Day 67

We got up this morning and headed straight into town, eager to check things out and hit a few music shops. We got the Tom in and walked up 1st Avenue a bit, past Pioneer Square and Occidental Square. I would have liked to get a pic of the totem polls at Occidental but there were homeless dudes everywhere so we kept moving. We found a little cafe on Cherry Street called (surprisingly) Cherry Street Cafe and had a Johnny and a drink.

We continued walking along First Avenue, passing the Seattle Art Museum before making a links and heading down to the pier. We went through Harbor Steps and took in all of the art. And the pigs.











The Blue Angels are in town for the weekend and we got to see them warming up with several fly-bys along the pier.





We walked for about 45 minutes and eventually made our way to Big Dawg Records. We were looking for Easy Street but decided this would suffice for the meantime.



A bit of a browse led to a few purchases for each of us but we didn't go too mad.

After leaving Big Dawg, we turned right around the corner. Lo and behold there was Easy Street!





A bit of a frenzy followed which saw CDs, T-shirts and more CDs purchased. I also raided the counter for loads of cool stickers and flyers.

We were a bit knackered and wanted a rest from all of the shopping so we went into the Seattle Center to have a look at the Space Needle.

The Seattle Center is a 74 acre fairground and entertainment center. It was used by the Century 21 Exposition in 1962 after the Space Needle was built. The exposition was a World's Fair attended by over ten million people. Now the Center contains the Space Needle, the Pacific Science Center, the Experience Music Project and a fairground.

The Space Needle is a major landmark of the Pacific Northwest and the famous symbol of Seattle. It is 605 feet high and weighs almost 10,000 tons. It can withstand winds of 200 miles per hour and (theoretically) earthquakes of a 9.5 magnitude. The design came about as a compromise between the two best ideas for the 1962 World's Fair. One was to have a giant balloon tethered to the ground. The other was to build a giant flying saucer. The structure was planned and now contains a restaurant and observation deck.











Next, it was back down 5th Avenue to the corner of Roy where we found Silver Platters. The only music shop that can truly send your credit card into the red zone.



Now, I'm trying to remain calm even as I write this. What a shop! Hands down, the best selection of second hand CDs that I have ever seen. Anywhere. The two of us looked and looked. And we bought and bought. I shudder to think of the beating that my credit card took today. I think it is going to start shaking in fear every time that I open my wallet now. But we got some quality bargains. Most of the stuff that I bought only cost between three and seven dollars. Ya
canty go wrong!











Leaving the holy mecca of used CDs, we walked back up towards Seattle Center and decided it was time to eat. Revolution looked like a good spot for a burger and a beer. And it was. They were both great.











A quick monorail ride had us back in the center of town and we got a Tom back to Eastlake Inn to dump all of our new music and freshen up.

Yes sir, there's nothing on earth like a genuine, bona fide, electrified, six-car monorail!

Another Tom back into town and we were in Belltown - one of the neighborhoods that nurtured the growth of grunge in the 90s. We ducked into The Crocodile Cafe where Bishop Allen was playing but it was an all ages show and we didn't feel like paying in. There was also no beer being served and we were too thirsty to be messing around.

We strolled down 2nd Avenue and found Karma - a great little spot with a DJ who was playing quality house music. Not what you would expect to hear in Seattle. We stayed for a couple of drinks and then decided to move on. I could have happily settled in but Paulo was looking a bit edgy. He had that 'I need to hear some loud, rock music' look in his eyes.

Down the street to another small place called Viceroy, where we heard the Beastie Boys playing inside. But upon a closer look, the sound was crap and the DJ was playing off a laptop that was connected to a pair of decks. He was spinning one of the decks around and around while looking totally bored out of his melon. Move it on...

We walked all the way down 2nd Avenue and then down to 1st and there was nothing going on. Just hip hop music and posh upscale bars that had massive queues at the doors to get in. What happened to the Rock scene?

We ducked into the Virginia Inn for a beer and to check out what was going on. Again nothing! We asked the barman where we could try and when he told us 2nd Avenue we said we had already been. He suggested a place called Shorty's.

So up to Shorty's we went. It definitely wasn't posh and it was kinda rock oriented. Sort of. The staff were brutal. Each of them were trying to be more ugly and more rude than the other. Total indifference toward everything and everyone.

The interior was dingy with some clown paraphernalia. In the back were pinball machines and pool tables. And the beer was crap as well - Pabst Blue Ribbon on tap. Horrible. Paulo kept drinking it but I had to switch to bottles. There were also hot dogs. Dodgy ones. Paulo was eyeing them up but restrained himself in the end. I told him it was for the best. We stayed until closing time and then caught a taxi back to the Eastlake where we crashed straight away.

Day 66

I got up and went for another 45 min(ish) run around Yakima. I'm still feeling good and going quite well (for a change).

We packed up and went down the road to Mel's Diner for breakie. Mel's is the local greasy spoon and seems to attract a very large amount of people that own classic cars and motorcycles. I'm not sure how or why these people spend there days hanging out in Mel's instead of working but fair play to them. I went for the usual, heart-clogging, cholesterol-raising, mega-calorie big breakfast.

After breakie, we decided to go to Wal-Mart as I needed some supplies. And Paulo just can't resist a Wal-Mart when he sees one. He may change his mind when they eventually take over Ireland. I got my provisions and a few CDs to boot as you can't pass up some of the bargains on offer. I bought a copy of the new Doors album 'Live In Boston Arena 1970' for only 24 bucks. I convinced Paulo to buy a Led Zeppelin greatest hits because it was two CDs and only eight or
nine dollars. It's incredible that he has spent 33 years without buying or owning a Zep CD but don't worry, I think I have set him straight.

We headed further west on 84 to Seattle. Washington is called the Evergreen state and it's easy to see why - there are trees everywhere. It was another scenic drive and we hit Seattle fairly early. We got on to 5N and found our digs (Eastlake Inn) pretty easily. We checked in, went down the street to Pazzo's for a panini and then cleaned up and went straight into town.



Paulo had sorted tickets for the Mariners - Sox game and he was fired up at the chance to see Boston play again. We got on a bus just down the road from where we were staying and got stuck in one of the worst traffic jams I have ever seen. We were sitting towards the back and there were a good few froots about - one guy talking and laughing to himself, another guy talking to whoever made eye contact with him and the bus driver as well. She was a froot as well because she was fascinated with a double decker bus next to us. She even got off our bus at one stage (the froots yelled: 'the driver left the bus!') to check out the 'DD' bus. She was wearing a pair of radio headphones (which may or may not have been turned on) and was driving so badly that the froots in the back were getting edgier by the minute. We eventually made it to our stop on 2nd Avenue and got off. Amazingly, none of them tried to start a conversation with Paulo. It must have been because he kept his head down and eyes shut the entire journey.

We walked over to Safeco Field and into a massive queue at the will call section (as usual). Thirty minutes later, tickets in hand, we went in and found our seats. The game had already started but we didn't mind (too much). As soon as we settled in Paulo started cheering his proverbials off, especially when Youk came to the plate. Some dickhead behind us was taunting Paulo but after the Sox scored a couple of runs he wasn't so chirpy anymore. We waited until the 5th inning before we bought any beers or food and then got stuck in.













Unfortunately, the Sox lost even though Paulo shouted at them the entire game. He told me that he had spoke to Papi before the game and everything was sorted but they didn't play like that was the case.

We left Safeco and walked back towards town, stopping in Elysian Fields for a beer. They have their own microbrew and I was looking forward to some local quality. Again, disappointment. The microbrews over here are just not up to scratch. We both tried a couple of different ones but we just couldn't settle in.

We left the bar and couldn't find anywhere else that we wanted to check out so we hailed a cab and went back to Eastlake. We walked down to Pazzo's again for a night cap and a pizza. It was busy(ish) but didn't have the best atmos or at least the atmos we were looking for. The pizza was good though.

In an effort to save some energy for the rest of the weekend, we went back to the gaff fairly early and hit the scratcher.

Day 65

After a great kip, I got up and went for a 45 minute run. I felt good and it wasn't unbelievably hot at 9am so I was able to stretch the legs a bit.

I made it back to the DD Inn for some breakie and then after a couple of paddies, we packed up and set off on our way back on to 84W towards Washington.

We drove until Yakima and checked in there for the night. It was still quite early so we chilled out in the room for a bit.

Around 6:00 it was time to start moving. We gussied up and walked into town for a bite to eat. Things were quiet enough for a Thursday but we found a spot called Sports Bar that seemed decent enough. There is a big hunter on top of the entrance that turns from side to side and shoots neon bullets out of his rifle at night time.

We got seats at the bar, watched some baseball on tele and sampled the local brews. I was drinking some sort of amber beer that wasn't that great. I switched a few times but just couldn't find a nice one. Paulo settled in to some sort of lager beer. I had a chicken sambo to eat that was great while Paulo went for the 'full monty' - meat, potatoes and veg. He was delighted.

There was a guy singing and playing acoustic guitar on stage in the main room but for some reason the gig was over by 9:30. He sounded OK but the laddies seemed to love him - we heard a few shouting at him to take off his trousers. We didn't know it was that kind of bar and decided that maybe the hunter outside wasn't firing bullets...

We had a few beers and left after the baseball game was over. A DJ had started playing but he was crap. Really. He kicked off with 'Take Me Out', showing a bit of promise but then he just started playing loads of bad danced up versions of decent rock songs. I hate the way producers butcher and bastardise decent songs just to try to get a few peeps on the dance floor.

We walked back to the hotel and crashed from our big night out.

Day 64

Today was the beginning of our last month on the road and it bummed me out. I woke up late but made it downstairs just in time for breakfast. We got a phone call from Dollar to say that the new (or should I say next) car wouldn't arrive until about 3pm. I had a quick word with the manager of the hotel and she agreed to let us stay in the room for an extra two hours after check out. We got ready, collected ourselves and checked out.

We went to Jamba Juice for a smoothie, then Chipotle for lunch and then I went to Starbucks for an espresso. I insulted the girl at the counter because I wouldn't tell her my name when she asked. Fucking Starbucks - I hate the place. And I hate when you go into a shop and they want to know your name. I'm not there to meet them and become their new friend. I just want a shagging coffee. Or I just want to be served and then left alone. So, I asked the girl why she wanted to know my name as there weren't any other customers in the place. She very tersely replied that they try to personalise their service.

By the time I finished my espresso, it was almost 3:00. We drove to the garage and met the tow-truck guy called John. Incredibly, the only car that Dollar had to give us was another Avenger! The same exact model and colour. So, we are now on car number eight, Avenger number two and Dodge number five.

The kind people (who were probably Mormons) in the shop gave us directions without mentioning Jesus once. John had told us that there was a terrible accident on 15N just beyond where we had to get on. There is a bridge being built and it seems that one of the pillars for it fell from a crane and smashed some cars. I don't know what happened but I can't imagine that everyone survived.

We made the left turn out of the shop and straight into a really nasty traffic jam. But an hour and nine miles later we were back on 15 north of the accident and on our way to Idaho and more importantly out of Utah.

About 340 miles later we stopped in Boise for a bite to eat. I read somewhere that Boise is young, hip and a cool place to be. I must say from the little bit that I saw I actually agree. We drove into the historic district and found a cool little Italian spot called Posto's. The pizzas were great and the local brew - Powerhouse Porter was very nice indeed. I had driven the early shift today so I was able to enjoy two pints with my pie.

It was getting late but we wanted to press on so we got back on to 84W and drove about another 80 miles or so to Baker City. Upon arriving, we checked in to the Budget Inn or (more accurately) the Disco Down Inn. The room was covered in green shag carpet and most of the furnishings seemed to be from the 1970s. In fact the whole place was in a bit of a time warp - a great little slice of Americana. When I went to the front desk, I was greeted by the inn keeper who was an older chap with white hair and a white ronnie. He spoke with a funny little lisp where he whistled when he said the letter S. He reminded me of that old guy on Family guy who has a thing for young boys.

We check in, hauled the bags up to the room and hit the scratcher quick smart.

The Bear Seal Of Approval

Day 63

I'm a Catholic, get me outta here!

I woke up and went for a really long run. 54 minutes to be exact. And I suffered. The whole way. Partly because I was tired and partly because I was dehydrated but mostly just because I am not training very much and every time I go out it is a bit of a shock to my system.

I met Paulo back at the gaff, checked out and we went to do our laundry.

Then it was time for lunch, so we went to the only place you should go in St George, Utah - the Bear Paw Cafe!



Don't get me wrong, the sambos were great, the service was good and the coffee was brilliant but we should have known that the bitterness would follow. And it did.

We got back on to 15 and continued north, hoping to make it past SLC and into Ogden for the night. We drove for several hours and stopped at Applebees to eat as it was the most healthy option.

Now, I am used to being carded a lot over here, especially in restaurants. And I understand why they do it. But in Applebees in Utah, you get carded twice. Yes, twice. We sat down, I asked for a run down of the beers and ordered one. The guy asked me for my ID. No bother. He goes off to get the drinks and a girl comes up to the table and asks for our IDs. I told her that we already ordered and that the waiter had checked my ID. It didn't matter. She had to check it again - the auld 'double card'. I couldn't let that go and had to ask her what the f*ck was going on. It seems that Applebees in Utah have had a lot of problems with under age drinking and a few of them even lost their liquor licenses so now you get carded twice. What a ridiculous state.

We managed to eat and get back on 15N (not a second too soon) and drove some more. The sun set and we kept driving. We past SLC and were about 40 miles from Ogden when we hit something with the car. Something big. Really big. And it made a really loud noise, scaring the bejaysus out of both of us. I was pretty sure there were no deer on I-15 so I figured that it must have been a flat tire. We pulled over immediately to check it out. All the tires were fine. We walked around to the front of the car and saw that the plastic tray under the engine had almost been ripped off completely and the bumper was cracked. WTF!? Two other cars had pulled over in front of us and then two more pulled over behind us. We were baffled. What the hell was going on? Then the police arrived. It turns out that some douchebag had two mountain bikes on a bike rack on his car and the rack snapped. The bikes fell onto the motorway and we (along with about six others) ran over them. Pity too, because I later heard that they were both worth about 2000 dollars. And just to add insult to injury (literally) the owner had wrapped one of them around a tree earlier in the day.

Fortunately, we were both totally fine. But we were a bit shaken up. Paulo got on to Dollar straight away and we had to drive the car another mile to the nearest petrol station to fill out a police report. Long story, short - more hassle with Dollar. But in the end Paulo managed to get through to someone with some intelligence and some authority who told us that a new car would be sent to us tomorrow. She also agreed to have Dollar foot the bill for our hotel room for the night. While we would have both loved to large it up and stay in a palace, we weren't in the form. So we settled for a Best Western.

One of the police officers gave me a mini Rambo knife and I cut the rest of the under tray off and threw it into the back seat. We drove there very slowly to the hotel and checked in for the night. We were both exhausted and fell asleep almost straight away.

Day 62

Today was a 'grand' day.





We woke up, had breakie, bought some provisions, fuelled up the Avenger and set off for the Grand Canyon. Leaving from St George, we were much closer to the North Rim, which offers very different views than the more popular South Rim. The North Rim offers three viewpoints including Cape Royal, Point Imperial and Bright Angel Point. The walls of the North Rim are more eroded than the South Rim, making the Colorado River visible from some of the overlooks. It is also a much higher elevation - an average of 8000 feet with a maximum of 8803 feet at Point Imperial. The higher elevation and cooler temperatures have enabled large sections of forest to flourish. It's a lot more remote and less visited than the South Rim. And I'm glad it is the one that we chose to see.

The Grand Canyon is obviously big but I couldn't fathom just how big it is until I saw it with my own eyes. I still found it hard to comprehend. The crevice that runs through it is over 275 miles long. The entire park is more than 1,200,000 acres and can be ten miles wide in some sections. The canyon itself (as it appears today) is about six million years old and consists of buttes, plateaus and mesas. But these all cover igneous and metamorphic rock that is almost two billion years old!

The amazing thing is that the entire formation was created by water. I read that the goal of every raindrop, rock and grain of sand is to return to sea. Water draining off the Rocky Mountains and across the Colorado Plateau carried sand, gravel and rocks and over millions of years cut and eroded the layers of the canyon. Water freezing in cracks of rocks also forced them apart, causing erosion and eventually collapse of large sections of earth.

The drive to the canyon through Fredonia was quite scenic and surprisingly green just before we reached the Canyon.



We stopped at a patch of forest and learned that fires are sometimes started purposely and allowed to burn for the benefit of resources. Patterns are created by the fires that allow for a greater diversity in wildlife.

The first place we stopped to view the Canyon was Roosevelt Point named after the 26th president Teddy and his efforts to preserve the Grand Canyon. In 1903 he called the Canyon "one great sight which every American should see."







The next stop was Walhalla Overlook, which offers more dramatic views and a path to Angels Window.









Angels Window refers to a hole in a rock that provides views of the Colorado River from the Walhalla Plateau. During the uplift of the plateau, stress caused the rock to fracture forming joints that intersect the planes. Water activity (rain, freezing and thawing) along the joints and planes created a hole and time has enlarged it to a 'window'.



We walked out to the edge of the rock to have a look around (and down).







The next viewpoint that we went to was Cape Royal. This vantage point provides amazing views down and across the canyon. Most of the places that we stopped are better for viewing the unbelievable expanse of the canyon as opposed to the depth which is more apparent from the South Rim.





The last place we went to was Point Imperial, the highest point on the North Rim at 8,803 feet. This viewpoint is unusual for several reasons. First, the South Rim drops abruptly to the Colorado River directly opposite and is only 3/4 of a mile away. Whereas, the North Rim at this point is over ten miles away. Secondly, the canyon begins to transform and the narrow walls start to open up dramatically, creating a layered effect and offering a stark contrast to the layers of red rocks. The large rock in the forefront of this view is called Mt Hayden. Since it was late afternoon and some clouds had formed it was even more atmospheric. I can only imagine how amazing it must be at sunset.













Unfortunately, we had to leave and make our way back to the hotel. I ended up driving home because Paulo had gotten sun burned, actually more like scorched and he was exhausted. The sun was starting to set and the views of the forested area leaving the canyon were excellent.





There were a few thunderstorms along the way but it was a brilliant drive back as the scenery and landscapes were unbelievable the entire way.

Back at the hotel, Paulo hit the scratcher straight away. I went to Goodbye for a bite to eat. Ruby Tuesday on a Monday night - there was nahbody there. It was so quiet that it was a bit creepy. I kept my head down, ate my salad and legged it as quick as I could.

I drove back to the hotel and went straight to bed as well, thinking about a truly amazing day.