Chasing Patches of Blue

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It was inevitable… The fabulous weather we had been experiencing just had to come to an end… Well, today it did - we looked out the window, and it was grey as far as we could see and there was actually rain! Out plan had been that we would drive to the Oregon coast, find a good spot and then ride our bikes along the coast road…

Statistics

Starting Destination: Newberg, Oregon
Ending Destination: Reedsport, Oregon
Ending Destination GPS: N: 43° 41.698’ W: 124° 07.364’ Elev: 60’
Miles Driven: 194.5
Total Miles Driven: 7,811.3

On the way to the Coast

By the time we left the hotel the weather had not improved one iota - it was still raining, and sometimes it was raining hard!! We left town - did you know that Newberg, Oregon was the childhood home of Herbert Hoover? No, neither did we!! On the way out of town, we stopped at one of the local coffee huts (more about these later) and got some tea and a Marionberry scone, neither Carl, nor Maria had tasted Marionberries before - they were good something like a cross between a raspberry and a blackberry… We continued following highway 99W and then highway 18 before we linked up with the coast highway - the famous 101! Along the way we definitely felt like we were going in the wrong direction as there was practically bumper-to-bumper traffic the whole way from Newberg to Lincoln City - all the weekenders coming home early because of the weather? Maria and Carl decided that you would ruin all the effects of getting away for the weekend just trying to get home afterwards!
We also took a few detours - one to look at a local Brigitine Monastery… somehow we thought that it would be an impressive stone building, we were definitely wrong! We were more successful at our next stop - the produce stand… we stocked up on local produce, although not too much as we knew our next State would be California and they have all these weird rules about what can be transported over State lines, or at least we think they do?

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Driving along the Coast - Highway 101

When we finally made it to the coast, we followed the famous coast road south… The gods of weather were definitely teasing us as we kept thinking we saw these patches of blue ahead - but, by the time we got there they had disappeared! So we took some pictures of the coast anyway, and concentrated on some of the “little” things, including…
(1) The World’s Smallest Harbor - Depoe Bay… There is a small gap in the coastal rocks that ships can pass through at high tide, behind which is a natural harbor - complete with Coast Guard Station (self proclaimed “The hole in the wall gang”), and enough commercial and pleasure craft to confirm it really was a harbor. We definitely wouldn’t have wanted to brave the “hole in the wall” without someone to guide us!
(2) Searching for wet “brown blobs,” Depoe Bay is also the “whale watching capitol,” we stopped for lunch just out of town and Carl actually spotted some whales in the surf - we are not sure they are “brown,” but Maria still thinks they can be considered “blobs!”
(3) Looking at the Bridges - The Oregon Coast was considered to be a vulnerability in the nations defenses during World War Two… This helped a local grass roots effort to build a road along the coast and along with the road numerous bridges - some have been restored and some replaced… we enjoyed looking at all of them!
(4) Investigating Glass Blowing - there are many “studios” along the coast where they produce “glass art,” we stopped at one where it was fascinating to see the glass blower produce such a simple thing as a glass float… How the molten glass, with the application of heat, air, colored glass chips and skill can be turned, relatively quickly into an object of beauty!
(5) Looking for Lighthouses… As you can probably imagine there are many of these along the coast - most of them located in inaccessible places, from both land and sea… (6) Considering the Coastline… There were quite a few items to see along the coast - from the Devil’s Cauldron, to the Oregon Sand Dunes… All were impressive, just coated with a film of grey!
And (7) Admiring the Sunset… Which conveniently occurred when we were coming into the town of Reedsport - so we called it a day, found a hotel room and hoped for better weather in the morning!

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Coffee Shacks

Since arriving in Washington and now in Oregon we have been impressed by both the number and the inventiveness in naming the multitude of Coffee Shacks. For those of you unfamiliar with the “Coffee Shack” it is a small building dedicated to the dispensing of caffeinated beverages - mostly coffee - in all shapes, sizes and forms. The most famous of these, is of course, Starbucks! But we have been reviewing the names and have some interesting candidates, for…
(1) Most non-traditional name: Curious Chicken Coffee
(2) Most rhyming name: Gotta Hava Java
(3) Best Name: Brewed Awakening
We are continuing the search and will update you along the way…

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Carl’s Travel Trivia

Yesterday’s Answer: No specific Answer…
Today’s Question: What is the length of US Highway 101?

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Comments

[Eddie Wilson]

length of US Highway 101
For Carl it is 1,540 miles long. For Maria it is 2,464 kilometers long. So, who will get to the end first? I guess it depends if the last mile is uphill or down! Ha Ha!

[kristi]

pch 101
formed in 1926, the pch is 1540 miles in length.

[The Odyssey]

Hwy 101
The last mile for the direction we are traveling is in Southern California and it is very flat, looks like a drag race! Stay tuned and watch for the photo finish!!