Monday, July 07, 2008

Pictures from Oregon

This morning Lady Luck and I arrived back in Phoenix. We took a red eye flight that required us to get up at two in the morning, and we arrived at the Portland airport at about three.

Oregon is, according to my calculations, the single coolest state in the union. Needless to say, we were bummed about having to go home.

Anyway, here are some photos from the trip.

Lady Luck and I arrived in Portland on Friday night. We spend the night at the airport Red Lion Inn. We saw a bunny. The next morning we hustled down the I-5 to Crescent City, California. In CC, we found the above crab remnants all over the beach. Apparently, it's that time of year where crabs molt. Ewww.

We spent the night at the Curly Redwood Lodge, which reminded me of my grandparent's basement. In the good way. If you're in the area, and need a place to stay, I'd recommend staying there. While there, I met a couple bikers (on a Ducati and a BMW 1200R) who had ridden all the way from Pennsylvania.

The next day, we got up bright and early and went up to Gold Beach Oregon. We went on Jerry's Rogue River Jets boat tour. Seriously, if you can, take the 100 mile trip. Freakin' amazing and absolutely worth the time and money. Along the way, we saw Sam the Eagle (above) along with some other critters. I also realized, as the other passengers around me screamed every time the ride got interesting, I have a much higher thrill tolerance than I used to. I blame Triumph.

We saw these signs along the coast. What are they trying to explain? Looks to me like, "In case of Tsunami, Superman is getting the fuck out of here!"

This is Haystack Rock. I shouldn't have to explain why this was exciting to see, but just in case you didn't know - they were a significant part of the Goonies mythos.

And if you didn't know, this is the Goonies house. I gather there used to be a sign at the end of the driveway asking Goonies fans to please approach on foot and not be dicks, but the only sign I saw was one reading "Private Driveway." So, I stood at the bottom of the hill (where the RV was parked as the kids rode their bikes away from the house early in the movie) to take this picture.


Hey, is that Irondad and his son Clinton? Why yes, we met at the McMenamins Edgefield pub for lunch. We had some killer burgers, tried some tasty beer and generally had a great time. They're great guys, and I wish we could have gone out riding. Maybe we'll all be able to go out riding when we move up there.

We passed the Dunes on our way up the coast, and had to stop and rent quads for an hour. Riding on the dunes was exciting, and I'd love to spend a whole day out there playing in the sand.

We got breakfast in Yachats (pronounced Yawhots) at Leroy's Blue Whale.

Best. Pancakes. Ever.


We visited the Sea Lion Caves. It wasn't really worth the money, though it did offer some interesting photo opportunities.


THESE GIGANTIC CRABS WILL DEVOUR US ALL!!

This is why I love Portland. Glass of PBR? $1.25.

At the Portland Saturday Market, this living statue graciously let me photograph her before she began her performance. I stopped back a bit later to watch her perform for a minute and give her a tip. There were a couple of kids who were mesmerized by her - it was fun watching their reactions as she changed poses (and gave them a big wink at one point).

9 comments:

Chris Cope said...

To be fair, though, $1.25 is all a glass of PBR should cost.

Mr. Motorcycle said...

Great ride report, and nice pics.

Haystack rock? Looks like a boob to me!

Love the tsunami sign. (with Superman comment of course!)

Balisada said...

I take it you rode up the 101? If you did, it's a great ride.

I grew up in Brookings and after living most of my life in Oregon, have to agree that it's a great state to live in.

Although I have never actually rode Jerry's Jet Boats, I have heard from several sources that it is a hoot of a ride.

Ta!

Balisada

Lucky said...

Chris - I think $2.00 and under is fair for PBR at a bar. Oregon is one of the beeriest states I've been to, though, so I didn't waste any time on bargain beer.

Mr. Moto - Thanks!

Balisada - We were in a rental car, but we did indeed go up the 101. I would have loved to ride the 101, but driving worked out ok, since I came down with a nasty cold halfway through the trip.

I'll ride the 101 someday...

irondad said...

I see you captured my best side! Did you end up renting bikes and doing the Mt. Hood loop? Thanks, again, for the lunch meeting. You and Lady Luck are good people!

Lucky said...

Irondad - It was great to meet you guys. Thanks for a killer lunch!

We didn't end up renting motorcycles. I came down with a cold while we were up there, and I figured groggy + unknown roads + motorcycle = bad idea. I'll get out there on a bike eventually, though.

Anonymous said...

Awesome shots! sounds like a great ride. :)

Steve Williams said...

I hadn't stopped by in awhile---work, work, and other responsibilities of old age you know. Imagine my surprise to see all the pictures in a post! Looks like you are having way too much fun. And an Irondad sighting too!

Just sounds like you had a great trip.

Steve Williams
Scooter in the Sticks

Lucky said...

Linda - Thanks! It was an amazing trip.

Steve - WAY too much fun. The problem with vacations is the part where one has to go back to work.

Glad to hear from you!