In April, I had the opportunity to fly to Eugene, Oregon, in order to officiate at the first ever NCATA (National Collegiate Acrobatics and Tumbling Association) nationals competition held at the University of Oregon. I judged the meets on Thursday, Friday, and Saturday nights, then Mario joined me, and we took off for a little weekend getaway. (Sorry, I was so busy I didn't take a single picture during the time of the competition! Hope to get those soon!) We rented a car and casually drove up the Oregon coast to eventually fly out of Portland to get back home. It was a wonderful time to reconnect, relax, and enjoy discovering a part of our country that neither of us had ever been to. Get ready for picture overload--the scenery was just beautiful.
just look at all that green--we see nothing like that in Texas!
this one's a little blurry, but that's moss hanging from the trees. the air is so moist here.
a beautiful drive
we stopped at tons of beaches along the way to play and to look at the scenery
our little rental car
love the rocky coastline
posing on a rock
remarkable
we saw this sign for the "world's largest sea lion cave" and had to go check it out
in front of the sea lion "family" statue getting ready to go inside
we went down about 12 stories underground and were still above this MASSIVE sea lion cave! it spans about the length of a football field
what is really neat is that the sea lions are totally 100% in their natural habitat. they come and go as they please, hunt fish, breed, etc.
close up
we could see the Heceta Head Lighthouse from the cliff of the caves
we stopped here for a bite of lunch to enjoy the local seafood
our first night we stayed at the baywood shores b&b
we rented the cape cod room
it had a nautical theme, alright! it was a wonderful place to stay--the owners were very hospitable.
view from the b&b
on the road again! another beach stop
simply beautiful
lookout point
random waterfall along the side of the road
swamp vegetation in oregon--we just don't see stuff like this in the southwest
of course we had to stop at some cheese factories along the way
first up--blue heron cheese company...
view from the b&b
on the road again! another beach stop
simply beautiful
lookout point
random waterfall along the side of the road
swamp vegetation in oregon--we just don't see stuff like this in the southwest
of course we had to stop at some cheese factories along the way
first up--blue heron cheese company...
we ate a bite of lunch here and did a wine tasting
cute little farm right outside the factory
cute little farm right outside the factory
love seeing those mountains!
we couldn't miss out on tillamook
we tasted their cheese and had to give their ice cream a taste test too!
we took a self-guided tour of the facility...
yes, those are huge blocks of cheese!
back on the road--mario and i both loved these rocks off the shore
marvelous
we kept seeing TONS of signs for espresso EVERYWHERE! we were wondering if people around here need a boost because of all the rain and cloud coverage! we don't have that problem is texas!
more amazing scenery
our second b&b, the Arch Cape Inn and Retreat, with a lot of European charm. the views were great; they had a bottle of wine and cheese and cracker plate waiting for us when we arrived in the afternoon. and, let me just say, breakfast was spectacular--very gourmet!
our room, the Parisian, was designed as a replica of an apartment in Paris where the owners used to live. much of the furniture is French antique, brought over by the owners themselves.
a trail from the inn leads to the beach
mar took his coffee along as we went to explore
beautiful
gorgeous
we still weren't ready to go home!
it was our last night there, so we made dinner reservations and had some time to kill. we decided to do a 1.5 mile hike up a moutain. seems tame enough by the looks of it.
the foilage is like nothing i've ever seen
just to give some perspective, here's me standing by the roots of a tree! wow! these trees are massive!
here's mario dwarfed by the trees as well
here's a view from the top looking down--it was quite the hike! i only needed one break--mario didn't need any! guess i'm a little out of shape!
another lighthouse in the distance
the view from the top was well worth the effort...and we worked up quite a good appetite!
did i already mention how we love these rocks?
it was simply a fantastic trip! by the way, we ate at this little restaurant called "The Irish Table". Mario and I think it is the best kept secret in Cannon Beach. We would go back just to visit this restaurant again!!!
we couldn't miss out on tillamook
we tasted their cheese and had to give their ice cream a taste test too!
we took a self-guided tour of the facility...
yes, those are huge blocks of cheese!
back on the road--mario and i both loved these rocks off the shore
marvelous
we kept seeing TONS of signs for espresso EVERYWHERE! we were wondering if people around here need a boost because of all the rain and cloud coverage! we don't have that problem is texas!
more amazing scenery
our second b&b, the Arch Cape Inn and Retreat, with a lot of European charm. the views were great; they had a bottle of wine and cheese and cracker plate waiting for us when we arrived in the afternoon. and, let me just say, breakfast was spectacular--very gourmet!
our room, the Parisian, was designed as a replica of an apartment in Paris where the owners used to live. much of the furniture is French antique, brought over by the owners themselves.
a trail from the inn leads to the beach
mar took his coffee along as we went to explore
beautiful
gorgeous
we still weren't ready to go home!
it was our last night there, so we made dinner reservations and had some time to kill. we decided to do a 1.5 mile hike up a moutain. seems tame enough by the looks of it.
the foilage is like nothing i've ever seen
just to give some perspective, here's me standing by the roots of a tree! wow! these trees are massive!
here's mario dwarfed by the trees as well
here's a view from the top looking down--it was quite the hike! i only needed one break--mario didn't need any! guess i'm a little out of shape!
another lighthouse in the distance
the view from the top was well worth the effort...and we worked up quite a good appetite!
did i already mention how we love these rocks?
it was simply a fantastic trip! by the way, we ate at this little restaurant called "The Irish Table". Mario and I think it is the best kept secret in Cannon Beach. We would go back just to visit this restaurant again!!!My next post will be pictures of what our kids did while we were away! Stay tuned!!!
i had no clue y'all were over in oregon-looks like y'all had a blast...so fun! we LOVE the oregon coast-just went a few weeks ago for our last trip-it's so different than the east coast! isn't tillamook the best??? love it! great pictures! :)
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