A whale of a hot-flash tale

We spent a couple more wet and wild days huddled in our Rockaway hideaway , but eventually the storm abated and the sun came out . It was time to move on. So we packed all our worldly belongings back onto our two small bikes, and once more headed south. On friends Cathie and Joe’s recommendation, we planned to drive the three-capes route out of Tillamook, but when we got to the town we were halted by barricades and police cars. Turned out the main street of Tillamook, including numerous other roads, were flooded. This is highway 101 — our route! Luckily there was a non-flooded detour that took us around the town and past the cheese factory. We did manage to pick up the scenic route around most of the capes, and only had to drive through one short section of flooded road — still kinda scary though.

The whole coast is absolutely amazing. Beaches as far as the eye can see, with stunning vistas, craggy “haystack” rocks, and big rolling seas. It became hard to photograph, because it’s all so amazing.

The wet and windy drive this day took us to our next cheap motel on the outskirts of Yachats. We pulled up and were greeted by a couple of cute corgi dogs, and two very friendly women who turned out to be mother and daughter and owners of the place. Ann had booked us the cheapest option, but we’d hardly started chatting before being asked: “Would you mind if we upgraded you to an ocean view, for free of course.” Did we mind??? Well let me think… 🙂

After settling in we walked the short hop down to the beach. This area of the coast has what looks like sandstone cliffs lining the shore before it drops down to the beach and ocean . Strolling down the beach in the rain we noticed this circle of gulls around what looked like a log or a rock on the beach. As we got closer it became clear this was no rock. It was a beached whale!

We learned from the motel owners the whale had washed up on the beach about a month earlier. It was left, as per the law, to naturally rot, and from the odour it was definitely doing just that. I’m sure a whale person could tell what kind it was. All I know is it was big, and beautiful in a dead-and-stinky sort of way.

The beach held other wonders as well. The recent storms had beached a dead seal, a large round fish, and tons of large kelp structures. It’s a constant reminder of how alive the oceans are.

The next day brought another drive along the coast, with days end at Brookings near the southern edge of Oregon. As usual we had booked a cheap room via one of the online tools. This motel, like many that we end up in, is run down and old, with just enough spit and polish to make it presentable. But the beds and rooms are clean. It’s warm, dry, and relatively cheap. And the mushroom dealer who’s set up shop below is just a bonus 🙂

Actually, it was quite interesting … this dealer is a travelling mushroom buyer who sets up temporary shop in various locations from Alaska down through BC, Washington and Oregon to buy mushrooms from local pickers. And no … it’s not THAT kind of mushroom. He buys the fancy, weird looking ones that mushroom aficionados rave about: morels, chanterelle, cauliflower, etc… We got a guided tour of his operation. Fun, fun.

After settling in for the evening we took a stroll around the town, taking in the sights and looking for good, cheap beer and food. Ann’s new addition is IPAs. It’s not the booze she craves, it’s the bitter crisp taste of a tangy tough ale. We’ve also discovered the joys of Happy Hour! From about 1600 to 1800 bars discount booze and nibbles. Beer is 2/3rd the price and they usually have a selection of cheap appetizers, which strung together can make a very satisfying meal at a fraction of the cost.

But on our way to IPA bliss two wonderful things happened. First is that we saw our first naturally-growing palm trees. Ya Who! And the second was that Ann decided to try and earn some extra bucks with a strip show in the bar. Actually, it was just a hot flash, but it was FUNNNNNNYYYYYYYY.

Another nights slumber and we were off to California to visit the Land of the Giants.