Day 14 and Day 15 To (fomerly known as) Home Sweet Home

Day 14 – June 20

What a fun morning we ended up having.  After sleeping in a little later than normal, we didn’t have much time to get ready leisurely. We had some cereal for breakfast and packed everything up ready to leave, but then we parked our van/camper in their parking lot, so we could enjoy the campground amenities before leaving to the next town on our list.

We started with Mini-Golf. I’m not sure if they intended for their course to be as difficult as it was or if the ground just settled after they installed it, but each area to putt in was slanted. It was comical and/or frustrating trying to get the balls in the holes depending on how you looked at it. A few of the holes were filled with water, so that was special, too. Cameron and Ed played lawn chess next, while Ali, Ian, and I played tetherball. I showed them how I earned being the tetherball champion during my elementary school years. Ha! We then moved on to badminton. The difficulty we ran into was the strong wind. Those of us on one side of the net would sometimes hit the shuttlecock with all of our might and it still would only just land at our feet, and when it was hit from the other side it ended up out of bounds half of the time. Adding to that, more than a few times when hitting the shuttlecock, it would get stuck in between the strings of the racket. While it all sounds pretty frustrating, we found it to be quite hilarious. Ed joined us to make even teams, while Cameron continued playing chess with another boy. We switched to volleyball after Ed got frustrated with the wind, but it got too competitive when Ed and I started racking up the points, so we didn’t play much longer. The kids weren't particularly thrilled with our expertise. It was nice to take the time to play these sports games with each other though. We played well with each other and had good teamwork. I was impressed.

By 1:00 we were on the road to Bandon, Oregon. We had been so lucky during this entire adventure to have had good weather. The Pacific Northwest coast is known for cloudy, gray, and rainy weather, so I was shocked to read that the weather forecast was showing sun. We had just missed the rain a day before. Lucky! We drove up the coast on the beautiful Pacific Highway Scenic Byway (101) the entire way. I was disappointed that we had bypassed the Avenue of the Giants (It has the famous redwood tree that can be driven through) with the route we took yesterday, and even though it wasn’t too much further south, it didn’t make sense to go backwards in our travels. So, when I started looking at the road map for today, I found another area of the Redwood National Park that would also be interesting and  directly in our path - The Trees of Mystery. It sounded a little commercial, but still had the elements that highlighted the magnificence of the redwoods.  We didn’t drive too but half an hour before we came to it. We stopped for an hour to explore the mile long interpretive trail through the awe-inspiring redwoods.  The Trail of Tall Tales is devoted to the mythology of Paul Bunyan (I took pictures to show my future students, since Tall Tales are part of our standards). An exciting feature of this attraction is their unique SkyTrail gondola ride which affords amazing views of mountains, forests, and the nearby Pacific Ocean as it climbs through the redwoods about 1500 feet to the summit with an observation deck. We enjoyed the view for a short time, before taking the gondola back down.

We got back on the road so we could get to our campground in Oregon before dark. We only stopped for gas and made it to the Bandon By the Sea RV park by 6:30 pm. The office was closed, but our reservation information was taped to their door with my name on it. We found our spot and started the routine of setting up. Even though the site was pretty level, our support poles had been weakened by our windier stays, so the camper door did not shut properly and the canopy seemed to tilt ever so slightly. Ed and I switched our pillows to the other end of the bed so we wouldn’t feel as if our feet were higher than our heads.

Right after getting set up, we made grilled cheese sandwiches and soup.  I was in charge of getting it all prepared. Our can opener was not cooperating well, so it was frustrating trying to get the soup can open. It took almost 10 minutes!  Ed didn’t want me using the microwave since the fuse kept getting tripped so he used the camp stoves to heat them.  I am putting this on the list to be checked so we can use it again on the trip home.

Ali, Ian, and I set out to find a local grocery store to get groceries for tomorrow’s lunch and a new handheld can opener. The GPS directed us north just 2 miles, but we found one in town even closer. I got a call from Cameron while we were in the store asking how he and Ed could get to the beach from the campground. They were hoping to be able to just walk directly there, but I had remembered that it was about a mile away. We wished then that we would have found something right by the beach, but sometimes it’s hard knowing the exact details when making plans thousands of miles away from home.

Day 15- June 21

The next morning we spoke to the campground owner and regulars having their coffee in the office. They recommended that we take the Umpqua highway at Reedsport to go east to the major freeway (I-5).  Apparently, the other highways are much less direct and take more time. We were thankful for their advice. So, we headed north on Highway 101 again, gawking at the view as we drove beside the ocean.

The Umpqua River and the wildlife areas were also pretty landscapes to see going east. We stopped to eat lunch at a rest stop in Eugene, OR and made plans to see Marshall, Ed’s brother who lives in Hillsboro, just outside of Portland.  He was also going to drive up to Olympia tonight, so we thought we’d add a few passengers to his vehicle. We didn’t realize how far off of the freeway that their new home was and what traffic we would encounter, but it was worth the hassle. We got to see their quaint 50s style house, congratulate the newly graduated, Dr. Crabtree J and see Pippin in action in their big back yard.

We still had a 2 ½ hour drive to Olympia so we didn't stay long. We switched drivers (I drove the van/camper with Ali and Cameron, & Ed and Ian drove with Marshall and Pippin), went to Costco to fill up with gas (the attendants fill the tanks for you in Oregon), and then went bumper-to-bumper out of Portland heading north. Once we got into WA, the traffic cleared out. I forgot how much slower the drivers here go compared to back home. The majority of drivers followed the speed limit.

We made it to Ed’s parents’ house by 9:00. It was nice to see them and their beautiful home once again. They had waited for us to eat, so we sat down to have homemade potato chappatis (yummy!) and broccoli with cheese sauce. We visited for a short time, but everyone was tired, so we all settled into our rooms which would be our home-away-from-home for the next two weeks. Their property is wooded and serene– no blinds or drapes on the windows. Couldn’t ask for a more tranquil vacation spot to recoup from our hectic schedule we had just completed.