Traveling During a Pandemic; Lincoln City, Oregon

Trip date: July & December 2020

A pandemic really puts a damper on travel; stating the obvious here. By July of last year I had already had to cancel four different trips. And now it was a friend's big birthday and there was no end in site of the travel restrictions. So she and I decided to book a safe road trip and get a change of scenery.

We were headed to Lincoln City, Oregon where neither of us had been before. I had found a large 2-bedroom, 2-bathroom condo with a private hot tub and ocean views and it seemed like a relaxing and socially distanced getaway. 

We took the long way down, driving I5 south to Longview and then 30 West to Highway 101 South. I had picked up sandwiches before leaving Seattle so we were able to stop and have a nice picnic in the sand at Cannon Beach, picking a place far from other beach goers.

Continuing on 101 we stopped at a few of the lookouts; the weather was stunning! 

We stopped at Manzanita Beach and had a quick walk around, and then onto Pacific City where we watched people climb the 240 foot high sand dune.

It was late afternoon when we got to Lincoln City, the drive had taken about 7 with stops. We found the condo building and parked in the underground garage. There were luggage carts by the elevators which was great as it made it easy to transport everything in one trip. Check in was self-service so we didn't have to interact with anyone. 

The condo was larger than we imagined! There was a big well stocked kitchen, gas fireplace, washer and dryer, and of course the private deck with hottub! 

We immediately set up some drinks and snacks outside so we could take in the ocean views. I cooked the birthday girl dinner that night of halibut with minted peas and roasted mushrooms. Afterwards we hung out in the hot tub and then played games and drank more wine. We had brought most everything from home so didn't need to go out for anything.

The next morning was cloudy but not raining, so we immediately set off for a walk down on the beach. The tide was out, exposing large rocks which were covered with mussels, barnacles, sea urchins, and starfish. I have never seen barnacles on a menu in the PNW, in Spain they are quite the delicacy, so I was surprised to see them!

There weren't many people on the beach so it was very easy to keep a safe distance. We walked a mile or so in each direction before heading back to the condo. 

Gail made a delicious breakfast of scrambled eggs, avocado, and homemade English muffins. I made mimosas, 'natch. Then we got in the car and set out to explore some more of the area. 

We walked around the cute Taft District, taking in views of Siletz Bay from the public beach. The very popular Mo's Seafood Restaurant was open and serving customers inside, they also had a pretty serious queue at their take-out window. We would not be dining inside anywhere.

Next stop, Depoe Bay. The ocean facing shops along main street here sell touristy t-shirts, salt water taffy, and ice-cream. We skipped the shopping and instead wandered along, watching the boats out in the harbor. And then we saw whales! Turns out this area is known for grey whales. Generally the whales are migrating to/from Alaska and Mexico, but often in the summer they don't go all the way north and stay here instead. It was a great treat just to be able to stand there and see them, especially for the birthday girl who absolutely loves whales. 

Back at the condo we hung out in the sun on our deck with some rosé, soaked in the hot tub, and played Mexican Trains. That evening we were able to spot the comet NEOWISE right from our deck! I'd say that spotting whales and a comet both on the same day is some kind of nature lottery ticket!

Dinner that evening was pan-fried crab cakes and artichokes that we had brought with us. Easy and delicious!

After breakfast the next day we drove to the Salishan area and parked in the golf course lot. From here we picked up the Salishan Spit Trail and headed out for a hike. It was very pretty, and we were the only ones out there, but 90% of the hike is on very soft sand!  

We did not make it all the way out to the tip of the spit to see the sea lions, a 5.8 mile out and back trek.  I had a blister that got really agitated by the sand and Gail finally made me take my trainers off and hike back barefoot. Luckily we spotted a few seals body surfing just out in front of us!

We were starving afterwards so called in a to-go order at the Side Door Cafe which had been recommended by a few of our friends. Pick up was very easy and my Dungeness crab melt was awesome! 

We absolutely LOVED this big condo with the amazing views and private deck so when trips continued to be canceled throughout 2020 and I realized that for the first time in 16 years I would not be traveling for New Years Eve, I suggested to Gail that we go back.

We weren't able to get the same unit but we still found a 2-bedroom in the same building. This one was on the ground floor and was a corner unit, still with a private hot tub. And both bedrooms had ensuite bathrooms which was a plus. 

The weather is very different in December vs. July so this time we skipped the beaches and drove straight down I5 to 99W. As we were going right through Oregon wine country we made a stop at Four Graces Winery which was open and had outdoor seating. It was a nice little break and the wines were lovely, we bought some to take with us. 

Again, the condo had self-check in so no need to see anyone. We unloaded the car and hit the hot tub; the views here just can't be beat! 

Since it was New Years Eve we had picked up "cook at home" meals in Seattle from Lark and appetizers from Mamnoon (which even came with party favors!) We had a delicious dinner, lots of wine, played Mexican Trains, and FaceTimed our friends in Australia and France.

It was far from my normal NYE of being in some foreign and/or exotic location halfway around the world, but it was so much fun and again just felt great to have a change in scenery. 

There were huge storms all weekend with winds up to 70 MPH and monster waves! We didn't leave the condo once. We just watched the storm, watched old movies in front of the fire, played games, cooked, and hung out in the hot tub. Well until we saw a lightning strike anyway! 

The weather cleared the day we were leaving so we got a short walk on the beach in before heading for home. 

I'm really happy to have options like this for short, safe getaways. But I'll be happier when we can all go about business as usual again!

All photos from Lincoln City are here and here. 

Traveling During a Pandemic; Oregon Coast

Trip dates: June 2020

Pandemic. The word that put travel to a stop. March 2020 came in like a lion and messed up everything. There would be no annual trip to Hawaii. April; the New York trip with Broadway tickets was cancelled. May; South of France, Lake Como, Lichtenstein with friends- all cancelled. 

I was depressed. Many people were. I wasn't going to fly anywhere but when my aunt and uncle mentioned they were driving to Oregon in their RV I immediately suggested a family reunion somewhere on the coast. I didn't care where, I had never been to the Oregon coast, I just needed to get away.

My brother said he was game so the plan was set. The RV would be in Garibaldi, my brother got us an Airbnb across the water in Bay City. There was a (road) trip on the calendar! 

I'm not actually a big road trip person. I mean if I am in Scotland or Slovenia, sure! But in my own backyard I get a little antsy. Not as antsy as sitting at home for 3 months though. So I took I5 from Seattle to Portland (I hadn't even driven this in years as I always take Amtrak!) and then took Hwy 26 to 6, west to Tillamook. Total drive would be about 4 ½ hours. The only stop I made was at a Taco Bell drive-thru for lunch; at this point very few places had dine-in service and I wasn't interested in that anyway.

Driving through the Tillamook State Forest was gorgeous, until I hit Tillamook proper and had to close my sunroof and windows. Pew, cows galore! But it was still pretty. And it felt so good to be in unchartered territory again!

My family had arrived in the area the day before and were all settled in when I showed up. The Airbnb my brother had arranged for us was very big and very 70's in style. There was a massive deck that ran the length of the house but unfortunately there was no deck furniture and the BBQ was a sad heap of rust. Luckily my uncle had plenty of lawn furniture, a BBQ, and a smoker in his RV so we were in business!

It was spectacularly sunny when I arrived so we planted ourselves on that big deck with the gorgeous views of the bay and caught up. There was rosé, steamed clams, duck-fat washed Sazeracs (I had pre-batched), and a fantastic smoked tri-tip dinner that my uncle made. 

It felt great! And a bit weird after being cooped up for so long. My family doesn't seem to take COVID as seriously as I do (even though they are all older than me) so I had some stress around their lack of concern. But we all hadn't been together in years and this was a great first night (spent outside). 

The next day we drove to Netarts for lunch at The Schooner. This was my first meal in a restaurant since the pandemic. I was a bit nervous but luckily the restaurant had a big outside patio with tables spaced apart. It wasn't the best fish and chips I'd ever had but it was fine. The beer was good! The company better!

After lunch we drove along the shore road until we got to Nevor Shellfish. This was an accidental find of my uncle's and a good one! I learned from looking them up later that owner Travis Oja has been working to bring back the Olympic oyster, which was near extinction in the 1920s. The oysters are grown in bags which the tide flows through and around, giving them a really briny and delicious flavor. We were excited to grill our purchase!

Back in Tillamook we stopped in at Blue Heron Cheese and bought some snacks and then Bay City Fish Peddler for some Dungeness Crab that was caught right in our bay.  

Back at the house my brother learned to shuck oysters while my uncle grilled them. Crab was cracked and dunked in butter. Yahtzee was played. It was a very fun night! In fact it was so fun that I changed my plans to leave the next day, and extended my trip one more night.

The next day was cool and rainy unfortunately. We headed to the fishing docks in Garibaldi and bought provisions for dinner that night- a side of salmon and some smoked black cod from The Spot. The guy helping us was so great he even threw in a bit extra at no charge. 

There wasn't much else to do with things like the Tillamook Cheese Factory closed due to COVID. We stopped into the pub Kelly's Place for lunch. It wasn't good nor was it worth the risk of eating inside. Luckily I had sanitizer spray with me as they didn't seem to.  

                                    

I made slow roasted salmon and burrata salad for dinner, which turned out very well. We had another round of Yahtzee before my aunt and uncle left for the RV park. My brother and I polished off the rest of the duck-fat Sazeracs before heading to bed. Another very nice evening.

The next morning it was time to say goodbye. I decided to take the long way home, up the 101 past more Oregon beaches since I hadn't been to any of them before. It was a lovely, leisurely drive with stops at Rockaway, various viewpoints, and of course Cannon Beach. With the stops, my drive home was about 5 ½ hours. Lunch was Taco Time drive-thru.

It was so nice to get away from home and a great excuse to see some of the Oregon Coast! But travel during a pandemic also brings some logistical challenges with it. This was a good first foray into doing travel a bit different. 

All photos here.