Looking North Into Busy, High Speed Traffic, Commercialized & Cluttered-Up US-97.
….Although The ZMM Narrator’s Journey South On This Road Was At Dusk, My Trip (and Photos) Are At Mid Day.

….[ “ I watch the cars go by for a while on the highway. Something lonely about them. Not lonely—worse. Nothing. Like the attendant’s expression when he filled the tank. Nothing. A nothing curb, by some nothing gravel, at a nothing intersection, going nowhere. … “ ]
….“ Something about the car drivers too. They look just like the gasoline attendant, staring straight ahead in some private trance of their own. … “ (Cont.Next)

Main Drag, Central Redmond, OR.
….As has been mentioned in previous photos, the ZMM Narrator fails to mention places he doesn’t like, such as tourist attractions and towns.
….AND, as you can see in the above photo, there are plenty good reasons why the Narrator neglects to mention Redmond, OR (Similar reasons apply to the previously unmentioned, traffic bustling town of Prineville, OR.)
..****************.. “

…DATE-LINE: July 8 2021. by Henry Gurr.
AN EXAMINATION OF THE REASONS FOR => THE ABRUPT 90 DEGREE TURN SOUTH AT PRINEVILLE JUNCTION?

If You Look At A Road Map (Or Satellite View Such As Blue Link Previous Photo), You Will See That The Narrator’s Travel Has Been Directly West Ever Since Baker City, OR And Approximately West Ever Since Bozeman, MT. So ... If Seeing Crater Lake (Or A Shorter Route To California) Was In Robert Pirsig’s Original Plans, Then Maps Show Shorter, Higher Riding Quality Roads, To Crater Lake.
….Now, Since The Narrator Did Not Take These, Then We Must Conclude There Must Have Been, In Reality, A Sudden Change Of Narrator’s Plans, Back At Prineville Junction, OR.
….As fully discussed in the Previous 6 Photos, the Narrator took the “Crooked River Route” (O'Neil Highway, Rt-370). This back-country, narrow, low traffic, scenic road, away from bustling high-speed traffic, certainly is consistent with the Narrator’s desire to take the lesser traveled “by-ways”. There, he choose a scenic Rt-370, low-traffic highway, to go West from Prineville, OR, to Prineville Junction, OR, thus avoiding the faster, more high speed traffic on the more recently constructed Rt-126, which goes directly between the major cities of Prineville, OR and Redmond, OR.

All This Is Very Reasonable Until We Trace The ZMM Route West On A Map =>
….We find Pirsig and Chris making a bee-line West through Central Oregon, essentially on US-26, as may be seen on a Road Map (Or Satellite View Such As Blue Link Previous Photo).
….Seeing this “bee-line West through Central Oregon”, we would expect the Narrator to continue essentially West to the Pacific Ocean.
This Is Supported By =>
….Pirsig (The Narrator) was quite keen on reaching the Pacific Coast. Saying for example =>
..1) At Klamath Lake Roadhouse, Narrator says ”… could have gotten to the ocean much quicker by another route.” AND
..2) In Chapter 29, upon arriving at the Pacific, the narrator remembers, "this was our great goal all these days.”
NOW … This Is Further Supported By =>
..3) Author Robert Pirsig’s own Pre 1959 Proposed Road Trip Routes of Travel, going essentially West to the Pacific Ocean, by the Columbia River, and then following Coast Highways to San Francisco. This was essentially an “On A Map Draft of A Possible Trip Out West”, => Marked Out With Felt Tip Marker By Pirsig Himself On A 1951 National Geographic USA Wall Map Well Before His Actual 1968 trip.
..4) In Addition => There must have been, in reality, a last minute change of plans at Prineville Junction, OR, since there are plenty of other good (and perhaps better), low traffic byways to Crater Lake, which was evidently the Narrator’s chosen goal. (For the following, look at your map.)
….Given the Narrator’s criterion, an obvious choice (with shorter total physical distance), would be to travel the High Riding Quality, secondary roads & “scenic by-ways” that have long stretches of low traffic. … For example, at town of John Day OR, turning South off US-26. where you see back-country roads, shown as “small black lines” on my Rand-McNally Maps. These eventually angle over to Bend, OR, avoiding many miles of high trafficked main highways and the bustling, detestable city of Redmond, OR, and perhaps even parts of Bend, OR.
To Read More On This Topic And Learn Why The Abrupt Turn South, Click Here.

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Busy Four Lane Highway. View North Back Towards Redmond

….“They look just like the gasoline attendant, staring straight ahead in some private trance of their own. I haven’t seen that since . . . since Sylvia noticed it the first day. They all look like they’re in a funeral procession. .. Once in a while one gives a quick glance and then looks away expressionlessly, as if minding his own business, as if embarrassed that we might have noticed he was looking at us. I see it now because we’ve been away from it for a long time. The driving is different too. The cars seem to be moving at a steady maximum speed for in-town driving, as though they want to get somewhere, as though what’s here right now is just something to get through. The drivers seem to be thinking about where they want to be rather than where they are. .. “ (Cont.Next)

North Side Of Bend, OR. After having traveled the unpopulated, remote “back-country’ for most of the ZMM Route, and especially since Missoula, MT, the intense, busy traffic of US-97, of the four lane undivided main highway South from Redmond, OR, is indeed a sudden slap in the face!!
….As I stood by this intense, insane, high speed, busy 4 lane highway, I could feel real fear!! The fact that I had the sturdy guard rail between me and all that vicious traffic was no comfort. My heart was racing and I had the almost un-bearable panic urge "I've got to get out of here!!”
. At this location, no matter how long I waited, I could not get a vehicle-free photo, of this road. So, I had to settle for fewer than ordinary of these speeding of cars to get this photo.
….Although, I tried to wait for a lull in the traffic to get this, and the next two photos, as you can see, even the lulls had very, very, intense traffic!!
….The traffic on this road was bad for the Narrator years ago in 1968, and it was much, much, worse for me in 2002!

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Busy Four Lane Highway. View South (Forward) Towards La Pine.

….“I know what it is! We’ve arrived at the West Coast! We’re all strangers again! Folks, I just forgot the biggest gumption trap of all. The funeral procession! The one everybody’s in, this hyped-up, fuck-you, supermodern, ego style of life that thinks it owns this country. We’ve been out of it for so long I’d forgotten all about it.“ (Cont.Next)

North Side of Bend, OR. My Rand McNally Road Map (RMcN) marks as a “Scenic Route” US-97 South of Redmond, OR, all the way to the North entrance to Crater Lake National Park and beyond.
..****************..>
Continuation Of Previous Topic => Narrator's Choice Of A "Bad" Route Through Redmond, OR On This Intense, Insane, High Speed, Busy 4 Lane Highway!
….On the 2nd Photo Previous, I pointed out that there are far better travel routes, than the Narrator's route South, which took him along the insanely busy 4 lane highway shown /\ Above /\ Photo.
….Because this highway did not meet his usual criterion, we make a => Hypothesis: Perhaps The Narrator’s ORIGINAL Plan Was To Continue To Travel Generally West From Prineville Junction, OR Through The Mountainous Three Sisters Wilderness Area Of Central Oregon. He Then Could Follow A Combination Of The Various Secondary Roads West To The Oregon Pacific Coast.
….However at Prineville Junction, OR the fatigue and discouragement plus bad dreams and the fear of return of insanity were so intense, the Narrator abruptly decided to switch to a shorter, less time consuming route to California coast. And as we learn in ZMM, to do so as fast as possible, and thus end his responsibility for Chris in San Francisco, before anything worse happened.
…Also, an “on the spot”, immediate “mind changer” may have been this => As shown on paper road maps such as Robert Pirsig would have been carrying, there are no evident roads continuing directly West from Prineville Junction at US-97. The nearest good road is Rt-242, which involves first going South for ~10 miles. This would force a “right here” 90 degrees turn South, which may have been perhaps enough to precipitate a hasty decision => “Keep Going South”
….More evidence for a hasty choice may be seen in the Narrator’s admission, later on (page 313) at the rundown but good food restaurant at Klamath Lake: “As we eat I see on the map we’ve taken a wrong turn way back and could have gotten to the ocean much quicker by another route.“.
….The above-mentioned “The Narrator’s ORIGINAL Plan” ALSO happens to fit a route, traced by black felt tip marker, on a National Geographic USA Wall Map given to me by John Sutherland. Sutherland, who said the map had originally been Mr. Pirsig’s.
….This Map is fully discussed in 2nd Photo Previous, but here is a REPEAT that discussion =>
….Author Robert Pirsig’s own Pre 1959 Proposed Road Trip Routes of Travel, going essentially West to the Pacific Ocean, by the Columbia River, and then following Coast Highways to San Francisco. This was essentially an “On A Map Draft of A Possible Trip Out West”, => Marked Out With Felt Tip Marker By Pirsig Himself On A 1951 National Geographic USA Wall Map Well Before His Actual 1968 trip.

Continued on next photo.

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The Trucks Just Roar On By In the Crowded Stream of Traffic!

….“We get into the stream of traffic going south and I can feel the hyped-up danger close in. I see in the mirror some bastard is tailgating me and won’t pass. I move it up to seventy-five and he still hangs in there. Ninety-five and we pull away from him. I don’t like this at all.“ (Cont.Next)

Entering Bend, OR. About the traffic, I must agree with the Narrator, having been there! I especially remember my intense experience while standing by this highway and trying to take my eight photos for a panorama!
..****************..
NEW TOPIC:
….Ever since before Prineville, OR, the Oregon landscape views include huge volcanic cones in all directions. Thirty miles to the West and a bit North of this location, unmentioned by the Narrator, are several close together and beautiful, snow covered, very high volcanic cones called The Three Sisters.
….You can see these in my Panorama Photo Gallery =>
Right Click and Open In A New Tab: AFTER This Panorama Photo Comes Up, ClickDrag The SlideBar Below Photo Until You Get To Photo Right Edge, Whereupon You Will See The Beautiful, Snow Covered Volcanic Cones Called The Three Sisters.

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The Pine Tavern Is an Old and Venerable Oregon Institution.

….“At Bend we stop and have supper in a modern restaurant in which people also come and go without looking at each other. The service is excellent but impersonal.“ (Cont.Next)

Boutique Shopping Area, Looking Along Oregon Avenue From Wall Street Bend, OR. Wall Street, was once US-97 straight through this bustling town, and is where I stopped to look for the Narrator’s “ modern restaurant “.
….But, after looking around for 30 minutes, and not much finding any fit to the Narrator’s Restaurant, decided to settle for the /\ Above /\ Photo.

….Mr. Phil Rudy of Bend, OR, says =>
“The Pine Tavern is an age-old institution of this town. I’d wager that this location was a road house and tavern in the very earliest Pioneer Days of Oregon history.”
..****************..
….As you can imagine, the intensely forceful high speed traffic of US-97 originally straight through Central Downtown Bend, OR, eventually became impossible: There is now a .“ supermodern … hyped-up danger close in“, Four Lane Divided Bypass Expressway, 4 blocks to the East.

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(Photo = 113-1333c ...... ZMM Page = 294 ...... WayPt = 358w 3697ft)

Scrubby Trees Are Result of Very Little Rain and Deep, Deep, Layers of Nutrient Poor Volcanic Dust.

….“Farther south we find a forest of scrubby trees, …. “ (Cont.Next)

By US-97 Somewhere South of Bend, OR. The Narrator does not mention a huge volcanic cinder cone called Lava Butte that is 10 miles South of Bend, OR.
…..This volcanic wonder and wonderful tourist attraction, which dominates the local scenery for many a mile around, is along the West side of US-97. At the Entrance Drive, there is a big sign.
….This is immediately beside US-97 and might have cheered Chris up if they had stopped to see it AND climb up the road to the top!! Such would have been a good Father-Son activity!!
….However => Such natural wonders (i.e. tourist attractions, other than the road scenery) are mostly ignored in ZMM.
….In forthcoming photo, I say more about the Narrator’s tourist attraction dislikes at the turnoff to enter Crater Lake National Park.
..****************..

…. Lava Butte Is A Cinder Cone In Central Oregon, United States, just west of U.S. Route 97 between the towns of Bend, Oregon, and Sunriver, Oregon. It is part of a system of small cinder cones on the northwest flank of Newberry Volcano, a massive shield volcano which rises to the southeast. The cinder cone is capped by a crater which extends about 60 feet (20 m) deep beneath its south rim, and 160 feet (50 m) deep from the 5,020-foot (1,530 m) summit on its north side. Lava Butte is part of the Newberry National Volcanic Monument.
To Read This Wikipedia Article, With 3 Good Photos, Click Here.
..****************..

Satellite View Of Lava Butte. As Described Above This Satellite View (Image Data 2021), Shows The Lava Lands Visitor Center & Parking Lot. Zoom Out To See Cinder Cone.
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(Photo = 114-1406c ...... ZMM Page = 294 ...... WayPt = 358i ~4200. Photo at 375w 4771ft)

A Forest of Scrubby Trees Similar To Those Where the Narrator and Chris Likely Camped.

…. [ “ ….forest of scrubby trees, “ ] “ subdivided into ridiculous little lots. Some developer’s scheme apparently.“ (Cont.Next)

Somewhere North of, but close to, La Pine, OR.
..****************..
Where Is The Housing Development “With The Ridiculous Tiny Lots”? 2002 ZMM Research & Findings.
....From Bend, OR, while traveling South towards La Pine, OR, I traveled slower than usual, and closely studied the landscape on both sides of US-97 looking for any present-day evidence of these “ ridiculous little lots..“
….For many miles prior to La Pine, practically ALL of the land adjoining the highway is under the close control of the National Forest Service. No houses or businesses AT ALL!
….As I remember, the land visible from the highway, was fairly flat and, except for various private property, was covered with pine forest, dense enough to block vision at a depth of 30 feet into the forest. This flatness seemed to extend for at least a mile in all directions. The surrounding mountains were not high enough to be seen above the trees, as I drove

A Place That Might Qualify As The Narrator’s 1968 Campsite At “ Ridiculous Little Lots..“ Was A Semi Populated Area Centered Around A Major Side Road Along US-97, About 5 Miles North Of La Pine, OR.
.….This place was on a side road, as I remember it, and the only road, dirt or paved, for quite a distance prior to La Pine. OR. I remember there were buildings on the East side of US-97 in that immediate area. If there were any road (or drive) going East in this area, it is a minor road. In addition to other nearby private properties near that intersection, there is a fairly large mobile home park on the NW corner where the side road intersected with US-97.
….Judging from the general quality of the vegetation plus age of the mobile homes, this could well have been started earlier than 1968, and had mostly empty lots, because of a very slow rate of people moving into these sites. As is normal for most other trailer villages, it would eventually be … crowded side-by-side … Cheek by Jowl on Small Narrow Lots! (Continued next)
..****************..

…DATE-LINE: July 11 2021. by Henry Gurr.
(ChangesSinceRobertPirsig’s1968Trip), As Seen By HSG in 2002 & 2021.)
Starting with my above stated 2002 ZMM Research Findings, I studied Google Satellite for the Narrator’s “ridiculous little lots“, and found a very likely candidate, 5.8 miles North of La Pine, OR. This Satellite View Shows => My (Henry Gurr’s) Best Finding As To => Where Is The Housing Development” With The Ridiculous Tiny Lots“
….The RedPinpoint, marks => “Cascade Meadows RV Resort”, AND as you can see in the Satellite View (Image Data 2021), these “lots” are indeed small, because it is for Camping Trailers, rather than a Mobil Home Trailer Park, or a Housing Development. (GPS Coordinates are in the Blue Link. ))

PostScript:
….You see that my above statement (from memory and research paper notes back in 2002), of where I had seen these lots back in 2002, is mostly correct, except the lots are in the SE on the SE corner where the side road intersected with US-97, rather than the NW corner:

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(Photo =113-1390b ...... ZMM Page = 294 ...... WayPt = 358i2 ~4219ft. Photo at 372k 4912ft)

Although Balmy Now, It Will Cool Off With the Passing Hours =>
….Making Frost Next Morning.

….“ At one of the lots far off the main highway we spread out our sleeping bags …. “ (Cont.Next)

5.8 Miles North of La Pine, OR.
..****************..
Continued From Previous Photo =>
….Where Is The Housing Development “With The Ridiculous Tiny Lots”? 2002 and 2021 ZMM Research & Findings.
....As stated in Previous Photo => While traveling South from Bend, OR towards La Pine, OR back in 2002, I traveled slower than usual, and closely studied the landscape on both sides of US-97, looking for any present-day evidence of these “ ridiculous little lots“, and found a candidate….But at the time, back in 2002, I was not sure, so I did not take a photograph (nor make a GPS record), because I thought better candidates would be "On Down the Highway".
.… I was wrong … But by the time I realized this, it was too late, and too many miles to go back. And what’s worse, my memories & notes were not good enough, to pinpoint the location, when it came time to post these photos of my ZMM Research.
….My ZMM Research Continued In La Pine, OR, Where I Talked To Practically Everyone I Saw.
….I asked about the history of the town’s only restaurant, and the adjacent gas station, and probed into the Narrator’s “subdivided into ridiculous little lots. Some developer’s scheme apparently.“
….An elderly couple I talked to remembered when a new US-97 was put in. Considering that the Narrator may have traveled that older road, now called Huntington Road, they remembered campsite possibilities that may have been along it, perhaps near the intersection of Burgess Rd.
….Along Huntington Road, Topozone map Shows =>
…1) More housing developments South & North of, but were full sized lots.
…2) There is a mobile home place 9/10 mile North of Burgess Rd, but it seems unlikely the Narrator would have turned off of US-97 to go that way.
To View TopoZone Topographic (Topo) Map Centered on the Restaurant In La Pine, OR => Right Click And Open In A New Tab. =>
….After Map View Comes Up, You Will See an AWFUL Clutter of Adverts That Are Impossible To Eliminate => YOU BEST SHOULD =>
….Use Scroll Bar At Far Right => Adjust Green Topo Map Until You See JUST BELOW The Plus&Minus Upper Left. => A ClickOn For “Full Screen”. Click on it, and in ~40 seconds the screen will fill and Adverts Will Be GONE. =>
….Then use Plus&Minus To Zoom. You can “Click&Drag” Map In Any Direction to See More Off Your Screen Edges.
..****************..
Continued From Previous Photo =>
…DATE-LINE: July 11 2021. by Henry Gurr.
(ChangesSinceRobertPirsig’s1968Trip) As Seen By HSG in 2002 & 2021.)
….In the Previous Photo, I mentioned how I was able to find the “Cascade Meadows RV Resort” by studying a Satellite View for “a likely candidate” for The Narrator’s “ subdivided into ridiculous little lots. Some developer’s scheme apparently.“ From this, I was able to give an Internet Link to it, so you could also see what it looked like.
….But, Back In ~2004 When I Was Originally Posting These Photos Of My ZMM Research, I Was UN-Able To Actually Find The “Cascade Meadows RV Resort” , because I only had Topozone Maps, and my Memories & Research Paper Notes.
….But, now-a-days with Google Satellite Views, in retrospect, finding the Narrator’s “ ridiculous little lots“ was rather easy, requiring about 20 minutes once I got going.
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(Photo = 113-1389cb ...... ZMM Page = 294 ...... WayPt = 358i3 ~4219ft. Photo at = 372w 4912ft)

Very Fine, Soft Dust That Sticks to Everything.

….“ …. and discover that the pine needles just barely cover what must be many feet of soft spongy dust. I’ve never seen anything like it. We have to be careful not to kick up the needles or the dust flies up over everything. .. We spread out the tarps and put the sleeping bags on them. That seems to work. “ (Cont.Next)

5.8 Miles North of La Pine, OR. I found this dust several places in Oregon, exactly as described by the Narrator. The first place was at the Lava Lands Visitor Center just South of Bend, OR. The 2nd and 3rd places were some 55 travel miles further South, at the Coral Springs Campground (where I stayed overnight), and then some 29 miles further South, at the entrance to Crater Lake National Park.

In This General Area, Widely Spaced, Short Scrubby Pines Seemed To Be An Indicator Of This Especially Deep Dust. In This Same Area, The Gravel Along The Road, As Seen In My Photographs, Was Brick Red Volcanic Cinders.
….I hypothesize that vehicles will bog down and get stuck easily in the soft spongy volcanic dust. Hence the necessity for the red volcanic cinders, seemingly the only available substitute for gravel or hard packed earth.
….I imagine that the red volcanic cinders must likewise be used to make a stable road bed under the asphalt pavement.
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Sunset Illuminates A Flying Saucer Shaped Cloud.

….“Chris and I talk for a while about where we are and where we are going. I look at the map in the twilight, and then look at it some more with the flashlight. We’ve covered 325 miles today. That’s a lot. Chris seems as completely tired as I am, and as ready as I am to fall asleep. “
….(End ZMM Chapter. 26 & End ZMM Part III.)

5.8 Miles North of La Pine, OR. Here we should pause to note carefully => In the above ZMM Passage, suddenly in a change of behavior, the Narrator helpfully talks to Chris. Is this because, concurrent with the decision at Prineville Junction, OR to turn 90 degrees to the South, he also decided to try to treat Chris better? This also fits his decision to show Chris Crater Lake, and being nice to Chris despite this being a Tourist Attraction!
..****************..

YOU HAVE NOW COMPLETED THE PHOTOS FOR ZMM PART III.
..****************..

The Photos For ZMM Part IV Continue In The Next Album.
….The Next Album is where you will find Photos for ZMM Part IV, where you will see 264 photos illustrating how the ZMM Narrator and Chris leave their camp spot just North of La Pine, OR, and continue through Oregon into Northern California, then along the California Pacific Coast to San Francisco. And, just before they cross the Golden Gate Bridge. This is the end of ZMM Book, and their apparent journey end.
Click Here, And AFTER This Page of 4 SubAlbums Comes Up =>Click On FOURTH Album = ZMM Part IV,
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ALTERNATIVE PHOTO GALLERY NAVIGATION;
….In this Photo Gallery => At any time, you can click on one of the several Blue Links at upper right. This will take you successively to higher Album “Levels”, where you can then click on where you want to go.
..****************..

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(Photo = 113-1393c ...... ZMM Page = 294 ...... WayPt = 358i5 ~4219ft. Photo at = 371w ~4912ft = Corral Spring Campground, Oregon 97733 (GPS 43.253492, -121.822373 ) = HSG Camp July 4, 2002 = Previous 3 photos are at same location. )

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