Tubing in Eugene, OR - Day 9

If I asked you at what temperature water is bearable to swim in, what would you say? Maybe 65, possibly 50 degrees? Well, I just found out that it's all relative to what your accustomed to. Most folks in the northwest are cool with swimming in water that's a bit colder than what folks who live in the southeast part of the U.S. are used to.

Carmel and I spent the night here in Eugene, OR (about 2 hours south of Portland) with her lifelong friend Lorie. We just got done going tubing on the Willemette River. It was AWESOME! Lorie and Carmel have been friends since kindergarten. Lorie has been amazingly hospitable and kind to us. Even though I've only known her for a brief time, she strikes me as a genuine true person, unafraid of who she is, and free to let those around her see her just as she is. That type of honesty and transparency is rare. I can definately see why Carmel has remained close to her over the years even with the distance between them. She has impeccable taste in friends.

We're about to head up to Portland for our last dinner together. I can hardly believe this road trip is almost at it's end. Time flies when your having this much fun.