The Oregon Coast
October 2-9, 2017
Carl G. Washburne
State Park
Oregon fall was in the air and driving along twisty mountain roads towards our next destination were trees full of orange, red and yellow leaves. Being a native Californian, I can honestly say I have never experienced the fall leaves changing.
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| The changing colors were everywhere! |
I was already falling in love with the foliage (and the state of Oregon) as the twisty roads opened up to the beautiful coastline bringing us to the Carl G. Washburne state park at a much higher elevation. The ocean was on one side with large thick trees on the other which proved to be challenging in backing up the fifth-wheel. After nearly a year, Perry had "back-in's" nailed! It was late afternoon and while walking the dogs there were bear warning signs posted. Wait….we are by the ocean…how can there be bears?? Thank goodness I still had my bear spray! Not far from where our site was, a path covered with trees, moss, wild mushrooms and a trickling stream leading us to the empty beautiful beach. The dogs ran freely until they tired out and we wanted to head back to the fifth-wheel before dark.
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| Freedom on the beach |
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| The "Hobbit" trail leading to the beach |
Our travel day was
long and far from any civilization or cell service so once again we were
"roughing it"! We didn't mind
since we were surrounded with the most beautiful gift of nature!
The nearest town was
called Yachats, a small town with a tiny under stocked grocery store, a few
"tourist" type restaurants with one displaying fresh caught Dungeness
crab. Perry opened his wallet to make the
big purchase!
Marked trails led us
through dense trees towards the beautiful Pacific ocean and later we were
entertained by colorful skies as the sun set.
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| Harbor in Florence, Or. |
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| Most amazing sunsets |
The town of Florence was a cute fishing town forty-five minutes from our site. The view from Highway 1 along the Oregon coast is one of the most spectacular sites with its' drop off cliffs. We stopped several times taking pictures of the ocean and the Heceta lighthouse while working our way to Florence. The few trips into Florence took us to church on Sunday, clam chowder at "Mo's" seafood restaurant, the Farmers' Market and the overdue laundry! We loved quaint Florence for its downtown, friendly people, good seafood, east coast like seaport and of course cell service!
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| Heceta Lighthouse |
Carl G. Washburne
State Park was the perfect spot for us with daily private
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| Oregon shore |
walks along the
beach, amazing sunsets, "hobbit" like hiking trails and amazing
seafood within an hours drive. How can
we top this place? Sutherlin, Oregon was
our next stop in southern Oregon not far from Medford. So much more to see and
explore…….
Sutherlin, Oregon
(10/9-10/13/17)
It was starting to feel like fall with cooler temperatures, rain and colorful leaves. Driving through the small Oregon town of Sutherlin, I wasn't holding out hope for a nice SKP park (skp is a park for members that own sites full time but can also rent them out to travelers like us). We have stayed at only a handful on our trip but this particular park was tucked away with large sites, friendly people, surrounded by trees and otherwise very quiet. During our stay in Sutherlin, I had a tooth bothering me and wanted to find a dentist before heading to the redwoods where there wouldn't be dentists for miles.
Early the next morning we got a knock at our door greeted by a sweet lady with a welcome package. After asking her about dentists, she happily gave me the name of someone close by. The few days spent here brought us to a few local wineries where we talked to many friendly people and tasted good Oregon reds. It was a cold rainy day with a glass of red to warm us, in a conversation with several people, we learned one of the gals attended Perry's alma mater of Pacific Lutheran University (a small private college in Tacoma, Wa.)
At the SKP park we were entertained by wild turkeys and a jack rabbit, did some laundry and a trip to the dentist (no major problems).
We called our short trip to Sutherlin a success! As we work our way towards California, Rogue River would be our last stop before crossing into our beautiful home state of California.
Rogue River, Oregon
(10/13-10/20/17)
The State Parks in
Oregon are some of the best we have seen!
The beautiful River of the Valley RV park had all the amenities we were
looking for in a RV park. In addition, I watched the leaves change color within
days, only to see them fall off the trees as we walked the beautiful trails
along the river. Years ago we stopped at
the cute town of Jacksonville (I fell in love with it then) not knowing we would stay at Rogue River just
miles away. Being so close to this cute
town was going to be fun! The clean,
tourist town with hanging baskets along the streets lured us in more than once
but more so, we loved the green hillsides and rivers and not far was the
amazing view of Mount McLaughlin.
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| Town of Jacksonville |
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| Mount McLaughlin |
Just outside
Jacksonville was the Applegate River with a great park for the dogs (especially
Daisy) to enjoy their freedom. We
treated ourselves more than once to a nice German Restaurant and during our
stay, a few more wineries including one called The Schmidt Family Winery, purchasing
"Schmidt Family Winery" souvenir glasses for our "over 21"
children. On the way to some of the more
remote wineries, wild turkeys wobbled and gobbled their way across the road.
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| Applegate River |
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| Wild turkeys |
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| A peaceful winery |
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| Schmidt Family Vineyards (no relation) |
Crater Lake was on our list of side trips and having been here years ago, I didn't remember (or at least appreciate) the intense beauty of this natural wonder. The gradual climb towards the lake brought us through tall trees, near waterfalls and a few picnic tables (picnic lunch later). Climbing towards the lake, soon we were in snow.
Crater Lake was formed over 7,000 years ago by a collapsed volcano with the deepest part of the lake over 1900 feet. The drive along Rim drive is beautiful with the lakes bright blue water and many trees standing in the middle of a small island on the lake.
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| Crater Lake |
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| Our picnic lunch shared with nature |
We enjoyed a nice
picnic lunch in the Cascade Mountains and decided to make one more side trip to
Mill Creek Falls.
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| Mill Creek falls |
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Picture of Mill Creek falls was taken
after our reunion with Daisy |
With a short hike to
the falls, we decided to let the dogs off
their leashes. Daisy was like a kid at
Disneyland only jumping and running through the forest. Not long after turning she and Gracie loose
(getting closer to the falls), it was unusual for her not to come to us when we
called her. Giving a description, we
asked other hikers to keep their eyes open for our dog.
My heart ached wondering where she was and
how scared she must be. I also thought
of the drop off to the falls that offered no protection. I prayed she wouldn't
have ventured off that far and close to the falls. After a nerve wracking thirty minutes, a
hiker yelled for us to say they had found her.
She appeared just as frightened as I felt! (Lesson learned)
It was a joyful reunion as nothing could
break up our little "foursome" pack!
It was a long day and we were all exhausted. The next day would be low key only lunch in
Jacksonville!
Oregon proved to be
a favorite of ours but nothing could top nearing home to see our kids in
California.
Redwoods, here we come!
