We took a trip down the Southern Oregon Coast for Al's birthday
this year, staying in Gold Beach but ranging as far down as Brookings on
day trips. We passed through there on a Spring Break trip a few years
ago, camping outside of Port Orford and Brookings, but we were headed
for the Redwoods, and didn't spend long. That part of Oregon is really
its own thing. It feels apart from the cultural presence of Portland in
a way that the northern coast doesn't, for good, ill, and indifferent.
We rented a condo that overlooked the river on the north side of Gold
Beach.
Our first full day at Gold Beach we drove up the Humbug Mountain State Park and hiked up to the top. There was a thick layer of fog and heavy mist in the forest. Once we got to the top we couldn't see a lot because the fog covered the ocean.
Later in the day we went to Otter Point. The sun had broken through, so we got some great views.
Our second day was spent traveling down to Brookings. It was another foggy day, so a few of the stops were brief because there wasn't always a lot to see. Our first stop was Meyer's Beach, where there was plenty of mist, but it was still beautiful. The tide was mostly out, so we were able to get around between all the huge rocks where there were dozens and dozens of starfish, anemones, and one isopod (which was sort of alarming to look at).
The pleasant surprise of the day was Chetco Point Park at Brookings. It's behind the city wastewater treatment plant, and at the very opening has all the charm of an Army Corps of Engineers recreation site. But if you keep walking down the path and past all the fencing, there's a bunch of rocks to clamor around and a trail up to Chetco Point itself.
We ended the day at Harris Beach State Park outside of Brookings. More mist, and the tide wouldn't let us hike from the south to north beaches, but it was a nice beach walk all the same.
The next day we took a boat ride 30 miles up the Rogue River. The tour itself was ... touristy ... with a boat pilot/guide who preferred to deliver facts about osprey and egrets in a sing-song voice, like a lounge singer. The boat we took also served as a mail boat for the tiny town of Agness.
He did eventually quiet down a little, and we spent two hours going upriver. We spotted a sea lion and a huge number of osprey, a blue heron, egrets, and vultures.
We stopped for lunch in Agness, which boasts an RV park, some cabins, a restaurant/lounge and a general store holding the town's sole liquor license.
Once we got back, we headed outside of Gold Beach a few miles to a scenic beach.
Our last day we got an earliest start and headed back up, taking a little time in Port Orford to walk around the Orford Points.
We also stopped in Bandon for ice cream and fudge.
After a brief stop at an elk viewing area somewhere between Coos Bay and Elkton, we kept driving until we were home again.