Oregon-Lincoln City-Central Coast-16 of 49 on our RV Adventure

If you are a first-time reader, welcome to Lora and Erics RV Adventure Blog. You can read about us at http://www.LoraandEricsRVAdventure.com. We started in December 2017 with a goal to complete 49 states before heading home to North Carolina.

Today we head north. I am up early as usual. We take our showers and packed up. The route takes us up the Oregon Coast on Highway 101 is to reach Lincoln City, Oregon. Lincoln City is located on the beautiful Northern Oregon Coast. The route is an easy drive up Highway 101.

The travel time from Beachfront RV Park in Brookings, OR to Chinook Bend RV Resort in Lincoln City is 4 h 54 min (230 miles) via US-101 N.

The views between Brookings and Gold Beach are the best for Ocean and Cliff viewing. After Gold Beach the route goes inland much more often, but never too deep or without crazy winding turns. There are several small towns, each with their unique features. The scenery changes from the tall redwoods to smaller pines and windy rivers. Head further north the scene changes to sandy dunes. Mountains and hills of yellow sand with trees and vegetation growing from the sand. We are amazed each time we see bikers making the journey with just the power of their bodies.

The color of the sand in southern Oregon is gray and to the north more a traditional yellow. From the highway there are no good parking stops for a trailer and truck at 60 feet length. The dunes go on for a great length each region having a different State Park name. There is basically one large city along Highway 101 that is large enough to have a Super Walmart. It is 29 miles south of Lincoln City.

Our destination in Lincoln City is Chinook Bend RV Resort. On and off rain started a couple of hours before our arrival.

Chinook Bend RV Resort is 4 miles off Highway 101 on Hwy 129 a few miles south of Lincoln City. Chinook Bend RV Resort is a Coast to Coast Deluxe member. The entrance is a Red Barn building which is the General Store and Registration. The RV sites are down a long path across a meadow next to the Chinook River. There may be around 100 sites mostly full-time residents in older campers and motor coaches. If you want a river site, there is an upcharge and another upcharge for cable TV. In all the cost for us is around $10.00 per day. The river sites are a little tight, but you can back in literally overhanging the river bank. The facilities are older buildings, but the interior bathroom and Laundry are in nice shape. Looking at the reviews, there are Elk that cross the meadow regularly. At registration the host mentioned they cross the meadow in the morning and dusk.

After setting up I decided to find a pizza place. The internet and Verizon are limited so I need to drive into Lincoln City to do any major searches. I take Lora’s phone so the pictures and video she posted on Facebook get uploaded. I stop at IGA for some egg noodles and search for a pizza place. I place my order at Gallucci’s Pizzeria in Lincoln City and picked up a pepperoni pizza, Vegetarian and Seafood Pizza, and Meatball Hoagie after I finished shopping at IGA.

After getting back to the campground we sat outside under the awnings enjoying the scenery. The rain is light and steady. The weather is expected to be wet through Sunday. This is the first time we have had rain since Whitney, Texas in the 3rd week in April. The cable TV is DirecTV. We have about 32 channels with good reception and clarity. After it cooled down we headed inside and watched TV before heading to bed.

The evening was rainy. By 5:00 am the rain had stopped and at first light I walked Bella Bee around the RV property. We see no Elk. I feed Bella Bee and she heads back to bed with Lora. I figure out I can place my phone outside in the truck with hotspot on and I can use the PC and internet slowly. Jonny calls but each time we cannot connect because of bars. I text him. He is calling to confirm he has the correct address and tells us he is on the way to the post office. I place 3 Amazon orders to be delivered on Monday.

The morning is a series of on and off rain. In between rain clouds the sky is deep blue. The clouds are draped within the mountains. Lora gets up and we sit outside under the awning. The temperature is in the low 50°’s.

By 10:00 am we are ready to go see the sights. We decide to head to Lincoln City first. Once in Verizon strength we stop at the Lincoln City Outlet Mall and park to search for attractions. We first go to Connie Hansen Garden Conservancy. The distance is under 2 miles from our location.

The Connie Hansen Garden Conservancy is a conservatory created by one person. Connie Hansen Garden Conservancy. The garden is small by well maintained and tightly packed with beautiful rhododendrons over 10 ft tall. The blooms were past full bloom, but still mostly in good form. They also had many other flower varieties on display as well. Whenever in the region, this is an off the beaten gem to visit.

After the garden conservatory we search again for something unique. We found a covered bridge nearby from the 1914. The Drift Creek Covered Bridge was originally located over Drift Creek. The bridge was moved to a private residence in 2001. The family allows people to stop and take pictures of the bridge.

After visiting the bridge, we search for any waterfalls nearby. We drove under 8 miles up the same road to Drift Creek Covered Bridge. A couple of miles on the road the route transitioned to a paved and gravel road.

We were getting on and off rain as we traversed the road. We eventually got to the parking lot to Drift Creek & Trail Falls Trail. The National Park Service has a self-serve pay box for visitors. The cost is $5.00 or free with an Interagency Pass. We had no rain when we started our walk. I have my camera and 2 hiking poles. Lora has her light jacket. The path is 1.25 miles to the suspension bridge and 1.5 miles to the waterfall on-way. The total elevation change is under 500 ft. We start are trek down the path. Our pace is ok. We pass a few people heading back up. About 10 minutes in we start to get drizzle. As we head deeper the drizzle turns to rain. We are getting wet. Lora left her had in the truck and I left my rain jacket and hood. We pass a couple that tells us we are about a 1/3 of the way. After that we decide to turn around, we are wet and cold. The walk back was not bad. We stop a few times, but nothing to long. We are saturated when we get back. In the truck we see the outside temperature is 47°F.

We did not go prepared and might come back when it is not raining later in the week.

The route back took us up the mountain and down to Lincoln City. The scenery is very pleasant. The rain once again stopped, and the sun light beamed through the soaked green forest. The moss on the trees are illuminated by the water beads glistened by the sunlight.

When we reach the campground, we decide to start a campfire. This is probably the most time we spent outside. We move from the campfire to the awning each time the rain starts. The temperature is in the 50°’s. We take Bella Bee for a walk to the meadow in hope to see elk. Not this time. We take a path and reach the end. We cross a field to the road. Bella Bee was jumping to make her way across the field and grass taller than her. She was muddy and saturated. As soon as we got back we gave Bella Bee a bath. Lora and I continued to relax out side by the fire till about 5:00 pm.

At one point Lora says she sees an Elk. I look out the window and see a Lama walking up the road toward our camper. The Lama is a pet and coyote guard for the campground. They have a goat as well to keep the Lama company.

After which we watched Police Live till 7:00 pm. I head to bed and Lora stayed up to watch a TBS documentary on Gotti: Godfather and Son. She headed to bed after the show ended around 9:00 pm.

The rain was steady overnight. Bella Bee was up at the normal time 5:15 am. The rain is expected to be continuous all day. Lora and I washed up and I gathered up all the dirty clothes.

If we are going to be trapped inside by rain, might as well do laundry. The laundry room consists of 2 washers and 2 driers each $1.50 for use. I normally do the laundry and Lora does the folding and putting away.

Luckily the cable works well. All that is on the news is about the Trump and King Jong Un Summit in Singapore. At 11:00 am we decide to head into town for some cell phone time. We drove down Historic Taft Bay district in Lincoln City, OR. The beach access parking lot is next to the inlet across from Siletz Bay National Wildlife Refuge. The beach is scattered with drift wood, logs, and trees. The ocean water flows in from a thin opening from the Pacific Ocean. I head toward the opening. Across from the water is a heard of seal on the beach. The waves are raging off the coast. These are the largest waves I witnessed. I never seen waves that create a tube. The waves farthest off the beach were large enough to make small tubes.

We check campgrounds in Portland and leave a message with one for a reservation. Lora searched for Periodontists in Alaska for an August Deep Cleaning appointment. In both cases we will not know if we get a call back until we get back into town tomorrow.

We headed back to the camper and finished the day and evening watching TV and napping.

Last night the rain kept coming down. Sometime late the rain stopped. Bella Bee did great last night. She did not wake up till 6:00 am. The sun was up and morning clouds drifting through the mountain forest. Once again, no elk present. One more day to the Singapore Summit. All there is on the TV is news on the summit. Lora got up around 7:15 am.

The temperature is in the 50°’s this morning. We got ourselves ready by 10:00 am and drive to the Historic Taft Bay District to catch up on Facebook and email.

I called the campground we called yesterday for Portland and found out they do not have any opening for 6 nights. I found Portland Woodburn RV Resort and filled out the online reservation request. After finishing up in the parking lot I keyed in attractions on TripAdvisor.

We headed south on Highway 101. Our first stop was Boiler Bay. It is part of Oregon State Park road side scenic viewing sites along the Oregon Coast. One thing Lora likes is each State Park stop has a bathroom facility or at least porta-potties.

As Lora went toward the bathroom I walked down to the viewing area. I started taking my photos with a 50mm Nikon lens. There were several people with binoculars. I walked by a man with his 2 children. He asked one of the children if he can see the whale? I walked toward the main area and looked out in the ocean. There were a couple of boats and near them was a whale. Wow! I immediately headed back to the truck to get my binoculars and zoom lens for the camera. I walked about half way back when I seen Lora walking back from the bathroom. She was getting in the truck when I was finally able to get her attention. She walked up to where I am standing, and I showed her the whale. We headed down to the main viewing area and seen multiple whales. It was so cool to see free whales off the coast. When they dive, they arch their back and raise their tail before going under. It was such a magnificent sight. We ended up staying there for almost an hour.

After absorbing all we wanted we headed south to the small town of Depoe Bay, the world’s smallest harbor. The main street is just off the ocean. There is angled parking on either side on either side of Highway 101. To find a parking spot, we must wait for a car to back out. We get lucky and find a spot to park. There are whale watching tours going on just off the shore. Two smaller whales can be seen swimming around the boats. We take more pictures and take in the scene before heading out again.

We see on TripAdvisor an Oregon State Park Loop Route just south of Depoe Bay. The loop is a short route along the cliff’s edge on the coast. The end of the loop takes us to another parking area called Cape Foulweather. To the left is a large beach with surfer’s in the water. To the right and front there are waves crashing onto the cliffside and boulders raising from the ocean. There is a couple of whales swimming further off the coast.

We decide to have lunch, so we get on TripAdvisor to search for local restaurants. We find Gracie’s Sea Hag in Depoe Bay main street. The reviews for Gracie’s Sea Hag are all good. There are two entrances. The right side is the bar and lounge. The left door is the restaurant. We walked into the Lounge first, then went over to the restaurant side. We were able to get seated right away. The atmosphere is friendly. The inside has woodgrain walls and ceiling.

There is a long history of Gracie’s Sea Hag which Lora read about in the back of the restaurant. We ordered a beer and chardonnay at first. When the drinks arrived, Lora ordered a veggie burger and I ordered Seafood Pasta. The Seafood Pasta comes with a Clam Chowder cup or Salad. I ordered the Clam Chowder. The Clam Chowder was great. The soup was thick and full of meat and very little potato chunks, which many chowders use to reduce the meat content. The Seafood Pasta arrived, and I was in heaven. The pasta had clams, shrimp and large prawns. All supposedly locally caught. It was amazing flavor and every bite contained seafood. Lora enjoyed her veggie burger. It was satisfied her appetite and not fill her to being stuffed.

After lunch we walked around main street walking into the gift shops. Lora’s light jacket zipper broke earlier, and she wanted to find another jacket. Unfortunately, all the jackets had Oregon Coast or Depoe Bay on the jackets. We decided to drive to the Outlet Mall in Lincoln City. Lora found 2 jackets at Old Navy. We walked around the Outlet Mall before driving back to the campground.

We are expecting mail for Jonny and Amazon today. So far, we have no notification saying the packages have arrived. A short time after we got back, I head over to the office. Jonny’s package had arrived. I returned to the camper and start to open the mail. Very quickly we see there is more junk mail than important. The package was around $56.00 to ship. If they opened the mail, removed the junk inserts, envelopes, and junk mail the cost would be some much less. There are also flat rate priority boxes that they can use when we give them at least 5 days’ notice.

I use the junk mail to start a campfire. An office employee dropped off my Amazon package. I had all three purchases in one box. I unbox the items and burned the boxes in the fire. We later talked with Phillip and Amanda. There went back to Rocky Mount to sign the closing paperwork on the house. Phillip mentioned Daniel helped him move items from the house. We are glad they had a chance to spend time together. I got a call from Woodburn RV Resort confirming our reservation. We are not set to leave on Wednesday. We kept the fire feed with wood up until the Trump Kim Summit began. We stayed inside watching the news before heading off to bed.

This morning we are surrounded by a deep fog. I cannot see the river behind us or the mountains surrounding us. I walk Bella Bee around the campground hoping to see an elk. Nope none around. By the time we reach the camper the fog is already burning off. I can see the river and barely the mountain top in the sun. I walked down to the pier to get a different perspective on the river and campground.

I start to organize the cabinets in the camper to open space and store items we do not need as often in the cabinets on either side of the couch. Lora got up and we hung around the camper till noon. We head to Lincoln City without a plan other than getting the tank filled up. Diesel is $3.09 per gallon. It is cheaper by almost $0.25 than unleaded.

We decide to head north on Highway 101 expecting to see similar, but spectacular views of the Pacific Coast. We were wrong, there are some wayside stops, but the route is mainly inland. We stop in Neskowin thinking we can access the beach easily. The parking is rather far so drove though the beach neighborhood before heading back on Highway 101.

We stop at Winema Wayfinding Point take a few pictures and smell the flowers growing on the cliff. The parking area is large and able to accommodate RV and many vehicles. They have placards that show all the Oregon State Park stops, campgrounds, beach, etc.

We see there is a 40 mile stretch along the coast called Three Capes Scenic Loop. We decide to follow the loop. We next drive into Pacific City. I am trying to get a good vantage point of the rocks out in the ocean. We drive into Bob Straub State Park and park. We walk up the sand dune to gaze over the horizon and beach. We see a group of horseback riders on the beach.

We stay on Sandlake Rd along the coast loop. We turn off to Whalen Island County Park. Unfortunately, the park is closed, and we turn around in the parking lot.

We pass Sand Lake Recreational Area. Like the sand dunes in South Central Oregon, there are mounds of sand within the forest. This time the dunes are isolated to a narrow section. It is difficult to view from the Three Capes Scenic Loop unless you stop on the road. There are no places to pull off and take pictures.

The drive takes us into forests and mountains. We make a left onto Cape Lookout Rd towards Cape Lookout State Park and drive to the beach parking. There is a $4.00 charge for a day pass and parking. We decide to drive through and head to the next place. Cape Lookout Rd turns into Whiskey Creek Rd, then Netarts Bay Drive. We stop at Netarts Community County Park to hit the bathrooms.

We head west onto Netarts Oceanside Highway to Maxwell Point. We take pictures of four stone boulders towering out of the ocean from Oceanside Beach. The boulders are called Storm Rock, Finley Rock, Shag Rock, and Seal Rock. Each have tunnels cut through them. I am asked by a family to take a picture of them all on the beach.

After taking the pictures I head back to the truck and we move to our next destination. Our last stop is Cape Meares Lighthouse. The road is closed just after the Lighthouse, so this is the end of Three Capes Scenic Loop.

The lighthouse was built in 1889 and commissioned on January 1, 1890. The tower stands 38 feet high and is the shortest lighthouse in Oregon. The lighthouse was built to address complaints from commercial fisherman and ship sinking off the coast. The lighthouse is a short walk from the parking lot. On either side of the walk there are overlooks of the cliffs and beach. There are placards giving information of the local birds and how they survive on the cliffs.

The lighthouse is small, but effective. From the parking lot all you see is the top of the light. We walked down from one of the side paths. The lighthouse itself is a small building and a short lighthouse tower. There are 2 volunteers giving tours to the top of the lighthouse. The tour guide gives a detailed lecture on the history of the lighthouse from its time using oil and clock gears and weights to rotate the light to its decommission in 1963. The lighthouse stood vacant for a number of years and was heavily vandalized. The county offered amnesty for anyone who had the stolen items, glass, and lens. Much of it was returned, but others had to be replaced by plexiglass.

In the same parking lot there is a path to the Octopus Tree. The tree is unique and stands out from any other tree in the forest. The Octopus Tree is a massive Sitka spruce with branches growing like giant tentacles from its 50-foot base. It is situated approximately 600 feet from the scenic viewpoint. The tree’s unique shape, according to local historians and Tillamook tribal descendants, comes not from the ravages of wind, but from its function as a ceremonial site, shaped to hold cedar canoes and other ritual objects.

We decide to head back to Lincoln City. We drive to Tillamook to pick up Highway 101 S. Tillamook is a historic dairy and cheese town. The Northern Oregon coastal region is known for its dairy and cheese. Visitors can tour dairy farms and cheese factories in the area.

We get back to Lincoln City around 5:00 pm. We stop at Safeway to pickup some dinner for tonight (hot dogs) and other items. We fill up on our gas and check on Google Maps our route to Woodburn RV Resort outside Portland, Oregon. We find out our next destination is only 83 miles away.

We get back to the camper, light a fire and enjoy the remainder of the evening. We head to be before 9:00 pm.

This morning it is raining. The rain is supposed to be only this morning and clear up later. We do not have to leave early because out next destination is a short distance away.

Today we head to Portland, Oregon. We are staying at Woodburn RV Resort.

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