Thursday, October 29, 2015

#17 Coveys Great Adventure - October 2015 – Nehalem Bay

October 2015 - Nehalem Bay

It’s October, so we are back at Nehalem Bay State Park to camp host again. We have been looking forward to this all year because we had such a great time last Fall. When we finished our stint last year, all of the other hosts said that they would be back for the 2015 Fall season, but that didn’t pan out. On the way north to Port Townsend last month we stopped at Champoeg State Park near Newburg, OR to get the annual service done on the coach. Walking around the campground we ran into Dave and Robyn Biden, who were hosts at Nehalem last year. It was certainly good to see them again, but we were disappointed to learn that they had decided to cancel their plans to host in October. After hearing them describe the management issues that they encountered with the park staff when they hosted this Spring, we were a little apprehensive about what we were going to find when we arrived on the first.

Site A2 - Home, sweet home
When we pulled into the Park on October 1, it seemed like our concerns were justified. We were told that we couldn’t use site A2 that we had last year, a site specifically designed for camp host use. Instead, we were told to use a regular camp site, A60, that isn’t really intended for a coach like ours. It lacked many of the features that made A2 so usable, especially the yards of gravel that I had put in last year to weather-proof it.

We quietly told the staff that A60 wasn’t suitable for us. An afternoon of subdued negotiation ensued. Finally, late in the afternoon common sense prevailed and we moved into A2 with the understanding that we might have to move out if necessary. It didn’t take us long to get settled for the month. A nice bonus was that our predecessors had accumulated a large pile of firewood, ensuring lots of campfires.

The next morning we took up where we left off 11 months ago: yurts to clean, firepits to clean and campers to help. The weather was simply gorgeous, the salmon run was finally beginning, so Oregonians began to show up in droves. Management had made two changes since last year. First, they had decided to close B and C campsite loops, about a third of the park, on October 1 for planned electrical and water systems upgrades. At the same time, they left all of the remaining sites on the reservation system. That meant that as of October 1, there were no walk-in or first come, first served sites. Well, pandemonium ensued. Droves of campers started to arrive, many without reservations. They had been coming to the park for years and had never needed a reservation, so why now, they asked loudly??  The ranger station closes at noon in the off season, so these folks ended up at our kiosk looking for a site for the weekend. But, we had no way of knowing whether a site was reserved beyond that night. We have no computer access to the reservation system. It was nuts.

Construction belatedly begins on B and C loops
Luckily, October 1 was a Thursday, and park staff put their heads together Friday morning and smartly reopened B and C loops for campers arriving without reservations. Just in time, too, because by 10 pm that evening, we had maybe six unoccupied campsites in the entire park. We would have had to turn away over 80 campers had the rangers not realized the problem they had created. It turned out that B and C loop construction didn’t actually start until October 19, and we have been able to stay in A2 for the whole month.

Real life recreation of Coast Guard lifeboat
in the Columbia River bar

Ed and Christine Woznicki were supposedto join us here last year but had mechanical issues with their coach that killed that plan. No problems this year, so we had the pleasure of their company for 10 days early in month. Ed and I did some sorely needed work on our coach while Christine and Kayeanne checked out several shops in Manzanita, Wheeler and Nehalem. We also went to Astoria, and revisited the Columbia River Maritime Museum, one of my favorite museums.  


One day we discovered El Trio Loco, a great Mexican restaurant in Manzanita that serves really good traditional food, not Tex-Mex. I liked it much better than the other Mexican restaurant, the Left Coast Siesta. We also got reacquainted with the Manzanita Market and Deli, too, one of our favorite places in town. Their deli section prepares several hot dishes every day that are always good. The small size feeds two hungry people, I think the large would serve a family. There is also a video store behind the market that is owned by a real film buff. He sees every movie and write his own reviews.

Ed and Christine closed the sale of their house in Boulder Creek while they were here and offered to treat us to dinner to celebrate. I was thinking along the lines of fish and chips in Garibaldi, but they had other ideas. We headed to Cannon Beach to a place Ed found called The Bistro. I can’t remember having a better meal. Seriously, if you are anywhere near Cannon Beach, make plans to eat dinner at The Bistro. I had grilled lingcod over sautéed soba noodles in a curry sauce. I can’t describe how delicious that was. And the wine was outstanding, too. Thanks you, folks!

No sooner had Ed and Christine left than Karen Moore and Patty Nash arrived. Kayeanne moved out for a couple of days to visit with them in Manzanita. From all indications, a good time was had by all. The four of us went to the Fish Peddler in the Pacific Oyster plant on the wharf in Bay City for their signature clam chowder, oysters on the half shell and halibut fish and chips. It was Seniors Tuesday, to boot, and we got 20% off everything, too! Every once in a while, old age pays off.


The world's largest dog park
As much as we look forward to coming back to Nehalem, I think the dogs get even more excited. As soon as we turned into the park they perked up and started looking around. To them this place means long walks in the woods, squirrels to chase, deer they wish they could chase and, most especially, the beach. Nehalem Beach is the biggest dog park they’ve ever seen, over 5 miles of sand and no leashes required. Heaven, particularly for Schroeder who is rarely off leash. As soon as his leash unsnaps he is off at full speed for the tide line.  At least every other day we spent 30 minutes to an hour just letting them run after the gulls, explore mounds of kelp and piles of driftwood. It is a real treat for us to see them so happy.
Schroeder stalks the elusive seagull

This year the weather hasn’t been quite as warm and dry as last year, and the salmon run appears to be shorter, too. This month started with a bang, but got pretty quiet the second half. Milton and Lynette Hansen who were here with us last year gave us a scare when he had to rush her to the hospital one night. A couple of stents later (!) all is well and Lynette is cleaning yurts again. Milt is an avid fisherman and caught several large salmon. Lynette’s sudden trip to Portland disrupted the plan for him to teach me to fish; maybe next year as we are both planning to return. The fillets he shared with us were outstanding. Fish doesn’t get any fresher than that.

We pull out on Sunday, headed south to Eugene to complete the last of the maintenance items before our trip to the east coast next spring. We plan to meander across southern Oregon, eastern California and Nevada for a couple of weeks on the way to Liesa’s place in St. George for Thanksgiving. We will return to the county park in Simi the first week of December to visit our friends in the Thousand Oaks area.

More soon,

Bob

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