Coast to coast: Page 1

Coast to coast:

From Whitefish to Portland and beyond

Whitefish, MT

On August 16, 2006, the sun was shining in Whitefish, Mont. After playing a final round of Frisbee Golf in the Stillwater State Forest and watching Dick Cheney's motorcade fly by on his visit to the town, I finished packing up the car and headed on my trip across the country. I took the above picture a few days before leaving Whitefish. This boat was docked right next to a house being built off Highway 40 in town. It made me wonder if a construction worker was going to clock out and hit the open water. The gateway to Glacier National Park is located in the background.

Small lake near Plains, MT

The first day of travel took me to Spokane, Wash., to stay with Paul, Daisy and Zoe. On the way, I passed this beautiful lake off of Hwy. 28 between Elmo and Plains. The panoramic scenery of Montana is certainly something I miss. And I really missed it during the parts of my trip that took me through high-desert, flat farmland and lots of cornfields.

Lookout Pass, Idaho/Montana border

The sun started to set when I crossed the Montana/Idaho border. The fading light was shining through the clouds, telling me to drive faster! I arrived in Spokane about 9 p.m. and hit the road again for Portland around 1 p.m. the next day. I spent the morning having a nice breakfast and chatting with my hosts.

Portland, OR

I arrived in Portland around 4 p.m. the next day and managed to find my way to Kyle's work. He still had to put in some more time, so I found a coffee shop and watched the crowds file by. It was very liberating to be in a big city where very few people knew me. That feeling of being anonymous is nice sometimes, and I quickly adjusted to the different lifestyle. After Kyle got off work, we went to a nice sushi place to eat fish and drink some saki. He went back to work for a little bit after dinner, so I went back to his place and waited for him. I was tired after the drive and felt like chilling.

Kyle and Mia by the Willamette River in Portland, OR

Kyle and Melissa adopted this cute puppy a little while before I arrived in Portland. Her name is Mia and she's a Golden Retriever and Chow mix. We took her to this park on the outskirts of Portland so she could play in the water, which she happily did. Melissa was in California during most of my visit to Portland, which was a bummer, but she did come back a few days before I left. It was great catching up with them.

Mia

Oh, little Mia is so cute. Here she is after swimming in the river.