Day 22: Rest Day, Pendleton OR
Nau mai
Yesterday we had a day of rest in Pendleton, Oregon.
The Hampton Inn & Suites Pendelton was our base for the day. We could do whatever we wanted that was within walking/running range of the hotel or get even further afield if we could summon the Uber. I took my breakfast aboard Lavonda who was parked out front of the hotel in full rest mode, windscreen covers down and the slider deployed. Two kiwifruit were sliced and added to a bowl along with a good helping of blueberries and a big slop of Greek yoghurt. Atop this I added a sprinkle of the best looking granola I could find in our drawer that has many packets of granola.
Not Running Club decided it would be good to present a show of force to the citizens of Pendleton and the fine drivers exiting and entering Interstate 84. Although we only had three out four members present on this outing we ran with good form and made sure to keep strict formation whenever we passed any pedestrians or dogs. Highlights of this Pendleton loop include running alongside the Umatilla River, and visiting the Cattle Drive Sculpture Park, nestled in between I-84’s southbound lanes and the Emigrant Ave exit ramp. I was sad to see that google maps local guide (level 6) Susan Brown didn’t get to experience this artwork but I can assure the reader that as a pedestrian walking or running through the area this spot felt completely accessible.
There were other activities that went on during our day at the Hampton Inn & Suites Pendleton. Jon turned one of the rooms into a workshop and got to work installing new Lollar pickups into his Squier 12-string. If you have any questions about how to solder in a hotel room without setting off the smoke alarms feel free to leave them in the comments and I can ask directly on your behalf.
This is how you calmy deal with a situation in which you didn’t bring enough pairs of undies and the hotel drier isn’t working at 100% effieciency.
The hotel workshop.
We made a brief visit to Oregon’s oldest bar (1883), the Rainbow Café which was a delightfully cosy room decorated with animal busts and lit by handsome neon lights. This establishment made its living by day as a café and diner but was open late into the night serving hot dinners and beer to the locals, and of course to the lucky three of us who happened to be walking past and were lured in by the colourful glow.
Another attempt at the candid selfie!
The evening event was a screening of Wicked (2024), in anticipation of the impending release of the sequel to this film. This screening event materialised as twelve of us crammed into a hotel room with enough takeaways to feed about thirty people.