When you’re traveling north or south on I-5 near Rogue River, Oregon, you might want to take exit 45B. When you turn to the right at the stop sign, you enter Valley of the Rogue State Park. Turn left and you enter a rest area. The sound of the Rogue River accompanies the beautiful treed surroundings. There are clean restrooms, a place to walk your pet, a soda machine, a candy machine and wi-fi for a fee. No overnight camping is permitted but it’s worth a spending a few hours enjoying nature just off the freeway.

Leave it to the fair-sex navigator to spot the signs a mile away: “Hey! There’s a fruit stand!” Sure enough, coming up on the side of the road was an old 4-bay garage turned produce market. The multicolored sign proclaimed just some of nature’s delicious offerings that could be purchased.

Yes, dotting the countryside are those wonderful little independent vendors who proffer their produce prodigiously. But don’t be piqued, the season is almost kaput. As autumn rushes in on us, the farmers are begining to drag in the last of it. In fact, in the Oregon onion fields, all that’s left is the scent and a few husks of what used to be.

Oh intrepid travelers with a taste for fresh fruits, dither not. Find a fruit stand afore it’s too late. This one is at the east end of The Dalles, Oregon.

If you’re headed north or south on I-5 and are near Salem, take the turnoff for Keizer and go east to Silverton. Silverton Road will lead you directly to old downtown Silverton with its many murals.

The Oregon Garden is three blocks from the Silver Spur RV Park and less than one mile from downtown. Also nearby is Silver Falls State Park, the largest state park in Oregon.

Next week is Oktoberfest but I won’t be here to share in the fun. However, the other sights in Silverton are available year round. You can spend a day here but take two so you can appreciate what this little town has to offer. Check out their website for more information: http://www.silvertonor.com/

Visitors to the Puget Sound area of Washington state looking for a fun way to spend a few hours or even a day might want to take “a poor man’s cruise” on a Washington State Ferry. There are about a dozen major routes to choose from, some as short as 15 minutes but some more than an hour. The two biggest urban routes leave Seattle and Edmonds (to the north), but the most scenic is from Anacortes to the pretty little town of Friday Harbor in the San Juan Islands. En route, the ship passes by isolated islands, some with a home or two. If you get lucky, you may see a pod of Orca Whales.

Walk on fares are inexpensive, ranging from about $4 to $13 round trip in peak season. Passengers only pay going west: the trip back is free. Vehicles, however are charged both ways. It might cost $25 to bring a car back and forth on a short trip, or up to about $75 on longer routes. RVs are charged extra if they are longer than 20 feet and also when their height exceeds 7 feet six inches. A ride from Edmonds on the mainland to Kingston on the Kitsap Peninsula would cost about $85 round trip on an RV between 20 and 30 feet that is higher than 7 feet six inches. A big rig RV sailing to and from the San Juan Islands might pay about $300 during the prime summer season (figure about 20 percent less in the off-season).

Most riders with vehicles leave them after boarding and head upstairs to lounges, the cafeteria and viewing areas. Grab a hamburger or some fish and chips in the cafeteria. Kids can play video games. And there’s always an extensive literature rack with good information about the destinations ahead.

It’s hardly ever a problem walking onto a ferry — there is always room. But driving on can involve a wait of an hour or two on Fridays and Sundays during the busy summer months.

The two-minute video clip here is of the trip from Edmonds to Kingston.

Learn more about the ferry including schedules and fares by visiting the Washington State Ferries website.