Americana Tour 2008.08

Our route: Freeway to Olympia and secondary roads to Cape Disappointment, which was a disappointment. We were unable to hike to the lighthouse because the Coast Guard was conducting live firing exercises and didn't want to kill the tourists. We continued south to Manzanita where we spent the night. Next day we're south to Bandon where we spent the next night: Great lighthouses; Cool dunes; Cheese factory with samples; and Breathtaking views ... or there would have been except it was foggy and misty much of the day. From Bandon to Crater Lake the road rises from sea level to about 7,000 feet. As we climbed we rode through different bands of insects. First there were mosquitoes. Next there came a band of flies. And finally there was a band of butterflies ... the kind that splat orange when they hit your helmet. We looked like refugees from a paint ball war. The next day we descended from Crater Lake and crossed hot hot hot Eastern Oregon. By the time we got to Goldendale, it was 102. We rested up in our air conditioned motel room until dinner and then visited the observatory. Very neat. The astronomer was intrigued by my standard stumper question … “So, what is the speed of light measured in furlongs per fortnight?” The road home took us to Yakima, where it was 82 by 8:00 AM. Then we climbed White Pass near Mt. Rainier and got rained on pretty hard for the last 150 miles of the trip.

My daughter next to her Ducati Monster and my Ducati ST3. These are powerful bikes, capable of 3-digit speedometer readings, but we are conservative and careful. No motorcycles or riders were harmed on this trip.

Our first night's stop was Manzanita, Oregon. Here's Manzanita beach from the rise in the road just north of town.

Manzanita beach. Pacific Northwest beaches are fantastic, but cold, and with dangerous surf. If the August teperature were 20 degrees higher, we'd call this beach ... Wikiki.

Manzanita beach.

Manzanita beach.

Barefoot photographer, my daughter.

A cool sand castle on Manzanita beach.

Manzanita beach.

Near Bandon Oregon.

There are a lot of neat lighthouses along the coast.

There are a lot of neat lighthouses along the coast.

There are a lot of neat lighthouses along the coast.

There are a lot of neat lighthouses along the coast. Here you can see the details of the lens which focuse the light of a 1,000 watt bulb to warn sailers of danger. That is a very small bulb. And the lens is a work of art, and of science. Cool!

Lighthouse keeper's house. There was a time in our history, when the economics of personal service to the nation were profoundly different from today.

Looking up the lighthouse tower.

The Octopus Tree, near one of the lighthouses we visited.

Have you ever eaten Tillamook cheese? Here's where it's made, in Tillamook, Oregon. Cool factory tour!

Have you ever eaten Tillamook cheese? Here's where it's made, in Tillamook, Oregon. Cool factory tour!

Have you ever eaten Tillamook cheese? Here's where it's made, in Tillamook, Oregon. Cool factory tour!

Seacoast, just north of Bandon, Oregon.

Crater Lake, Oregon. For reasons I won't go into now, I have flown over Crater Lake more or less 500 times. I've always wanted to drive around here. This was my chance.

Crater Lake, Oregon. For reasons I won't go into now, I have flown over Crater Lake more or less 500 times. I've always wanted to drive around here. This was my chance. The lake is so deep that the blue of the water is a color never seen before in nature.

Crater Lake, Oregon. For reasons I won't go into now, I have flown over Crater Lake more or less 500 times. I've always wanted to drive around here. This was my chance. In the background is Wizard Island.

Storm clouds over Crater Lake.