Dwagenheim

I got up and got my stuff together for my departure after taking a nice bath. I had another enjoyable breakfast with Mark and his B&B guests. Mark told us all about Newport and some of the artists and attractions in the area. We had a delicious baked apple, pumpkin pancakes with sausage, and fruit. I packed up my things, said goodbye, and headed out on the perfect sunny day. I stopped at Puerto Escondito to try to say goodbye to Juan but he wasn’t there. I dropped off some cookies for him and his family before heading across the Yaquina Bay Bridge to the fisheries center to see my friend Jon and Alan. The wind was kicking up on the bridge and blowing me around a bit. I found my friends and met another observer named Chris. I talked to Jon a bit before saying goodbye and heading south. I enjoyed the views and the nice shoulder as I rode down the beautiful Oregon coast. I passed through the town of Waldport and was passed by Chris heading south. He stopped to say hi on the outskirts of town and we decided to grab some lunch. We ended up having a great talk about the observer program and activism within. Before parting ways, we traded email info and then I continued south. I passed through the small town of Yachats and then rode uphill through the narrow and windy road of Cape Perpetua. The views from this point were outstanding so I stopped to take a couple of photos. Eventually, I made it to Heceta Head Lighthouse and stopped in at the historic lighthouse and B&B to introduce myself to Steven and Michelle. I told them about our mutual friend Jeff, who I had gotten their names from. Steven and Michelle are avid travelers and cyclists and welcomed me in to stay for the night. I showed up and checked out the large caretakers building that is the bed and breakfast. It is about 110 years old! I caught a very beautiful sunset and took some photos around the area before we got together to head out for some dinner and drinks in Florence. Also working with Steven and Michelle were Emily and Bert. We had an excellent meal at a small Mexican restaurant in Florence and then went to a local bar for some drinks and to play pool. We had to wait on the pool until a tourney was over but in the meantime had some good conversation. After a few rounds of pool, everyone except for Steven and I went home. We played a few more games and tried to find some decent music on the jukebox that was heavy on country. We continued to have good talks and then finally called it a night. When we got back to Heceta, Steven took me up a trail to check out the lighthouse. He explained some of the history and workmanship behind it and we enjoyed the clear night. The lighthouse shone 8 beams of light across the horizon. Up in the sky, the stars were out without a cloud to block the spectacular view. We headed in to the house and stayed up chatting until 4am. After a full day of fun, I crashed out in a super comfy bed upstairs. (45 miles)

Peace

Dave

Dwagenheim

Pic: Leaving Yachats

Dwagenheim

Pic: Heceta Head Bed and Breakfast and caretakers home

Dwagenheim

Pic: Heceta Head Lighthouse as the sun sets

Dwagenheim

Pic: Heceta Head Lighthouse

Dwagenheim

Pic: Sunset at Heceta Head