ComputerHunter.org |
|
|
|||
|
 |
Yachats, OR: An Outdoor Lovers Paradise on the Oregon Coast
There is something about a town tucked between the mountains and the sea. Often, it feels like one has reached the far end of the world when he or she arrives in a place like this. Some well-known examples are Bar Harbor, Maine and Big Sur, California. I have been to Bar Harbor and nearby Northeast Harbor, and indeed, these towns do have a special feel to them, with beautiful mountains on one side and sparking ocean on the other. While planning an early summer trip along the Oregon coast with a friend of mine, I read about a town named Yachats. It looked like it might be another one of those places "where the mountains meet the sea." The travel books all gave this town high marks, so we decided that we would stay there on the first night of the trip. My friend and I flew into Portland on a day that featured record heat. The outdoor temperature gauge in our car read 99 degrees as we left the airport. We drove west toward the Pacific, and watched the temperature drop degree by degree as we got closer to the sea. By the time we reached the seaside town of Tillamook, the temperature was 49 degrees-a 50-degree drop in about 70 miles! We followed the coastal road through some of the most spectacular country that I had ever seen. Sea stacks, fog, steep cliffs, and remote seaside villages lent a haunting feel to the area. We drove through the bustling town of Newport, the last town before Yachats. We followed the wooded road for awhile longer, then entered Yachats. I looked around and saw a couple of gift shops, a seafood restaurant, a pay phone?and that was about it. "Is this it?" I asked my friend. We decided to drive a bit further, but were quickly in the woods again. We turned around, wondering what could possibly be the allure of this place. We located the motel that we were to stay in for the night, and started to understand why the travel books raved about this place. Directly behind the motel was a scene that included rolling fog over a choppy Pacific Ocean, sea stacks and small cliffs surrounding a small, sandy beach, and a winding path that led in both directions along the coast. From my room, I could hear the waves crashing against the rocks. The smell of the sea was everywhere. Suddenly I couldn't wait to see the rest of Yachats. After we settled in, my friend and I decided to check out the ocean path. It seemed to head toward the center of town, which was about a mile away. We walked along some of the path, breathing in the fresh air and admiring the cottages along the cliffs. But it was getting late and we were hungry, so we headed back to the motel and drove into town. There was a rustic little seafood restaurant in the center of town that had a terrific view of the Pacific. We stopped there for dinner and I had a very satisfying plate of fish and chips (I would subsequently have fish and chips for dinner every night for the next four nights). I ate too much, as usual, though, and we decided to walk off our dinners before the sun went down. There really wasn't much to Yachts, but it definitely had a certain charm to it. We walked through town, noting that there was a breakfast place; this would come in handy on our way out. Soon we came to the harbor, and took a right along a side road that wound along the coast. The road had a sandwich shop on one side and an angry, churning sea on the other. We continued along the road and soon discovered that it led to the path back to the motel. We backtracked to the car with the intentions of walking into town in the morning. I'm not sure I have ever slept as well as I did that night in Yachats. The combination of flying the day before, then driving a long distance obviously helped. But more than that, the continuous sounds, smell, and feel of the ocean, a scant 100 feet away, permeated my room. By the time I woke up the next morning, to say I felt refreshed would be a major understatement. Our second day in Yachats was much more promising, weather-wise; while still foggy, there were patches of blue sky above, and it was a bit warmer out. We left the motel, headed to the path and took a left toward town. The path wound its way toward town, skirting cliffs and passing by quirky beach homes. After about a half mile, the path ended at the road we had been on the night before. My friend and I continued into town, seeing for the first time that Yachats was surrounded by mountains. It was low tide, causing the town harbor to become more like a huge, sandy beach, so we walked down to it and went as far as we could before hitting the water. The view back toward town was very nice, with mountains and beach seeming to meet right where the town was. We checked out of the motel and left Yachats, but on the way out of town, we saw what might have been the most spectacular part of the area; a place called Cape Perpetua. This was a place where the mountains TRULY met the sea. Cliffs nearly 1,000 feet high tumbled down to the rocky coast, and several paths crossed the area. We spent a good amount of time here before heading to our next destination. While we saw some unforgettable places during the rest of the trip, Yachats still stands out in my mind every time I think about the Oregon coast. Copyright 2005, Travel Guide of America. All Rights Reserved. Marc is a writer who has helped create Travel Guide of America, a US travel guide that focuses on interesting cities, towns, and villages that are vacation destinations. You can find out more about Yachats on the Yachats, Oregon page in Travel Guide of America.
Google News - Top Stories
|
|
|
|
RELATED ARTICLES
The Great Outdoors is to be Explored and Loved in all its fullness The thing with enjoying the great outdoors is seeing aspects of life that you do not normally see during your normal weekly activities. The familiar sea breezes, the smells of spring flowers, the winter winds, fantastic views from mountain tops and so much more. RV Camping at Casinos There's nothing that will quicken the interest of RVers like the prospect of free overnight parking. Places such as Wal-Mart parking lots, and truck stops, are well known freebies, and if you are on the move in your RV, expanding the list of possible free overnight camping locations will broaden your options. What is especially encouraging is that Casinos as a whole are RV friendly. Drive Me to WA Today! Western Australia Driving Adventure Great Australian Road Trip Large is not the word for it. Massive doesn't cover it either. Gigantanormous might be a little closer to the mark, but unfortunately you won't find it in any dictionaries. Welcome to Western Australia, where elbow room has never been a problem. If you're looking for the ultimate Great Australian Road Trip, then flying into Perth is an excellent first step. One of the most popular road trips you can do in the big WA is cruising up the enormous stretch of coastline to the north, stopping along the way to visit tiny towns, romp along beaches with no footprints, and burrow around mind-blowing national parks. Gearing up and getting outta here! The adventurous will be aiming for Broome and beyond, to lose themselves in the wilds of Kimberly, freaking out at the alien landscape of the Bungle Bungles before crossing the border and heading for Darwin. Those of us who like to shower a little more often will probably cruise along the North West Coastal Highway as far as the popular holiday town of Exmouth ? possibly popping over to Karijini National Park (well worth a look) ? before turning around and heading home. Before you rush out into the unending horizon, make sure you've got a trusty car at the ready, able to take punishing distances, and equipped with life-saving air-conditioning. Not having a car isn't even an option in a state the size of India, with the majority of the population clinging to the outskirts of Perth and south coast. So if you don't have your own, grab yourself a good deal for a Perth car hire, chuck your luggage, stores of water and petrol in the back, and put your foot on the accelerator. Need a car for your road trip? Rent one at Car Rental Perth Cavorting up the coast First stop should be the Pinnacles in Nambung National Park near Cervantes with random spooky limestone pillars standing silently in the sand, staring at you. Stay over in Cervantes or keep the wheels turning until you reach Geraldton ? WA's second largest city. If you're a keen diver or like to snorkel, then charter a boat (or catch the seaplane) and check out the Abrolhos Islands, and have a float around the Batavia shipwreck. Just up the road (relative to distances regularly encountered in WA) is the resort town of Kalbarri with its national park ? easily accessible by cars and walking. Get back in your car and keep your foot on the gas until you get to the World Heritage listed Shark Bay. This unbelievably ecologically diverse area tends to be overshadowed by the fame of Monkey Mia's friendly dolphins, but poking around the bays to spot turtles and serene dugongs can be infinitely as rewarding as an encounter with one of the bottle-nosed dolphins. Visit the Zuytdorp Cliffs and Shell Beach (where the sand is actually composed of ? yep, you guessed it ? little white shells). If you're roaring around in a 4WD you can hike your way out to Francois National Park. The next mandatory stop is Coral Bay and Exmouth to reward yourself with balmy year-round weather, and Ningaloo Reef, where you can't splash around without bumping into a big underwater creature of some kind. After this, it's the determination of dusty traveler which will get you past the next many hundreds of kilometers, past the industrial towns of Dampier, Karratha and Port Hedland and on into Broome, the charming doorstep to the wilds of the Kimberley ? one of the last great unconquered expanses of nature left in the world. It's here you can throw around all the over-the-top descriptors you like: rugged, breathtaking, spiritual, bloody brilliant. But you'll have to go there yourself. Save me from using up all my adjectives. Beyond that, you've only got Kununurra and the Bungle Bungles before you cross the border and into the NT. Need a car in Perth? There's a plethora of websites out there which hunt down cheap car hire deals and put them all on the one website. Just do a search on google for "car hire deals" or go to a website such as http://www.vroomvroomvroom.com.au who often have good Perth and Western Australia deals. Drive Safe and Happy Adventuring! Survival in the Wilderness: What to Do, What You Need Summer is for picnics, hikes, outdoor concerts, barbeques ... and enjoying the wilderness. How To Buy a Used RV - Part 1 If you are on a tight budget and can't afford a new model RV you might consider buying a used RV. Here are a few suggestions for finding a used, affordable RV: River Cruise in Bangkok ? Sightseeing on the Chao Phraya A river cruise in Bangkok gives an insight to the community life on the Chao Phraya River and the legacies on this river of kings, a picture of stark contrasts. Disneyland for Hikers: A Walk to Mt. Whitney Base camp sits at 12,000 feet - stark, windy, unshaded from the blazing August sun, but an otherwise great place to stop for a snack. Voices echo across cold granite as the breeze wraps around dozens of tents, backpacks, cooking stoves, and bear-proof food canisters. An unopened package of banana chips on my lap is immediately snatched up by a marmot, unhindered by my presence and unfazed by my pursuit. Old Barney -- A Visit to Barnegat Light, New Jersey Barnegat Light, NJ is the home to "Old Barney" a historic lighthouse located at the northern tip of Long Beach Island. Long Beach Island, or "LBI" as the vacationing folks like to say, is a narrow island nearly twenty miles long and six miles at sea off the coast of Ocean County, NJ. Mystic Seaport Captured ? Links to Our Past Guide, Part 3 Mystic Seaport celebrates the seafaring past of New England. Known as The Museum of America and the Sea, the seaport is an entertaining journey through 19th century nautical life. Kayak Travel and Trips If you love the thrill and adventure of kayak travel, the waters and lakes are yours to explore! Mankind has always been drawn to the sea and a kayak trip is truly one of the ultimate highs as far as kayak travel is concerned. Human beings have always invented useful devices that enhance our lifestyles and kayak travel is a great and marvelous feat, which blends excitement, fun and freedom of movement in one great adventure. Calculate Food Quantities for Camping and Outdoor Recreation As the warmer weather approaches, we look forward to another season of camping and enjoying the fun, relaxation, and beauty that the outdoor environment has to offer. I am anxious to get out on weekends to some of my favorite campsites around Kentucky and Indiana. Of course I'll have plenty of fishing gear to bring along in case some of my family or friends join in on the adventures that are sure to come with each outing. This is the most enjoyable thing for me when I see others having a great time hiking, fishing, throwing Frisbees?, or sitting around the campfire telling stories or singing campfire songs.There are several things I try to consider before I begin packing for a camping trip. First of course, is how long will I be gone? How much time do I have to get away from the "9 to 5", unwind and get refreshed by the fresh air, sunshine, and peaceful scenery that nature provides so abundantly? This summer, I'm going to try to get out more frequently on the weekends so I'll talk a little about short outings that are not too distant from home. This will allow me more time for what I actually want to do, and that of course, is to camp. I don't want to spend 5 hours going and 5 hours coming, using basically a whole day just for traveling. If I pick a place that's within a 100 mile radius, I should be able to find several dozen places to visit and spend less than 4 hours of total travel time.Ok, that sound great, I can think of a dozen places within 100 miles right of the top of my head. Lake Monroe, where my youngest son and I visited last year, is only 1 hour and 45 minutes from my home. That was a great weekend camping trip and my daughter and her friends at IU came from Bloomington to join in the fun. Several of the girls had not fished much at all, and I had more fun than they did watching them scream and holler as we caught over 70 bluegill. It was a great thrill for them to actually catch, clean, and eat fresh fish. Most of the panfish were a little on the small side, but I had them keep them for several reasons. One of course, is the fish sometimes swallow the hook and it's nearly impossible to throw them back when this happens. Another reason I sometimes keep small bluegill, is that it helps other aquatic life to have more abundant food sources. Anyway, after we cleaned them all, they were absolutely delicious dipped in a bowl of egg and milk, rolled in cracker crumbs and cornmeal, and fried to a golden brown. And of course we had several bags to take home, which seemed like it made the camping trip last longer than just the weekend.But let's get back to some of the essentials of planning your weekend camping trip. After you've decided on how much time you have, you will need to consider how many nature lovers are going camping. That's usually the easy part. So if you've got 5 people going, and you're going to be gone for two nights and two days, you'll want to figure how many meals that will be. I'd say it will be in the neighborhood of 2 dinners, 2 breakfast, and 2 lunches, not including snack times. So we'll need enough food for 10 people (5 x 2) for essentially one day. That should calculate to an average of 8-10 ounces of meat per person, 8-10 ounces of vegetables and fruit per person, and 8-10 servings of bread or grains per two persons. You can also use the 8-10 rule for your drinks for a total of 8-10, (8-10 oz. drinks) including water, per person per day. This may seem like a lot of liquid, but when you consider 3 meals a day and an additional drink in between, you are already at 6 drinks a day. Remember, dehydration is a major cause of heat stroke. If you're going hiking, swimming, or playing any type of running sport, this will easily bring the drink count up an additional 3 or more for a total of 9 drinks a day. Let's make an easy formula to go by.---------------------------------------------------------------------------FOOD QUANTITY FORMULA5 people for 2 days = (5 x 2 = 10)10 x 8-10 ounces = (80-100 ounces meat) or 5-6¼ lbs.10 x 8-10 ounces = (80-100 ounces fruits and veggies) or 5-6¼ lbs.8-10 servings bread or grain per (2) persons8-10 (8-10 oz. drinks) per person (per day)NOTE: Hard cheeses such as American and Swiss include in meat weight.Soft cheeses such as cultures add to fruits and vegetables weight.Eggs may be separate.---------------------------------------------------------------------------So that's a pretty good rule of thumb to go by for your "3 squares." If you like to snack, which goes great with camping, bring along your chips, marshmallows, or no bake cookies and you'll never go hungry. Don't forget the milk if your bring chocolate.* * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * Packing a Backpack - A Guide With so many different designs, packing a backpack will vary considerably. Generally though, the key to packing your backpack is to achieve even weight distribution. Packing your heavy items at the top will pull you backwards ? packing your heavy items near the base will drag you downwards. Therefore ensure that your heavy items are packed relatively in the middle to balance the weight. Lake Jipe straddling Tanzania and Kenya So unknown is this treasure of Lake Jipe not many Tanzanians know of its existence or location. Sandwiched between the Pare mountains and Kilimanjaro this small lake [30 km sq] straddles the border between Kenya and Tanzania. This lake has a many water birds and is one of the few places in East Africa that the Lesser Jacana and Purple Gallinule are common. Also Madagascar Squacco Herron, Black Herron, African Darter and African Skimmer are often seen here. River Rafting in California River rafting is a major attraction in California. The most popular California river rafting destination is the mighty American River. The American River begins in the Sierra Nevada Mountains and runs to the Sacramento River. The American River splits into three forks before it converges. The North Fork, the Middle Fork, and the South Fork each offer rafters unique adventures. A Hiking Guide to Easter Island Ask me which Pacific island has the most to offer hikers and I'll probably answer Easter Island. Here on an island 11 km wide and 23 km long you'll find nearly a thousand ancient Polynesian statues strewn along a powerfully beautiful coastline or littering the slopes of an extinct volcano. Too much to do in London! No one can truly say they know London well. To know London completely is impossible. London changes faster than pigeons descending into the fountains of Trafalgar Square. Home to inhabitants for over 2,000 years now London has grown from the protective circle of the Tower to a sprawling metropolis, the ideal platform for constant illustrious activity. Always where there is history there are tales to tell. Tourists are naturally drawn to the regular tourist attractions, yet it is the true travellers that seek deeper to find the gems of a 2,000 year-old town. It only takes a very small amount of investigating to find something more rewarding, more interesting, more inspiring in London, than the London Dungeons (although it must be said ? is a damn good laugh if you can bear the hour long queues!). For instance, not even a minute's walk from the London Dungeons is the Hay's Galleria. This gem is for some totally bizarre reason hidden from all guidebooks and tourist information ? no doubt to preserve its lack of thousands of tourists making it a less exclusive haven. Please go there! It's a beautiful indoor/outdoor menagerie of a few select shops, with a vast concourse of cafes, market stalls, bands, presentations, and of course, it overlooks a beautiful part of the Thames. Turn right from Hays Galleria and you find yourself in a Thames-side walkway next to the newest buildings in town. The architecture is phenomenal, and these lord-mayor buildings are still so new that you can imagine that the cellophane has just freshly been peeled off all the windows. You are welcome to enter the Lord Mayor's building (it's the one shaped like a golf ball), go to the top and marvel at the mind-boggling roundness of it all ? plus of course see the spectacular views of the HMS Belfast, Tower Bridge & the Tower of London. Continue strolling directly into the I-Witness open-air gallery, before maybe snacking on a hot-dog in the mini-fairground. Walk past the green that previously hosted many Hollywood film premieres in giant marquees, the David Blaine in-a-box episode, plus many other varied events, and you are literally underneath Tower Bridge, keep walking and you are now in Shad Thames, a true delight of traffic-free, cobbled streets full of people, giving you a precise feeling of how the London streets felt hundreds of years ago. It is as if these streets have been restored from long ago, thus delivering to the traveller a wonderfully rich blend of old and new in the same vicinity. Circle around Shad Thames, past the ever-changing Design-Museum, and find yourself in Butlers Wharf, a charming quay-side collection of bars & restaurants all overlooking the Thames opposite the equally picturesque St Katherine's Dock. Trust me when I tell you that Butlers Wharf is the ultimate in romantic settings. Hays Galleria to Butlers Wharf is one walk of quite possibly hundreds to choose from, in fact ? that's a whole day right there! There are equal delights even if you turned left out of Hay's Galleria instead, especially the Clink Street Prison Museum, Vinopolis (Wine Museum), Borough Market, Southwark Cathedral, I could go on?. Great streets, great walks, great museums (forget the big-ones ? go to the Children's museum in Bethnal Green for a real treat). It is frustrating to think that the bulk of visitors to London wind up staying in some of the least interesting areas. Paddington & Bayswater are both great areas, being so close to Hyde Park & Kensington Gardens (now home to the finally-completed Princess Diana shrine). Kensington & Earls Court have their highlights too, but there is more to London than the tried and tested tourist routes. I recently stayed in a five star hotel in the middle of the city on the weekend for less than one hundred pounds a night, and was amazed at exactly how completely empty the city of London was. I was in heaven! There I was in the middle of one of the oldest cities around, and I had it all to myself! City hotels are notorious for being completely empty on weekends, hence the great rates. I am sure tourists pay over the hundred pounds per night threshold to stay in 'trendy' Kensington etal, when they could easily stay next to Tower Bridge, St Paul's, Millennium Bridge etc, for much less. Needless to say that the City of London (the financial centre) is absolutely coloured with history, everywhere you go there are buildings proclaiming their 16th century origins, and they are in abundance. I was recently taken to what is supposedly one of the oldest London pubs in existence. Again, this pub is not only hidden from the guidebooks and the common information sources, it is also hidden from the public! I had to be taken there, as I would never have been able to find it unless accompanied. This pub is hidden from the world. It is sandwiched between two narrow streets and therefore completely obscured from any main thoroughfare. It has its own courtyard and as you stand supping a pint outside, it is as if you are in Victorian London. Look down the misty streets and it is easy to conjure up an old bobby on the beat blowing his whistle, or Jack the Ripper lurking in the shadows. Oh - and there's a 150 year old tree growing through the building, to add to the oddity of the pub. Hampstead is another great area waiting to be discovered. Covered in green spaces, Hampstead (North London) is perfect for the idyllic setting combined with the close proximity to the big-smoke. Steeped in its own folklore, Hampstead was home to Dick Turpin (apparently he was born at the Spaniard's Inn ? hugely popular and famous pub on the Heath) of which his ghost still roams Kenwood house, and the surrounding woodlands. The high streets of Hampstead, Belsize Park, and the immaculately kept Primrose Hill are possibly the last untouched-by-commercialism streets in London (no Starbucks here!). If you want breath-taking views of the city, historical sites detailing the 'first entry point into London', combined with al-fresco dining, and an altogether more relaxed atmosphere, Hampstead is the place, and less than 15 minutes on the tube to the city centre! Now do you see why it seems frustrating that tourists stay in less desirable areas when they could stay in an altogether more inspiring location, just as close to all the major attractions? Of course, Hampstead is one of London's many beauty spots, yet the city is not all about beauty. As with any home to approximately 10 million people, varied activity is rife. London events cannot help but affect all, every Londoner has an opinion on the congestion zone, on the ill-fated Millennium Dome, on Tony Blair, in fact on any topic you care to mention. Start a conversation with any London black-cab driver ? typically famous for their outspoken views, and you will find yourself immediately thrown into the debate of the day. So, when visiting London do not even attempt to see it all ? you cannot. In a city where already this year a Roman road has been uncovered a mile below ground level dating back to 1 AD, and where Paddington workers uncovered Brunel's first iron-bridge ? one they didn't know existed - London is forever creating wonders on a regular basis. enq@VisitHotels.com www.VisitHotels.com Beach Vacation Photo Tips ? Make Your Vacation AND Photos Memorable Most people, who go on a family beach vacation, take plenty of photographs. Once you're home and you view or print them out; are you ecstatic, bored, or disappointed? Be honest, now! Great Indian Holidays Holidays in India, awesome in her size and diversity. This virtual sub-continent, stretches from the lofty Himalyas , a series of 2000km long mountain ranges in the north, to the extensive deserts in the west, the lush evergreen forest in the south to the far-flung sub Himalayan forests in the North East. Containing within it three mighty rivers, the Indus, the Ganga and the Brahmaputra, the immense Indo-Gangetic Plain, the Deccan Plateau and the two major hill chains of the South, the Western Ghats, bordering the southwestern coast from Maharashtra, across Goa and Karnataka into Kerala and the Eastern Ghats on the Coromondal Coast. Finally, the Lakhshadweep Islands in the Arabian Sea and the Andaman and Nicobar Islands in the Bay of Bengal. Lake Winnipesaukee ? The Smile of the Great Spirit Lake Winnipesaukee is the largest and one of the deepest lakes in New Hampshire. Centered in the popular vacation area known as the Lakes Region it provides 4-season pleasure for millions every year. The Best Safari Company for Your Safari Trip - Heres How To Choose Which is the best African safari company for my safari trip?
|
|
|
|
|
