Jerry and Jimmy Made It To SEASIDE!!!! 162 Miles on their Bicycles!

They left at 5:00am on Thursday.... battled the heat (94 de grees) that first day!  Decided to stop in South Bend for the night and re-energize!  Was a great plan cuz the rest of the journey went well for them!  Joe got a pic of them on the prom.... but has not sent the photo yet... darn... don't have the proof!

Since Halley is with us, we rented a mini-van and a handicap scooter.  So Friday found me packing for Jerry and I, gathering all of Oliver's stuff up (cuz he's coming along too), and, much to my dismay, having to pack up the whole shebang! No easy chore! And, to be honest, I got a bit grumbly...my bad...  I wanted to leave by 11... got out of the driveway around 12:15, hit the bank and Post Office (well, I didn't hit them, I went to them) and then, Halley wanted Tijuana Taco for lunch, so we ate there before we hit the road... Since we had Oliver, we needed to eat our meals outdoors in the 85 degree heat.  Who invited Red shade umbrella's...?  Man, they just emphasize the heat!

Anyway, got that done... hit the road to start the freeway journey!  Oh wait, the freeway is just a parking lot... This was gonna be long trip!  Fortunately, once we got off I-5 and merged onto US 101 for the journey to the coast, it improved immensely!

We got to our Vacation Rental... Jerry had rested a bit, visited with Joe and Rita, and was able to get us checked in!  Hugged hello and then he emptied the car!!!!

We went for dinner before Jillian and Steve arrived at Big Foot's!  Thank you Halley for taking our pic!!! Ya done good!  Also, it was so nice to be waited on and to enjoy a cocktail!  Got home and within the hour Steve and Jilli arrived... Oliver was just a bit excited!!!!!

Oliver was a bit excited to see Jilli and Steve!

Love that tail a wagging!

Leg Two... Covered Bridges and a Stop to Visit Dale & Keri

Oregon is known for it's many covered bridges.  We thought we would check out a couple.  Now, how can I say this nicely?  We were so disappointed... why?  Because the bridges we checked out all have been refurbished in the last 20 years... and, one, the Centennial Bridge in Cottage Grove, was built as a mini-reproduction to celebrate the centennial of the town I guess.  

As I think about it, I'm sure that the bridges would need to be kept up and the age of them probably truly would make them dangerous, so they need to be refurbished... I guess, now that we know that, we won't be a disappointed... Still, we did get some Bridge Pictures!

Jerry has family in Eugene, Oregon, so we stopped and visited Dale and his daughter Keri.  Dale had been in the hospital but is now back at his home... but still not 100%.  Dale looks way better than the pics.  Dale was stooping so all of us would be in the picture.  He really doesn't walk around stooped!

The rest of the trip home from that point on was long as we did a bypass through the town of Allyn... checking out the beach house and the new fireplace... awesome!!!!

The old RailRoad Bridge...

Since Jerry had that blod clot in January (it's all gone now), he wears compression stockings to keep it from happening again... He loves the dapper look with his shorts!!!!  so do I!!!

 Love my gobble neck... it takes guts to post pics like that... but, hey, that's what I look like... DAMN... call that plastic surgeon!

 Yup, the railroad bridge is brand new.... but built like the old one!  it's TALL!

 This is the replica one... disappointed we were...

 The pic is blurry, it's not your eyes... I guess the camera was disapponted in this bridge too!

 This one was further out... it's next to the road... and actually, had the flavor of what it really looked like.  

 Dale was using the walker to get around ... alrighty kids, lets take a pic,.. get ready...

 There.. now you have Jean in the pic...

 And... tada... the fireplace...

Return Trip Home.... Leg One... US 101N

Made the decision to go the longer route to Grants Pass... Glad we did... Peeked at the Giant Redwoods and then the Pacific Ocean... Had a great lunch (which ended up another breakfast for us cuz the menu looked so good) at Willets... 

Oh... forgot to show what our fabulous chef prepared the night before.... yup some New York Steaks BBQ'd... starting off with a Coconut Curried Cheese Ball (it's in Book 2)... Nummy, Nummy, Nummy!  

Tomorrow we head to Eugene to meet up with Dale Bruegger (family relative) and Keri for lunch before we get back on the road for Fircrest!

My Special Wine glass from Julie... cuz of the Diva I am!!!

 Yes, I do eat beef....

 Good bye sweet cottage... you took good care of us!

 Isn't this a great road to start your trip with... quiet and peaceful... even saw some deer...

Can One Ever Have Too Much Wine????

Oh My!  Maybe?  No, I guess not, but we sure thought we were the most fun couples to be around!  Okay, maybe we weren't that bad... but as the wine flowed, we enjoyed ourselves more and more!  Fortunately, there was enough time between wineries, we were able to compose ourselves and start anew!

The first winery was on the Hillside... reminded us so of the Italian Vineyards.  Petroni was the Vineyard... they have a wine cave or perhaps it should be a wine cavern!!! It was huge and so peaceful inside.  This cave was man made under one of the hillsides.  The pictures don't do it justice, but you get the feeling.  We ending up purchasing wine at each place.  

The next winery we visited specialized in a Brut du Noir bubbly... Robert Hunter Winery.  The grounds we spectacular... we spent time touring the gardens before the tasting even began.  We were then served a gourmet lunch, next to the vineyards overlooking the hillside.  Pinch us please, what did we do to deserve this!

Our last stop was at the Glenlyon Vineyard... which is where our cottage is located.  We got to meet Squire and see how their wine is produced...  and wow... he does EVERYTHING!  After touring the Wine Barn where the wine is made, we went up to his home and actually had our tasting out on their patio... their extended patio!!!  on the hilltop... views, views, views!  We are now members of the "Clan", their wine club.  This trip has been was too busy and way too fast.... one needs more than three nights!

Petroni Vineyards

This Cave went on and on! 

Robert Hunter Vineyard

GlenLyon Vineyard!

Squire Fiddle and his wife Suzy own and operate this vineyard.  You may have seen Squire's face... He was Ronald MacDonald for many years... and the Toyota man for 30 years.

Anyway... his second career finds him as a vintner and an awesome community enthusiast!  Suzy too!  We enjoyed our visit and our wine!

 Jens carrying their half case of wine back down to our cottage after a great afternoon!