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Oregon Tour 2012 Days 7-9. Mid – South Coast

Day 6 was a travel day which ended up at my home for the next 4 nights the North Lake  Resort in Lakeside Oregon.  Simular to my summer agility home, Robert’s Roost  in Quesnel, North Lake has lakeside camping and a small marina catering to the fisherman.  Power and fast WiFi made it perfect.

A memorial bell in Trinidad CA.

Day 7 was California day.  In 2010, I made it to Crescent City, but didn’t have time to visit the redwoods south towards Eureka.  So with an early start, I was southbound.  Passing attractions I would place on my to-do list for the next day, I was in Cali in no time.  Redwood National Park, however would turn out to be a bit disappointing with a “no dogs” policy on the trails withen the park.  So it was a quick drive along the scenic highway.  A fuel and picture stop at Trinidad and it was northbound back to the camp.

I also took a side trip to drive the van through a tree!  At the narrowest portion, I couldn’t fit a finger between the tree and my driver’s side mirror.  It was tighter on the passenger’s side.

Day 8 was dedicated to the West Coast Game Park.  To say this is a classic tourist trap is an understatement.  The highlight were the animals that were allowed to roam freely among the people.  I lost track of the number of peacocks, deer, goats and even llamas that would follow anyone who had food.  Many times I had to fight the urge to return to the van and grab a clicker!

The Lion Doesn’t Sleep Tonight

Photography was challenging.  The animal cages were made of wire fencing and I had to shoot through the fencing.  Some cages had an area cut out to fit a lens through, however the holes would limit where you could aim the camera.  So, not many pictures were taken.

After the game park, it was off to a beach for the daily dip into the Pacific.  The weather today was very windy and the waves were larger than they had been earlier in the week.  A grabbed my Flip camera and shot some video.

Day 9 was a return to some of the places I visited in 2010.  First was Florence where I returned to grab another picture of the wooden statue in fromt of a seafood restaurant I ate at two years ago. The statue had since broke and part of Neptune’s fork was missing.  Opps!  I also visited two lighthouses and took a tour of Newport, checking out some places that caught my intrest earlier in the week.  After Newport it was a quick trip to Yachats then back to camp.

Just a reminder, the pictures above and video below are on my SmugMug set.

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Oregon Tour 2012 Days 4-5. Cannon Beach – North Coast

Yaquina Head Lighthouse

Day 3 was a travel day from Elma to Cannon Beach where I settled into the Cannon Beach RV Resort.  This has to be the most luxurious resort I have ever stayed at.  Set up for the big motorhomes, my tent trailer was a bit out of place, however all the campers were friendly and the park like setting was relaxing.

My first full day on the north coast would have me driving to Newport to visit the Oregon Coast Aquarium after a side trip to the Yaquina Head Lighthouse.  Both are must sees!  Check out the pictures from my SmugMug set.

Day 5 had me in the Tillamook area where I visited the Tillamook Cheese Factory and the Tillamook Air Museum.

F-14 Tomcat

The cheese factory had an observation deck built above the production floor where you could see the entire process of turning milk into cheese.  After watching the magic, it was off to the factory store to grab a couple loaves of cheese.

The air museum is located in an airship hanger built during World War 2.  If you’re a fan of Mythbusters, you’ve seen a simular hanger from the San Francisco area.  All the aircraft on display are in flying condition.  My favorite, the F-14 Tomcat.

Once back at the camp, it time for a fire and a book.

Home on the Range…… Er…. RV Park.

Next….. Of to the south coast.

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Oregon Tour 2102 Days 1-2. Washington Coast

The lens from Destruction Island

Day 1 would be a long travel day. My plan was to get as far south as possible so I would have a short trip to the coast. Plan accomplished! I made it to Elma Washington and found a spot at the Elma RV Park where I was welcomed with a great spot, a hot shower and some chocolate chip cookies! And to top it off, there was an espresso stand next door!
For day 2, I decided to tour some of the Washington coast area. Good choice. My first stop was the Westport Maritime Museum. A former Coast Guard Station, the museum had many great displays and a knowledgeable staff.  However, the best part of the facility was the “Lens Room” where they had the lens from the formar Destruction Island lighthouse.  An amazing piece of engineering, this lens is a must see.

Next stop was the Grays Harbor Lighthouse which is still active after being commissioned in 1898.  Unfortunately,  the lighthouse was closed when I arrived, so no tour was available.  Next time.

Playing in the Pacific.

After lunch, it was off to Long Beach where you may drive you vehicle onto the beach.  This made it great for the dogs.  All I had to do was let them out, and off they went!

After the swim, it was a leisurely drive back to the camp.

Photos from the day are posted to my SmugMug site in the Oregon 2012 set.

We’re off to a good start.  What’s next…….

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Oregon! Here We Come! Again!

One of the many lighthouses along the coast.

So it’s time for my summer vacation.  This year, I’m skipping agility camp and I’m going back to the Oregon Coast.  When I was there two years ago, I only had four days to explore.  Not nearly enough!  This time, the whole two weeks is dedicated to the coast.  As of this writing, I have no formal plans.  I’m just going to point the van south and go!

So, depending on WiFi, I hope to update this blog regularly and I still have my travel Twitter account where you can follow along on my trip.   Also, I’ll be taking pictures and uploading them to my SmugMug site.

I’m excited about the next two week and I’m looking forward to getting back to the Oregon coast.  Stay tuned to this blog for more information.

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Catching Up!

Hello again!  It’s been a while since I’ve updated this blog.  So, what have I been up to……

The UFC Training Center where “TUF” is shot.

Other then putting up with winter, the big event was a return trip to Vegas!  After a great time there in October, I wanted to go back and see a few more places I didn’t have time to see the first time.  First was the UFC training center.  Now finding the center is a bit of a chore since its address is not public.  However, there is a Munzee there so once the cords were in my GPS, it took me right to the
place.

Other places included the Neon Museum Boneyard, the Clark County Museum, the Atomic Testing Museum and, the Pinball Hall of Fame.

Many pictures were taken at the boneyard and Clark County Museum.  I’ve uploaded these to my Smugmug site in a set called “Vegas 2012“.

The Neon Boneyard

One other place I visited was Discount Firearms and Ammo.  Originally, I wanted to visit another popular gun store to try some machine guns, however after reading some less than favorable reviews, I looked elsewhere and found Discount which had rave reviews.  Discount also had one other great feature.  It was only a 3 minute drive from my hotel!

My package of choice was the “SWAT” Package which gave me a chance to shoot a M4, a MP5 and a Beretta 92.  What a blast! (Literally!) I highly recommend a trip to Discount if you’re in Vegas and avoid the other popular “Gun Store”.

While shooting, the Range Master, shot some video.  Have a look:

So that’s the big update since my last post, however, as I type this, I’m getting ready for my next adventure.  Stay tuned to this blog for more information.