Checking Out The Oregon Coast

Alright, for a little clarification, I am not in Oregon anymore, but since entering Washington, I have had time to reflect on my time in the Oregon Coast-more specifically Lincoln City. I didn't post a lot while in Lincoln City, but that is mainly due to all the small adventures I was having. Before diving into those stories, though, I'd like to give a little insight into a regular day for me whilst a long the coast.

Now say what you will about Lincoln City and Oregon, but Regatta Park is by far the best park I've experienced during this trip. It had a playground with monkey bars (for my workout), picnic tables you could back right up into, power outlets, a bathroom, a drinking fountain, and it was right by the lake.

Playground at Regatta Park

Devils Lake at Regatta Park

While I did spend plenty of time at Regatta Park, it definitely wasn't because I lacked other things to do. My first adventure on the coast was at Connie Hansen Garden Conservancy. Now I want to be clear, I did not have a bad time at the conservancy-I actually had a pretty pleasant morning jaunt through the garden. That said, Connie Hansen Garden Conservancy is not a very remarkable conservancy... Unless you count it's unremarkability as particularly remarkable. The gardens only span the totality of an acre, the greenery is not particularly unique for the area it is in, and at many points, there wasn't a clear path. Again, nothing against the small town attempt to create a pretty space, but until the conservancy has room to grow-pun intended-I would not recommend it.

Connie Hansen Garden Coservancy (CHGC)

Cute bridge at CHGC

My next notable adventure was on the Drift Creek Falls Trail (for readers of my last post, this happened earlier that Sunday before the dance video). I woke up early one Sunday and decided that it was the perfect day for a morning hike. Sonna had recommended the Drift Creek Falls hike while I was staying at her place, so I figured I'd take her suggestion. And a good suggestion it was. The trail itself was a 1.5 mile slightly downhill dirt path with trees all around. The hike itself was just super pleasant, and so was the suspension bridge you cross 100 ft in the air to get to the falls. Overall, I really enjoyed this hike, it was the perfect one for my mood. To be honest, the slightly downhill slightly uphill trail was my favorite trail I've ever hiked on. The sights weren't mind blowing, but my eyes were never bored. The falls themselves were neat, but nothing to write home about.

Suspension bridge on the Drift Creek Falls Trail

Just chillin' 100 ft in the air

Being a dork at the Drift Creek Falls

I also spend quite a bit of time strolling around downtown. Walking around small coastal downtowns has a very specific feel-for lack of a better term. While each town obviously has different stores, they all offer very similar views and layouts. To be clear, this isn't a bad thing. Being able to rely on experiences that you can easily anticipate can be nice, especially when you're constantly traveling. And it was such for myself during my time in Lincoln City. Along my downtown stroll, I went into a book store, the "Prehistoric" fossil store, and a wind apparatus store. I actually had plans to watch "F1"-the new Brad Pitt racing movie-on 8/28 at a local mom and pop theater. I was pretty excited too, because "F1" is no longer showing at the big commercial theaters, and I believe "F1" is definitely a movie you should watch on the big screen. However, when I drove out to watch on that fateful evening, it turned out they had stopped playing it the day before. Now I swear that the poster said they were showing the movie until the evening of 8/28, but I guess that's just life. At least I got a really good ironic chuckle out of it.

Loving the animal models at the Prehistoric fossil store

Checking out cool artwork in Lincoln City, Oregon

While walking downtown, I also happened upon the Lincoln City Cultural Center, and although I didn't go inside, I got to enjoy the cool artwork outside.

Abstract art piece outside the Lincoln City Cultural Center

I may not be Aquaman... but I sit up on an aquatic throne

Carrying the weight of unbridled art on my shoulders

Now I know how wacky this sounds, but I had a lot of fun at the Lincoln City Outlets. I'll say it right now, I'm not a big strip or outlet mall person. However, I was pretty impressed with the Lincoln City Outlets. They had your standard big name clothing stores that you see at pretty much every one of these strip malls, but they also had a fun selection of locally owned mom and pop hobby shops. Hey, that kinda rhymes!

Proof that I was at the Lincoln City Outlets

My person favorite was "DragonVine"-a board game and nerd hobby store that had everything from comics to board games. That might not sound like a good time to most people, but for a nerd like myself, it was heavenly. However, what made this store really stand out was it's unique selection of drinks and snacks.

Taking a picture with my favorite outlet store

However, what made this store really stand out was it's unique selection of drinks and snacks. They had all kinds of limited edition drinks and a bunch of Japanese snacks that you can usually only find abroad. I wasn't planning on spending money on the outlets, but I ended up getting some Peanut Mochi and two limited edition "Monster" energy drinks. I'd never had Mochi before and I had been yearning to try that specific flavor of "Monster", because you can only really find them online. I feel like trying new things is definitely in the spirit of this trip, so despite spending money I wasn't expecting to, it was worth it for the experience.

Reaping my self-funded rewards for going to the outlets

My final adventure on the Oregon Coast was at the North Lincoln County Historical Museum. And wow, it was another fun museum. The entire bottom floor was dedicated to what living on the Oregon Coast was like before the 1920s. In addition to a small exhibit on the native tribes of the area, there was a super cool area dedicated to the old techniques that Oregon lumberjacks would use to fell giant trees.

Learning about the wonders of old Oregon Lodging techniques

On the other hand, the upstairs was dedicated to everything post 1920s. It was almost entirely comprised of different little mock sets that gave you a visual glimpse into what it would have been like to live back then.

Admiring the model of an old Oregon auto shop

Giving my approval of old camping equipment

To be clear, I don't have a thing for redheads, but I do have a perfectly good reason for including a picture of the Redhead Roundup set. I feel like a lot of people trash on redheads, and as an individual who is friends with a couple redheads, I'm glad that people in the olden days were willing to celebrate them. Just... ignore the weird look on my face.

Shout-out to all the redheads out there

Trust me, I now the picture below isn't a visual spectacle, but I couldn't, in good conscious, see this little newspaper ad and not give it a shout out.

Sleep in your car? Not a bad idea!

With a few days hindsight, I look back on my time on the Oregon Coast with fondness. In all honesty, I wasn't excited for the adventures I had planned in Lincoln City, but once I actually followed through on them, I was pleasantly surprised. Although I never got the chance to swim in the Oregon coast ocean, I instead found other things to pass time on the lovely beach.