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It seems like a long time since I’ve picked up new states and today I got two more, California and Oregon.

I stopped for lunch in Battle Ground, WA at Las Mesitas. I’m not usually a fan of the chips and salsa that many Mexican restaurants hand for free, but this salsa was fantastic, it was just hot enough to give some flavor to the chips without being too hot. I ordered the chicken fajitas and the quantity of food they brought out was just ridiculous, a giant still steaming plate of chicken and vegetables and then another gigantic plate of rice, beans, and the cool toppings like sour cream. The fajitas were excellent, but there was no way I could eat it all so I asked for a box and headed towards Oregon.

The first hour or so of being in Oregon outside of Portland was a very frustrating experience. I must have just arrived at the wrong time because the traffic was terrible, we creeped along though what seemed like the world’s longest school zone, until finally far into route 99W the traffic let up.

I decided to go down the Oregon/California coast instead of opting for the faster I-5 route, and I think that was a good choice. First of all the Oregon coast was very cool to see, but also I heard later on the news that Eugene had a bad hail storm, but all I got was a light rain. I stopped for gas and found out an interesting fact about Oregon, it is a state law that you can’t pump your own gas. The gas station attendant said it was an attempt to create jobs, however it seemed to me that the one guy who would have had an easy job sitting inside had a much more difficult job now running out to pump gas every time someone pulled up.

For dinner I stopped in Coos Bay at The Portside Restaurant. I had a mixed experience here, when I walked in there was nobody who worked there to be found. I waited in the lobby and looked at the most gigantic crabs I’ve ever seen in a restaurant aquarium for a few minutes, but then it became clear I needed to find the staff because they weren’t going to find me. The inside was much larger than I expected from the outside, and I walked around and finally got the attention of one of them who seated me with a view of the bay and the nearby marina. I ordered the boiled salmon with clam chowder. I was interested to see how the clam chowder would compare to the salmon chowder I had earlier in Alaska. While I did like the clam chowder here, Alaska wins hands down. I don’t recall ever having chowder before actually (which strikes me as odd), but it is certainly something that I’ll be ordering a lot of in the future. The boiled salmon was also excellent with great seasoning on top and a very tender and fresh fish. However, just like in the beginning when the staff was nowhere to be found, it seemed like they just disappeared after my food came. I was kind of in a hurry to get back on the road and it was a little annoying.

Eventually the waitress appeared from her secret location and I got back on the road and headed for California. Tomorrow I’ll head to San Francisco to see the Golden Gate Bridge and then get close to Yosemite for a hike up the half dome the following day.

Tags: Big Road Trip