In life, it's not whether you win or lose, it's how you bounce! - Anonymous
The first part of the trip was done in pouring rain, gusting wind, and multiple small failures in both the RV and our judgment - windshield wiper tearing off in the middle of the rain, steps stuck in the extended position so we couldn't take vehicles on the road, engine starter not working, and a memorable dead end street where we tried to back up and found out that it was true what we'd been told - you can't back up easily with a towed car behind you.
Our plan was to get to the Oregon Coast, but the day we were to travel, there were gusts on the coast of about 60 mph. Thus, we have learned to "bounce" - constantly adjusting to changes, adapting new routes, working at not letting ourselves get frazzled, finding the good in each situation. For instance, when we found out we couldn't head west from I-5 to the coast due to the wind gusts, we headed east to Hood River and the Columbia River Gorge and saw some beautiful scenery, new to Sandra. Most of this day was in the rain, but we'd decided we weren't going to let that deter us, and we were glad we went.
Also, while Rod was fixing our extended steps at a Wal-Mart parking lot in southern Oregon, we found out that the pass going through the mountains just south of us was blocked with snow, so we just stayed put without heading all the way there and having to turn back. We finally left a day later and got through the Siskiyou Mountains into California.
After we passed through the snowy area in the mountain pass, we noticed the sharp difference in terrain between Oregon, which was quite green, and California, which was various shades of brown. That it happened within a few miles was surprising.
