Gallivanting in Oregon

 Marty and I are once again on another adventure.  This one begins a tad different, but entertaining nonetheless.  Can you guess our location? 

As you can see....we've been welcomed by quite the curious crew. Nary a dull moment here! 

We are staying on the Geisler Family Farm with Marty's younger brother and his wife.  We flew direct from Philadelphia to Portland, making the trip super easy, and Steve and Sarah picked us up at the airport, albeit way past our bedtime, but one is at the mercy of airline timetables and this one worked the best for us. 

Sunday morning, we headed to mass at St. Cyril, with coffee and donuts as a treat afterwards, where the locals enjoyed chatting with Marty.  The church is quaint and features an icon of St. Cyril. 

St. Cyril is quite familiar to me, but usually paired with Methodius who is absent of any recognition here.  If you are not aware, these saints are responsible for the Cyrillic alphabet, which as I write this, seems to omit Methodius as well.  I might have to investigate a bit further. 

After Mass, Sarah treated me to a "Sound Bath" at her local Yoga studio.  The premise sounded intriguing, and I was eager to learn what awaited me. Believe me when I say, it might have been one of the best experiences of my life!  Certainly a treat for someone who was running on 3 hours sleep due to jet lag. I walked out of there like a new woman!  It was sheer bliss! 

The rest of the day was spent catching up and we had a visit from Suzie, whom we had included on an adventure to Scotland when she was studying abroad in London.  We had a grand time reminiscing.  But, we failed to photograph the moment, so no photo to share. 

After a great night's sleep, we readied ourselves for an adventure to the west coast with Steve and Sarah acting as our tour guides.  How's that for excitement?

Two hours later, we were at Rockaway Beach on the Pacific Coast. 

Steve had purchased tickets for us to ride the steam train from Rockaway to Garibaldi. 

The weather was quite frigid and I was glad that I had a warm coat as we were sitting outside on the open train car. 

The views were amusing as well as amazing.

And by the time we stopped in Garibaldi, the sun had come out and the temperatures were much more balmy. 

The "G" added an amusing touch. 

There was a very short turn around time for the return trip, so we opted to rebound the train after Marty spent some time chatting with the conductor.  

After our return to Rockaway Beach, we popped into a nearby store for some Tillamook Ice Cream, which is made locally.  I picked the Salted Caramel. 

It was scrumptious!

A few miles down the road was a boarded walking path that leads to an ancient Western Red Cedar that is believed to be one of the largest in North America. 

We certainly enjoyed the lush beauty along the way. 

And here you see the famous tree itself.  Locals call it "The Big Cedar" and it is believed to be 800 to 1200 years old.  The trunk circumference is nearly 50 feet.  Interestingly enough, hemlock limbs have sprouted and send their roots down the cedar's core, giving it quite an unusual look to the admirer. 

From here we headed back to the car for the drive to Depoe Bay where we planned to eat dinner.  

But, not before stopping to check out the Bald Eagle whom we had spied on our train travels.  Next to this very long walkway there was a pole of some sort protruding from the water. 

And on top the regal creature sat. 

It appears that he even graced me with a look!

Marty was zooming in with his high tech camera for a better shot. 

The eagle stood there for the entirety of our photo shoot, and never flinched an inch, even when being bombarded by an annoying sea gull.  It was quite the spectacle. 

In Depoe Bay, we enjoyed a delightful dinner at a restaurant that offered a magnificent view of the ocean. 

And walking back to the car we spotted a few seals bopping their heads in and out of the water, but they were two quick to snap a photo. 

We stopped at a look-out on the way home.  Apparently this sea gull was feeling needy.  

As you can see, the view was spectacular! 

We arrived back at the farm just before 10:00 pm.  Considering that we had left at 9:00 AM, I'd say that we certainly had quite a full day.  Great company, beautiful weather, amazing scenery....I don't think you can ask for much more than that!

Today's a bit of a relaxing day, but as you can well imagine, this place offers plenty of opportunities to keep us busy. 

Until next time.....