Ho, get photos this time!!  Keep in mind that while all this was going on, I was coughing like crazy, and was so tired all the time. So this road trip helped to take my mind off how junk I was feeling. The doctor told me it was one of the nastiest viruses to come around, and I believed it.

The first photo that Suzette sent on their first day out was near the turnoff to Goldendale, Washington. There was a blade being replaced on one of the wind turbines. So neat to see this! We’ve been by all those turbines on our way to Montana, but never got to see a blade being replaced.

And in case you’re wondering, no, I don’t remember everywhere that these photos were taken! I’ve got all our texts to refer to!  Good thing, because I’m just recovering from virus-brain.

This next photo was taken near Pendleton, where they were stopping for the night.

I asked Suzette which route they’d be taking, and she told me “east on I-84 to Salt Lake, then I-80 through Wyoming, then south on I-25” to their destination. And of course, I-84 included going through Idaho. They’d be passing fairly close to Twin Falls, where we used to live.

The next day, this was Suzette’s first shot as they were leaving Pendleton. I was so grateful that they were experiencing good weather and dry roads.

But uh-oh. Just past La Grande, Oregon, they ran into this: blowing snow, which made driving more difficult. The video Suzette sent isn’t long, but it shows how fast things can change in the mountains.  She said it was unnerving because it was like going through a blizzard.

They made it safely over the Blue Mountains to Baker City; I told Suzette about a really wonderful quilt shop there in town, but they didn’t have time to stop. Suzette’s a wonderful quilter and I hope she’ll be able to go there at some point. Baker City is a really neat town; I wrote about our adventures there in this post.

Suzette and Owen were now heading up the next pass.

The roads were still looking really clear. They were towing their car behind the truck, so Owen really had to keep an eye on road conditions.

I was thoroughly enjoying this road trip. Because Suzette and I were texting so much, it was almost like we were in the truck together for realz.

Okay, so I knew that they’d be in Idaho before too long, so decided to try and catch them on either an Ontario, Oregon, webcam, or maybe a Boise or Meridian one. Suzette said she’d let me know when they got close. By this time, I’d checked online for all the webcams along their route. First I tried an Ontario one. That was a bust.  It began snowing at our place about this time, which was 2:34 pm on New Year’s Day. And it was super super cold.

And they were in Idaho. The Snake River was frozen.

Suzette wrote that it was weird to see that much snow. If they’d waited two weeks, they could’ve seen all that we have here! As I write this, we are stuck at home with a good 6″ of frozen snow on the ground, and have been this way since last Tuesday! This is the first real snow we’ve seen in several years.

I began watching the Caldwell, Idaho, webcam. But it didn’t update very often at all.  I saw where they’d stopped to get gas at the Flying J, but missed them there, too.  The webcam only seemed to update every fifteen minutes! Suzette kept giving me milepost numbers: 29…32…37…39…41…I “drove” up ahead of them, waiting for them to go by, but was disappointed to miss them yet again. Suzette waved at milepost 45. LOL. I didn’t see her.

She’s a great multi-tasker! She talked to Owen, texted me, took photos for me, and did some knitting, all at the same time. Her shawl’s gonna be gorgeous; she’s knitting it with her handspun. I told her I haven’t yet learned how to knit and drive at the same time. Ha!

K’den. This is a good place to take a break. More next time!