South Jetty Resort Park Thousand Trails - Florence, OR

Thursday, June 14 - We drove 75 miles from Shamrock Village Rv Park, Eugene, OR to South Jetty Resort Park a Thousand Trails park in Florence, OR. The park is heavily treed and we can’t get the satellite to work and local channels with antenna are fuzzy and not worth watching. We have internet access to get the weather forecasts. Ray had to drive the RV in facing the rear of our site for the first time. Kind of nice to face schrubs and trees instead of the road.
Drove just north of Florence, OR, on US-101 and went past the Sea Lion Caves and stopped at the scenic overlook on the left. From here you can get an excellent view of Heceta Head Lighthouse and the keeper's house. Located in the middle of a steep tree-filled mountain side 205' above the sea this beacon of light, coming from a first order Fresnel lamp, has been sending its signal since 1894. I counted a flash at ten second intervals. It is a sister and a duplicate to the Umpqua River Light in Winchester Bay, OR.
Once we left the scenic overlook we went north on US-101 through the tunnel and over the bridge. The turn for Heceta Head Lighthouse Park is on the left not too far after the bridge. The park is a great way to enjoy the enormity of the Pacific Ocean and its constant wind and wave action against the massive rocks. It is also necessary to park there and climb the trail leading up the mountain to the lighthouse if you want to tour the lighthouse and the keeper's house.
At another stop on our return to Florence, we took pictures of the sea lions out on the rocks below us. The Steller sea lion is a member of the Otariidae family, or eared seal. It is characterized by an external ear which can be closed when entering water and by hind feet or flippers that point forward. This animal is also considered non-migratory because there is no mass movement to summer or winter grounds, although individuals or small groups may travel hundreds of miles in search of food. Sea lions breed and bear young in the spring, usually in May and June, although some breeding occurs as late as July or even August. We saw Western Gulls and Cormorants out on the rocks as well. We didn’t see any boats nor ocean surfing. Guess the 58 degree temperature was too cold.

Pictures of the mouth of the South Jetty Suislaw River.
Friday, June 15 - Rained in the morning, but the sun was out by 2pm so we drove to the Oregon Dunes. The wind was gusting a strong 20 mph and it was chilly, but we had fun driving through the park and seeing the beauty of azure blue sky meeting the sand dunes, some covered with green shrubs and yellow grasses moving in the winds. We climbed up one of the lowest dunes and tried to get a picture of the beach and the wind was so bad the sand was blowing so hard we decided not to go down to the beach. We retraced our steps and went on to see the ATV’s in action on a park specifically made for them called Goose Pasture Staging Area.
The Oregon Dunes National Recreation Area (or NRA) is located on the Oregon Coast, stretching approximately 40 miles north from the Coos River in North Bend, to the Siuslaw River, in Florence. These enormous sand dunes were formed nearly 12 million years ago when the sea that covered most of Oregon began to recede. The sandy sea floor remained and created what is now Oregon Dunes. The dunes themselves range from 50 feet to almost 3 mile wide. This is ATV heaven. Goose Pasture is staging area for ATV’s. Saw seals in crystal clear water north of the South Jetty Suislaw River.

Went to eat at the famous Mo’s Seafood Restaurant in Old Town. This quaint fishing village is situated on the banks of the Siuslaw River and has been beautifully restored in colorful themes reminiscent of the Victorian era. Numerous restaurants, art galleries, clothing and specialty shops; candies and T-Shirt shops are mixed among Gazebo Park and the new Boardwalk overlooking the fishing docks. The attraction to Mo’s must be the view, as the food was not anything we would want to recommend.
Siuslaw River Bridge
This magnificent span of beautiful architecture crosses the Siuslaw River just south of Florence. Built in the 1930's, it is another example of a McCullough bridge of which there are many up and down Hwy 101.
Saturday, June 17 - We drove south on Hwy. 101 to see the Sea Lion Caves while it was sunny. It was an awesome day with cobalt blue skies. When we parked and left the truck, we noticed a bad odor and asked the attendant and he verified it was the sea lions excrement we smelled from the rocks they sit on between fishing for food in the waters. The rugged landscape provides little shelter for the birds and sea lions, yet they find a rock to gain access from the open water. The cave was cold and damp, but really interesting to be able to see the sea lions up close.
Sea Lion Caves The Guiness Book of World Records has recently confirmed Sea Lion Caves as the largest sea caves in the world. It is the only known remaining home of wild stellar sea lions on the North American mainland and has attracted people from all over the world since its opening 65 years ago to the public

Sunday, June 17 - Took a drive south to see the landscape and get to Coos Bay. Stopped in Reedsport, a city in Douglas County and an hour’s drive from Florence. It was named for a local settler, Alfred W. Reed, who founded the city in 1912. Dropped a few dollars at the Sugar Shack Bakery & Espresso shop. Their bakery was awesome with everything homemade. We drove a long while on what we were told was the scenic route to Coos Bay. We were led to believe there were a lot of large ships inside Coos Bay loading up the lumber from the local mill, but didn’t see any. It was getting late, so we headed back to Florence.

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