After leaving the Crater Lake region we traveled on to Eugene, which became a base for exploring the central coast of Oregon and the wine region of the Willamette Valley. Two features of the central coast are the Sea Lion Caves and the Sand Dunes. The picture above is inside the cave which was formed by volcano lava which was then washed out by the sea. It makes a perfect place for the Sea Lions to breed and live in cold weather.
The Oregon Dunes are slowly turning into "grasslands" as the grass that was planted to stabilize them continues to encroach on the dunes. The miles and miles of dunes along the Pacific shore used to migrate to the extent that they would take over small towns. It was thought that some stabilizing grass would slow that process, but alas, it threatens to change the very nature of the dunes. There is even some forest on part of what was once dunes.
Oregon has begun to develop a wine industry, particularly with the Pinot Noir grapes. The Willamette Valley is dotted with wineries all the way up to Portland. One winery we particularly likes was the King Estate Winery which is partly pictured below.
The winery, tasting room, and restaurant look particularly impressive as the structures rise out of the vine covered hills.
While in Eugene we had a pleasant evening with Dot's childhood neighbor from Wappingers Falls, NY. Below is Lois (Dot's former neighbor), her husband David and Lois's son, Joey (Larry is in the striped shirt).
After leaving Eugene we traveled on to Portland. This picture is showing the city from Washington Park with Mt. Hood in the background. Portland has many parks, many artisan breweries (even one that specializes in sour beer), and many cars which all seem to want to be on I-5 at the same time that we do.
Washington Park has a zoo, rose gardens (still in full bloom), and a Japanese Garden which is pictured below. Although the park is only a block from a bustling city, it is also set apart on a hill so that it is quite peaceful.
Two former Brockport students now live across the river from Portland in Vancouver, WA. Allison and David Wetchler have been friends since the days when David haunted the computer center and Allison was president of the ski club. Dinner at Beaches provided an opportunity to share old memories and pick up some useful hints on exploring the area.
Among our explorations was a Sake brewery (yes, there is very good sake being produced in Oregon), a look at Howard Hughes' "Spruce Goose" (a HUGE experimental cargo plane made entirely from plywood), and a trip up the beautiful Columbia River Gorge. One highlight was the fish ladder which permits salmon to swim upstream around the Bonneville Dam to spawn. You will notice no fish jumping... because there are openings in the walls forming the steps so the fish can swim up the ladder while staying under water.
Oregon is not only wineries, hazelnuts (filberts), majestic scenery, and breweries. It also has Lavender farms. Below is a picture of a field of lavender. Who knew there were so many products that could be made from such a scented plant. The owner of this particular farm is a retired pilot from Eastern Airways and he got into lavender by accident when trying to find a way to protect his irrigation rights. Mercy. I had always thought of this part of the country as being very wet... but it turns out that irrigation is critical for farming here as well.
Another of the Columbia Gorge's attractions is Multnomah Falls, which is the second highest year-round waterfall in the nation (620 feet). It is a long way to the top.
With a long list of things we still wanted to see and do in Portland, we moved on to Westport, WA. After moving in this afternoon we explored our coastal neighborhood, and no surprise... we found where the fishing boats bring their catch... and had really fresh fish for dinner tonight.
Some of the friends of Robin have been inquiring about how she has been doing. Up until last Saturday she has shown remarkable resilience. She can no longer fly, and her walk is more like rolling onto her side and pushing with her left leg. But she gets where she wants to go, and even manages to play.
Sadly, last Saturday she had a series of seizures which left her with even less mobility. She did not eat or drink for a couple of days, then began to rally. Today she is showing determination to carry on. She actually is using many of the happy sounds from her vocabulary, and has solved (mostly) how to stay attached to Dotti as Dot moves around the coach. Robin is certainly an inspiration in pluck.
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