Dad and I flew from Phoenix to Portland, and took the shuttle to the Budget Car Rental.
10947 NE Holman Street
Portland OR 97220
503.249.6332
By the time we were set up with the rental car, it was early afternoon. We drove south into and though central Portland; the traffic was a little heavy but were early enough to miss the worst of the rush hour.
We took Hwy 26 NE from Portland to the coast, then a short distance on 101 to Seaside, OR.
Motel Six Seaside
2369 S Roosevelt Dr
Seaside OR 97138
This motel was OK; we stayed there for two nites.
Thursday, September 14, 2017
Wednesday, September 13, 2017
Wednesday, June 28, 2017
Early start! South along the coast to Ecola Park; super views of the famous Haystack Rock. It's the pointy rock in the distance. From these pics it seems like a gloomy, chilly day, but it wasn't - it was just early and cloudy. This is an awesome viewpoint; thanks to the guy at the map shop in Phoenix who recommended it.
These young ladies were from Beaverton.
Next we visited Cannon Beach, home of the Really Big Rock.
In the afternoon we drove up along the coast to Astoria, OR, then crossing a very long, impressive bridge that spans the mouth the Columbia river, into WA state. Our destination was some lighthouses in the extreme SW corner of the WA State. This was a little bit of a drive, but I found all the driving on this trip to be very scenic. The park area of the lighthouses was beautiful. We attempted a half mile or so hike downhill thru the woods to the lighthouse, but the distance and the terrain were a little too much for dad, so we didn't see the lighthouse. It was still a nice stroll thru the woods, on a beautiful OR summer day.
On the way back to Seaside we visited the Really Big Maritime Museum in Astoria. Another attraction in the area is the Astoria Tower, which we didn't have time to see. It commemorates the Astoria family being really rich; they were the founders of an early fur trading company in the area.
Later that evening I drove the short distance from the Motel 6 into the town of Seaside, OR. This is a very interesting, touristy town, with tons of restaurants, etc. There is a sidewalk that runs between the wide sand beach and the town, called the Promenade, or Prom for short. I took a long walk on the Prom and the beach, which for some reason created a severe hankering not for Seafood, but Mexican. I found a super tamale at a little sidewalk cafe. (They were flattered that I liked it, since I'm from AZ.) Got souvenir T-shirts for the bro, sis, and myself. Very nice little town.
These young ladies were from Beaverton.
Next we visited Cannon Beach, home of the Really Big Rock.
In the afternoon we drove up along the coast to Astoria, OR, then crossing a very long, impressive bridge that spans the mouth the Columbia river, into WA state. Our destination was some lighthouses in the extreme SW corner of the WA State. This was a little bit of a drive, but I found all the driving on this trip to be very scenic. The park area of the lighthouses was beautiful. We attempted a half mile or so hike downhill thru the woods to the lighthouse, but the distance and the terrain were a little too much for dad, so we didn't see the lighthouse. It was still a nice stroll thru the woods, on a beautiful OR summer day.
On the way back to Seaside we visited the Really Big Maritime Museum in Astoria. Another attraction in the area is the Astoria Tower, which we didn't have time to see. It commemorates the Astoria family being really rich; they were the founders of an early fur trading company in the area.
Later that evening I drove the short distance from the Motel 6 into the town of Seaside, OR. This is a very interesting, touristy town, with tons of restaurants, etc. There is a sidewalk that runs between the wide sand beach and the town, called the Promenade, or Prom for short. I took a long walk on the Prom and the beach, which for some reason created a severe hankering not for Seafood, but Mexican. I found a super tamale at a little sidewalk cafe. (They were flattered that I liked it, since I'm from AZ.) Got souvenir T-shirts for the bro, sis, and myself. Very nice little town.
Tuesday, September 12, 2017
Thursday, June 29, 2017
Goodbye Seaside, OR! South on Hwy 101 along the coast. This was not scary driving; usually the road was inland some distance from the ocean.
Just a few miles South is Hug Point Beach. This was a great spot to visit, because the path down to the beach was short and easy enough for dad. This is an interesting area; the road used to run right along the ocean at this point, and wagons or early motor vehicles had to "hug" the landward side of the beach to get by. At high tide it was impassible. Around the point was a small waterfall, and the beginning of a hiking trail. This would be a super picnic area. I picked up a couple of Sand Dollars on the beach.
More scenic driving down the coast; this was a nice viewpoint North of the Tillamook Bay Area. This viewpoint had some good displays and info on the really "green" governor in OR history, who kept the coast from falling into evil private hands. We didn't spend much time in the Tillamook area, but according to the tourist propaganda there is a lot of historical stuff and things to see.
In this pic of Hwy 101 you can see how much effort has been put into making things look natural. I found the roads in Western OR to be extremely well-marked, with really nice bright lines on the road. Even rough roads had nice line markings. However, you can drive for miles without a highway marker or a speed limit sign, which can be annoying if you're a little lost. Presumably they are trying to minimize signage.
My dad's into airplanes, so we did visit the Tillamook Air Museum. There was a mish-mash of interesting planes there, but the real attraction is the building itself. It's the largest "free-span" building in the US. It was used to house dirigibles that patrolled the coastal ocean during WWII for enemy submarines.
At this point we'd driven down only about 25% of the Oregon coast, but as our main destination was Crater Lake in south central OR, it was time for us to head inland. There is all kinds of cool stuff further south, including some coastal sand dunes. A trip there could even include visits to the redwood areas in extreme northern CA.
We headed over towards Salem, OR, which btw is NOT the location of the famous witch trials. (OR is a very progressive state and they don't do things like that, especially considering the obvious problem with carbon emissions.) We drove past a casino area, and I noticed that Melissa Etheridge was going to be performing soon. Salem is the state capitol, and I don't think we even stopped on the way thru. It seemed like a nice town, however.
We continued down I-5, which runs north/south thru central OR, on down to Eugene, which is the college town. At that point we left the Interstate to head SE to Oakridge, OR. This area is a higher-altitude forest compared to what we'd been driving thru all day. This is a good point to note that ALL of the driving on this trip was incredibly scenic.
The motel here was fine; there was a pool with a Jacuzzi hot pool area. Good burger place right across the road.
Best Western Oakridge
47433 Hwy 58
Oakridge, OR 97463-9752
541-782-2212
Just a few miles South is Hug Point Beach. This was a great spot to visit, because the path down to the beach was short and easy enough for dad. This is an interesting area; the road used to run right along the ocean at this point, and wagons or early motor vehicles had to "hug" the landward side of the beach to get by. At high tide it was impassible. Around the point was a small waterfall, and the beginning of a hiking trail. This would be a super picnic area. I picked up a couple of Sand Dollars on the beach.
More scenic driving down the coast; this was a nice viewpoint North of the Tillamook Bay Area. This viewpoint had some good displays and info on the really "green" governor in OR history, who kept the coast from falling into evil private hands. We didn't spend much time in the Tillamook area, but according to the tourist propaganda there is a lot of historical stuff and things to see.
In this pic of Hwy 101 you can see how much effort has been put into making things look natural. I found the roads in Western OR to be extremely well-marked, with really nice bright lines on the road. Even rough roads had nice line markings. However, you can drive for miles without a highway marker or a speed limit sign, which can be annoying if you're a little lost. Presumably they are trying to minimize signage.
My dad's into airplanes, so we did visit the Tillamook Air Museum. There was a mish-mash of interesting planes there, but the real attraction is the building itself. It's the largest "free-span" building in the US. It was used to house dirigibles that patrolled the coastal ocean during WWII for enemy submarines.
At this point we'd driven down only about 25% of the Oregon coast, but as our main destination was Crater Lake in south central OR, it was time for us to head inland. There is all kinds of cool stuff further south, including some coastal sand dunes. A trip there could even include visits to the redwood areas in extreme northern CA.
We headed over towards Salem, OR, which btw is NOT the location of the famous witch trials. (OR is a very progressive state and they don't do things like that, especially considering the obvious problem with carbon emissions.) We drove past a casino area, and I noticed that Melissa Etheridge was going to be performing soon. Salem is the state capitol, and I don't think we even stopped on the way thru. It seemed like a nice town, however.
We continued down I-5, which runs north/south thru central OR, on down to Eugene, which is the college town. At that point we left the Interstate to head SE to Oakridge, OR. This area is a higher-altitude forest compared to what we'd been driving thru all day. This is a good point to note that ALL of the driving on this trip was incredibly scenic.
The motel here was fine; there was a pool with a Jacuzzi hot pool area. Good burger place right across the road.
Best Western Oakridge
47433 Hwy 58
Oakridge, OR 97463-9752
541-782-2212
Monday, September 11, 2017
Friday, June 30, 2017
On this trip we stayed two nights each at three different motels, which is usually pretty nice. You can get up in the morning after the first night, not have to worry about packing up your stuff, and have a "tourist day".
For future reference, however, on this leg of the trip staying at Oakdale twice required some unnecessary "backtrack" driving. We should have stayed just one nite at Oakdale, and the second nite at Bend, OR.
Anyway, on Friday morning we continued southeast along Hwy 58, over the Cascade mountain range, which runs the whole length of OR from north to south. There were super views to the south along this road, here's one of them: Diamond Peak. 
There is tons of camping, hiking and lakes along this stretch of road: Hwy 58 between I-5 and Hwy 97.
We then took Hwy 97 south to 138, which took us back west towards the Crater Lake area. Crater Lake is simply awesome; I'll let the pictures speak for themselves.
After an awesome morning in the park, we headed north again. I needed to take of a personal need in the woods, so we pulled off the road on the way out. This spot turned out to be a good viewpoint of Diamond Peak, from the south.
On the way back towards our motel at Oakdale, we stopped at Odell lake, which is one of many huge lakes in the area.
Sunday, September 10, 2017
Saturday, July 1
Goodbye, Oakdale, OR!
Back across the pass to Hwy 97, and then north towards Bend, OR. We saw a sign for "Lava Lands" park, but decided not to turn off.
Then we drove past an area of vast lava flows, and wished we had stopped. We didn't realize what a dramatic, scenic area it was. (Later we came back.)
Just a few miles further we saw a sign for the the "High Desert Museum", and stopped in there; it's a major museum. It has a lot of birds and reptiles, but unfortunately the otters were sleeping. They also have Indian and pioneer artifacts, and some old cars. (Not sure what the cars have to do with the desert, but OK.)
We then went back to "Lava Lands", and it turned out to be one of the high points of the trip! From the visitor's center there is a shuttle to the top of the volcano, and from the parking lot there it's a short distance uphill to the fire watch tower.
From the base of the tower are views of snow-capped Mt. Hood and other regional peaks. Spectacular!
A short trail continues around the rim of the volcanic "caldera".
Here's the view from the opposite side.
Here's a view of the lava flow. The lava in this area is the lightest rock I've ever seen; it weighs about half of you would expect. Along the trail people were frivolously passing around a watermelon-sized chunk. (You're not supposed to pick up any of the lava, but a couple of small pieces fell into my pocket. Remind me to show these to Jane.)
Here's a demonstration of how light the lava was. I had to cut the video short because the shuttle was approaching. (Insert link to video here.)
We continued north to Bend, OR, and by this point we might have been getting a little tired and cranky. We couldn't find the Denny's, and ended up at an Applebee's, a restaurant at which I always seem to have a big hassle, and this one didn't disappoint! Therefore the entire town of Bend sucks. (jk)
Not far north of Bend is the really nice little town of Redmond, OR; we stayed two nights there.
Motel Six
2247 S Hwy 97
Redmond, OR
541.923.2100
Note for Jeff and Jane: You can actually fly into Redmond. If you were really only interested in the geological/fossil stuff, a week-or-so long trip could be planned from Redmond, then ranging east to the attractions, and skipping the whole Portland and coastal areas.
Back across the pass to Hwy 97, and then north towards Bend, OR. We saw a sign for "Lava Lands" park, but decided not to turn off.
Then we drove past an area of vast lava flows, and wished we had stopped. We didn't realize what a dramatic, scenic area it was. (Later we came back.)
Just a few miles further we saw a sign for the the "High Desert Museum", and stopped in there; it's a major museum. It has a lot of birds and reptiles, but unfortunately the otters were sleeping. They also have Indian and pioneer artifacts, and some old cars. (Not sure what the cars have to do with the desert, but OK.)
We then went back to "Lava Lands", and it turned out to be one of the high points of the trip! From the visitor's center there is a shuttle to the top of the volcano, and from the parking lot there it's a short distance uphill to the fire watch tower.
From the base of the tower are views of snow-capped Mt. Hood and other regional peaks. Spectacular!
A short trail continues around the rim of the volcanic "caldera".
Here's the view from the opposite side.
Here's a view of the lava flow. The lava in this area is the lightest rock I've ever seen; it weighs about half of you would expect. Along the trail people were frivolously passing around a watermelon-sized chunk. (You're not supposed to pick up any of the lava, but a couple of small pieces fell into my pocket. Remind me to show these to Jane.)
Here's a demonstration of how light the lava was. I had to cut the video short because the shuttle was approaching. (Insert link to video here.)
We continued north to Bend, OR, and by this point we might have been getting a little tired and cranky. We couldn't find the Denny's, and ended up at an Applebee's, a restaurant at which I always seem to have a big hassle, and this one didn't disappoint! Therefore the entire town of Bend sucks. (jk)
Not far north of Bend is the really nice little town of Redmond, OR; we stayed two nights there.
Motel Six
2247 S Hwy 97
Redmond, OR
541.923.2100
Note for Jeff and Jane: You can actually fly into Redmond. If you were really only interested in the geological/fossil stuff, a week-or-so long trip could be planned from Redmond, then ranging east to the attractions, and skipping the whole Portland and coastal areas.
Saturday, September 9, 2017
Sunday, July 2, 2017
Major destination for the day: The Painted Hills! If you're never heard of it, that's not surprising. It's a long way, on good but winding roads, so even many Oregonians have never been there. It's worth the trip, even a stand-alone destination!
So on this beautiful Sunday we headed east from Redmond, and it wasn't far to Prineville, OR. There is a beautiful viewpoint of the town on the way in from the west. (Watch for it, it's cool!)
The large buildings appear a big tire warehouse.
Here's a video from the Prineville viewpoint. (insert video here)
After a couple of more hours of winding highway, with cool-looking rock formations poking out of Oregon greenery, we reached the Painted Hills section of the John Day Fossil Beds National Monument. This part is on the way in to the park area.
Here's some from inside the the park.
There are several nice hiking trails in this area; a visitor could plan an entire day just for this part.
There three main park areas within John Day Fossil Beds National Monument. Painted Hills is reached first along this route, and Sheep Rock is another hour or so east along the highway. (There is another park/fossil area to the north; we didn't get to that one.)
Here's the Sheep Rock area. There was a nice fossil museum here, and the rock formations in the area were surreal. There is a lot of nice drives and hikes in this area, too.
By this time it was getting hot and late in the day, so we headed back "home" to Redmond.
Continuing adventure click here.
So on this beautiful Sunday we headed east from Redmond, and it wasn't far to Prineville, OR. There is a beautiful viewpoint of the town on the way in from the west. (Watch for it, it's cool!)
The large buildings appear a big tire warehouse.
Here's a video from the Prineville viewpoint. (insert video here)
After a couple of more hours of winding highway, with cool-looking rock formations poking out of Oregon greenery, we reached the Painted Hills section of the John Day Fossil Beds National Monument. This part is on the way in to the park area.
Here's some from inside the the park.
There three main park areas within John Day Fossil Beds National Monument. Painted Hills is reached first along this route, and Sheep Rock is another hour or so east along the highway. (There is another park/fossil area to the north; we didn't get to that one.)
Here's the Sheep Rock area. There was a nice fossil museum here, and the rock formations in the area were surreal. There is a lot of nice drives and hikes in this area, too.
Continuing adventure click here.
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