WA-OR State Parks

August 7 - 16, 2008

FIRST STOP

Grayland Beach State Park, Grayland, Washington

August 7 - 10, 2008

We left Mossyrock with mixed feelings. Now that we're full-timing, it's hard to live without DirecTV (Red Sox games), cell phone service and fast internet service. Mossyrock had one -- TV; but what memories we will take from there...maybe to return someday, especially to revisit Mount St. Helens!

Just remembered an incident that occurred when we were entering Mount Rainier National Park the other day. Joe, Kathy and Katie led the way into the Park, paid their fee and moved forward for Susan's car carrying the rest of us. When we approached the ranger's window, the nice young girl in the uniform stated, "I see we have four senior citizens here and it's Tuesday, you get in free." Our mouths dropped open while Bob yelled, "Quick, step on it! before they ask for id's!" Looking ahead to the truck, there's Joe laughing his head off. I hope we can come up with some way to get back at him before the trip is over!

We arrived at Grayland Beach State Park on the Pacific Coast. What a BEAUTIFUL park. Easy access; large, paved sites with paved patio areas, fire rings and mega privacy!! However, no cell service; very slooooow internet, and tv only after accidentally finding satellite service on our second day there.

We spent a leisurely two days driving the cars on the beach and watching the sunsets (something you could never do on Cape Cod beaches), shopping those inevitable souvenir and gift shops and strolling along the harbor in Westport (just above Grayland).

After a leisurely stroll down the main drag in Westport, Ken and I visited the Half Moon Bay Bar and Grill to sample the "World's Best Bloody Mary"! For $8.50 we purchased a great view of Westport Harbor along with a Bloody Mary (like most Bloody Mary's) with a skewer of Spanish olive, grape tomato and jalapeno pepper, a skewer of martini olive, pepperoni stick and cheese, a large shrimp (called "prawn" in this part of the country), lemon slice and the biggest celery stalk I have ever seen!!! For $8.50 we had "lunch" and a drink. Well, it was enough to pull us back for dinner (with the crew) on the night before we left when I devoured a divine shrimp ("prawn") alfredo.

Here I will tell you I had decided that on Sundays I would check my weight and blood pressure. The following morning I got on the scale and had GAINED 4 POUNDS in the past week (due to Kathy and Susan's good cooking...certainly not mine) and decided "prawns" (especially with that divine alfredo sauce) was not the best choice for me!!

SECOND STOP

Cape Lookout State Park, Tillamook, Oregon

August 10 - 12, 2008

This wasn't exactly the "trip from hell", but it was close. We left Grayland Beach on a somewhat cloudy Sunday afternoon. Weather, tho, didn't present a problem. We were looking at a four hour trip down the Washington and Oregon coast with some spectacular views of the Pacific Ocean. We were not disappointed...with the views that is!

Once we hit Wheeler, Oregon, the roads (Route 101) began to display a "lack of general maintenance." We lumbered along and Ken had to really "stay focused" thru the turns and poorly maintained roads to Tillamook. Then we hit the "road from hell" leading into Cape Lookout State Park. Over 4 miles of potholes and "spot fixes". Every dish in the cupboards trembled, and I'm sure every inch of the engine felt every bump and turn. Then we arrived at the state campground right on the beach (what we gained in proximity to the ocean, we lost in the availability of a good campsite). On the way to our assigned site, we heard branches (those heavy Douglas fir branches) scraping along our roof, hitting the air conditioners, satellite dish , internet receiver, etc. (Once we were in our site, our front wheels were almost off the ground and we were still not level!) But, we made it in one piece, set up, took a walk along the ocean and all was well!

Our day in Tillamook began with a trip to the Tillamook Cheese Factory where we watched the factory line turn out the different blocks of cheese, had our tastes and then, of course, stopped in the store to pick up more than just samples.

We then traveled a few miles up the road and took the Oregon Coast Scenic Railroad and made the scenic trip from Garibaldi to Rockaway Beach in a steam engine train with open cars.

We enjoyed a cup of delicious clam chowder at Rockaway Beach and loaded back up in the train for the return trip. We could have stayed a bit longer, but we had more things to do!!

Our last stop for the day was in Oceanside, Oregon. We went here because it is Bev and Randy's favorite spot. It's a quaint little coastal village with little traffic, a beautiful sandy beach and great ocean scenery. Here's the Oceanside Inn where we understand they have stayed in the past. We also stopped at their favorite cafe, Roseanne's, and had a delicious piece of pie and coffee. Bev and Randy, we wish you were here with us!

THIRD STOP

Sunset Bay State Park, Coos Bay, Oregon

August 12 - 14, 2008

The trip here, along Route 101, the Pacific Coast Scenic Highway, was beautiful -- I think. It was a very foggy day and when we hit Siuslaw National Forest we hit a lot of sharp curves with steep drops to the ocean. Made me a little nervous and I had to close my eyes a lot. One thing I have to remember is not to take my blood pressure after a trip like this one.

One thing I'm noticing along this drive is that there are more rv parks than there are motels. (That is not an exaggeration!) When you pass any of those storage areas, they are filled with rvs and almost every home you go by has one. It's a very popular way to vacation around here.

Sunset Bay was used by seafarers as a safe haven from the strong Pacific storms. The rocks that sheltered the bay kept the strong winds and high waves away, offering refuge...and a great place to kayak.

This was our first kayaking experience in the Pacific Ocean (Puget Bay was salt water, but not really the Pacific coast!) At first I was a bit anxious...oh, come on...I was down right scared; so I went to the shore to wait it out (we had four kayaks and seven people...we had to take turns!) Once Ken and Joe came back "whole" I decided I could do this. I won't lie, I did panic a bit when it started getting colder and foggier and I wasn't quite sure the exact way to get back the way we came!! But, we kayaked through the small swells to the rocks beyond and visited the sea lions on their own turf...it was really quite exciting!!

The rock formations...the sea lions in their own domain...the caves created by the pounding waves...what an awesome experience.

(Looks like gears, huh?)

Now, you see why I kind of panicked. Foggy...chilly...caves with waves crashing on the other side! Remember the movie, The Fog?

FOURTH STOP

Bullards Beach State Park, Bandon, Oregon

August 14 - 16, 2008

Do you notice how you don't see a lot of sun in these pictures? It's not clouds...it's fog. Almost every day we have been socked in with fog and if you travel just a few miles from the coast, the temperatures are higher and the sun is bright and shining!

The majority of the Oregon Coast is owned by the state; therefore there are a lot of state parks and picnic areas. You only see a few private residences while traveling on Route 101, the coastal highway.

After we arrived we visited "downtown" Bandon. As Susan said, there are some spots where you just know, immediately, that this is a place you're going to enjoy...a place you want to return to. Bandon was such a place. Of course, the Cranberry Sweets shop doesn't hurt. I don't know how they make any money....they have free samples of their chocolates! I know for a fact that when we were there, they lost out on a lot of money because of all the chocolate we ate. Then again, we ended up purchasing quite a bit, too. (I'm definitely not weighing in on Sunday...it can wait another week!)

We took a short trip to Coquille Point - absolutely magnificent, even in the fog. I can only imagine how beautiful it is with the sun gleaming off the water!

We spent our full day in southern Oregon on the Rogue River Mail Boat Trip. What can I say! We had a great time getting "wet" with our spins in the river and our short trips over the rapids. We saw all the wildlife we could imagine and our guide, Stan, was the greatest. Were those really dried fish Joe saw that Stan might just "throw out" to entice those eagles that we saw swoop down to the river to catch some food? Do you think he was working for a larger tip?

The Rogue River starts at Crater Lake and twists and roars for 215 miles through the Cascade, Siskiyou and Coastal mountain ranges before spilling into the Pacific at Gold Beach which is where we began our trip.

This isn't our boat, but one we passed. That's what we looked like going slow.

We returned to Bandon for our "last supper" at the Wheelhouse Cafe. We had another wonderful meal followed by chatting at the campfire back at the park.

We've had over three weeks of happy memories, delicious meals, jabs from Kathy to Ken, jokes from Joe to all of us, getting to know the great young person Katie is turning into, fabulous scenery, and wonderful adventures. We thank you Joe, Kathy and Katie for a wonderful time!

Tomorrow won't be an easy day when we all have to go our separate ways. But, we did make some tentative plans for a couple of summers from now to meet in Utah (and Joe, Kathy and Katie will have a new truck and a new rig!)

Before we left Bandon, we took a quick trip to the beach at the State Park and saw the Coquille River Lighthouse. It's amazing how many lighthouses there are along the coast and each is so different from the others.