We got to
Harbor Vista Camp-ground and put up our tent late Wednes-
day afternoon. I think this is our 8th time to camp here. There's no other place like it. I love the sound of the channel buoys and waves crashing on the breakwater and try my best not to fall asleep so I can just listen and soak it in.
This is the wonderful WPA bridge at Florence. There are a number of WPA bridges and parks along this stretch of coast.
Amy arrived shortly after we did and so once we were all set up, we went to
Mo's for fish tacos. We were on a stroll when an alarm went off for the drawbridge.
Hey, I live in the high desert and I thought this was one heck of a show. I was trying to post it from my new iPhone and ended up making a video instead. Who knew?! Our new phones were delivered the night before we left so set-up was pretty frantic. We learned a lot about our phones while in Oregon, and the part I especially like is that Ian figured out to get email service from our podunk phone company when no one else could. He cobbled together written information from Apple, Verizon and our provider. He 'da man!
I took so many pictures but as I'm composing this post, I realize that the Oregon coast has been done a lot and a lot better, so I'll share this one. This is a tsunami siren. We spontaneously elected to stay in camp on Friday instead of going into the Black Sheep Gathering. Amy noted to us while were setting up that she'd seen notices that Friday was the 4th Friday of the month and at 11:00 the tsunami sirens would sound. I thought that was interesting, thinking we would be in Eugene. We weren't and I have no words to describe the intensity of this siren. It was deafening and made my body vibrate,and my head ring.
This is the only spinning circle I exper-
ienced this trip. I'm so glad we spent the day as we did. I ended up not taking my wheel into BSG -I'm not sure I'll bring it again. The spinning circles were huge. I've never seen it so congested before. One again, I'm finding more enjoyments for my drop spindles.
It's a heck of a commute to Black Sheep Gathering from here. Both are so far from our home and we try to make one event out of two, actually. Ian and I are both SoCal replants and always relish coastal opportunities, whenever we can find them. I'm getting my thinking cap out - just as soon as I can find where I left it.
We took a stroll on the north jetty of the Siuslaw River which is about a mile from our campground. Amy wanted to take photos from the end of the jetty.
There is a nearby Coast Guard Station and once they started doing exercises, they had my undivided attention. My dad used to take me to the Naval shows at the North Island Naval Station when I was growing up and I am an absolutely sucker for anything like this.
I ended up with photos on three cameras, which makes photo management kinda messy. I absolutely hated to have to leave. When will I see a show like this again?! These boats can move forward and backward and repeat - it's like a boat dance. I knew I was holding up our plans.
A return visit to Cape Perpetua was on the top of our list. The last time we had been there, the fog was so thick that we were able to see very little of the area. This was a CCC camp during the WPA era, evidenced by the many bridges and campgrounds along this stretch of coastline.
We were eager to see the Stone House they built as a scenic lookout. These stone walls are along the path all the way up. They didn't do it the easy way and it's still standing.
From this vantage point you can see 70 miles down the coast. I know I said I wasn't going to show scenic coastal pictures but I lied.
Some tourists asked if I'd take their picture and in return they offered to take ours. I'm usually on the other side of the camera.
We were returning to our car when I noticed a group of young Latino men, sitting on the wall chatting and one was forming a bouquet of flowers. I asked him if I could take his picture and he obliged, then gave it to me. I was disarmed by his gentle artistry.
A florist couldn't do better. We thanked him, got in the car with the flowers and drove away. Ian disposed of them in the first trashcan - I'm sure those flowers were contraband and totally illegal, but I have the image to keep.
