Monday, September 19

We’ve landed in Oregon.  We’re at the beach and the sun is shining.  What a difference a little light can make in one’s mood. 

A quick stop at Cannon Beach Overlook convinced us that we are in the right place.  There was a little haze (fog) but the sun is burning that away quickly.  That’s Jane walking back to the rig with a smile on her face.  We really were getting weary of the Washington weather – fog fog fog, and rain. 

We’re in a state park on the beach – Nehalem Bay State Park, just a few miles south of Manzanita.  This will be base camp for exploration both to the south and back up 101 where we just came from.  We only paid for two nights here but are already considering another day or two.

A nice lunch and we were off on another adventure.  We first drove through the tiny town of Manzanita, looking for propane.  Nada!  Then on to Cannon Beach – the town.  There really is a beautiful town surrounding the beach and the world famous “Haystack.”

If you didn’t know already, the Haystack is one of the most photographed sea stacks along the Pacific Coast.  I think Cannon Beach (the town) is here because of the haystack and the group of smaller sea stacks along the beach.  It is the big rock at left, center.  You can just make out the town of Cannon Beach in the background. 

Ed Note: Click on the image for a larger view.

We didn’t find propane in Cannon Beach either.  Since we were so close to Ecola State Park, and there was a lighthouse view there as well as a great view of Cannon Beach, we paid the $5 entrance fee and drove in.

The view point for the above photograph is from the Ecola Point viewing area.  We spent some time there but had to drive another mile or so to Indian Head Beach for a view of the lighthouse.  After learning that the lighthouse is still more than a mile out to sea, I chose not to hike the mile or so round trip.  Jane did and said it was a good view of the lighthouse.

I stayed at Indian Head Beach, photographing a bunch of surfers and waiting for the sunset.  Indian Head is a very popular spot for surfers.  The group that I met had driven down from Canada for the surf.  The image to the left is one of the guys just learning to surf.

I continued to wait for Jane to finish her hike and wondering if she was going to make it back before sunset.  She did but barely.  I was already composing and exposing for the perfect sunset.  I wonder if there is any such animal.

Anyway, this is one that I like, mostly because of the backlighting on the crashing waves.  I took bunches trying to get the spray with the light coming through it.

We left there just as the sun was setting, heading for Seaside to find some propane.  After searching all over Montana and Washington for Elk, an entire herd crossed the road right in front of the truck.  I had to stop for them.  The big bull himself was the last to cross.  Very exciting.  But, too dark for a picture.

Nothing seems very far here.  Seaside is a short drive from Cannon Beach.  As a matter of fact, our entire drive from Ilwaco, Washington to our campsite in Nehalem Bay was less than three hours.  The compactness of the area makes it less expensive to drive both north and south to explore.

We found propane in Seaside and noticed several, what seemed to be, nice seafood restaurants that need reconnoitering.  We’re saving that for another visit.

It was well after dark when we got to the trailer.  Jane popped a couple of TV Dinners into the microwave and I downloaded and browsed through the images of the day’s adventures.  We’ll  plan tomorrow’s adventure tomorrow.

Tuesday Morning…

We slept late (again) and woke up with no plan.  Jane asked me but I had nothing to offer.  She suggested driving back to Cannon Beach and exploring the town (shopping ).  I drank some coffee.  Jane made breakfast.  The plan was set.  I packed camera gear and computer.  A Seaside McDonald’s lunch break was added.  Gotta have that internet fix.

I took a few images of the coastline from the Neahkahnie Mountain overlook.  Not great pictures in mid-day light but the point is how impressive West Coast beaches are.  We both had comments about how different the beach is from Texas beaches.  And the waves are huge.

We explored Hug Point on the way to Cannon Beach.  It has some nice subject matter for sunset/sunrise and seascapes.  We walked the beach and met a lady photographing the beach and her family using film.  That led to a short but interesting conversation.  And to our discovery that we had read the tide tables backwards.  We nearly got wet.

We pulled into the Tolovano Beach area of Cannon Beach and got a closer view of Haystack Rock.  It was high noon.  I didn’t bother with a photograph.  A little bickering later we drove on to Seaside for lunch and an entertaining group of old men who argued about every subject that came up.  McDonald’s is their gathering place.  They were hilarious. 

I got my internet fix (just a short one to check email and stock sales).  Our visit was well timed.  McDonald’s was having a “buy one get one FREE” sale.  We had two Big Mac meals for less than six dollars.

Seaside doesn’t seem to have as much to offer as Cannon Beach.  Plus, I wanted to see what was down the road in Tillamook.  Most of the small towns between Nehalem and Tillamook are less touristy.  It is mostly serious fishing and seafood markets, with a few Fresh Seafood Restaurants thrown in. 

We did stop in Rockaway Beach for some souvenir shopping.  Jane also discovered a really nice wood carving shop.  I had never heard of Myrtle Wood but learned that it is a local specialty.  The place we stopped was The Myrtle Wood Outlet.  There were lots of other types of wood and some very artistic carvings.  But what really got my attention was the Myrtle Wood Putters.  If I still played golf, I probably would have bought one. 

We were not well prepared and missed the most interesting part of Tillamook – the highway 131 loop.  Now, I am debating if we should return – before driving through with the trailer behind us?

We got back to the trailer at a decent hour and walked down to the Nehalem Bay Beach, which just a few minutes from our trailer.  It was quiet and peaceful but the rugged shoreline of the area is not so rugged at Nehalem.  But, I like the dunes and sea grass.  I may get a few sunrise pictures there tomorrow?

We’ve extended our stay another day, planning now to leave on Thursday.  Depending on our mood, the weather and interesting photo sites, we may extend again?

Thursday, September 22…

We left.  We’re still on the coast, in South Beach State Park, just a hundred miles south of Cannon Beach.  We’re moving shorter distances and making our stays shorter, trying to see more of the things that we have to miss when pulling the trailer. 

We did a lot after disconnecting.  We drove to the Yaquina Bay State Park and Lighthouse and walked out on the beach.  It was foggy, making photography difficult again.  There is just NO contrast on a foggy day.

The beach at Yaquina Bay is huge.  And, it is beneath a tall cliff that you have to hike down to get to the huge beach.  There are steps built into the cliff but you also have to climb up from the beach.  The beach is bare sand dunes.  It is a long walk to water over rolling hills of soft sand.  We had watched a show about life in the tide pools and Jane was wanting to see for herself.  There were no tide pools.  We later learned that they are at Yaquina Head State Park – not Yaquina Bay.

We drove in and toured the City of Newport.  It is a quaint but very active fishing village; said to be the largest fishing community on the Oregon Coast.  On a jetty that blocks the waves from the harbor is a large community of seals.  We could hear them barking.  It was so loud that I thought the Undersea Gardens, a local tourist attraction, was broadcasting the sound over a PA system.  Nope!  It was live. 

I was taking pictures of the boats and harbor when Jane yelled frantically for me to come see.  Again, fog killed the contrast but it was fun watching the seals – and hearing them.  The bridge lost in the fog was designed by a famous architect (according to the literature).  That name is a fuzzy to me as that bridge is in the picture.

We really enjoyed the drive through Newport and Jane made note of all the seafood restaurants that looked good to her.  Her favorites are the ones that leave the doors open for the flies to come in. 

We were headed north up 101, back the way we came from, to see the sights we had noted on the way past.  Depoe Bay is an interesting town.  Main Street is Highway 101.  Storefronts are along one side of the highway – the ocean on the other.  There is parking along the Bay for tourist to marvel at powerful waves crashing against the rocky coast.  Often, the waves crash hard enough to splash high above the highway.

We pulled off into several overlooks and viewing areas.  One of the most mentionable was Devil’s Punchbowl State Park.  I wish now that I had taken a photograph.  The fog had discouraged me so that I had started leaving the camera in the truck.  The rock formations at Devil’s Punchbowl are whatever word you can think of for amazing.  Jane described it pretty well.  The Southwest (or Monument Valley) in the ocean.

We finally made it to Yaquina Head State Park and its really nice lighthouse.  It was nearly sunset, however and the ranger at the entrance warned us that we had only a few minutes.  I grabbed a camera and practically ran to the lighthouse.  Jane stayed back and read about the Tide Pools.  That will be tomorrow’s adventure.  This lighthouse reminds me of so many others.  I will try tomorrow to get a better angle.

It was late, after dark.  That always mean we eat out.  Fortunately, we knew it would be late and Jane had already chosen our restaurant.  And, it was delicious.  Seafood in a fishing village can’t be beat.

This chapter has exceeded a reasonable word count.  Rather than edit, I’ll just close in the middle.  More,

l8r

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