Feb 17th
We arrived in Astoria, Oregon late on a rainy afternoon only to discover that every hotel was booked due to a beer festival. The weather prediction was heavy rain for the next 2 days so we moved on to Ilwaco, Washington a small fishing town. It was quite run down with very little activity on the docks. We were tired and with the prediction of heavy rain and snow in some areas, we decided to stay for two nights and wait out the bad weather. The pounding rain continued through the night but by morning the rain had stopped and we were able to be on our way up the coast of Washington.
Route 101 continues to be the beautifully scenic Pacific Coast Highway. The geography of the Washington coast had been carved by glaciers during the last ice age and have created the rugged terrain that often falls sharply to the sea. There are many rivers, lakes and mountains that add to the dimension of the landscape. The weather is similar to springtime in Maine with temperatures in the 30’s and 40’s at night and up to 50 during the daytime. There is a fine layer of snow on the sides of the roads with Rhododendrons budding and some with pink blossoms. Grape Hyacinths have displayed their purple fragrant flowers and daffodil faces are smiling in the snow. The Douglas Firs stand 200 to 300 feet tall and completely dominate the landscape growing up the sides of the mountains creating lush deep green forests. There are areas of clear cutting where logging trucks carry away the huge red logs for manufacturing. This was sad to see but there were areas of new growth forests that were evidence of organized planting and conservation.
Oysterville is a small village on a thin peninsula of land just north of Long Beach. It consisted of summer homes that were exceptionally well maintained with lovely seaside gardens and reminded us of a west coast Little Diamond Island.
We continued our drive north to South Bend where we saw incredible surf with breakers crashing at least a mile out to sea at Shoalwater Bay. This area is home to the Shoalwater Bay tribe. Washington is home to many Native American tribes with designated reservation lands throughout the state. Evidence of Native art is everywhere and is most prominently seen in the many colorful totem poles.
Lake Quinault is situated at the southern end of the Olympic National Park and where we rented a cabin at the Olympic Rainforest Village. We ate our spaghetti dinner next to the fireplace with a bottle of red wine. It had snowed the night before leaving about 2 inches of new snow on the ground. Temperatures dropped below freezing at night but the next day was full sunshine and warm. We took a short walk and followed a sign to find the largest known Douglas Fir Tree. It stands 191 feet tall and is about 1000 years old. Magnificent beautiful tree!
Since the weather was warm and sunny, we made the decision to drive route 101 all around the Olympic National Park. The park is a natural rainforest and I believe the only one in north America. The area receives about 150 inches of precipitation a year making it lush, green and beautiful. Unfortunately, because it is winter, the campsites within the park were closed. There was significant snow in the higher elevations which was visible at a distance as we drove through the park. Mount Olympus is over 7900 feet with other nearby mountains around 6000 feet. We continued our drive around the Olympic Peninsula to Port Angeles, a lovely port town with a ferry to Victoria, Canada located just across the Strait of Juan de Fuca.
The mountains, snow, tall ferns, huge firs, fresh clean air and sunshine make this one of the most beautiful places I have ever been.
Monday, February 19, 2018
Sunday, February 11, 2018
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.
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.
Saturday, February 10, 2018
Feb. 8 Avenue of the Giants
Feb 8-9 Mendocino to the Avenue of the Giants
We left our beach camp around noon and headed north to Mendocino. This one time run down little coastal village sits on a point of land surrounded by the Pacific Ocean. In has been transformed to a charming Victorian town, complete with white fences and manicured seaside flower gardens. The homes have been restored to their original colors, mostly white, with typical ornate wood work of the Victorian era. It has new age art studios and a theatre for local performances and of course an organic market and coffee shop where we enjoyed our morning brew. The town has an upscale atmosphere while keeping the traditional style. It looks like it could be a west coast setting for an episode of “Murder She Wrote”.
Continuing on our way north, we entered the Avenue of the Giants. This route took us through the Humboldt State Park a protected home to a primeval Redwood Forest. Redwoods are coastal-northern California coast primarily. A tree that is often confused with the Redwood is the Sequoia which are inland on the western slope of the Sierra Nevada to the southern Sequoia National park. Although similar, they are two different trees. To say that the Redwoods are magnificent is an understatement. They tower over the landscape to over 300 feet, creating a bed of soft black earth on the forest floor. Their pine needles are small but plentiful filling the air with a moist fragrance of wood and pine. Moss and giant ferns are plentiful under these massive trees. Some of these trees were seedlings about 2000 years ago and are now the tallest trees on earth. There is a constant moisture in the air which provides a micro-climate of cool, damp air. During the day, the forest is particularly dark due to the height of the trees. The sunlight that does come through appears like a laser beam of light pointed to branches but rarely reaching the forest floor. There is a beautiful quietness to the forest providing a gentle peacefulness. John Muir’s quote: “The clearest way into the universe is through a forest wilderness.”
Humboldt State Park was open for camping but no services this time of the year . We were able to dry camp once again.
In the morning, we took a small hike through one of the designated trails. There were massive logs from fallen trees left to rot in place nourishing the soil for future trees. Once again, we are reminded of the importance to protect these beautiful natural landscapes. To spend time sleeping, eating and breathing the air in a Redwood forest is an honor and a privilege. We are grateful that the Redwoods National Park and Redwoods State Park services ensure protection and preservation of more than 105,000 acres of redwood forest.
Feb 9
We spent one more night in the Humboldt Park but at a different location, an Elk Reserve. This site was a very moist and damp environment with a thick moss covering most of the tree limbs. Although we were still in the Humboldt Park this was not an area of Redwoods but smaller pines and disiduous Trees. In the early evening we took a walk to the open grass area and spotted a small herd of grazing Roosevelt Elk.
After a few days of dry camping we are ready to find a campsite with shower services.
We left our beach camp around noon and headed north to Mendocino. This one time run down little coastal village sits on a point of land surrounded by the Pacific Ocean. In has been transformed to a charming Victorian town, complete with white fences and manicured seaside flower gardens. The homes have been restored to their original colors, mostly white, with typical ornate wood work of the Victorian era. It has new age art studios and a theatre for local performances and of course an organic market and coffee shop where we enjoyed our morning brew. The town has an upscale atmosphere while keeping the traditional style. It looks like it could be a west coast setting for an episode of “Murder She Wrote”.
Continuing on our way north, we entered the Avenue of the Giants. This route took us through the Humboldt State Park a protected home to a primeval Redwood Forest. Redwoods are coastal-northern California coast primarily. A tree that is often confused with the Redwood is the Sequoia which are inland on the western slope of the Sierra Nevada to the southern Sequoia National park. Although similar, they are two different trees. To say that the Redwoods are magnificent is an understatement. They tower over the landscape to over 300 feet, creating a bed of soft black earth on the forest floor. Their pine needles are small but plentiful filling the air with a moist fragrance of wood and pine. Moss and giant ferns are plentiful under these massive trees. Some of these trees were seedlings about 2000 years ago and are now the tallest trees on earth. There is a constant moisture in the air which provides a micro-climate of cool, damp air. During the day, the forest is particularly dark due to the height of the trees. The sunlight that does come through appears like a laser beam of light pointed to branches but rarely reaching the forest floor. There is a beautiful quietness to the forest providing a gentle peacefulness. John Muir’s quote: “The clearest way into the universe is through a forest wilderness.”
Humboldt State Park was open for camping but no services this time of the year . We were able to dry camp once again.
In the morning, we took a small hike through one of the designated trails. There were massive logs from fallen trees left to rot in place nourishing the soil for future trees. Once again, we are reminded of the importance to protect these beautiful natural landscapes. To spend time sleeping, eating and breathing the air in a Redwood forest is an honor and a privilege. We are grateful that the Redwoods National Park and Redwoods State Park services ensure protection and preservation of more than 105,000 acres of redwood forest.
Feb 9
We spent one more night in the Humboldt Park but at a different location, an Elk Reserve. This site was a very moist and damp environment with a thick moss covering most of the tree limbs. Although we were still in the Humboldt Park this was not an area of Redwoods but smaller pines and disiduous Trees. In the early evening we took a walk to the open grass area and spotted a small herd of grazing Roosevelt Elk.
After a few days of dry camping we are ready to find a campsite with shower services.
Feb. 7 Route 1 Continued
Feb 7. California Route 1
Driving north on the Pacific coast continues to be a visual wonder. Sea stacks with arches cut by water, wind, and time are seemingly set purposefully close to the shore line. Waves crash against these rock structures creating spectacular water sprays. From high cliffs we watched waves break and spread onto the shoreline like icing on a cake.
The cerulean blue of the ocean is clear, deep and dark. There are coastal coves cut sharply into the landscapes forming flat topped ocean mesas. Some are covered with a moss that is as green as Ireland.
Brown stained barnboard ranch homes are set overlooking the sea with fields dotted with black Angus cows grazing on fresh grass.
The Eucalyptus groves that frequent the drive combine their scent with the Douglas firs and salt air to invite a deep cleansing breath.
We drove a short distance today and settled into a small Park nestled under a bridge on a beach near Elk, California. We were the only visitors that night. A quiet night!
Driving north on the Pacific coast continues to be a visual wonder. Sea stacks with arches cut by water, wind, and time are seemingly set purposefully close to the shore line. Waves crash against these rock structures creating spectacular water sprays. From high cliffs we watched waves break and spread onto the shoreline like icing on a cake.
The cerulean blue of the ocean is clear, deep and dark. There are coastal coves cut sharply into the landscapes forming flat topped ocean mesas. Some are covered with a moss that is as green as Ireland.
Brown stained barnboard ranch homes are set overlooking the sea with fields dotted with black Angus cows grazing on fresh grass.
The Eucalyptus groves that frequent the drive combine their scent with the Douglas firs and salt air to invite a deep cleansing breath.
We drove a short distance today and settled into a small Park nestled under a bridge on a beach near Elk, California. We were the only visitors that night. A quiet night!
Feb 5-7 Route 1 North of San Francisco
Route 1
We had a sweet good-bye dinner with Mike following another gorgeous sunset at Pacific Grove. In the morning, we discovered that our rear view mirror had fallen off again. Mike was handy and able to fix it for us. He found an auto shop nearby and bought the required glue to hold it in place. The last time we had it fixed it cost $80.; this time the glue was $8.00, Mike’s cost “priceless”. This set us all about an hour behind our scheduled departure but it didn’t really matter that much to either of us.
Mark and I headed north on Route 1. It took us through the center of San Francisco on a beautiful sunny afternoon. We had lunch at the Cliff House overlooking San Francisco Bay and Seal Rocks where sea lions congregate. The last time I was there was 1960 with my parents. The views of the bay were still as beautiful as back then, but the restaurant had been renovated a few times since then. This was a wonderful memory of being in San Francisco.
The drive up the coast took us over the Golden Gate Bridge into Sausalito and soon out of the city. The coastline north of San Francisco on Route 1 hugs the rugged shoreline with sharp turns wrapping around high cliffs. About 30 years ago Mark and I spent 2 weeks along this very route. Back then, we spent our first night at a lodge overlooking steep cliffs from the hot tub off our deck. The lodge was located right off the road among a forest of Juniper trees. Raccoons were everywhere on the property lapping up the water from the hot tubs. Our room overlooked the sea, however, we could only hear it because of the heavy fog that night. We both have fond memories of that place, everything but the name of it or where it was!
Now, as we are driving the same route we thought we might be able to find that Inn and relive a wonderful memory. Once it was dark, driving on the narrow curving road became more difficult. We decided to stop at the next available inn. We clearly were not able to find that Inn from 30 years ago. We pulled into Timber Cove Inn for the night. We were both tired, especially Mark who had done all the driving. A quick Manhattan at the bar was a welcomed nightcap. We had asked the bartender if he possibly knew of an Inn on the beach set among huge Junipers and possible raccoons all around. He looked at and said “This is that place.!” Timber Cove had been sold and remodeled. The trees were cleared and raccoons relocated. What an amazing coincidence!
We had a sweet good-bye dinner with Mike following another gorgeous sunset at Pacific Grove. In the morning, we discovered that our rear view mirror had fallen off again. Mike was handy and able to fix it for us. He found an auto shop nearby and bought the required glue to hold it in place. The last time we had it fixed it cost $80.; this time the glue was $8.00, Mike’s cost “priceless”. This set us all about an hour behind our scheduled departure but it didn’t really matter that much to either of us.
Mark and I headed north on Route 1. It took us through the center of San Francisco on a beautiful sunny afternoon. We had lunch at the Cliff House overlooking San Francisco Bay and Seal Rocks where sea lions congregate. The last time I was there was 1960 with my parents. The views of the bay were still as beautiful as back then, but the restaurant had been renovated a few times since then. This was a wonderful memory of being in San Francisco.
The drive up the coast took us over the Golden Gate Bridge into Sausalito and soon out of the city. The coastline north of San Francisco on Route 1 hugs the rugged shoreline with sharp turns wrapping around high cliffs. About 30 years ago Mark and I spent 2 weeks along this very route. Back then, we spent our first night at a lodge overlooking steep cliffs from the hot tub off our deck. The lodge was located right off the road among a forest of Juniper trees. Raccoons were everywhere on the property lapping up the water from the hot tubs. Our room overlooked the sea, however, we could only hear it because of the heavy fog that night. We both have fond memories of that place, everything but the name of it or where it was!
Now, as we are driving the same route we thought we might be able to find that Inn and relive a wonderful memory. Once it was dark, driving on the narrow curving road became more difficult. We decided to stop at the next available inn. We clearly were not able to find that Inn from 30 years ago. We pulled into Timber Cove Inn for the night. We were both tired, especially Mark who had done all the driving. A quick Manhattan at the bar was a welcomed nightcap. We had asked the bartender if he possibly knew of an Inn on the beach set among huge Junipers and possible raccoons all around. He looked at and said “This is that place.!” Timber Cove had been sold and remodeled. The trees were cleared and raccoons relocated. What an amazing coincidence!
Thursday, February 8, 2018
Feb 3-4 Monterey, CA
Feb 3-4: Monterey, Carmel and the Pacific Coast Highway
The time at Pismo Beach left us sandy and dirty so we scheduled two nights at a hotel in Pacific Grove. We planned to drive the Pacific Coast Highway south of Monterey along Route 1. Mike was our official driver in his Subaru. We did a quick tour through Carmel then headed south on the most picturesque road in California. We were able to drive about 70 miles south to where the road was closed off then turned around and drove back to Pacific Grove. As we drove south, the road twisted and turned around steep canyons and cliffs that fall to the sea. We stopped often to take pictures only to realize that the next turn would uncover an even more spectacular view. The juniper trees along the road were often wind swept in an easterly direction giving them artistic shapes and forms. The tall Eucalyptus trees with their long strands of peeling bark provided their clean, perfumery scent in groves along the way. Often, the cliffs would fall sharply to the sea and other times the land gently rolled to the sea. The fields on the hillsides are springtime green which is a dramatic change from our desert environment. Some parts reminded me of the western shore of Ireland and other parts of the northern coast of Maine. We reached the end of the road and fortunately there was a quaint little place to have lunch overlooking the ocean. About 10 miles of the road were closed off due to the mud slides.
The return trip, although the same road provided a totally different view of the landscape. We saw cliffs, canyons, trees, farmland that we did not notice on the drive south. It is amazing how just a turn around can change one’s entire perspective.
The day was full of sunshine and beautiful memories.
The time at Pismo Beach left us sandy and dirty so we scheduled two nights at a hotel in Pacific Grove. We planned to drive the Pacific Coast Highway south of Monterey along Route 1. Mike was our official driver in his Subaru. We did a quick tour through Carmel then headed south on the most picturesque road in California. We were able to drive about 70 miles south to where the road was closed off then turned around and drove back to Pacific Grove. As we drove south, the road twisted and turned around steep canyons and cliffs that fall to the sea. We stopped often to take pictures only to realize that the next turn would uncover an even more spectacular view. The juniper trees along the road were often wind swept in an easterly direction giving them artistic shapes and forms. The tall Eucalyptus trees with their long strands of peeling bark provided their clean, perfumery scent in groves along the way. Often, the cliffs would fall sharply to the sea and other times the land gently rolled to the sea. The fields on the hillsides are springtime green which is a dramatic change from our desert environment. Some parts reminded me of the western shore of Ireland and other parts of the northern coast of Maine. We reached the end of the road and fortunately there was a quaint little place to have lunch overlooking the ocean. About 10 miles of the road were closed off due to the mud slides.
The return trip, although the same road provided a totally different view of the landscape. We saw cliffs, canyons, trees, farmland that we did not notice on the drive south. It is amazing how just a turn around can change one’s entire perspective.
The day was full of sunshine and beautiful memories.
Wednesday, February 7, 2018
Feb 2-3 Pismo Beach
Feb 2-3 Pismo Beach
Mike was able to join us again at Pismo Beach, CA. He had visited a friend in San Diego then another friend in LA for a few days. Pismo Beach is a small town on California’s Central Coast. It is a wide open beach area where cars, RV’s and ATV’s, are all able to drive on the sand. There are magnificent dunes behind the beach front that are partly closed to protect the snowy plovers. Mark was nervous about driving on the sand in the RV but Mike convinced us that it would be fine. Mark was convinced we would get stuck on the beach. Sure enough, as we made the turn to park the van, we got stuck. Mike who had been traveling from Wyoming, was prepared with a snow shovel. Mike got us out of our rut and maneuvered the van for us. Mike, of course, had no problem with his 4 wheel drive car. We had to listen to a lecture on positive thinking from Mike. It went something like this: “Gee, Dad, if you think the worst, it will happen!”
The snowy plovers are my new favorite bird. They are tiny white and grey with the ability to zip back and forth chasing the waves in hopes some morsel of food comes in with a wave. With their backs toward the sea, they look like tiny snowflakes on the sand. Since this is their nesting season I am glad to know that they are protected.
For a while we were alone on the beach, however, later in the day ATV’s filled the area. This must be a local thrill because it seemed everyone in town comes to the beach and cruises through the open areas of the dunes. The night lights on the ATV’s were colorful and bright. Evidently driving on the dunes at night is dangerously dark so the more lights one has on their ATV, the better. Although I would have preferred a more quiet time on the beach, it was fun to watch the locals enjoy themselves.
Mike and Mark dug a pit in the sand and built a great fire for cooking our steak. We spent the evening sitting around the fire and watching a colorful sunset over the Pacific Ocean.
A short walk from Pismo beach is the Monarch Butterly Grove. Thousands of Monarchs were fluttering in the Eucalyptus Trees, called clustering. We were fortunate to see these monarchs as this is the season for vieweing them, October through February. During this time the final generation of hibernating monarch butterflies comes out of hibernation to fine a mate. The sight of so many orange and black wings at one time was beautiful. They seemed to be enjoying themselves fluttering among the tree leaves as if to be playing by softly bumping into one another.
We spent two days and nights at Pismo Beach enjoying the warmth, the sun and a very restful time with Mike. When it was time to leave, Mark insisted that Mike drive our van out of the soft sand and onto the hard sand area where we could drive the van off the beach. That worked out well!
Mike was able to join us again at Pismo Beach, CA. He had visited a friend in San Diego then another friend in LA for a few days. Pismo Beach is a small town on California’s Central Coast. It is a wide open beach area where cars, RV’s and ATV’s, are all able to drive on the sand. There are magnificent dunes behind the beach front that are partly closed to protect the snowy plovers. Mark was nervous about driving on the sand in the RV but Mike convinced us that it would be fine. Mark was convinced we would get stuck on the beach. Sure enough, as we made the turn to park the van, we got stuck. Mike who had been traveling from Wyoming, was prepared with a snow shovel. Mike got us out of our rut and maneuvered the van for us. Mike, of course, had no problem with his 4 wheel drive car. We had to listen to a lecture on positive thinking from Mike. It went something like this: “Gee, Dad, if you think the worst, it will happen!”
The snowy plovers are my new favorite bird. They are tiny white and grey with the ability to zip back and forth chasing the waves in hopes some morsel of food comes in with a wave. With their backs toward the sea, they look like tiny snowflakes on the sand. Since this is their nesting season I am glad to know that they are protected.
For a while we were alone on the beach, however, later in the day ATV’s filled the area. This must be a local thrill because it seemed everyone in town comes to the beach and cruises through the open areas of the dunes. The night lights on the ATV’s were colorful and bright. Evidently driving on the dunes at night is dangerously dark so the more lights one has on their ATV, the better. Although I would have preferred a more quiet time on the beach, it was fun to watch the locals enjoy themselves.
Mike and Mark dug a pit in the sand and built a great fire for cooking our steak. We spent the evening sitting around the fire and watching a colorful sunset over the Pacific Ocean.
A short walk from Pismo beach is the Monarch Butterly Grove. Thousands of Monarchs were fluttering in the Eucalyptus Trees, called clustering. We were fortunate to see these monarchs as this is the season for vieweing them, October through February. During this time the final generation of hibernating monarch butterflies comes out of hibernation to fine a mate. The sight of so many orange and black wings at one time was beautiful. They seemed to be enjoying themselves fluttering among the tree leaves as if to be playing by softly bumping into one another.
We spent two days and nights at Pismo Beach enjoying the warmth, the sun and a very restful time with Mike. When it was time to leave, Mark insisted that Mike drive our van out of the soft sand and onto the hard sand area where we could drive the van off the beach. That worked out well!
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