Weekend in Newport, Oregon

Newport, Oregon: The weather turned overnight. We now have a bank of foggy clouds covering the beach and a constant drizzle. The furnace is working away in our motorhome. DT did go for a run down the jetty road - no matter the rain - and then we headed out in search of adventure in rainy Newport! (If you wait for good weather to have an adventure on the Oregon Coast, you may never see a thing.)

Our first stop was to the Newport Farmers Market, held each Saturday during the growing season in the parking lot of the Chamber of Commerce. We enjoyed meeting the cheese makers from River's Edge Chèvre - a product we often buy at our friendly New Season's Market at home. Ms. Pat Morford raises goats on Three Ring Farm and makes cheese from their milk. Morford is extraordinarily concerned with their welfare and treats her herd as pets. Happy goats make good milk and good milk makes good cheese. More and more Oregon cheese artisans are receiving deserved attention. Look for something fun and delicious at a specialty grocer near you and support your local farmers! We were also able to meet the bakers from Pacific Sourdough! For a small town, the Newport Farmer's Market has a lot to offer - we counted three organic vegetables farms offering produce today.

Newport Farmer's Market


Pacific Sourdough at the Newport Farmer's Market - fresh from the back of their van

After our enjoyable visit with local foodies, we headed twelve miles north on rainy Highway 101 to Depoe Bay - today is the Depoe Bay Pirate Treasure Hunt (rain or shine). It is actually a scavenger hunt of sorts. Four-person teams must traverse the city, getting and solving clues. There is an entry fee and proceeds go to local charities. Winners of the Best Costume contest are crowned Pirate King and Queen for the year. Everyone dresses like a pirate (or wench) and the entire town goes "buccaneer" for the day. The shop keepers are dressed in pirate attire, as are waiters in the restaurants, etc. Quite fun - and of course, everyone is "in character". Shiver me timbers - it was a fun afternoon in Depoe Bay.

Ahoy, Mates! Marauding band of pirates in Depoe Bay, Oregon

For our fish and chip judging of the day, we tried the fish and chips at Gracie's Sea Hag in Depoe Bay. The Sea Hag's bar was very busy with grog-swilling pirates and lusty wenches of all sorts. The pirates were singing sailor songs and were warming their peg legs by the cozy fireplace in the bar at The Sea Hag.

The Sea Hag's clam chowder - thick and flavorful, but not too many clams


Gracie's Halibut Fish & Chips: very meaty, huge portions and decent fries too. Light, crisp batter.

Depoe Bay is also the home of Ainslee's Salt Water Taffy. I have been enjoying Ainslee's Salt Water Taffy since I was a little girl. Ainslee's opened in 1947, and the business is still family-owned and operated. The taffy is made right in the window, so you can watch the sweet stuff being pulled and stretched to perfection before choosing your favorite flavors from the colorful bins in the shop.

Salt Water Taffy

We headed back south, driving along the coast-hugging scenic route. Truth be told, there wasn't a lot to see. It was foggy, rainy, windy and simply miserable. A complete reverse of the glorious day we enjoyed yesterday.

A dark and stormy day: view just south of Depoe Bay

The BLM has a great Visitor Center at the Yaquina Head Outstanding Natural Area (no kidding, that is the official name). The Yaquina Head Visitor Center has very good displays, with many things to interest children, including an entire area where the kidlets can play with popular "parlor games" from the 1800's. There is a short informational film about life at the lighthouse and very good explanations about how the Fresnel Lens actual works. Invented by French engineer Augustin Jean Fresnel in 1822, the lens has rings of glass prisms above and below the light source that bend, refract and concentrate the light into a bright beam. Not sure of the science, but it seems a Fresnel lens can be seen 20 miles out to sea and they make great lights for lighthouses. The Visitor Center also has a nice gift and book shop, toilet facilities and a huge parking lot.

Below the lighthouse, the BLM has provided a great paved walkway down to a fabulous tide pool area. We have been down to the tide pools before - this is a great place to spend a (hopefully sunny) afternoon with the kids exploring strange creatures clinging to the rocks on the shore edge. There is RV parking in the parking area above the tide pools.

A display about Captain James Cook in the Visitor Center


The Yaquina Head Lighthouse

We climbed to the top of the Yaquina Head Lighthouse - 110 steps. It is actually a pretty easy climb, with three landings to rest if you are a wimp. Unfortunately, when you reach the top there is no view! No kidding. You can see inside the actual light (and the Fresnel Lens!), but a visitor is only rewarded for their climb with a quick glimpse into the lighthouse top. Bummer - but climb the 110 steps anyway so you feel better about your fish and chips or Tillamook Ice Cream cone or some other treat in which you will inevitably indulge while in the area. The Friends of the Lighthouse have recently finished a complete million-dollar restoration of the beautiful tower and nearly everything in the lighthouse is original. Adding to the atmosphere, volunteers dress in period costume. (By the way - it is pronounced Ya-QUINN-ah.)

View from the bottom


The Fresnel Lens: this is what you get to see after climbing 110 steps!


The view north from Yaquina Head

We had a long rest and a long evening of college football back at the bus and then headed to the Nye Beach neighborhood in north Newport for dinner at April's at Nye Beach (749 NW 3rd Street, Newport, 541-265-6855). We have heard wonderful things about April's, but we must say that our dining experience was just good - not great. I was so disappointed! Their menu is "northwest cuisine inspired by the flavors of the Mediterranean" and April's at Nye Beach has a fairly decent red wine list (though not even one Italian Pinot Grigio!) and served breads from the above mentioned Pacific Sourdough. Our waiter was quite good, but something was just missing for me to give this restaurant a glowing review. The prices were just barely expensive - not too bad for a fancy restaurant in a tourist town - two appetizers, two main courses and a bottle of wine for under $100. Maybe the dining room was just a bit too chilly? Maybe we had to wait for our reserved table for ten minutes in a half-full restaurant? Maybe my salmon was just a bit too salty? Maybe we "over-beeted"? My salad had roasted beets over greens with goat cheese and toasted hazelnuts, served with grilled hazelnut sourdough from Pacific Sourdough. It was pretty good, though the greens were tough (it is late in the green season, to be fair). DT's appetizer was polenta squares with grilled porcini mushrooms - served with a reduced roasted beet sauce. (Okay, so I DID see a ton of multi-colored beets at the farmer's market this morning...)

This is a restaurant we will have to visit again to give a final review, dear readers. Proceed with caution.

April's at Nye Beach: Local Chinook salmon topped with roasted
red beets, kalamata olives and capers - over fingerling potatoes
and green beans. Pea sprouts for garnish.


Beet-Free: Salmon, shrimp and clams over linguini. DT ate it all.

Until our next fish & chip feeding frenzy, I remain, your "Not the Future Mrs. Tebow - even though he was born in the Philippines" correspondent.

RV Park: Newport Marina and RV Park