Day 87, Monday
Portland OR to Newport OR
Well I didn’t get to see much of Portland but it was time to hit the road again. I headed for the coast to take 101 down to SF. It was 104 in the valley outside of Portland. But as soon as I got into the mountains to get to the coast the temp had dropped 30 to 40 degrees Farenheit! I had to stop to put on the cold weather gear again. Soon there was fog every where. Since I left in the afternoon I got only as far as Newport.
Dinner was at some fancy popular place overlooking the foggy pacific. The food was not memorable. I ate at the bar and had a pleasant time chatting with the folks on either side of me. The rest of the night was spent at a Bar in a Mexican restaurant next to my cheapo motel. That’s where I met Rich, a colorful Vietnam vet around my dad’s age. He told stories about hitchhiking around the for 6 months after getting back from Vietnam. He was really impressed with me taking my trip and kept saying how glad he was to meet me. Then the conversation turned to South East Asia. During the war Rich had been to Thailand and Loas as well as Vietname of course. He told of a girl he fell in love with over there but had to leave to come back to the US. He became very sad and nostalgic and left the bar with teary eyes. The bartender said he never saw Rich upset like that before.
Photos: http://www.flickr.com/photos/knappn/sets/72157602087617143/
