“…its about the journey, not the destination..”

The One Street Down Cafe, a great place to have breakfast in Redmond Oregon.

     I left Redmond after a great breakfast at the One Street Down Cafe. Really neat place! To be honest I was really ready to get on the road. Today I would make the left turn that would start the journey home in earnest. I spoke with my wife this morning and she reminded me that one week from today I would be riding to Ohio. The next day I would ride from there home. A week left.

The Millican Store in Millican Oregon. Another victim of the Oregon badlands.

     The trip today was on US 20 across what a sign in Oregon called Oregon’s Badlands. A look at the pictures shows why this is true. Truly desolate land, but in some places, with a great deal of irrigation, there were some crops being raised. 

     I stopped at a rest area about 78 miles east of Redmond. There was a historical marker there explaining that that area had been home to a Native American tribe called the Burns Paiute. Encroachment by American expansion had created conflict with these people, and President Grant in the 1870s had created a reservation for them in that area. Continuing conflict resulted in a war, after which the Burns Paiutes were pushed onto another reservation. Expansion continued and even that land was taken from them. The result was the native people suffered terribly, many on the brink of starvation. This area continues as a depressed area economically. Not a pretty story. 

The Oasis Cafe in Juntura Oregon.

     Lunch was at the Oasis Cafe in Juntura Oregon, which was about 2/3 of the way across the badlands. I had an excellent turkey sandwich and some of the best macaroni salad ever. From here to Ontario Oregon the road was great. Although the temperature climbed into the lower 90s by the time I reached Ontario, the road twisted and turned and provided some great motorcycling. I lost an hour as I passed into the Mountain Timezone, so I pulled into the motel around 4pm. Nap, dinner, back to finish the blog. Just another typical day. 😎

A good lunch, then back into the badlands.