Summer Vacation Trip - Day 8

We got up at 0545 so we could go walking on the beach. Took advantage of the low tide near sunrise and walked the flats south of Gold Beach. It was COLD but less windy than yesterday. We ate breakfast (snacks) before we checked out of the hotel (Motel 101) by 0700. We were headed north on US-101 by 0630 and were fortunate not to encounter a lot of traffic for the first few hours. Stopped to see a lighthouse at Cape Blanco, explored cranberry bogs and sheep farms surrounding the New River Area of Critical Environmental Concern (near Bandon), walked the sand in the southern end of the Oregon Dunes (just north of Coos Bay) and visited the Umpqua Light House. The day was cloudless and pleasant (60s) and there weren't many people around, allowing for peaceful reflection in this pretty area. Several times, I felt like I was home on Cape Cod - but then we'd pass a huge, rocky bluff and I'd remember how far away we really were... It was a very pleasant drive. Had some serious deja vu in several places. When my own family last journeyed north on the Pacific Coast (around 35 years ago), I was Mollie's age. It was amazing to see so many familiar things and be able to point them out to Mollie (along with the story). One thing I'd definitely planned on was a visit to the Oregon Caves, just past Florence (OR), and we arrived there by 1100. Mollie loves animals, especially the ones we get to see in the wild, and I knew she would like this cave better than all the previous ones - I was not wrong! I purchased tickets for us to enter the cave but we spent a lot of time on the high bluff, watching the ocean below. We saw huge numbers of sea lions basking along the shore, gray whales spouting in the waves, cormorants diving and soaring, and seagulls guarding their grey-speckled brood in the rocks of the cliffs. Of course we also explored the cave and bought lots of souvenirs... Could not ask for a better memory with Mollie! We got back in the car after about an hour at the attraction and the purchase of some great souvenirs (1220) and drove north. In Newport (1330), we ate lunch (McDonalds). Around that same time, we passed a little resort on the ocean where my parents had stayed in the 1960s (appropriately named "Cape Cod Cottages"). A bit later, we passed the beginning of US-20 and a sign that said we were only 3,360 miles from Boston - I'll bet THAT would be an interesting drive! Mollie texted a picture of the sign to my dad and they ended up communicating a lot about Oregon over the next few days. In the little town of Depoe Bay (more deja vu), we were treated with more whale sightings in the harbor (close to shore!) from a high platform the Whale Watching Center. On the other side of the street (innner harbor), we also saw harbor seals sunning on the rocks and "performing" tricks for the tourists. At 1420, we ate some ice cream (locally produced) and headed north again. By then, we were running behind our original schedule and were running low on gas so we didn’t make any major stops (except to get the needed fuel, which we purchased in the town of Tillamook at 1445) for most of the afternoon. This included passing up a visit to the Tillamook Creamery (we were sad), several good beaches and some hiking trails. When we reached the coastal area near Cannon Beach, we initially drove into town, planning to visit Haystack Rock, but it was so busy that we decided instead to look around in Ecola State Park (related to the Lewis and Clark Expedition). Mollie decided (just before we reached the entrance) that she didn’t want to miss out on another NPS Passport Stamp so I left the State Park and backtracked to US-101. We continued north and Mollie helped me a lot by making a hotel reservation (at the Hi Tide Oceanfront Inn in Seaside) herself, complete with Google search, several phone calls and use of a credit card over the phone. After that was done, we continued to Fort Clatsop (near Astoria) and toured the reconstructed fort there. We learned lots of good history and we felt (especially after seeing their signs across the Plains and Mountain states for the past 10 years) like we'd finally arrived at the end of their journey to the Pacific with them! Since the Visitors Center closed soon after we arrived (1700), we had to leave the main parking lot almost immediately. We took a nature walk in the nearby Netul Landing and then returned to beautiful Seaside and checked into our hotel. We went shopping at Safeway (1855) and picked up supplies and food. Back in our room, Mollie cooked some dinner (macaroni and cheese, hot dogs and green beans). We borrowed a movie (“School of Rock”) from the Front Desk and watched it until bed time (2230). As we have a few other times on this trip, we slept with the windows open (no AC) - nice!