Finding the Silver Linings:

Sunset Beach State Park (near Coos Bay, Oregon) had a few shortcomings, but our stay there had at least one “Silver Lining” moment. Because there was no satellite reception and no Verizon connection (thus no Internet for us), we drove out at 6:30 AM to a place where we can receive Verizon well enough that Craig could watch the World Cup games on his laptop. 

The silver lining? On the recommendation of the park ranger, we went to a little, out of the way place called “Crabby Cakes Bakery” in Charleston for morning coffee and sweets. 

This was a very rare thing for us. We go out for breakfast when our rig is in the shop, or seek a good bagel shop when the mood strikes us, but doughnuts are far and few between. 

This place had the BEST Chocolate Éclairs I have ever eaten. Just bursting with fresh custard filling which is added before serving.

 They also had a nice selection of sticky cinnamon buns and other sweets.

Without the need to get the Internet, and without the ranger, we would have never gone there.

We were very proud of how well we did on getting the Alfa parked in our spot at Sunset Beach State Park. The back-in site was long enough at 40’, and fairly level, but the entry road was narrow and the site was almost perpendicular to it. (They are usually at an angle which makes staying on the pavement when backing in easier.)  This was not the only challenge.  The ground directly opposite our site slanted away from the road and was near a small swampy stream. I had to pull onto it and turn the front wheels to get into our spot.  I drove the Alfa as Craig carefully talked me in using our walkie-talkies. A bit nerve-wracking but we did not get stuck!  

When all was said and done, Craig said that if this had been our first year we would have just left and tried to find another park! I later read the reviews of this park and read that at least one other RVer did just that. 

The "Silver Lining?" As tight as the parking was, the park is beautiful. My impression of Oregon Coast greenery is that it is very competitive. A half dozen different plants vie for the same spot, growing on top of each other, contending for its place in the sun.

I find all this green space quite soothing. It is exactly what I wanted when we were first discussing full-time RVing. I really appreciate the contrast between the cool damp Oregon coast and the dry high desert of Jojoba Hills in Southern California. Each makes me value the other all the more.

This week I finished another Jane Kirkpatrick book, A Gathering of Finches, which is the story of Louis and Cassie Simpson. He built a mansion and garden at Shore Acres as a gift to her. The location is just down the road from Sunset Bay.

I enjoying the way Kirkpatrick ties fiction to doccumented accounts of real people and the places they lived in the Northwest.  Her books tell the stories of the late 1800s and early 1900s through the eyes of women who lived then. 

Can you imagine having these views just steps away from your home?

Craig is standing right in front of where the mansion was. (It burned down many years ago.)

Oregon State Parks own the land now, and the gardens are being restored. 

The digging of this pond was in the book.  Cassie, the wife,  loved to sit and contemplate the bronze heron statues in the Japanese pond.

The water lilies and calla lilies were my favorite flowers in the garden.

We took a nice walk on the beach Sunday evening:

Sunset Beach is unique in that it has a narrow opening to the ocean, which makes the waves come onto the beach in circular patterns. It seems that many beaches have special features. I'm glad I have this blog to help me keep my memories straight.

Monday was a big day! 
We went to Walmart for hair cuts!

Life goes on.

Some of the images in this post were from unrestricted online sources.

We Continue to have Good Luck

Our next reservation was in Louisiana  but we had a four night gap between when we were leaving Manatee Springs and we could check in at Fontainebleau.  I had figured we would just wing it and find a place as we went, but we had a nice conversation with another RV couple while at the Springs, and they suggested we look into stopping at the Ft. Pickens campground in the Gulf Island National Seashore. I did and it looked like a great half way point, so I went online and got a reservation for the four nights we needed. 

The 337 mile drive is about as far as we want to go in one hop. We were on the road by 9:30 and arrived at 4:00. We gained an hour with the time zone change. We haven't had to buy much fuel for the Alfa this winter because we haven't driven very far. We were delighted to fill up for $2.49 per gallon. The Alfa is a diesel.

Craig and I have what we consider a very good system of shared driving responsibilities. We both drive the Alfa. If we have to go less than 100 miles, Craig usually drives all of it. For distances over that, we trade off so neither of us gets road tired. 

When it comes time to back the rig into a spot, we find it works best if I drive and Craig gives me directions on the walkie-talkie. Like most couples, we do what works best for us.

We have learned to look carefully for obstacles when the spot is tight. But sometimes things sneak up on us. This usually happens when the space seems wide open. 

After successfully backing into our spot at Ft. Pickens I looked around. 

EEK! I had almost hit a good size tree branch with the back corner of the Alfa. I definitely could not have seen it from the driver's seat, and Craig had not seen it because he was on the driver's side. 

Hopefully, writing about this "almost" impact will help us remember to watch all eight corners of the rig, and take a better look for potential dangers before backing in. Even when it feels like we have lots of room!

We were LUCKY once again!

After getting settled I noticed the sun was setting, and I went out to the road. I saw a boardwalk to the beach just across from the entrance of our loop. Sure enough, it was just a short walk through the dunes to the water.

Ahh! A beautiful sunset indeed! We are looking forward to some nice walks here in the next few days. Fingers crossed for nice weather.

And thanks again for the recommendation!