The Oregon Coast, Part 2

After leaving Depoe Bay, we worked our way back north, taking the scenic roads along the Three Capes route.

I have very fond memories of family trips to Pacific City when I was a child and later when our kids were young. 

 This is Cape Kiawanda at Pacific City

 and this beach has been the place where dorymen have launched their boats for over 100 years. 

 It was a lot of work to climb this sand dune when we were kids, but, Oh, what fun to fly back down, feet barely touching the ground!

 There is a Dorymen Memorial on the left, and across the highway is where we found a market that served Tillamook ice cream. I couldn't make up my mind on which flavor to choose, so I had two scoops!  Indulgent, but so delicious!

 We drove over Cape Lookout and down the other side we stopped at this viewpoint, overlooking the mouth of Netarts Bay. 

 At my feet was this marker - another place to fly away.

 Down on the shore, we stopped at Oceanside, a town perched on the hillsides overlooking a lovely beach. 

 That's Cape Lookout in the distance. 

 We took our time working our way back to Rockaway Beach, had a simple supper of BLTA sandwiches using our tomatoes from home, and then, since it really was the autumnal equinox, and the weather was again obliging, I took a new set of sunset photos, this time over Salt Aire Creek, which runs right along side our cabin. 

 And truly, this time, it was so long to summer as the sun sinks slowly into the sea. 

 But the next morning wasn't too bad for the first day of fall. This photo was taken from the porch of the cabin. 

 This was poke around day, and take it easy time. We paid a visit to the north jetty of Tillamook Bay, where fishermen were trying their luck at catching the fall run of Chinook salmon. 

 We took a trip into Tillamook to do a little shopping, and on the way back we spotted these egrets in Tillamook Bay. They are not common here, so we stopped to check them out. 

 The Great Blue Heron seemed comfortable with his new long necked mates. 

 Friday morning it was raining. We went out to breakfast and laid  around until it was time to pack up. We had had a very good stay at our cabin by the sea. 

The Oregon Coast, Part 1

Our drive from our home in SeaTac (south Seattle area) to our family cabin in Rockaway Beach, Oregon takes 41/2 to 5 hours, depending on traffic and stops along the way. It was mid afternoon by the time we reached our favorite view point, the overlook from Neakanie Mountain. 

 From here we can see all the way down the beach to Rockaway, and look at that sky! Yay! Fair weather!

We stopped at Wheeler, on the Nehalem Bay,  to check out our favorite antique mall.

From there is was a short trip to the cabin. After settling in and a short beach walk, I put together a salad and Tom picked up some take out clam chowder from a local sea food shop for our dinner.  

Then, since it was almost the autumnal equinox, and the weather was obliging, I walked down the beach to position myself for my favorite sunset photos, as the summer sun sinks away between the Twin Rocks. 

Sigh. 

But it wasn't the last day of summer. We still had one more! And we spent it driving down the coast highway visiting some of our favorite spots. 

At Cloverdale, along Hwy 101 in an interior valley dotted with dairy cows, we checked out this flea market/antique barn. Fun, but no treasures here for us this time. 

 When you are not in a hurry, you stop at all of the view points. 

 Boiler Bay wasn't boiling much, but we sure appreciated the lack of wind.

 We passed right through the urban tourist sprawl of Lincoln City to get to our southern terminus at Depoe Bay. 

 Not only is it beautiful here, but the gray whales were in residence!

 We watched for at least an hour, as the whales spouted and rose to the surface enough that we could see their backs and once, a tail! Of course it was hard to catch them in photos, but in the picture below I believe I did capture one. Look for a buoy, a boat and a whale back. 

 A narrow channel connects the back bay from the sea, with this arched bridge for Hwy 101 spanning the channel. 

 It takes a good pilot to line up just right, then gun it and shoot through the opening. 

 I packed a light picnic lunch and we sat here at a picnic table to eat and continue whale watching. 

 We did walk through part of the touristy town, but preferred to get back to sight seeing. 

More tomorrow.