After our wonderful time in the Columbia Gorge and our Labor Day “Harvest Host Hop,” we landed on the Oregon Coast. This was a treat and we now understand why people go there year after year.
Our next stop was for an Escapees Oregon Coast Hangout in Garibaldi which is just north of Tillamook. This is a small fishing village, but we didn’t have a sleepy time there. We arrived a few days early with some other folks and went out for beers. Hangouts are designed for active adults with many activities over the course of a week. Boy, did we have a lot of activities for the approximately 50 of us!
We started the week with a scavenger hunt in Tillamook to learn more about the city and get to know people. It was fun, but a little hard to be creative with photos. We did get to know some folks a bit better, though. That afternoon we visited the Tillamook Air Museum housed in the remaining one of two blimp hangars constructed during WWII. Here they have multiple planes to view as well as a very good exhibit on the Holocaust. It was an amazing bit of architecture, too, at 15 stories high, covering an area of 7 acres, and all constructed of wood!
On the second day, we did a hike and picnic lunch at Cape Meares down the coast from Garabaldi. We saw the famous Octopus Tree and hiked with a small group of friends. We continued to be very impressed with the deep greens and the amount of moisture. There were incredible views from the trail as well as interesting mushrooms. Don’t know enough about those to try them! We finished the day with sunset and appetizers at Rockaway Beach. It was spectacular.
The third day was Viki’s birthday and what a day it was. We started the day by driving to Netarts Bay for a kayaking adventure on the bay. This was a bit different than our other kayaking in that we were paddling against the wind and current as we went out. It was also the first time we had kayaked with a big group. We saw seals in the water and on the beach. We didn’t go too close to the seals because they evidently get really spooked when a kayak goes by, though motorboats don’t bother them! We rested by the bay until lunch at Schooner’s which was tasty with good fresh fish.
Day four took us on a historic train ride from Garibaldi to Rockaway Beach. It gave us a nice view of the coast as we traveled. Roger and I took a long walk on the very wide and firm beach. We wished we had gone back to ride the beach on our bikes! We had lunch there and then traveled back to Garibaldi to visit the Maritime Museum. There we learned about early Europeans, particularly Robert Gray, who “discovered” Tillamook Bay and the mouth of the Columbia River. Overall, it was interesting to learn how they traveled, see replicas of their ships, and pet a sea otter pelt. They also had displays about the history of Garibaldi and modern Oregon’s industries.
On the fifth day, we did a service project at Kilchis Point Nature Preserve. We had different teams working on trail maintenance and bench staining. The benches really needed it before the rainy season started. It was a great project to get us out to do something very beneficial. We lunched at Blue Heron Cheese Factory and then toured the Tillamook plant. We also got to sample their awesome ice cream!
On our last full day, we did our longest hike. We hiked from Short Sand Beach to Cape Falcon. This was about a five-mile hike that was absolutely stunning; through dense forests of Sitka Spruce and up to the top where we had pelicans cruising below us. It was a lot of stepping over roots but was great, nonetheless. The day finished with a catered dinner.
We said goodbye to most of the Hangout folks the next day, but we were staying through the end of the week as Roger had to work. We did manage to take a trip down to visit Pelican Brewing in Pacific City. Was so nice to sit right on the beach and have dinner and a beer.
Definitely will go back to the Oregon Coast. It is now among our favorite places in the country!
Sunset over the Garabaldi Harbor. 
One of the quilt squares in downtown Tillamook. 
A massive place built to construct blimps during WWII. 
Viki as a Top Gun pilot at the Air Museum. 
The view from Cape Meares. 
The lush greenery here is so hard to caputre, but it’s just amazing. 
The Octopus Tree. 
Sunset at Rockaway Beach. 
Getting ready to kayak. Photo credit to our friend CJ. 
Gettiing our kayak lesson at Netarts Bay. 
Seals sunning on the shore. 
Birthday Lunch post kayaking at Schooner’s, Netart’s Bay. 
The train ride to Rockaway Beach. 
Rockaway Beach, sand as far as you can see. 
View of Garabaldi Bay from the train. 
Viki staining benches. 
Incredible trees on the way to Cape Falcon. 
The view of Short Samd Beach from the Cape Falcon Trail. 
At the top of Cape Falcon. We were way above the birds roosting on the rocks below. 
View of the rocks below Cape Falcon. 
Viki on the trail coming down from Cape Falcon. 
Photos of taking photos, Cape Falcon. 
View from above. 
Ate our picnic lunch at Short Sand Beach. Those dots out there are surfers in wet suits. 
View of Manzanita Beach from a roadside stop. 
Enjoying good beer and onion rings at Pelican Brewing, Pacific City, OR. 
Haystack at sunset next to Pelican Brewing, Pacific City, OR.