The Sista said, " I didn't bring the passports!" I know I said, for I had them in my pocket at the time. After exchanging the usual pleasantries with the border agent we were back in the land of the free and the home of the brave! We carried on down the road to Oroville, and drove around looking at the place. We didn't see much of interest, but we did stop long enough to get an ice cream bar, before heading west. So there's that.
My plan was to head along the Loomis-Oroville road, and cross back into Canada at Chopaka, with a possible side trip. Since we had gotten a late start, we needed to keep an eye on the time since this border crossing closes at 5 p.m.
The country was fairly rugged, since we were in the eastern foothills of the Cascade mountain range, and the hillsides were strewn with Rudbeckia, which many of you know as "Black Eyed Susan".
Looking back towards the Okanogan valley from whence we came, you can see how the landscape evens out toward the valley bottom.
In some areas the hillside was awash in color. I stopped to get this picture because I wanted to share it with you.
These plants have a fairly shallow root system and a lot of people dig them out to take them home because they are so pretty. They will grow in just about every type of soil, even in direct sunlight. They also spread, so fair warning! They will take over your garden, then your lawn if you give them a chance.
I was not the only one who found this particular vista "pixel worthy". Here the Trippin' Sista is taking a picture as well...of me!
We passed a cordillera of hillside. It really feels like we're in another country. Well, we are! Funnily enough, just the other side of the hill is the true north strong and free (by which I mean Canuckistan.)
We came to the turnoff for the border, but I had a different idea. We turned south down the road and came to the town of Nighthawk This while interesting was not to be the high point on our itinerary.
We continued south while the clock ticked inexorably toward the closing of the country (hahaha) and came to Palmer Lake. I had seen the lake on the map before, but we had never been there. Worth the detour.
Palmer is a fairly large lake with Small and Large Mouth Bass, and Rainbow Trout in the 3 lb. range. We spoke with one fellow who was camped at the Recreation Area, who said the fishing wasn't that good, they only caught 9!!!
A little further down the road was a fairly large herd of deer. These were looking a little shaggy, shedding their winter coats. There were a total of 20 or so loafing around, munching on the new growth and on people's shrubbery.
We hightailed it towards the border, and had a nice chat with the agent minding the crossing. The border is little used and sleepy during the week, and gets more traffic on the weekend with people headed to the lake.
We stopped in Keremeos, then came uphill and turned off at Twin Lakes Rd., then turned onto Willowbrook Rd just before the Dominion Radio Astrophysical Observatory We left them listening for the aliens, and carried on towards Fairview Rd.
We ended up back at home around 6:45 after a very pleasant outing and we're glad you decided to ride along. Don't forget to subscribe to this blog for future updates, and to check out our YouTube (like, comment and subscribe) channel, and our website We look forward to talking with you and seeing you again soon!
