We’re in Oregon!

Actually, we were in Oregon yesterday, but today we officially moved to an rv park in Troutdale, just outside Portland.  We’re going to stay here for a couple of weeks, then start wandering down the coast.  The park where we’re staying is another very nice one, although the sites are just a little closer together than we like.

Our day trip yesterday took us from Kelso to Astoria, Oregon and down the coast to Cannon Beach.  Jim and I drove our car again so we could take the dogs and not worry about them getting into the picnic bags that Dortha and Mark had in the Jeep.  In Astoria, we stopped to find a quilt shop so I could look at a few patterns. (More about that later).  Then we went out to Fort Stevens State Park to have our picnic lunch and see the shipwreck of the Peter Iredale, a British ship that went aground on the beach in 1906 instead of sailing up the Columbia River to Portland as intended.  This is what’s left of the ship:

The next stop was Cannon Beach, where we joined  the hoards of people who take pictures of the famous Haystack Rock:

The parking lot was about a half mile from the rock, but we wanted to walk to it, so off we all went.  Dogs on leash are allowed on the beach, so Jazz and Mr. BJ got to go along.

We timed the arrival just right, because at the base of the rock during low tide, there are some wonderful tide pools.

We got there just at low tide and spent quite a while exploring to see all the creatures:

Once we got back to the rv park, we found that Glenn and Sylvia had arrived and were parked right next to us.  The 8 of us had dinner together and visited until it was time to get some rest.  Glenn and Sylvia were planning to move out to the coast today, while our plans were taking us down to the Portland area.

Since our travel day was only 56 miles, we didn’t hurry this morning, and left just after 10:30.  We arrived at the Sandy Riverfront RV Resort in Troutdale shortly after noon.  This is an interesting park.  It’s the only place we’ve ever stayed where the daily rate is less than a weekly rate would be.  They are also very picky about parking exactly within the boundary of your individual site.  The guy in the office told us if even a tiny bit of your vehicle is over the “sidewalk” it could earn you a $147 fine.  Hmmm….  But other than these quirks, and the close togetherness, it’s a very clean and well-kept place.

Our plans for the area include exploring the Columbia River Gorge, visiting some wineries, catching up on shopping (especially at Trader Joe’s) and visiting with friends who live in the vicinity.  We may tour the “Fruit Loop” and do some other things as well, we’ll see.

About the quilt patterns, we’re having a quilt made for our bed, and I’m trying to figure out just what I want, so I’m looking at all sorts of materials and patterns these days.  Fun!