Tillamook, Oregon

After a relaxing week in Newport, OR we pushed down the road about 70 miles to Tillamook, OR.  This town is along one of the bays and it got its start when the settlers realized that it was a very good place to raise cows for dairy purposes. The mild temperatures and consistent rain made for green and abundant grass which led to happy cows which led to a lot of milk produced to make one of the best cheeses and ice creams in the country.  We visited the Tillamook Cheese Factory on our first day in the area and we were so happy we did.  I had a grilled cheese sandwich, Gary had a mac and cheese and then we both had a single scoop waffle cone from their visitor's center.  SO YUMMY!! We learned a lot about the factory.  They started around 1850 and the sailboat they have on their logo is a representation of the fleet that would take their product from Tillamook to Portland as a favor starting around 1855.  They decided to add the ship to their logo to return the favor.  Today the factory is a cooperative made up of 90 different farms in the area.  They greet about 1.3 million visitors a year.  It made us very happy to know an  American business is alive and thriving.  :)

Our week in the area was busy but still relaxing.  We visited the lighthouse on Cape Mears but the highlight of that area was the Octopus Tree which is a Sitka Spruce.  The tree is around 250-300 years old and nobody is sure if its shape is due to training by Native Americans or by nature.  We walked the beaches of Netart and Oceanside where we found a number of Agates. On the way back to Tillamook, we found a shellfish farm where we found oysters for sale straight from the farm!  It was just this little room where a young girl was busy sorting and counting the oysters.  We asked all kinds of questions and then decided to purchase 2 dozen oysters, one of each kind.  We went home and Gary watched a video (thank goodness for YouTube!) on how to shuck an oyster.  We had oysters for dinner which was Heaven!!  We also visited the Air Museum which is on a Naval Air Station for blimps.  There were many airplanes and mock ups of different invasions throughout history.  One highlight for me was seeing a Naval plan that my big brother flew when he was a flyboy for the Navy.  One day we decided to drive down the road for about an hour and we visited Canon Beach.  The town is so quaint and charming but very busy with tourists.  The beach area is wonderful with the highlight being Haystack Rock.  I think I could spend more time in the area but only if I rented a house right on the beach. On the way to Canon Beach we stopped in Rockaway Beach.  It is a little town right along the coast line where the most noted detail is that the original Pronto Pup (corn dog) was invented in 1941.  Hard to imagine such a significant food could come from such a small town. We decided to travel a bit further down the road to find a Costco but in transit we found that there is a National Park!  It is the Lewis and Clark National Park.  It covers the area where Lewis and Clark traveled and discovered with the help of Sacagewea.  We decided to picnic within the park and then walked a little trail that led from the sea to the fort that was built to spend the winter in.  It was a relaxing and scenic walk while I regaled Gary with my stories of me playing the role of Sacagewea in my 4th grade play about the history of the state of Idaho. :)

A highlight for me was spending my birthday in this area.  We always give members of our family free reign on our birthdays.  We get to do what we want and call all the shots for the day.  I chose to take a steam engine train ride along the ocean and then go to Tillamook Cheese Factory for a double scoop, chocolate dipped waffle cone dish!!  :P It was a good day.  :)  I think we will definitely come back to the Oregon Coast at some point in our travels.  It is a very relaxing and tranquil part of the country.

Pacific Shores Motorcoach Resort

Wow, what a nice resort. We stayed at this resort for our time in the Newport, Oregon area and it was fantastic. The park is conveniently located right off the 101 and just a couple of miles north of Newport on the cliff overlooking a secluded beach. The sites are privately owned and those site owners are the collective owners of the park. The sites themselves are large with plenty of space for the largest coaches and a tow vehicle. The park has a central club house with country club quality bathrooms and showers, a small workout room that is just a couple of pieces of cardio equipment, an indoor pool and a large meeting room. The park has direct access via a walking path to the beach below it. The wifi at this park also worked well. One note to remember is that they only allow motorhomes, no trailers or 5th wheels. This park is easily a 5 out of 5 and we will be coming back here.

Newport, OR

After our long stay in Boise, we hit the road again to continue the adventure. We had planned to drive about half way to the Oregon coast and spend the night at either a rest stop or a truck stop, but when we got close to Portland there was no room, so we ended up pushing through and pulled into Newport at just after 10pm. It gave us an extra day in the area, but we were tired after 12 hours of driving. We spent the week exploring the Newport area. We walked the Nye Beach and Bay Front historic areas, visited Lincoln City, went to the aquarium, enjoyed several good seafood meals and Danelle even got a bonus beach day for the one day that the wind cooperated. I had a chance to walk the beach, which was my main goal for this stop, and have an overall relaxing week. My favorite place was the lighthouse and beach area around the Yaquina Bay. Our RV resort sat on the cliffs above a secluded beach and we were able to watch the sunset over the ocean from our coach. We definitely are planning to come back and spend more time in this area.

Boise, Idaho

We had a great 2+ weeks in Boise visiting family and friends. The visit also overlapped with Danelle's high school reunion, which gave her a chance to see many of her friends from that period of her life. After our quick trip to Sioux Falls, we got busy having dinners and lunches with as many friends as possible. We also hosted a party at a local pizza place to get a big group together for a night of eating, drinking and catching up. Just because your house is on wheels, it doesn't mean you can't throw a party. We spent the 4th of July at Meridian Speedway watching the races and fireworks, but missed out on a chance to float the Boise river due to the water level being too high. All in all it was a busy yet relaxing visit, but we were ready to get back on the road and continue exploring this great country.

Mountain View RV Park

For our visit to Boise we decided to stay at the Mountain View RV Park due to its proximity to the freeway and the friends and family we planned to visit. The park is right next to the freeway off the airport exit. We were fortunate to have a site as far away from the freeway as possible, so the road noise for us was not an issue. The sites are on the small side, but big enough to easily put out awnings and be able to get around your coach. They offer a small bathroom and shower room, which was OK, and a small laundry room. The best amenity that the park offered was working wifi. They offer free wifi for 6 hours a day on a given device or wifi packages that you can purchase. The price for the park was very reasonable and we already plan to stay here again when we visit in October. We rate this park a 4 out of 5 due to the location and value.

Sioux Falls, South Dakota

After traveling to Boise from Bend, Oregon, we took a quick trip to Sioux Falls to finalize setting up our home base in South Dakota. We were only in Sioux Falls for a single day, but had some free time after visiting the DMV for our new drivers licenses and plates for our vehicles. We had to see the falls which gave the city its name and then we made a stop at the USS Sioux Falls battleship memorial. Both stops were interesting and educational. The battleship memorial was in the shape of the outline of the ship with various displays from the ship itself. Of course the big gun was my highlight.