It's becoming a blur. Where were we two nights ago? Last night? Where will we be tonight? Today we shunpiked from Bruneau Dunes State Park, Idaho to here, Malheur County, Oregon. We avoided congestion, staying well away from I-86, as well as the cities. We edged along the Birds of Prey National Conservation area and then followed the Snake River Scenic Byway, through wine country and farm land. The roads had names like Apple Valley, Chicken Dinner and Deer Flat, running flat and straight through the valley, with sharp right turns to accommodate farm fields.
Tonight we ended up in an open field full of huge blue pipes. The land belongs to the folks who manage the irrigation canals. A man driving by on his ATV, a farmer and BLM employee, gave us this opinion, "If I were tired, and wanted to spend the night without traveling further, I'd camp here." We did!
Boondocking in Arizona, Utah and Nevada was a snap. We used the rule of 10 miles from town; 1 mile off pavement; and out of view. Much of the land was national forest land. Open grazing, otherwise unoccupied and public with little dirt roads going no where, and everywhere. Just remember to close the gate! There is even the 14-day law, meaning one can camp on public lands so long as you move on after 14 days.
In our current location all the land is private property. No pull offs. No campgrounds, public or private. No informal camp sites with fire rings. No rest areas. All the little side roads go straight to a farm house or out onto a cultivated field. Boondocking is a new game and far more challenging. We've been mulling options we've not before considered -- school yards, library, supermarket or church parking lots, tucking ourselves away behind storage buildings.
The challenge is fun. Our imaginations fly...
Ahead, Oregon's Blue Mountains...
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“You must give everything to make your life as beautiful as the dreams that dance in your imagination.”
- Roman Payne
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