FLORENCE DURING THE DAY…LIGHTHOUSE AT NIGHT

Sunday, June 3 – We finally took time to visit Florence. It is just a small town, but a nice, clean one.

We started our walk by visiting the Sweet Magnolia Bakery. Yummy! We had coffee and a couple of delicious pastries. We try to do our part in contributing to the local economy.

It was (as Marsha puts it) a cute little place.

They have a really nice gazebo and an area where visitors can sit and enjoy the water.

Art Deco 1936 Siuslaw River Bridge

A walk around Florence and talking with the locals confirms our thoughts that the residents are very proud of their town.

We returned to the Umpqua Lighthouse this evening to see it at night. A suited night for it to be shining its guiding light to sea.....cold, rainy, and the waves wiping against the Umpqua River jetty. We arrived before dark and enjoyed watching the beacon's transformation from day to night.

During daylight, the beacon appears as a reflector at the top of the lighthouse, but as darkness approaches it comes to life. First you see the light inside the glass dome, then the beams of light, shining laser-like out to sea, become visible as it becomes darker. Eventually, you can see the beams shining in all directions, bouncing off the near-by trees and shining their guiding lights out to sea. I bet it's something amazing to be out on the ocean and see the lighthouse welcoming you home.

Look at the trees with the reflection of the Lighthouse lights. Like being on a carousel.

This is the first time we've ever seen a lighthouse at night and is was a pretty neat experience. We could have used some of that “guiding-light” on our drive home up the twisting rain-soaked coastal highway. It took us a little longer, but we arrived home safe and sound!

Thanks for stopping by. Hope to see y'all back real soon. Have a great day!

HARBOR VISTA PARK…FLORENCE, OR

Tuesday, May 29 – We were on the road early this morning headed for our next stop, Florence, OR. The drive was beautiful.

We are camped at Harbor Vista County Park in Florence, Oregon. What a nice campground! We are in Site 3 of the 38 available sights. It is easily accessible from Route 101 by driving about 3 miles out to the cape on a nice paved road.

Our site is paved, about 65 feet long, has a fire ring, a tent site (our patio), and 50 amp electric and water. There is a dump station available at the front gate.

Our site…West 3.
.

Our beautiful private side yard.

Looking left.

Looking right.

We were greeted by Pauline, a friendly camp host, who directed us to our site and made sure we had everything we needed. There is also a campground caretaker, that lives in a house in the campground, that takes care of maintenance and sells firewood. He does a wonderful job. The park is very clean.

There is a access to the beach where you can walk for miles along the sandy beach. This area of the coast is not the rugged high cliffs associated with most of the Oregon coastline.

Looking across the street where we can view the ocean.

Bella, our cat, just LOVES all the birds, smells, grass and areas for exploration. We are here for a week, and she will certainly enjoy herself.

This County Park's website does a great job of explaining each site. They even have a category for satellite reception for each site.

A gorgeous sunset.

Thanks for stopping by. Hope to see y'all back real soon. Have a great day!