Sunday Drive

Bob wants to take the Jeep and go out exploring, so I suggest we take the coastal route to Coos Bay to see if the road is suitable for travel with Popeye.

It's about 75 miles to Coos Bay once we turn onto Hwy 42, shortly past Mrytle Creek, and the drive is slow, but certainly Popeye approved.

We stop at the Casino in Coos Bay to use the facilities, and want to drive out to Charleston, the nicest and prettiest part of the Coos Bay area.

Now in Charleston, we stop for some clam chowder and enjoy the fog. It is supposed to warm up today, so we are delighted to be out in the cool fog of the sea shore.

Next we check out the Bastendoff County Campground, then drive over to Shore Acres and Cape Arago State Parks, take some pictures and enjoy the views of the fog.



Time to head back, we drive back through Coos Bay and  over the historic bridge at Reedsport, take a few pictures of the bridge, then head east on Hwy. 38 past the Dean Creek Elk Viewing area, and enjoy the Oregon Scenic Byway drive back. Highway 38 turns into Highway 138 follows the scenic Umpqua River and is a nice drive home.

It's been a very long drive of over 240 miles with temperatures of 61 degrees in Reedsport to 93 degrees back on I-5 - whew!

Tomorrow will be laundry day - not much to write about.

Falls Day

It's another beautiful sunny day, so rather than go to the gym for a workout, we take the Jeep and hit the road.  We travel north on I-5 to Roseburg and then head east on Hwy. 138.

This is known as the Land of Umpqua, and roughly follows the Umpqua River and its many tributaries.  It is a National Scenic Byway.

Our first stop is the visitor center in Glide. Armed with a few more maps we turn off onto County Road 17 first coming to the Cavitt Covered Bridge followed shortly by Cavitt Falls with its beautiful swimming hole, then on to the Wolf Creek Falls and over the long curved bridge to hike the 1.2 miles to the falls.

Now back on Hwy 138 and over to Susan Creek Falls, and finally, Fall Creek Falls. We think the Susan Creek Falls to be the prettiest of the falls.



Having hiked in excess of 6 miles, we decide we met our quota of exercise for the day. Now well past 5 PM and having no lunch, we decide to let the Creekside Cafe do our cooking and enjoy dinner, and naturally, pie and ice cream.  

Blackberries!

The sky is blue, I work out at the gym and Bob walks down to the casino for his exercise. Breakfast is lots of fruit and yogurt followed by more walks and berry picking. As the saying goes, a picture is worth a thousand words:




Covered with fresh blackberry juice and thorns, it's time for a serious shower followed by dinner at the Mrytle Creek Elks Lodge.

 

Finding Pioneer Cemetery, Mrytle Creek, OR

What a great morning. Cool overcast skies and life is good. We slept with the fans on and windows open - no smoke!

First we go to the gym and push hard with a 30 minute CV working. The it's back to Popeye for breakfast and chores.

Afterward we drive through the town of Canyonville for some milk. Next it's a trip to the little down of Myrtle Creek where we discover the Pioneer Cemetery.  At 6PM, the high for the day reaches 68 - perfect!




Returning to Popeye it's time for strength training, then it's time for dinner and dishes, a comment or two here, and early to bed. Yes, we're two tired and worn-out but happy campers.

Smoked Out!

It's a very good thing we're mobile. I awake with a pounding headache, coughing, sneezing, and am generally miserable. The smoke this morning is insufferable.  So, we skip our health walk (what a laugh that is) drive rather than walk over to the Cottage Cafe in the town of Rouge River for breakfast, return to the coach and hastily check out. So much for a week in one of our favorite parks.

On to the Seven Feathers RV Park in Canyonville. Here the air seems clear, and we can really tell just how smoke-filled the coach and Jeep have become. They can accommodate us for a week and since the park is really nice, complete with pool and workout room, we should be happy here.

No trip to Oregon is complete without a slice of  berry pie or cobbler, piled high with vanilla ice cream. I can think of no better place than the Creekside Cafe at the 7 Feathers truck stop to indulge. Within walking distance of the Popeye Express (trust me, this is a very good thing) you will find no better pie bakers nor a better selection of fresh pies. The fresh blackberry cobbler is to die for!

Now all that is left is a long walk or a workout. I probably need to burn off at least a thousand calories. Love this place. The air is clear, the the breeze is cool and the park is really nice. This is the first day of our trip we have been comfortable.  All told, we're enjoying the good life at last. If the winds should change, we can head towards the coast. Oregon has much to offer.

The River Path

Okay, here's the deal. The river path follows the Rogue River and will wind up in the little town of Rogue River.  No excuses. We're here and we need to take advantage of this great path to give us about 7 miles of exercise. Bonus: the path is lined with wild blackberries. We can munch our way down and back again. We did it yesterday and we'll do it everyday while we're here.

This afternoon after lunch we head down to Harry & David as we have reservations for the 1:45 PM tour. Great shop, and OMG Hot Rock are back! Been out of these for a couple of years now. We buy 3 bottles along with other assorted goodies.

Now back at the coach the smoke has considerably worsened. The only thing we can do is hunker down and try out the dry rub on our fresh Sockeye salmon, cook dinner and early to bed.

Breaking Away

The hardest thing we've done recently is wait an agonizing two and one half plus months to make our escape. Breaking the bondage of responsibility is not an easy thing. Something is always lurking around holding us back. This year it's electrical problems. Granted, they cannot be ignored, but still, not pleasant to deal with. And then there is the kitchen. When you think you can rip out the old, install the new, have contractors arrive to put in new counter tops, and whammy, the pipes can't be relocated in the wall, you have to rip out the floor and pray the joints are running in the right direction. Then the wiring needs to be redirected, and on, and on. . .So, this year the first day out I announced to Bob that he is taking over The Popeye Express. Too many pictures to review, prepare and upload, and always late thanks in no part to poor or non-existent wifi connectivity and absurdly slow broadband.

Finally we have arrived: day 3 we are at Valley of the Rogue State Park, just south of Grants Pass OR after a tiring but non eventful 800 plus mile drive. Hopefully this will give me a little practice on my writing skills, and although no one will read it, it will be fun for me to review from time to time. Today is day 1 in the park, and as I sit here, the air is filled with smoke from the nearby Glendale forest fire. Hopefully the wind will shift and tomorrow will be a better air day.

One of our favorite places is the little town of Jacksonville, OR, about 12 miles east of Medford and home to Bozo the Clown. We make the short drive, but the smoke is even worse here than at the state park.  We make a beeline for my favorite coffee house, The Good Bean, have some iced tea, and find it's just too smokey to walk the town. Rats, it's back to Valley of the Rogue.

We have reservations for the Harry & David factory tour tomorrow. Maybe the winds will shift and we'll have a better day; something to look forward to!