floods and other gong shows...

i don't have any photos to post at the moment, as i'm not on my computer. but i thought i would post a quick note on my travels so far, for anyone checking in. We departed from home yesterday morning, and after a small border delay (we are suspicious travel candidates to the u.s. as we are unemployed at the moment), we headed down through washington. should have seen it coming - as we headed to the border the sky was a dark leary blue, and pretty much as soon as we crossed the border it began to rain. it has rained every moment since - not a little shower here, a light sprinkle there. essentially a steady pour with no sign of let up. last night we refused to camp and slept in the truck, the three of us cramped in our seats, attempting to find a comfortable spot. our drive down the oregon coast today was hampered by the steady rain and low visibility, not to mention flooding that made for some interesting driving. another night in the truck had no appeal, and we have relented (only the second night of our trip!) and are in a motel. we have since learned that many parts of washington and oregon are in a state of emergency! an excellent start to the trip.

tomorrow there is rumour that the rain will let up a little, and so we will make a quick stop to see the giant redwoods in northern california before heading inland, desert-bound. there better not be any rain to slow up the climbing! i am sad i didn't get much chance for photos of the foggy, windy, and ever so rainy coast, but i will return sometime to spend more time on the sand. but when i get back i will show you the gigantic waves!