This is our third full day here in Wallowa Lake at the Pinecone Cabin. We arrived late Tuesday afternoon after the 6.5 hour drive. Iris did fairly well with the drive; I got bored. It’s been relaxing and a little boring, and we are enjoying ourselves.
The cabin is old and creaky, with a shower out of a horror movie and uneven wood floors that creak as you walk. It has a nice furnace that really keeps this place warm and comfortable. The managers keep the cabin very clean and the hot tub is fantastic. The cabin is on the hill above the lake and we have some great views. It is off-season and most of our neighbors are not at home. It feels that we are alone on this hill. We don’t see people until we get near the lake. It’s freaky, but fun too.
Iris is not enjoying her vacation very much. She eats only a meal a day, instead of her usual two, and has slept very little. She is tired, crank, and very moony. She is taking liberties and hanging out on the back of the futon in the living room, the better to stare at us. The rules don’t allow her on the furniture but she doesn’t see to care.
We went for two walks yesterday. The first was to the lake where we let Iris off leash to play. She had a great time walking around the water front and even waded into the lake a bit. Later, we went for a hike. As we walked up the road to the trail head, Iris was not amused and her tail was low. Once we got to the trail head, she perked right up and would have bounded ahead of us if she wasn’t on leash. She really enjoyed the hike but once we were back on the road, she again showed her displeasure. We hiked to the water falls that we saw last time. They were lovely. We found a fun winter hat along the trail and, since it appeared to have been there overnight, thought we would give it a good home.
We have surprised me by eating in the cabin for most of our meals. We have only eaten out once a day or less; I’ve cooked for the other meals. It’s been fun being creative with our groceries and cooking. This morning we had leftover retried beans and rice with cheese and scrambled egg on top. My masterpiece I called “Near Huevos Ranchos ala Leftovers.”
Yesterday, in between my games and Mike’s 3-D creation (The Robot with a Heart), we watched two movies. The tv channels are limited but we do have Encore. We watched The Tourist and Ronin. They were entertaining. There is no cell service or internet access here. We have to drive to Joseph for service, which we have done once a day. This morning, we made a point of going into town just in case Maggie didn’t get the alarm system figured out at home and ADT called us.
We have also spent a lot of time in the hot tub. It’s so nice. If only we had one at home. One more day to collect more video- Mike is doing a video montage of our vacation instead of just photographs- and to relax. I don’t think either of us has gotten to a completely relaxed state, but we have unwound.
On Saturday, we woke up early and left the cabin a little after 6:00 a.m. We made it home just in time to watch Oregon Duck football. It wasn’t a great game and I took a nap during the third and fourth quarters. Iris was very happy to be home. It was a nice vacation.
