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2011 Vacation from Portland to Reno - great visit with family!
It's been two years since I've made this similar trek.  And I quickly realized I need to do this yearly if I can.  Family time is something that should not go too long.  Lori stayed home for the 'man-cation' saying something about not wanting to be stuck in an economy rental car for 1100 miles. 

My first stop was at Mike and Mary's for a couple nights.  This is a shot of Mike feeding the horse in a small snow storm.

Then we took the time to make some oatmeal cookies.  Mmmm!
This is only a smidgen of what we cooked up.
And... this is what was left.  They must have been good.  I know I ate my share...
For bow shooting, Mike showed us how it was done.  I didn't shoot too well and I'm glad there wasn't a photo moment of proof of my skills. Or, the lack of....

Mikey did pretty good...
He got some instructions from dad and off he went...  getting better with every shot. 
An outside fire and roasting hotdogs on the open fire is always a fun event for everyone. 
Even me....
When I left Mary's I headed west from Redmond, Oregon and I had to buy a set of mandatory chains for the rental car to get over the North Santiam pass.  Thankfully I didn't need them, but it's better to be safe than sorry later.  BTW (by the way) a ticket for not having chains would have been $192, so a set of $34 chains was well worth it. 
I landed at Lamar and Olga's house for a couple of nights.  They live in Depot Bay, Oregon and within walking distance of the coast line. 
The sea's had been pretty high and I could see the damage from the storms on the beach front properties.  Some of you may recognize this picture location. 
Next I stayed the night in Salem, Oregon at a high school friend's house (Rob) and then spent the morning and early afternoon visiting with my daughter (Deseray), Rick, and our three grand-kids.  
I understand that Grandson #1 is the heartthrob of his class.  My hat is off to him.  Keep up the grades dude. 
Next oldest.... peering over the peanut table.  It sure was fun throwing peanut shells on the floor. 
And, the youngest.  What a sweetheart.  Looks like she's ready to play Whack-A-Mole. 
I think he's about ready for his driver's license.  What do you think?  He looks pretty confident. 
She tried to climb up the tunnel but it was too steep.  She kept sliding back to the end.  And always with a giggle on her face...
Isn't this the cutest picture in the world?  They both have the same smile, the same dimples, and the same eyes.... call it crazy.  Like mother like daughter. 
Next I headed for Lakeview, Oregon - hometown - to visit with my dad.  Lakeview is a very quaint town with wooded mountains on one side and desert on the other. On the way there I spotted about 60 head of mule deer just below Picture Rock Pass - located about 20 miles east of Silver Lake, Oregon. This is by far the biggest herd of deer I've seen in some time.
I stopped on the Picture Rock Pass summit and looked for the Petroglyphs but quickly realized too many years have gone by.  I later realized I was within a couple hundred yards of them.  Bummer....it would have been nice to have included a shot of them in this web page. 

This doe was spotted at Summer Lake.
In Lakeview I stayed at my dad's house and we visited for a spell. 
On the morning I was leaving there were about 8 deer in the front yard of dad's house.  This is the best shot of the group.
While leaving Lakeview, for Reno, I stopped about 8 miles South of Lakeview to take a view of the Ruby Pipeline project.  Because of the influx of pipeline employees on Lakeview, this has been an interesting aspect since early last year.
Next I landed in Reno, Nevada to visit with family.  This is a dinner moment of me and Brent.
Mom and dad here.... We had a great time at dinner.  We went to Red Lobster and I ate more lobster than I've ever had in one sitting.  My plate alone had three different kinds of lobster...
The second day we went to the airport to look at dad's Cessna 172RG. 
Dad installed a nice 'glass' panel.  Here he is instructing me on how to use the instruments. 
Very nice display. Can't wait to fly it some day. 

Next I flew home via Southwest Airlines.  It was a great vacation.  I think next year I'll take a little more time and visit a little further North of Portland. 

Thanks for visiting with me....