Deadman Pass on the Oregon Trail

We packed up the Montana and left Olympia, Washington this morning about 9:15 a.m. It was raining but before we could go, Scott had to get on the roof of the rig and sweep off all the fallen pine cones, twigs and branches that had fallen during all the rain we had here before we could put in the slides. It rained just about the whole time to Vancouver but the traffic was light so it wasn't bad. Once we crossed the state line into Oregon, we drove along the Columbia River which is always a gorgeous drive with the mountain, water and trees. I-84 is a great road and with the light traffic made the drive enjoyable.

You can see the Columbia River on the left side.

We enjoyed driving past Multnomah Falls. It was in very full since the snows are melting and the ground is full of water. If I had been in the left lane, I would have been better prepared to take the exit, but I'm just adding a web photo of it for you by Columbia River Gorge. It is also a great website to explore about the Columbia River as well. I noticed circles drilled in the side of the mountains with water pouring out also. And, wildlife wise, there were 4 large mountain goats on the side of the road grazing and the strangest deer I've ever seen - the front half looked like a normal brown deer but the back looked like an Appaloosa horse!

Columbia River Gorge Web Photo

We originally planned to stay the night at the Rufus Landing Recreation Area right and fly the drone over the Columbia that we found from a blog post by Wheelin' It, but we were there by 2 p.m. and it was too early to stop so we decided to go on to Boardman, the halfway point to where we're headed.

Wheelin It Web Photo

But, even at Boardman, it was barely 3 p.m. so we decided to go just past Pendleton, Oregon to the Deadman Pass Rest area for the night.

Boardman Rest Area - Exit 160

Mosier Rest Area - Exit 73

I have always liked the Deadman Pass Rest Area because it's tucked in the mountains above Pendleton, but it also meant we were going to climb up the steep grade. The good thing is that we've done the grade and now we can just head on into Emmett tomorrow an hour earlier than we anticipated.

Deadman Pass Rest Area - Exit 228

Once we got to the rest area, I just happened to look down at my truck tire and it looks like there's a big gash out of it. So, now we will probably have to stop in LaGrange tomorrow morning to have it looked at better so we don't get a blow out. Gee. Our truck only has 18,000 miles on it, too.

Deadman Pass Rest Area is very nice. Both cars and trucks enter at the same entrance and the truck just swing around to park. When the cars are done, they swing around to the back of the truck side and both exit the same location. The rest stop is small but large in amenities. There are two dog walking areas on both the car and truck sides and they are grassy areas - not gravel like most rest areas have. At the main info center there are also maps of the state for you to take, a small but pristine bathroom facility, two vending machines and LOTS of picnic areas. There's also a porta-potty on site as well.

There is an Oregon Train Interpretive Center to learn about the Oregon Trail.

You can see our rig between the buildings.

After we parked our rig on the end parking spot and got the generators going, I noticed that there was an Oregon Trail - Trail Site with a step going over the barbed wire. Curiosity got the better of me and I climbed over the fence and walked along the path until it led to a large meadow. To the left I saw a house so I decided not to venture further, but I noticed to the far right was a pretty meadow of purple flower so I went over there then followed the Oregon Trail path back to the rig. It was a nice walk, even though it had started to rain. It's interesting to note that our bedroom is right in the path of the settlers took on the Oregon Trail! Kinda cool! 💖