Just 11 miles due north of Florence on the Oregon Coast is America’s largest sea cave. Carved out of an ice-age beach seafloor of basalt by the powerful waves of the Pacific Ocean hitting on fracture zones in the hard rock, this massive cave is the year around home to about 200 Stellar Sea Lions.

Discovered in 1880 by Oregon ship captain William Cox, this cave is estimated to have started forming 25 million years ago. It is now 12 stories high. Originally access to the cave was by a trail a quarter of a mile long, very steep, and, 250 stairs. In 1961 elevator access was installed with great difficulty and expense. This gave access to everyone instead of just the hearty few who were able to hike and climb.

In spring and summer the sea lions are outside the cave sunning themselves on the rocks, swimming and diving for fish. They seek shelter in the cave during fall and winter. Pups are born in late spring to early summer.

 The above view can be seen from the south side viewing deck in the photo below.

When visiting in the cave, be prepared for interesting smells as well as viewing the sea lions. Not the best smells you’ve ever encountered.

A variety of ocean life can be found at the Sea Lion Caves. This is a great place for bird-watching.

On the north side of the cave viewing platform is a photo op of the most photographed lighthouse in the world. Heceta Head Lighthouse (see previous blog about this lighthouse). It is framed by the inside of this part of the cave and it’s difficult to be here and not take several shots of the lighthouse. It can also be seen and photographed well from in front of the gift shop.

Access to the cave is through the gift shop but don’t forget to visit in the gift shop for many fun, beautiful and unique gift items. It’s actually a great place to do some Christmas shopping.

Come stay with us at Umpqua River Haven and visit the Sea Lion Caves about an hour’s drive away along the beautiful Oregon Coast.

Cleveland definitely rocks at the House of Blues downtown where we recently joined some friends to watch a family member play in the backup orchestra for Seafair, a very popular local band. Loud but fun and good music, talented musicians. Enjoy some photos from the House of Blues and Cleveland, Ohio.

The Terminal Tower at Night.

House of Blues Stage with Early Band

Seafair with Orchestra

Our Young Friend Fiddlin in the Orchestra!

Fireworks Over Progressive Field After Indians Game

The scenic, serene rolling hills of Central Ohio are home to a large population of Amish, Mennonite and Quaker communities. Once or twice a year our family visits Amish Country in Holmes County, Ohio. Small towns like Walnut Creek, Sugarcreek, Millersburg and Berlin where the Amish and Mennonite live and work. The Quakers live a bit further south. As you travel along the green, summery highways you can easily spot Amish and Mennonite houses and farms. Can you tell how from this photo?

If you noticed that there are no electrical lines or TV antennas or satellite dishes you would be on to the answer. There is often another way.

With no clothes dryers the laundry hangs on the line during the summer months. The housing itself is distinctive. The homes are quite large with boxy shapes, porches and small windows. No picture windows or sliding glass doors here.

Would you know how to identify an Amish household as compared with a Mennonite household?

The Mennonites and Amish dress similarly with two exceptions. The Amish women wear black dresses with black caps though they wear white caps during the week. The Mennonite women wear more colorful and even print dresses and crisp, white caps. Though there can be exceptions to their wardrobe colors, the laundry on the lines generally reflects the colors of the household.

Amish men wear “blues,” suspenders and straw hats most of the time. These are every day and work clothes.

Their Sunday-go-to-meeting clothing is strictly black and white with a bit of blue or grey into the mix occasionally.

The Amish and Mennonites are all very hard working people. They are often the ones who serve in stores and restaurants in the areas they live in. They also farm and mostly the hard way. With teams of horses pulling ploughs and other farm equipment. They are famous for the quality of their horses which vary from large, strong work horses to the sleeker horses that pull their carriages. Their horses are very well cared for which is a time-consuming job in itself. People often give rescue horses to the Amish that aren’t always in great shape because the Amish will assist them to health and life in Amish Country.

The children, as children will do, can be seen in play imitating their fathers in the fields with one handling the “horses” and several others being the “horses.”

The Amish sell their handmade wares at the Amish Flea Markets and have tours of Amish farms and a tourist center or two. Outside of the flea markets our favorite place to visit is Lehman’s Hardware in Kiddron. Here you will find unique merchandise catering to Amish needs and tourist delights. Lehman’s is not to be missed. https://www.lehmans.com/?partner_id=bcbgoog&gclid=CKaYkImW7cYCFQYvaQodUY0MIg

Don’t miss out on the pure bliss of Amish cooking. Der Dutchman in Walnut Creek is where we usually stop for lunch when we are in Amish Country. This is a culinary delight you won’t want to pass up! http://www.dhgroup.com/restaurants/der-dutchman-walnut-creek-oh

These communities are famous for their carriages and when you visit now you can ride in a carriage driven by true Amish. This is a recent adventure they have gotten into to assist tourists in enjoying their visit and to make some extra money.

If you happen upon a Mennonite or Amish gathering like this one…..

Look around carefully as you will also find a gathering of horse-drawn carriages tied, tethered or just parked in a nearby corral.

The Amish and Mennonites often walk to town. The Mennonites can be seen riding bicycles.

You will regularly see both sects on the streets of the towns going about their business. Usually they just want to be left alone. They are not inhospitable, especially in the businesses and sometimes will wave from the fields. But you can imagine if they appeared to be friendly on the street how they would be bothered to the point of not being able to pursue their own needs.

As previously stated, these hard working, devoted people are famous for both carriages and horses. Here you can see the beauty of both. 

In town and on the highways you will encounter carriages traveling along. In town you will see them easily but on the highways they can appear from all sides quite suddenly. Cresting hills is especially dangerous in a vehicle because you may abruptly encounter a slower moving horse-drawn carriage. They have heeded the state and county requests to put the red triangle slow moving vehicle signs on the backs of their carriages and also many now have lights on the sides at night to make them move visable in the dark. But there are still vehicle/horse & buggy wrecks that damage, kill and mame both humans and animals. Relax, slow down and enjoy the ride, the countryside and the Amish. There’s no need to hurry when you are visiting here and you may well save a life.

Be careful to stay out of the way. The horses on the highways and back roads are usually traveling at a fast trot and if you are not familiar with that pace of a horse you can be surprised as they approach or even as you pass by. Don’t honk or yell out. These well trained animals aren’t usually skitterish but it is always possible and remember the driver is working to keep his or her animal under control and focused on the road. Relax and enjoy the slow pace here. 

As we were heading out of Amish Country on one visit we followed a carriage with this young boy staring out the back window. He was probably curious about the “English” and possibly returning ‘stares’ from other encounters. We waved and smiled but he never changed his expression. We were charmed anyway.

On July 31, 2015, a full, blue moon appeared as was anticipated. It was beautiful although at first it was a very warm, reddish color and then just white, but quite large as it lifted up over the horizon.

In researching what a ‘blue moon’ is we found at least four different main explanations, two of which appear to be the most popular with one having gained more prominence over all. It’s complicated, as they say, but in the favored theory there seems to be at least 13 blue moons per year with possibly double that in a year’s time making it about twice per month.

And a ‘blue moon’ is not blue at all. It is large and very white but only blue in specific atmospheric conditions in a few world locations.

Whatever, it was large and quite spectacular rising above the Great Lakes Freighters moored in the Huron, Ohio River.

‘Tis the season for classic, antique and all things cars. Everywhere you go during June, July and August beautiful cars are cruisin’. Only 20 miles from Umpqua River Haven is the major car event of the season in Winchester Bay, Kool Coastal Nights. With mostly muscle cars all over the Bay, this weekend event consists of a car show and burn out competition.

Put on your walkin’ shoes the weekend of August 21-22 for the 23^rd Annual Windy Bay car event of the year. Each vehicle is unique in its own way and at the same time familiar to those of a certain age.

We drove them. We rode in them. We admired them. They have disappeared from our modern streets in favor of the gas-saving, aerodynamically designed, neutrally colored, and kind of boring vehicles of the day. It’s only at events like this that we are able to feast our eyes on them again.

 Kool Coastal Nights is more than just a classic car show. It is also a burn out event with all the excitement of burning rubber, bursting tires and colorful smoke.

Noisy, smoky, smelly this event is also interesting and exciting. There is no way to know how each vehicle is going to end up and the watching becomes almost addictive.

Come stay with us at Umpqua River Haven and have an easy drive into the Bay for this yearly, fun event. Visit the website for more information:  http://www.koolcoastalnights.com And don’t forget to pick up your KCN T-shirt in Windy Bay. Watch for more car cruisin’ on this blog.

Be it desert, ocean, rivers, lakes, mountains or farm country, everywhere I travel there are breath-taking sunsets, sunrises and rainbows. This blog post is about many of them that I have been able to capture on camera. No photo does any of them justice but will give an idea of their beauty from the Pacific Northwest to the Ohio Midwest and from Wyoming to Arizona. Enjoy the regal sunshine!

Early fall sunrise on Lake Erie, Ohio

Sunset On The Sonoran Desert, Arizona

Sunset in the Pacific Northwest, Oregon Coast 

Spring Sunset Clouds Over Lake Erie, Ohio 

Rainbow On The Nebraska Farm 

Pacific Northwest, Oregon Coast Sunset

 Lake Erie Sunrise At The Cottage, Ohio 

Misty Sunset At Umpqua River Haven, Oregon 

 Sunset At The Huron Lighthouse, Ohio 

Sunrise On The Nebraska Farm

 Wyoming Sunset Over Laramie Peak

 Thanksgiving Day On The Oregon Coast

 Sunrise On The Huron River

 Sunset On Lake Macatawa, Michigan

 Sunset Over The Crab Dock, Winchester Bay, Oregon

 Sunset At Yaquina Bay Lighthouse, Newport, Oregon

 Sunset On Lake Erie From The Pier At Huron, Ohio

 Sunset, Desert Mountains, Arizona

 Stormy Day Rainbow Spouting Over The Freighters, Huron River, Ohio

 Sunset Winchester Bay, Oregon

Sunset On The Nebraska Farm

 Stormy Sunset Rocky River Beach, Ohio

 Sunset Neskowin, Oregon

Sunset Winchester Bay, Oregon Over The Fishing Fleet

 Dawn On The Huron River, Ohio

 Winchester Bay, Oregon Sunset

 Sunset, Old Homestead, Huron, Ohio, Lake Erie

 Full Rainbow Over Huron River Great Lakes Freighters, Ohio

Sunsets, sunrises and rainbows are awesome to catch and not all that tough if you are watching. But moonrises in the dark night are almost impossible to snap without special equipment. We leave you with our Umpqua River Haven summer moonrise through the Douglas Fir trees. Come visit us and see for yourself!

The very best place to tide pool on the Oregon Coast is at the Yaquina Head Lighthouse.

Come prepared for the long climb down the steps. More importantly be prepared for the long climb back up the towering staircase from the rocky tide pools. Sturdy shoes with good traction are recommended by this family. When the tide goes out it leaves a field of rocks the size of baseballs that have been tossed smooth in the ocean and are wet and slippery.

We woke up at 3 am one morning, left Umpqua River Haven and headed to Newport about 4 am to catch the 6 am low tide that leaves hundreds of pools stranded in the rocks. We traversed the winding stairway and tread carefully upon the slippery rocks. It is well worth the effort and early summer hour. Here are some of the treasures we found in the tide pools.

Sea Urchins, snails and mussels, oh my!!!

The purple sea star is our favorite.

There is a nice interpretive center that has much information and is a great place to take the kids before heading to the tide pools and lighthouse. Our youngsters had never seen a tide pool or the creatures within and were fascinated with all of it. And then we went to the lighthouse.

Yaquina Head Lighthouse is the tallest of the Oregon Coast lighthouses at 93 feet. Originally it was named the Cape Foulweather Lighthouse. Its Fresnel lens was made in Paris in 1868 and first lit in August, 1873. The light was automated in 1966 and is an active light on the Oregon Coast guiding ships in the night.

17 military personnel were stationed here during World War II watching for possible enemy invasion. This lighthouse is on the National Register of Historic Places. As with other Oregon Coast lighthouses, storms and lack of access to this remote site caused delays in building it.

There just can’t be a lighthouse on the Oregon Coast without a ghost and Yaquina Head is no exception. In 1921 a Second Assistant Keeper died in the execution of his lighthouse duties and is credited as the ghost of Yaquina Head Lighthouse. Between 1932 and 1945 Keeper John Zenor reported encounters with the ghost. “Someone unseen would come in and go up the spiral stairs,” Zenor stated. “After the war (WWII) we never heard him again.”

Strange happenings still occur like the dog that fell off the cliff onto the beach below. As rescue workers were getting ready to rappel down to the pooch, he suddenly appeared next to one of the fire trucks unharmed. It is still a mystery how he got up the steep and slippery cliff.

If you’ve never been atop a lighthouse you are in for a real treat. I am always awed by the views when I reach the upper area of any lighthouse. It’s that much better 93 feet off the ground.

Come stay with us at Umpqua River Haven and take a ‘don’t miss’ day trip to Newport and the Yaquina Head Lighthouse and the tide pools below! This is one of the Oregon Coast’s major adventures!

In line with our previous blog about boats along the Oregon Coast we have encountered additional and different boats along the shores of Lake Erie in Northern Ohio. While touring the Vermilion River on the Mystic Belle we discovered a variety of boats often with unusual, interesting or even humorous names.

The Mystic Belle is well worth the small fee. There is a lot of history on this river and our tour guide, Capt. Don Parson, knows every bit of it and narrates as it goes with enthusiasm and great knowledge. http://www.donparsonsmarina.com/MysticBelle.html

The Vermilion River is unique with its Cape Cod Lagoon housing where the boats are out your front door, additional housing up and down the river, a history of industry and restaurant seating out over the river. Watching the boats can be a full time occupation.

Sailboats race out on the lake past the mouth of the river.

On the lake you can find very small boats but only on a calm day. This one is coming in for a better view of the Vermilion Lighthouse replica.

On the Black River in Lorain, Ohio at the Black River Landing the ferry will take you out to tour the “Jewel of the Port,” the Lorain Lighthouse. Tour guides and ferry drivers are all volunteers from the local community.   http://www.lorainlighthouse.com/tours.shtml

The Huron River in Huron, Ohio has a variety of marinas and a yacht club along with a very nice boat basin. 

The Huron River and the City of Huron have also been host since February, 2015 to two Great Lakes supply freighters that pulled in for extended maintenance. They are moored directly across the river from the Huron Boat Basin.

While hiking along the Huron River to the pier one evening it was exciting to come across this beauty – the 129 foot yacht Unity. Built at a cost of $19 million dollars, this luxury boat belongs to the great-great-granddaughter of Henry Ford (that would be Ford Motor Company!), Elena Ford. She pulls into Huron occasionally to gas up. With a fuel capacity of 10,000 gallons it gives new meaning to the term “fill ‘er up!” I could live on this one.

Out on Lake Erie now at the destination Cedar Point Amusement Park you can find small pleasure craft fishing, anchored or just enjoying a boat ride. 

It would be hard to miss the boats up around the Lake Erie Islands near Kelley’s Island.

There’s a great restaurant on South Bass Island in Put-In-Bay, The Boardwalk, which is up a flight of stairs and right out over the water. The views of the boats, Perry’s Monument and Lake Erie are breath-taking.

Being from Umpqua River Haven in Oregon where the salmon and tuna are great, we especially like the fresh-caught Lake Erie perch sandwich here.   http://www.the-boardwalk.com/pdscms

This last photo epitomizes Lake Erie boats for us conjuring up dreams of just sailing away…..

One of Oregon’s unique places sits out on a precipice between Depot Bay and Newport. Discovered in 1778, it was given this name when Capt. James Cook first arrived here on his third voyage around the world. His travels nearly ended here due to the unexpected storm as he arrived. In his own words:

“The land appeared to be of moderate height, diversified with hill and Valley and almost everywhere covered with wood. There was nothing remarkable about it except one hill….At the northern extreme the land formed a point which I called Cape Foulweather from the very bad weather we soon after met with.”

 The building is the Lookout where the views are almost mind-boggling.

Looking East

Looking Northwest

Looking West

The sites you can see from the windows inside the Lookout are vast and diverse including breaking surf on the shore, all varieties of sea birds flying and nesting, diving sea lions, salmon fishing fleets, barking seals, ocean liners on the far horizon with smoky trails, traveling whale pods, stunning sunsets that take your breath away, and the storms. As Capt. Cook described the storms are frightening to be in but magnificent to watch and followed by a peaceful calm that surrounds the soul with feelings of warmth and joy.

The Outlook was a gift shop with many unique items to choose from. Beautiful jewelry, glass fishing net floats, T-shirts, books, toys and so much more. It was always a treat to visit inside for the view but also to peruse the gift shop for new items.

In 2013 the Outlook was purchased by the State of Oregon and converted into an interpretive center, whale watching and observation room, plus a smaller gift shop with a smaller more focused inventory. the T-shirts are great! It’s an even greater treat to visit and be able to enjoy the views even more.

Cape Foulweather is a must stop for us when traveling that direction from Umpqua River Haven. We never tire of the beauty of the Oregon Coast and especially here at the cape.

Take a leisurely walk around this scenic area and you will find friendly squirrels waiting to be fed, chipmunks and sea birds close enough to touch if only they would let you. You can also see the west beach area where many brave souls come to surf the ocean waves.

Be sure to put Cape Foulweather on the schedule for your next trip to the Oregon Coast and stay with us at Umpqua River Haven! We leave you at the west overlook to enjoy the awesome view on a day when the weather wasn’t foul.

Remember applying contact paper to your cupboard shelves? There were various but rather boring pattern choices. Meant to keep shelves clean and provide a smooth surface, in time contact paper developed cuts, nicks, stains, and markings and had to be replaced.

That may be a thing of the past with ShurTech’s Duck Tape products. Recently we went on a tour of the world headquarters for Duck Tape in Avon, Ohio.Handy to Highway 90, Just Imagine Way takes you into the spacious parking lot near the front door. We received very friendly greetings as we entered the facility. Situated on 211 acres, which we were told is one acre more than where the competition’s factory is perched, the facility itself encompasses many thousands of square feet.

Along with the six of us and a family of four, this tour included about ten young children from a nearby daycare center. We all marveled at these kids as they were some of the best behaved children we had ever encountered. Amanda Pasenow, who is also an in-house artist, handles all of the tours. She normally plays with Duck Tape all day long. Her enthusiasm for these products and sharing her knowledge knows no bounds. Her manner with these children could not have been better and she had their undivided attention from the git-go.

The tour starts with three videos and questions and answers. We were amazed at the very pertinent questions the children asked. And then it was onward and upstairs to the office area where there are also a variety of displays,

               Display in Office Area                                                 Trust E Duck                   Duck Tape Sheets                                        New Duck Tape Prints

ShurTech is very much into kids and assisting with school needs. Plus they have a campaign dealing with the issue of school bullying. These displays spoke for themselves.

Duck Tape sponsors an annual “Wear It To Prom” promotion. High School students from all over the country are encouraged to create their own prom clothing from Duck Tape. Then wear it to prom and submit photos to the contest. ShurTech gives away $50,000.00 in scholarships for this event. And the creations are amazing. The winners creations are on display in the facility.

This display was especially fascinating with creations by students and also real design artists. The blue dress by a designer was especially beautiful. Designers use an under fabric and sew while students usually wrap, cut and stick. But they all turn out lovely.

 When we worked in daycare we played “Duck, Duck, Goose” with the little ones but we’ve now revised that to “Duck, Duck, TAPE” as there are so many things that can be created out of this fun product. And there are displays showing the variety of fun inventions.

This was about our favorite creation. It was hard to believe that it was wholly made from Duck Tape.

Here and there we found flowers. One of our family members creates beautiful rose pens so we were very interested in the flowers.

Duck Tape creates with Disney characters and one display that interested the kids was this one for “Frozen.”

We toured the plant area where the big rolls are cut into many smaller ones, boxed in displays, wrapped and shipped out. Although the tapes are actually made in another plant in another state, we did learn how one product is made. There are no photos because they weren’t allowed. Always cautious of the competition, ShurTech graciously hosts tours but asks that their secrets not be shared.

We completed our tour in the video room where everyone was given the opportunity to make something fun with Duck Tape. We also spied this around the corner.

My talent with Duck Tape is non-existent but, remember the family member who creates rose pens? She says they are never the same but we think they are perfect.

Everyone went home with a sack of goodies including a 2” roll of Duck Tape in the color of your choice and one smaller roll. Plus key chains, pens and pins all with Trust E. Duck on them. Thanks Amanda and ShurTech! All in all it was a ducky day.