Fri. Sept. 25th.

Today we drove south on US 101 about 45 miles to Tillamook, OR. Along the way we had many beautiful views of the surf washing in around the various rock formations and beach's. The route isn't always along the ocean but at times you are in the forest winding around hills really a very beautiful drive passing through many small seaside towns.
After arriving in Tillamook we went to the Tillamook cheese factory. This is a 100 year old co-op owned buy the dairy farmers in the area. They make cheese, yogurt & ice cream.
This is quit a tourist attraction in the area. we were surprised by the number of people there. This area has 90 inch's of rain annually so the grass grows very lush and it doesn't require a lot of land to support the cows. After leaving there we traveled west on what is called three capes scenic loop past pastures full of Holstein and Jersey dairy cows and then up into the coastal mountains.to Cape Mears light house. This light house is the shortest one on the Oregon coast being only 37 ft. tall. Like most of the light houses it is no longer in use. I did learn from the man that was there that the oil lamp that was in them wasn't that big. The lens in this one magnified the light 87%. I also learned that each light house beacon turned at different rates of speed. That way by timing the rotation the ships captain could consult his navigation maps and know where he was located as well as knowing were the shore line was. We had planned to continue on around this loop to two more capes but yours truly must have taken a wrong turn and we ended up back in Tillamook. On the way back we stopped in the small coastal town of Wheeler for an early supper of Prawns & chips. I thought this was kind of neat since my mothers maiden name was Wheeler.

Seaside, OR Sept. 24th.

Yesterday was a cold dreary day, about 25 degree's cooler than the day before and misty so we stayed pretty close to the RV Park and did a few repairs and caught up on cleaning etc.
This morning we headed back north on US 101 to Astoria where we crossed the 3 1/2 mile long bridge across the Columbia River into Washington ending up at Cape Disappointment south of the town of IlWaco, WA. This is the location of the Louis & Clark Interpretive center where Lewis & Clark ended their journey at the point that the Columbia River meets the Pacific Ocean. After exploring the area the people of the expedition voted to go to the south side of the river for their winter encampment. This is the site of Fort Clatsop that we visited on Mon. The reason they went across was that the weather was better, food was more plentiful and they also make the salt that they needed to preserve the meat supply, this was done here at what is now Seaside. Cape Disappointment Light House is also located here on the north side of the river. This is the oldest light house still in use on the coast. Also located a short distance around the cape to the north is the North Head light house that is no longer in use. I found it interesting that this light house had two large light house keepers residences. Due to remote location these families had large gardens and raised chickens etc. The daily duties were to carry buckets of oil to the light house to keep the lamps burning and to keep the mirrors clean and shined for maximum light. On the way back we stopped in Astoria and went through the historic Flavel House built by a River bar captain for his family in 1886. He had other business interests in the area and had become the wealthiest man in Astoria by that time. The house was built at a cost of $37000, had electricity, indoor plumbing and flush toilets. There is a Sequoia tree still standing that was there at the time the house was built

sept. 22nd. Seaside, OR

Today we went north on US 101 about 15 miles to Astoria, OR the first established town west of the Mississippi. On the way we stopped at Fort Clatsop the site of Lewis & Clark's winter encampment at the mouth of the Columbia river and the Pacific Ocean. The fort is named after the Indian tribe on whose land it was erected. The lower picture is where they landed their wooden canoes. From there we went on to the Astoria Column erected on Coxcomb hill. From here you view Oregon, Washington, the Columbia River and the Pacific Ocean. Next it was the Columbia River Maritime Museum to see & learn about the navigation and dangers of the Columbia River where it meets the Pacific Ocean. Every ship that goes in or out through this
area has to be boarded by one of about 40 trained and experienced river pilots to navigate it through these very dangerous waters. Over the years there have been many ships wrecked in area. This evening we went to the beach in downtown Seaside and enjoyed a very beautiful sunset.

Sept. 21st.

Today was a beautiful 80 degree day that we spent exploring Seaside and Cannon Beach located 8 miles south of Seaside. Several of the people we talked to said to enjoy the weather as this was not normal for here. We started out diving to the Pacific Ocean located a couple of miles west from the RV park. We then parked near the beach down town and watched people going out to the beach. We walked the beach promenade and went into the Harbor seal aquarium were we saw the harbor seals and several small aquariums filled with specimens of local marine life. This is an old aquarium but very interesting. We then looked in some of the shops and ate lunch at a small cafe. In the afternoon we drove south on US101 about 8 miles to the town of Cannon Beach. After driving about 1 1/2 miles on a narrow winding road under the giant white spruce trees that covered the road like a tunnel we arrived at one of the most photographed areas on the Oregon coast at Ecola State Park. From here we could see the Tillamook lighthouse located between Seaside and Cannon Beach but inaccessible from land. We could see Haystack Rock located to the south at Cannon Beach and many other rock formations. Driving another 1 1/2 mile through the same kind of tree covered road we arrived at Indian Beach where we enjoyed watching the surfers and other beach goers.

Seaside, OR

Here we are just a few blocks from the Pacific Ocean in a Thousand Trails RV Park in Seaside, OR. This morning we left Crooked Creek Ranch traveling west through the country side past the Alpaca farm to US 20 at Sisters, OR. From there we traveled west through the Cascade Mountains over Santiam Pass with 7800 ft. Mt Washington on our left. Then it was an 11 mile long winding 6% down grade on the other side. After we descended we drove along the Santiam River winding winding our way toward Albany, OR located in the fertile Wyamet Valley. There we turned north on I-5 traveling through the valley to Portland where we turned NW on US 26. We then traveled through the Clatsop State Forest ending up on US 101 at Seaside. I now know why Oregon has a pine tree on there license plate. After traveling clear across the middle of the state from east to west I believe nearly the whole state must be covered by some kind of evergreen tree and a sign that says curve 35 MPH.
I am again very disappointed with the Thousand Trails Park we are in. For what it cost to join and the cost of the annual dues, plus the glamorous descriptions and pictures in the preserve guide book I expected more of a resort type setting. Instead they all seem to me like second rate poorly maintained parks. If any of you RVer's that read this blog are thinking about joining Thousand Trails I would sure like to visit with you first. I wish we had visited with someone before we wrote the check. Oh well as Nancy says we did it so get over it.

Crooked Creek Ranch, OR

The River Rim RV Park is located about 8 miles north of Redmond, OR in a development area called Crooked River Ranch. It is a desert setting with the Crooked River running through it. The river is about 250 ft. below the flat sagebrush covered and scattered pine tree desert above. The cliffs and jagged rock walls are nearly vertical. This morning we drove about 25 miles south west to Sisters, OR. Along the way we went through an irrigated valley that had lots of small ranches along the road, one of them was the Crescent Moon Alpaca Ranch. I have never seen so many alpaca's, they numbered in the hundreds. When we arrived at Sisters we found it to be a trendy touristy town. While there we walked through a street fair.

Redmond, OR

This morning after leaving Baker City, OR we traveled Southwest on OR 7 and US 26 through the Umatilla National Forest up mountains down mountains and around winding curves and then through
mountain meadows along the Powder River. Traveling west Near Prairie City we left the forest and entered into the same kind of terrain only the mountains were covered with grass and sage brush and the meadows also had green fields of alfalfa growing in them. We passed many ranches with names like Widow Creek Ranch & Long Box Ranch. We saw many herds of cattle grazing in the meadows. About 30 miles west of John day, OR We went up a sharp winding road through tall steep fossil beds. After that it was more of the same and then west of Mitchell we entered the Ochoco National Forest exiting it near Prineville and entered what they call high desert area to Redmond, OR where we are staying at the River Rim RV Park. At the edge of the park it is a sheer drop off 250ft. to the Crooked River below. I have never went around so many curves at 30 MPH as we did today. It took us about 6 hrs to travel the 210 miles.