Anniversary number 7

Not a bad view if you ask me! This is how Zac and I spent our 7th anniversary. And it was one for the books! We had the best time ever. It all started with one of my crazy ideas. So way back in April my dad was up for my birthday party and he had just purchased a dual sport motorcycle. Well that got me to thinking, that looks like fun! I have been into motorcycles for quite some time but it definitely re-sparked my interest. Then a few months later my friend Reza bought a dual sport! They were all around me. So for my crazy idea I thought, wouldn't it be fun to go ride!?

We were able to borrow the KTM from Zacs dad and for me we borrowed a bike from Randy. When I was growing up it was uncle Randy, one of my dads very best friends! They had done some riding together and he mentioned that if I ever wanted to borrow his TTR125 I could. Well I thought this might be the perfect time to take advantage of the offer, so I did.

Our trip was all weather dependent because I did not want to be riding in the pouring rain and I know Washington is known for its rainy weather. Our plan was to drive up Saturday and pick up the bike then head over to our campsite at Panther Creek. Sunday would be a solid day of riding, Monday possibly a little riding and then a drive down to Oregon to stay in a hotel and lessen the drive a bit for Tuesday. 

So Im going to skip the long drive and talk about our first day. We woke up fairly early and cooked an interesting breakfast, lets just say we forgot a few key ingredients (so unlike us) but that was okay because I was a little nervous and I have a hard time eating when I feel nervous. My nerves were kicking in because I had this bike in front of me and I started thinking….you've never ridden a dirt bike before….you did have a street bike but its been probably 5 years since you've ridden one….what if you don't remember?…..what if you get hurt!? My mind started going crazy. We started to pack up all our gear and our lunch for on the road and it was time to hit the road. I straddled my bike and looked at Zac…he said "1 down and 4 up", and off we went! You know that saying, its like riding a bike? Well it was. It all came back to me. And it felt GOOD!

My dear sweet husband thought it would be a good idea to stop here and take a picture! I think this sums things up very nicely. Pavement Ends….and it sure did! After that last little stretch of asphalt you see behind us we had nothing but dirt!  I can't tell you how good it felt to be outside tearing it up on the mountains.  I started off a little slow getting used to the feeling of a dirt bike but I think in no time I was feeling pretty comfortable. Im thankful my husband was willing to go at my speed because I know he could get going a lot faster then me. True love.

Most of this post will be pictures but Ill give as many details as I can. So off we started on the first section of the WABDR ( Washington Back Country Discovery Route) our plan for the day was to find the Guler Ice Cave and check that out. 

The picture to the left was our first view with some elevation. The first part of the ride was just heading up, up, up.  The picture really doesn't do it justice. The greenery, the beauty and the quietness of being up on that mountain was just perfect. Zac and I both agreed that this was our favorite anniversary trip out of all of them.

We did not have GPS on this trip. We went at things old school. A paper map. We were lucky enough to have Randy give us a map to borrow when we picked his bike up and that came in super handy. 

The next photo that you see was another scenic photo stop that we had to take. We just could not have asked for better weather on this trip. It had rained a few days before we arrived which worked out very nicely for us because it kept the dust down on the road. There were still a few puddles and I think I only hit one of them. One section of the WABDR had quite a few pot holes that made it interesting for dodging them. I didn't want to hit one of them to hard and launch myself! You have to be so aware when you are riding a motorcycle and even more so on a dirt trail. If you let your mind wonder or look ay anything else for a second you could end up hitting an area or a corner faster then you'd like.

We made it! Here is Zac and I in front of the Guler Ice Cave! We stopped here for a quick break and to enjoy a nice little picnic lunch. We sat down at a table and enjoyed our lunch and I was thinking I can't believe we have this whole place to ourselves! Then before I knew it a group of motorcycles pulled up to check out the cave. They were there MAYBE 10 minutes before they geared back up and took off and we were alone once again. Once we finished up lunch we headed down to check out the cave. Now this cave is suppose to have ice in it year round and Im sure if we would of headed in a little deeper we would of seen it but….it was so cold down there! I didn't want to stay in there to long even with my long sleeve, sweatshirt and jacket!

So once we were done there we thought it might be fun to check out the natural bridges. I guess the natural bridges were made from lava, and they are just that….natural bridge. So we hopped on the bikes an motored off to our next destination. It was a quick ride. This time of year some of the leaves are starting to change colors and when we went to the natural bridges we were able to see it in all its glory!

No filter needed here!

There you can see me pointing to the bridge behind us.

Before we knew it we were on the road again! Our next stop on our loop was Goose Lake. It was so beautiful. There were a few campsites there and some people taking their small boats off the lake so Im assuming there was some fishing going on. I wanted to bring our rods on this trip but we didn't end up doing it. I think it was for the best though, because we were pretty busy! Sorry for the helmet pictures. It a lot of work taking everything off and on so we have quite a few pictures with the helmets on.

We were thinking about stopping at a waterfall on the way back to camp but instead since our day was coming to an end we thought we would stop in the city of Carson and get some dinner and a drink at the Backwoods Brewery. Although I think starting off on the smaller bike for my first time was a good choice I would never want a bike that small. I had a really hard time keeping up with Zac when we got on the main road! I was 5th gear pinned to try and keep up. Im still very thankful that I had a free bike to ride though! I also learned a lot. Im not very good at kick starting a bike but I do know how to bump start a bike! When I could not get it started Zac taught me that I get the bike to roll down hill with the clutch in I can kick it into 2nd gear and get it to start and boom! Off I went.

We finally got back to camp and cracked open a bottle of wine and got a huge fire going! It was a perfect end to a perfect day! We were pretty tired and ended up going to bed fairly early.  The next morning we woke up and had plans to do some more riding but we were both feeling the ride from the previous day.  We ended up logging about 80 miles and probably 90% of that on dirt. Because of our lack of ingredients for a good breakfast we packed up camp and headed to get some food! We had to leave the campsite anyways because it was closing for the season. Once we finished breakfast I was telling Zac about these waterfalls in Oregon I would LOVE to see. He was down for the adventure so we popped across the Bridge of the Gods over to Oregon and found us some waterfalls!

HorseTail Falls at 176 feet

And Multnomah Falls at 620 feet!

There are many more in the area but we wanted to go check out the dam and fish hatchery. They have a 70 year old Sturgeon named Herman who is 10 feet long! And since we love fishing this is something we HAD to see!

The fish hatchery was just beautiful! It was so much fun to see all the fish and BIG ones! Made me really wish that I had my rod. Zac and I also stopped at the giftshop and got italian cream sodas, they were SO good! It was another perfect day and it was the only the beginning. After we were done at the dam it was back over to Randys house to drop off the bike and then a drive down to Eugene Oregon to have a nice relaxing dinner on the river!

Hubby and I in front of the Bonneville Dam

Some big Rainbow Trout

What a gorgeous place to explore!

Me, Zac and Herman!

We arrived in Eugene around 5:00, check into our hotel and took a shower! The hotel upgraded us to a sweet. So not only did we have a river view but we had a really large room as well! It was awesome! Once we were showered and and cleaned up we headed down to the restaurant at our hotel that was right on the river. It was a warm night and we sat out on the deck and enjoy our dinner. The food was delicious! Needless to say after the last few days we were pooped! And the next day it was already time to drive back home. Best trip ever!