It has been a while since we visited the coast, and we were craving some seawater. Saturday morning, we grabbed a bag with extra socks and snacks and hit the road. Destination: Newport's Bayfront.
Since D had only been to Newport once, and over a year ago, we zoomed down I-5 to Hwy 34. The drive took us through the college town of Corvallis, through Philomath, then over the river and through the forest to Eddyville. It was here that D declared this as his favorite route to the coast. I'm different, I guess. After living in Salem for over a decade, I prefer taking Hwy 22 & 18 to Lincoln City, but that's mainly due to familiarity. The drive down Hwy 34 then Hwy 20 was very pretty.
Curvier than my old familiar route, for sure.
Once we arrived in Toledo, we left the main highway and took Bay Blvd around the north side of Yaquina Bay - past oyster farms, historic markers, boat repair shops, and RV parks. We marveled at all the mud and decided it must be low tide. (A peek at a tide table later confirmed this.)
We lucked out and found a parking spot in the Old Bayfront, and walked less than a block to my favorite dock.
What's going on here?
They're watching the local entertainment, of course!
We hung out for about an hour, watching the sea lions argue, fight for space on the docks, bark, and sun themselves. (In contrast, we behaved nicely, shared space at the railing, giggled at the sea lion antics, and sunned ourselves.)
This guy is a real turd. I'm surprised he was even allowed onto the dock.
Here is D standing on the dock, taking some video of the rowdy sea lions fighting for space and barking at each other.
When we'd had enough, we took a stroll up and down NW Bay Blvd and took lots of pictures, which we'll share with you over the next few days.
by P
If you missed the other posts from this daytrip, click on a picture below to see more.
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