If someone can cover an entire state the size of New England and New York, in a single day, on a single road, while barely leaving the vehicle, I mean, who better than us for such shortsighted, inaccurate, and cursory coverage?  Hey, if you wanted accurate and insightful information, you wouldn’t be reading this blog.

What is the image you get if someone says Oregon?  My vision correlates somewhat to the license plate – rich, tall pine forests, gorgeous landscapes, the luscious northwest…  The coastal region certainly has all of that.

What we never would have imagined is what the rest of Oregon looks like – at least from the vantage point of driving along US Route 20 from Bend eastward.  Believe me – we were not disappointed, but shocked!

There were places not long after leaving Bend where we could have imagined we were in West Texas (sans the oil fields).  Or we could have been in New Mexico, or South Dakota, or a whole bunch of places except what we expected Oregon to look like.

Now this inaccurate understanding is totally my ignorance.  Follow our journey along US 20 heading east across the beautiful state of Oregon – through our windshield.  Pardon the bugs.

I will point out, and tried to capture, the almost constant dichotomy of how dry and varied this state is, and yet how rich it is close to where there is water.  Water clearly brings life in this high desert.

You go through grazing lands, mountains, flat lands, Oregon’s own version of the Badlands, high desert, farmlands, and you name it.  For sure, this was an education for both of us!

US Route 20 is a cool way to make your way across this state.  But fuel up – there are not a lot of towns or gas stations along the way.