gengiant said:
Catching up with the gang a couple of days into the trip may be the way to go for us, giving us a chance to leave Sacramento either Friday after work or Saturday eeeeeeeaaaarly in the morning. The Friday pm option might be best, getting us maybe 4-5 hours closer right off the bat. We'll see as we get closer to next summer how this will all pan out, which group we'll be going with, and so on. To date, this group (and Todd) is certainly doing a great job of planning and putting this all together! :smt038
For you Sacramento guys, I have a comment on travel. I have made the trip up and down I5 from Portland to Paradise many times, and it is the same trip you have in the Oregon section. Now I make the trip from eastern OR, but still use I5 sometimes. If you are travelling to make miles, then you need an easy stop close to the freeway. If you are of a mind to use a free stop, then Wal-Mart is traveller friendly. They like to have you stay in their lots overnight, and you will normally have security lights and the company of a few others staying overnight.
RV parks don't like them doing this, as it takes away some of their business. If you just pick a town halfway up I5 in Oregon, you may well end up in a town that has passed a law that you cannot stay in a business parking lot overnight. So just picking a WalMart and heading for it is not a good idea there.
I would not be writing this if I did not have a solution. The place I have found works well is the Wal Mart in Cottage Grove. It is just a mile or two off the freeway on the east side. Lots of room in the lot, and they don't mind you staying.
It is 450 miles from Sac, a long pull for the evening, but otherwise fine. It puts you within 380 miles of Anacortes. I am farther than that from Anacortes, and I can leave here at 8 AM and be in Anacortes in time to catch the lift, put the boat in the water, and be at Friday Harbor by evening. So I am sure you could to the same from Cottage Grove.
For Spokane guys, don't make the mistake I made. I stopped to eat lunch in the boat at the top of Snoqualmie Pass, by the old log visitor center that has been there for decades. Unfortunately, I pulled up to the right of the building, where there was a large, clear, graveled lot. But in turning the trailer around in the gravel, I picked up a nail that wounded a tire, so I arrived at Anacortes needing a new tire. Better to keep the rig on the pavement if you stop at the top of the pass. There is plenty of space to park along the road, especially if you turn the rig around and point east. Then there is a dedicated long parking strip at the side of the road for trucks and trailers. It is a beautiful place to stop and eat, just don't ask for trouble like I did. :smt018
