Day 6: Sand Dunes and Sunsets at Nehalem Bay State Park

Sand dunes and sunsets - Nehalem Bay State Park, OR. 

Pancakes and hash browns to start the day. Then a short relocation cruise to a different spot in the park. An afternoon on the beach in the 31 degree Celcius sun followed by an excursion to Manzanita. 

Last but not least a front row seat on the dune to witness the setting sun in all its splendour. 

Pancakes, shredded hash browns, Canadian back bacon. Yum!

After brunch we went for a walk to see if the occupants of our next site had departed yet. Not yet. But they were actively packing. Perfect!  Here we are in our next campsite. Today's high is going to be 31 degrees C. How is that possible after being in sweaters yesterday?

A very short drive and we are in the quaint village of Manzanita. It is very hot so we do not linger. 

1 oz of blue cotton candy with great marketing. 

Having read about the Mudd Nick Foundation's fundraising hot dog stand on Yelp I was delighted to see that they were open so that I could support this worthy cause while enjoying a very delicious afternoon snack.  Read more about the Mudd Nick Foundation here. 

We had fun squeezing through The Manzanita Market again on this trip. 

When we camped here as children, this is the church that we would go to.  They offered a great lunch after the service. 

Gourmet Beef Ramen coming up. 

You can never have too much cilantro. 

After dinner it is time for some mutual appreciation pictures on the dunes as the sun begins to set. 

Day 5: Mischief Managed - Nehalem Bay State Park, OR

Mischief Managed - Nehalem Bay State Park, Oregon. 

Cascade Locks to Nehalem Bay 131 miles, 2 hours 40 minutes. 

The Royal Dinette is not so bad :). 

This park is lovely for train lovers as it is situated immediately beside a set of railway tracks. The blackberry hedge provides a false sense of security. This morning when we heard the familiar rumble I hopped up on the roof to get a picture of just how close the trains are. Meanwhile, our Airstream neighbours hopped out of their trailer, too. To a take a picture of me. Ha, Ha. This is their picture. My picture is below. 

There is no way to sugar coat it. The trains are close and honk right as they pass the camp due to a level crossing 100 m down the line from our location. They are very good about letting you know this if you contact the park. I had been here previously. I think I vaguely mentioned something about it being near the tracks to Marianne. . . .maybe. 

Isn't this the cutest Airstream ever!?  This couple has been slithering around the States now for a few months. Home is in Virginia. 

Time for coffee before cranking up the corner jacks, pulling the power plug and heading west. No need to unhitch last night - yippee!

A few slow downs crawling through Portland but nothing too terrible. 

Soon we are heading west again. Ocean dunes - here we come!

Heading west of Portland on Highway 26. What started as a three lane divided highway trickles down to a single lane each way and we are surrounded by farms. 

Alrightie, Google Maps. . .We have a bone to pick with you. What is called Highway 53 or the Necanicum Highway should really be called 'curviest road, with no shoulder, goal trail''.  If you are not zoomed in this road looks GREAT! 

After the fact, google zooming. . . . . 

So lovely, so picturesque. Insert sarcasm. 

Note to Mom - skip the next picture :). 

Highway 53 is a newly paved and freshly painted goat trail. You cannot really see it here but the paint goes over the crumbles on the right-side of the road where the pavement did not have enough purchase to lay flat. We feel the descriptor 'highway' was misleading. Did we mention there are logging trucks on this road!? We kept Mr. Thirsty and the Gypsy Wagon on our side of the yellow lines and the logging truck (with his wheels up all bunchy in the back) that came at us around a blind corner also stayed on his side of the line so it all ended well - insert bulging eyeballs. Marianne confirms that the aforementioned description is accurate and it is OK because her hair is already gray. This route saves - TWO MINUTES. 

Mom - you may start reading again. 

At 2:30 pm we confidently walk up to the Nehalem Bay State Park ranger booth and do not make eye contact with the large PARK FULL sign.  Any chance that you have a spot for 1 night?!  Well, you are lucky because. . . .  .we stopped listening at that point and shared high fives while just about throwing cash through the window and grabbing the parking permit. No, we were polite and calm on the outside while thinking, "Start the car!!!" on the inside. 

The walk over the dune. Oh, ocean rollers here we come. 

Helpful signs to remind you which dune access will lead you home again. 

The south end of the spit is a protected area of dunes. 

Interesting!

We did it!!

Phew, what a day. Tomorrow we move into another spot for our 2-night reservation. Plus, I secured one final night in another spot. We have some short 'relocation cruises' in our future. That's OK - we are IN!

Day 4: Steamboat Rock, WA to Cascade Locks, OR

Choking smoke means we are moving on. Let's go south and west. 

5 hour drive, in a car.  310 miles. 

Heading south just outside of Steamboat Rock State Park. Hmm, isn't there supposed to be a nice view to the right? Next time. 

Nice ride! Near Mose Lake, WA. 

1/2 mile west off of Highway 17 at Othello is a roomy Walmart and gas station. You can not see it from the highway. This makes an excellent fuel and rest stop. I remembered it from the last trip south with Alex in March. Much better than waiting for the Tri-Cities area near Kennewick. 

I texted Dominic to show him the bucket of cheese balls but he was happy with just a picture. 

Feeling happy with our matching Happy Camper PJ's. 

We are finally heading west on I-84. Does it look better to you, Marianne?  not.yet.

The power of suggestion. A timely billboard captures our attention. Sugar time. Two cinnamon twist donuts please. 

We feel small amongst the semi's. 

The skies are clearing but is that a bucketing helicopter?! No, No, No. 

Near The Dalles, WA along the Columbia River Gorge. This is kite surfing 'school'. 

Ah, gusty winds, clearer skies. 

Cascade Locks KOA. Having stayed here before for one night with the boys I thought it was worth a try. Yes, lots of room for us to stop for the night. This park is just east of Portland. 

Cute office and camp store, KOA-style. We rent a chick-flick DVD for $2.00 "Two Weeks Notice" with Sandra Bullock and Hugh Grant. 

'Cinderella' keeps the Gypsy Wagon tidy. We have a 2-night reservation at Nehalem Bay State Park. Problem is - we will arrive one day before that reservation starts. Well, it is a big park. The 'full' sign never really means full - right, Dad!? We intend on living large and taking a chance. At least we have two nights reserved.