April 9th dawned bright and mercifully without precipitation. A slight haze burned off by afternoon and Harris Beach was glorious (see photos). A non-travel day to recover.

As promised, Lasso and the travelers…

Lasso is a 2018 Winnebago Travato Class B camper van. It is 21’ long, 9’4” in height and drives like a compact SUV. It has a Ram ProMaster engine and some great safety features (excellent backup camera!). ‘Maximum speed’ sends a signal when the preset speed is exceeded. Sadly, the maximum setting is only 120 mph.

I call it ‘Lasso’ because it is good and because it is a coach.

I am caravaning with Jennifer Provance (see photo). Jen is the daughter of my dear friend Randall Carson DuBois (aka ‘Randor the Magnificent’). Randor celebrated last Thanksgiving with Pat and me. Sadly, he died during treatment for cancer six weeks ago. Jen has been in the NW settling his estate and is now driving his car back to her home in the Ozarks of Missouri.

Jen retired in her early 50’s and does “Through Hiking” (end-to-end, long distance trail). She does it solo and accomplished the Pacific Crest Trail in 2023, from Mexico to Canada, and will start the Continental Divide Trail at the Canadian border in June of this year. She claims to have no middle name, but I think, based on 3 days into this trip, her middle name is “Stamina.”

We will rendezvous with Jen’s husband, Dave, in Las Vegas and they will continue east while I head west.

Charlotte, an 8 year old (indoor) Tuxedo cat, with limited travel experience, rides in the van. The first few miles she mewled, but quieted when I unzipped the end door of her carrier (on the passenger side floor).

I did not notice that she had crept over to the driver’s side until I braked and pressed my foot into her side. Soft brakes! She very quickly retreated back into the carrier and stayed there, sound asleep, for the next several hundred miles.

Eventually, she found the Portable Cat Litter Box for Road Trips (thank you again Amazon) then returned to her carrier and blissfully back to sleep for the duration.

Riding shotgun is the spirit of the original/previous owner of Lasso, Kirk Gamble, who was a fellow Oregonian and Aquarian, track teammate, and friend of Steve Prefontaine at U of Oregon (the photo is on the main street of Coos Bay, Steve’s hometown).

Although Coach Gamble’s dream of travel was cut short, his spirit is with us as we adventure on.

And, of course, my beloved Patrick, who is with me always, wherever I go and however I get there.