Sand Dunes, Elk and Lighthouses – July 25, 2016

It seemed like a missed opportunity to come all the way to Oregon and not see the remainder of the Oregon coast, so that was our plan for our last day in Eugene.  We set out early enough to be in Reedsport for lunch where Jim had a Seafood Pot Pie filled with every manner of seafood in a light cream sauce covered by a light crust top and I had a halibut burger with capers and avocado.  Just right to give us the energy for our day’s adventure.

Downtown Reedsport, OR

Woodcarving Place in Reedsport, OR Home of Chainsaw carving champion

Just up the road from the restaurant is Dean Creek Elk Viewing Center where they boast of 100 elk living free.  Although we had to come back by on the way home, Jim did get good pictures and we did see a small piece of the herd.

Herd of Elk at Dean Creek Viewing area

As we continued South, we were suddenly confronted with massive sand dunes washed ashore from the Pacific Ocean and blown by the strong winds into huge mounds just off the coast.

There are three lighthouses we decided to add to our rapidly growing list of visited structures.  The first was Umpqua lighthouse.  (You can add that to your list of names to practice your pronunciation skills.)

Umpqua River, Lighthouse near Reedsport, OR

View from Umpqua River Lighthouse

This hilltop is also a whale watching platform and there was a bottom jawbone of a Sperm Whale that was at least 10 feet long and the sign said that means the whale had to be at least 60 feet long.  Just a reminder of how huge these giants of the sea really are.

The next lighthouse was the Arago Lighthouse but as we got closer to the location, you could see and feel the fog roll in from the sea.  We got out of the truck and all we could hear was the barking of either sea lions or seals coming from the rocks.  There had to be a bunch of them because they were really loud but it was  hard to see them.

Rocks off the coast at Aroga Lighthouse, seals on rocks

seal on rocks at Cape Arago Lighthouse

Then we got this picture of the lighthouse!

View of Cape Arago Lighthouse socked in by fog

Don’t be surprised if you can’t see the lighthouse, we couldn’t either.

The last lighthouse to visit was the Coquille Lighthouse which is no longer active and the lense is reported to be at the bottom of the Coquille River.

Coquille River Lighthouse – near Bandon, OR

Tomorrow we leave for Kennewick, Washington where we will catch up to your 95 degree temperatures.