Oregon has added 3 free fishing weekends this year!  The first one is coming up February 19 and 20, Saturday and Sunday.  Then again June 4 and 5, Saturday and Sunday.  The one more time over Thanksgiving weekend, November 25 and 26, Friday and Saturday.  Don’t miss out on free fishing if you are in Oregon!

Once a year, the State of Oregon offers free fishing for everyone where fishing, crabbing and clamming are permitted! 

No license, tag or endorsement is needed because the fishin’ is free! Catch limits and other restrictions do apply.

Hosted by the Oregon Department of Fishing and Wildlife (ODFW), Saturday September 1st and Sunday, September 2^nd are both days where you can fish, crab and clam for free! This opportunity is for anywhere in Oregon fishing, crabbing and clamming are allowed—rivers, streams, lakes and ocean.

This is a great time to find a new, great fishing spot. Bring the family along as mom might enjoy it just as much as dad, and, it’s a great time to introduce children to fishing. While the boys love to fish with dad, don’t forget that the girls do also! Some of our happiest times were fishin’ with dad!

Don’t miss this weekend for great fishing and bringing home some Dungeness crabs and Oregon clams! Yummy feasting! Visit the Wells Creek Area on highway 38 on your way to the coast for some award-winning clam chowder at the Inn. Be sure to stop in and say hello to us at www.umpquahaven.com or stay the weekend in your RV. We would love to see you if we aren’t out fishing! Photo is from one of our family crabbin for Dungeness trips at the coast!

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Blackberries here! Blackberries there! Blackberries everywhere! Blackberries grow wild in Oregon along with raspberries, salmonberries and huckleberries.

Oregon’s mild, wet climate is friendly to berry growing and blueberries and cranberries are big crops here. Blackberries and raspberries are also grown as crops. The blackberries are the largest in size and can be sweet and juicy. The wild berries have been harvested by the Pacific Northwest Native Americans for hundreds of years.

There are several different kinds of blackberries and the Marionberry is a cross between two of them. Marionberries were developed here in Oregon and make delicious jams and pies as do all the berries.

Here at Umpqua River Haven we are fringed by wild blackberries. They can sometimes over-grow and get out of hand but we manage to keep them pruned. Pruning also aids the production of fruit as it goes. It is a treat to be able to walk out in the yard and pick fresh blackberries to add to breakfast or for a treat any time. And then there is pie…..

Oregon celebrates Blackberries August 26 – 27 at the 2018 Blackberry Arts Festival in downtown Coos Bay. This event features local artist’s jewelry, crafts, photography and more and area vendors. The Blackberry Jam will again be presented by K-DOCK 92.9. The jam features local musicians and the Bay Area.

Don’t miss the South Coast Folk Society’s booth near So It Goes coffee house on 2nd and Central.

Witness the spectacle of
SIDE of the TIDE MORRIS DANCERS
Saturday 1:45 by the stage and 2:15 by the booth

Live music by:
OUTSTANDING OPEN BAND members  Saturday 3-4 and Sunday 11-1

and FINVARRA and the NOR’WESTERS  Sunday 1-3

Don’t miss this very Oregon weekend event!

If you are this way at the end of August, you can bunk your RV with us at www.umpquahaven.com for a quiet place to stay while you take in the Blackberry Arts Festival at Coos Bay, which is a short, 45-minute drive away. We just might let you pick your own blackberries, too.

Formed by the confluence of the West and East Branches of the Black River at Elyria, Ohio, the Canesadooharie River, once known as the Riviere en Gyrs, flows gently past Sheffield, Ohio and into Lorain, Ohio. The two named rivers were probably actually different rivers nearby.

It gets confusing because in the 1700s this river was known as both the Reneshoua River and la Riviere de la Cuiliere by early French and British explorers as the safest harboring spot along the ‘cliffs.’ These cliffs extended many miles along the Southern Lake Erie shoreline from here almost to the mouth of the Cuyahoga (the Crooked River). There were no beaches along the cliffs for landing even small boats and the cliffs were too steep and high to climb.

There is more convoluted history about this river involving falls, Native Americans, Col. James Smith who was captured by Native Americans, additional names and references to ‘black pearls.’ But most of it is conjecture and not confirmed as fact.

How the Black River got its name is unknown by historians although there is a hint that shale lined its banks and that was possibly the origin of this name.

Whatever that name origin, the river was home to Native American and eventually settlers. The 1800s started the development along this river into a major industrial area. The United States Steel Corporation lived here, and, the steamboat “Lexington” was constructed by the Black River Steamboats Association. Shipbuilding eventually evolved into the American Ship Building company producing the Great Lake vessels from 1818 to 1981. Additional industry was produced along this river including cement and the Ford Motor Company among others. Below is an abandoned industrial building.

As with the Cuyahoga, the Black River became polluted by industry. The industries died a slow death with steel surviving to this day as an industry and employer. But, the river has been revived with ecological renovations along its banks. Newer, better-retaining walls have been built with shelving for fish. This has produced the spawning of many varieties of native fish including the famous Lake Erie Yellow Perch, Walleye, varieties of Bass and others. Below is more abandoned industrial equipment.

The 4 miles of industrial banks of the river have been cleaned up in that the sludge has been moved back, away from the banks so the natural soil is exposed and producing native foliage and trees. This has brought in nesting eagles and Blue Heron. The double-breasted Canadian Cormorants have invaded here and are profuse in the upper river toward the end of the 4 miles. Their nests can be seen in the trees that become stripped, although not killed, by their very acidic droppings. And, large webbings of caterpillars cling to the tree branches.  Below you can see the sludge in the background and the reclaimed river bank in the foreground. Can you see the Blue Heron?

And here are the Cormorants.

 And Caterpillars!

This industrial-related boat is sunk to the bottom and has been abandoned for some time.

The Lorain Port Authority sponsors a variety of tours on the Black River. One of them is a Nature Tour that travels out to the Historic Lorain Lighthouse and then slowly back up the river with narration about the aforementioned details. Captain Ron has been piloting on the Great Lakes for 34 years, and on the Black River for several. He is very knowledgeable about the historical industrial sites, many of which left large structures behind. At the same time, Captain Ron can explain all of the ecological renovations and improvements along the 4 miles of riverbank. And, he knows all about the returning fish and waterfowl. It is a fascinating 2 and 1/2 hour tour about the come back of a very polluted Black River. Contact the Lorain Port Authority for details.

Thanks, Captain Ron!

While steel is still very much an industry in Lorain, it no longer pollutes the Black River as this abandoned complex can attest to.

This weekend is the annual Sandcastle Contest at Lincoln City, Oregon.  This is a family, amateur event open to all ages. It is held in the Historic Taft District of Lincoln City off SW 51st Street. It is free to register but they are asking for a donation to the food pantry.

On Saturday, August 11, registration starts at 9:00 am. Judging will be at 2:00 pm. Only amateur entrants will be eligible for prizes. Only natural beach materials found on the beach during this day can be used. Forms and hand tools may be used in the making but forms ultimately cannot serve to support the finished entry. No power tools are permitted.

In the evening, S’mores will be toasted on the beach over a fire. Sunday will bring fun games and events. Come join in the fun of building a Sandcastle or just to watch.

Below is our blog post from the 2017 Sandcastle Competition at Cannon Beach just to give you an idea of the beautiful sand sculptures even amateurs can make.

Oregon has some of the most beautiful and vast beaches in the world. The shoreline in this Pacific Northwest State belongs to the people and every inch of it has public access. It is something Oregon has done exactly right.

To help celebrate Oregon’s beaches, there is an annual Sandcastle Contest held at Cannon Beach. The festival started in 1964 when a tsunami washed out the Elk Creek Bridge and the residents were somewhat isolated before a new bridge could be installed. So….that spring the local families got together for a Sandcastle Contest to entertain their children and to encourage visitors to the area. The Cannon Beach Sandcastle Contest became one of the largest on the west coast and continues today.

Creativity is given free rein as there are no themes. Contestants can only use the sand in their area and not add to. Only natural materials found on the beach—sticks, shells, seaweed, etc—can be used. Nothing artificial and no paint of any kind. Competition is limited to 100. As this is a family event, no risqué entries are permitted and no alcohol is allowed. You can check out details at www.cannonbeach.org Umpqua River Haven is about 100 miles from Cannon Beach. Stop in and see us www.umpquahaven.com on your way or stay a spell before heading North along Oregon’s beautiful shore.

The Cannon Beach Sandcastle Contest starts on Friday, June 16, with registration for competitors closing at noon. The festival runs all weekend. Oh, yes, and when the tide comes in all of this beautiful work washes into the beach again. Below are several entries from the 2013 contest.

Newport, Oregon is one of our favorite places to visit on the Oregon Coast.  There is much to see and do there on an ordinary day. But this weekend, in particular, there are a great many special things going on. Below is a listing of all the weekend happenings in Newport.

We love the Embarcadero Resort Hotel for accommodations. It is smack on the bay where there is so much to see. Coast Guard Research ships, sea lions on the rocks, and Saturday sailboat races. Plus this fella who wanted to be our buddy all weekend long.

That’s the Yaquina Bay Bridge in the background. There is a lot to see from this second story room with a kitchen! It is just as beautiful at night with so many lights around the bay.

If you just wander around town, don’t miss the huge, 2-story antique mall where great bargains abound. Newport is home to many beaches, the most famous of which is in the antique district of town, Nye Beach. The gulls hang out there and enjoy anything you want to feed them. Watch for more about the beaches here following the list of weekend activities. There is something for everyone here this weekend.

Friday, Aug. 3

“From the Heart”   Newport Visual Arts Center

An opening reception for this new exhibit of works by Rick Bartow, featuring 17 seldom-seen sketches of prominent authors in watercolor, pencil and pastel. 5-8 pm, 777 NW Beach Drive. Show runs run through Saturday, Sept. 29, available to view from noon to 4 pm Tuesday through Saturday.

“Sylvia” Theatre West • Lincoln City

The arrival of a new dog puts a marriage in jeopardy in this stage comedy, with the husband seeing the pooch as an escape while his wife views her as a rival for affection. 7:30 pm, 3536 SW Hwy. 101. Tickets, $15 for adults and $13 for seniors and students, available by calling 541-994-5663.

Shop at the Dock  Port Dock 5 • Newport

Get a grounding in how to buy seafood right off the boat in this free workshop from the OSU Sea Grant Extension Service. Tours leave at 9:30 am, 10 am, 10:30 am and 11 am. FMI, call 541-574-6534.

Coastal Arts Guild lunch  Newport Visual Arts Center

Fabric artist Janet Webster talks about her work, which has evolved from weaving to quilting to fabric manipulation. 11 am to 1:30 pm, 777 NW Beach Drive. FMI or an invitation to attend, call Mary Holt at 541-765-4599.

Seabird Science Hike  Oswald West State Park • Manzanita

An easy two-mile round-trip journey focusing on the recent community effort to monitor nesting seabirds within Oregon’s Marine Reserves. 10 am to noon. FMI, call 541-231-8041.

“Young Marx”  Newport Performing Arts Center

See what was going on in Karl Marx’ life before the days of “Das Kapital” in this new comedy from Richard Bean and Clive Coleman, screened as part of The National Theatre: Live in HD. 7 pm, 777 W. Olive Street. Tickets, $16 for adults, $13 for seniors and $11 for students, available at newportpac.com or by calling 541-265-ARTS (2787).

Quilts by the Sea  Newport Recreation Center

Browse some 300 quilts at this annual show from the Oregon Coastal Quilters Guild, including the 2018 raffle quilt, “Ocean in Motion.” $6. 9 am-5 pm, 225 SE Avery Street. Continues Saturday.

Community Luau  Oceanview Senior Living • Newport

Enjoy a free, island-themed feast and multicultural traditional drumming from Chandler Davis at this outdoor get-together. Noon-2 pm, 525 NE 71st Street. FMI or directions, call 541-574-0550.

On the south side of the bay, we discovered access to a vast expanse of beach where you can hike for miles. And we did. And came across this fella skimming along the shore.

Don’t miss out on the tide pooling at the Yaquina Head Lighthouse. It is unique. And stop in and say hello to us at http://www.umpquahaven.com on your way north to Newport. We are just 87 miles on a beautiful drive up the coast from Newport.