Oregon Coast Road Trip 2020

We will forever remember the summer of 2020 as the year we postponed almost every planned adventure & created an alternative experience in its place. We are still shocked at how the world changed overnight with the Covid-19 pandemic. Forced to shelter at home for 3 months, we began collecting refunds for prepaid events such as the Mariners season opener in Seattle, the Sturgill Simpson concert in Portland, & the Under the Big Sky Music Festival in Whitefish. Then all non-essential travel was prohibited across the Canadian border... & we had been planning a 2-week road-trip vacation through Canada up to Fairbanks Alaska, with a weekend in Denali National Park. What a bunch of lemons for our 2020 plans!

“When life gives you lemons... mix them in your drink!”

As June 13th approached, it became evident the border was not going to open. We postponed the Alaskan Highway trip to 2021, & instead of getting depressed, we eagerly discussed what we could do for a 1-week road trip instead. We would’ve liked to have gone to Spokane to visit family & friends, but understood we still needed to practice social distancing. We considered a visit to Yellowstone Ntl Park, but the Montana entrance was not allowing visitors yet. Oregon, however, was starting to open up, so we decided it was the perfect time to experience the drive on Highway 101 along the entire state coastline! Click below to watch our 12-minute vacation video:

Click here to watch our OR Coast YouTube video!

We packed the camper, loaded up Chase our Border Collie, & headed out Saturday morning from our home in Granite Falls WA. We drove about 8 hours to Medford, making our way to southern Oregon so that we could start at the bottom of the state & work our way back up. Each year we purchase a Value Kard Rewards membership to KOA, so five of the seven nights this week were booked at those resorts. Our first night at KOA Journey in Medford, we celebrated the beginning of vacation with T-Bones on the BBQ & a new bottle of Crown Royal to sip around the campfire.

Saturday Night at KOA Journey - Medford/Gold Hill Oregon

Sunday morning after breakfast, we hit the road again headed for California. It would’ve been nice to spend a night in the Redwood National Park, but the state only accepted long term reservations for full-time RV’rs. Instead, we accessed a hiking trail on the edge of the forest, from the side of the road. What wondrous beauty there was to behold! I have made reservations in my heart to return to this fabulous forest of giants when we can take all the time we want in California!

Big Blue on the edge of the Redwood Forest.

We camped at Honey Bear By The Sea Rv Park in Gold Beach OR on Sunday & Monday night. We give top honors to this campground as it was beautifully maintained, very spacious, & a short walk to beach access. Since we travel with a dog, we appreciate excellent pet areas, & this one stood out with an all enclosed off-leash park surrounding a giant pond. Chase loved being free to roam and do her duties untethered LOL :-)

We also appreciate the time and care a resort puts into their landscaping. We walk Chase often during each stay, so the scenery enhances this essential part of our vacation. Honey Bear will be at the top of the list to revisit if traveling through again!

Entrance to Honey Bear By the Sea.

The weather all week long was mostly cloudy or windy but overall pleasant. Not the best for photographs, but some of the shots turned out nice. We drove to North Bend on Tuesday, stopping at viewpoints along the way. I like using the Roadtrippers app to search for exciting stops. We visited Sisters Rock State Park, Battle Rock Beach, Coquille River Lighthouse, & ate lunch on the Coos Bay Boardwalk. Some tourist activities were closed, though, due to the Coronavirus. Traffic was definitely light as a large percentage of people were still staying home. We had a very safe vacation with minimal human interaction & always wearing masks when we did have to make contact.

We stayed 2 nights at Oregon Dunes KOA, which specifically caters to ORV campers looking for easy access to the dunes. The Oregon Sand Dunes National Recreational Area stretches 40 miles along the coast with some dunes over 100,000 years old. The sand is the product of millions of years of erosion by wind & rain, & it’s the longest expanse of coastal sand drifts in North America!

James planned this stop for us, along with a 2-hour ORV rental to explore this ever-changing landscape. Neither of us had any previous experience at all on dunes, so after the rental company collected a thousand dollar deposit for their rig, they showed us a safety video & let us go. It was crazy driving up the dunes, not knowing what was on the other side! We were very cautious at first, but eventually, we both let loose a little. It was an absolute blast! If you have no idea what we are talking about, then watch our short 5-min highlight video:

Click here to watch our OR Sand Dunes YouTube video!

Thursday, we traveled 6 hours north on Highway 101, exploring along the way. We stopped at the Heceta Head Lighthouse but the tours were closed so we continued on. As a child, James remembered stopping at the Sea Lions caves with his family, so it was a must-see on this trip too. We were ecstatic to find the tourist attraction open & safely operating with social distancing & mask requirements. James & I rode the elevator down 208 feet by ourselves, then stepped into the world’s largest sea cave! Formed almost 25 million years ago, it is as wide as a football field & 12 stories high! The best descriptive word is awesome, in its true definition. The stellar sea lions inhabiting the cave were raucous & mesmerizing, I would’ve watched them all day if we didn’t have a long drive ahead of us.

Part of the Sea Lion Caves, go visit to see where they live!

The scenic views from the highway were breathtaking despite the overcast day. Each little town has its own unique draw, & you could spend a week in any one of them for a nice vacation. As we drove into Tillamook, we immediately thought of the cheese factory tours, but the internet confirmed they were closed. As we drove by, we saw a line of people in front, so we pulled over to discover their outdoor concession was open selling ice cream! We ordered up double scoops. :-)

Tillamook Creamery.

We finally made it to the Astoria/Warrenton/Seaside KOA. This resort is enormous, & in fact, we had to wear wristbands to show security when entering the park. Of course, with state restrictions, they were operating at partial capacity. Specific amenities were closed, such as the pool & hot tub, to prevent large groups from gathering. We walked Chase all over the campground, checking out all the cool RVs, buses, & new trailers. Apparently, people are rediscovering camping because of the pandemic & sales have been exploding across the country.

Across the street from the KOA is Fort Stevens, which we explored on our last day. It’s a 3,200-acre landmark, part of which was built during the civil war. We walked on a few trails & found the beach where we relaxed with Chase a while. Wish we would’ve had kites to fly, something to remember for next time!

Last day of vacation.

We returned to camp to play horseshoes, then finished up the Crown Royal we had started at the beginning of the trip. I posted the empty bottle on Facebook & some friends thought we emptied it in one night, but I assure you it took the two of us 7 nights LOL :-)

Saturday morning, we packed up & pulled out as it began to rain for our final leg home. It was a great vacation & one that we would love to do again… maybe on the motorcycles next time! We discovered a free guide you can find in the gas stations called “101 Things to Do - Western Coastal Oregon”. It’s a great accessory to the trip. We missed a landmark called “The Devil’s Punchbowl,” which I must now plan to return to see!

This crazy year has driven home the fact nothing is guaranteed. We encourage you to plan out your own adventures right away, put them on the calendar, & make them happen! As you wait for your bucket list adventures, recognize that each day we are given can be its own adventure! Find the fun as you go, enjoy life, & GO DO IT!! #JACTVentures