California to Oregon

Aug 5
This morning it was necessary to put on a cardigan! And socks & shoes! Bit of a shock to the system....
After much discussion, and careful listening to the engine of our car, we decided we had a bigger problem than that of our broken tent pole – when we are driving uphill the car's gearbox grinds as though there is something wrong with the clutch. This only seems to be happening on the small, windy roads of the PCH but we decided to contact the rental company anyway – they advised us that if the car is making a sound that makes us uncomfortable to drive it we can exchange it at one of their other locations – great news. While I was calling the car rental company, Melissa was buying a fishing line and convincing one of the shop assistants in an outdoor store that it would be a good idea to be a good Samaritan and fix our tent pole. So we are sorted again – yeay!

We didn't make many stops today – one at the drive-thru tree in California and one other for me to hug a giant redwood tree – pics later – I still have to get them from Melissa.

Update: After driving 35 miles out of our way in southern Oregon to get to Merford airport to change our car – we were told they didn't have any cars available to exchange with ours. So we are now driving north again towards Eugene & Portland. The plan is to stay in Eugene tonight & drive to Portland tomorrow to pick up a new car and go meet Hillary whom I haven't seen in 3 years since I volunteered in Moldova. Am very excited to hear about Hillary's new project (Helping Orphans Worldwide) in Vietnam working with orphans. But in the meantime – here are pics of the beautiful Oregon sunset as we drive north.