Harris in the afternoon, Monday, 10/29/18

This post could come under the heading of, "I wonder if ..." and then fill in the blank.  Jimmy and I seem to say that frequently, especially when we're Out and About in Tergel.  And then off we go, to see what's around the corner, over yonder hill or one more bend in the trail, always curious, seeking that which is just out of sight.

We parked Smartie at the southern end of Samuel H. Boardman State Scenic Corridor, at Lone Ranch Beach, Mile Post 353, to walk the beach (above).  These scenic Oregon beaches sport dozens of sea stacks, many of them as big as two-story houses, or more, as you've seen in our pics.  We came to the end of our beach walk (high tide), but a trail led us to a woodsy area, and then to a small creek, which was too wide for us to jump.  A large crossing plank had been knocked catawampus on the other side. Too bad, we said, 'cause it looked like the trail continued over there. 

Imagine this:  Ranger Rick came along as we were standing by the creek wondering if/how we could cross.  He jumped the creek (got a soaker, too), hefted that huge plank and let 'er go -- kersplat! -- so each end touched land.  Then he jumped on it and came back to our side.  Many thanks, we told him.  You're welcome, he said, but be aware that the trail gets steep.  Talk about Johnny-on-the-Spot!

Yes, the trail did get steep.  We walked through low trees and brush, and we could still hear the breakers on the beach below. In a short while the trees gave way to grassy rolling coastal bluffs that offered outstanding views both north and south.  We didn't know where the trail went, but when we caught a glimpse of the tall headland you see in the first photo, we wondered if it might lead there, and could we make it that distance (lots of climbing)?  One turn followed another.  Up we went.

The day was fine, not too hot, neither too cool, and the sun shone.  Smartie is the little white thing you see at left in pic above.

We really didn't know if we could make it to the top of the headland.  Now you see Smartie at the red check mark.  We were on what's known as the Coastal Trail, and I believe it goes for quite a distance, but I'm not sure how far.  In springtime, these hills must be bright with wildflowers.

We're still going up, but we've crossed over the ridge

and are now on the other side.

As we neared the top, we welcomed the cooling breeze.

That huge sea stack looks like a sperm whale.

Looking north now.  Simply beautiful.

At the edge, looking down.

The narrow trail, like a foot path, circled around the headland,

which we learned is called Cape Ferrelo.

Ah, from this headland, what views!

And there's Smartie, again, way down at the red check mark.

We descended a different way, stumbling at times, unsure if that path would lead us to the parking lot, but not to worry; yes, of course, the trail returned us to Smartie.  It was a grand hike, not too strenuous, about a mile or a mile-and-a-half.  We discovered what was around each curve on this trail till we reached its summit, and we enjoyed it thoroughly!

Back in Tergel, I took this picture from our front window of the setting sun.  Wonderful stay here at Harris Beach St Pk.  Tomorrow morning, after another beach walk, we'll fire up Tergel and point her nose toward California, and (we think) Patrick's Point St Pk.  All is good with us.

Harris Beach St Pk Sun/Mon 10/28-10/29

Returning to the coast from Grants Pass, Oregon, we drove north rather than south into California.  As far as we recalled, we'd never stopped at Harris Beach St Pk, which is only a few miles over the border near Brookings.  I know that Oregon parks are chock-full of campers in the summer, but October should be a slower time, and we hoped to snag a site.  Sure enough, we pulled into a wonderful FHU spot with an ocean view.

Our usual MO is to set up and then head for the beach and that's exactly what we did this afternoon. The tide was up and limited where we could go.  Tomorrow morning would be low tide, and that's when we'd hit the beach again.  Meanwhile, we made a trip to Fred Meyer's for gas (Smartie) and a few groceries, followed by yummy fish and chips at Sportsman's Haven in Brookings.

Sleeping peacefully Sunday night, I was awakened by a torrential rainfall, a flash of lightning and a thunderclap that I could hear over the loud rain noise on the roof ... all of which Jimmy slept through!  Heck, I didn't know rain was predicted for the Brookings area, though I knew it was predicted for further north toward Bandon.  It rained off/on all night.  Next morning, as we were gearing up to walk down to the beach, lo and behold, rain commenced again!  We finally got out around 11 am, too late for us to explore tide pools at low tide.  In the first few photos, you can see the sky is still cloudy, but further along, the sun is shining in the pics.  Hooray!  We had a right good time anyway.  

Awesome cut in this massive boulder.

Incoming waves would blast out like rockets!

This is probably the cleanest beach I've ever been on -- no plastic trash, no seashells, no rocks, just clean sand ... with the occasional blob of bull kelp all tied in knots (as above).  We loved watching the waves crash into the rocks, spraying as high as the rock itself.

Nope.  It didn't move an inch.

Trio of Black Oystercatchers marching up the rock.

What an ideal spot for Tergel!  We came back from the beach for lunch, and afterward, we hopped in Smartie and drove to the Oregon Visitor Center for more information.  There we were plied with lots of brochures and an excellent mile-by-mile description of areas to explore along the Oregon coast.  Perfect.  From the VC, we drove a few miles north of our campground to Samuel H. Boardman State Scenic Corridor at mile 353.5, parked Smartie and took off in the sunshine ....  tbc

To the Coast! Sunday, 10/28/18

Below are a few pics taken at Country Hills Resort in Cave Junction, Oregon, before we left on Friday morning.  Although my camera doesn't show how pink the sky really was, trust me ... we were favored with another Red Sky warning.  Good thing we weren't planning any fishing expeditions!  Tergel looks pretty comfy in her spot, and so were we.

Some people either take themselves too seriously, or else have a wicked sense of humor, or possibly both!  We spied this sign near the campground.

Falling leaves everywhere, makes for fine walking weather.  Pictured above is a branch of the Illinois River, danged low water here, also.  The river is flowing, but not very much.

Two of the six gobblers cruising the camp.

Back on Hwy 199 after leaving the resort at Cave Junction and heading for Grants Pass, is this brilliant field, above.  I don't know if these are grape vines or blueberry bushes, but look at that stunning red color -- several acres worth -- certainly grabs your attention!  Low clouds cling to the foothills.

With Sue's excellent direction, we pulled Tergel towing Smartie in their long driveway, climbed out and it was hugs all around!  The last time we visited them, their "Sunset House" was a mere shell.  Today, it's a completed, charming Craftsman-style home, filled with warmth and love.  Did I take any pictures?  No.  I wished I had, but I forgot.  Blame it on being busy and just being present.  Sue and Mo and their dog, Ratty Matty, are wonderful hosts, and we had a great visit.

That first night nobody wanted to cook, so Sue drove us to Bohemian Bistro in historic Grants Pass.  I had a delicious Halibut dinner ... mmmm, so good.  In the almost-week since Jimmy and I have been Out and About in Tergel, we've seen bouts of welcomed rain, kind of a rarity in Nevada City.  And it rained our first night in Grants Pass.  The next morning (after a yummy breakfast that was not cholesterol-free) Sue and Jimmy and I hit the Cathedral Hills hiking trails.  Hopefully we worked off that breakfast!  Nice hike.

This lichen-covered Manzanita looks like an abstract painting to me.

The Rogue River Valley is ablaze with dazzling fall colors.  

Saturday afternoon, we four bought tickets to see the above show.  We sort of figured there might not be a crowd for a 4pm showing, but -- Holy Toledo -- the theater was so full when we arrived that we had to sit in the last row of seating.  SRO!  Popovich put on a terrific show!  We all laughed out loud, and we especially loved hearing the children howl at the slapstick antics.  The animals did what they were supposed to do; the show was all-around fun family entertainment.  I believe Popovich normally appears in Las Vegas at Planet Hollywood.  If you get a chance, do it.

Later that evening, we watched the Barbra Streisand version of A Star is Born on Netflix, which neither Jimmy nor I had ever seen.  Now when we see the new version, we can compare (maybe).

We left Sue and Mo and sweet little Ratty Matty on Sunday morning.  Thanks, you guys, we really enjoyed our visit.  Come see us!  I know this is redundant, but we hit Hwy 199 AGAIN, aimed for the coast and Harris Beach St Pk, near Brookings Oregon, just over the line from California.  The park wasn't packed and we easily found a site overlooking the ocean.  Lucky, lucky us!  As soon as we set up, we walked to the beach.

Surprising us, a thunderstorm hit sometime in the middle of the night (weird) and light rain fell intermittently till around 11 Monday morning.  As soon as the rain quit, we returned to the beach.  I may have some more photos to show tomorrow.  We love the beach!

On the way to ... Thursday, 10/25/18

Jimmy and I left Jedediah Smith St Pk on the northern California coast.  The decision was to return to Grants Pass via scenic Hwy 199, for two reasons:  We wanted to tour the Oregon Caves National Monument (which we didn't know existed till we traversed Hwy 199 two days previously) and we wanted to visit our friends, Sue and "Mo" who live in Grants Pass.

As before, the colors along the way were outstanding, making the drive really enjoyable.  As usual, we split the driving distance, too, which is good because Hwy 199 is mostly two-lane twisty-turny.  At Cave Junction, we secured a campsite at Country Hills Resort a few miles from the caves.  Parked and set up, we still had time to make the 3pm cave tour.  Since this is a national park (monument), we paid half price using our Old Farts pass.

Wow -- we drove up, up, up from the campground to the caves, from roughly 1600 ft to 4000 ft.

"Everything seemed to be leading me to the cave," wrote Elijah Davidson in 1922 (written about his experience in 1874).  Surprisingly (to us), quite a number of people showed up for the tour.  Cody was our young guide's name, and he was full of information.  The first thing we learned is that Oregon Caves is only one of three marble caves in the US.  One other being Lehman Caves in the Great Basin (which we've toured).  Most caves are limestone.

We were appreciative that we thought to bring our jackets -- the uniform temp in the caves is a chilly 44 degrees.  Comparatively speaking (Carlsbad Caverns, Mammoth Cave, etc), Oregon Caves is smaller, and much less decorated than, say, Kartchner Caverns in Arizona, which was tops in our opinion, but Oregon Caves was well worth the stop.

We could take photos, but the lighting in caves is such that photos don't do the formations any justice.  For instance, the shot above looks like the back of someone's throat, but in reality, it was a huge opening with formations inside.  I'll show you some more pics, but if you get a chance, go see for yourself.  It's way better!

Cody's flashlight beamed at the marble ceiling, made quite a glare.

The marble was quite clear to us.

The above pic shows "draperies" with cave "popcorn" formed on them.

Popcorn usually indicates air flow.

Huge wall of formations!

Looking up.  When the caves were first opened for tourism, part of the appeal was to "come visit the caves and take home a piece of a stalactite," and people did just that.  Many priceless stalactites (hanging from the ceiling) were broken.  Of course, nowadays, that is a big No-No; even touching the walls is off limits.

We twisted, stooped, and climbed through the dark depths, exploring the labyrinth of marble passageways, and descended 220' below the surface to visit a "huge room."  A descent on the spiral stairway above was part of the tour.  Ranger guides love to turn off all the lights at one point, plunging us into a darkness so intense that it's scary.  I always hold onto Jimmy when they do that, sighing with relief when the lights come back on.

The tour lasted 90 minutes and was pretty physically demanding.  I'll tell you one thing for sure -- Jimmy and I watched where we put our feet.  Cave floors are frequently wet, and this one was, and with all the ups and downs, it would be too easy to stumble and fall.  We made it out safely! 

Stellar wall!

We passed lots o' glistening flowstones that looked other-worldly.

Few bones were found inside the caves passages, but the above pic shows a small bear's bones deposited deep inside the cave, probably washed in through an opening, rather than the live bear making it in that far.

This sign says, "Animal bones such as this 38,000-year-old Ice Age jaguar jaw have been found in the cave."

That concluded our cave tour.  The next morning, after walking around some of the campground's 22 acres (on the Illinois River), we were back on glorious Hwy 199, aimed for Grants Pass and our friends' driveway!  Oh boy, fun times with good friends!