High: Lovely hikes in Yosemite; great food and fun in San Francisco ; Powell’s Bookstore in Portland

Low: Pervasive drug addiction and homelessness crisis in West Coast cities

Surprise: Two beautiful drives: one was the last section between San Francisco and Yosemite at sunset; and the other, a calm drive between Portland, OR and Port Angeles, WA, including Olympic National Park.  Also good food on Amtrak!