From South Dakota, almost no matter where you want to go on the west coast google will route you through Spokane since that part of 90 is the most straight forward way to get through the mountains. This is fine with me since I have a good friend in Spokane AND I think Spokane is lovely. It was great timing because we got to see the Northern Lights, which was another item off the bucket list. We wanted to hit up Portland last year but it just didn’t work out, so we made sure to swing through this year. I was a little apprehensive because you hear so much about the crime and drugs, but I never had a problem. It was very strange, there are tents and ragged looking RVs just parked along the side of the road and under bridges and such, but not that many homeless people around. I liked Portland, but I feel like maybe it tries a little too hard to be different. One thing is for sure, it’s a beautiful city with interesting architecture, tons of trees, and lots of quirky spots to check out. Also, it has the best pinball scene of any place we’ve been so far.
