1. Eureka! We’re in the Trees!

 I wasn’t going to write about this trip. My intention was to just be in the moment and not think about how I might describe things if I was writing a blog post. But then a friend asked me about it. She wanted to know when the first post would be up. It made me realize two things. One, that someone is indeed reading what I write and two, that I wanted to write it for myself. I don’t want to forget these memories or the way I felt during our road trip to Washington State. This trip had been in the works since 2017, but if I’m honest really all of the way back to when I met my husband in 2000. He has always wanted to visit Oregon and Washington but we always skipped past it for more exotic locales like Europe. Here we were at last, it was finally having it’s due. I tweaked the itinerary that I meticulously planned in 2017 (that trip was aborted when Daniel’s new job decided 2 days before we were due to leave that he actually couldn’t have the time off), and off we went for our first destination of Humboldt County to a place called Samoa located just off the coast of Eureka, via a bridge.

Let me back up a bit here. I need to set the scene for this road trip- give it some context- especially if it’s being read in a time when the events of 2020 don’t easily come to mind. It feels weird to have to explain 2020 because in 2021 we’re still living it- but someday it will actually be a distant memory. I will forget why this road trip was so important and also why I was so fraught with worry before we set out. 2020 was the year of Covid-19, aka the Corona Virus. Two years ago I had never heard of this and I certainly didn’t think I’d be on such intimate terms with a virus. Any adult living currently can tell you exactly what the virus looks like under a microscope, how it’s transmitted, what it does to people, and the cost to both our economy and our society. We are different now. That’s just how it is. 

Travel, especially international travel screeched to a halt by the end of March 2020. All of us stayed home. Many of us were either laid off, furloughed, or just shut down. My husband and I both fell into that category. My industry (hair) was shut down completely and my husband was furloughed (hospitality).  Daniel had 2 months off before being called back into work and I had 3 months before my industry was allowed to resume with extensive Covid protocols in place. I would be shut down 2 more times before 2020 would close. It became increasingly clear that our trip to England which was supposed to happen in September of 2020 was not going to go ahead. I had a girls trip to Jackson Hole, Wyoming that was also cancelled in early May- it was the first indicator that what was supposed to be a 2 week shutdown was now much bigger than any of us could anticipate. Normal life would not resume and we would continue to stay home. 

In January of 2021 I started to feel a little more hopeful that we would be able to comfortably travel domestically again. Airplanes are still off limits in my view but road trips felt feasible and I started to plan a spring trip up the coast to the Olympic Peninsula in Washington State. Slowly our Covid numbers started to drop, locally we graduated from the purple tier, to red and finally to orange not long before we were due to leave. Things were looking up, restrictions were being lifted. We still wore masks but were allowed back in restaurants and social occasions became less restrictive. 

We planned to spend the majority of our trip in less populated places, having no cities on our itinerary, preferring to make our trip about nature. Up on the docket: trees, lakes, rivers, ocean, temperate rain forests, and mountains. We crossed our fingers that we could avoid the crowds. 

Two days before we set off on our adventure, Oregon’s cases started to rise at an alarming rate again. The Governor reimplemented restrictions and things tightened up. We looked at each other wondering what this was going to do to our time in that state. On our way North we were not stopping in Oregon except to sleep one night. We were antsy to get to Washington as quickly as possible. We figured that as long as our hotel in Newport, Oregon was still accepting guests then we’d be fine. The first week of our two week trip was mostly to be spent in Washington, with the second week spent in Oregon as we made our way home. We booked our accommodations for the first week in advance, but left the second week completely open. Thank goodness we did this, as things really changed that second week and we needed to be flexible. In hindsight we should have spent our entire time in Washington, not bothering to be tourists in Oregon at all. But, I’m getting ahead of myself, that will come later in a future blog post. 

Due to the fact that we had to cancel all of our 2020 travel plans and because of the emotional rollercoaster that was 2020 (and 2021, let’s be honest it’s not much better) we decided to splurge on this trip. We are usually very middle of the road about our accommodations but this time we decided to bump it up into the next bracket and just enjoy some luxury. Moreover, prices of hotels have gone up drastically since May of 2020- what was once a price I considered a splurge is currently normal for a place like Best Western. We didn’t go fancy by any means but we did step outside of our budget comfort zone. 

Our first night was at the Humboldt Bay Social Club in Samoa, California. This is an 8 hour drive on a good day with no traffic and few stops. Realistically it took us closer to 9 hours because we stopped for lunch and bathroom breaks. It made for a long day, but I like the drive. 

I always feel like once I’ve crossed the Golden Gate Bridge the adventure really begins. I so rarely go north of San Francisco that this is uncharted territory for me. The last time I was north of the Golden Gate was in 2011- almost exactly 10 years earlier. This was the easiest trip though the city we’ve ever done. We got through San Francisco in no time. There was no traffic. It felt a bit like the twilight zone, with everyone working from home there were very few cars and even fewer pedestrians. I imagine the city will never be like this again. 

Between San Francisco and Eureka was a bit of a blur. We spent the time listening to a carefully curated playlist that I ended skipping every other song on. Had a good run listening to The Magician’s Nephew, and just talked. We stopped for a quick lunch of Subway in Santa Rosa, bathroom breaks in Ukiah and Garberville. A quick detour through the Avenue of Giants which turned out not to be so quick at all. It was actually going to add an hour on to our time so we hung a u-turn on the deserted road and drove back to the 101. We spent hours just trying to remember the name of the town we felt was not too far south of Eureka that reminded us of Scotland. Our rule was that we would not use google to find the answer. We both agreed it started with an “S”, and neither of us got it. We wracked our brains and then felt stupid when we saw the sign for Scotia. Why did it remind us both of Scotland? Because Scotia is where Scotland got it’s name from. It was a forehead slapping moment for us both. Guaranteed we’ll never forget the name again. 

Somewhere north of San Francisco

When it came to finding accommodations in Eureka I was very fortunate to have help. The last time we were there we stayed in Crescent City, which was awful. It was also an hour and a half north putting us far from restaurants or stores if we needed to pick up things like socks. Yes, this happened. A certain someone got all of the way to Crescent City before realizing he didn’t bring a single pair of socks. I digress. We knew this time around we wanted to stay in or near Eureka. We didn’t want to camp but we wanted to be close to the redwoods. My original plan was a hotel in Klamath that pretty much put us in the middle of nowhere on Hwy 101. Fortunately I thought to reach out to an acquaintance who teaches at Humboldt State before I committed. She set me straight and pointed me to Humboldt Bay Social Club. Now I am going to pass the same advice on to you, dear reader. If you find yourself near Eureka, stay at Humboldt Bay Social Club. It’s pretty new and doesn’t have much a presence on review websites like TripAdvisor yet. I was going in on just the recommendation, keeping in mind that she herself had never stayed there but had just heard good things about it. It was worth every penny. 

This unique hotel is actually 4 suites located in a renovated building on a municipal airfield surrounded by sand dunes. There’s a bar, restaurant and the old hangar which they use for events. Situated next door is a drag racing strip. You’d think that would be annoying. Here you are isolated out on a peninsula, in the peace and quiet and suddenly someone revs their engine. But you know what? It was fun. I went out into the parking lot and watched from a distance. They finished at a respectable time and left us just in time to watch a peaceful sunset. The restaurant was busy with locals but our suite (Suite 6) was furthest from the noise and we weren’t disturbed at all. There was only one other couple staying there and of course they chose the suite right next to us. We heard them a little bit but not enough for it to be annoying. I wish we’d stayed more than one night so we could fully enjoy the amenities and the surroundings. There is a beach within walking distance that we didn’t have time to go to, but I’m determined to stay here again in the future.

Suite 6, our suite

The incredibly comfortable bed in our suite

The little porch and Adirondack chairs, so peaceful

Private sunset

The little wagon provided for beach adventures

One of my favorite things about this hotel is that it’s basically an airbnb. It was self check in with a lockbox on the door and a code. I had no in person interactions with staff but had lovely email communications. Once the bar and restaurant closed for the night we were left to our own devices on the property. It was peaceful and private, like we lived on a windswept beach. I went outside after dark and just took in the dark night, the stars and the distant sound of waves. It was the perfect start to our vacation, setting the tone for beauty, peace, and healing nature. I’m so happy I have the memories. 

The next morning we got up early and headed into Eureka for coffee and breakfast. Leaving Humboldt Bay Social Club was bittersweet. I didn’t want to leave but we also had so many adventures ahead of us and I was eager to jump right in. I have mentioned several times over the years how bad I am with direction. I will get lost at the drop of a hat, and apparently I can’t always read a map. Somehow, even with GPS I got us all turned around on our way to the Prairie Creek visitors center. I’m pretty sure if it was possible Daniel would have divorced me for 5 minutes. Can’t say I’d blame him, if the tables were turned I would have been annoyed with him too. Boy, we were off to a good start.

The trail we planned to do that morning is one we did back in 2011 and had fond memories of. The day was absolutely beautiful and the trails weren’t crowded. Parking is pretty limited but we were lucky enough to get one of the last spaces. We set off on the trailhead in the shade of the tall trees and took a deep breath. 

Very few things are as soothing as redwood groves. I wonder how much of that feeling for me is tied to my childhood and nostalgia? I spent every summer vacation (and sometimes fall) camping in the redwoods of Big Sur, and the Santa Cruz Mountains. So many of my happiest memories are tied to those coastal redwoods. When I step into a redwood grove I instantly feel calm. My shoulders relax, even under the weight of a heavy back pack and I feel light in my step. The world is full of wonder again. 

We came to a fork in the trail where a tree had fallen. Amidst the debris on the ground was the broken sign telling us which direction to go in for our desired trail. The trail itself was blocked in one direction. We just stood there staring at the broken sign, neither of us said a word. We must have looked like someone pressed the pause button. Finally one of us broke the silence and pondered what to do. We decided to turn around and find a new trail since we had no idea where the unblocked side went. 

Broken sign and blocked trail

We wandered for a bit and explored, finding banana slugs, snakes (eeek!)  and so much unrecognized flora, it was an adventure! We both hated to cut it short but we had one of our longest drives ahead of us that day. Lucky for us we weren’t leaving the beauty behind, our drive would take us through trees, glimpses of the ocean and bridges that stopped us in our tracks- we had entered an enchanted land. 

Banana slug on the trail

Standing next to a metal Roosevelt Elk. They’re huge

Something that I didn’t remember from previous trips up Hwy 101 to Oregon is how isolated the road gets. It changes quickly from a multi-lane highway to a 2 lane with no passing lanes for miles on end. We ran into a lot of road construction on the way but fortunately there wasn’t a lot of traffic so once we cleared each construction zone it was pretty smooth sailing. I would imagine it would be a nightmare in the summer with all of the RV’s going along that route. The few times we did have to come to a stop we couldn’t complain- trees to our right, the ocean to our left, not a bad scene. 

One of the things we noticed once we crossed the border into Oregon were the ornate bridges. I stopped taking pictures after a while but in the beginning I was trigger happy with that lens. The first bridge we came upon is the concrete arch Isaac Lee Patterson Bridge (also called the Rogue River Bridge) in Gold Beach, Oregon. Opened in 1932 the architect Conde B. McCullough was influenced by the Art Deco style of the time, from 2001-2004 the bridge underwent extensive rehabilitation to the tune of $20 million. I was delighted to see such a pretty bridge in what felt like such a remote place. 

Approaching the Isaac Lee Patterson Bridge

On the Isaac Lee Patterson Bridge

My very favorite bridge that we came across was the Conde B. McCullough Memorial Bridge. Yep, the architect of the previous bridge mentioned. This cantilever bridge spans the Coos Bay near North Bend. In fact it was originally called the North Bend Bridge when it was completed in 1936. After the death of it’s architect it was renamed in his honor in 1947. I can’t even tell you what it was like to come upon the green gothic inspired arches in the middle of the large span of this bridge- it felt like something out of a fairytale. I have several photos and videos of this bridge on my phone because I just couldn’t stop myself. 

Approaching the gothic arches on the bridge. I have so many pictures .

After what ended up being a 7 hour drive we finally pulled into the parking lot of our hotel in Newport, OR. We took a walk in the coastal drizzle, ducked into a restaurant for fish and chips and retired back to our room with snacks in hand. It’s amazing how just sitting in a car for 7 hours can make you so tired. 

Ornate bridge with the Heceta Head Lighthouse and the light keepers house

View from our hotel room

Common sight all through Oregon and Washington

Newport 

Newport to Boston, MA

We had an early night so we could hit the road as soon as we woke up. Washington State was calling our name!