Monday, June 28 to the wine country of Oregon

Jeff and Rosario waved goodbye when I pulled out of their parking on lakeside Avenue. I took a last look at the nice neighborhood and the lake and rode up the hill towards I-5.

The GPS had reset itself and I rode out of Seattle without a problem. The streets and the freeway were very busy, and I had to get accustomed again to a big city after the towns of the Rocky Mountains. I had not seen such traffic since Chicago.

Jeff had recommended to stop at Portland and we had discussed making a detour to Mt. St. Helens or Mt. Rainier. I chose St. Helens because I wanted to know more about the eruption of 1980, which I had seen on TV.

I got off at Castle Rock and followed the signs to the Johnston Ridge Observatory, 46 miles from the freeway.

At 8:32 Sunday morning, May 18, 1980, Mount St. Helens erupted.

Shaken by an earthquake measuring 5.1 on the Richter scale, the north face of this tall symmetrical mountain collapsed in a massive rock debris avalanche. Nearly 230 square miles of forest was blown down or buried beneath volcanic deposits. At the same time a mushroom-shaped column of ash rose thousands of feet skyward and drifted downwind, turning day into night as dark, gray ash fell over eastern Washington and beyond. The eruption lasted 9 hours, but Mount St. Helens and the surrounding landscape were dramatically changed within moments.

The observatory offers a great view of the mountains, a documentary about the eruption with a computer generated movie of the eruption itself, and exhibits of massive trees that were broken like matchsticks, 14 miles from the eruption.

The most interesting (for me ) exhibit shows identical deposits from the landslide in Mount St. Helens and from a site in Guatemala near Antigua, indicating that both deposits were created by the same geological event. That must have been a big one!

A ranger explained the process of the eruption in detail and showed pictures of the volcano before its collapse.

It is also clear that these events will continue, because Mt. St. Helens has already self destructed and rebuilt itself seven times.

I reached Portland by 6pm and went straight to the residential area on top of a hill which houses the experimental Rose Garden. Here new varieties are tested and developed. The park was full of flower fans, many of them Asians. The variety of roses is staggering and some are very beautiful.

In the rose garden, I found a small bronze plaque, with the following inscription:

Go confidently in the direction of your dreams,

Live the life you have imagined!

Henry David Thoreau

I have always admired Henry David Thoreau who spent two years in a log cabin at Walden Pond, Mass. from July 1845 to September 1847. His experience at Walden provided the material for the book Walden, which is credited with helping to inspire awareness and respect for the natural environment.

Walden is a reflection upon simple living in natural surroundings, unencumbered by the demands of modern civilization.

At 7 pm I got underway to the wine country and by 8 pm I was having dinner in the Dundee Bistro, pappardelle with mushrooms, accompanied by a half bottle of 2007 Panther creek, a tasty Pinot Noir, produced by Panther Creek Cellars in McMinnville. It is medium heavy with a nice aroma and goes well with pasta. The desert, a lavender creme brulee, was also very good.

For now, I have stopped the beer tasting and will try the wines of Oregon and California.

I am staying the night in McMinnville and tomorrow I will reach the Pacific coast at Lincoln City. From there I will follow the 101 coastal road all the way to California.

By now I have logged almost 5,000 miles, considerably more than the original plan of 3,500. I believe the total ride will reach 6,000 miles.

The Trans America ride
is a small effort to help transform the lives of poor Maya children. During my trip I will speak about the importance of educational projects like Ak Tenamit, and especially girl´s education, and its connection to illegal immigration in the United States.


YOU CAN PARTICIPATE IN THE TRANS AMERICA RIDE!!

The target of the ride is to raise $10.00 for each mile of the ride.

I you decide to support this ride, you may:

1. Buy miles: Buy one or more miles at $10.00 per mile. There are 3,500 miles to be sold.
2. Sponsor a local event when I am in your area (a ride, a barbecue) for a $200.00 minimum.
3. Become a Student Sponsor at Ak´Tenamit for $30.00 (one month) or $360.00 per year
4. Become a Health Care Partner for $10.00 or $120.00 per year.

All funds should end up in the GUATEMALA TOMORROW FUND in the United States.

If you would like to sponsor a child, become a Health Care partner or simply want to buy one of the 3500 miles of the ride , just go to http://guatfund.org/

Tick the box ¨Trans America ride¨and authorize a charge to your credit card.

If you prefer to not to use a credit card, just see Chapter 5 of this Blog on how to donate.

JEAN , THE RIDING DUTCHMAN

transamerica.tenamit@gmail.com