Oregon Coast and Friends

Oregon’s Gorgeous Coastline

Since our first trip up the Oregon coastline was beautiful but too foggy for many photographs, we thought we would try a few more days to see if we could find some clear weather on the coast West of Eugene. After we eliminated Carl Washburne State Park as a campsite due to a lack of cell signal, we found Harbor Vista County Park just outside of Florence and settled down for a day or two to see if the rain would stop. We took advantage of a few hours when it cleared and traveled North to Heceta Head Lighthouse. In addition to the great view of the lighthouse, we found plenty of wave action and a group of sea-lions on the rocks and in the ocean below us. From our campsite, we could walk to the beach and watch some fishing action out of Florence Harbor.

Click on any thumbnail below to see larger image gallery.

Hospitality Thanks in Portland

Schroeder’s prize sheep

Pictures ‘stolen’ from Cliff and Kris’ Facebook page.

On our way from Tacoma to Portland, we stayed at the home of Kris and Cliff Schroeder, who very lovingly allowed us to park our van while we were waiting for an appointment at the Mercedes dealership 10 minutes from their house. We had a great time reminiscing about Sopha Medical days, where Kris, Colin and I worked during the early 1990’s. In Sopha, Kris was a top Quality Assurance (QA) engineer and in Portland, she’s still in QA but as a manager. When Kris and Cliff moved back to Oregon (they were both from the same little town and were high school sweethearts), we kept in touch but hadn’t seen each other for the intervening 15 years. The last time I saw their children in person, Paul was ~3 and Mandy was a baby/toddler. Now Paul is in the Honors program at George Fox University and Mandy is a junior in high school and is an accomplished ballerina. This year Mandy will again play her favorite role in the Nutcracker as the Snow Queen. While at the Schroeder’s home we also met Nikki, a yellow lab, and their many sheep. When we were reminded that Cliff played guitar, we had to have an impromptu jam; these surprise sessions bring so much fun and richness to our travels. When not practicing music, Cliff is the owner of his own business, Cascade Data Systems, and loves woodworking. Thanks you lovely people for the great fun, conversations, and seeing your children thriving so deliciously well!

Hospitality Thanks in Veneta

The Lorenz family (Dave, Becky née Tembrock, and son Josiah) were great hosts for a night at Veneta, near Eugene after we left Eagle Point for another few days on the Oregon coast. It turned out that was the night of the final presidential debate so we had take-out Mexican food and and took turns yelling at the TV, sharing common feelings about the election. Becky gave us excellent advice about what to see in Oregon and where to camp, as we had met up with her when we were staying with her parents in the Sonoma Valley, in Santa Rosa. Thank you again to the Tembrocks and Lorenz’s.

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