The Oregon Coast is the perfect place to fly your kite. The breezes flow most of the time and the beaches are long and wide. There are kite stores, kite clubs, kite flying lessons and kite festivals. Lincoln City on the north coast holds one indoor kite festival every March. Rockaway Beach has its beach festival in May and Lincoln City just had their summer kite festival on the beach in June. Brookings on the south coast holds one in July. The only places whales can fly!

The kite festival we will visit today is coming to Lincoln City in October, depending on the weather, on the beach in the center of town. Lincoln City has a large, unique public beach right in the middle of town so you don’t have to go far to find this oneAnd, oh, the kites! Big ones, little ones, funny ones, pretty ones, strange ones and very unique ones.

Even monster ones!

And then there is the running of the Bols! Teams of three pull the Bols across the sand racing to be first to the goal line.

The Bols come in a variety of colors and geometric patterns. Music plays and the crowds cheer!

 And the kite flying never stops.

Sometimes multiple kites managed by a lone flyer are in the air.

And unusual patterns take place over head.

And what about kite boarding out in the Pacific Ocean??!!!

It’s hard to know what to look at and for first!

 Sometimes a kite is just a kite!

Treat yourself this fall. Come stay with us at Umpqua River Haven and spend a day on the beach in Lincoln City enjoying the kite festival!

Thanks to Umpqua River Haven friend, George, for this video!

The video below shows Oregon commercial fishing boats returning to port with their catch. They are crossing the Columbia Bar where the Columbia River meets the Pacific Ocean.

The Columbia Bar is stamped one of the most dangerous ports of entry anywhere in the world. Eight to ten deaths occur here every year due to boats attempting to cross that are not designed for this kind of what amounts to abuse of a vessel.

The fishing boats are self-righting, have a low center of gravity with sealed engine compartments, bullet proof glass, and double steel hulls. Made for the beating waves. Additionally the captains of these vessels are well seasoned at piloting through the bar.

Due to the 35 to 45 foot waves the Coast Guard has closed this crossing to any boats other than the commercial shrimp and fishing boats you will see here.

What a ride!!!

Boats are everywhere along the Umpqua River and Oregon Coast. At Umpqua River Haven some of our residents have their own boats used mostly for fishing. There are also boats everywhere along the shores of Lake Erie when I travel to Northern Ohio. Big boats, little boats, sailing boats, fishing boats, working freighter boats and even wrecked boats. Remember the Bella?

Boats dock in a variety of places but usually clustered together in a harbor or port. Winchester Bay, Oregon has as variety of docking places for pleasure and recreational fishing craft.

And sailboats.

We particularly like these boat docks, er, ducks?

Some individual boats are interesting like this houseboat.
We like this one and keep hoping we’ll receive it at a gift!

Then there are the commercial fishing boats. A fleet of them hangs at Windy Bay when they’re not out catching our favorite fish—tuna!

Some fishing boats are quite beautiful!

And don’t forget the Coast Guard boats.

Just who takes care of all these boats, especially the big ones? In our neck of the woods it’s Fred Wahl Marine in Reedsport, Oregon. Our neighbor at Umpqua River Haven, Fred Wahl, has been at it a long time.

Here you will find the facilities to dry-dock any boat for maintenance and repair. Our friend, Mark, use to work here and the knowledge he learned repairing and painting boats was very helpful to us at Umpqua River Haven for some of our repairs and painting.

When Fred is done with the boats they become a thing of beauty!

And don’t forget the tall ships from an earlier blog. One of our favorite tall ships is at Shore Acres during the winter holiday season. Watch for more about Shore Acres later in the year. And watch for more about boats from the shores of Lake Erie coming soon.

Wherever you find yourself the 4^th of July on the Oregon Coast you will find fireworks! Great, spectacular displays of bursting, colorful light. From Astoria north to Brookings south there are many firework celebrations on the coast. Out over the ocean or on the rivers you will see a diverse variety of pyrotechnic entertainment. 

And more. We like Winchester Bay for a 4^th of July celebration. You can spend the day here swimming in the ocean, fishing in the bay, riding on the Dunes, visiting the gift shops and eating in one of several great restaurants. For desert there is an Umpqua Ice Cream shop. Take in all the boats including the fishing fleet.

Dining at Bedrocks Pizza you might see one of these:

There is really endless fun and relaxation in Windy Bay. Whatever interests you can be found here. And then when the sun has gone down the fireworks go off!

And they continue for a long period of time with each more spectacular than the previous ones.

It is Independence Day celebration at its finest!

Some years there is a bonfire in the Bay and you can stand nearby to warm up.

It does become chilly at night in Winchester Bay so bring a jacket to enjoy the show. Stay with us at Umpqua River Haven and you will have just a short drive home to our very quiet park after all the excitement of the bay for a really good night’s sleep. If you are out our way, don’t miss our country’s celebration of freedom and don’t forget to thank a soldier/vet.

Patrick Hughes was an adventurer and entrepreneur traveling from Ireland to the US, across the country to California where he worked at gold mining before moving north to Oregon. On the Sixes River he developed and ran a black sand mining operation for many years. 

In 1860 at the age of 30, Hughes began a dairy and livestock business that encompassed a thousand acres. His enterprises were very successful and in 1898 Hughes built the historic home that is today a museum and tourist attraction near Cape Blanco Lighthouse. The house sits above the Sixes River with a view of the ocean and is manned by volunteers.

Hughes passed on after living in the house for only three years but his wife, Jane, lived here until 1921, and decedents remained in the house until 1971 when the State of Oregon acquired the home and made it part of the Cape Blanco State Park.

We have toured the house which is open from April to October. There is no charge but they do have a unique gift shop that helps support this museum and also a donation box if you are so inclined. The volunteers warm to their task as tour guides and are very knowledgeable about the house, area history and the Hughes family. The home is beautiful with family treasures in each room.

The tour starts in the living room.

Followed by Patrick’s office that looks out over the river and ocean.
 Someone was a musician.

One of the upstairs bedrooms.

The dining room.

But the heart of the house was in the kitchen where Jane spent much of her time preparing family meals along with the kitchen worker. This wood burning cast iron stove was the center of the kitchen and is very unique in how it operates so be sure to ask when you visit.

When you drive out to see the Cape Blanco Lighthouse be sure to allow enough time to visit the Hughes House as it’s a “don’t miss!” Open Wednesday through Monday from 10 am to 3:30 pm April to October.

The ranch.

Nine miles north of Port Orford on the southern Oregon Coast, Cape Blanco extends out one-and-one-half miles into the sea. Discovered by early Spanish explorers who named it the White Cape due to its chalky, white appearance, Blanco is the most western point in Oregon.

The Cape Blanco Lighthouse which was built in about 1870 has a long history of the struggles and extreme effort it took to build the Oregon Coast lighthouses when there was no road access.  Remember the Sand Highway? Most of the supplies had to be shipped in and at least one ship wrecked losing its cargo trying to get building materials and supplies to the site.

An entire forest was felled in order to provide clear space to build this particular lighthouse. Because of its extension out from the land coast, Blanco was an ideal place to position this kind of aide to mariners and still is. The felling of the forest provided timber to build, the plus of mitigating the possibility of forest fire threatening the structure and cut down on the amount of fog in the area.

Many of the bricks used to build the lighthouse were made on site to save the cost of shipping them in from San Francisco. A hole 5 feet deep was dug to provide for a 4 foot concrete foundation for the light house. A duplex was built to house the main lighthouse keeper on one side and his two assistant keepers on the other side.

This lighthouse had two main purposes. One was to warn ships away from the reefs that protruded out from the cape. The second was to give a fixed position for navigation. The modern day lighthouse continues to serve both purposes as do most of the Oregon lighthouses. The housing is gone but the lighthouse is well cared for and functional.

We have visited Cape Blanco Lighthouse twice so far on day trips from Umpqua River Haven. From the coast Highway 101 it is about a 14 mile drive out to the lighthouse. A very scenic and worthwhile jaunt passing the historic Hughes House and Ranch on the way opening up to your first view of the lighthouse.

The views north and south of the lighthouse display the rugged coastline.

On one of our family visits the Fresnel Lens had been vandalized by local teens from Port Orford. The process of restoring the glass is a lengthy and complicated one but was in the works. My young grandchildren could not understand why anyone would want to harm this beautiful lighthouse.

Tours of the Cape Blanco Lighthouse are scheduled so be sure to check for a current schedule before driving out to see it. Cost is $2.00 for 16 and up and free under 15. 

Tour schedule:  April – October 31, Wed – Monday 10 am – 3:30 pm. Last tour ticket sold at 3:15 pm. Gates close at 3:30 pm. Closed Tuesdays. You will climb up to view the lens and coast vistas from the elevated vantage point. Our next blog will be about the Historic Hughes House which you will want to tour also so plan to spend much of the day here. There is also an historic family cemetery of interest.

Beach glass has become a prime commodity as opposed to the ouchy nuisance it use to be. Collectors comb beaches at the ocean and lakes. The oceans produce Sea Glass as opposed to Beach Glass that can be found on lake shores.

The sources of the glass are anything made of glass that has been broken and found its way to the sea. It takes anywhere from 20 to 50 years for Sea Glass to acquire shape, color and a frosted effect from being rolled and tumbled in the oceans and worn down to a much sought after appearance. We find Sea Glass on the Oregon Coast near Umpqua River Haven often but it does take some serious looking as the pieces are generally small and easy to overlook.

But today we want to visit about Beach Glass found on the shores of Lake Erie. At one time anything that wasn’t wanted was tossed into the lake or the rivers feeding the lake. Major pollution plagued Lake Erie and others of the Great Lakes. Finally in the 70s the burning Cuyahoga River and “dead” Lake Erie prompted the federal government to pass the Clean Air Act that started to reverse the severe lake pollution.

Because Beach Glass is formed in fresh water instead of salt water, it has a different PH from Sea Glass and a somewhat less frosted appearance. Like Sea Glass, the edges are all rounded off from being tossed and tumbled by the lake waves over many years time.

There are many colors of Sea and Beach glass but the most common are white, green and brown. In our jewelry piece here there is a small blue piece of Beach Glass affixed to the larger, white piece.

This necklace is a gift for one of our friends at Umpqua River Haven and will be unique in the Oregon Coast area in that it didn’t come from the ocean. The jewelry maker’s hubby said that Beach Glass isn’t as plentiful as it once was on the shores of Lake Erie and he does a lot of walking to continue finding pieces for his wife to make jewelry with. She makes some very pretty things anyone would enjoy wearing and it’s all unique and original. No two pieces are alike. We think it’s a real find!

Florence is a unique small town on the Oregon Coast. A popular retirement destination, Florence also boasts good schools from kindergarten through college.

Lane Community College is based in Eugene but has an extension in Florence where you can take classes of all kinds heading toward a college degree. LCC in Florence is also the home of a dance studio that offers classes to adults and children in ballet, tap, jazz, Middle Eastern dance, yoga, Tai Chi and International Dance with the Oregon Coast International Dancers.

The Doreen Ditzhazy Dance Studio was established by retired Eugene Ballet Director and Dancer, Doreen Ditzhazy. Mrs. Ditzhazy has passed but her legacy lives on and her hubby, Fred, still teaches ballroom dance at LCC. Dancers perform throughout the year for various venues and there is a dance concert each June. In the fall there is a Middle Eastern Dance event lead by Angela Palmer who also teaches ballet.

Florence offers a variety of cultural activities and is home to the Oregon Coast Chamber Orchestra.

The Coast Chamber Ensemble is based in Coast Village and gives 2 seasonal concerts during the year at various places within the Florence Community.

The Florence Events Center is a very active place hosting a variety of events throughout this large facility. An art gallery displaying work of local artists is usually open in one area. The annual Rhody Days weekend and the Folk Arts Festival are hosted in another area. The very beautiful auditorium hosts local dance concerts, plays, the Holly Jolly Follies charity event and Seacoast Entertainment Association’s seven quality concerts throughout the year. These are just a sample of what goes on during the year and you can find the schedule here on their website: http://www.eventcenter.org/

Access SEA: http://www.seacoastea.org/ for upcoming concerts   Holly Jolly Follies: http://www.hollyjollyfollies.com/

Florence has an active theater group, The Last Resort Players, that offers 3 productions per year at FEC. Musical accompaniment is provided by local musicians. You can catch what they are up to currently here: http://lastresortplayers.org/

Located in “Old Town” Florence, the Florence Playhouse is a smaller, more intimate venue for theater, dance and music productions. This premier little theater is housed in one of Old Town’s historic buildings and is adaptable to audience or dinner theater performances. Youth Theater and Marketing Director, Melanie Heard, has created C.R.O.W. which stands for Children’s Repertory Oregon Workshops that works with youth from the local community in theater and dance. Check them out here: http://www.florenceplayhouse.com/

Florence has a variety of arts organizations, art galleries, photography club, art walks and the Oregon Coast Military Museum. One of our favorites is the Backstreet Gallery located in Old Town on Bay St. The artists man the gallery themselves and sponsor gallery events including a monthly “After Hours” opening where they serve wine and cheese and have quality local musicians performing. Check out their calendar and learn more: http://backstreetgallery.org/

I’ve probably missed some things but you can see that there is a lot going on in Florence, Oregon. And don’t forget our earlier blog about the Dunes and beautiful beaches. There are several motels here including one on the ocean with a very nice restaurant: http://www.driftwoodshores.com/  And there is nearly an endless variety of restaurants in this small town. Very popular is Mo’s on the river in Old Town: http://www.moschowder.com/florence.php  You can often see sea lions swimming by while feasting on great seafood.

We can’t leave Florence without mentioning the fishing both recreational and commercial. The Siuslaw River is a popular place for salmon fishing and you will see boats dotting the river during the salmon seasons. Tuna is available during tuna season directly from the commercial fishing boats on the docks. There’s nothing better than fresh-caught tuna steaks—yum!

The Oregon Coast Beaches often go on for miles. Remember a 45 minute hike to The Bella? And the beach stretched well beyond those 45 minutes. They are vast, seemingly endless and belong to the people of Oregon.

Everyone wants to live on water wherever that water happens to be. And on the North Coast of Oregon there are a lot of houses, hotels and rentals. But there is always a big stretch of sand between any buildings and the ocean and that kind of development mostly doesn’t exist on the Central and Southern Coastlines of Oregon. Wonder why?

“The shore of the Pacific Ocean, between ordinary high tied and extreme low tide, and from the Columbia River on the north to the Oregon and California State line on the south, is hereby declared a public highway and shall forever remain open as such to the public.”

Highway? This is wording from the bill signed into law by Gov. Oswald West in February of 1913. It was a remarkable achievement and attained by the persuasion that there was no cost to create or maintain this highway. The Oregon Legislature went for it. This noteworthy legislation preserved the Oregon Coast forever. 

At this time and for some time past the Oregon Coast Beaches were utilized as a highway by autos, horses, buggies, buckboards and stagecoaches.

There were long stretches of hard, smooth sand originally utilized by Native Americans for generations before white settlers came to also traverse them between coast villages and communities and lighthouses.

Late in the 19^th Century freight and passenger stage lines both traveled the sand highway. Stagecoaches were crude and were actually wagons with wider wheels that better negotiated over sand. They had roll-down curtains that helped protect passengers from rain, ocean spray and blowing sand.

The stagecoach year around operations were totally dependent on the timing of the tide. Getting caught in high tide could be tragic. The journey was a pleasant one depending on the weather. Plus there could be hidden dangers in the way of sneaker waves, quicksand, driftwood, buried logs and roots. Even being familiar with the sand route did not guarantee a hazard-free trip.

As autos entered the picture, their trips could be even more precarious because they were heavy and prone to sinking into the sand. They could move passengers and freight more quickly but often had to be aided out of their sand-stuck circumstances by teams of horses. They were, and still are, subject to the salt air effects on metal which could be devastating.

Several rivers and streams empty into the ocean and created yet another obstacle for the beach highway traveler. There were many styles of ferries to assist in crossing rivers and streams, the sternwheeler among them.

The Oregon Coast is quite rugged in places and the Northwest Pacific Ocean is cold and treacherous. There have been many shipwrecks and they were often a sight-seeing destination as was the Mimi Disaster in 1913. An adventure on the sand highway!

The Oregon Coast isn’t all smooth sailing sand and there are many places along the coast that are just steep, sheer rock drops into the water or at least very rocky outcroppings between sandy beaches.

How, then, did the beach highway travelers overcome these impediments? The most famous of these obstacles was Hug Point Road from Cannon Beach south to Arch Cape. Nothing but sheer rock was available to travel along the highway and travel they did over this blasted and chipped out route.

Waves would pour over the road especially at high tide and this road was best traveled at low tide. Today Hug Point Road is a tourist attraction destination showing signs of 100 years of ocean wave erosion. But, again, be careful to know the tide times as you can become stuck for hours during high tide waiting for the low tide.

Gov. West’s accomplished preservation of the Oregon Coast Beaches stands the Oregon people in good stead today. Access for the public to the entire coast is mandatory and has been created in built up areas along the north coast. The Central Coast near us at Umpqua River Haven and the Southern Coastal areas are more easily accessible and still well traveled. Traveled by hikers, swimmers, surfers, families, horseback riders, and, remember the Dunes? In the good weather you will find plenty of ATVs out for a run along the shore in designated areas.

I’ve even seen jeeps driving the Oregon Coast Beach Highway and vehicles that shouldn’t have been there. I went hiking on a mostly deserted stretch of beach one afternoon and came across a small station wagon that had attempted to drive to the beach from the parking lot. Unfortunately for him the sand was soft and deep and he was stuck waiting for assistance. I offered him a ride but he declined. He never made it to the beach.

I did have one brief driving-on-the-beach adventure one day when a friend decided to take his pickup out onto the sand nearly to the water, around in a circle and back to more solid ground. Kind of a swing out onto and around the beach.