May 2011 Camping Trip

Spring time has arrived in the Northwest, and with it the wildflowers are growing. During this time of the year, Karen and I always enjoy our forest trail walks, because we get to see the smallest of wildflowers coming to life under the forest canopy. This year was no exception, and we were blessed with many different types of flowers in full bloom for us to enjoy. I'll be posting some of our favorites below.

Fisherman's Bend campground is a wonderful place to stay. This time we shared our camping trip with Jim & Linda (and Abby's friend Cirby), as well as Dave & Sandy. Jim and I met a few years ago when I was walking Abby, and he was walking Cirby. Both dogs love playing together in the grass fields, and Jim and I shared common interests (like camping). After Karen and I met up with Jim's wife Linda, we tried unsuccessfully to camp together, but something always came up, and we were never able to connect at the same time. So this was finally a first! :-)

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Site 13A


Abby always on guard... for running the other way from danger!

Fisherman's Bend is a BLM Park, but many of its sites include full-hookups, which make longer stays more enjoyable. This campground is also within a little over an hours drive away, so it has become one of our favorite places to visit (especially with the increasing fuel prices). With the North Santiam River just a few yards away, and miles of beautiful nature trails and hiking paths (that are well maintained) to explore, there's always something to see or do. I also recommend eating lunch or dinner at "Giovanni Mountain Pizza" located just 2 miles east of the campground (in Mill City, OR), if you want to sample the local fair, and Karen and I found the Mountain Edge Cafe a great place for breakfast as well. Jim & Linda ate at the "Swiss Village" restaurant (a few miles west of Fisherman's Bend) off of Hwy 22, and loved the hamburgers and rubin sandwich.

Karen and Abby on one of the beautiful trails


The forest canopy

Detroit Lake State Park is located about 22 miles farther east on Hwy 22, so we took a ride one day taking in the sites... and of course watering the dog. :-)

Abby enjoying a cold dip in the lake with some geese

Below are just a few of the many beautiful wildflowers and interesting sites to see along the vast trail network.

The White Trillium


The Purple Trillium

Bleeding Hearts


Hooker's Fairybell


Tree Fungus

Some of you may remember my BLOG post from last September when we stayed here at Fisherman's Bend. We ended up seeing a large "Ape Type Beast" being video taped for a Forest Service video, on "how to" teach children to pick up litter on the trails, and how not to run through others campsites (this movie is shown in the campground amphitheater). Since our sighting last year, the campground has now put up a NEW crossing sign. It's best not be be sitting too long around the campfire after dark, as you never know who's warm breath may be breathing down the back of your neck. :-)

Bigfoot Crossing

Hope you enjoyed tagging along with us on this trip. Happy Trails... and don't forget to take the time to look for beauty in the smallest of places. You won't be disappointed in what you find.

Gary & Karen, and Abby Too

April 2011 Camping Trip

After a wet & cold winter, Karen and I were finally able to find the time to head out camping again this year. Little did we know that we'd be experiencing the wrath of Oregon monsoons (the worst that we've ever encountered yet to date), but then again we are talking about "Thurlacki" luck, which seems to find us no matter where we go or where we stay.

We took off for Newport, Oregon, and camped at the Beverly Beach State Park campground, which is located about 7 miles North of Newport on Hwy 101. Our reservations were in order (surprisingly), and we drove to our site (G-03) at the far end of the park loops. The camp slot beside us (G-04), would be taking the following day by Kevin & McKenzie (our son and daughter-in-law). They purchased a very nice trailer last summer, and are trying to get in as much camping time before McKenzie delivers their first baby in July. Yes... Karen and I will soon be "Grandparents"! :-)

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Site G-03

It's a good thing that we didn't plan on building any campfires... as our fire-ring ended up being surrounded by a lake!

This picture was taken after the water receded! The actual water line was up to the wooden green covered step you see in the background at one point

Camp "Soggy"

Needless to say, I didn't get a chance to take a lot of pictures this go-around, as I really didn't want to see how water-proof my digital camera was. At one point, Karen and I were watching a DVD inside our trailer, and we actually had to turn UP the sound because it was raining so hard we couldn't hear the movie.

Poor Kevin & McKenzie got soaked when they arrived on Friday, as they were faced with setting up their trailer in a downpour as well. Luckily (after a few drying towels were used), we were all comfy and dry in our trailers, and both Abby & Harris (Kevin & McKenzie's 7 month old Golden Retriever), went for walks around camp. No snow this time! :-)

"Harris"
(Named in memory of Capt. Phil Harris from the Deadliest Catch TV Show)

The "3-Brothers" Rock Formation
(located at the southern end of Lincoln City)

One afternoon we hit the beaches with the dogs, and there were 40+ mph wind gusts to boot! Not to mention the rain that was traveling sideways. We all came away wet from that excursion, but we all got a good laugh out of doing it (something a true Oregonian would appreciate). On Saturday we shopped for baby clothes at one of the the Factory Outlet stores in Lincoln City, and later that evening, we all ate dinner at the Chowder Bowl in Newport.

Kevin trying to walk towards us against the wind gusts

The one thing that really loved all the wet weather, was the "Skunk Cabbage" that was blooming around the campground. If you could smell it, then you'd know how it got its name (take my word for it).

Skunk Cabbage in bloom

We're all holding out for the warmer weather that will soon arrive, and with it, the long days of summer. Karen and I are looking forward to our new roles as "Grandparents", and in the future, sharing camping experiences with our new grandson or granddaughter. There is much we'll have to teach the "little ones" as they grow into their own person, and juggling full & heavy gallons of milk over the lap of their father will be one of them. Life has a funny way of getting back at you for all the "dumb" stuff we did as kids to our own parents. I guess that's why "grandchildren" are so special... right Kevin? :-) Hope they don't drop the milk. ;-)

Until the next time... (in a slightly high pitched voice), Happy Trails to you (yep... it hurt).

Gary & Karen and Abby Too!

February 2011 Camping Trip

The new year is here, and our camping adventures have started once again. January didn't start out well for me however, as I'd ended up in the hospital for three days with an intestinal blockage. Luckily, three hours prior to a scheduled exploratory surgery (to try and find out what was causing it), my intestinal tract reopened, and after twelve days without food (since December 28th), I was allowed to have some apple juice. It tasted like liquid Gold to me. :-) I've had three followup tests since then, and nothing has been found for the cause of this. I still have another test tomorrow, but I'm not holding my breath that they'll ever find the reason why. For now... I'm feeling back to normal and am ready to explore more fun and exciting areas of Oregon... so onward we go!

We started off this years camping trip with our friends Dave & Sandy to Lincoln City, OR (located along the Oregon Coast), and stayed for the first time at the Devils Lake RV Park. If you ever make plans to stay in or near this area of the coast, I highly recommend this very nice (and clean) park. They are currently offering a "3 nights for the price of 2" special until the end of April. Best of all, there is a traffic light off of Hwy 101 that allows you to make the left-hand turn into this park (located next to Devils Lake). During the busy weekends, you won't have to wait hours to try and cross safely across the on-coming traffic.

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Site #37


Devils Lake in the background taken from our site

Those of you that have read about our past camping experiences, or for those of you who refuse (wisely) not to even camp with us, are used to our tales of whoa. We like to call them "Thurlacki Adventures", but this camping excursion almost surpassed all of our past camping trips combined, and nearly involved cannibalism (shades of the Donnar Party)!

Due to the abnormally cold weather while we were camping (even though we were at sea level), we woke up on Friday morning to snow showers at the RV Park. This slowly changed over to "thick rain" (rain and snow mixed). Not really thinking much about it, we shopped at the local "Outlet Mall", and allowed our dogs to run on the beaches during the short clear breaks. The next day however proved to be one of the most interesting days we've had together (to say the least).

Saturday turned out to be beautiful with blue skies and sunshine. It was still very cold (below freezing), but just being able to be out in the sun made it all worth while. I had recently purchased the book "Photographing Oregon" - By Greg Vaughn, and was interested in taking pictures of the Drift Creek Waterfall (located about thirteen miles away). So we loaded up the trucks and dogs, and off we went. The first stop was the Drift Creek Covered Bridge.

Drift Creek Covered Bridge

The Drift Creek covered bridge was actually at one time located on "Drift Creek", but was about to demolished, so it was purchased by a private family and moved to their farm, and rebuilt over Bear Creek which runs by their property. The bridge is still graciously open for the public, so pictures can be taken of Oregon's covered bridges that still exist today. After a few photo's, we continued our journey towards the waterfall about 9 miles away.

Soon the bare roadway started to show signs of snow, and as we slowly climbed higher and higher, it became apparent that yesterdays snowfall at the lower elevations, really dumped a LOT of fresh snow up here in the Coastal Mountains (hmmm, funny how that happens).

What a beautiful sunny day


The snow seems to be getting deeper Dave

The idle chit-chat between Karen and I (and I'm sure it was the same for Dave & Sandy), soon gave way to silence, only to be broken by an occasional scream (or cuss word). Try as hard as she could, Karen's leaning in towards me (and gasps of sucking in air), didn't move the truck farther away from the steep loooooong drop-offs to "her" side of the truck. And the deeper the snow got (with hidden ice underneath), only added to the depletion of the oxygen still remaining inside the cab of our truck, as the ledges along the roadway got higher and steeper as we climbed. Over the "walkie-talkies" that we shared with Dave & Sandy, we heard Dave say that they no longer thought they could make it, and that they were going to turn around. Karen told them that we'd just meet back up with them at the RV Park... and onward we continued.

Finally, the roadway began to level off and we started to drop in elevation, and we soon discovered what we'd been looking for all this time... the trail parking lot for the Drift Creek Waterfall! As Karen and I prepared for the 1 1/2 mile hike down to the falls, we looked up to find Dave & Sandy pulling in and parking beside us. We asked what had happened, and they told us that the roadway was so slick with ice under the snow, that they couldn't turn around without getting stuck, so they reluctantly continued forward up the road (their only choice).

As we took off down the trail towards the waterfall, Dave mentioned to us that "they" (Dave & Sandy), were not going to return the same way they came up, but were instead going to continue down the road we were on, and follow it toward its eventual ending at Hwy 101 (thus being closer to the lower side of the mountain (meaning less snow) and a shorter nerve racking trip to paved clear roads and back home). It sure sounded good in theory.

When you arrive at the end of the Drift Creek Waterfall trail, you get cross the largest suspension bridge in Oregon. It's 240ft. across a small canyon that contains Drift Creek and the Waterfall. In fact, you can actually look down (if you want) at the waterfall as you cross above it. The bridge itself is hanging some 100+ ft. above the ground. I wasn't too sure if Karen was up for this (she's not a heights kinda gal), but as you can see, even with snow and ice on the 3 ft. wide walk, she and Abby did just fine... even when the bridge swayed... a little. :-)

Karen and Abby crossing the suspension bridge
(Note: The dent in the handrail was caused by a falling tree)

After crossing myself, I continued another 1/4 mile to the bottom of the creek, while Dave & Karen waited behind with the dogs. I took a few photographs of the falls, and joined back up with them for the hike back up to the trucks.

Drift Creek Waterfall
(Note: in the upper right-hand area behind the angled tree, you can see the suspension bridge we crossed over)


Another shot of the Falls, with a longer exposure to make the water look "milky"

You would think that this would be a great time to end this BLOG (on such a beautiful note), but alas... we are talking about the "Thurlacki" factor.

After returning back to the trail-head parking lot, the decision was made NOT to return home the same way we'd come. We decided to continue on down the road towards (what we thought), would be the shorter and quicker way home. In short... we turned out to be wrong! The road at first led downward with less snow, but it soon turned upward again gaining elevation and depth of snow. Six miles later, we came to a 3-Way intersection with the road signs only pointing in two directions. Back towards where we'd come from, and going forward towards a Forestry Camp of some type. The road to the right was not marked. Thinking that the Forestry Camp must be close by to Hwy 101, we continued forward (now in 4-Wheel Drive), towards our escape of the slipping and sliding hell. Another six miles later... the road came to an abrupt end! We had come to the "Forestry Camp" (which was now a Mennonite Camp), and after asking a man at the camp for directions, discovered that we should have taken the third (unmarked) road back from where we'd just come from. Karen and Sandy were not too happy (to say the least), but we had no other options. Our only thoughts were of making it back to civilization, and in doing so, hopefully nothing would happen (like getting stranded), and we'd have to eat each other to survive (much like the Donner Pass story). As Karen put it over the "walkie-talkie" to Dave and Sandy: "Who ever dies first will be eaten!" :-) Yes... sometimes even at the worst of moments in time, even a sickening thought can bring a smile to the face.

As you've all probably figured out, we safely made it back to the RV Park, thus ending another chapter in our looooooong history of adventures. Later that night (while eating dinner at Pier 101 in Lincoln City), we all lamented over our day of hell, laughing and sharing thoughts as close friends do. It's only just a guess, but I have a feeling that our "snow" adventures are over in any future escapades. :-)

Lincoln City beaches


And brighter skies ahead

If you are interested in learning more about Drift Creek Falls (and how to get there), click on this link: Drift Creek Falls Information.

Thanks for taking the time to share our adventures with us... and until the next time, Happy Trails to you during your travels through life.

Gary & Karen, and Abby Too!

The Camping Year of 2010 comes to an end

Today I removed the 2 batteries from our 5th Wheel, and put it into "Winters Sleep" here in the Pacific Northwest. Although Karen and I were trying to camp at least once each month in our HitchHiker trailer this year, the holiday rush just caught up to us, and we will not be able to finish one last trip before the new year of 2011 arrives.

Here are a few statistics from our 2010 Camping Trips:
We camped 12 different times this year, from Southeastern Oregon, to Eastern Washington, and places in between.

We stayed in 4 State Parks, 4 RV Resorts, 2 County Parks, and 2 Bureau of Land Management Campgrounds (BLM Campgrounds)

We spent 42 nights in the trailer this year.

We spent $996.24 on camping fees, which is an average of $23.72 a night

We traveled 2894 round-trip miles from home, to the campgrounds, and back home. This did not include the side-trip mileage we drove while at the campgrounds sightseeing.

Thank you one-and-all for following along with us this year on our outings. The new year is just around the corner, and our adventures will continue, so get ready to follow along.

Merry Christmas and a Happy New Year!

-Gary, Karen, and Abby Too!-

November 2010 Camping Trip

Just because the weather gets colder, and the sunlight during the day is shorter, doesn't mean that you can't head out to the Oregon coast for a little R & R. Yeah... we only saw the sun one day out of the 5 days we were there, but we still enjoyed each others company and spent time walking Abby, watching movies, reading books, and checking out our favorite shops in the Newport area.

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Our waterlogged site - C6

The backside of our site

Abby really likes this campground very well, and knows all the short-cuts to the beach. She loves running ahead of Karen and I on the sandy trails to the ocean, and pops up to see where we are, or runs back to hurry us along. We got lucky for a November day at the beach, in that we had the whole beach pretty much to ourselves... with Sun! Abby ran and played to her hearts content.

Common guys... were almost there!


Our rewards... Sun, Sand, and Solitude


Karen and Abby enjoy the Sun & Surf

Karen and I also explored some new trails this time, and actually got to see 4 Mule Deer and some Bear scat. Karen wasn't too excited about the latter, but we did meet up with some "Fun Guys" (fungi) on our trek. Here's one of them in the next picture.

There's no place like Knomb... but we didn't see any. :-)

Along with the wetter weather is the fog that hugs the coastal regions. That's the perfect time for some great photo opportunities! So off we went looking for some interesting pictures, and we found some we thought you'd enjoy.

Docked fishing boats in the approaching fog


The Yaquina Bay Bridge - A bridge to nowhere

Thanks for following along with us. We're looking forward to heading out again next month for another adventure. In fact, we'll get a chance to try out our small Christmas Tree for inside the trailer.

Safe travels... and Happy Trails to you.

-Gary, Karen, and Abby Too!-

September - (Trip #2) / October 2010 Camping Trip

Fall camping in Oregon can be a real treat if the weather is good, and Karen and I hit a lucky streak this past week. Not one drop of rain the entire outing, and the daytime temperatures got up into the mid to low 70's. Perfect for still being able to wear shorts, and even better at night when the temperatures got cooler, as we could enjoy the warmth of a campfire. We'd planned this trip in November of 2009 with our friends Dave & Sandy, as we both love this place for camping. Large camping sites, full-hookups, great hiking trails, and the North Santiam River to explore and water Abby (let her swim). At this time of the year, the Santiam river is running with salmon on their way to the spawning beds, as well as the trout that frequent these waters. Thus the name "Fisherman's Bend".

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The North Santiam River Overlook by camp

Fall colors are just starting to show

It happened that we were about 10 minutes late arriving at Fishermen's Bend, as most of their "double" camping sites are first come first served. The man right before us took the last "double" site. This left us no choice but for each of us to get a single site. Dave & Sandy ended up with site #5, and Karen and I were able to occupy the larger "Camp Host" site, as they had just left for the year.

Our Campsite - #1 (The "Camp Host Site)


Off Duty... but some people couldn't read

As you can guess... we actually ended up playing "Camp Host", as several people knocked on our trailer doors asking questions, or wanting to buy the stacks of wood available for campfires. Karen and I joked that instead of the normal $5.00 per cart wood cost, that we should charge $20.00 instead... thus paying for our camping trip and perhaps a Pizza Dinner at a local eatery. :-) We ended up having to place a towel over the "Camp Host" sign, and this at last gave us some privacy as the other campers finally left us alone.

Fire wood carts $5.00 (we wanted to charge $20.00)


Our very own Amphitheater. The trailer is on the other side of the screen.

As usual, we explored the trails and local wildlife in the area. We'd camped here earlier this summer, and a Cougar had been spotted in the thick brush and forested area. The warning signs were along the trails, but what we saw later in the week... (a Large Hairy Upright/Walking Beast) stunned us all! :-O More about this later.

Cougar Sighting

Abby & I on one of the beautiful hiking trails... here kitty kitty kitty


Spider web in the trees


Domed spider web on the forest floor

Ferns growing on an oak tree


The sunlight breaking into the forest darkness


Fungi growing on a log


Winters coming... better hide that peanut

Our son Kevin and his wife McKenzie had decided to head out for a camping trip in their newly purchased trailer, for their second trip. They'd made reservations at Fisherman's Bend, and none of us knew that each of us were going to be there at the same time. We arrived on Wednesday, and they arrived on Friday. What a hoot!

Kevin & McKenzie's campsite. Kevin works on the campfire

One afternoon, Karen and I heard a woman screaming... followed by another blood-curdling scream... and another. Something had definitely scarred this woman... but what was it? Perhaps the footprints at the local "Nature Exhibit" could share some light on this subject. I do see a small human sized foot print (upper left)... but what could have made that larger footprint to the right of it? Could it have been "BIGFOOT"! :-O

What a curiously LARGE foot print...


Yep... that's "Bigfoot" giving me the "thumbs-up" sign! (Yes Kevin... we all know you'd have punched him if he's come anywhere near you or your campsite)


Getting ready for the next filming

Ok... ok... so it was really a park ranger in a really bad gorilla suit, but if you saw this coming through the woods at you, you'd be screaming like a little baby too (right Kevin)! :-) Actually... some of you may have read my posts about "Bigfoot" last year at this same campground. The BLM is filming a movie (staring "Bigfoot"), that's going to be used to teach kid's about the care of the forests and not cutting down live trees for firewood, picking up trash, and respecting other campers. I just happen to catch this "Bigfoot" between movie shots. :-)

Well... that wraps up this trip. Abby seems to know this campground as well, especially all the short-cuts to the river and her favorite swimming holes. Even though she has dysplasia of her hips and a fused spine, we still let her swim just a few times. We can't let her go on like she used to when she was younger, but she loves the water... and after all, she's on a "vacation" with the rest of us as well.

A simple stick, a river, and a Labrador Retriever. Life is good!

Thanks for checking in on our adventures and camping trips. Life is just too short not to enjoy every day of it! Happy Trails...

-Gary, Karen, and Abby Too-