are walls of them over the road. My windshield, hood, and front license plate was constantly covered with them and getting dried bug guts washed off Big Blue is really challenging. Eeewww! I've been told at certain times of the year (like now) the midges are out, too. Tiny little irritating bugs easily inhaled. The first time I encountered the bugs in the swimming pool water, I was horrified and asked, "What are all these bugs?"

Last and maybe most important, it's cold! While I was here in June I would wake in the night to 37 degrees! In June!? I read an online article on the six cities in Oregon that are not good for retiring. Klamath Falls was on the list due to the cold temperatures. Everyone has told me last winter was very mild which was unusual, maybe due to climate change, but the winter before had four feet of snow! I moved from the northwest because I can't tolerate cold due to my thyroid problems. Do I really want to live in the cold?

Good-bye Klamath Falls!

Oregon Coast! Day One and a Half!

July 6, 2026: After waiting for too long for my forwarded voting ballot to arrive, I finally gave up and left for the coast! All that work to get registered to vote and I don't even get to vote!!

I stopped in Medford for my free windshield wipers, walked downtown Ashland, drove through the surrounding countryside, then headed back north, west, then southwest on Highway 199 into California and up Highway 101. When I arrived in California the temperature dropped from 97 degrees to 85 degrees. Once on Highway 101, the temperature was a cool, clammy 57 degrees. I arrived around 5pm and it was already foggy. My plan is to start at the far southern coastline and work my way up stopping at every beach I can find.

First stop, furthest south over the Californian-Oregon border: Brookings. Eeeewww. Creepy. The population is 6,800 and the homeless percentage is way higher than any place I've ever been! I attempted to find a place to park for the night and encountered debilitated RVs, junky cars, and banged up vans with homeless men staring at me from their sitting spots in the dirt. Hoards of homeless roaming the streets together like feral dogs. I left and headed north. I was told later the closer one is to California, the more drug addicts are living on the streets.

I parked overnight on a trailhead pullout right on Highway 101 called Thomas Creek. It's within the Samuel H. Boardman Scenic Corridor. The temperature was a cool 57 degrees, but everything felt so wet from the fog. I thought I'd hike down to the water the next day, but I didn't realize how far up on a cliff I was and there is no access to the beach! The trail to who knows where was steep and scary looking! Do I need to break another ankle? No thanks.

July 7, 2026: In the morning a really nice, very clean, white car pulled up and parked. The man in it got out. He looked homeless. Clothes brown with saturated dirt. Very dark, dirty tan and scruffy, long hair. I thought it very strange the dicotomy between his appearance and his car. He went into the woods. 

Soon after I could hear a dog barking like crazy and both the man and the dog came out of the woods. The man kept trying to catch the dog, but the dog was not having it. Beautiful dog and looked well-cared for. The dog came near my van. I opened the side door and tried to get it to come closer. He seemed scared. I had a weird feeling I should not leave my van unattended with that guy around. Another car pulled up and the dog was continuously barking at everyone. Very nervous. I heard the homeless-looking guy say it wasn't his dog. As I left, the new car was calling the authorities on the dog worried it was dumped off. I told them the dog was not here last night and seemed showed up with that white car although I did not see the dog get out of the car. Something was going on there...my instincts said to leave.

I headed north to the next pullout and hiked the trail through the woods. The views through the trees were spectacular even with the heavy cloud cover and fog, but again, I was up on a cliff with no access to the beach or what is known as Secret Beach. (See photo above.)

I continued north and stopped at another lookout with a view of The Arch. Very frustrating not being able to get down to the sand as I've seen photos of people frollicking on these beaches.

Continued north and found Meyers Creek Beach, huge pull-out, and lots of beach! The sun finally came out!!

Stopped at Gold Beach and walked the beach. Didn't take any photos, but I did gather some gorgeous rocks! Lots of dog poop bag dispensers...I use the bags for rocks and shells!

Continued to Sisters Rocks that has a wonderful trail from the highway pullout to the rock cliffs.

Parked overnight on another pullout just north of Sisters Rocks. All night semi trucks would pull in behind me and idle their engines for an hour then take off. So irritating. How can men be so incredibly thoughtless??

And that was the first day and a half!!

Oregon: Central North Central

June 8, 2026: I stayed near Spray on the John Day River. So beautiful. Although I was right on the highway on a huge pullout, it was very quiet all night.

June 9, 2026: Drove to the John Day Fossil Beds National Monument: Painted Hills Unit. I had no idea if there are really fossils here. At first I didn't even think anything looked painted until I drove around a corner. I hiked up a mountain, but the best views were from down below.

Drove toward Redmond and Madras. The highway there was beautiful and peaceful. I did not pass any vehicles the whole drive. My kind of highway. 

Redmond has a little health food store where I had hoped to replenish my vegtables, but they didn't have produce! Or meat! It's really hard to find good food in these little towns even in Oregon which normally has excellent healthy options.

Madras reminded me of New Mexico with a lot of poverty. Of course my perception was based on the laundromat. It was a convenience store with top loaders, BUT the dirtiest laundromat I've been in so far!! Half the machines were not working. Homeless milling about. One woman couldn't stop following me around and talking to me about her dead mother and all her mother's belongings. I could not wait to get out of there, but I needed to wash my duvet so I could put my new wool blanket into it and hopefully seal its toxic dyes. Laundry in Madras was not a good experience! 

On my way to a campsite that sounded lovely, I initially I started down a 7.5 mile dirty, dusty gravel road and thought, Nope. Not doing this. So I turned around and drove fifty miles northwest to camp again on the edge of the John Day River on BLM land near Clarno. The road in was large gravel/rock with some dust, but not nearly as bad. Very windy! But the sun is out and no chance of rain! Hooray!

It's so gorgeous and quiet here. One camper is farther down the river (they left the next morning). If I wasn't running out of food, I'd stay forever. I'll stay for as long as I can... I hung the wool blanket out in the wind. I don't think that will help, but I don't have enough water or vinegar to handwash it. The gorgeous butterflies are as big as birds.

June 12, 2026: I drove three hours to a Whole Foods today! I was out of food! I couldn't help myself! Sometimes one just needs a glimpse of civilization.

I got up at 5am and headed out hoping to avoid anyone coming in on that one lane gravel road. It worked! Headed to Shaniko. Beautiful, quiet drive. I noticed a mountain. Mt. Hood, I think? Then I glance to my left. Another mountain??!! Then up and over in front of me. Another mountain!! Good lord! I was surrounded. I had to take highway 97 south and found a whole range of mountains! So gorgeous!

As I drove west, Mt. Hood got bigger and bigger. It was shocking to turn a corner in
the Mt. Hood National Forest and come face to face with a gigantic view! I couldn't take photos since I was on a highway! (Someone later told me this is Mt. Jefferson. I have no idea.)

I wandered the streets of Shaniko at 6am. I was here about ten years ago so it wasn't new, but still fun.

After shopping at both Whole Foods and Walmart where I also dropped off my empty Spindrift cans for money (80 cents for 8! We don't have that in Arizona! Republicans don't care about the environment.), I headed south to the Aurora Mills Architectural Salvage Warehouse. Fun! It was filled with millions of antique architectural artifacts! I have to admit, I am now quite repulsed by the stink of musty old wood and mildew/mold now that I've spent so much time in the dryness of Arizona. I can't imagine filling a house with these old items. But it was fun to look:

Love these Black Eyed Susans outside the warehouse.

On the way (I cannot remember which town), I stopped at a car wash. With all the country camping I've been doing driving up and down dirt roads, Big Blue was incredibly filthy and dusty. The car wash looked like any other...all too soon I discovered their soaps are flourescent pink and SCENTED! It wasn't just a mild scent either. I think they must have thrown the whole bottle in when it should have been a tablespoon. I stopped with the soap and rinsed everything off. That was nasty! I don't want the outside of my van to stink!

I've seen four covered bridges so far! They are all over! I always knew this about Oregon and the first bridge I saw was years ago up in the northwest corner. The first one I saw on this trip I accidently and delightfully drove under before I even realized what was happening. The rest so far were just off the highway usually with a line of cars. I always worry Big Blue wouldn't fit as there was one covered bridge in New England that was too short for my van and many of them are very narrow although most are now considered "one lane" so you have to wait your turn. I don't feel the compulsive need to drive over (under?) one, but I like looking at them for some reason. At one bridge today the car in front of me slammed on their brakes to turn, and I almost back-ended them. Idiot tourists.

Next I drove to the McDowell Creek Falls Park and hiked to the four waterfalls. Naturally, I had no idea where I was going so I ended up overhiking. This is Majestic Falls:

I can't even describe how badly I wanted to jump in that pool with sweat pouring off my face! I headed east on highway 20 and stayed overnight at Lava Lake Sno-Park. Very quiet and peaceful night.

June 13, 2026: Headed to the Belknap Springs Resort for some hot springing in the Willamette National Forest. For $12 you can soak for an hour. It was so nice since I haven't had a proper shower for two months or a bath for almost a year! When I got out my old, dead skin was flaking off. There went my tan! It was gross, but now my skin feels so good! Unfortunately, the pool was chlorinated. Eeeewww....they have showers for use, although they weren't very good, mostly cold with a mildewy smell. I asked to see a room (to check if it smelled of mold), but they were full. I was told they don't use air fresheners. I would think being next to a river and having a hot springs just outside might create a mold issue.

After the soak I hiked to the Secret Garden behind the resort and over the river. It was so secret I got lost, of course. Getting lost and overhiking while hiking is expected. It was so cool how it was way out in the woods, hidden and secret! I would love a secret garden just like this one with waterfalls, ponds, and cement pillars tucked into a forest!

Next I headed to Eugene to the Sundance Health Food Store just to check it out. Very nice people in Eugene.  I then drove out on Highway 58. I'm zig-zagging back and forth through the Willamette National Forest just because it's so beautiful. This highway followed the most beautiful teal-colored lake filled with people in boats and paddleboards. It's a busy Saturday.

I stopped at McCredie Park. There is normally a day use fee of $5.00, but today was one of the free days so although I spend my morning sweating, I couldn't help but stop and check out the hot springs-in-the-wild down by the river. OMG! It was HOT! I did not get in. No one else was there. I was honestly afraid I'd get so hot I'd burn myself or I'd pass out and drown and with no one there...well...and what would I do if a bunch of men showed up while I was hot springing? Hmmm...can't be too careful.

The other day I was considering the disadvantages of traveling alone. This was while I was staying at the John Day River. I wanted to go swimming in the river, but there was a cliff. At my campsite someone carved steps out of the dirt so I could have gotten down there and jumped in. But then I wondered is the current too swift? Is there an undercurrent? If I try to get out would the dirt get wet and I'd slip unable to get out? If I drown would anyone find me? How long before someone would wonder why that van has been sitting there for too long? Maybe someone would steal my van and no one would ever even think I had disappeared unless someone found my dead and bloated body downstream...but then how would they identify me? These are questions that run through my paranoid brain when considering safety. The same questions I had when I was staying at the river campground in Montana and wanted to jump off the dock. Then there is hiking alone. Suppose a bear attacks me and carries me off into the woods?  Or I slip off a cliff or even something less life threatening like breaking an ankle alone on a trail and unable to walk miles from the trailhead. It's going to take a long time for anyone to wonder why my van has been sitting there for too long. Someone just might give me a ticket and not even wonder. How long would it take for anyone to wonder where I went? Traveling as a woman alone has it's own special worries. Traveling with someone I would have no hesitation to jump in a river or a hot springs. These limitations often irritate me.

Stayed at the Lake Mary Sno-Park east on Highway 58. I love these Sno-Parks. I'm usually the only person. During the winter between Nov. 1st and April 30th you must buy a "winter pass" but any other time is free to park. Pavement parking which is always better than dusty dirt. The only disadvantage is they are off the highway so until sundown there is some traffic noise. Well, and since they are up on a mountain, internet and cell phone reception is non-existant which is inconvenient. Most of the time I can hook up Starlink, but I don't want to leave it on too long or I run out of gigabytes. 

Mornings can be cold on a mountain before the sun reaches over the pines, so I drove about twenty miles to heat up the van and parked on a highway pullout with a view of Clear Lake while I checked emails and did computer stuff.

Headed to Bend. The Whole Foods in Bend offers free Primo water refills! This is the only time I've ever seen free Primo water refills!! They also sell single cans of Spindrift for about $1.50. Most stores sell singles for $2.50 which is outrageous since you can buy a box of eight for around $6.00.

Then drove straight down to Klamath Falls and then east on Highway 140. I considered staying at a reservoir off Campbell Road, but when Google Maps said "4.5 miles of unpaved" and others warned WASHBOARD! I changed my mind. I headed to the Quartz Mountain Sno-Park where I have spent a night before. I arrived and on a whim I was curious where the road behind the parking lot went as I've seen vehicles come up it. This is how my plans change every fifteen minutes! The very narrow, but paved road twisted for about fifteen miles to Lofton Reservoir in the Fremont-Winema National Forest. On route a bear ran across the road in front of me!! He was brown, small, and quite sprite.

I really had no idea where I was going, how long the road was, nor what to expect at the end of it. That is the true definition of an adventure! The bear sighting was the bonus! I was thrilled to find something so beautiful out in the middle of the wild and I was so tired after a day of driving, I didn't even care it costs $6.00 a night which is pretty cheap for a campground. I was really happy to find out with my National Park America the Beautiful Pass I get a discount so it's only $3.00 per night. Please note, this is only the third campground I've paid for in two years! I bought two very quiet and peaceful nights. Well, other than the hyperactive, twitchy-tailed rodents harassing me constantly. I'm really getting to hate chipmunks. Or "squishies" as I now call them since I ran over that one last year.

The next day was a scorcher at 87 degrees, but I took advantage of this, handwashed my new wool blanket rinsing it in vinegar to hopefully set the dyes, and hung it to dry between two pine trees. It didn't shrink...yet.

After two days, I headed back to Klamath Falls.