Darlingtonia Bog and Depoe Bay

We left Bullards Beach State Park on a Friday morning, and had made reservations at a commercial RV park near Depoe Bay.  It sounded good on the Web, and we were having no luck finding vacancies in any State Parks in the area--probably too close to the major metropolitan areas and the desirable campgrounds fill up well in advance of the weekend.

Along the way, we stopped at the Darlingtonia Bog State Wayside.  This patch of large (two feet or more high) carniverous California Pitcher Plants (also known as Cobra Lilies from their shape) is traversed along a wooden boardwalk.  These unique plants can also be found in the Smith River watershed in bogs with standing water and acidic soils of nutrient poor quality, and I had come across them before in my work and travels there.  This particular patch is the largest I have ever seen, and the plants themselves were the tallest I had ever seen. Years ago I had written an article called Strike of the Cobra Lily and had photographed this bog--the article and pictures were published in The American Gardener magazine.

That night we found (eventually--took almost four passes before we finally figured out the entrance) our RV park and were disappointed that the campsites were very small, lacked amenities, and ours was far from the beach.  Others we might have reserved were not pull-throughs but were right next to the beach, but one couldn't   tell from the automated reservation system whether those back-in sites would be workable for us.  It turns out that they would have been far better than the one we had reserved.  In any event, the weather has turned, so we are planning to leave this site a day early (after exploring the nearby Newport Aquarium) and heading south to Reedsport and a State Park there.

It rained in the early morning of Saturday, and continues to threaten rain throughout the day.  On Saturday morning, we dined out at the Pig N' Pancake for breakfast (I had a crab omelette--delish--and Lizzie had a taco omelette; highly varied menu) and it rained briefly while we dined, then explored the OSU Aquarium (and it rained once while we explored).  This latter has great displays for both children and adults, but it is truly engaging for kids.  Later, we shopped and explored the main strip of Depoe Bay, enjoying Tillamook ice cream and the many shops along the way.

We had planned to go to Astoria for a couple of nights, but it is forecast to rain there, so we are heading back along the coast, stopping for two nights at Reedsport and exploring that area. Rain hits Reedsport on Wednesday, but we plan to depart on Tuesday, and end up for three nights in the Redwood National Park in Del Norte County.  After working in that country for 30 years, there are plenty of sites that I still want to explore more!

Tomorrow (Sunday) we head south again

Exploring Coos County and Camping by the Coquille River

The distance between Brookings and Bandon is less than 100 miles, so we planned an easy day.  The short distance allowed us to stop at Cape Blanco and tour the historic Hughes House, a restored Victorian home belonging to some of the first settlers along the coast.  After the tour, we lunched by the Lighthouse, where a hang glider was floating just off the cliffs, occasionally drifting back to touch down briefly on the cliff edge, then float away again.  Once, he touched down about ten feet from where the Apex was parked, almost coming in our door

We planned to use the Bullards Beach State Park as our base for exploring the area around Coos Bay and  Cape Arago.  The campsite we selected was fairly private, and because we backed up to a timbered hill, it was very lovely (see below).  We were going to barbecue chicken, but the regulator for attaching the small propane tank to Liz' camp stove did not fit the connection on the BBQ, so we opted instead to make Coq au Vin in the Dutch oven.  Delicious.   The list of things we want to add to the trailer supplies is growing.

The next morning we struck out for Cape Arago, stopping at an overlook where hundreds of sea lions basked on all of the low rocks near the cape (see below). 

Their barking was loud and continuous (can be heard in the video below(, and could easily be heard from the Shore Acres Botanical Gardens about a mile away.

The gardens had blooms of dahlias and roses (Strawberry Parfait, shown above), as well as many other plants.  While not in full color in October as it is in spring and summer, the gardens were lovely to stroll through and enjoy. The gift shop at the gardens is one of the best for locally made products like delectable jellies, jewelry, etc., where the sales support the non-profit Friends of the Garden.

We explored a few other campgrounds on the way out, and found one with lots of children's activities which would be good for Liz' three grandsons if they ever camped there.  Its lovely beach and shallow creek estuary allowed for warm basking and playing in the water even in the Fall.

We lunched in Coos Bay at a German Restaurant (titled, interestingly enough: The Blue Heron) where we both had weiner schnitzel. Food was good and the decor was a combination of western outback-meets-Germany.  More antlers hung on the wall than I see in my wildlife cameras...

After a rather hectic arrival at a Myrtlewood factory, we traipsed back to our campsite to relax.

The Apex Nano hits the Trail

We finally are testing out the new trailer, a 2017 Apex Nano 19-foot BHS model by Coachman, being pulled by my Jeep Grand Cherokee.  It supports a full-sized dinette slideout, large refrigerator/freezer, two back bunk beds, and one queen bed--a layout that had proven difficult to find.  First purchased in March, the two planned trailer test runs did not materialize between surgeries, illnesses, and events that were happening over the summer.  But on October 3, at 8:00 a.m., the Nano finally was loaded and sufficiently ready to pull out.  Additional shelving, pull out drawers, hooks, and other amenities to customize the trailer for our needs remain to be added, but the Nano is fit to travel.

It was windy in Mendocino the past two days, so we had joked that we might only make it as far as Willits or perhaps, if we were lucky, to Benbow.   But the winds had died, and we sailed past the KOA in Willits, and turned north on Highway 101.  Although we had frequent stops for roadwork, we still made good time, and had our lunch in Fortuna (having zipped by Benbow) at the Riverwalk Center.  We decided to press on to above Crescent City.  We passed a KOA just south of Smith River, but were heading for the old Ship-A-Shore resort.  We had looked on the web and the resort was marked permanently closed, but another link also was shown as active and the telephone number had transferred us to the "front office" where we were invited to leave a message, so we were unsure what we would find as we neared our destination.  Sadly, it is indeed permanently closed.

The lovely resort at the mouth of the exquisite Smith River was dilapidated and definitely closed.  No more motel, no RV park, and no restaurant bustled with life--only a few year-round permanent trailers sat forlornly on what was once a lovely place.  I shared memories with Liz of dancing to live music after a Board meeting on the dance floor thirty years ago at the end of the bar, enjoying several great meals over the years looking out at the breathtaking view, and the happy times I had with the folks starting 20-odd years ago as we traveled and often stayed in the large suite sitting on our private balcony overlooking the estuary and watching the diverse bird life--it has been ten years or more since I was last there.  But the place is sadly just a ghost now.  We decided to push on to Brookings.

By now, we had traveled long miles, and we were both ready to find a good RV park, and had identified the Beachfront RV Park near Brookings harbor as a likely candidate.  It was not full of amenities, such as grass and roominess, but the view from our overnight space was spectacular (see above) as we were less than 50 feet from the high tide line, and immediately adjacent to the Winchuck River.  After watching the sunset (below) from our camp, we slept listening to the sounds of the ocean crashing for the first night in the little Nano.

The next morning, we walked along the Winchuck jetty and watched the circle of small fishing boats rotating as they motored counter-clockwise at the very mouth of the river hoping to hook one of the incoming salmon.  Although we watched for awhile, we didn't see any salmon landed.

Today, Wednesday, our goal was to leave Brookings and push on to Bandon, Oregon, with stops along the way.

Cruising to the End

The lack of fast and free wifi makes blogging a challenge, so this report is for several days in a row and not as well done as I would like!

After sailing away from Saguenay Harbor, we headed toward Prince Edward Island.  The seas became rough--high seas indeed with huge swells and tremendous wind buffeting.  The gale winds were at 90 mph (!) with waves at 30-45 feet.  The Captain forewarned us that night about the ship listing as they moved ballast to counter the winds/high seas, and it did list but all was safe aboard.  Well, except for wrenching my good knee so badly that it was painful the next day --a planned day at sea.  Despite that rest, by the next night I was in trouble due to the pain as my left leg would collapse.   Liz rented a wheel chair for me, which I used for dinner that night.  It was after dinner that we learned that our next port of call, Charlottetown, was to be bypassed as too unsafe to dock.


The next morning I was still confined to a wheelchair so missing the port was ok with me.   By the afternoon after lots of Advil, I was feeling a bit better.  The seas were still rocking-and-rolling.   That night, we learned that we would have to also skip the Nova Scotia port of Sydney, giving my knee another day's rest.  However, the seas were calming and Halifax was definitely on.  By now  I could use the wheelchair well but my arms were getting sore and I had blisters starting on my thumbs!

We cancelled my portion of the excursion for Halifax, due to my onboard injury, and I got a refund.  Helen and Liz headed out to the famed lighthouse at Peggy's Cove and sent me a picture .(above),  They reported a good time and I was envious. I now used the wheelchair only as a walker and not much then.  I could walk slowly and stiffly but I could walk.  I did not plan to cancel any more excursions.

After Halifax, we were heading to Bar Harbor Maine--we were tendered ashore (I easily managed it; knee improving slowly), and took a tour that included Acadia National Park--lovely fall colors, great history spiels, and wonderful horse drawn carriage ride through the park (above).


At Portland Maine we went ashore for a great bus tour --including an historic mansion tour and other sights and history then walked along the parkways to shop and dine out.  We passed Henry Wadsworth Longfellow's birthplace and residence, and several other historical sights.
Boston was next up and we had arranged to meet Liz' sister Pat for a duck boat tour of the city.  Liz' niece Michelle joined us.  The tour from both land and water was great--the Charles River, once nastily polluted, is now of excellent water quality with many native fish species thriving.  The improved water quality work is due to public-private partnerships that worked to restore habitat.
As we passed under bridges on the river, the detail of carvings on bridge supports was lovely. We also saw historical landmarks like the freedom trail. The historic Boston commons, and the burial ground for Paul revere and other revolutionary war figures.  The historic government house, with its famed carved unicorn and lion (in which a time capsule is concealed), was impressive. Finally we finished by dining at the oldest continuously operated restaurant in the US where I had a great local lobster lunch.

We left Boston by sailing under jet planes as the sun set.

Two more days at sea followed, and on Tuesday we dock at Port Canaveral.  The next day we disembark and fly back to California.

Canada/New England Trip Fall 2016

We began our Fall 2016 trip by flying in to Montreal--where we were immersed in the French Canadian culture.  We stayed in the downtown (Hotel Omni) area, which was able to easily access the Metro and buslines.  Using a 3-day pass for both, we travelled the city to the old town area, visiting the Basilica of Notre Dame, the oldest church in the City, dating back to its founding of the city for the fur trade in the 1600s. 


Also in the old town area was a museum centered over ruins that pre-dated the French colonization and had been an Iroquis burial area.  Then, explorers arrived, first the French, then the English, then warring--each settlement built by the victorious on the same ground over the ruins of those that
came before. 


As we walked along the waterfront (replete with lovely bike and walking paths) we could see the biosphere in the distance, and hoped to visit it, but never made it close.

The culture is decidedly French now, and the food is wonderful.  Our hotel and all the tourist areas had bi-lingual speakers, but store front signs, and street signs, and almost all signage was in French, and the talk on the street was entirely in French.  We took the metro (subway--green line) and toured the Olympic Park the second day, which was built for the 1976 Olympics in Montreal, and visited the Biodome, planetarium, briefly the botanical gardens (lunching there), and took a ride up the outside of the biodome on the skyway that reached very high and gave us a complete 360 view of the City (the video is posted on my FB page, and the structure plus biodome is shown below).  This Olympic Park area is well worth 2-days of visit, but we had only the one. After our third night in Montreal, we said goodby to this lovely city and travelled to Quebec City where the Holland America cruise ship Zuiderdam awaited us.

The 3-hour journey took us through wonderful flat vistas of vast corn fields, interspersed with hardwood forests that were bright red and yellow as they changed color for the season. Small hills appeared now and then, but it is mostly flat terrain. Quebec City looks like it would be a wonderful City to spend a few days in, too, with old buildings and new City structures, plus great walking and biking trails along the St Laurence river.  We did not see grafitti or litter--everything looks fresh and lovely. 

Due to a late passenger on our bus, we boarded the Zuiderdam late and had to scurry to join the sailaway party.  We were in shirt-sleeves, as it was easily 75-80 degrees, until the sun went down at least!  We left the beautiful port of
Quebec City and sailed down the St Laurence River as night fell.


Early the next morning, we awoke to sailing up a fjord toward Saguenay.  This City is in the Saguenay–Lac-Saint-Jean region of Quebec, Canada, on the Saguenay River, about 200 kilometres (120 mi) north of Quebec City by overland route.

Today it is overcast and grey, and rain threatens.  In fact, as I sat along a walking trail near the bow of the boat (so Laura could see me on the webcam), it started to rain heavily, and I dashed back on board.  Helen and Liz were already on board, as they are heading out later to a theatre performance, which I decided to skip as it is going to be a busy evening tonight (I think). For Sue Hay's benefit, there is a martini tasting at 4:30--several flaviors of martinis-- but I have to skip it because I want to go to the sailaway party in the Crow's nest on the highest observation deck. Those are always quite fun. 

Tonight we will sail out the fjord, and back to the St. Laurence as we make our way toward Prince Edward Island for a day of at-sea, before coming into port a day later at Charlottetown.  I will try to blog again after that section of the cruise is completed!

Seattle 2015

We stayed at the Maxwell Hotel, just one block off the Seattle Center, home to the Space Needle, new Chihuly garden and glass museum, science center, monorail, and so much more--we could easily have spent another three nights or more in Seattle.  Although we have been here several times, one forgets how magnificent the city is.  Our first night we dined in the Seattle Center near the Chihuly display, and had a delicious meal, but were entranced by what we coud see of the Chihuly exhibit from the outside looking in.

It was warm, and as we explored the Seattle Center, passing the large fountain,children were running and splashing in the water:

We had a fun trip the next morning, using the Maxwell's free shuttle service, to Pioneer Square to enjoy the humorous Seattle Underground tour, something we had never fit in before.  I knew about the fire and the city re-building itself with fill and raised streets, leaving the first story to become the future underground basements and sidewalks.  We lunched at a New Orlean's cuisine restaurant spot, and then caught a train back to Westlake Center, and the end of the monorail that could take us to Seattle Center. At the Center, we first explored Chihuly during daylight, then had dinner at the Space Needle--delicious but expensive; best steak EVER-- and later returned again at dusk to see Chihuly's works at night.

 The museum features Dale Chihuly's works as well as depicting his life and growth as an artist.  The pieces are impressive, from the huge glass flowers and abstract organic/biologic works below

to the orange floral growth in the huge greenhouse:

To the garden entwined glassworks lit for evening display:

The next day was spent at the Pike Place Market sand the pier with the ferris wheel,which we rode before walking back to our hotel--5.6 miles of walking that day!

The next day is cruise departure day and off we head for Alaska!

San Diego Explorations

Liz and I are visiting Helen in San Diego, and today we explored a little of Balboa Park.  Our friend David Miles, trainee docent for the Museum of Art, took us on a visit through three sections of the museum that he has studied, explaining in wonderful detail about the background and history of an art piece and the period of the artist, known and unknown.  He is in the first semester of a four-semester long docent training, and I can see why learning to be a docent is so intensive at this wonderful museum!  It was quite informative and enjoyable.  Afterwards, we lunched at the nearby little plaza restaurant, then David had to hurry back to his afternoon docent training session.

We wandered back to our car via the small sculpture garden--in which the piece below is featured:

The small garden reminds a little of the much larger sculpture garden at MaryHill Museum on the Columbia Gorge, another "must see" for anyone interested in art and which is shown in this blog from a few years past--I should talk to David about MaryHill if he has never been there.  I would like to re-visit MaryHill after the recent Museum expansion there.

Yesterday, we hiked along a nature trail on the strand going to Coronado--the bird/wildlife preserve protected by the Navy is along the entire length of the trail, and fenced off to protect from human intrusion.  It was lovely day, and we saw plenty of birds, jack rabbits, and other critters. 

After the hike, we lunched at the Coronado Hotel--lovely and the food was great!  It was a nice break after helping Helen do a little more packing and sorting of household items as she prepares for the last of her new carpet installation.