Shelter thoughts?

Gatewood cape with Meteor Bivy...$250, but could SERIOUSLY be worth it eh?

18 ounces for no bugs, with a half-bivy and raingear! Also carbon fiber tent pole (45", see if it can be cut in 12" instead of 15"?)

The stuff is from Six Moons designs, and I know a few folks whom have traveled with the Cape. The big appeal is the multi-use design, as well as 360 degree coverage. I don't like single-use items, and I've been moving away from a tent as the versatility of one is definitely questionable.

Also, I'm in Vancouver, Washington (Just north of Portland). I'm headed down to Salem tomorrow, and from there to Eugene (Staying at Arrows sat. night). Ducky is looking for a hitch partner up to Seattle, and as I've never been there, I offered to go for some escort duty..waiting to hear back from her.

What've i been up to?

I hitched up to Government camp, was unable to make contact with Nikki, so I drank some beer, camped out, turned around, and left! So far, the Big Horse Brewpub in Hood River has had the best beer around, although there are plenty more places to check out. I especially loved the Belgian, though the Scotch ale and IPA were both worth writing about. The food was bomb aswell, especially since i was there during happy hour, and it was dirt cheap.

The gentleman (Jeff) whom gave me a lift from Government Camp all the way to Hood River had only been planning on driving 5 miles, but instead changed his mind and drove me the 40 to Hood River. As it turns out, he used to do what I am doing now, namely traveling around aimlessly. He now has two children and a wife, but continues to travel with the family on a less-than-wandering basis.

Bill gave me a lift from Hood River to The Dalles, and actually ended up giving me a lift across the bridge to Rt 14. He's been driving trucks for 35 years, starting out when he was younger and was discharged from the Army. At one point a few years ago he owned 112 trucks rented to various drivers, but as time progressed, he sold the trucks to the drivers in an effort to simplify his life. Despite his cheap car, he owned a SWEET Subaru NX (turbo), and was considering purchasing outright a pub in his area. He gave me $20 despite my protests, and in return I helped him hook up a printer in his office and showed him a few simple computer tricks which should make his life a bit easier.

Last night, after hitching in to Stevenson and enjoying some ice cream, I walked across Bridge of the G-ds and checked out the Pacific Crest Pub. Dale, a local from Washington, bought me four beers between he and his sister entertained me for the better part of three hours. Dale gave me a sweet bottle opener (in the shape of a credit card), which while excess weight, will stay with me. Kinda reminds me of Vanja's foot-bottle opener, which I gave to another traveler (probably at Big Sky? I can't quite recall...).

Today I walked back across the Bridge of the G-ds and hitched down to Vancouver, WA, where I am currently typing. This involved three rides, one in the back of a pickup truck. I spent a half hour staring at clouds while roaring down the highway (Don't tell mom!), but it was beautiful. Now I'm going to check out another brewpub in Vancouver, and walk back into Portland.