The elusive Oregon coast

Having left portland around 2, Noa and i started driving for the oregon coast in order to drive down the 101, with the idea that we would get a little more than halfway down in half a day.  But first, we needed to stop for lunch in Tillamook!  if you have never heard of it, a lot of cheese is produced there.  So as we were driving to Tillamook, we decided we should try to find a place that would serve grilled cheeses, and low and behold, we did! it was a cute little farm/tourist destination that had goats and yak’s, and grilled cheeses!

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having finally made it to the coast, we started driving south, and after what seemed to be a forever inland road, we got our first glimpse of the pacific.  yup, that looks like the pacific!

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we kept driving until we hit the city of newport, which has one of the many oregon light houses, and is also a national park.  we thought we would drive out to it and have a nice relaxed stroll around the area.  well, when we got there, the first indication that there might be “some” wind was some kids were being blown about!  after we parked, and tried to open the car doors, we realized that it might be somewhat blustery out, and we need pants and sweatshirts!  having found those, we got out and started walking to the light house.  apparently theres a rookery for sea birds right next to it, and seals hang out on the rocks below.

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it was a nice little windy break.

from there we still had quite a bit of driving to do, but we stopped so i could jump out and take a picture of all the diverse beaches.

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it started to get more hazy the further south we got, and when we finally left the higher cliffs of norther oregon, and dropped to the sand dunes of central oregon, you can see the haze really set in. luckily by this point we were close to florence oregon where we would be spending the night.  as we got into the hotel, the wind and cold just seeped into you, and we could not see 10 feet in front of us.  we had a meal at the restaurant and all you could see out the window were grasses being whipped around by the wind.

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the following morning the haze was still settled around us, and i got a few pictures around the hotel before we left.

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the town of florence

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that day we still had a very long drive ahead of us.  we left at 8am, and i did not expect us to get to our destination just north of san francisco until 9pm.  As the day progressed, the weather certainly got better though.

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it was funny, every little bay would have its own weather pattern.  the clouds would sweep in and out, alternating between nice and warm and cold.

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I found these little flowers along one of the sand dunes.  and the seagull was just hanging out.

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Just before crossing the border into northern california, we stopped and put our feet in the water at one beach.  it was as cold as the water in vancouver.

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the 101 drive down Oregon coast has been something i always wanted to do.  ive driven the I5 thru a half dozen times, and while quick, is not nearly as pleasant as the 101.  the problem with this trip was i think we tried to accomplish too much.  we wanted to hurry to sonoma, in order to see it a bit, but that only left a day and a half to drive the coast, and see all the sights.  i hindsight, you could easily spend a full week just exploring the little towns, stopping to see the different beaches and for me taking photographs.  i did not even scratch the surface of photographic opportunities along the way, which in a way is a shame, but also leaves something for us to go back too….right?

overall thought, even with the short time and the little we were able to see, it was an immensely enjoyable drive, and I am very happy that we finally got to experience the oregon coast.