It was 78˚ when we were up. The sky was all blue again. A good day for traveling to the Oregon Coast.
Erwin wanted to wash the windshield and the front panel of our Lil’ Home (LH). There is a car/RV wash station on the property. After getting them washed/rinsed we left “On The River” Golf & RV Resort at 10 am.
We turned left to get on Highway 99, went through the towns of Dillard and Winston before getting on I-5 North. I-5 is not as flat or straight like the lower part of I-95 on the East Coast. It was very twisty and hilly, but the traffic was smooth and good.
It was in the town of Sutherlin where we got off from I-5 Exit #136 to get on State Highway 138 (Umpqua River Scenic Byway). There are so many vineyards along the way, but we thought we had enough of wine sampling for now. Besides that, we don’t know how convenient it is to drive with our LH to the vineyard property.
A portion of State Highway 138 the road was narrow and there was no shoulder and there were berms. Nerve wrecking trying to keep the LH within the lanes. However, the scenery was beautiful. Great view of the Umpqua River along the left side of 138, very rocky and not much rapids.
In Kellogg there are farmlands, but not many old barns. Beautiful tree lined roads.
We made a left turn to get on Orgeon State 38 to go to Reedsport, OR and the Oregon Coast, crossing Elk Creek with 35 miles left to Reedsport, OR. Elevation began to drop below 150’ then to 75’. Almost as low as Florida’s sea level. Now there were more farmlands. Edith did see a couple of old barns, but there was no place to pull over. Yes, there is sometimes a disadvantage of pulling a big rig like our LH.
The leaves have started to turn colors. The northerner we go the more colorful the leaves will be. It has been a long wile since we last saw fall foliage.
It is nice that there are several passing lanes on 38 for slower vehicles to move to the right lane allowing other vehicles to pass.
The mountains are filled with trees, so thick that you cannot see the land.
Crossing the bridge in Scottsburg, OR. Beautiful river. Beautiful drive with thick forests along the route. A good view of the Umpqua River on the right side.
There was a construction on the bridge, closing one lane, but the traffic was light. It did not take long to get going. They were working on the right lane of the bridge. working on reconstructing the right lane of the bridge.
We drove past two elk viewing areas, not too far from Reedsport, OR. We planned on going there this evening.
We arrived Reedsport, OR at noon and made a left turn to get on Hwy 101 South. It was 69˚ when we were in town. The weather was beautiful and pleasant.
We wanted to stay at Winchester Bay RV Park, but there was a "FULL"sign outside. Since we did not make advance reservations we were out of luck. However, as we went back to the main road we noticed a lot of RVs parked at the Salmon Harbor marina, so we decided to check it out. They had over 100 spots for RVs and it was only $15 a night without hookups. That was fine with us. Our LH can go without hookups for more than 3-5 days depending on how much electricity/water we use.
We scanned the area trying to decided which one we would like to stay at. We decided on Section F #11 with the view of the small marina. We wanted to stay at G section which faces the Pacific Ocean, but all was full. We were not surprised about that.
After getting our LH settled in we wasted no time by going off to check out some attractions nearby.
Edith wanted to check out Umpqua River Lighthouse and the park. It was about a mile from Salmon Harbor marina/RV Park..
There are interpretive signs explaining about Umpqua Aquaculture Triangle Oyster Farm. It is enclosed in a triangular rock jetty. The farm uses suspended long lines, but the lines do not touch the floor of the ocean. Therefore, there are no sediments inside oyster shells.
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| Umpqua Aquaculture Traingle Oyster Farm |
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Whale Jaw Bone
This was from a 60 foot Humpback whale that was stranded on the
beach in 1991. |
As we were getting ready to pay to visit the museum the volunteer told us to hold off and hurriedly go to the lighthouse where there was a tour waiting to go inside the lighthouse. We walked back to the lighthouse and were greeted by Roger, the tour guide.
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Leaving our handprints on Umpqua River Lighthouse
We always try to make a habit of touching the lighthouse
each time we visit (if we are within the property) |
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| Umpqua River Lighthouse |
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| Lightkeeper's work outfit |
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| Roger, the tour guide |
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| Roger explaining the lighthouse's history |
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| The weight that brought up a can of kerosene oil |
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Erwin poking his head up into
the Fresnel lens |
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| One of the lighthouse keepers |
After the lighthouse tour we walked over to the museum.
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| Bedroom for Coast Guard servicemen during 1960's |
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| Bedroom for Coast Guard servicemen during 1940's |
We wanted to get a close-up look of the sand dunes at Oregon Sand Dunes . There is a large parking lot at the end of the drive. There were many ATVs being prepped for rides on the dunes. Across the lot from the dunes is a walkway to the beach.
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| Trail to Pacific Ocean beach |
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| Flowers along the trail |
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| Oregon Sand Dunes is in the back |
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| Gazing at the ocean to see if there were Humpback whales |
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| Driftwood - there were lots of them on the beach |
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We made it!
"From Sea to Shining Sea"
We left Atlantic Ocean last March, arrived Pacific Ocean today. |
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| The surf is up! |
We went to Reedsport town center to check out some stores, attractions, etc.
First stop was to check out chainsawed sculptures. There were so many out on the yard. Some so interesting, some so weird. There was a guy inside a workshop chainsawing a wood piece into a bear.
We wanted to see if there were any elks out in the pasture at one of the viewing centers, west of Reedsport, OR. Yes,there were several bull elks lazying and grazing. We did not stay very long. We planned on coming back here either late this evening or tomorrow.
We needed to do the laundry, so we stopped at Green Lightning Laundry. The system is so different because you have to pay for a credit card. While Erwin was doing the laundry Edith walked to Safeway to pick up some food items.
After the laundry was done we went back to Salmon Harbor marina/RV Park, cooked supper, rested a bit.
Edith went out to find spots for sunset photography. It was very lovely and she was lucky to capture some great shots.
Late at night Edith told Erwin she wanted to go back to Umpqua Lighthouse and try to get night shots of the lighthouse and the moon.
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| Full Moon |
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| Umpqua Lighthouse with light beams and the moon |
We wanted to stay at Winchester Bay RV Park, but there was a "FULL"sign outside. Since we did not make advance reservations we were out of luck. However, as we went back to the main road we noticed a lot of RVs parked at the Salmon Harbor marina, so we decided to check it out. They had over 100 spots for RVs and it was only $15 a night without hookups. That was fine with us. Our LH can go without hookups for more than 3-5 days depending on how much electricity/water we use. 
After the lighthouse tour we walked over to the museum. 
We wanted to see if there were any elks out in the pasture at one of the viewing centers, west of Reedsport, OR. Yes,there were several bull elks lazying and grazing. We did not stay very long. We planned on coming back here either late this evening or tomorrow.
We needed to do the laundry, so we stopped at Green Lightning Laundry. The system is so different because you have to pay for a credit card. While Erwin was doing the laundry Edith walked to Safeway to pick up some food items.
After the laundry was done we went back to Salmon Harbor marina/RV Park, cooked supper, rested a bit. 
Late at night Edith told Erwin she wanted to go back to Umpqua Lighthouse and try to get night shots of the lighthouse and the moon.
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