Tuesday was another beautiful day, one we set as our sight seeing day. We love to visit certain beautiful places south of Tillamook Bay on the coast. We decided we would do the Three Capes Loop and then go as far south as Depot Bay.
The first stop was Cape Meares, at the southern mouth of Tillamook Bay. It is a place we visit often, but on a clear day it is so beautiful. We didn't visit the big trees there this time, instead just enjoying the views on both sides of the cape.
The big white flower heads of cow parsnip decorated the roadsides everywhere.
Can you see the deer browsing in the brush? It wouldn't look at me, couldn't be bothered.
The cliffs are full of nesting sea birds.
Through the spruce grove to the lighthouse.
Views along the walk.
The Cape Meares Lighthouse was built in 1890 with a Fresnel lens made in Paris. It is now inactive but is often open to the public as a museum. All of these prisms and the bulls eye lenses magnified and focused four fuel burning wicks. It was the keepers job to light the wicks each evening and keep the lenses polished.
Wild roses were in bloom on the cape.
The view to the south is toward the Three Arch Rocks, home to thousands of sea birds.
Salal berries and spruce tree new growth.
It's hard to see the three arches from any one angle, but each rock has one.
Spruce trees can persist in the harsh coastal environment, sometimes overcoming early damage to take on interesting shapes.
Farther south down the coast we drove up and over the headland you could see in the photos above to Oceanside, and the other side of the Three Arch Rocks.
I have posted before about the walking tunnel through this headland to a lovely little beach on the other side. The dark speck at the base is the tunnel opening. Again, we were just in it for the views this time.
We drove south past the entrance to Cape Lookout State Park and down to the third cape, Cape Kiwanda, at Pacific City.
Last summer we sat and watched Jill and the kids climb and fly down the giant dune here.
Today we were just into strolling over to the base, where the tide was out and the tide pools were exposed.
Barnacles and mussels, alive alive oh.
Big fat sea anemones.
Hard to find sea stars.
More big squishy sea anemones.
Limpets.
It would appear that the anemones can create the holes, but I'm not sure which came first, the holes or the anemones.
Cape Kiwanda is famous for dory boat fishing. A few dories were in action this day. They beach on the sand in the surf.
Then they are trailered and pulled off the beach.
We passed through Lincoln City and all of its commercialism, and found a place at Siletz Bay Park for a road lunch stop.
Sunshine, scenery, easy access, and a restroom nearby, all we needed for a perfect picnic spot.
This was not the end of the day, or the vacation, but it is quite enough for one post.
More to come.
Besides, as I type, it's time for the running of the Belmont Stakes. Will there be a Triple Crown winner? We'll soon find out.
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Justify justified all the praise and prognostication and won the Triple Crown!
Saturday evening the Sounders finally won also! We were at the stadium to cheer them on.
I'll be getting back to my Oregon Coast posts, but I'm interrupting myself to share my Saturday morning.
We were gone all day Friday, first at breakfast and then up north in Everett at Sorticulture, a huge outdoor garden arts show. I will eventually have a post about that too.
This morning, Saturday, after a great night's sleep at last, we both just sat around and caught up on electronic communications. After a late breakfast, and with a break in the rain this morning, we went for a three mile walk. Then we both poked around in the garden. I deadheaded the roses and then picked a new bouquet for the kitchen table.
Rain may be on the way for our Sounders match at the stadium this evening, but we'll be prepared.
It's lunch time. And then I'll watch the third leg of the Triple Crown and work on another blog post.
All is good here. Everything is coming up roses.
We arrived at the cabin in Rockaway Beach late Sunday afternoon in calm, lightly cloudy weather. The view from Neahkahnie Mountain on Hwy 101 was not clear but the rain that was expected didn't seem to be happening.
We got moved in, picked up take out chowder for a light dinner, and then went for a walk on the beach.
There was some color in the sky as we watched the sunset from the front porch of the cabin.
Monday morning was sunny and bright, with a calm sea.
With the low tide at about 9:30, the beach was perfect for our morning walk.
After we got back to the cabin, I brought a chair out onto the beach and read for almost two hours! What a luxury.
That afternoon we did a bit of shopping at Fred Meyer in Tillamook and then stopped at the Tillamook Cheese Factory for ice cream. I had a Oregon Hazelnut Salted Caramel hot fudge sundae.
On the way back to the cabin we stopped at the Tillamook Bay north jetty. All was calm and quiet, no waves crashing this time.
We had dinner out, at Pirates Cove on Tillamook Bay, where I tasted a bit of Tom's oyster stew, and we both dined on razor clams.
I took my after dinner stroll on the beach and watched the sun go down.
There were Mallard Ducks on the beach! I had never seen that before. Surfin' ducks!
More to come.
