Oregon Trip, November 20-24, 2021

Trying to organize and execute this vacation felt like it was nearly impossible. It was supposed to happen in October but Connor made States for mountain biking. Then I scheduled it for Thanksgiving break, thinking that the kids would be on vacation from school and sports. Then, Connor had wrestle offs which determine whether he makes varsity or junior varsity. Then Camilla got a fever. We overcame those two obstacles, but then our driver didn’t show up to take us to the airport. Then Connor messaged me that he had no one to drive him to mountain bike practice. Just before the flight was scheduled to take off, Grandma Maria got Connor to wrestling. We quickly got on the plane to go.

Kindergarten Cop, Twilight, Free Willy were all filmed in Oregon. The air feels so clean and wet in Oregon. The first thing I noticed in Portland were tents with tarps all over on sidewalks, hills, and in front of businesses.

It was chilly but nothing like Colorado. It really doesn’t hit much below 40 degrees. There were so many fallen, wet leaves all over the ground. We encountered a skinny man in his socks singing super loud through the streets. When heading to VooDoo doughnuts, I almost stepped on a man rolled up in a blanket on the sidewalk.

VooDoo doughnuts is originally from Oregon so we got a dozen doughnuts. My favorite was the voodoo guy with a dark red filling. We went to the biggest bookstore I have ever seen called Powells. They had so many obscure and different things to purchase. We ate dinner at Oregon Oyster Company which had delicious Oysters, Po Boys, and clam chowder. When we got back to our rental car, a cross dresser was doing a photo shoot in the spot next to us.

We then drove 1 hour 40 minutes through huge forests to Cannon Beach, named for a cannon that washed up on the beach in 1846. Our place was right on the beach with a cute balcony and breakfast every morning.

We quickly ran down to the beach to see the beautiful sunset.

On Sunday, we drove 15 minutes to Seaside and rented a bike for a 6 mile ride down the boardwalk.

We also went for a muddy hike through Ecola State Park which felt like we were in the movie Twilight.

For dinner, we went to a fancy place called Gatsbys.

Every morning I ran the same route North down Cannon beach.

When Lloyd woke, we walked the beach as far South as it would go.

On Tuesday morning, I was running my normal route, when I looked up and saw what looked like deer or elk. I figured I would keep my distance but try to move around them. I was surprised that the momma started charging at me fast. I wasn’t sure whether to scream or run so I did both. She chased me to the edge of the ocean and then backed off.

That day, we visited as many beaches south as we could. We hit Manzanita,

Neahkahnie Mountain,

Devils Cauldron,

and Short Sand Beach.

Short Sand beach was my favorite because you get to hike through a rainforest that leads to a secluded beach.

Cannon beach has a huge landmark called Haystack rock and this is where our hotel was.

On our last day, we drove the scenic way back to the airport that goes through Astoria and Lewis & Clark National park.

I really liked Oregon for many reasons: easy access to trails and beaches, their clean and humid air, their love for dogs allowing owners to keep dogs off-leash on the beach, their delicious Po Boys and clam chowder, and their cautious and pedestrian friendly drivers. Such a magnificent place! I just wish they could get their homeless population under control and wish their elk didn’t hate me.