Typically, the large gaps between my blog posts are due to procrastination. This year however, thanks to Covid, I really had no trips to blog about. We would have never imagined during our last trip in January, that our traveling would totally come to a complete halt until mid June.

We camp all year usually. We try to go on short trips at least twice a month. In fact, this year I had booked campgrounds all through the spring in the Gorge which is something I don’t usually do. But, like most places in the country, our world shut down, and in Oregon, campgrounds were included in those closings. We lost all existing reservations.

When reservations finally opened again, they filled up quickly and sites were understandably hard to come by. Somehow, we got lucky and I was able to find a couple of spots available along the Metolius River- which just happens to be our very favorite part of Oregon.

We’ve taken the pandemic very seriously. There is just so much that is still unknown about how the virus is spread. I wasn’t in any hurry to get out around others in populated areas. During this time, I also made the difficult decision to retire after 30 years in the classroom. I had planned on working another couple of years – I really loved my job, but as a cancer survivor, I decided it was in my best interest to step aside.

My rush to fill our summer with adventures was tempered by the realization that we can now enjoy our travels during the off season when kids are back in school. Todd’s still working, but his office can be anywhere with a decent internet connection since his company is remote for the foreseeable future.

Our trip to the Metolius was the perfect way to jump back into “civilization” – civilization meaning leaving our home. The sites here are huge and well separated. We felt totally comfortable camping here. Besides getting gas, we were able to completely isolate. Lots of walks along the river, bike riding and just enjoying a change in scenery.

So, these are a few snapshots on our two trips to the Metolius.

We are lucky!