The Oregon Coast ~ The Yaquina Head Lighthouse

Yaquina Head Lighthouse is one of the most popular lighthouses in the United States. There are hundreds of thousands of guests that visit every year. The tower is the tallest on the Oregon Coast - soaring 93 feet in the air. This lighthouse is the only Oregon Lighthouse with a marble floor. It stands 162 feet above sea level, and can be seen from ocean vessels as far away as 19 miles. I was told this by one of the kind volunteers at this lighthouse. He added that it can be seen "no further, thanks to the curvature of the earth."

During construction, two different boats met their doom on Yaquina Head's shores trying to deliver supplies. After much labor, the lighthouse was lit on August 20, 1873. There was a large dwelling built for the three keepers that manned this lighthouse station. Because of this lighthouses proximity on the coast, there were a number of storms and high winds that caused surface damage to the tower and the keeper's dwellings. Fences were built to ward off rocks and other debris from destroying the property. However, this didn't stop the tower from being struck by lightning in October of 1920. Luckily, through the years, the lightening and severe storms haven't really hurt this lighthouse. In fact, to this very day the structure of the lighthouse is within one inch of being perfectly straight.

When you first walk in you can see both the Work Room and the Oil Room.

I don't know what I was thinking by actually climbing all those stairs, 7 months pregnant, to get a peek from the top...

...It was worth it though...

At least until it was time to go back down all one hundred and eleven steps! I barely made it but I am still sore! ;)

After visiting this lighthouse it was time to head back and pick up our children. Hopefully it won't be too long before we can visit the Pacific Ocean again. All of God's creations are so amazing, aren't they?!?!

The Oregon Coast ~ Restaurant Raves

Before we left for our trip I looked into which Restaurants would be worth visiting.  I made a list of a few of the highly recommended ones and we were not disappointed.  Everything we ordered was so delicious!   We decided to eat out just once each day to help keep the cost of the trip down and give us more time to enjoy the beach and the condo.

The first night we went out for dinner and ate at a Restaurant that was just down the street called The Blackfish Cafe.

After dinner we actually considered just eating here the rest of the trip since the food was so good.  I felt silly taking a picture of our meals but they were too pretty not to! ;)

~ Hubby's Dinner ~

Grilled Ling Cod with Coast Range Mushroom Relish

Served with roasted Butternut Squash Bisque, Carlton Bacon braised Brussel Sprouts and Russian Fingerling Potatoes with grilled Mushroom Relish

~ My Dinner ~

The "Special" (aka: the BEST Halibut EVER)

Served with roasted Pepper Bisque, Carlton Bacon braised Greens and Pesto Risotto

Both were served with bread and salad and we shared a bowl of Clam Chowder... They aren't kidding when they say it is "The best Clam Chowder on the Oregon Coast!"

On Saturday we ended up going out for a late lunch/early dinner at Tidal Raves, in Depoe Bay, after a little window shopping and whale watching.

Thankfully we had made reservations earlier that morning because that place was packed, even at 2pm. All the tables in the restaurant have a view of the ocean, but we were lucky to have an awesome table right next to the window. Check out the view!

Once again the food was really yummy, though the clam chowder wasn't quite as good as at The Blackfish Cafe.

~ Hubby's Lunch ~ 

Mixed Seafood Platter

Garlic sauteed Pacific Cod, Oysters, and Tiger Shrimp 
served with mixed Vegetables and Rice Pilaf

~ My Lunch ~ 

Grilled Halibut Tacos

Served With Corn Tortillas, Cilantro dressed Cabbage, 
 roasted Pepper Rice, Pico de Gallo, and Black Beans

We even had dessert:  Tiramisu and their "Famous" Key Lime Pie!

On Sunday morning after Mass and checking out of the Condo we went to Brunch at The Wildflower Grill.  It was absolutely charming and we had a little table on the patio looking over a huge pond.

~ Hubby's Breakfast ~ 

Crab Benedict

Poached Eggs & Local Crab on Wildflower Toast
With Hash Browns and topped with choice of Hollandaise Sauce

~ My Breakfast ~

Chanterelle Mushroom Omelet 

Three Egg Omelet stuffed with Chanterelle Mushrooms, Chiles, 
and diced Tomatoes, topped Sour Cream and Avocado

Served with Wildflower Toast, Marion Berry Jam, and Hash-browns


Ok, now I am really craving some more of these yummy foods!! 

The Oregon Coast ~ Another Beautiful Sunset

~ October 3, 2009 ~

The Oregon Coast ~ Whale Watching

Whale Watching Center ~ Depoe Bay, Oregon

California Sea Lion • Harbor Seal • Harbor Porpoise

While at the whale center we heard that a couple whales had just been spotted near Rocky Creek State Park, 2 miles south, so we headed that direction. We were able to see two Gray Whales, who were feeding just off shore. I was even able to get a few tail shots!

"A deep dive, also known as sounding or fluking, happens when a whale lifts its tail flukes out of the water. This helps propel the whale downward at a steep angle to the bottom, where they feed on small crustaceans. After the flukes disappear under the water, the turbulence of the dive will cause a circle of smooth water, known as a fluke-print."

The Oregon Coast ~ Devil's Punchbowl and Cape Foulweather

~ Devil's Punchbowl ~

"During winter storms, water from the restless ocean slams with a thundering roar into a hollow rock formation shaped like a huge punch bowl. The surf churns, foams, and swirls as it mixes a violent brew. The punch bowl was probably created by the collapse of the roof over two sea caves, then shaped by wave action."

~ Cape Foulweather ~

"Cape Foulweather was discoverd and named in 1778 by the famous British navigator Captain James Cook. It was at this Point that Captain Cook first sighted the mainland of North America on the Pacific Coast, and one of the sudden storms which greeted his arrival almost put an end to his historical expedition. The fierceness of the storm is reflected by the name he gave this rugged landmark - Cape Foulweather."

The Lookout

Hangin' On, 500 feet above sea level!

The breathtaking view from inside The Lookout!

The Oregon Coast ~ Cape Creek Bridge

At the trail head for the Heceta Head Lighthouse is a lovely view of the Cape Creek Bridge and Tunnel.

If you look closely at this second picture you can see a little light at the end of the bridge where the tunnel begins. The bridge resembles a Roman aqueduct, with a single parabolic arch that spans half its length of 619 feet. The Cape Creek Bridge and Tunnel were engineering marvels of the day and are listed on the National Register of Historic Places.

And one more picture of my hubby, beneath the bridge...

I am sure he was getting sick of me snapping pictures of him, but there are only so many "scenic" pictures I can take and I wasn't use to not having our children around to photograph!

The Oregon Coast ~ Heceta Head Lighthouse

From where we were watching the Sea Lions, we also had a beautiful view of the Heceta Head Lighthouse. We wanted to hike up to the lighthouse and take a tour, but since it was over a 1/2 mile from the trail head and we had dinner reservations, we decided to move on. We will have to come back and visit this one with the children sometime!

The Oregon Coast ~ The Sea Lion Caves

One of our stops along the Oregon Coast was the Sea Lion Caves just north of Florence.

The caves were discovered in 1880 by a local resident who allegedly was marooned in the main cavern by storms and had to shoot and eat sea lion to survive. The man eventually bought the land from the State of Oregon, which probably saved the resource because there was a bounty on sea lions at the time...

Most of the animals are of the variety called Steller Sea Lions, a non-migratory breed that lives in the area year-round. The pups, usually born in late spring and early summer, weigh 40 to 50 pounds at birth and the males can grown to 12 feet and 1,500 pounds. The females are slimmer and average 8 and 9 feet in length and perhaps 700 pounds.

The Steller Sea Lion usually resides on offshore islands - the caves are its only known mainland habitat on the West Coast - and the world population is estimated at 250,000. An estimated 200 usually reside in the caves, but that number can fluctuate with weather conditions and season.

Can you tell how windy it was outside! ;)

A sweet woman was willing to take a picture of the two of us to add to our Our Wedding Anniversary Memory Book.

Since the Sea Lions were not in the cave during our visit, we decided not to purchase tickets to go down the elevator just to see an empty cave. However, we did spot a Gray Whale from the gift shop window!

We then headed just up the road and stopped at another view point to see if we could spot the Sea Lions. There were hundreds!!

While I was taking a "few" pictures hubby took a few short video clips with our little camera.

*I hope your not all sick of me posting pictures yet... I still have quite a few I would like to share.  There was so much to see along the Oregon Coast!