Day 9, state 10

The first picture is our hotel room for the night. Yes that is a shower and sink in a bedroom! You can do almost everything in one room! We are spending the night in The Dalles in Oregon, a short distance from the end of the trail which we will reach tomorrow! It seems like months have gone by since we left this real world and traveled back to pioneer time. We are one day from the end of the trail and a few days until I am home and can see Anthony! He's very excited too.

This morning we woke up in Pendleton, Oregon. We had a pretty exact schedule for the day, but as things usually do, it turned out different and better than we planned! We left Pendleton around 9:30 knowing we were headed to a cidery (like a winery but they make cider!) that opened at 11. What do you do with an extra hour to kill? We spotted a roadside sign saying a small town was having a Pioneer day parade starting at 10, perfect timing! So we sat down on a sidewalk, drank our coffee and gathered a ridiculous amount of candy! Small towns are sure generous with their candy!

We continued on to the cidery called Blue Mountain Cider. I've never been to a cidery but it was fantastic! There were about 8 different kinds and they were all delicious! Oh how I love free samples! Next, we headed off to the Whitman Mission, a slightly more depressing stop.

The Whitman mission was founded by Narsissa Whitman and her husband and she is the first known white female to come on the Oregon trail. It was founded to convert the Native American tribes. As more and more settlers came, so did disease. Lots of native Americans died and they began to suspect that the Whitmans were poisoning them so they rebelled and killed the Whiteman and a few others. That's the short version but they basic idea is there. We stood on the spot where Narsissa died and it was a good reminder of the conflicts between Native Americans and settlers.

We left the mission and ate at a Thai restaurant in Walla Walla. Super good! Claire ordered an avocado fried rice dish that was amazing! Who knew that avocados would be good warm?!?!

We continued on and crossed through Pendleton again and saw more ruts and swails. We hiked a seemingly endless path to a rut where tumbleweeds gather (picture below) it was a bizarre sight. Today we finished listening to the Da Vinci Code and it was a sad moment to realize we would no longer have it to look forward to! My those books on tape really make the time fly!

We drove what felt like forever through a canyon along the Columbia river. I did not like this portion because the high cliffs on both sides made me feel claustrophobic. We stopped at a state park (picture below) and we're tempted to camp because the hot dogs and campfires smelled so good! But alas, we continued on. We reached the Dalles tonight around 7ish and scrambled to find a room, which is why were in this little gem! But, it was cheap and did not get horrifying reviews on Google. So we walked around town, got a delicious milkshake and retired to crap tv in the room.

Tomorrow we face a decision that the pioneers faced, continue north along the Columbia it head south to sweep around mount hood! Which way will we go? Do we pay to float our wagons floated down the river or do we brave the mountain pass?!?! Stay tuned to find out! Goodnight all!