I launched out. Took my new wheels, a few pairs of underwear and drove away, just for the weekend—oh, and my toothbrush too.
I was headed for Winthrop, a little town in the Methow valley, nestled against the Cascades. In order to get there from Walla Walla though, it is necessary to traverse central Washington, which is never very exciting but very essential. I took the GPS, advised by my mum and perceived helpful by myself.
It started out well, I knew exactly where I was going. Then there was this one point in the drive where my own sense of direction differed with that of the GPS, but I trusted the GPS because after all, it’s a GPS – it’s loaded with maps and directions and certainly knows better than my not so trusted sense of direction.
So I followed the GPS. It took me through thick and thin, over hill and dale. I have never seen central Washington like that before. It was me, and my car, for miles. I saw a hitchhiker and I felt so bad for not picking him up. I was probably the first car he had seen in hours. I was driving on county town roads, roads with names like “Sagebrush Blvd.” and “Northwest C Road”.
At first I was a little uneasy to be that far out alone. But I began to enjoy it. Turned the music up, drove fast and eventually reached some of the prettiest scenery I have seen in a long time. They say that central Washington is sculpted by a great flood that supposedly happened millions of years ago. The expanse is wide but it is broken up with tall, rocky ridges. So driving through it feels like you're driving through years of geological layers. I was half-way expecting a dinosaur to stir the dirt. Yeah, my imagination ran wild. It’s funny how that happens, especially when no one else is there to bring you back to reality.
The final few miles of solitude (before reaching a state highway!!) consisted of a steep, curvy grade into the Columbia River basin. It was beautiful. I was glad to see more cars on the road, but slightly sad to be leaving my solitude in the dust (literally).
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