Life's like a road that you travel on
When there's one day here and the next day gone
Sometimes you bend and sometimes you stand
sometimes you turn your back to the wind.
Rascal Flatts
Hahahaha, Life was a highway today. You know how it is when you find a day that is just made for being a tourist. You just want to ride it all day long. Today was one of those days just made for hitting the road.
It started out simply enough, as most good stories do, with the idea that we'd take a leisurely drive down to the Walmart in Newport and stop wherever we wanted along the way. Sounds simple enough and it seems like it would be an easy and enjoyable way to spend a day.
And it was a grand way to spend the day . . . but it sure as heck wore us both out!!
First stop for the day was the beach access at NW 21st St. To give you an idea, we live near NW 34th St., and so we made it about 13 streets before we stopped. Hahahaha, that's the way it goes when you travel by following your nose.
It was a day for discovery and for exploring and we did both.
And we were able to do both from our lofty perch atop the bluff. Hahaha, there were far too many steps for us to go down. More importantly, there were far too many steps for us to come back up.
It started out simply enough, as most good stories do, with the idea that we'd take a leisurely drive down to the Walmart in Newport and stop wherever we wanted along the way. Sounds simple enough and it seems like it would be an easy and enjoyable way to spend a day.
And it was a grand way to spend the day . . . but it sure as heck wore us both out!!
First stop for the day was the beach access at NW 21st St. To give you an idea, we live near NW 34th St., and so we made it about 13 streets before we stopped. Hahahaha, that's the way it goes when you travel by following your nose.
Google Maps
It was a day for discovery and for exploring and we did both.
And we were able to do both from our lofty perch atop the bluff. Hahaha, there were far too many steps for us to go down. More importantly, there were far too many steps for us to come back up.
But we had a good view. And we discovered that there is a large rock sitting out in the ocean almost in front of our house. Hahahaha, we'd never seen it before . . . too close to sea level I guess. But up here it was clearly visible.
I tell you, I enjoy these simple things, like finding a rock out in the ocean, so doggone much.
And here is a look to the south. It was a glorious day.
But that was just the first stop along our route today. Soon we were off and heading down the 101 for our next adventure at our second stop . . .
. . . At the shortest river in the world, D-River.
Fun Facts: This once-nameless river was listed in the Guinness World Records as the world's shortest river at 440 ft. The title was lost in 1989 when Guinness named the Roe River in Montana as the world's shortest. The good people of Lincoln City submitted a new measurement to Guinness of about 120 ft marked at an "extreme high tide". And so it is today that Lincoln City proudly proclaims D River as the World's Shortest!! In 2006, the Guinness folks didn't list a category for shortest river.
The D River flows from Devils Lake, under U.S. Route 101 and into the Pacific Ocean entirely within the city limits of Lincoln City. The area was originally settled as the town of Delake, which was later incorporated with other nearby towns to form Lincoln City in 1965. The river has been known by several names, including simply "The outlet", and earned its short name in a contest.
Hahaha, it's D-Lightful.
You can see part of the river there, on the right side of this picture. And, look!! There's the Mini!! Hallooooo, faithful friend.
These folks were skimming rocks along the river as it flows into the Pacific.
Looking north, across the D River.
Our third stop on our wandering way down the coast was Siletz Bay at an overlook near Schooner Creek. And it was still early enough in the day that there was water in the bay.
Across the bay from here is Taft and the pier near where we saw the harbor seals a couple days ago.
And we got to see some of the waterfowl. Here's two Canadian Geese (I know, I know, they're technically called Canada Geese but that just sounds wrong every time I say it so I call them what I want to) that flew in while we were there. Can you spot both of them?
Carol got this shot with her cell. I like it . . . it has a water color quality to it. Hahahaha, now she's having fun with her Happy Accidents, too. I tell you, it's great fun coming back and seeing what we collected that day. It's another reason I love the digital age. You can come home and download everything you just shot and have at it rather than coming back and figuring out how many rolls you can get done right now and then driving to the store to drop them off.
Ahhhhhh, modern times; you ain't all bad.
CB
There's the public beach. You can get a great view of the harbor seals from this beach and, hopefully, some pelicans, too. We haven't seen any pelicans yet but when we do I am sure you'll know about it soon enough.
Just beyond Taft and just a bit further down 101 is a National Waterfowl Refuge near where the Siletz River empties into the Bay where we stopped for the fourth time.
And then, for our fifth stop, we looked into the Gleneden Beach State Wayside Park. And Carol did her best impression of Lash LaRue with some stipe from seaweed. That stuff is amazingly flexible, strong and durable.
Ka-rack!!
The State Park also sits on a bluff overlooking the beach. There's a path down to the beach but we contented ourselves with just looking down on the beach.
And as we meandered around, we met Betsy and Sasha, out for a walk.
Betsy remarked on the beautiful day and we were off to the races. She and Sasha had recently moved down to her beach house permanently. Sasha was given to her by a fellow that had to move to Alaska (?) and couldn't take her with him. They're both enjoying living by the beach. Her family comes to visit and they sleep on the floor or wherever they can find a spot in her small bungalow.
Betsy and Carol got to chatting and I sorta checked out. But Betsy was more than happy to pose for the blog. Hahaha, she said she'd get her daughter to help her find it on the Internet.
Carol got this great shot of the brilliant blue sky framed by a Jeffrey Pine. Hear that, Jeff? They named a tree after you!
CB
From the parking lot you get this view of the park that overlooks the beach. I imagine this park is used mostly to walk through to get down to the beach.
Number Six was the Boiler Bay State Wayside. Yeah, that's what they actually call them, Waysides. We pulled in, stopped and headed toward the lookout. This park is known for being a good place to spot some whales. Carol moves a lot faster than I when she's motivated and she was motivated to see herself some whales.
I was trailing along when I got this shot. When Carol got there the whole group perched along the rail got into a lively discussion about the whales, where they were and how cool it was to see them.
Everyone was there for that one reason . . . some whale watching.
And their efforts paid off!! Now, mind you, this is about all we saw, BUT, the whales did it.
Fun Facts: Whale watching is a year-round activity on the Coast with gray whales by far the most commonly seen. Whale watching is simple, first, locate whale spouts with your naked eye; then focus more closely with binoculars. Eezy-Peezy, One-Two-Threesie!!
If you're really ambitious and have the money, you can try whale watching from a charter boat. And for those extra-special people, you can hire a plane or a helicopter. Some people, eh!?!
Here's what it can look like. Hahahaha, as if . . .
Internet
But this is what we saw . . . and we were all excited to see this.
Gray whales migrate south from their feeding grounds in the Bering and Chukchi Seas around Alaska from mid-December through January. They're heading to their breeding grounds in Baja California, Mexico, where warm-water lagoons become nurseries for expectant mothers. Then, from late March to June, the whales migrate north to Alaska. On each trip, approximately 18,000 gray whales pass close to the Oregon Coast.
On the trip down, these giant mammals head south on a direct course, move quickly and mostly stay about 5 miles offshore. At their peak, about 30 whales pass by each hour. Coming back, the whales travel much more leisurely and stay closer to shore - within a half mile is not unusual. The non-breeding males and females lead the way back with some early birds starting in late February. They may even pass stragglers still heading south. The northward migration continues at a slower pace and mothers with young don't usually appear until May.
Then, of course, you have those whales who march to the beat of a different drummer and they stay off the coast of Oregon between June and November. These part-time residents number about 200. About 60 whales are seen repeatedly off the central coast and have been photographed and identified. Of these, about 40 hang out between Lincoln City and Newport each year because that seems to be what the food supply will support.
Believe me, I had a lot more shots of these whale spouts and plenty more of just the ocean. We all got excited when we saw this, a pectoral fin breaching the water. They sometimes lift their fins out of the water and then slap them down.
Well, I got a couple of shots of this behavior.
Annnnnnd, a seagull.
Cuz they're all over the place.
There's some beautiful scenery in Boiler Bay. Not a hospitable place to land a boat but still, very scenic.
Looking south down the coast.
Carol got into a conversation with several people there and we got to meet Gail and her Granddaughter, Natalia. Gail is from Joseph, Oregon and her Granddaughter, Natalia, is from Auckland, New Zealand. She, the granddaughter, is visiting and they're taking a road trip down to San Francisco.
Hahaha, Gail is proudly showing off the card I gave to hear about the blog.
Hey, Gail!!
For our Seventh Stop, we pulled in at the World's Smallest Harbor, Depoe Bay.
Fun Facts: With roughly 1,400 residents, it's one of the smallest hamlets on the coast, yet during the summer there are probably more tourists per square foot in Depoe Bay than in any other coastal town. Just 15 miles from the world's shortest river, is Depoe Bay, a 6-acre harbor that is the world's smallest natural navigable harbor. Oh, there are smaller harbors but the distinction claimed by Depoe Bay is that it is the smallest natural navigable harbor. Hahahaha, lawyers love it . . . depends on what the word is means!!
And it used to be even smaller until it was expanded 45 years ago. It's rocky, twisting entrance was just 30 feet wide then and at low tides the fishing boats at the docks tipped over and lay other sides in just a few inches of water and mud.
The Bay was named for a Siletz Indian named Charles "Charley" Depot who got the land in 1894 as part of the Dawes Act of 1887. The story goes he got his name, Depot Charley, for working at the military depot near Toledo, Oregon. The family was later known as DePoe. His original tribal affiliation was Tututni.
A really fun fact, in 1975, the fishing trip sequence in One Flew Over the Cuckoo's Nest was filmed here, in Depoe Bay.
And they even have a whale watching center there!! Closed on Mondays and Tuesdays.
You can learn a lot just reading the boards set out for the tourists. I do.
And we saw several more spouts while we were there. Hey, what the heck, we'll take what we get and like it.
This isn't the harbor but it gives you an idea of how beautiful this area is.
And there are natural caves around the area.
Here's the Depoe Bay Bridge . . .
Fun Facts: This bridge is one of a series of significant bridges built for the 101. The concert arch bridge spans the mouth of Depoe Bay with a 150-foot main span and a total length of 312 feet. It was designed by Conde McCullough who designed all of the 1920s bridges on the highway. The original bridge, completed in 1927, was only 18 ft wide from curb to curb with no sidewalks, and was widened in 1940 with a similar arched concrete bridge immediately adjacent to the original. The added structure is sympathetic to the original. The bridge is listed in the National Register of Historic Places.
And I bet it didn't take 5 years to build like a modern bridge would.
Oh, here it is!! Depoe Bay!! The World's Smallest Natural Navigable Harbor!!
Woo, Hoo!! We're Number One!!
Here's the main street of this popular tourist destination. I don't know where all those tourists park, though. I bet this is crowded during the summer.
Avoid.
And Carol got into a good and long discussion about whales and spottings and this and that while I was exploring the bridge.
Onward to our Eighth Stop, Rocky Creek State Wayside. Hahaha, I laugh when I type in Wayside.
This park is set next to the Whale Cove Inn so, guess what we'll be doing?
Yeah, you're right. We looked for whales but, unfortunately, you won't get to see any pictures of a spray of water coming out of the vast, blue Pacific Ocean.
Ratz!!
We didn't spot any here. But it is a beautiful little park.
With a photogenic fence bordering the limits of the park.
We didn't stay long at Rocky Creek. Next up was our Ninth Stop, Cape Foulweather.
Fun Facts: The Cape is a basalt outcropping about 500 ft above the Ocean. It's notable as the first promontory on the northwest coast of New Albion (as the area was then known) to be sighted and named by Captain James Cook while on his third voyage around the world.
His March 7, 1778 journal entry reads: The land appeared to be of moderate height, diversified with hill and Valley and almost everywhere covered with wood. There was nothing remarkable about it except one hill . . . At the northern extreme the land formed a point which I called Cape Foulweather from the very bad weather we soon after met with.
Good thing he was restrained by the current conventions and mores while naming this cape. I can't imagine what name a modern-day rockhead would call it if they discovered it today.
And they placed it so the compass was correct. Pretty neat, eh?
I walked down alongside the Gift Shop and Park Office (which was closed, it being a Monday) and got this shot of the coast along the Cape.
Believe it or not, we passed two other waysides on our way down to our Tenth Stop today. I was getting a bit winded by now.
And where did we stop next? At the Devils Punch Bowl.
Fun Facts: During winter storms, water from the restless ocean slams with a thundering roar into a hollow rock formation shaped like a huge punch bowl. the surf churns, foams, and swirls as it mixes a violent brew.
The punch bowl was probably created by the collapse of the roof over two sea caves, then shaped by wave action. The park is a popular whale watching site and displays an intriguing geology. They also have a nice picnic area with a great view atop the undulating rocky shoreline. Plus, they have a path down to the beach so you can explore the tide pools on the north side of the punch bowl.
The wind and weather have exposed the geographic strata. This is a good spot for whale watching, too, but we didn't see any while we were there.
At the other end, beyond the picnic area is a viewing station. You get a good view looking south and, if we really enlarged this picture you could see the Lighthouse at Yaquina Head on the spit of land projecting into the ocean.
Here, maybe this will help. Hahaha, that will be our next stop.
Also to the south is a long beach that is, evidently, popular with surfers. They even had some of them out today.
Surf's up, Kahuna!!
This is the beach I mentioned, the surfers are out in the water to the right.
And this park had the sassiest, brassiest squirrels I've ever seen. When I was walking into the picnic area, they would come towards me waiting for some tidbit to eat. This guy was sunning himself on a picnic table and didn't bother to move until I was maybe four feet away from him.
Walt Disney and his adorable and funny chipmunks aside, all they are are rats with a furry tail.
At Stop #11, we saw an Artist's romantic interpretation of the Yaquina Head Lighthouse. The reason I say romantic is that it obviously leaves out the Lightkeeper's house from long ago and the more recent additions made to the area by the U.S. Park System.
Still, it's a gives you a good idea of what setting looked like when the lighthouse was built in 1873.
Fun Facts: The Yaquina Head Light was also known early in its existence as the Cape Foulweather Lighthouse. The tower stands 93 ft tall and is the tallest lighthouse in Oregon!!
Woo, woo!! We're Number One!!
When you arrive at the park, you're directed into a small valley where the Visitor's Center is. The first thing we noticed as we pulled in was a guy with a large camera talking to a couple other folks and looking up at the cliffs around the Center.
So, naturally, when we got out of the Mini, we looked up at the cliffs around the Center and . . . POW!! WE saw a couple large birds swooping and making a grand noise as they flew in and out and around about the cliffs.
CB
Carol called back and spoke to a ranger from the park and learned that we were watching a pair of Peregrine Falcons.
Look at those eyes!! How cool is this!?! I tell you, you can see some of the most amazing things. This one, we think, was on or near a nest. The other one, and I didn't get a good picture of that one, flew around and then landed a short distance up the cliff from this one.
Fun Facts: The PF (Peregrine Falcon) is the largest falcon over most of the continent. They were virtually eradicated from eastern North America by pesticide poisoning in the mid-20th Century. It's made an incredible rebound and is now a regular sight in many large cities and coastal habitats.
The PF was once known as the Duck Hawk. Hey, Donald!! Duck!!
Hahaha, that's an old, old joke from a Mad Magazine way back in the 50s. I still laugh when I think of it.
The PF is capable of reaching over 200 mph during its characteristic hunting stoop (Birder talk for a high speed dive), making it the fastest member of the animal kingdom. The air pressure from a 200+ mph dive could possibly damage a bird's lungs but small bony tubercles on a PF's nostrils guide the airflow away from the nostrils enabling the bird to breather while diving by reducing the change in air pressure.
There's a lot more to these amazing birds but I'm gonna leave it here. Love the 'Net.
But let's go into the Visitor's Center. And it's a nice one.
And they had a great gift shop. Oh, yeah, if I only had the money. Hahahaha, as if I need yet another refrigerator magnet.
Or some more lighthouse shadow-box collectibles.
Here it is, the Yaquina Head Light.
They've done a great job presenting the exhibits and the information.
Fun Facts: A two-story keeper's dwelling was built at the time the lighthouse tower and its adjoining oil house were constructed. In 1923, a one-story keepers' house was added a short distance to the east. In 1938, a one-story building replaced the original two-story dwelling. Both dwellings and all outbuildings (a shed, a garage, etc.) were demolished in 1984 so the space is now a grassy area.
In the pictures below, you can see the two-story Keepers' house.
Some salvaged parts of the S.S. Yaquina.
A life-size whale. Really, the whole exhibit was well done.
It's worth the price of admission.
But enough of that, let's go up to the lighthouse. To get there you can either hike up to the lighthouse or leisurely drive up to it.
Which one do you think we did?
Hahahaha, right again!! We drove up.
Duh!!
Here's Carol Anne with the lighthouse in the background.
And, here's Tubby. Fortunately, Carol was good enough to cut off the top of my head to avoid the glaring reflection from the sun off my rapidly balding pate.
CB
Speaking of lazy, fat slug-like mammals, here's some harbor seals. We could see them as we walked around the park.
Some great views.
Some more Fun Facts about the Yaquina Head Lighthouse: Made in Paris in 1868 and shipped to Oregon, Yaquina Head Light was first lit August 20, 1873, and was automated in 1966. It's still active with an identifying light characteristic of two seconds on, two seconds off, two seconds on, and 14 seconds off.
The views were awesome!!
And, as always, there's a good chance to meet new people and make new friends.
More Fun Facts: Yaquina Head typically had three lighthouse keepers under the U.S. Lighthouse Service; a Head Keeper and a First and Second Assistant. The Head Keeper as well as the First Assistant usually stayed in the two-story keepers' dwelling with their families and the Second Assistant was usually a bachelor. (And working way out there he was likely to remain a bachelor, too!!) In 1939, the U.S. Coast Guard took over the management. During World War II, 17 servicemen were stationed at Yaquina Head to keep a lookout for enemy ships. (That sounds like my kind of duty!!)
CB
The Oil House leading into the lighthouse.
CB
It is a long way up. The last time I was here, I climbed up to the top but we didn't sign up for the tour this time.
I didn't know that!! The light keepers kept watch every night!!
Wha . . . !?!?! Remember, this was all done in the days before radio and TV and Cable and Internet and . . . all the other electronic distractions we desperately need to entertain ourselves in these modern times.
CB
Final Lighthouse Fun Facts: The lighthouse still uses its original 1868 French-made, 1st order, Fixed Fresnel Lens, visible 19 miles out to sea.
I don't remember this from the last time I was there but now you can walk down to the beach below and check out the tide pools and get a closer view of the harbor seals.
It was really interesting and we got to see some beautiful scenery. Plus the harbor seals.
CB
Finally, at our twelfth stop of the day, we made it to our destination. I was feeling the entire day by now.
I wanted to stop by the Coast Guard Station at Newport to take a look at it and also to see if they had a commissary or PX.
We did get to take a gander at the grounds and, no, they don't have either a PX or commissary.
Ratz.
Oh, Newport is Coast Guard City, USA.
As we walked around the small base, we got a great view of the Yaquina Bay Bridge.
Fun Facts: This was the last major bridge built in completing the 101 through Oregon. Opened on September 6, 1936, it took a total of 220 men just two years to pour 30,000 cubic yards of concrete and fabricate 3,100 tons of steel in order to create this bridge.
The bridge uses Art Deco and Art Moderne design motifs as well as forms borrowed from Gothic architecture. You can see the Gothic influence is seen in the balustrade, which features small pointed arches and in the arches of the side span piers. The ends of the bridge are augmented by pedestrian plazas that afford a view of the bridge and provide access to the parks at the landings by the stairways. Pedestals were provided for proposed sculptures of seals but the statues were never made.
The Coast Guard Station at Newport. Love the architecture. They should build them like this today but . . . glass and steel.
Bummer.
There's the Coast Guard boat, Yaquina Bay. I'm sure there's another technical and better sounding name for it but I didn't catch it.
The Station sits right next to the Old Bay Front area of Newport. A collection of restaurants and canneries along the bay.
And some great murals like this one of the Yaquina Bay.
Uh, no thanks.
A key component of the service the Coast Guard provides to the Oregon Coastal area is this helicopter. We've seen it several times now flying up and down the coast. There's a great furor ongoing because the Coasties are comtemplating moving the helicopter out of the area. The locals want to keep it here for the life-saving service it provides.
We were hungry now and so we strolled on down the waterfront looking for some place interesting to eat at.
But we did take a moment to investigate the loud barking noise we heard coming from the bay.
It was the harbor seals making all the noise. I don't know why they were barking but they wuz loud!!
It's tough to see them but you can just make out the dark rocks along the bay . . . that's where they were.
CB
Here you can get a better view. Again, they were loud.
The National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration (NOAA) has its Marine Operations Center - Pacific (MOC-P) here in Newport. I didn't realize they had so many ships in their fleets nor that they have three of these MOCs located in the Atlantic and in the Pacific Islands.
Argh!! Where to eat!?! Don't you love the tough problems we Old Retired People have to face nearly every day!?!
It's tough!!
But we finally decided on Mo's. We had seen a Mo's restaurant at one of the places we stopped today (and by now they were all sorta running together in my memory) and then we saw a Mo's on the right hand side of the street. We walked by and saw another one just ahead and on the left side of the street and so, what the heck, I am easily influenced and repetition does make a difference with me and so I headed us across the street and over to Mo's.
Here's the first Mo's we passed . . .
. . . and there, on the left you can see the second one. Strange but I guess it works.
It looked like a fun place.
Outside they had a sign explaining that "early one morning a woman returned to her car parked outside the restaurant, put it in drive instead of reverse and crashed through the front of the cafe. Mo, far from disgruntled, put her arm comfortingly around the woman and said, "Well, we'll just put in a garage door so you can drive in anytime you want." To this day, the garage door on the front of the restaurant is raised on nice days and turns Mo's into an instant sidewalk cafe."
And there it is . . . and they have an electric door opener for it, too.
Carol opted for the Fish 'N Chips and I got a bowl of clam chowder.
Both of us were disappointed. The food was just there. It was bland. But the service was great. The service was really good.
Hahaha, you can see I'm starting to flag a bit by now.
Thanks, Mo's. An interesting place to eat but next time, if there is a next time, we'll try something different.
So all we had left was a stop to Walmart and then the long and slow drive back up the coast to home.
What a great day. We hadn't started out with much of an agenda but, Boy, Howdy, we got an awful lot of sight-seeing and adventuring done.
And this is just what's within the 25 miles of us down south. Hahaha, wait until we head north and then east.
I know this was a lot for one blog and I hope, I really do, that they'll be a bit more manageable in the future but this is what can happen when you get out and just follow your nose. It's that retired thingie, you know, the one where you can do whatever the heck you want to do.
Hahahaha, that's the one. It sure came into play today.
Life is really good.
Hooah!!
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