Today was a mixed day. The mechanic was able to get the oil change done sooner than planned, but we got caught up with some last minute things. We saw the sunset over the ocean, but missed seeing RNSP as we drove through it. We couldn’t camp (the campgrounds were all full), but did 1) see an elk, and 2) find a reasonably priced motel near the park.

We got an early start on our last day in Corvallis. We loaded up the car faster than I thought we would, and got to the mechanic’s (I highly recommend Gary’s on 2nd). He was able to bump up the oil change to right away (his 8AM hadn’t shown yet), so we went to go grab some grub. We ate a good breakfast (with delicious hazelnut pancakes and marionberry syrup) and went back to the car. We set off, got gas and then went to Corvallis CoffeeWorks to grab some beans before saying goodbye to the best coffee roaster we’ve found to date. This took a little while, but it was only 10AM by the time we restarted. Then we remembered that we hadn’t replaced my hat (a casualty of Red Gap Pass). This took another 45 minutes (university bookstore+first day of classes=lines).

We finally left, returning to Newport to continue down US-101. We stopped at Seal Rock State Park, because beach, did a small stroll along the beach, and continued on our way. We stopped again at Oregon Dunes National Recreation Area and took another hike to the beach (dudes, er, readers, this is cool, do this). It was a 2 mile hike and took about 90 minutes. We said farewell to the Oregon beaches and left.

We got through California’s state line check point quickly (fortunately we skipped the Wednesday Farmers’ Market or that would have been annoying). We encountered some construction and views on 101, but we found a good place to stop in time to catch the sun setting over the Pacific. We continued, got lost a bit in Redwoods Park due to road closures and dark, found our way to a campground but it was full, saw an elk, and continued down 101, eventually finding a motel.

This, unfortunately, meant I could do work, so, work I did; doing about 3 hours before calling it a night.

This part of the trip is a bit of a downer for me. It is not just because the journey is nearing its end, but I am leaving the Pacific Northwest again. I’m trying to be positive about going back to the Midwest, but I really enjoy the Northwest – it’s a place I feel most at home.

Tomorrow: Re-try RNSP, then on to Lassen.

Stats: 18 days, 7 states, 11 hikes, 51.5 miles, and 4 National Recreation Areas