We awoke early to grey skies and pouring rain. We left amid grey skies and pouring rain. We traveled through mountains, grey skies and pouring rain. There was a point where the clouds were so low they laced through the tall pines on the mountain sides like angel hair between the tiny forest in the Christmas scene on a fireplace mantel. It was beautiful.

We drove through the center of Portland and around another set of mountains before the rain started to subside. We drove along the Columbia River and stopped for a quick bite at noon in Hood River, Oregon. Then it was right back to driving – this time turning south in search of Madras and the Erickson Aviation Museum. Along the way, the sun came out, the workers resurfacing the road held up traffic for several miles, and the wild flowers blanketed the hillsides. Central Oregon is lovely.

At 3:00, exactly as predicted by my trusty driver, we pulled up to the Erickson Air Museum. I was so excited to see one more B-17 from the short list of surviving planes when I learned that the plane, Madras Maiden, was out of town on tour. What? We drove all this way and she’s GONE? I’ll be checking more closely next time. We did see these smart women, however, who were dressed to welcome us to the museum.

We elected to move on and return to the museum another time when the object of our interest was home. But driving away, we saw this lovely monument to the men and women of the 8th Air Force.

Back in the car, we continued on to find our way to our hotel in Bend, OR. It seemed like a long day of driving. But, we did start to listen to Patterson’s “Along Came a Spider” which helped the time pass, especially during the extended period we were driving about two miles an hour following road resurfacing equipment.

Bend was a welcome sight, although there was threatening rain. We checked into the hotel. We caught up on the news and Mr. Comey’s testimony. The rain fell and passed and by the time we stepped out, the sun was shinning.

We ate at a local spot just across the parking lot and full and satisfied, we decided to tuck in for the night. Tomorrow, on to the John Day Fossil Beds.