Awoke to a beautiful day in Redding, CA. When Debbie and I were traveling across Iowa, Nebraska, Wyoming and Montana we defined an Adventure as a day filled with rain, cold (40's) crosswinds, and 18 wheelers! Well, today I am changing the definition of Adventure. Adventure on Route 5 in California is sun, hot (108!!), no breeze, thirsty, and oh yes, 18 wheelers! What a day! Until I passed Sacramento the temperature was in the upper 70's From there until the foot of the mountains the temperature fluctuated between 102 and 108. I guess the Lord is preparing me for the real test across the desert from LA to Tuscon. Well, I passed the test today. One day at a time. Sybil left Portland this morning and will be back in Boston by 11:00 p.m. this evening. Her flight was delayed in Honolulu. Time for some supper. I traveled a little over 500 miles today. Am within about 90 miles of LA. Hope to connect with Steven Crowe and then spend the night with long time friends, Ron and Sally Mayo. I am amazed at the breadth and beauty of this wonderful country!

I am meeting relatives that I have not seen in fifteen or twenty years. A great experience! We spent the night at Keith and Cindy Lampi's home. Wonderful visit. I suspect we will be by this way again! Left this morning at 7:10 a.m. with pictures taken and a final kiss from Sybil! A good way to start the day. Traveled route 34 over the coastal range to the Oregon coast. A perfect day, no clouds, just a little fog for affect, and a magnificant ocean. Traveled down route 101 about 100 miles. Time is running short so I made my way back over to interstate 5 and headed south. The oregon shoreline was rugged, powerful and accessible! A great trip. Was introduced to heat as I entered California. By the time I stopped at 5:40 p.m. the temperature was 105 in Redding where I finally stopped. Traveled 540 miles today. Hope to get near Los Angeles by tomorrow evening. Tomorrow will be a long day (about another 500+ day!) I have not grown weary of riding the mc. In fact, it seems to energize me when I get on it in the morning. Hope to see Stephen Crowe and Ron Mayo on Wednesday in LA. Well that's all for now. Thanks for praying. Have had no close calls.

Today is Sunday evening, June 28th. Had a lovely visit with Ellie my sister and her family yesterday. Had a cookout with John and Crystal and family. Spent the afternoon with them. It's always an experience to visit Ellie and Jonathan. They have about 175 chickens, two cows, four goats and a couple of dogs. This morning we left for Newberg to drop off the Sherwood's car (Thank you, Dave and Carol!) Proceeded down 99W to Corvallis where we had the privilege of visiting with Keith and Cindy Lampi (Jeanne's son and wife). A lovely family with a great sense of humor and friendship. Talked with Steve Crowe tonight. (We are getting together on July 8 in Durango, Colorado.) Thank you, Noah, for giving me the telephone number of Mike Thedford. I will try to connect with Mike in Phoenix next Thursday. Will be on route 101 down the coast of Oregon tomorrow early. I hope to make it to northern California by tomorrow night. Plan now to be near Los Angeles by Tuesday evening. Means two long days. We'll see! Thanks for keeping in touch.

I am writing this note from the side of Mount Hood in a place called Government Camp. My cousin Jeanne has lived here for over 30 years. I arrived at Dave and Carol Sherwood's home Monday evening after traveling down through the Columbia River Gorge. An extraordinary trip of increasing beauty as I traveled from Pasco to Portland. Wind, the growing visual beauty of Mt Hood as I got closer, the winding road of route 14. Had a wonderful visit with David Monday evening. We picked up Sybil and Carol at the airpot on Tuesday afternoon. Sybil flew in from Boston. Carol from Denver. Had a wonderful evening of conversation and catching up on news. Wednesday was a day of rest and continued conversation. They have lovely home with a friendly dog (Lucy). Left Thursday morning for a long awaited visit with my cousin Jeanne who lives in Government Camp on the side of Mount Hood (4300 feet). Arrived in clouds which in the afternoon gave way to an extraordinary up close view of Mt. Hood! Jeanne has a beautiful home that is used for retreats. She has a group of 10 coming in tomorrow evening. We spent the afternnoon at Timberline lodge above the clouds. More beautiful than I could possibly describe. People skiing, we frolicked in the snow, had supper there and just were dazzled by the beauty! Sybil was finally able to see the summit of a mountain I and some friends had climbd back in 1979. Jeanne took us on a whirlwind tour of some magnificent scenery in the Mt. Hood National forest. Her own backyard. Jeanne's lifestyle is a story in itself! If interested I will share it with you personally when this extraordinary trip is over. Woke up this morning to temperatures in the upper 30's. Could walk out the door to a skiing area one block down the street. Many of you who are skiers would be in skier heaven if you were here. The US olympic team uses Mt. Hood for training in the summer. Well, needless to say I could go on! What a joy to be here with my cousin. This afternoon Sybil and I leave to spend a few days with my sister and her husband in Vancouver. Am looking for to visiting with Elinor and Jonathan as I have not seen them for several years. On the way we will go through Hood River, down the gorge and stop at Multnomah Falls. We will head down the coast and visit with Keith (Jeanne's son) in Corvallis on Sunday. Monday morning I will be gin my trek south along route 101 the Oregon coast. Hope to be in Los Angeles by Wednesday or Thursday. Thanks for taking time to read this rather extended note. Please continue to pray.

Only the second day since leaving Boston did I travel without rain. A beautiful morning in Pasco, Washington. I have been looking forward to this day for several months. Today's the day I travel down through the Columbia River Gorge to Portland, OR. I took route 14 (the road less traveled) on the Washington side of the river. It began in the arid region of the eastern shoulder of the Cascade Mountains. The river was nothing more than a lake. In time the sides of the lake grew higher, and it turned into a broad river. As I traveled down through the gorge (a trip of about 190 miles) I discovered that the gorge was really a wind tunnel. I fought a strong head wind most of the way to Portland. What really caught my eye was Mount Hood. I had climbed it in 1979 and had only seen it once since then. It was magnificent. Snow almost down to the bottom glistening in the sunshine. Wind surfing was big. Many people particularly around the Mt. Hood crossing were out there with a parachute like canopy pulling them along. Arrived at Dave Sherwood's home around 3:30. Went out for supper, washed the mc, took a walk and am going to bed.

I will not be traveling on down the Oregon coast until Monday morning. Will be visiting my sister, Elinor and her husband Jonathan in Vancouver, WA. Will also be spending a day and night with my cousin, Jeanne in Government Camp on the side of Mount Hood. Sybil will be flying in tomorrow afternoon to spend a week here with me. The Lord has been so good in providing safe travel over more than 4100 miles. I am looking forward to a time of rest with Sybil, friends and relatives. I'll be on line again next week.