RV - OR to VA

This is written a day late.

We were up at 4:30 local, 6:30 AM central time. Breakfast doors were to be closed until 6 AM so we went without. I went without. BB had saved half her sandwich from last night so she ate that before we left.

Even though this motel was almost in downtown, we were only a few blocks from the freeway. No issues heading against traffic at that time of the morning. We wouldn't hit traffic until about half way ... where people were heading to Seattle instead of Portland.

This was a non-stop flight. Two hours to the wash. Saw a few cops with trucks pulled over. All scales were closed in WA. Could briefly see Mt Rainier, it was still dark passing Mt St Helen's.

Plan was to get to the wash at 8:30, I have been here when the line is long. Today there was one van ahead of me in my bay, by the time I was done with my paperwork they were waving me in. As soon as we got there, BB walked across the street to the rental car place. It was straight across the street but there was a median so she had to walk up to the crosswalk.

This time it the wash was about half of what I remember from the other company. And they only spent half as long working on it. I was done long before BB got back. One issue was that it needed new plate stickers. Two months past expired?

The drop was two blocks from the wash, got there before 9 AM. That is the earliest they will take them. Someone in the lot pointed where to park, one driver was ahead of me. We have time to talk. With this couple, she is the bus driver and he only drives RV's. Also he is the one who wants short days and no after night driving.

No issues with the bus. After a little bit we got a whole lot of attention. We were not supposed to be out of our bus without a reflector vest on. Seems someone was killed in there yard within the last few months so it is still very real to them. Instead they escorted us when where we walked. By then someone had brought out vests for us.

We were out of the lot by 9:30. It is paying off that we got going before breakfast. We now have four hours back to Junction City.

Almost right away we have to stop at a rest area. It's been four plus hours since we got going this AM. Over our two hour limit. Quick stop and rolling.

Less than half way to the next pickup we stop for breakfast at Castle Rock at McDonalds. Mt St Helen's exit but we are on a tight time table. In order and out. Eating in the car.

No issues through Portland, we saw the Portland gondola both ways running. Not sure the draw, haven't read up on it. Traffic was light but still a slowdown.

Another rest area stop at Jefferson, OR.

Off the interstate and about 20 miles of side roads and we are at our next pickup. 1:30 and they close at 3 PM so not much time to spare. 45 minutes later I get my paperwork. I took this run at 8 AM yesterday and the RV has been ready so long that the battery is dead and the tires are low. This lack of staying on top of things may be the reason this place is closing down.

It was commented on on the safety meeting that it may be closing but today it was part of the conversation. 55 RV's in the next 34 days ??? when in the past they haven't done more than 1-2 most weeks. Yes, the people who we talked to were counting down the days. This place opened since I started driving for this company 3 years ago and it is already being closed down because they can't meet quota.

The chassis that aren't started on will likely be flat bedded back to IA is my guess.

There was another company driver waiting when I got there. He had used Uber for an 80 mile ride. Didn't ask what that cost. He had taken a non-CDL garbage truck to Wilsonville just north of here. Even after I told him how bad the road to Bend was, later he said he might stop past his brother in Bend ... with a 45 foot RV. On a road I don't want to take a car on.

Once we had our paperwork we were told to go find our RV's. After not find them right away I got someones attention who told us to go back and they would bring them to us. That didn't happen, finally someone who knew where the RV's were, walked us out to them. Battery was dead so I had to use the house battery to start it. That is a nice feature to have. Did a quick check before driving the RV up to the front.

Once to the front, someone comes out to sign paperwork and cover items. By now my low tire light is on so that took another ??? hour to get taken care of. Finally I am ready, but by now it is well after 3 PM so the front office is close and the office in IA is closed. This time I do remember to get my permits.

We are ready to go. I pull out on the street and my check engine icon comes on. I start to turn into the next company driveway then don't. They are closed, I have signed for it so it is my problem. And it might be coming from the low fuel, now laying on 'E.' Or from the low battery, low tire or other prior errors. I take the chance that it might re-set if I fuel and run at highway speeds. I put in more fuel than I would have at the local intown station and then we head to the airport.

Light doesn't go off so I stop at on the side of the road before we get to the airport. It's not a good place to stop so after shutting the battery off and on we move on. At the airport there is no goo place to park, just a turn around with No Parking signs. We sit there while I make some phone calls.

Before we get chased out by security, we move to a gas station a few miles away. I had had to leave a message with the manufacture, and as soon I start driving the phone rings. But by now I am driving and have to let it go to voice mail. Manufacture says I can run with it, dispatch says get it looked at. I look and there is a place 10 miles away. I had hoped to get to Portland tonight but those hopes are fading.

My first call was to a TA truckstop, but this location can't look at it because they are right next to a manufactures dealer. I call them and they say they can look at it as soon as we get there. So back to the airport and drop the car. I didn't want to drop until we had an answer but it will be getting dark soon so we drop. I gave BB a five minute head start but that wasn't enough. Found an employee lot where I could circle without stopping until BB was done.

We get to the drop and have a wait to talk to the only person at the counter. The person I talked to had left a few minutes after I talked to them. They did find someone to look at it. A lot of old error codes, but no current issues. Not sure what they do on there end, but I didn't have to pay anything. Then we had to go next door to the TA to pickup my permits.

Now we no longer had time to get to Portland. I am limited to 14 hours a day, driving or not. We only had time to drive the wrong direction to get to Eugene.

Back to the Quality Inn. last time we had stayed at the Comfort Inn. But the Comfort had a small lot. Turns out the Quality Inn has lots of room to park. We will be here two nights as now I have to do a reset. I may have not needed one if everything had gone like clock work yesterday, but now I will need to drive closer to 600 miles the next five days to make delivery on time.

We haven't eaten yet so we walk to Shari's. I have seem them for years and have wanted to try them. They are also the only one not across a major side street. We walk in and they say it'll be 30-45 minutes. ??? the place is about empty. Seems they are short 2 cooks, not sure who is cooking. They say it will take another half hour to catch up on orders already placed. (They also say they have called other places in the area to see if they can spare a cook, no one could)

We walk across the street to IHOP.

Plan had been to get to the east end of Portland and maybe hop a bus, a train and see the sights there. Not much to see here, but we are on the bus line if we could find somewhere to go.