Monday morning, we packed up the Kia in full nomad mode for the last time. We drove down the mountain to Bishop to pick up the cats, packed them in the car, then drove back up the mountain.
Then we drove back down the other side of the mountain and continued north. At this point, the car was packed to overflowing, and we truly must have looked like crazy people. Thankfully, the cats were only with us for the first few hours. We were dropping them off with Rachel's veterinary school friend Twylah, who had graciously agreed to cat-sit for us until we finally found a new home. Twylah's hospital is in Truckee, just north of Lake Tahoe, and, given that this was a relatively short drive day, we took the scenic route around the lake. Oh, the memories! We'd spent two of our happiest Thanksgivings in Tahoe, and every corner we turned seemed to bring those good times flooding back in. But, unlike previous visits, this time we were merely transients passing through.
After Truckee, we continued to shed altitude (and outer layers of clothes) as we descended into the warmer weather of the Central Valley. That evening we hunkered down in a hotel in Chico, ordered pizza, and waited in anticipation for the very final leg of our journey.
The next morning was surreal. Could this really be it? The day that we finally arrive in our new home? Six months, over 10,000 miles, and what felt like a lifetime away from our time in Long Beach, we were finally ready to cross the border for the last time as Californians.
We got an early start. There was too much excitement for anybody to get a really good night's sleep, and we had a long day ahead of us. As we headed north, we went from flat agricultural lands to the mountains and pine forests of Northern California. In an emotional moment almost too difficult to describe, we crossed our own path the one and only time on this trip. It happened in Redding, California. As we drove north on I-5, an overpass crossed Highway 44, which had led us from McKinleyville to Lake Almanor, nearly six months ago on our second leg of the journey. There was an unintentional moment of silence as we realized what had just happened.
After that, the hills got bigger and became mountains. The trees were taller and greener. We spent a good chunk of our day looking in amazement as Mount Shasta grew larger and larger in our windshield and then faded away in the rearview mirror. When we finally crossed the Oregon border I felt like cheering and crying at the same time.
In one moment of high comedy, we made a quick rest area pitstop along the freeway. This was in Oregon now, and, like much of western Oregon, was dominated by large pine trees and green grass. Nathan asked in wonder, "is this what all of Oregon is going to be like." We assured him that it got a lot better than this rest area!
Just before dinner time, we pulled into McMinnville, our first "home" in our new home. We were exhausted as we approached our house.
We unloaded our car, collapsed into the front porch chairs, and gave thanks for six months that none of us will ever forget.
This is Vinnie and Hallie writing. We've enjoyed your blog and hope that your stay in McMinnville is lovely! Hallie says 'when we go to Oregon, I am excited to see you!'
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