A Typical Day traveling with BIW

Left our Red Fish Lake campsite by 8am, and drove the 15 minutes to Stanley, ID, where we heard there was this terrific bakery with fabulous breakfasts.  All true!  What a way to start the day. 










Since we had almost 7 hours of driving ahead of us, when we passed the sign for Kirkham Hot Springs (only $2.50 with our Senior Pass), we had to pull in for a dip.  After some climbing on the rocks between pools, we found the perfect temperature hot springs to soothe our bodies.

Then on the road where we drove through some beautiful canyons, through barren Eastern Oregon, and the a stop at the city of John Day to check out the Kam Wah Chung State Heritage Site. 

History was that when gold was discovered in the 1860's, the town quickly filled up with prospectors.  Soon gold mines were dug and over 2,000 Chinese laborers arrived to help with the work.  Two very enterprising Chinese, Ing Hay and Lung On, moved to town to earn from this influx of their countrymen.  Ing Hay, a master of "pulse diagnosis" become the town doctor using his Chinese herbs to heal the sick, both the Chinese and the local townspeople.  Lung On, a merchant, opened a general store which also included a few beds for overnights, some gambling, and even opened the first Oldsmobile dealership in eastern Oregon.

The building where these two conducted their business was sealed after their deaths.  Reopened years later, all of the medicinal items, general store products, the furniture, and even the business journals were all intact.  This is a fascinating place.