Left Bandon headed for Florence Or., almost in the center of the Oregon Coast. Advertised as one of the best towns in the country to retire to. I'm not sure what a town has to have to get that distinction, but Florence seemed pleasant enough. Most these coastal towns seem mostly to rely on tourism. The boom days of logging and of fishing seem to be over. Lots of aging infrastructure from those industries still exist, but for the most part do not look to be in operation. The historic downtown buildings are mostly geared to the tourist. There are lots of vacation homes and upscale neighborhoods on the fringes of these towns, so I guess the coast must be an escape from the greater metropolitan cities from the interior valley.
We stayed in Sutton Campground about 4 miles out of town. Being a national park, and we being old got to stay for a mere $10 a night. We had a secluded site with no hook up but close to the camp facilities. Near to our camp was the beach and sand dunes. We trudged across the dunes to a beach maybe 10 miles long with not a soul in sight. We left our shoes on the beach so we would know where to traverse the dunes to get back to our car.
The next day we took a day tour to the attraction that has been a must see for the last 70 years or so, the Sea Lion Cave. For years if you visited the Sea Lion Cave the proprietor would put a bumper sticker on your car, bright yellow, SEA LION CAVE. Travelling along Highway 101 for hundreds of miles you would see those signs on cars. I think the Mystery Spot folks in Santa Cruz did this as well. I wonder who started this scam first. There were no sea lions in the cave right now, but we did see some on the shore near the mouth of the cave.
We went on to visit the Heceta Lighthouse, built in 1892 one of forty or so lighthouses built along the Pacific coast. It is still operational, but more of a tradition than a vital navigation aid. It is operated by the Oregon park service, the lighthouse keepers house is now a bed and breakfast.
Today we moved on to Tillimook, famous for its cheese. We visited the cheese factory, bought some cheddar, had an ice cream cone. They too have a lighthouse, and a great beach. There were some 14 year olds actually swimming in the surf without wet suits. They looked like they were having a lot of fun. They eventually emerged from the surf to the beach clearly suffering from hypothermia. After much jumping and rubbing of limbs they seemed to recover.
We stayed in Sutton Campground about 4 miles out of town. Being a national park, and we being old got to stay for a mere $10 a night. We had a secluded site with no hook up but close to the camp facilities. Near to our camp was the beach and sand dunes. We trudged across the dunes to a beach maybe 10 miles long with not a soul in sight. We left our shoes on the beach so we would know where to traverse the dunes to get back to our car.
The next day we took a day tour to the attraction that has been a must see for the last 70 years or so, the Sea Lion Cave. For years if you visited the Sea Lion Cave the proprietor would put a bumper sticker on your car, bright yellow, SEA LION CAVE. Travelling along Highway 101 for hundreds of miles you would see those signs on cars. I think the Mystery Spot folks in Santa Cruz did this as well. I wonder who started this scam first. There were no sea lions in the cave right now, but we did see some on the shore near the mouth of the cave.
We went on to visit the Heceta Lighthouse, built in 1892 one of forty or so lighthouses built along the Pacific coast. It is still operational, but more of a tradition than a vital navigation aid. It is operated by the Oregon park service, the lighthouse keepers house is now a bed and breakfast.
Today we moved on to Tillimook, famous for its cheese. We visited the cheese factory, bought some cheddar, had an ice cream cone. They too have a lighthouse, and a great beach. There were some 14 year olds actually swimming in the surf without wet suits. They looked like they were having a lot of fun. They eventually emerged from the surf to the beach clearly suffering from hypothermia. After much jumping and rubbing of limbs they seemed to recover.
Hey Ed and Patsy, been to the Sea Lion cave over 30 years ago,saw tons of sea lions. Thanks for doing this. Am enjoying your log, who knew you were going to be so good at this. Be safe, make new friends.
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