Well, I’m still not quite right health-wise but, I did sleep
better with the use of NyQuil. NyQuil
and Advil decongestion have been my constant friends on this trip so far. Before we left NJ, I was on a 5 day Z-pak
regimen that did not kill all the bad things I caught from the ill masseuse who
infected me! It’s been over a week since
I became ill and still haven’t been able to kick it.
Up early again to check my work e-mail and take a bit of the
edge off. After reading some of the
e-mails from my Canadian Sales team, I decided I really needed to stop reading
my e-mail. Was really starting to annoy
me! I was so worked up that I called my
team lead just to chat him up a bit and to provide some moral support in my
absence. He, of course, was chiding me
for calling him from vacation. J So, finally took my own advice and decided I
would only cursorily peak at e-mail on my BB for the rest of the holiday!
On this particular morning the weather was overcast with
steady rain making everything gray, kinda what we were expecting the weather to
be more like in this region of the US and had not seen much of. We were up, dressed, packed and in the SUV to
start our days travel by 0715. Our
target destination today: Lincoln City,
OR. Looked to be a good starting point
for our next day trip to McMinnville and the Evergreen Aviation Museum, home of
the Spruce Goose.
Rain would follow us for most of the 40 or so miles to
Orick, a small town ~20miles south of Klamath.
As we were approaching Orick, we were thrilled to see our first large
herd of Elk just roaming around the low wetlands. No real good place to stop so we
continued. A couple of miles outside of
Orick we saw a sign that purported to be a good place to see Elk in the wild
so, we turned in. Nada. Disappointed we got back onto the Redwood
Highway (101) and hadn’t driven more than a mile when we sped by a compound of
small homes/bungalows fronting a relatively small grassy clearing that was
packed with Elk! I hit the brakes and
did a U-turn right on the highway, which had necked down to just 2 lanes. Fortunately, there was virtually no traffic
on this particular morning to have to worry about. We drove back to the cluster of small houses
– the appropriately named Elk Meadow Cabins, located within Redwood National
Park – and pulled into a dirt and gravel parking lot. The road fronting the cottages, Valley Green
Camp Rd, was cordoned off and marked ‘private’ so we didn’t continue in. According to ‘Yelp’, the Elk Meadow Cabins
are available for folks on vacation who are into nature, hiking and
wildlife. Didn’t matter… Rosie and I had front row seats
to a large herd of Elk with 1 giant male and lots of females and baby Elk. Needless to say, Rosie was in heaven and took
a lot of photos. After a few minutes,
the male Elk appeared to know we were there and started gathering up his
‘flock’ and moving them away from us.
So, we left and continued on.
Outside of Orick the rain had started to subside but, that
rain had turned into very heavy fog as we climbed up into the low mountains covering
the 20miles to Klamath. Visibility was
less than a 1/4mile in many locations and would stay heavy until we descended
out of the mountains towards the Klamath River Bridge. The scenery when we came out of the
mountains, even though it was overcast, was breathtaking. Repairs were going on 1 lane of the Klamath
River Bridge so we had to pause while opposing traffic cleared the bridge
before we drove over. Our initial
reaction was to keep driving through but, we hadn’t eaten
breakfast on this
morning and noticed that we passed a sign for a diner off the 1st
exit right after you cross the bridge.
Rosie and I debated turning around for a couple of miles and then, what
the heck, we just decided to turn around and check out the dining spot.
Boy, we were glad we went back. J This
area of the Redwoods National Park and the Klamath River area was the home of
the Yurok Indian Nation, I’ll side note about them later. As we pulled into the parking lot of the Log
Cabin Diner, we noticed signs to a ‘drive-thru’ redwood… we were definitely
going to find that after breakfast! The
Diner was a bit quirky in that just outside to the left of the cabin was a
fenced in area that contained Emus, flightless Australian birds. We only saw 1 but the sign on the fence
indicated there were probably more.
Inside the Log Cabin Diner, accommodations were sparse but
function and yet welcoming all at the same time. We sat ourselves. There were a good 6-8 other souls already
enjoying breakfast and the 1 waitress was doing the best she could without more
help. She eventually came over to greet
us and serve coffee. We gave her our
orders and hurried off on her way. While
we waited another 4some came in and sat hear us. They appeared to be good, older, retired
friends by the way they were talking with each other. Rosie and I eventually joined the friendly
conversation, and we found out that the two couples had only just met each
other at some nearby RV campground. One
couple was more local to California, L-A, while the other couple, based on
their accents, was obviously from the South – Texas to be exact. We had a very pleasant conversation all
throughout our breakfast, which eventually came to all of us, and the local couple
were very helpful in giving us some suggestions on things to do and see. We would actually take their advice on 1
suggestion a bit after breakfast. Breakfast
was just fine. We bid our goodbyes to
our ‘happenstance’ friends, paid our bill and made our way back out to our SUV.
Side Note: The Yurok, whose name means "downriver people" in the neighboring Karuk language (also called yuh'ára, or yurúkvaarar in Karuk), are Native Americans who live in northwestern California near the Klamath River and Pacific coast. Their autonym is Olekwo'l meaning "Persons." Today they live on the Yurok Indian Reservation, on several Rancherias, including the Trinidad Rancheria, throughout Humboldt County. The Yurok people are the largest Native American tribe in California, comprising nearly 6,000 members
Turns out the ‘Tour Though Tree’ here in Klamath was
literally right around the corner from the log cabin diner. You could walk to the entry booth from the
diner’s parking lot. We drove over to
the booth – it was unattended – picked up a brochure and dropped a fiver into a
box. The honor system was in play on
this day. We weren’t sure how far we’d
have to drive past the booth to the tree but, surprisingly, it was only a
couple of hundred yards, max, away. You
drive straight past the booth and eventually make a right, spiral turn up into
some dense forest. Just when you start
feeling as if you’re not in the right place, the path clears up some and you
see the massive Redwood with a large hole in it. We queued up behind a car driven by a
gentleman who was out of that car, which was parked inside the tree, taking
photos of the scene. He was very
conscientious of us waiting and had made room for our drive through within 5
mins of our arrival. He also volunteered
to take a couple of photos of Rosie and me with the SUV in the tree, which was
very nice of him before he left. The
Jeep Compass we were driving just barely fit into and through the tree – no way
a full size SUV would have fit through.
Rosie and I took a handful of additional photos before we got back in
and drove out and away. By the time we
left there were 3 other cars queued up behind us to get in. This was the only redwood we’d actually drive
through on this trip.
As I mentioned earlier in the diner, we actually decided to
drive up to a nearby overlook for some views to the mouth of the Klamath River
based on the recommendations of couple we had chatted up. Approximately 2 miles further north on the
101, we turned left onto a non-descript road, County Road D7 aka: Requa Road,
and wound our way up the mountain past historic Requa Inn where the road name
changes to Patrick J Murphy Memorial Drive.
The drive takes you about 2 miles up the mountain to the Klamath River
Overlook and a small parking area containing a few commercial binoculars,
benches for sitting and an eco-friendly restroom. Our newly found friends were absolutely
correct… the views of the Klamath River mouth area were spectacular! Not to mention all of the folks fishing for
salmon on this particular day. We spent
a good 15mins just soaking up the view before heading back down the mountain
and onto 101N.
Side Note: The town of Requa (pronounced Rek-wah) was a bustling fishing center on the Klamath River in the late 1800s when a hotel was first constructed to serve the Klamath's numerous fish canneries. Although the bustling commercial center is now a sleepy village in the Redwood National Park, the Historic Requa Inn has been a feature of the area for almost 100 years. Built in 1914, the plain, almost utilitarian arts and crafts Bed and Breakfast continues to be a special place today. And this is a special place. Since time immemorial the Yurok people have had a village at Rek-woi - making Requa one of the longest, continuously inhabited places in California. The Inn is in the heart of a series of co-managed redwood parks that have been declared both an International Biosphere Reserve and World Heritage Site.
Not long after we’d turned onto 101N we saw a sign to the
Trees of Mystery just a couple of miles up the road, still part of Klamath, and
we immediately decided to stop in and visit.
This particular tourist attraction located on the eastern side of the
101 is hard to miss. There are 2
gigantic wooden sculptures of Paul Bunyan and his blue Ox, Babe, adjacent to
the expansive parking lot. Rosie and I
spent a good 20mins just wandering around outside and inside the gift shop
taking a few photos here and there. We
did not partake of any of the offered tours on this day. We still had a ways to go on this day.
Side Note: Trees of Mystery is a roadside attraction and "tourist trap" in Klamath, California, about 35 miles south of the Oregon border. This private enterprise, founded in 1931, is located adjacent to US Highway 101 on private land surrounded by Redwood National and State Parks. The property contains towering redwoods and a number of unique tree formations, many of which can be seen from the "Trail of Mysterious Trees." The "Trail of Tall Tales" features some 50 chain-saw sculptures and carvings illustrating the imaginative stories about Paul Bunyan and his logging crew. The "Cathedral Tree", nine trees growing in a semicircle out of one root structure, is sometimes used for outdoor weddings. Trees of Mystery is best known for the 49-foot-tall statue of Paul Bunyan and the 35-foot-tall Babe the Blue Ox, both of which are visible from Highway 101. Constructed largely of wooden beams, chicken wire and stucco, the current Babe was built in 1950 and the current Bunyan was built in 1961. The original Bunyan was built in 1946 but was destroyed by rain that winter. In late 2007, the 1000-pound, 9-foot-wide head of Babe fell to the ground as a result of rotting materials damaged from rain. The head has since been replaced. The attraction also features The End of the Trail Museum, a large private collection of Native American art, crafts and tools. In 2001 an aerial tramway was installed called the Skytrail. It takes visitors to an observation deck where they can enjoy a view of the Pacific Ocean and surrounding forest.
Our next pass through point and last significant waypoint in
California was Crescent City, just 20miles south of the Oregon border. I mention Crescent City because we found a
Bank of America, we were running a bit low on cash, and stopped in to top
off. We also refueled the SUV here and
picked up some road snacks to tide us over until lunch. Didn’t take too long and we were on our way. Twenty miles flew by and we crossed into
Oregon by mid-morning. Highway 101 went
from being called the Redwood Highway to the Oregon Coast Highway. Approximately 5 miles into Oregon, we crossed
over a bridge spanning the Chetco River into Brookings, Oregon, our first
waypoint in the State. Brookings was a
just a pass through for us. However, as
we continued through Brookings, the Pacific Ocean was starting to beckon is to
stop and visit somewhere soon. We’d seen
and passed a couple of turn-offs towards the beach and eventually came upon a
turn-off about 8miles out of Brookings that we could not pass up. There was a
small sign posted marking this particular entry path down to a ‘Whaleshead
Beach’.
The road wound down towards the beach and became an unpaved,
rutted, rocky path leading to a parking area with an eco-restroom. We pulled over and joined the 2 other
vehicles already there, their occupants were already enjoying the expansive
beach. Like many beaches we’d seen along
the Pacific Northwest, this beach had several ‘sea stacks’ or perhaps small
islands just offshore. This beach was
also littered with driftwood, had a small stream draining into a tide pool set
back from the edge of the beach and, lots of evidence of beach bonfires. The beach was bounded by a rising cliff to
our right as we looked at the ocean, the north side, and the beach appeared to
stretch on for quite a ways to our left, to the south. Interestingly, the beach sand was a very gray
color versus white that we were accustomed to.
The water was pretty cold and on the low tide side. We spent a pleasant 20mins just strolling
around and enjoying the atmosphere. As nice
and as the cool as the sea breeze was, I was still feeling a bit under the
weather. Left the beach, jumped back in
to the SUV and continued on our way north.
On this particular day, Rosie ended up alternating with me
and doing a lot of the driving which allowed me to just chill and enjoy the
ride. Highway 101 in Oregon alternated
quite a bit between 2 and 4 lanes with much fewer hair-pin turns along the way
making driving a great deal easier and less intense than the PCH headed south
out of San Francisco. Having said that,
Rosie and I had become increasingly aware of a growing number of bicyclers
along the 101 in Oregon, long distance riders, making their way both north and
south. The scenery along the coast in
Oregon is just as striking, albeit not quite the same, as that in California -
which is dominated by forests of massive Redwoods. Pretty sure the environment had something to
do with the number of bicyclers we were seeing.
Side
Note: On our way along the northern California
coast, we’d noticed some bicyclers in but, not nearly the numbers we’d passed
along the coast road in Oregon. Most of
the bicyclers did not appear to be day riders, just out for a bit of
cardiovascular exercise. These coastal
riders appeared to going very long distances and were packing… many of the
bikes had saddle bags hanging off the rear tire and some had saddle bags fore
and aft. We were frequently amazed at
these riders struggling massively to scale very long, climbing stretches of
coastal road. They couldn’t have been
making a ton of miles/day. We surmised
they must have a great passion for the sport of cycling.
When we were leaving Whaleshead Beach, we didn’t realize
that we’d end up driving a good 125miles or so before taking a break – a pretty
long, non-stop stretch for us. Coos Bay
was our next waypoint ~100 miles north.
This coastal city, largest in Oregon, is nestled along the Coos Bay and River,
was just a pass through for us but, exhibited plenty of signs of being a very
large logging and lumber town. We
continued on to Reedsport located along the Umpqua River, 27miles north, for a
‘poddy’ break in a McDonald’s. Found
ourselves to be quite ‘peckish’ so, decided to have a guilty pleasure lunch inside
the Golden Arches before continuing on our way.
The weather had once again blossomed into a glorious day!
Florence, our next waypoint, was another 22miles ahead. As we approached Florence we had to cross a
beautiful, historic, concrete drawbridge spanning the Suislaw River in to the
city: the Suislaw River Bridge. Not sure why I was taken with this particular
bridge… heck, we’d crossed many other bridges along the way in Oregon. Most of those bridges were a part of the many
towns/cities we had passed through.
Side Note: The Siuslaw River Bridge is a bascule bridge that spans the Siuslaw River on U.S. Route 101 in Florence, Oregon. It was designed by Conde McCullough, built by the Mercer-Fraser Company of Eureka, California, and funded by the Federal Emergency Administration of Public Works (later renamed the Public Works Administration). It opened in 1936. The bridge's total length is 1,568 feet (478 m). When open, the 140-foot (43 m) double-leaf bascule provides 110 feet (34 m) of horizontal clearance for boat traffic. The bascule section is flanked by two 154-foot (47 m) reinforced concrete tied arches, identical to those used in the original Alsea Bay Bridge. Four Art Deco-style obelisks house mechanical equipment as well as living quarters for the bridge operator. The total cost of the bridge was $527,000. The bridge was added to the National Register of Historic Places on August 5, 2005
While we were driving through Florence, we noticed signs for
the Heceta Head Lighthouse and, even though the day was drawing down, decided
to stop in at Heceta Head Lighthouse State Scenic Viewpoint. Located approximately 11 miles north of
Florence, you get to the State Park by exiting right off of the 101 and doing a
big, descending right hand turn under a bridge that makes up a portion of Hwy
101 and, emptying out into a fairly sizable parking lot. Rosie and I had a nice time hiking up to
visit the lighthouse keeper’s house, small gift shop and, the lighthouse
itself.
Side Note: Heceta Head Light is a lighthouse located on the Oregon Coast 13 miles (21 km) north of Florence, Oregon and 13 miles (21 km) south of Yachats, Oregon, United States. It is located at Heceta Head Lighthouse State Scenic Viewpoint (a state park) midway up a 205-foot (63 m) tall headland. Built in 1894, the 56-foot (17 m) tall lighthouse shines a beam visible for 21 miles (34 km), making it the strongest light on the Oregon Coast. The light is maintained by the Oregon Parks and Recreation Department, while the assistant lighthouse keepers' house, operated as a bed and breakfast, is maintained by the U.S. Forest Service. The lighthouse is 2 miles (3.2 km) away from Sea Lion Caves.
Spent a good 45mins enjoying the lighthouse and gorgeous
views of the water, beach and bridge. On
the way back down the small mountain path towards the parking area, we stopped
into the gift shop and made a few purchases before heading back out on the
road. Our daylight was starting to wane
and we still had a good 60+ miles to go.
The remainder of our drive was uneventful and we hit the outskirts of
Lincoln City by 1745. Rosie and I didn’t
appreciate it at the time but, when we first pulled off of the 101 and into
what we thought was the heart of Lincoln City, we were actually at the southern
end of the city with Siletz Bay opening up to the south and its entrance within
easy view to the west.
Really didn’t have a good idea of where we were in the city
so, just headed towards the water and an area that looked interesting. We just happened upon a road fronting the top
of Siletz Bay with at least 1 restaurant right on the water and across from a
small inn that had a vacancy sign posted for $99 rooms for rent. We’d stumbled onto a wonderful place to spend
our Tuesday evening: the Looking Glass
Inn. Parked and went inside. The young ladies working the front desk were
great and when I ‘yelped’ a $10 coupon for the hotel, they were happy to honor
it! Room 107 was to be ours for the
evening and we hurriedly unloaded the SUV and got the room squared away before
we set out to do a bit of exploring around the inn.
The Looking Glass Inn is located on a road, Southwest 51st
Street, which just loops around and goes back out to the 101. There are a few eating places nearby with
‘Mo’s’ being the largest and most popular.
Most of the parking available is used by folks coming to eat at Mo’s or
to enjoy the sandy beaches fronting Mo’s and some of the other vacation
properties lining the top of Siletz Bay.
Quite a few of the folks fishing on this particular evening were casting
as close to the entrance of the bay as possible. At the end of the street where the road loops
around, there’s some fishing sculptures and a covered pavilion where people could
have picnics. Like all the other beaches
we’d visited to date, this one was littered with all sizes and kinds of
driftwood and you could see the evidence of bonfires here and there. Mo’s Restaurant is a good size and has a pier
attached to it that juts out into Siletz Bay that is used for fishing and
watching the sea life. It was low tide
at the moment and the bay appears to be relatively shallow here at the top
end. Tons of birds including seagulls
and pterodactyls (pelicans) were flying or rousting around. Items in the shallow waters of the bay that
initially appeared to be floating debris, were actually sea lions just lounging
around… Rosie was enthralled.
There was no question that we’d have dinner at Mo’s and,
that’s where we walked over and in to by 1900.
When you walk into Mo’s there’s an open area gift shop to the left, the
checkout counter immediately to the right and the kitchen just beyond
that. Plenty of seating throughout the
restaurant and wrap around windows east, south and west, so that regardless of
where you sat, there’s was a great view of the bay. We were seated at a round table in the
southwest corner with a great view to the setting sun with the silhouettes of
the dozen or so folks fishing on the beach between the sun and our vantage
point. Rosie had the fish tacos and I
went with a burger and ‘Mo fries’, served with Ranch dressing. The food was fine and went down quite easily
with the beer I enjoyed and the glass of wine Rosie had. After chow, we did do some shopping… Rosie
bought a very pretty piece of wood with a salmon painted on it and I bought a
miniature shoe for my Yamaha vStar 1100 key ring and smashed a penny or two.
After dinner Rosie and I strolled around the beach enjoying
the sun set, low tide and a big, bright almost full moon. Most of the folks who’d been fishing had
packed up and left. The beach was mostly
deserted and you had to be a bit careful dodging some of the bigger pieces of
driftwood. We really liked what we’d
stumbled on to here in Lincoln City.
Made our way casually back to our room to chill for the evening, do a
little note taking for this blog and to do some trip planning for what was
shaping up to be a busy Wednesday in Oregon.
What a good, long day we’ve had! This would end up being our longest driving
day of the trip at ~350miles from Eureka, CA, to Lincoln City, OR.
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