I'm traveling on business for a few days this week, on a whirlwind trip starting in San Diego that takes me to Portland OR, Denver CO, Richmond VA and Washington DC. I caught a 6:20 am flight this morning and slept the entire way, never even felt the plane take off or land. When I arrived in Portland, it was already quite hot (by early afternoon it reached 105 degrees, which is unseasonably warm for Oregon). From the airport, I drove south from the Portland airport down I-5 to Corvallis. It was a scenic drive, beautiful green trees, farms and wildlife aplenty. As I arrived in Corvallis city center I saw a store called Bullfrog Music (see above left). The sign caught my eye, because it had a green frog with a guitar singing into a microphone. I smiled as I envisioned that frog singing. Suddenly, the country music song on the radio sounded like it was that frog singing at me. I was pulled back to reality when I realized I had run out of road, and had to make a "left turn/right turn" decision. I went right, always my standard default when I don't know where I am going. A short while later, I made my way back into open areas, and passed a sign that read: "Blueberry Meadows", which sounded rather charming. It was actually a blueberry patch, so I decided to do a u-turn and quickly check it out. I love blueberries but had never seen them growing. 
I contemplated picking a few, but I was on a tight schedule for work so I just stopped to snap a few photos...
.Above: There blueberry bushes went as far as my eye could see. Mmmmm.
After a busy day doing my work stuff, I made my way back toward Portland to check in the hotel. I was meeting some business colleagues for dinner, but wanted to freshen up before meeting them. Traffic in Portland was a nightmare, and I took a few wrong right turns which put me off course. Fortunately I made it just in time to change clothes. We went to dinner at Salty's Portland,which was situated on the Columbia River and featured a wide selection of fresh seafood.I had the most delicious Wild King Salmon for dinner. After an enjoyable dinner and conversation, I stopped to admire a beautiful sunset over the Columbia River. The boats (see above) were all so peaceful...they were nestled in their slips for the night. It was a good first day of travels.
-Rick Rockhill
10 comments:
Gorgious pics. Thanks for sharing. Sounds like you had quite an adventurous day. I would love to just get off somewhere, even if it was for business. Enjoy the rest of your trip.
I always admire travel by car so I can take in the sights and sounds of the locales, especially when there are specialty shops to patronize such as Bullfrog Music. Love the shot of the river. And here I thought blueberries grew on trees. :-) Isaac Newton wouldn't have liked that. ;-)
Sounds like a lovely trip, especially considering it's business.
Too bad you didn't have time to pick blueberries, though. One of my favorite childhood memories is of picking blueberries early in the morning on my grandparents' Cape Cod property, then putting them on my breakfast cereal. They're so good when they're fresh and you picked them yourself!
"Thanks" for your recent visit to Temporary Trouble Spots. :)
105 in PORTLAND?! Sounds more like Palm Springs. Love the boats/sky pic. Beautiful sky...
Safe travels to you.
I love blueberries...and they are SO good for you too! Can't wait to hear about your next day of travels!
DAMN YOU! (Is it okay to say that to someone you've never met in person??? Hope so.) I can't believe you didn't tell me you were coming. We could have met for dinner......Salty's on the "Rover" (River??) is just minutes from my house. We took a picnice and went to an outdoor concert in the park.....you would have loved it! I still can't believe it. You were within spitting distance and we didn't spit.
Fellow traveler (you by plane/car...me only by car), glad you enjoyed Oregon! This is around the time that it gets hot, but as a kid it used to be "hot" when it was 90 degrees. My best friend lives on the coast and said it was 100 there today...that NEVER happens! Global warming... ;)
We're in OH tonight, will be at our final living destination tomorrow afternoon. Finally...! I'm tired of the car, cats, and cats in the car. :)
Didn't you have "Michigan Rag" running through your head when you saw that frog! I did!!
--snow
Steven- I like exploring by car also....but I hate traffic!!!
Bunny Girl- its been such a fun trip so far...even tho I didn't pick any fresh blueberries!
mmmmm. blueberries! good trip so far...
smiles, bee
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