Previous Page  Jay's Home Page  Next Page

 

Monday, 06/16/03; Medford, Oregon        

 

California, here we come!

 

That’s right! We are on the border here in Medford. We are not an hour away! Tomorrow we will cross our last state border as we make our way to Sacramento for the night. We plan to stay two nights in the Sacramento area. This will put us into the Santa Clarita and San Fernando Valleys on Friday PM. (We’ll call the families and let you know more precisely when.)

 

The trip was uneventful today, except for a traffic tie-up for construction. We were in line for at least a half-hour inching along. About another half-hour and we were at a beautiful rest stop with plenty of picnic tables. We found a very secluded one among the pine trees and had a nice leisurely lunch. While here, we decided to stop a bit short of our goal, Ashland, and seek a place in Medford. There were more less expensive places in Medford than in Ashland. This is probably due to Ashland’s popularity because of the plays they put on there year round.

 

The drive through the Willamette Valley was a bit boring because the road was so straight and flat. That didn’t last too long before we were up and down and around the hills at its southern end. None of the climbs were very long, as the elevation of the highest pass was less than 2,000 feet. The mountain roads ran through thick forests of beautiful pine trees. There was lots of evidence of the timber industry here – log trucks, saw mills with large piles of sawdust and lots of mountainsides that had been clear-cut in bygone years. Their new growth of timber is just now taking hold.

 

Oregon rest stop picnic; Oregon trees.

 

We promised you some tour statistics. If these bore you, then you are invited to skip them. We hope that you will realize that these numbers are representative of the Smith’s figures. There has been no attempt to make a combined set. These are for the 68^th day, Saturday June 14^th.

    Total Miles Driven: 11,535 miles

    Average Miles per (active) Day: 206 miles

        (We have driven 61 days and were “inactive” for 17 days.)

    Average hours driving per Day: 5.23 hours

        (includes gas and lunch stops and some sightseeing)

    Total drive time: 356 hours

    Average MPH: 32.43 (counting stops)

    Total gasoline used: 639 gallons

    Total spent for gasoline: $981

    Average price per gallon: $1.563 (regular)

    Average Miles per Gallon: 18.06

    Average cost per mile for gasoline: $0.067

    Average cost of lodging per day: $45.92

    Average cost of food per day: $31.76

    Average “Other” costs per day: $22.93

    Average cost for car per day: $7.69 (not including gasoline)

    Average total cost per day: $123.70

 

We have long since left the land of so called “cheap” gasoline and it is getting more expensive as we near our home state. Here in Oregon, we are confronted with a law that prohibits anyone but a “qualified” attendant from dispensing gasoline into the car. Most of the “qualified” attendants don’t know which end of a Model A Ford to put the gas in, let alone how to “fill ‘er up!” Some stations have looked the other way as we “help” them with our old cars. Others are adamant about it and we must tutor them in the art. This must be painful for the many Model A owners up here in Oregon. For those of you not familiar with the gasoline tank on the Model A, it is just in front of the windshield and if not careful, gasoline can easily be spilled on the hood and all over the car. To get the tank full takes lots of patience, if not skill. The more you try to fill the tank, the higher the probability that the tank will over flow onto the hood.

 

Dinner is over. We tried to walk to a nearby restaurant that was recommended by the motel desk clerk, but found it was closed up and was for sale! Therefore, we mounted our trusty cars and drove across I-5 to a restaurant and afterward got gas – the last in Oregon!

 

So, we bid you good night!

 

The Revived Four

Previous Page  Jay's Home Page  Next Page