Oregon Coast

After a few days of downtime in sleepy Cheney, WA (we were back in town just in time for the rodeo. Though we decided not to partake because of the heat and sun, we did see part of the pre-rodeo parade. Sam watched as the horses and cowgirls (and even a Civil War reenactment contingent) set up for the parade), we piled back into the car for the looong drive to Portland, Oregon.

I was very excited. I had never been to Oregon, much less Portland, and--after everything good I had heard about it--couldn't wait to see for myself. I had seen the chewed-up and spit-out rawness of the coast in many a postcard and calendar, but didn't know where to find these wild places. Though it was somewhere I wanted to go madly, I wasn't sure I would ever make it there since I didn't even know where to go. For some reason, they don't mark monoliths on a road map. Even though Elise had related so many fond memories of the place, I guess I had become resigned to never see it for myself.

Portland lived up to the hype. The drive in gave us eye-popping views of Mt. Hood. We stopped first at Powell's, the largest bookstore I have ever been in. Much bigger than a Barnes & Noble (sorry, Dan...I should stop here and mention that Sam's Uncle Dan met us in Portland for the 3 day tour of the Coast). Afterwards, we stopped at the Deschutes Brewery local tap house for a Mirror Pond in the sun. A group of street kids were filming a skating film across the street, doing flips on a concrete rails and steps. Sam watched and derived much amusement when the kids fell...even laughing maybe a little too loudly at their mishaps! Mirror Ponds were followed by, perhaps, the dining highlight of our Oregon sojourn, the Rhinelander.

Imagine the Germany part of Epcot on steroids! There was even an authentic accordionist in liderhosen (sp??). The food, of course, was outstanding. There was fondue and sausage. I panicked in the face of it all and ordered....chicken cordon blue?!? Don't ask....but it was the best damn chicken cordon blue I've ever ordered! :)

The next day we headed west toward the coast along an interminable road that wound through wildflowers and meadows. It was the kind of road perfect for a convertible Miata and only slightly-less-perfect for a Subaru Outback with a restless one year-old and his father prone to car sickness. We stopped in Astoria before heading down to Cannon Beach. There, Dan and Grandad flew a kite through the everpresent fog on the beach and we walked down to Haystack Rock, the monoliths epitomized on countless Oregon tourism websites. We waded through the tide pools in its shadow, sea gulls chattering above. The water was a little to cool for Sam and I (Florida boys), but it was beyond amazing, nonetheless. Cannon Beach, we will be back.

We continued down the coast to Tillamook. We crashed Main St. Pizza for a few more Mirror Ponds and some dam fine 'za before ice cream at the Tillamook Cheese factory. This part of the adventure was Elise's Mecca. We toured the factory, peaking through the glass windows down onto the factory floor where all the workers in hygienic suits and masks waved up at Sam.

We took our leave of Tillamook early the next morning and piled back into the car, headed north to Seattle and our date with the Emerald City......