Quickly through Oregon in April
I hit the road on a Sunday in Washington, and headed to the coast to check out what the cold surf looked like. Ocean water temperature was about 43 degrees and I have to be very honest that I don’t really love being in water that cold. I have done in, but it isn’t my favorite. The surf was gigantic and very disorganized that day, so I took a walk on the jetty, chatted with a couple of fishermen, and hit the road to head south toward the Oregon border. I was pretty excited for the journey south and I really didn’t feel like stopping at the North corner in the town of Astoria or even Cannon Beach. The winds were wild and cool and I knew that storms were headed in to hit the coast so my mind was really focused on Southbound movement.
I found a county park in a small little coast guard town to spend the night. I pulled the camper into the campground and found a cozy little tent spot. Even though I am able to run power and water to my camper, 99 percent of the time, I will choose not to use power nor use water. I like the way I feel not having electricity - I keep my headlamp charged for light and I charge my computer and phone regularly along my travels. That night when I got the camper set up for sleeping, I took a walk to the bath house to check out the shower situation and like most state/county/national parks the showers were coin operated. I keep a nice big collection of quarters on hand for laundry/showers.
I took a walk out to the water where the waves where making the loudest and most beautiful sounds - the ocean soothes my soul like nothing else. I absolutely love the ocean. It was an erie vibe due to the size of the surf, the desolate nature of the time of year, no people around. I had some time for myself before walking back to the bath house to take a nice warm shower. I remember this night well, I was in the middle of washing my face when my quarters ran out and I used my lights out skills to locate the quarters and deposit for more water. I really love the adventure and the unknowns that camping brings. I truly feel the reason the Navy worked for me for so many years is because there was always the element of adventure for so many years, new places, new challenges, and new people. The big killer of my soul with the Navy was the detachment to nature while on a ship for so long and this was not great for my health and to be honest - not great for anyone to be separate from nature that long. If I had an option to live in a house or live in my camper right now, I would continue to choose my camper because I am really appreciating the time that I get to spend being outside. Now, had you asked me this during this previous winter in Washington - that may have been a different answer. To be honest, I spent so much time inside my friends house it was as if I lived with them even though I always slept in the camper. I absolutely love looking at the sky before bed, I love brushing my teeth outside, I love hearing the sounds (even though sometimes a little spooky) of the outdoors.
The next morning at the campground, I awoke naturally before 6am and hit the road early to get a move along the coast as the rain was already coming down. I was determined to do the 101, however, when rain storms come, flooding can be intense. I basically made it though the entire state of Oregon in one day because I wasn’t stopping and camping anywhere due to the weather. I will ensure that my future travels have me visiting this gorgeous part of Oregon in the summer months so I can slow down, take time to soak in the beauty, and be in complete awe of the most gorgeous coastline in the Pacific Northwest.
