Blah, Blah, Blah-ing Comments

Lexie (L) and Ozzie (R)
Enjoying another day out.

Okay, for those who've privately inquired about the obnoxious and arrogant lecture I received recently in blog comments, let me say, I too was bewildered when I read it.

I suppose every now and again someone comes along who has an uncontrollable need to give advice on what they think others should do in life.

If you missed it, Doug and Sheila's comment / missive to my post titled "Depoe Bay: World's Smallest Harbor" states, "It is such a shame that you are missing so much in your travels. You have mentioned several times now about not seeing things because of the dogs. Why don't you put them in a crate in the motorhome? They will stay cool with the A/C and should last all day without needing to go out. They can't chew anything while you are gone if they are in a crate and if you leave a radio on they probably won't bark either. This would allow you to see the things you are missing and it won't hurt the dogs at all. You shouldn't let the dogs control your life to this extent."

I don't know the commentator(s), identified as Doug and Sheila though they have given advice on several other of my posts before this one.  The blog is somewhat a public forum, however, and anyone who is interested in it may leave comments. I invite comments,  look forward to receiving them and most are enjoyable to receive. Of course, this one was not enjoyable. It was, instead, simply stupid unsolicited advice by uninformed people with little else to do with their own time.

Not to worry -- Wayne and I have not and will not succumb to Doug and Sheila's instruction to "put them in a crate".  Instead we will continue to go along our merry way, enjoying our retirement travel, seeing and doing absolutely everything we want to see and do -- happily with Lexie and Ozzie in tow.

That's Why They Call It "The Mountain"

There's a small town in south central Washington named Randle and that's where we've been "holed up" while out of touch last week.  We've been quiet because there's no signal for cell or internet service here.  Horrified at first, we came to enjoy the peace and quiet within a few hours. 

We visited Cliff and Janice at Shady Firs RV and Mobile Home Park for a little less than a week. The solitude was appreciated and the campground is truly a wilderness paradise.  I wholeheartedly recommend a visit here!  The campground is located about 2 miles east of the town of Randle; it's convenient to both Mount Rainier and Mount St Helens. We won't visit the later this time as we were just there last summer.

Seventy degrees and sunny every day we were here! 

We chose Shady Firs RV Park as our destination because it is about halfway between the Nisqually Entrance and the Ohanapecosh Visitor Center of Mount Rainier National Park -- yet another on our list of national parks to visit.  Neither of us has been here 'till now and we're excited to have beautiful weather forecast for our time here.  The day we visited the park, we entered at Ohanapecosh and exited at Nisqually.

Looks inviting, eh?

About Mount Rainier....it's not only the highest mountain in Washington, but in the whole Cascade Range. On clear days, it dominates the views from Tacoma and Seattle and on exceptionally clear days, can be see from as far away as Portland and Victoria, British Columbia in Canada.  "The Mountain" as it is called by the locals, is the most glaciated mountain in the lower 48 states with over 26 glaciers and two, yes two volcanic craters!  Again, that's why they call it, "The Mountain" in these parts, pardner.

Climbing Mount Rainier... Some 10,000 climbers attempt Mount Rainier each year and less than half of them make it. Weather conditions and physical exhaustion are common reasons for failure.  In 1946 a plane crashed into the mountain killed 32 people. The worst mountaineering accident on Mount Rainier happened in 1981, when eleven people died in an ice fall on the Ingraham Glacier. More recently, a National Park Ranger died trying to save climbers trapped in a storm on the mountain.  The Ranger lost his footing and slid nearly 4000 feet to his death.

Deaths also occur every year from rock and ice falling, avalanches and hypothermia.

Look Out Below... Mount Rainier is an active volcano and serves as an awesome reminder of the beauty and power of nature.  Like many other Cascade range mountains, Mount Rainier has the potential to erupt again at any time, although archaeologists expect it will give warning.

Huge amounts of precipitation falls at Mount Rainier. As snow, it shapes the glaciers; as rain, it feeds the dense stands of  Douglas fir, western red-cedar and western hemlock trees abundant here.

There are so many beautiful scenes among my hundreds of photos, I've just chosen a little of everything, including a few of us, to display here. 

Ohanapecosh River near the Visitors Center

One of our first glimpses of Mount Rainier inside the park -- still dressed in winter white

Wish you were here!

From the Stevens Canyon Entrance, we passed Silver Falls and looped around Backbone Ridge before reaching Box Canyon where we stopped again for a good long while.


At one of our many stops, we broke out lunch and enjoyed a few of the Mount Rainier cherries I bought at a roadside vendor.  Delicious.

Always with those binoculars!

I took a short trail here and attempted a short video, at which I am absolutely terrible, but trying.  If you want to see what I saw, click this link:  Box Canyon Of The Cowlitz .  Alongside the walkway, I could see interesting ice-smoothed rock from the days glaciers were here.

The sloped rock on the right of the path is smoothed from the rubbing of the glacier ice. Moss is growing there now.

Washingtonians call it simply "The Mountain"

Other inspiring views.

Hoodoos make the backdrop for us.

Those who know Wayne will appreciate this.
He had been to the mens room and was rinsing the soles of his shoes. 
Gotta love this guy!

By the end of the day, we were exhausted and appreciated the quiet, cool serenity awaiting us at Shady Firs.

Over the next few days, we groomed the dogs, washed the coach and car and visited with Cliff and Janice when they took a break from their 20 hour days.  We learned they are a couple of misplaced Okies. Also heard about Cliff's hunting expedition in the forest when nearby Mount St Helens erupted!

Cliff is restoring this Barth.
He also makes bio-diesel in his enormous barn!

Talkin' trash 'till the sun goes down.

Janice makes beautiful horse blankets.
She also operates a blanket washing operation that's a marvel.

Yep, they repair saddles too.

Wayne and I were both sad to leave Shady Firs but the time came to move along and so we did. Next stop will be Tacoma and Seattle.

The Last of Oregon: Tillamook, Barview and Garibaldi Bay

It was near the days end we drove through Tillamook and passed a favorite name brand for dairy products.

Tours are offered at Tillamook Cheese from 8 a.m. until 8 p.m. but 4:30 was too late in the day for even a single ice cream sampling. The dreaded GERD would cause grief for Wayne if he even thought about it. 

We agreed to make a return trip to tour the Tillamook Cheese facility if we stay on at tonight's campground for more than just a single night. This day, we only stretched our legs and then drove on.

Today's destination turned out to be the Barview Jetty County Campground located on Garibaldi Bay in Tillamook County.  While the campground location was pretty spectacular, right on the bay, complete with sandy beaches, jetties, access to fishing, a tidal area and trails through the woods nearby -- it was a crowded mess.  There are apparently no restrictions on the number of people, tents, campers or vehicles on a campsite. There were two campers, five tents and dozens of people on the sides either side of us.  It was not a pretty sight. 

We stayed one night at Barview Jetty County Campground and did enjoy taking the dogs out onto the beach once again.  Armed with my trusty Nikon Coolpix again, I snapped more pictures. This time, I'll load them as a slide show.  Enjoy, if you love seeing our dogs -- tolerate or skip the slide show all together if you don't.



My morning walk around Barview Jetty County Campground was nice and refreshing as I hiked out pretty far onto the jetty and took this short video.    Click here to see my early morning video of Garibaldi Bay   If you prefer to see just a single photo taken from the jetty, looking back at the campground, it's below....

These weather scenes can be inspiring or depressing, depending on one's mood, I guess.

We got our usual mid-morning start and left Barview behind, continuing the ride north on US 101.  The road continues to provide beautiful scenery and the occasional reminder that we're driving into and out of Tsunami hazard zones.

We are headed toward Cannon Beach, a short four-mile stretch of land with a population of fewer than 1700. This is a popular and picturesque area that hosts almost a million visitors each year and has been continuously occupied since the late 1800's.  Captain William Clark (of Lewis and Clark Expedition fame) sailed into this area is 1806 to secure a supply of blubber from a whale beached nearby.

Cannon Beach these days is mostly noted, and visited, for photos of Haystack Rock, a monolith that stands 235 feet over the beach and is among the largest "stacks" along the Pacific shore.  I cannot imagine why, but I do not have a spectacular photograph of Haystack Rock.  I think I was more impressed by Tillamook Rock Lighthouse.   

The view south from where we stopped. 

Almost impossible to distinguish in the mist of fog, this is a picture of Tillamook Rock Lighthouse far in the distance.
Known as Terrible Tillie, built over 525 dreadful days during 1879-1881 on a seastack, this lighthouse presented great  challenges to those who built and then manned her.  Terrible Tillie saved countless lives and was extinguished in 1957.

W.H.Smalley, Captain, USS Endie

Having spent time last year in the area from Seaside to Astoria, this year we'll take a new route -- traveling eastward from Astoria, along the Columbia River on Oregon 409.  

The bridge at Astoria.  The other end was being painted last summer.
Bridge painting is almost a "looping" project on saltwater bridges.

Unfamiliar and oblivious to the enormity of wood production in this area, this year's route was enlightening.  Crossing the Columbia River from Westport, Oregon into Cathlamet, Washington we could see tremendous stacks of logs being readied for processing.  The pictures in the slideshow are of both sides of the bridge. One of the pictures is of steel -- not logs.

Depoe Bay: World's Smallest Harbor

Leaving Waldport early in the morning we caught this exciting glimpse of sea lions and seals resting  on the sand below the Alsea Bay Bridge at low tide.  At first we thought we were seeing just so many rocks on the beach, but then, with just enough time to point and click two pictures, we got 'em!

These two photos were taken quickly through my passenger side coach window. 
I was really surprised they turned out well enough to see the seals.

We hadn't gone far (north on US 101) until we drove into the small picturesque town of Depoe Bay. I couldn't help noticing the "Clam Chowder" sign on a small storefront and as luck would have it, a nice long place to pull the rig off on the side of the road was right in front of us.

A hearty bowl of really good clam chowder.

Depoe Bay boasts the distinction of being the "worlds smallest harbor" and it is very small. Several "whale watching" boats advertise outings for whale sightings. The prices seemed reasonable and several offered a guarantee of seeing a whale.  Little white dogs in strollers aren't allowed on whale watching boats so we didn't go out.

In addition to enjoying delicious gluten-free clam chowder (yes it really was good), we stopped in several shops and, as usual, bought nothing.  We then stretched our bodies over the bridge rail to see the dock "goings on" below us.

Part of Depoe Bay harbor.  Whale watching ships leave from here.

We are standing on the bridge directly over this harbor seafood dock.
The two people in this picture are processing (killing) the huge, beautiful dungeness crab you see in the boxes nearby.
It was a dreadfully cruel sight to see.

I'm convinced.

Depoe Bay homes directly above giant sea washed gaps.
I wonder if any of them ever fall in.

The beautiful Pacific is behind me in this picture. Depoe Bay is directly across the street from where I'm sitting.

We saw three seals frolicking in the water below where Wayne is standing.

Our stop at Depoe Bay was relaxing and filling.  From here, we'll continue out trek northward, still hugging Oregon's coast on US 101.

Newport, Oregon, Its Bridge, Lighthouse, Bayport and Yaquina Bay

After lunch at Luna Fish House in Yachats, we drove back through Waldport where we saw that the tide had risen a bit and gave us a completely different (and better) view of the Alsea River/Bay Bridge.

The fisheries were actively working as evidenced by the workers
and trucks we saw all over the place!

The short drive from Waldport to Newport was boring and the big lunch, followed by ice cream took a toll as a dreadful sleepy spell fell upon both of us. 

We were happily revived once we came into the Yaquina Bay area. We turned into the Bay Front District and found it brimming with activity and not a parking space to be begged, borrowed or stolen.  The sites and smells were fascinating here. Fisheries and docks of the harbor are balanced by restaurants, shops and old buildings on the other side of the street.  By now the overcast sky had given way to the sunshine even though the temperature was still mild -- low 70's.

More crab traps... Did I mention that crabbing is real big here?

The harbor at Yaquina Bay

The bridge at Yaquina Bay, just south of Newport, is depicted on Newport's promotional signs and material.  It is quite beautiful from every direction.

The historical marker near here describes the Yaquina Bay area originally named "Cape Foulweather" in March 1778 by Captain James Cook.  Cook was unable to find any harbor along the Pacific northwest coast because of near constant heavy weather.  News of Captain Cook's voyage stirred interest in this area and is directly responsible for the Louisiana Purchase and ultimately for the dispatch of the Louis and Clark Expedition.

Ozzie was interested only in the big dog resting at its masters feet a short distance away.
Lexie said, "what dog?"



Whale watching is very popular all along Oregon's coast. 
Thousands of grey whale migrate in these waters.

Yaquina Bay Bridge construction began in 1934 as part of the WPA (Works Progress Administration) and was completed in 1936.

It cost a mere $1,301,016 to build and employed 220 men pouring 30,000 cubic yards of concrete and fabricate 3,100 tons of steel.  


The final link to Oregon's coastal highway is the Yaquina Bay Bridge.
This is one of the most picturesque bridge settings I've ever seen. 

The whole area on the west side of Yaquina Bay is another Oregon State Park.  I counted well over a dozen artists / painters / wanna-be's with canvas, brushes, palets and easels perched everywhere. 

This historic Yaquina Bay Lighthouse was active only from 1871 to 1874. It was relighted in 1996.
 It is now a location for weddings and is available for touring.



Returning to Newport once again along US 101, we made a last stop at Seal Rocks where we did not see any seals but did find the rock formations to be worth a few snapshots.


The heavy wooded pathway from the roadside parking lot to the shore.



Seal Rocks





Seal Rocks

The beach was brimming with people.  Also Seal Rocks.

Tomorrow morning we'll be leaving Waldport for more points north!  So far Wayne's back is holding up well.  He's being really careful too.