Trip Report - very long

Hi everyone,

We had the most fantastic time thanks to all here who gave information and advice.

Our first week was spent at the Trendwest Resort timeshare at Seaside which was beautiful. We had an appartment on the 7th floor - yes it was overlooking Broadway and yes it was a little noisy, but only on our first night which was Saturday. After this as we were out of season it was very quiet and we had a sea view over the rooftops towards the north end of the beach - we loved it. We had a barbecue on the balcony so were able to cook a few nights and enjoy dinner outside. Our first day we spent just chilling out in Seaside, walking the beach and relaxing by the pool.

During the week we visited Long Beach and Ilwaco, Wa (I made it over the bridge and it was fine) Astoria and Astoria Column where we spent a couple of hours admiring the view. We got down as far as Yaquina Head, but didn%26#39;t go into Newport. We saw whales at Depoe Bay and visited three more times, but didn%26#39;t see them again.

We went to Canon Beach tidepools three times so I could get photos of the starfish and spent a day at Ecola SP - this was my favurite place.

The fog appeared at Canon Beach on Wednesday, but Seaside was clear - it spread to Seaside on Thursday which was the day we spent at Ecola so we virtually avoided it. However it made my husband change plans and decide to leave on Friday for the journey to Crater Lake and we went down to Roseburg. This was a good thing as it gave us chance to explore fully. We would have very little time on my original plan to get there in one day on Saturday and leave on Sunday morning and also gave us time to go on the 138 and visit all the waterfalls on the way as well as Diamond Lake. (Don%26#39;t go fishing there Den they have poisoned it and there are dead fish at the watersedge and an awful smell!!)

Crater Lake amazed us. I had not envisaged it so large. We did the rim drive, although my husband wasn%26#39;t keen on driving at the side of the steep drop on the narrow road, so we turned in an overlook and went the other way round. We arrived at the Lodge at 4pm and checked in.

Our bedroom - although small - had a wonderful view of the lake and in our opinion fully worth the $180 I paid. We didn%26#39;t eat at the Lodge as it wasn%26#39;t our taste and seemed expensive, but went to the new Annie Creek restaurant. This was Italian food which my husband doesn%26#39;t like either, but they were very accommodating and got him some plain chicken. On the way back we saw deer and a really vibrant red sunset.

The next morning I was up early for my coffee and on the deck ready for the sunrise - I had a good view from our room, but thought it was tradition to be on the Lodge Deck. There weren%26#39;t many people watching and I felt whilst it was pretty it wasn%26#39;t as spectacular as I had expected - more pink than the vibrant colours.

We left early, had breakfast at a gas station somewhere on the way, and visited Klamath NWR. The area was very beautiful, but we were disappointed in the wildlife there only spotting deer, heron and a few wading birds. The 10 mile auto loop at Lower Klamath took a long time and I was worried we had got lost, but we made it out.

Mount Shasta was our next stop and this mountain dominates the landscape as you travel down the I5. Unfortunately as it was Sunday everything in the town was shut, but we did have a short walk.

We arrived in Redding, Ca where we stopped at the Travelodge, late afternoon and visited the Sundial Bridge which is beautiful.

Driving from Redding to the Redwoods on the 299 we could smell the smoke coming from the fires after Weaverville and passed fire fighters vehichles and camps. Lots of hillsides were burnt out. We explored some of the Redwood area, walking the Lady Bird Johnson Trail, were too late for the Trees of Mystery which had just closed and made it to Crescent City where we stayed at the Curly Redwood Lodge. We spent the evening watching seals fishing and throwing remains to the seagulls in the harbour and watched a beautiful sunset.

Tuesday we spent some more time in the Redwoods in Jedadiah Smith SP driving on the narrow gravel road and walked the Stout Grove to the bridge which was broken. Lunch was a sandwich in Harris State Park and we arrived at Gold Beach at 2.30pm. It was very cold and windy, but we managed a walk on the beach, but were not impressed with the town. We stayed at the Gold Beach Inn and ate at Spinners which seemed to be the only restaurant available.

Wednesday was our day for our boat trip. I had picked the Mail Boats (rather than Jerrys) as I thought it was an original. Our driver(?) was John who was very good pointing out the heron, osprey, hawks, kingfisher, bald eagle, seals and otters. Unfortunately we didn%26#39;t see any deer or bear. We chose to lunch at Cougar Lane Lodge and enjoyed sitting on the deck in the sun overlooking the river. Of course on our way back John spun the boat and wet us through, but it was a very enjoyable trip.

As anticipated we didn%26#39;t travel very far that day and stayed at Table Rock Motel on the edge of Bandon. We had wonderful fish and chips on the harbour, watched seals and did a little shopping in Old Town.

We made our way up the coast via the Charleston scenic loop, visting Winchester Lighthouse, Windy Cove. This road was gravel and I think we missed a few turnings, but made it to Reedsport where we visited the Elk viewing area and Oregon Dunes National Recreation area to see the sand dunes.

Our next stop was Newport where we walked round the Historic Dock with its wonderful galleries and watched more seals and sealions. My husband then decided to go inland and we stayed in McMinnville for the night arriving in Portland just before lunch on Friday.

The first thing we did was tour all the addresses I had for my deceased relative. We found them all including the church she attended so I was very pleased.

We checked into the Shilo at 1.50 pm. This hotel has got to be the best. We had a junior suite which consisted of a king bed (which had six pillows and was so comfortable you just sank into it) a kitchen/lounge area with sofa bed and three tvs - one even in the bathroom. There is a free shuttle to the airport and max train and return which runs every 30 minutes which we took advantage of.

Portland itself! A lovely city, good shopping and friendly people. People were stopping us and asking if we were tourists and ';had we visited Multnomah Falls';, ';could they direct us anywhere?';. We fully enjoyed the Saturday market, but

The tramps/vagrants really made me uneasy. They were mostly round the Saturday market area, but we were accosted by one or two in the city and by the waterfront - probably (as I know) we British stick out like sore thumbs.

We had a problem getting back to the airport on the Max on Saturday night as, apparently, there had been an accident and the trains had been stopped. We got as far as the Rose Garden Arena on a bus, waited 30 minutes and thought we may have to find a taxi

when a train came and we managed to get on.

I am sorry this is so long, but we saw and did so much this is just a quick review. My husband enjoyed driving on the virtually deserted roads - much different to (and in better condition than) our over crowded roads. A wonderful holiday and what a beautiful State you all live in.

Trip Report - very long

What a great report! I%26#39;m glad you enjoyed your stay in Seaside. See.... the bridge isn%26#39;t that bad, LOL We have been through Redding so many times and have yet to check out the Sundail Bridge. I agree, Mt. Shasta is an awesome site on the I-5. Thanks so much for reporting back! :)

Trip Report - very long

Sounds like a nice trip. Thanks for letting us know how it went:)

Not too long at all and very interesting!

You certainly did get to see a lot, in your time here, which is wonderful.

Some people visit Oregon over and over and only go to the same one or two places.

Glad you got to see Cannon Beach and Seaside, although Cannon Beach is my favorite.

How touching that you got to see all the places visited by your relative!

Yes, Portland has its fill of homeless and while they are generally harmless, they can make a person feel nervous.

Last time we were over at Waterfront Park, all the benches in front of the RiverPlace Hotel had sleeping homeless on them, so the city really needs to wake up and deal with this.

As a Portland newbie, I don%26#39;t think it was your British-ness that made you stand out, I see acts of kindness and helpfulness here every day, it is just one of the endearing aspects of Portland ( I believe)..

*I recently read a post on TripAdvisor from someone who actually lives in Oregon , who said that they had not seen Crater Lake but they had heard '; that Crater Lake is just a big lake in the woods';..!! *

.I hope that poster reads this and learns something from a smart visitor * :)

Hurry back!

Fantastic report!!

Thanx for sharing!!

Den

Glad you had such a nice time, Angela, and thanks for the great report. Hmm... I thought the rim drive around Crater Lake might be more unnerving than the Astoria bridge. Hope you agree that both were worth it.

Too bad you didn%26#39;t see Diamond Lake at its best. You apparently were there just after they poisoned the lake to kill the undesirable fish that had taken over. Come back in a few years, and bring your fishing pole.

';...what a beautiful State you all live in.'; Well, most of us, anyway. ;-)

Just read your kind words so thought I ought to return the compliment. Thoroughly enjoyed reading a different perspective.

Not sure if you saw our photos on Flickr but my personal favourite was the one taken at Ecola SP, number 0266. I wish we could have found more time to explore there.