We had a fun week at South Beach State Park just south of Newport, Oregon. The wide, long beach was a half mile one way. Yaquina Bay with its impressive bridge was a half mile another way. And the harbor with hundreds of boats and the Oregon Coast Aquarium was just a mile the other direction. Each time we stepped outside we could hear sea lions making a ruckus in the distance.
The weather was glorious the first two days. Big high pressure and easterly, off-shore winds meant clear blue skies and warm temps. If the weather was like that more often, the Pacific NW would be the population center of the country!
No clouds and the temps in the upper 70s…Awesome mid October weather for the Pacific NW!
We walked to the Oregon Coast Aquarium. The route was along the bay and under the Yaquina Bay bridge. As “PACNW Righty” commented in the last blog entry:
“The bridge you will cross is the first of a series of the big bridges along the Oregon Coast designed by Conde McCullough. It was built back in 1936. You'll hit a few more as you make your way south along the coast.”
Over the next week, I enjoyed seeing the bridge from different perspectives and crossing it each time.
The Oregon Coast Aquarium is rated as one of the top 10 in the US. The exhibits are nicely displayed and informative. We got to watch shore birds, otters, and seal lions get fed. I found the jelly fish and walk-through deep sea displays the most amazing.
Per a recommendation from “PACNW Righty”, we visited Ona State Park and the Beaver Creek Natural Area. We launched our kayaks on Beaver Creek right by Hwy 101. The creek was about 50 feet wide at that point and didn’t have any current. We started seeing quite a few different kinds of birds as we moved upstream. Just over two miles from the launch we hit the foot bridge that crossed the now 10 feet wide creek into the Natural Area. It was fun and tranquil snaking along the narrow creek walled in by thick vegetation. It was only us and the wilderness…we felt like explorers. We “parked” the kayaks in the grass by the bridge, put on our hiking boots, and hiked all over the Natural Area. We filled our mushroom basket with fresh chanterelles and a couple of king boletes – aka porcinis. According to our mushroom book, “no other mushroom is more substantial or satisfying to find” than the king bolete ( http://mushroom-collecting.com/mushroomking.html )…Thank you Mother Nature! On the way back, I caught a couple of sea-run cutthroat trout. The largest was about six inches. We decided to see how far downstream we could paddle and got stopped as the creek hit the tidal area and fanned out getting too shallow. All told we kayaked five miles, hiked three miles, picked about two pounds of shrooms, saw all kinds of birds, and caught some pretty little trout. The sun was going down and I was craving a burger and fries (a rare craving for me) so we stopped at “Flashbacks”, a funky 50’s style diner that satisfied my craving perfectly. It was a great day!
The frog tried to hitch a ride!
Too shallow to proceed…Pacific Ocean in sight!
And while we were kayaking the creek, a guy was attacked by a great white shark on the beach where we stayed: http://www.kgw.com/news/local/Surfer-encounters-shark-near-Newport-132279493.html
Don’t worry about us…we have no urge to go into that cold water!
The weather turned blustery with intermittent drizzle and light rain and winds 20-40mph. It was a perfect day to visit Cape Foulweather! First we drove up to Depoe Bay which is known for two things: the whale watching center and the world’s smallest harbor. We had a great meal at Tidal Raves with the amazing view making it a memorable experience. At the whale watching center, we learned about the migration routes of various whales. It surprised us to learn that a resident pod of grey whales reside off the central Oregon Coast most of the year. Seven were seen the day before we visited, but sadly, none were seen the day we were there…“should have been here yesterday”. The next stop was Cape Foulweather. The Cape is about 500 feet above the ocean on an exposed point. It was named in 1778 by Captain James Cook. Winds can hit 100mph during the harsh winter storms that batter the coast. Hopefully we don’t experience that! The weather was foul enough while we were there. The winds were 30-40mph and the visibility was 3-4 miles with light rain, drizzle, and fog. I posed for a couple of quick pictures and then we went into the little gotcha shop to warm up. Next we dropped rapidly from the top of the cape, down to Devil’s Punch Bowl ( http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Devils_Punch_Bowl_State_Natural_Area ).
This unique formation was made when sea caves collapsed. The color of the rocks ranged from light sandy brown, to dark orange, to stripes of red. The waves wash in and out of the narrow opening resulting in turbulent punch bowl waters. Then we stopped at the Yaquina Head Lighthouse. It was built in 1873 and is 93 feet high…the tallest on the Oregon coast. We climbed to the top and admired the mechanics of the lens and structure. We also took a quick hike up Salal Hill for a better view. The weather was still blustery but the visibility allowed a great view. We also tried to visit the Yaquina Bay Lighthouse, but didn’t make it in time. A week isn’t enough to see everything!
A great meal and a great view at Tidal Raves in Depoe Bay, OR
Parachute pants at Cape Foulweather, OR
Arleen is the blue speck in the upper right corner………………………………….Devil’s Punch Bowl, OR
Yaquina Head Lighthouse
We went agate hunting at Moolack Beach just north of Newport. We wandered around on the beach at low tide near a creek per guidance from multiple web pages. Did we find any? Heck…I don’t know. They all look the same to me! However, I found a beautiful porcini mushroom on the trail to the beach. That’s a real treasure! We saw a few fossils too.
Porcinis on the left. Chanterelles on the right. Grilled steak in the middle. Freakin’ outstanding!
Our last meal out in Newport was to Georgie’s Beachside Grill. We sat right by the window with a great view of Nye beach and Yaquina Head Lighthouse. I had a seafood sauté that included shrimp, scallops, mussels, clams, salmon, and white fish. Arleen had one of the specials with chicken, scallops, and sundried tomatoes in a creamy wine sauce. They were outstanding! The clam chowder was thick, buttery, creamy, with tons of clams and few potatoes. We rated it #3 behind Castaways and Mo’s. I couldn’t resist a cup of chili. Imagine how this would taste: “Prime rib chili…A mix of prime rib, chorizo, black beans, spices, diced tomatoes, amber ale, and dark chocolate. Topped with Tillamook Cheddar and a dollop of sour cream”. I like to try unusual things on menus. There was no way I could pass up chili made with dark chocolate! It’s some of the best chili I have ever tasted!!
We are on a roll when it comes to finding good restaurants. The key…an IPhone app called “TripAdvisor”. This very useful and free app allows you to search for trip related things like restaurants, hotels, things to do, flights, etc. You can search based on your location or you can enter any chosen location. What makes this most handy are the rankings and numerous user reviews. We look for places with a large number of consistent reviews. So far we have not been led astray.
We plan to spend two weeks at our next location: Woahink Lake just south of Florence, Oregon. The lake will be on one side and the famous Oregon Dunes on the other, both just a short walk away. We’ll slow things a down even more and take a break or two from being tourists while we tackle the growing to-do list. Check back with us in about two weeks!
We appreciate your comments, feedback, and suggestions. Keep them coming!
Howling at South Beach State Park as the sun goes down
See if something called "Urbanspoon" has an app - great for local restaurants as well.. Janet-Anne
ReplyDeleteI believe Cincinnati is famous for putting chocolate in their chili. I loved it but I know many who can't stand it.
ReplyDeleteYour posts are making me want to move to Oregon.