The Beautiful Oregon Coast

Day 4 - We’re in Oregon now, heading towards the Pacific coast. Last night was spent in Williamson River Campground. It was cool in the 40s. We woke to bright sun which was soon blotted out by a thick blanket of gray clouds.We took a quick morning walk along a forest path to the Williamson River. The water is crystal clear and looked very cold. Tree trunks had been placed in the river as stepping stones to the other side, but the spacing was such that I doubt we could have made a dry landing on the opposite shore and we didn’t try.

There have been multiple wildfires in the area and the US Forest Service has been working hard to clean up the charred trunks and limbs, ash and debris left in the fires’ wakes. Also lots of snow signs… Snow Zone, Chain Up Area Ahead, Do Not Pass Snow Plow on the Right. Patches of snow still remain in some areas. It’s lovely now, but we wouldn’t want to be here in winter.

We’re in the Deschutes National Forest now… trees, trees, trees all around us. The forest is dense with tall, straight evergreens 100+ feet tall. Log trucks and sawmills are frequent sights. We’ve seen several deer browsing on the roadside. Over the Willamette Pass (5000’) where there are piles are snow, not just patches. US-58 is a gorgeous route, winding over the pass and then descending into the western Cascades.

We saw a sign for a covered bridge. We didn’t realize that Oregon had covered bridges. We thought covered bridges were east coast structures, but au contraire, Oregon has 54 covered bridges. Below, Lowell Covered Bridge.

The Willamette National Forest is lush and verdant. Creeks and streams and rushing, white rivers all seem to be in a hurry to get downstream carrying the spring run-off. We rode alongside an Amtrak passenger train for a short distance. We talked about perhaps taking a long train ride someday… the Orient Express or the Trans-Siberian, come to mind… or maybe one of the transcon Aussie train trips or maybe through the Canadian Rockies? We passed through Eugene and then headed directly to the coast and the Sutton Campground in the Siuslaw National Forest, our destination for the night.

We’ve had a few problems en route. The new water pump for the sink was leaking, but a closer look revealed a loose fitting… easy fix. The the GPS stopped working, only a blank screen was displayed. We did a soft reset and voila, we were back in business. My bike light wasn’t working, but David discovered a mis-wire and now it’s shining bright. My iPhone got dropped and the screen was smashed. Darn… no easy fix for that. A few phone calls determined that the easiest place to get it repaired quickly was in Portland.

Day 5 - It rained all night… a steady, penetrating rain that continued into the day. It was a dark, damp, and gloomy morning. Sprawling red cedar limbs and western hemlock droop with the rain. Huckleberry bushes and pink rhododendron surround our site. Sutton Campground, though probably nice if it wasn’t so wet, has a few other problems. The restrooms are out of order and they placed two Porta-potties in front of the building to handle the toilet requirements of the entire loop. Not ideal, plus they’re pretty disgusting, especially with rain pouring down all around us. Wish they would have mentioned this when we were making a reservation.

We refused to be deterred by the gloom (or the lack of toilet facilities), so we drove into the Port of Siuslaw, the old historic river port area of Florence. Located where the Siuslaw River meets the Pacific Ocean, this river port was established in 1909, thriving ‘with industry from fishing, canning, lumber, and rock quarries. Today, it’s a lovely tourist town with a working harbor and marina still functioning.

It was cold, wet, and raw, but somehow delightful, too. We stopped in a little coffee shop for coffee and a muffin and warmed up a bit, then set out to discover the town. We walked hand-in-hand along the scenic boardwalk. We wandered in and out of various shops. Some were appropriately named for the day and we found one shop in particular, Periwinkle Station, that was lots of fun to explore. It offered unique books and games and ‘not your usual’ souvenirs.

Lunch at a table on the river at MO’s, an iconic seafood and chowder house. Our meal (a cup of clam chowder and a grilled cod sandwich) was good, but not great, but then I’m a ‘chowder snob from New England, so maybe it wasn’t an objective view.

We walked along the harbor and marina where fishing boats and sailboats n varying states of shipshape-ness were berthed.

Views of the historic Siuslaw Bridge, a double bascule drawbridge, had us remembering the number of drawbridges we’d gone through in our time aboard Nine of Cups

Where to next? The rain continued, but tapered off to a drizzly mist. We drove north 11 miles to the Heceta (Heh-CEE-tuh) Head Light. The drive along the coastal route 101 is curvy and wonderful, though due to the dense fog, glimpses of the Pacific were spotty.

Arriving at the lighthouse parking area, we had two pleasant surprises. First, the rain stopped and second, Oregon State Parks were celebrating their 100th anniversary and in honor of the occasion, all fees including parking ($5 here) and camping ($35-45/night) were waived for the day. Happy Birthday, Oregon State Parks!

We walked the 1/2 mile trail up to the lighthouse, lined with lots of west coast native plants like Oregon iris, western lily of the valley, rugosa roses and shield ferns.

The light stands on the west side of Heceta Head, a 1000’ promontory above the ocean water. First illuminated in 1894, its beacon shines 21 miles from land and is the strongest light on the Oregon coast.

We peeked inside the lighthouse for a dizzying view looking up the spiral staircase, but we were not allowed access to the top.

A volunteer told us that another trail climbed higher with great views of the lighthouse and its fresnel lens from a primo vantage point. It was steep, slippery and muddy with rain, but we managed and were rewarded with some spectacular vistas.

Two islands just offshore are an isolated refuge for hundreds of seabirds including western gulls, pelagic cormorants and a new species for us, common murres which stood upright and reminded us of penguins.

Knowing we could camp for free in an Oregon State Park, we abandoned the Sutton Campground in favor of one with electric for heat and working toilets. Not far from the lighthouse, we entered the Washburn State Park and as luck would have it, we found an available electric site and snagged it immediately. Not only did we have heat, but toilets were heated and had showers!

Though it had been a gray, wet day, it was a grand one and most enjoyable. It’s been a long time since we walked in the rain.

Day 6 - It rained all through the night, sometimes heavily, sometimes lightly, but always continuous and loud. During the night we noticed with some dismay, the vent hatch above our bunk bed was leaking and dripping and the blanket was pretty damp. It would need attention soon. In the meantime, we placed a couple of drip pans beneath the leak and stuffed thick wads of paper towels into the sides of the vent which seemed to thwart the leak, at least superficially. Sometime in the early morning, the rain stopped, but a morning mist/drizzle persisted.

We packed up early and continued our northward journey. The fog was heavy along the coast as we passed through little coastal towns like Yachats and Waldport. Many of the small motels had ‘no vacancy’ signs lit up… good for them! Seafood huts, antique shops and boutiques were still closed so early in the morning. Shops offering chainsaw carvings, dragons and dragon eggs and glass blowing offered more unique wares.

It was very quiet, however, on an early, rainy, midweek morning. Signs for cherries and crab on offer were tempting, but we passed. We also noted lots of brambles on the roadside (soon to be wild blackberries).

Yaquina Bay (Yah-kwin-ah) is a cute little harbor town and we decided to check out the lighthouse there. It’s the second oldest lighthouse on the Oregon coast, first illuminated in 1871, but it only operated for three years before being replaced by a taller, brighter light at Yaquina Head, just a few miles  north.

Which, of course, led to the question, “How could we not visit Yaquina Head Light when it was so close?”. So we did. Standing 162’ above sea level, it was first illuminated in 1873 and it’s the tallest tower on the Oregon coast, and is still in operation.

As with Heceta Light, the islands offshore provide a natural refuge for seabirds and sea lions. In addition to common murres, cormorants and gulls, pelicans had also staked out their claim.

We needed to head inland to Portland for the iPhone repair, but we weren’t in that much of a hurry.

A little sign for the Drift Creek Covered Bridge caught our eye and we detoured for a couple of minutes to check it out. The oldest covered bridge in Oregon, it was rescued from demolition by a couple who worked hard to restore it. It’s closed to all but local vehicular traffic, but pedestrian traffic is allowed.

Back on the road, the stop in Portland at Batteries+ was expensive ($180). The good news… it was quick and efficient and Oregon does not charge a state sales tax.

We crossed the Columbia River and entered Washington State by late afternoon. We headed to Centralia and the Midway RV Park. We don’t usually frequent RV parks, but this one was convenient and had inexpensive overflow parking for our one night stay ($27.50/night). We also took advantage of the electric, laundry facilities, hot showers and Wi-Fi. A warm, pleasant night midst a herd of big RV rigs, packed cheek and jowl… not unlike some marinas and anchorages we’ve known.

Next time… we’ll head to the western terminus of the Great Northern Auto Trail. Join us as our great road trip adventure continues!