GREETINGS AND SALUTATIONS FROM THE OREGON COAST

    Hope all is well with you. As you see, things are tough here. Guess I'll throw back a cold one now.

NESKOWIN CREEK CAMP

This is what my friend, Keith Gentry would call a "Horse Chart". Nothing for me to say. It's all here.

LITTLE NESTUCA RIVER, NESKOWIN, OR

We love these little berry covered rustic bridges in Oregon. Believe it or not, I drove the motorhome across this one to reach our campsite at Neskowin.

STEAM LOCOMOTIVE, GARIBALDI TO ROCKAWAY BEACH

One of those neat little oddities you see along the way. I believe this old steam locomotive was used in the local lumber industry in it's day. Now it travels between Garibaldi and Rockaway beach while tourists aboard sip local wines and taste Tillamook Cheese.

CAMPING ON THE CLIFF OVER THE BEACH, PACIFIC CITY

This is us. Hanging over the cliff above the beach. This camp was designed for tents, camper trucks, and people with Prius' towing teardrop trailers. People with 40' motorhomes have got to be  a couple beers short of a clambake to try this.
I cracked the windshield trying to park here.

DO- DO -DO LOOKING OUT OUR BACK DOOR

While the camp at Pacific City certainly has it's challenges to get parked with a 40' Monaco Motorhome, the views are spectacular. Whale watching is a favorite pass-time here. This is the view from the back of our motorhome at our campsite.

THE ROAD TO THE BEACH, PACIFIC CITY, OR.

From the two lane highway above, there is a sneaky little dirt road between the forest of trees really only known to the locals. If you slide down the trail, you can drive right on to the beach. A trip we always take when here.

HAY STACK ROCK WITH TEA CUP HANDLE, PACIFIC CITY, OR.

This is the landmark of Pacific City. The rock, not Diane, although she might be a contender. This place reminds me a little of Morro Bay with it's large landmark rock as well.
On the right side, you can see what is referred to as the tea cup handle, of the rock again, not Diane.

PACIFIC CITY SURFER CHICK

Pacific City is one of the many small beach communities along the Oregon Coast. Beautiful surf, clean sand you can drive your car on, a couple of oyster bar/crab shack, burger pubs serving local beers. Usually a couple of churches, a Les Schwab Tire Store, a thrift shop, small grocery stores and maybe, if it's a high falutin  place, even  a Fred Meyer, Oregon's answer to Wal-Mart.

MARINA AT GARIBALDI, OR.

I have always enjoyed the quaintness of the Pacific Coast, especially the North California coast up to Canada. The little towns along the way are at most artist communities, and at a minimum, a little restaurant made out of a 1930's home, a gas pump, and maybe a fish monger and some salt water taffy. From the coast, we headed East to replace the windshield, and then on to the Cascade Mountains.

OREGON KING OF THE WOODS

Yesssir, there are some ugly things on this Earth, but the banana slug is, in my opinion, the king of ugly. For those who haven't met one, they are slimier than snot on a door knob, big as torsion bar on a Buick, hornier than a buck in  rut, and uglier than a California Congresswoman.

IF IT'S THE OREGON COAST, IT MUST BE CRAB TIME

These beauties are of the Dungeness variety. They are so tasty with garlic butter and anything else, beer, wine, veggies, whatever. I sautéed one of them with garlic and butter and served it with pasta. Oh yummm, oh yumm. The other we just cracked and ate out of the shell.

GREETINGS AND BEST WISHES FROM FLORENCE, OREGON, JULY 12, 2014

MILES AND MILES OF SAND DUNES

This is the South Jetty. Oregon has about a hundred miles of sand dunes. The place is loaded with quads, motorcycles, dune buggies, sand sleds, side by sides, jeeps and other 4X4s, and dune busses.

THE JETTY AT SOUTH JETTY

There are two Jetties here in Florence, we are camped at the South Jetty where there is a Thousand Trails Preserve, and South Jetty is famous for it's incredible sand dunes. North Jetty is more of a residential than recreational area. Very nice homes.

FIRST STAGE BLACKBERRIES

We usually get to Oregon smack dab in the middle of berry season. We were a little bit early this year. The bushes are healthy, the flowers are blooming, and young berries are starting to turn. Wish they would hurry up.

GOOD TIMES IN FLORENCE

 While in Florence, we hooked up with our young, old friend Barb. We first met her and her husband, Phil, many years ago in Trinidad, California. And met up with them several times in several places later. Phil passed a couple years ago, so we made it a point to meet up with Barb at the Beachcomber Tavern in Old Town, Florence.

GETTIN READY FOR THE EVENING CAMPFIRE

South Jetty preserve is a typical Oregon Coast setting. Most days started with fog and got windy about 2 pm. Ferns, berry bushes, mushrooms, deer, banana slugs, great clam chowder, delicious crabs, and campfires in the evening. That's me whipping up a batch of kindling.

CAR SHOW AT THE FLORENCE AIRPORT

  As a follow up to the Fourth of July ceremonies, 5 car clubs in Oregon hosted a car show. There were many nice entries, hot rods, customs, British cars and military vehicles.

DIANE MEETS THE YACHATS MACAW

We took a side trip to Yachats, about 25 miles North along to coast from Florence. We walked the town, went to the farmers market, and ran across this nice lady with her Macaw, beautiful bird.