Grayland WA was not gray

Oh boy! I wish I had a good excuse, but alas, I don't. I began this post way back in September and have finally returned to finish.  So here goes.... 

 Oh my gosh! We were really grateful to arrive at Grayland under a sky free from rain. After setting up camp the sea air was calling us to the beach.

Hubs, my brother and sis in law gathering sea shells.

An unusual find on the beach..a beautiful starfish. 

We saw quite a few large jellyfish dotting the sand. Their internal structure was easily seen.






In the distance I could see wind generation at work. 

Grayland fishing port

During the afternoon we drove into the town of Grayland. It has a nice waterfront where we ate lunch at one of the restaurants. I was tempted by these fresh caught crabs. But had a salad instead.

Local catch

Back to our camp for my brother and hubs to puzzle out the trick kite.

The kite was finally ready and off we trooped to fly it on the beach. I fell in love with kite flying with this type of kite!

My brother showed me how to work the controls. Before long I was arcing and looping too!  I really want one for my own!

Glamping in the Rain

What's a gal to do when it is pouring down raining?

Make a nice cuppa!

La Dee Dah's little kitchenette is so much fun to work in. Very compact. 
Fill the kitty tea kettle and heat the water.





The tea tray is set and ready.

Books are available and a warm Pendleton awaits.

Pillows plumped!
And a wild cowgirl looks on.

Jessie and I settle in to enjoy the afternoon.

Ha, ha! Let it pour!

August Storms

The summer has certainly sped by! I've had a lot of fun adventuring on foot, by car and in La Dee Dah. Our latest travel was back to Seaquest in Washington in the Gifford Pinchot National Forest. This time hubs and I met my two

brothers and sis-in-law from California. We had checked the weather forecast and there was to be a little rain, but that would clear. So off we went!

Well, the weather was pretty horrible all four days! A huge storm pushed in and we had torrential rain, thunder and lightening every night and early morning. I guess we were fortunate that it cleared a little during the day. Unfortunately, the fog rolled in and all of Mt. Saint Helen's was obscured. We were able to visit the information center and I was able to get a few nature photos.

 The Toutle River Valley as the fog was settling in. This was as good as it got!

 Our view of Mt. Saint Helens! We never had a clear view the entire time.

 Instead of trying to see the mountain....futile... I spent some time photographing flowers. They were still quite lovely, dotting the grassy meadows and roadsides.

 One morning a couple of visitors wandered into our camp. After enjoying a breakfast of blackberries they sauntered back into the forest.

Since it was raining we spent a lot of time playing cards and visiting. La Dee Dah was dwarfed by the big rigs. We camped here to be close to my brother's fifth wheel on the left.






Vintage trailer lights added a little cheer to the stormy nights.
After four days of drizzle during the day and storms at night, we were happy to pack up. Our next destination, Grayland,Washington. Maybe we'll see some sun people!

Out and About

Mr.J and I walked Hawthorne area this week. The walk began at Mt. Tabor Park and then down to the Hawthorn area. Mr.J thinks we ought to tootle on over there every week to climb the stairs. I'm not quite so enthused!

The fields were in bloom. Sweetpeas and Queen Anne's Lace dotted the hillside. 

One of Portland's famous uncovered water reservoirs, #6. Great view of the city.

We passed by the Western Seminary. The doors and windows were wide open to let a little air in.
 Woo-wee...hot day! 

The long, hot road before us. 

The flowers were often lovely along our route through residential area.

We wandered past coffee shops, restaurants and lots of vintage stores.

 Hawthorne Vintage was one we went into. I found a pink and black silk scarf with a mid-century modern vibe. Mr.J gravitated towards an aggressive sounding turquoise timer. We ended up at Ben and Jerry's for a cool off with ice cream before hiking back up the hill where we left the car.
It was a fine way to spend the day with my favorite guy!

Glamping with Hubs

We decided to head up to the Santiam Pass area in our beautiful state of Oregon. We packed La Dee Dah with our clothes and a few other important things like s'more supplies and wienies to roast. It seemed so easy this time since I have most of the trailer goods in a couple of plastic containers or in the La Dee Dah's cupboards. It was a matter of carrying them out to the trailer and storing them on the bunk. Then stocking the fridge and the "pantry", the storage box to the right of the kitchenette. We had a quick discussion about taking the bikes, but in the end decided not to. We were really going to spend most of the time fishing and hiking.  Packed and off we went!

Several hours later we arrived at Coldwater Creek Camp. The camp site was beautiful, but very uneven. Try as we might we couldn't level La Dee Dah. There was also  a drop off right out the front door. So no awning either. No problem. We're in the shade mostly anyway. Now aren't we easy going!  
No worries and those wienies were calling our names.

The table is ready with my rooster tablecloth from Portugal.

Clear Lake at Coldwater Cove Campground

The lake looked clear and sparkling. The plan was to rent a row boat and try our luck fishing the next day. 

That gave me a little time for reading before bedtime. I'm usually a late into bed and early up gal, but that night we turned in early.

The following morning we rented the boat and spent the day fishing. I love my new pole! Did I or hubs catch anything....nada. But we were determined to try again!

A view in the evening as we row back to our camp.
The next day we decided to hike around the lake in the morning and have lunch at the lodge located at one end of the lake. It didn't look far. Ha, ha! The trail ended up circling around behind the lodge. So it was a bit further than it appeared. The trail was really lovely. It wound through lava beds and forest with wonderful views of the lake too. 

Yes, that really is the trail people! A bit rough in places. We met some guys on bikes and warned them.

That's Clear Lake alright!

We crossed several bridges over the McKenzie River.

A waterfall too!

I was surprised to see so many wildflowers along the trail.

The lodge from the back as we followed the trail winding behind. Those are the Three Sisters just over the tops of the trees.

We had a terrific time at Coldwater Campground! Even though we didn't catch fish. There were others fishing too and we only saw one fish caught. The camping spots are pleasant, but not the best for trailers, even as small as ours. We checked out other sites and the asphalt pads were not deep or wide, nor level. There are no hook ups. Water has to be pumped and the toilets are vault. The trails were fabulous. We only hiked the trail around the lake. There are more trails close by. The lodge has ice and serves breakfast and cafe type lunch sandwiches. I had a hamburger and it was good. So if you are looking for rustic, quiet, and beautiful, this could be your spot. Would we go there again? Sure!!