October 7th - US 101 cruise to Coos Bay

Carolina’s Notes
We got up and Tony showered and got ready to hit the road. We were traveling down the Oregon Coast today to our next destination…Coos Bay. I was determined to fly solo without any Dramamine or wrists bands. The Highway 101 tour was spectacular!! I did get a little nerved up but I didn’t meltdown and I was proud of myself. We didn’t leave as early as we would have liked so we didn’t stop and enjoy spots along the infamous Highway 101. Driving Highway 101 was a great experience despite getting nerved up. Not stopping along the coastline was a regret Tony & I had once we reached Coos Bay. I had hopes to watch a sunset with Tony and was disappointed that we didn’t especially since we were traveling down the Pacific Coastline. I should have asked Tony to stop considering we weren’t going to make it to our destination in the daytime. We made it to Midway RV Park and hooked up in the dark then went out to explore the town and eat. Since it was dark our exploring was severely limited. We got home to Harry and got into the nightly routine, then off to bed.

Tony’s Notes
Well, we left the Portland area without really doing much in the city. I would have liked to check the area out a little more. I had always heard that Portland was a clean, green, and bicycle friendly area. I thought it might be a place we would want to settle and work. I did not spend enough time researching and touring the urban area.

I was quite surprised that the state of Oregon does not allow people to pump their own gasoline. I was just not used to having a gas station attendant pump my gas. Talking with these folks, I got the impression that Oregon, like most areas, had been hit hard with the economic recession, and high unemployment.

Anyway, we drove back to Lincoln City, and started making our way down the US101 coastal drive. It was a very scenic drive. I kick myself for not stopping a high end RV resort right on the coast. It was only after about two hours of driving, and I know now I should have stopped for a night or two. It was a very beautiful, sunny, clear day and we should have taken in the sunset, and enjoyed.

However, true to my nature, I kept on motoring toward Coos Bay. I was concerned about having enough daylight, so kept moving, instead of stopping for photos at the scenic viewpoints.

This drive was truly spectacular. It was white knuckle driving because of the immense drop-offs, and narrow road. It is always narrow when driving an extra wide motorhome, and towing a car. I will always be disappointed that I didn’t take the time to make this coastal drive a two-day drive. Instead, I did it in a matter a few hours.

We got into the Coos Bay area late. The RV Park was a Passport America park, and had very nice full hook-ups. It was half-price. So, it cost us $20.00 per night. I only paid for two nights because I was not sure how long we would be here.

Carolina was sad, and crying because she thought that Coos Bay would be on the Pacific Coast that we had been driving all day. I was a little agitated because I thought she understood what the word “Bay” meant. However, as we always do, we made the best of it. The RV Park was very clean and one of the nicest we had been at since we left home.

We got hooked up, and then went out to eat. We ended up at a bar eating bar food, and drinking beer.