Eugene, the Emerald City

Jill's Journal: We moved yesterday to Eugene or what Rob calls Eureka. He doesn’t mean to do it and it must be the same combination of beginning letters, but every time he has meant to say Eugene in the last two weeks, he has accidentally said Eureka. It's become something of a joke with us. Now, we had a great time in Eureka, but we want to move forward, not backward, so I double-checked we were pointed north and not south when we left Grants Pass.

Even up a major freeway like the 5, Oregon scenery is green and gorgeous. There are mountains and trees everywhere, with plenty of rivers and blue skies thrown in for good measure. It is absolutely lovely.

Our campground is quiet and peaceful, which is so welcome after our time in Grants Pass. Our spot there was adjacent to what felt like the noisiest freeway onramp in the country. Mufflers must not be a popular accessory in Oregon.

Eugene is known as “The Emerald City” or “The Emerald Empire.” If the lushness around our campground is any indication, we’ll be soaking up a lot of beautiful sights over the next week.