Photos almost never capture the actual beauty, but yours did a pretty darn good job of showing just how fine your day was. The Union Hotel looks like a great place to say, despite the proprietor.

Good tan lines!

Flat #2 happened just before I climbed out of goathead country.

The only flat I've ever had while riding on Panaracer Tourgard Plus tires was caused by a goathead in eastern Oregon. Pesky little things!

When I rode the Lewis and Clark trail decades ago, I stopped at a roadside stand selling walla walla onions. They were available in 50 pound bags! I had fantasies of shipping a bag to my mother for the drive in movie theatre. I could imagine the look on her face!

If it was not for sunflowers, fall roadsides would be rather grim...

https://oregonflora.org/taxa/garden.php?taxon=5524

Nice old craftsman bungalow!

IDK if you have a Mexican grocery in your area. We have several. They are great to pop in and buy veggies on the way home. In our area, a meat counter is the main area. I like to buy what I call taco meat, which is stew meat chopped smaller. It's great in a variety of dishes, and is cheaper than any type of beef at the gringo grocery.

A touring bike and a movie theatre! Excellent.

That's got to be the most horses I've ever seen in a Cycleblaze journal entry! Great report!

I bet they serve mimosas any time of day.

I wonder if they serve mimosas?

Another observation about Pendleton. It's a high quality tourist destination that is NOT crowded with tourists.

Pendleton isn't the scenic highlight of the tour but it might be the cultural highlight. It's a great place to explore for people seeking unique local culture. Downtown Pendleton has basically no chain businesses and has authentic pioneer western culture that can only be found in a few places. If I was more energetic I could also see a tour of the Woolen Mill. And I somehow missed the Pendleton Round-Up and Happy Canyon Hall of Fame Museum even though I pedaled in front of it. Must have been distracted by traffic.
I'm not a huge fan of low desert but it adds variety to a tour that is mostly in greener high desert. This area resembles the Palouse. Golden stubble reveals every contour of the land. Green only in deep folds.

Knowing what I know now, I'd take a full day to explore Pendleton too. And I really might be touring in that area next time my wife and I visit her family in Spokane.