Feb 10- 17 Oregon Coast.

Feb 10 Oregon Coast
  We have decided to camp all the way up the coast of Oregon as far as Astoria.  It is a gorgeous coastline with pine forests and sand dunes along the way.  Small fishing villages offer great stops for lunch or a morning coffee for very interesting people watching and the occasional cannabis shops with names like Buds4U and Harvest Mood Cannabis!

I will continually update this particular post and list our campsites and trails along the way.

The weather on the coast of Oregon is warm, sunny with a few showers.  This has been a very atypical winter for this area. Serious drought conditions exist in all of the northwest.

•  Feb 10-11: The State Parks are beautiful and provide hiking trails all along the coastal region.  We are spending two nights at Bullards Beach then slowly move up the coast.   This particular State Park was the best we have been in so far on our trip, clean hot water showers, green grass to set up our picnic dinners, and extremely well maintained and marked trails. This is only the second day in 3 months that we have any rain. 
• Feb 12: Suislaw National Parks and Land Services: This is a very wooded area with electricity, but  no water, no bathrooms or showers this time of the year.  It is hard to imagine this is winter with temperatures in the mid 50’s.  We hiked a short trail through a pine forest to the dunes. (Sunshine all day). 
• Feb 14 Valentines Day.  We spent the night at the Inn at Nye Beach. We had a lovely room overlooking the beach. Mark arranged a great dinner celebration at the Clear Water restaurant near the Aquarium.  It was a valentines special with rose petals on the table and a glass of champagne.  Unfortunately the day was saddened by another school shooting in Florida.  The horror of these events will not end until something is done about gun control. 
• Feb15. We are continuing our drive north on 101. The Oregon Coast is spectacular and I am so glad we have the time to explore it slowly. This morning we woke up to full double rainbow over the ocean. It was a ray of brilliant color on the morning following such sadness in Florida. 
• Feb 16:  Cape Lookout State Park. This particular state park was exceptionally beautiful.  It was such a pleasure to have running hot water in the showers.  The spaces were large and had been freshly mowed.  The walking trails around the park were beautiful and well maintained.  The entire Oregon coast line is ruggedly beautiful. 
•  We have traveled the entire 362 miles of the Oregon coast on route 101 and have enjoyed almost every scenic view along the way. From the Northern California coastline to the Washington border, every part of the Oregon coast is an experience in natural wonders, from massive sand dunes, forests of Douglas Fir trees and a very cold ocean with huge beaches, some sandy, some rocky but none are swimmable because of the very cold water.  There are small Oceanside farms, lighthouses, bustling harbors,  fishing villages, and exceptional state parks and hiking trails.