Oregon Coastal Highway - Part I

In February Z and I headed up to Anacortes in northern Washington, but instead of following our usual route straight up Interstate 5, we decided to take a detour and explore some of the Oregon coastline. We spent the night at the Guesthouse Inn in Sutherlin, and the next morning we headed west along picturesque Highway 38. The skies started out with brilliant sunshine, but the temperatures hovered around 28 degrees the whole day. In short, it was beautiful but freezing; you'd never know it by the photos I took!

Our first coastal destination was Reedsport, 

where we checked out the Umpqua River Lighthouse...

 Reedsport is also home to the Oregon Dunes National Recreation Area...

 Our next stop was Florence...

 There's a quaint historic downtown filled 

with art galleries, cafes, and boutiques...

 ...and a big harbor...

 All along Highway 101 there are pullouts where you can savor 

views of the coastline...

 Haceta Head Lighthouse off in the distance...

 The Assistant Keeper's house...

 One of the many spectacular beaches...

 Waldsport...

 Alsea-Bay Bridge in Waldsport...

 Clouds were moving in and temperatures were dropping...

 Newport and the Yaquina Bay Bridge...

 Yaquina Bay Lighthouse...

 Boats safe in the harbor...

 Harbor seals resting near the pier...

 Yaquina Head Lighthouse silhouetted...

 More coastal vistas...

 Cape Foulweather and foul weather approaching...

We ended up spending the night in Lincoln City with plans to continue northward as far as Astoria at daybreak. The next morning, however, we awoke to news that a large, freezing snowstorm was quickly approaching the coastline. It threatened to dump a lot of snow on most of western Oregon. We had to make a choice: stay put in the motel for a couple of days until the storm and ice subsided, or hightail it out of there and try to get through Portland and Vancouver, Washington before the storm started causing trouble on the Interstate.

We packed our bags, paid our bill, loaded up the car, and sped eastward along Highway 18 all the while watching in our rearview mirror as the storm got closer and closer. We were determined to outrun the storm. It started snowing heavily as we crossed the Columbia River and reached Vancouver, Washington. Luckily we made it through the worst before a big accident closed the interstate down, and we didn't need to utilize our chains. As we reached Chehalis, the skies and road surface started to clear up. Whew! As it turned out, we had made the right choice by leaving. The entire area ended up getting snowed in for a few days.

Next stop: Northern Washington.