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with distance between us the dust filled our noses and covered our gear , making zippers and buckles hard to open and close . We planned to camp every night , but it didn ’ t work out that way , to our surprise and benefit .
During our five days on the OBDR , we experienced a steady stream of good luck . We enjoyed mostly warm , dry weather and had no flat tires , breakdowns or injuries . Rather than eating jerky and energy bars for lunch , we usually found a café in a small town where we ’ d refresh ourselves with air conditioning , limitless iced tea and other luxuries , and there was always a gas station nearby to fill up and resupply . During the three nights we camped , there was either a cool stream or a lake we could swim in to wash off the dust and relax our creaky joints . On our second day on the OBDR , after a challenging , tiring section with lots of sand and rocks , we ended up in the town of Christmas Valley , where the Lakeview Terrace motel / restaurant spoiled us with cheeseburgers , fries , cold beers , hot showers and soft beds . Even when we had to leave the OBDR to route around the 1,000-acre Vinegar Fire , we got to ride 50 miles on the freshly paved Blue Mountain Scenic Byway and ended up in Ukiah on a damp , foggy night . Instead of pitching tents and eating freeze-dried meals in the rain , we stayed warm and dry at the Antlers Inn
Left : Antlers Inn in Ukiah , which has a room-size meat cooler to store your game . Above : Chris ran the Antlers Inn and served us at the Thicket Café & Lounge , where she recommended an Oregondistilled whiskey .