Winchester Bay to Lincoln City
It was 38* & sunny when I got up. This morning we had a bunch of errands to run. Found a Post Office where we Express Mailed Mom some cash and a check. She had called last night to say she was broke. Right across from the PO in Reedsport was The Sugar Shack Bakery. Got a loaf of bread, two hot sticky buns and a Danish. Wonderful. As we were driving out of town we saw deer walking down the street. Carol spotted the 101 Barber Shop in Florence and we both got really short haircuts. Next to the barber shop was a hardware store. I got acetone to clean the super glue off Carol’s glasses that I got on the lenses as I was repairing the frame. Added air to the tires and that was the last of the errands. Had lunch near the Heceta Head Lighthouse.
We stopped at the Cape Perpetua Scenic Area Welcome Center to inquire about accessible trails. There were two. First we did the one mile long Captain Cook Trail “through wind-sculptured vegetation, around Indian shell middens and down to the tide pools”. Carol really enjoyed the walk. Going down to the water was easy enough. Coming up required that I push the scooter from the bottom to the top. Good exercise. The scooter doesn’t have enough power for steep grades. Then we walked the Trail of the Restless Waters. A shorter, but equally beautiful, walk.
Tonight we’re camping in a Forest Service campground; Tillicum Beach. We have a limited ocean view. Our friends Ted & Liz are here as well. Ted took some pictures of us by the motorhome. We rarely get pictures of both of us on trips.
Saturday: Woke up to a misty rain and 47*. The forecast is for this weather to continue today and perhaps tomorrow. Since there were not any good places for Carol to walk, and since it was raining, we decided to continue north. Drove to Seal Rock. Foggy & no seals. Decided to spend the night at South Beach State Park. What a great choice. There are several ADA accessible trails. One leads directly to a large ocean view platform. Gopher & I went walking in the rain. Carol opted to stay warm & dry in the camper. In the afternoon it finally cleared up a little. Like walking through a dense fog. We all took a walk to the South Jetty of the Yaquina River and to the beach overlook. The beach overlook gave Carol a wonderful, unobstructed ocean view. Gopher & I played on the beach right by where Carol was sitting.
Sunday. Mother’s Day. The sun was out on & off today. We all walked first to the Day Use area, then to the Beach Overlook, then to the South Jetty. At the jetty we saw a replica of an old sailing ship. Let Gopher off her leash at the beach overlook. About 11am we decided to go to the Yaquina Head Outstanding Natural Area located just north of Newport. My research indicated there were accessible trails there. We toured the Visitors Center. Bought Carol a really nice, warm shirt for Mother’s Day. It’s green and says “Yaquina Lighthouse” on the front. We walked to the accessible tide pool area at Quarry Cove. The Bureau of Land Management built these pools as part of restoring the old rock quarry that was here. An excellent place to visit.
Heading north we drove by the D River. The world’s shortest river at something like 120’. It connects Devils Lake with the Pacific Ocean. Drove by Depoe Bay, the world’s smallest harbor.
Crossed the 45th Parallel; midway between the equator and the North Pole.
Continued north planning on spending the night at the Devil’s Lake State Park. We drove through but were not impressed. We saw a sign for the Chinook Winds Casino and headed there. Had their buffet for Mother’s Day then spent the night in the parking lot.
Called Mom. She's doing well. Received the flowers we sent.
